Dave Seaman – The Naughty Forest

In a showcase video, we invited iconic artist and founder of Selador Recordings Dave Seaman to provide an exclusive guest mix for the launch of our curated video concept mixes for YouTube, available for artists, DJs and labels. Each video uses licensed 4k video, edited to the artist requirements and synced to the supplied music. We are able to tailor video for album launches, single releases, event promotions and more.

CLIENT

There aren’t many artists who’ve soundtracked the birth of dance music and are still leading its development more than two decades later. There are even less who have gifted both the club and pop scenes with unforgettable musical moments that get talked about in hushed tones years after their creation. Dave Seaman is one of a select few.

Whether it’s one of his spine-tingling Global Underground or Renaissance CDs that’s still burning a hole in your stereo years after its purchase, or the perfect pop of Kylie’s ‘Confide In Me’ that he co-wrote, produced and remixed, there’s very few with their heart in electronic music who haven’t been touched by his oeuvre in one form or another.

Seaman played his first bona-fide professional DJ gig at the legendary Shelley’s in Stoke in 1990, stroking vinyl alongside a couple of emerging talents by the name of Sasha and Laurent Garnier. Acid house was blooming and Seaman’s boundless enthusiasm and creative spirit was petrol in it’s tank.

Teaming up with producer and friend Steve Anderson, the duo recorded as Brothers In Rhythm, birthing the seminal rave anthem ‘Such A Good Feeling’ which became a UK Top 20 hit, while also issuing the landmark ‘Mixmag Live Volume’ 1 with Carl Cox in 1991 – a release that stands as one of the first ever commercially available mix compilations.

Seaman’s unrelenting desire to propel music at all levels saw him kickstart the Stress Records imprint through DMC, showcasing tunes by some of the finest talent in dance music for more than a decade. Artists including Sasha, Danny Tenaglia, John Digweed and Groove Armada’s Andy Cato all released smoking club cuts on the label, with many crediting it as acting as a global launching pad for their careers. He followed Stress with a decade at the helm of another lauded label, Audio Therapy where similar levels of success ensued proving his ability to spot & nurture talent time and time again.

Without a doubt, his relationship with Renaissance is one of the most renowned in dance music, with Seaman having contributed 10 mixes to the revered series. Global Underground view the Brit in a similarly lofty light, having secured his services to mix their Melbourne, Buenos Aires, Cape Town & Lithuanian volumes. His most recent mix compilation, Beyond Borders: Berlin for Armada, even gatecrashed the Dutch Pop Charts, a particularly rare accomplishment for an resolutely Underground release.

Today, Seaman’s passion to exhibit boundary-breaking talent is as strong as ever. Via the independent record label Selador Recordings which he co owns with long time friend, Steve Parry, his inspired A&R has helped nurture some of the finest groove-merchants in dance music.

BRIEF

Followers of Selador are sure to be familiar with their “follow the wabbit” tagline and rabbit head logo. Dave wanted to keep the Selador brand prominent with trippy, abstract, glitchy, kaleidoscopic visuals. “The more ethereal and other-worldly the better” Dave explained. After a phone call we decided on a concept of – The Naughty Forest.

The challenge was to visually sequence a 60 min video to Daves ‘September DJ Mix’ starting with the early foggy mornings of surrounding woodlands to the eerie nightfall deep into the forest and to create a POV for the viewer to feel they are immersed in the experience not only musically but also visually.

DESIGN PROCESS

– sourcing video footage
– setting up project folders of related video clips
– roughly sequence clips in their folders on desktop.
– import folders into Adobe Premiere Pro project
– create EQ display graphic in Adobe After Effects and sync to music
– import EQ graphic and audio to add to project timeline (music to act as an editing template)
– converting video frame rates to 24fps
– begin rough sequencing
– primary colour correction
– colour matching video clips
– colour grading
– secondary colour correction
– final sequencing
– adding various video transitions and effects to match and enhance flow of project
– adding tracklist & logo
– exporting project

PROJECT SUCCESS

– over 11,000 combined views on YouTube across Dave Seaman and Decoded Creative’s accounts

TESTIMONIAL

“Fantastic, really great work and lovely visuals to my most recent DJ mix” – Dave Seaman

TRACKLIST

01. Robert Babicz ‘Space Funk’ [Selador]
02. Vhyce ‘Monde Reel’ (Catz n Dogz) [Pets]
03. Rodriguez Jr. ‘Kilian’ [Mobilee]
04. Chris Liebing feat. Tom Adams ‘Circles’ (Jan Blomqvist) [Mute]
05. Diplo & Damian Lazarus feat. Jungle ‘Don’t Be Afraid’ (Cioz) [HIGHER GROUND]
06. Steve Parry ‘What You Make It’ (Renato Cohen) [Selador]
07. Drubon ‘Snareman’ [Soulfooled]
08. James Harcourt ‘Beholden’ [Sincopat]
09. Rufus Du Sol ‘Alive’ (Solomun) [Rose Avenue]
10. Brina Knauss ‘Births’ (Emanuel Satie) [Frau Blau]
11. Sven Väth ‘Feiern’ [Cocoon]

VIDEO SCREEN SHOTS