It’s been 15 years now since Johnathan Bates launched Big Black Delta, an epic-scaled electro-industrial solo project that had more in common with Hans Zimmer’s bwah-iest film soundtracks than any of Bates’ indietronica peers. Aside from last year’s LP of acoustic versions of his very much not-acoustic discography, BBD has been mostly quiet since 2020, when Bates released his fourth LP, 4. Now we’re anticipating that album’s follow up, ADONAI, which is planned for a February 28 release, as the third single (following the previously released “Uncertainty Is Delight” and “Splash”) lands today.
Unlike its predecessors, “Pik Pok” is an instrumental cut that leans further into the sphere of cathartic dance music than the more balladic new wave singles that came before it. As Bates tells it, the track sees him doing his best to channel his internal experiences from the time in his life when he was “a fulltime drunk. “I really enjoyed the combo of vodka, THC, and a sunrise walk,” he explains. “Wake up around 4 a.m. Drink some almond milk to coat the stomach. Five shots of vodka to the dome, followed by a lemonade with 200mg of THC. Then maybe some quick weight lifting. The combo of all of this would open a portal in my mind’s eye. This portal seemed to channel music the likes of Esquivel, the Mexican mid century composer. DMT elf music. Here is an example of what would be playing in my head. Ride the snake.”
“DMT elf music.” There you go. The track’s music video sees a figure brusquely walking down the street, unafraid to bump shoulders, with photos of Bates’ emotive face superimposed over the head, á la Tom Bergeron on AFV. In fact, the clip even cryptically ends with a funniest home video. Check it out below—and if you’re in LA, you can catch BBD at Gold-Diggers for a solo set this Friday. Tickets are available here.
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‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source floodmagazine.com ’
