Chinese Band Shares Provocative Video Challenging the Promise of Technology

The Chinese band Absolute Purity working with creative agency Fred & Faird have created a thought-provoking and visually stunning work of art that seeks to challenge us to reflect on our relationship to technology.

Putity, one of the hottest up-and-upcoming bands in China, led by the singer Wen Jun, share the music video “Crime Fiction” whose themes are ripped from the headlines.

In a world where ChatGPT hits the earth like an asteroid, the music video is a dystopian narrative that critiques the total control that technology can have on society contrary to the initial promise of technology to be a liberation.

Propelled by Jun (文隽), a talented young Chinese artist, Absolute Purity is re-energizing the young Chinese generation with their music, a contradictory mix of a fierce and extreme force, alongside tasteful drops of poetic innocence and desperation. Their style mixes post-punk, electronic, experimental, and psychedelic, making them one of the most exciting bands on the Chinese music scene today.

Jun says:

“When I was writing the lyrics of this song, I wanted to capture my own inner feelings about the tension and pull between people and their relationships. The lyrics are intentionally vague, abstract, and more focused on emotions and consciousness, leaving space for the listener’s own projection and imagination,

In this narrative dance film, Purity takes us to a future where people are disconnected from each other and consumed by virtual reality. The hero, a mother with a young baby, is suddenly disconnected from her headset and begins to dance, breaking free from the virtual world and reconnecting with her emotions. Encouraged by this newfound freedom, she seeks to liberate her roommates and baby and escape from her virtual prison. As she finally frees herself and her roommates, we understand that their escape wasn’t real. It was just another level of the simulation.

Watch it below.

Anneliese Charek, an super-talented LA-born choreographer based in Shanghai, imagined the entire choreography performance for the talents in this 5-minute-long music video. Together, they relentlessly practiced for weeks in their studio, even practicing at home during Shanghai’s city-wide lockdown. Among many other renowned talents, such as the acclaimed Australian film editor Matt Osborne, senior colorist Nicola Gasparri at The Mill Shanghai, upcoming cinematographer Goopi, and production designer Majima, as well as the online/VFX duo Patrick Firmansyah & Allegra Firmansyah from PXA CO.LtD.

‘Crime Fiction’ is now available on all major streaming platforms, and the music video can be viewed on the band’s official social media channels.