NWC is the first album by Mexican producer Belmar. This album talks about the past and the marks it leaves on us, how memories keep us not only alive during our day but how they also keep us awake at night.
The covers represent the ‘ghosts’ that have left a mark on us. Sometimes these ‘ghosts’ are a source of haunting and pain, but the memories that accompany them shape us. The ghostly figures we shot for the album cover and the singles, are an effort to cope with these traumas, putting them in new light and trying to own the memories that lie underneath the sheets.
Alongside Australian singer/songwriter @it bends, Belmar developed the EP Seasons. This marked their first collaborative effort. For the EP they wanted the four songs to represent the development of a relationship as the passing of the seasons.
For this release we wanted to show the collaborative effort of both artists using their faces in different ways. This also helped illustrate the idea of a developing relationship from the different perspectives, always mixed with some kind of glitches to represent the biassed or distorted side of a story a person experiences, while the other one might be a bit different.
The Goal was to achieve a general look and feel for the covers and the videos, making a coherent world where both coexist through textures, colour, and music. The videos were abstract extensions of the world presented in the covers. With the limitations of the COVID-19 pandemic, we were forced to work remotely. The videos represent abstraction of the emotions felt throughout the evolving relationship, never trying to begin to be too clear on what is actually going on, but focusing more on a feeling and letting that take over.
For Luz de Neón, Belmar dabbled into making music in Spanish for the first time. The EP shows a change in direction in the project, where the artist explores new rhythms and vibes throughout the project.
For the 4 songs on this project he enlisted 4 up and coming artists in the latin music scene: @Sunsplash, @Ceci Torres from colombia and the mexican artists @Sugich, and @NAN. He also booked a collaboration with @Sotomayor, a well established force in the mexican alternative music scene, marking his first big list collaboration.
For this EP we focus on creating 3D renderings of natural, dark and luminous spaces. The songs on this EP have a dancefloor focus, yet they also have an intimate vibe. The songs are romantic, yet festive, big and small at the same time. The different visual scenarios try to explore these ideas by combining intimate and natural spaces with these exhilarating glowing lights and elements. Drawing inspiration from the latin american current of Realismo Magico to create these eerie, yet comforting images.
All the songs were accompanied by a lyric video, furthering the duality of these ideas. For the song Bonito, we also developed a video: a one take video, shed with neon lights, where a beautiful soul gets ready to see the person that makes their heart skip a beat. Through a combination of choreographies (the dance and the camera movement) we designed this little scenario in space and time illustrating the feeling of nervousness and excitement before a big date.
Belmar and tomásss come together to explore a myriad of latin american sounds and rhythms. Their collaborative project falls all across the board, impossible to be contained within a single genre or style, the result from this prolific get together resulted in six tracks exploring everything possible, including reggaeton, indie sleaze, ballads, troba, touches of flamenco, among others. The project enlists a bunch of collaborators from across the Spanish speaking word to make these experiments come to life. Cato, Bacalao Men, Grillo Grillasca, solamentedan and Vera Noor are all part of this ensemble cast to explore the vastness of sounds Latin America has to offer.
The visual world tries to reflect this vastness through illustration, keeping a string of cohesion throughout the style and layout for each release.
