I have been very much in love with Novo Amor since catching the video for his track Birthplace last Summer - it's a video tackling the issue of plastic in our oceans, and had me instantly hooked. The video went viral, receiving various awards and nominations including Best Independent Video at the AIM Awards - and deservedly so. His debut solo record of the same name was released in October and quickly became my second favourite album of the year (only missing out to the total star Rae Morris) and his show at Union Chapel was easily one of my favourite shows of the year.
In some very exciting news, Novo (AKA Ali Lacey) has teamed up with producer-directors Jorik Dozy and Sil van der Woerd again for a stunning two-part video for tracks Sleepless and Repeat Until Death. His music is incredibly cinematic and lends itself to videos of this nature - the newest collaboration acts as a comment on climate change, in particular the very real impact of air pollution on humans.
The videos were filmed in Mongolia, whose capital Ulaanbaatar is one of the world's most polluted cities - during the winter months, temperatures drop below -35C, and residents rely on burning coal for heat, which leads to an intense period of air pollution which is in turn wreaking havoc on the city's residents. Additionally, the city's population is swelling as the changing climate weakens the habitat of reindeer and the nomadic people who herd them (The Tsaatan), causing them to migrate to the city to seek alternative employment. Only forty Tsaatan families currently remain.
Sil & Jorik spent almost three weeks filming landscapes rarely seen in mainstream western media, creating videos which "tell the tale of a young Mongolian girl battling the health effects of air pollution, and her journey of recovery from modern life in the city to a lifestyle in the countryside that is more in-keeping with nature." Filming in such conditions was not without its difficulties, with the low temperatures causing issues for both the crew and their filming equipment.
For context on the issues explored in the video, the World Health Organisation released data in May 2018 showing that...
- 9 in 10 people globally breathe air containing high levels of pollutants;
- More than 90% of air pollution-related deaths occur in low and middle income countries, mainly in Asia and Africa;
- Around 3 billion people (>40% of the world's population) do not have access to clean cooking fuels and technologies in their homes, the main source of household air pollution;
- Air pollution is a critical risk factor for noncommunicable diseases, causing an estimated 24% of all adult deaths from heart disease, 25% from stroke, 43% from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and 29% from lung cancer.
Novo Amor is out on an international tour across March, April & May and returns to London to headline my favourite festival (this is genuinely a dream) Bushstock Festival on 15th June. Check out the full tour dates on his site here.
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