Polo have released the video for their brand new single ‘HOLOGRAM’, taken from the forthcoming debut album A Place Between States out October 22nd.
A PLACE BETWEEN STATES DEBUT ALBUM OUT OCTOBER 22nd
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‘HOLOGRAM’ is a dark pulsating R&B-tinged pop track about letting go for the greater good. Singer Kat McHugh’s vocals weave between lush, hushed tones and a mellow but biting rap flow brought together with a soaring chorus. The brittle piano and throbbing bass from Luke Lount matched to warped guitar and down-tempo drum beats from Daniel Edgell all result in a track that wouldn’t be out of place on a Drake record, yet captures the punchy energy of 070 Shake paired with the moody air of Billie Eilish.
The single was released at the end of last month to great editorial support in Best Tracks Of The Week playlists from the likes of The Independent, Noctis Magazine and more. The new video plays as a visual metaphor for the song and captures the Leeds alt-pop trio performing the track from the back of a moving van.
Regarding the single and video Kat says, “‘HOLOGRAM’ is about moving on – the video needed to capture the process of putting yourself first and distancing yourself from something that doesn’t serve you anymore. We had this crazy idea of performing in the back of a removal van that was brought to life by a team of close friends. We shot the video at night to capture the feeling of escapism that comes with the process, and the raw, brittle nature of cutting ties.”
The forthcoming debut album A Place Between States finds Polo seamlessly traversing the electronic pop sphere. Opener ‘ERASE YOU’ is a twisted industrial dipped track with a vocal air of iio’s ‘Rapture’, elsewhere ‘CLUBLIGHT’ takes aim straight for the dancefloor with a hypnotic pulsing beat, seductive vocals and pumping bass.
There’s beautiful sparse moments as found on ‘A SOBERING THOUGHT’, ‘A PLACE BETWEEN STATES’ and ‘WE RECOVER’, which get as close as you can to a ballad on a Polo record while breakout electronic synth explosions are never too far away. This is demonstrated in the warped, chaotic yet ultimately composed pop tracks ‘SPOTLIGHT’ and ‘VISUAL HEART’ reminiscent of the likes of Arca.
“The album has given us the breathing space to explore ideas and concepts we’ve not yet been able to when releasing singles; we finally have space to be ourselves as a band without limitations,” says Luke of their hopes for the forthcoming release. “Every band is defined by their first album; this is us establishing who we are.”FURTHER INFORMATION ON POLO
Bonding over a shared attitude just as much as their shared musical interests, it’s this spirit of determination and a willingness to break the mould that infiltrates Polo’s ethos and their output as a band. Yes, Polo want to show that you can craft sonically-rich, nuanced synth-pop while keeping a self-produced, independent mindset, but they also want to extend that out to the messages they’re writing about, too.
“I feel empowered when I see something that is changed for the better by a human being or as a result of a group of human beings,” says Kat. “There’s a lot that needs to change and I want to do my bit; a part of that is telling stories through my music and doing that whilst being my truest self.
“I’m influenced by strong women, by LGBTQ+ culture, cultures around the world, nature and passion,” she continues. “I love experiencing little things that make me burst into tears for an unexplained reason like Thom Yorke’s ‘Anima’ video, because then you know it’s a message you needed to see. I’m an empath who takes on a lot of emotion, so my lyrics are always from when I’ve been made to really feel something.”
Since the release of their debut EP Alice in 2017 the band have earned critical plaudits from the likes of Noisey, Wonderland and Stereogum, plays on BBC 6Music and BBC Radio 1, and notable festival appearances at Reading and Leeds, The Great Escape, Live at Leeds and more. Now with the release of their forthcoming debut album they are set to build upon their high praise with a record perfectly encapsulating their unique sound and message.