Released in time for Mental Health Awareness Week UK, Tim Arnold’s new music project is a must
Super Connected is the brand new feature-length film and album from singer-songwriter, filmmaker and LGBTQI ally, Tim Arnold. The incredible new single of the same name introduces one of the project’s key themes: “the seductive power of social media and its potentially corrosive real-world effect on mental health”. While the single is set to release on Bandcamp and all other platforms on May 7, a standalone music video launches on May 10, just in time for Mental Health Awareness Week UK.
Following the compelling story of a tech-dependent family, Super Connected explores the burgeoning mental health crisis emerging due to our increased isolation and growing dependency on social media.
The work was inspired by a mental health professional friend of Tim’s, working with a young woman with Selective Mutism, who struggled with human interaction but was also addicted to social media. The song itself is written from the perspective of a 17-year-old girl living in isolation.
Sample lyrics: “You can have my soul for free, so you can sell it back to me”.
Tim explains: “Carole Cadwalladr’s eye-opening work on Facebook’s threat to democracy inspired a lot of the ideas for these songs. So did Naomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine. I ended up writing an album and screenplay that asks questions about human connection in families and where we are now in the tech vs humanity debate.”
Once the album was finished, Tim set about creating an enthralling, cinematic story to accompany the album’s songs in sequence, creating what he refers to as a Screen Album. Super Connected successfully fuses various elements of film drama, magical realism, animation and music video. The result? A digital age take on the narrative-driven concept album.
Collaborators include the creatives and artists behind Monty Python’s Holy Grail, Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits, Kate Bush’s Director’s Cut and a brilliant vocal cameo from Stephen Fry.
There are currently plans for one-off screenings of the full Screen Album. Tickets will be available on an invite-only basis for subscribers of the official Super Connected website. The release of the music only version of the album is due to be announced soon.
“We may end up following the traditional route of Infinite distribution eventually, but it’s more enchanting to make real human connections in small private events at the moment. Everything is ready. The songs, the music videos and the screen album. We’re following the spirit of the project to see where it wants to go.”
Tim is also hosting a weekly podcast and YouTube series called Super Connected Conversations, where he examines the impact that technology has on both human psychology and the wider society. Guests include Team Human’s Douglas Rushkoff, peace activist Jo Berry and mental health specialist Nadine Page from The Creative Well.
For exclusive previews and news on Super Connected, make sure you sign up to the official website: superconnected.technology
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