16-year-old musician and climate activist River Codrington releases the first official music video as NWRVR
Body Swap is an exploration of gender identity and is taken from NWRVR’s debut EP, The Train is Coming
Watch NWRVR – Body Swap (Official Music Video) here
“It’s hard not to notice just how experienced beyond their years NWRVR is; and with expert direction by Ross Clarke and Jade Danielle-Smith, the short-film (because calling it a music video simply doesn’t do it justice) is a highly sophisticated, eerie, cinematic visual that encapsulates the calibre of artist NWRVR is proving to be” – EQUATE Magazine
16-year-old musician and climate activist River Codrington today releases the first official music video as NWRVR. Now streaming via Youtube, Body Swap is an exploration of gender identity and is taken from the debut, 5-track EP, The Train is Coming. The EP was released last month via NWRVR’s own label, Mislabel.
Already receiving early support from UK tastemaker EQUATE Magazine, the music video was filmed in Autumn 2020, at Bentwaters Parks. A former Royal Air Force station in the heart of Rendlesham Forest in Suffolk, the location is renowned for UFO sightings and was used by both the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War, and by the United States Air Force (USAF) during the Cold War. Now, Bentwaters Parks is a disused airfield set over a thousand acres consisting of concrete bunkers, hangars, control towers, and military buildings.
“The video was so important to me because it visualised the sounds I hear and portrayed what I feel about life so accurately. It’s such a beautiful piece of film, and the music hits all the key points in the story, and vice versa - they just bring each other to life. The work all the team did on it behind the scenes is incomprehensible, and I just love it.” – River
Directed by Ross Clarke whose work includes feature-length movies The Bird Catcher and Desiree, and Jade Danielle-Smith, Body Swap was filmed in one day. Using a crew of 13, the video captures a number of striking on-site locations. Most notably, the mammoth Hush House hangar, which was originally a facility for testing jet engines; the almost endless military runway, and the eerie surrounding forest.
"I wanted to do a road movie because the scale of the song demanded it, but the pandemic made that very challenging. Then we found an old American air base near Woodbridge - so many landscapes, textures and horizons in one place. As soon as we went there it felt right and the ideas flowed - the lyrics are so inspiring. And part of me still thinks Body Swap should be the Bond movie soundtrack for the post-Daniel Craig new world we are living in - so that weird ghostly military space felt just right for the alienation and scale of the song. Ultimately, the video could be simple because the song says so much.” – Ross Clarke
Teenage curiosity and identity are among the themes interrogated in the music of NWRVR. Having started writing music at the age of 10, River is a multi-faceted musician (trombonist, composer, pianist and vocalist) who moves effortlessly through genres, performing jazz, pop, classical and folk and everything in-between.
“NWRVR is a compost heap of all my experiences - all the things that matter to me. I wanted to make something that translated how I feel on the inside, onto the outside. So that’s what I tried to do. I think the music on the EP is basically about life. And as I only know about life from my own experience of it, it’s just that. People, politics, my head, the earth.” – River
First arriving in December of last year with the highly emotive debut single and performance video for Body Swap, NWRVR released the debut, 5-track EP The Train is Coming in January of 2021. The release featured three new tracks, Get Down, Glass Houses and Flames, blending musical styles across pop, electronic and a variety of classical influences. The EP was written and recorded last year at The Tower Studio in Hackney by NWRVR, in collaboration with producer Liam Howe. Liam formed ‘90s cult band Sneaker Pimps and has produced for Lana Del Rey, Ellie Goulding, Marina and the Diamonds, Tom Vek, Jessie Ware, Adele, FKA Twigs among others.
“Working with River to create this body of work has been a wonderful experience. It was inspiring to work with such a formidable young talent and I’m excited to see what comes next. Certainly an artist to keep a keen eye on.” – Liam Howe
The Train is Coming is the first in a string of new music set for release in 2021, which sees NWRVR continue to collaborate with a close-knit team of creatives, including Rebecca and Mike who contributed the NWRVR logo, covers and other art ideas and provocations.
NWRVR – The Train is Coming is available to stream and purchase below: https://bit.ly/NWRVRTheTrainisComingEP
NWRVR – Body Swap (Official Music Video) Credits:
Artist - NWRVR Guest artist, violin - Laura Hussey Director - Ross Clarke Director - Jade Danielle Smith Producer - Denise Markham Wroe Editor - Tim Wright at Bruizer Director of Photography - Joe Gainsborough Focus puller - Nick Cooper Camera assistant - Sam Lucas Stylist - Nathan Henry
Runner - Milo Abbiss Runner - Lim Yi Sheng Runner - Luize Snejersone Location - Bentwaters Parks, Suffolk
Editor’s NOTE: All filming activity followed strict COVID-19 safety protocols
For more information - [email protected] February 4th 2021