Who among us has not, at some point, mused over the lack of lesbian vampire themed musical projects? Just us? You see, 23-year-old Sheffield-born-and-raised Londoner Gia Ford recently set out to do just that. Somewhere along the way though, the concept record evolved into a dark and wonderful 9-tracker that edges away from the pop of her debut EP Poster Boy and in an altogether more unsettling direction. Out today on Dirty Hit — home to Rina Sawayama and The 1975 — Gia’s Murder In The Dark EP is sexy, camp and deliciously cinematic.
Co-produced by Gia and Fred Macpherson of Spector, there are twisted remixes as interludes, horror samples and literal screams opening proceedings. That’s not to say that it’s all comedy though — far from it. “Murder In The Dark is a much more sophisticated EP for me,” Gia says. “It’s more nuanced musically and in terms of the world it inhabits. Since I was a kid I’ve always been drawn to the dark corners of our societies, the shadows in the alley, the serial killer next door… I wanted to create that tone across the EP. It’s nice to mysticise that a little bit and have control over that narrative — it’s a distraction from all the real horrors one might face in our lives.”
Treating us incredibly well (or luring us into a false sense of security with murder on her mind?) Gia has given i-D an exclusive first look at the killer music video for the title track, the EP’s closer and the poppiest on the record. Directed by her live-in visual collaborator and girlfriend (particularly handy, in a time like this!) Melony Lemon, it’s a veritable 70s detective thriller complete with pools of blood, a power suit, and a suffocating twist at the end. There’s something a little Tarantino about it and we can’t get enough.