Ade Retires The Ade Name With New “One Of Us” Video

I really enjoyed Ade’s debut album Midnight Pizza, especially its contagiously brisk dance track “Another Weekend.” But the genre-jumping New York artist’s Junk in Orbit EP slipped past me last year. This week’s release of a video for closing track “One Of Us” is a good reminder to tune back in.

The three-song Junk In Orbit is a quick, rewarding listen, with Ade leaning into the pop side of experimental pop without ever giving up the eclectic, slightly left-of-center feeling. But among the trio of tracks, “One Of Us” stands out. It’s a massive slo-mo power ballad slathered in synths, like something peak Twin Shadow might have released while chasing the heights of peak M83, or maybe a glossier, more cinematic Magnetic Fields. Director Willem Holzer’s music video takes us to a surreal, emotional bingo hall where Ade is on stage is lounge lizard mode.

A word from Ade:

Characters like these end up somewhere between acutely self-aware and completely oblivious, which is a blurry moral environment that interests me. “One Of Us” is a little slice of life – an obviously bad date that results in a one night stand despite the participants’ better judgment, and the paranoia and moral hangover that ensues. Whose behavior is worse? Who’s at risk of getting hurt the most hurt? Who’s to blame? Does it even matter?

Supposedly this is the last thing Ade will release under the Ade name, so watch below and look out for his next iteration.