Music Is: Indonesian dance music trio Weird Genius released new single, “Future Ghost” ft.Violette Wautier

Indonesian dance music trio Weird Genius has released their new single, “Future Ghost” ft.Violette Wautier. With her crystalline vocals, the popular Thai-Belgian alternative pop musician/songwriter/actress reflects on the waning moments of a relationship with poignancy and warmth as Weird Genius draws from a sonic palette that swells from light and effervescent to swaggering, euphoric heights.

Tragedy and transcendence entwine in the stunning official video, which received a YouTube premiere earlier today. Shot in Bali and Thailand, it tells the story of a haunting love affair – taking viewers from oceanside to hospital bedside and back – and weaves in Wautier’s bittersweet performance. Richard Kyle stars as the male lead. The video was directed by Creamypandaxx, who helmed the official video for “LATHI,” and Weird Genius’ YB. It was produced by Weird Genius.

“‘Future Ghost’ is our take on making something that is very emotional to us and a contrast to our usual upbeat EDM sound,” explains Weird Genius. “We’re super excited to be able to work with Violette. Her voice fits exactly how we pictured it when we first had ideas for the track. We had to do the work and brainstorming online as travelling abroad from Indonesia is hard lately, due to COVID restrictions. We really wish we could meet her in person but we’re still glad everything wrapped up really well!”

The Indonesian trio recruited Violette Wautier after hearing her celestial-like voice knowing it would be the perfect fit for “Future Ghost.” In 2020, Violette Wautier released her first English-language album, Glitter and Smoke. The single “Smoke” broke the record for most views for an English song performed by a Thai artist on YouTube with 77 million views. The track ranked No. 1 on the Apple Music Chart in eight countries, including Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia, at the time of release. Wautier, who will release an all-Thai album in 2022, was recently featured on a billboard in New York City’s Times Square as part of #SpotifyEqual, a campaign celebrating 35 female artists from various countries around the world.

Weird Genius makes dance tracks that feel like time travel. The trio – producer Eka Gustiwana, songwriter Reza (YB) Oktovian, and producer/DJ Gerald Liu – has dabbled in the drippy neons of contemporary pop, future bass and trap as well more classic forms, like the insistent rhythms of house and techno. From their earliest tracks, they’ve swirled together past and present in delirious dancefloor ecstasy, but their 2020 global hit “LATHI” ft. Sara Fajira pushed this philosophy to another level. Rolling Stone India said, “Weird Genius are amongst those leading the charge of writing EDM bangers which are rooted in Balinese and Javanese folk elements.”

After taking off on TikTok, “LATHI” went No. 1 on Apple Music, Spotify, Joox and iTunes in Indonesia and across Southeast Asia. The song ranks as the longest-running No. 1 single on Spotify Indonesia and climbed to #3 on Spotify’s Global Viral chart. “LATHI” won three awards at Anugerah Musik Indonesia (AMI) Awards—the Indonesian equivalent of the GRAMMYs – including “Song of the Year,” marking the first time in 27 years that a dance track took the top prize. When Astralwerks expanded to Asia last year, Weird Genius was the first act signed. The label has since brought the trio’s music to the rest of the world.

With combined worldwide streams of “LATHI” now surpassing 175 million, their success is only emboldening the trio to dream bigger. They’re fired up about the doors “LATHI” has opened—including collaborations with like-minded international artists like Dutch duo Yellow Claw (on “HUSH” ft. Reikko), Singapore’s Tabitha Nauser (on “ALL IN,” recorded for RIOT’s League of Legends: Wild Rift) and Moi Yang , who features on the Chinese-language version of “LATHI.”  “Clock of Reincarnation 轮回之钟.”

In addition to their own original music, they’ve created memorable remixes of tracks like “Why Do You Lie To Me” by Topic, A7S and Lil Baby. Weird Genius’ impressive slate of live gigs include playing at Bangkok’s Viral Fest, the main stage of Jakarta’s SHVR, YouTube’s Fanfest Indonesia and Bali’s Soundrenaline, as well as holding down supporting slots for The Chainsmokers and Yellow Claw and playing over 100 headline date in Indonesia. With the support of Astralwerks, the group is excited about having the opportunity to expose even more listeners to their culture and to take their place at the forefront of Asian acts with hit-making potential in dance music and beyond.

“We want to prove that traditional stuff can be cool, recycled into something new,” Gerald Liu says.

Listen to Future Ghost here