Amarok are one of the most criminally underrated bands in doom today. On last year’s Devoured LP, the Northern Californians took the best parts of death/doom, sludge and funeral doom and molded them into a mournful, crushing package.
The music video for “Devoured” continues to push the boundaries of Amarok’s music, starring break dancer Kid David. David and Amarok are an unexpected pairing given that David’s fame comes from his work with the likes of Gwen Stefani, Justin Beiber and Miley Cyrus. Despite the obvious styles clash, Kid David adapted his style to fit Amarok’s, resulting in one of the most unique extreme metal music videos.
“The B-boy is Kid David, world-renowned break dance champion, actor, dancer for acts such as Gwen Stefani and Justin Bieber and brother of Bell Witch drummer Jesse Shreibman. Jesse and I used to be in a band together years ago called The Makai. That is when I met David.
“Kid David has been breaking for a long time now, and he is comfortable with his position in B-boy culture enough that he doesn’t mind stepping outside of the norm to try something new and push boundaries. I had wanted to do something musically with Kid David for years, as I have always been really impressed by his physical talents. I just couldn’t figure out how to combine what he does with our drastically different type of music while staying connected to both genres. I was worried that the video wouldn’t be taken seriously due to the juxtaposition of dance and doom.
“After filming David breaking in person, all my concerns were thrown out the window. He is so unquestionably talented that even those people that wouldn’t normally enjoy that type of dance have to admire the physical talents that he displays. I hope our music transcends some of the lines for the B-boys to enjoy the music as well. It’s always impressive to see breaking, but something is definitely added through the use of slow motion in the beginning of the video that allows you to see all the little nuances that are added in that may go unnoticed at full speed. It’s one of the most impressive forms of physical expressions that I’ve ever seen, and to combine it with what we consider one of the most expressive types of music seems like an unorthodox pairing but also perfect.”
Watch the video below; Devoured is out now on Translation Loss. You can watch more videos from Kid David on YouTube.
