Neon Indian is the American musical prodigy behind the sonically wild, psychedelic soundboard that is his most recent album, 'VEGA INTL Night School'.
Alan Palomo is the man responsible for the Daft Punk-meets-Gorillaz-meets-the-'80s transcendent sound, which has carried Neon Indian through since his debut in 2009. Previously known as Vega, Neon Indian has been given praise by Rolling Stone and has even performed on Jimmy Fallon's 'Tonight Show'.
Alan released only one EP as Vega before feeling a change. “After my EP, I wanted to write a Vega record before I realised it was a Neon Indian record,” he says. “I was making those songs [as Vega] in a completely different climate of music, and I was also a teenager so there was a different onset of influences that I had at the time.”
And so the transformation began and Neon Indian was born. His latest record is a nod to his previous alias. During production, Alan decided to merge Vega with Neon Indian, creating an electronic, chill-wave spaceship journey through time.
Partnered with the trippy, groovy soundwaves of 'Night School' is an accompanying array of visual elements that complement each song individually.
Alan worked side-by-side with Sabrina Ratté, a video artist inspired by the relationship between music and visuals. “As a big Sabrina Ratté fan, I wanted to be able to commission her to do her thing,” Alan says. “I love her work and I wanted to see her working in conjunction with the album that I had made... It just felt right.”
The album – which Alan says should be played in a smokey, empty movie theatre – was recorded in a number of different places, including a cruise ship. Alan recruited his brother Jorge, who worked as a bassist with the cruise ship's house band, to help create the album.
In order to finalise Jorge's contributions, Alan boarded the ship for a few months. “Any time you're trapped in a giant, floating mall where they stuff you full of alcohol and put you on a blackjack table, it's going to be a weird time,” he says.
Alan says he likes to work alone, but broke that rule when a dream of his came true. Previous to releasing 'Night School', American rock band The Flaming Lips approached him. “Wayne Coyne [lead singer] just walked up to me after a show and was like 'Hey, Wayne Coyne, Flaming Lips, we should work on something', and I was just like 'Uh... Yeah, of course.'” A collaborative, four-song EP was soon released in 2011, receiving positive reviews and giving Neon Indian a new platform.
With his Australian tour just around the corner, Alan will be joined on stage by the Xbox camera extension Kinect. Responding to the movements of Alan and the band, it produces visual eye-candy; moving glitches that cooperate hand in hand with the performance. “We've never been able to incorporate ourselves as performers into the mix,” Alan says.
“To be able to actually create content from this weird, topographical camera that interprets that information from visual algorithms... I think that's really cool.”
Neon Indian Tour Dates
Thu 10 Dec - Fat Controller (Adelaide)
Fri 11 Dec - Disconnect Festival (Perth)
Sat 12 Dec - Meredith Supernatural Amphitheatre (Meredith)
Mon 14 Dec - University Of Woollongong Unibar
Tue 15 Dec - Oxford Arts Factory (Sydney)
Wed 16 Dec - The Foundry (Brisbane)
Fri 18 Dec - National Gallery Of Victoria (Melbourne)
