Legendary producer Four Tet has released his first music video in fourteen years, a vivacious piece of constructed reality by Joanna Nordahl. 

The innovative video follows two best friends out on a rager at Ally Pally: pre-drinking, revelling at Four Tet's mammoth comeback gig, and running around the venue’s empty corridors. Four Tet has a particular resonance for Londoners who came of age at the turn of the millennium, and Nordahl's affection for the music is tangible in these little experiences.

The gig itself is a piece of magic, supported by a staggering installation of 40,000 lights by visual collective Squidsoup. The obvious choice would have been to try and match the majesty of this event with boisterous, coverage-heavy photography. But by honing in on these girls - real or fictional - the video immerses us in an authentic stadium experience. The sight of one of the girls emptying her entire bag out onto the bathroom floor (to find her phone) will elicit a sigh of recognition from anyone who has ever gone to Alexandra Palace.

Nordahl had the nerve to document this complete anomaly of an event on Super 16mm. The format is not only famously unforgiving, but also a pretty brave choice considering the limitations on run time. Thanks to Ryan Marie Helfant, the DoP behind delicate, luminescent visuals for Solange and Kadhja Bonet, the decision paid off. See for yourself.

JOANNA NORDAHL:

This project has felt like coming full circle somehow, a dream come true in many ways.

“Kieran’s music played a huge part in introducing me to electronic music and club culture as a young teen, and I still go to his gigs every time I get a chance. So to me this project has felt like coming full circle somehow, a dream come true in many ways. I wanted that feeling of nostalgia and pure love for music and raving to shine through. I feel honoured that Kieran asked me and my team to capture the special magic that went down at Ally Pally.”

KIERAN HEBDEN (FOUR TET):

“I’ve been working with Squidsoup and the sound engineer Michael Parker for a few years on a show with a new light and sound experience for the audience. I think that at Alexandra Palace we got to take these ideas to the highest levels we have managed so far and it was a beautiful epic event that was one of the highlights of my life.

"I wanted to document the concerts so I approached Joanna about filming them and asked her to think of a way to take this idea beyond just being a straight concert video and to try and show the experience of being part of the crowd. I’m so thrilled with what she has made and the way she has woven these characters and their stories into the concert and the music.”