Static Channel debut their latest music video, “Terminal 3,” featuring a unique blend of video game-inspired animations from the talented Toronto artist Erin Corbett.
Formerly recognized in the Toronto and broader Canadian music scenes as VERSA, Static Channel is sparking interest with their 2023 album, “Levadas.” As part of their promotion, they’re releasing a series of imaginative animated music videos that delve into cutting-edge tech themes. To bring their album’s opening song, “Terminal 3,” to life, they’ve collaborated with Erin Corbett, a Toronto-based experimental producer and artist, creating a one-of-a-kind video game environment for the track.
The partnership began when Static Channel’s monautomaton and Alex Iso reached out to Corbett at the end of 2021, having been impressed by her earlier project, the Kitjohari music video for “Jairzinho Scores.” While discussing the envisioned visual concept, Alex Iso commented that the album draws heavily from an idyllic, nostalgic image of certain Portuguese islands they had visited years before, sharing photos of the picturesque Madeiran terrain as inspiration. Corbett found the local architecture’s stark emergence from the rugged landscape remarkable, fascinated by the island’s elevated settlements, akin to living “above the clouds.”
Corbett embarked on crafting a 3D island environment, replicating techniques used in video game development. The creation process allowed room for conceptualizing an abstract tale to complement the track’s musical odyssey. In this virtual world, a bird-like creature emerges from an egg ejected by a gleaming UFO passing over the territory. This avian character embarks on a quest to locate and incubate other scattered eggs, assembling a makeshift boat for navigating the island’s topography and waters. This story arc culminates with the hatching of the eggs, which unlocks a mysterious power across the island, leading to the inception of an omnipotent bird-head figure, a storyline to be continued in subsequent chapters.
The track itself is an instrumental electronic post-punk piece marked by deep, foreboding bass tones and a compound drum rhythm that steadily escalates to a powerful climax. It sets the pace as the inaugural track on the group’s first album, “Levadas.” Reviewers at Electronica.co.uk have praised “Terminal 3” as a “hypnotic electronic escapade.” The track underwent recording at Copper Sound Studio with Daph Copper, received additional production at Casa Del Paisley by Alex Iso, and was expertly mixed and mastered by Brent O’Toole (Animatist) and Sage Kim (Lacquer Channel), respectively.
Static Channel, now based in Europe, comprises Monika Hauck, a new media artist stationed in Helsinki, and Alex Iso, a producer and musician out of Berlin. Melding instrumental electronic soundscapes with dynamic, sound-reactive visuals, the duo has experience in AV performances and art installations. They’ve transitioned from a seven-member post-rock ensemble to a laptop duo, gracing stages at Hillside Festival, Hold Fast, Nuit Blanche, and Y2K Mexico, among others.
Erin Corbett, known for their multifaceted talents, operates as an experimental electronic musician, abstract visual artist, producer, performer, audio engineer, sound designer, and overall creative force, not to mention a proud transgender individual.
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Feature photo by Alex Ramirez
Terminal 3 is out now: https://linktr.ee/staticchannel
