THE THE share the new music video for ‘Cognitive Dissident’, the first track to be taken from recently-announced Ensoulment, their first studio album of new songs in a quarter century out on Cinéola / earMUSIC on Friday 6th September 2024. The video was made in conjunction with long-time collaborators: directed by Tim Pope with editing, VFX and projections by Vicki Bennett (People Like Us) and Peter Knight.
THE THE and Tim Pope have a long, shared history working on a variety of videos and projects, including the film of the 2018 The Comeback Special concert at Royal Albert Hall (which featured as part of the multi-media box-set of the same name in 2021), the legendary Infected The Movie in 1987 – the first ever long-form video album release – the Versus The World film of the concert at Royal Albert Hall in 1990, and From Dusk ‘Til Dawn in 1993, as well as many music videos over the years including ‘Pillar Box Red’, ‘The Beat(en) Generation’, ‘Kingdom of Rain’, ‘Gravitate To Me’ etc.
Vicki Bennett (People Like Us), acclaimed video collage artist, and Peter Knight (photographer) have also long been associated with THE THE having created the videos for ‘We Can’t Stop What’s Coming’ and the ‘Stolen Moments’ remix of ‘GlobalEyes’ by DJ Food as well as creating the kaleidoscopic, cinematic backdrop for The Comeback Special world tour.
“It’s always a pleasure to work with my dear friends, director Tim Pope, video collage artist Vicki Bennett, and photographer Peter Knight. Our times working together are not only very creative, but also full of joyful mischief.”
-Matt Johnson
‘Cognitive Dissident’, written by Matt Johnson and Barrie Cadogan (guitar, backing vocals), is available on DSPs and is available as a limited edition 7” featuring the previously unreleased B-side ‘When Is The Heart Of Waiting’. The track also features long-standing stalwarts James Eller (bass), DC Collard (keyboards), Earl Harvin (drums), and Gillian Glover (backing vocals).
Additionally, the single cover features a previously unpublished work of Matt Johnson’s late brother Andrew (AKA artist Andy Dog) who, over the years, was very much responsible for the distinctive aesthetic style of THE THE’s releases.