DESIRE ＂LIQUID DREAMS＂ - DESIRE ＂LIQUID DREAMS＂

What this video is

Released in May 2020, 'Liquid Dreams' arrived during a period of global lockdown, amplifying the video's themes of submersion, isolation, and longing. As the third single preceding Desire's sophomore album Escape, it represents the mature articulation of the Italians Do It Better aesthetic: disco-inflected synthpop filtered through a distinctly cinematic, retro-futurist lens. The label's sound — rooted in…

Why it matters

A defining artifact of the 2010s–2020s italo-disco and synthwave revival as channeled through the Italians Do It Better aesthetic. Desire occupies a niche at the crossroads of dream-pop, synth-pop, and cinematic disco-noir, and this video — directed in-house by the project's own producer —…

The director

Houston-born, Portland-raised producer, multi-instrumentalist, and filmmaker. Founded the independent label Italians Do It Better in 2006. Known for using all-analog equipment. Produced and performed with Glass Candy, Chromatics, Desire, and Symmetry. Scored…