Grand Rapids, Michigan-based band hi-ker sparked the crowd to dance under an unusually hot equinox sun in downtown Kalamazoo as they kicked off Audiotree Music Festival. ATMF, in its fifth year, also included performances by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Lizzo, and Twin Peaks, just to name a few. After their set, Spencer, Kohl, and Chris spoke with The Moon about ideas evolved from their 2016 release, Weird Plastic, for their new album, Lippe.
In August, hi-ker paired with The Moon as well as frequent collaborator, Joe Ashi, to shoot a music video for their single “Jessie B. Good” on the coastal dunes of West Michigan. The sandy dreamscape frames an onlooker in sandals with socks, a sentient beachball, and a group of friends plagued by a shimmering golden man.
Accompanying the video are portraits of hi-ker taken on location at Nordhouse Dunes, shot and directed by The Moon’s Mark Andrus and Natalie G’NAT Wetzel.
“Jessie B. Good”: Behind the Scenes (Photos by Mark Andrus & Logan Zillmer)
“Chris and I started at the same time and I was still getting light headed. Being in the golden god’s presence left me breathless. Or maybe it’s that his lungs are also golden.” – Kohl
“Shooting the video at the beach was a great idea. Not only did it fit the song wonderfully, but it gave us an excuse to take a vacation and hang out at the beach for a few days” – Chris
“I got sand between my toes, the cam is on, and Sam is chopping wood for a fire. I’m happy.” – Spencer
hi-ker’s new LP, Lippe, will be released December 1st on iTunes, Spotify, Apple Music, and Soundcloud. Follow the band on Facebook and Instagram @hi-ker.
Album art by Dave Mcpeters: daves-clubhouse.com
For more information about The Moon, visit themoongr.com or follow @themoongr on Instagram
Images by Mark Andrus of The Moon
