The Hidden Cameras interview: Details on new album ‘BRONTO’ + Joel Gibb on disco, self-love, and musical reinvention
The Hidden Cameras (Photo by MaxZerrahn)
Joel Gibb, the visionary behind The Hidden Cameras, returns with his seventh studio album “BRONTO” – a record that blends meta-dance-pop, melancholy, and humor in equal measure. Ahead of his European tour, he sat down with our colleague János Janurik to talk about self-love, Depeche Mode, Berlin, and the timeless power of reinvention.
“Brontosaurus Law” – the latest single by Joel Gibb aka The Hidden Cameras, released ahead of the new album “BRONTO” – deals with the unstoppable force of time, the seeming inevitability of life, and our struggle to find meaning within it. Gibb leaves heartbreak behind and dedicates himself to self-love. Yet, true to form, he wraps this tender message in his signature humor – opening the track with a roaring dinosaur scream, alluding to the iconic lizard’s phallic neck. This playful contradiction – sincere yet self-aware – makes The Hidden Cameras’ return so captivating.
Q: Beltane, in Celtic tradition, is the festival of fertility and love, where the maypole stands as a phallic symbol, representing the rebirth of life and passion. Phallic symbols have appeared throughout history as a universal phenomenon – revered in some cultures, rejected in others. The Romans worshipped Priapus, whose cult linked the phallus to protection against evil. Medieval church fathers, however, struggled with this legacy, a struggle that continues to this day. For you, does this symbolism stand as provocation – or as a symbol of love?
Joel Gibb: I don’t know enough about what you are discussing to have an intelligent response. Phallic symbols are in the eye of the beholder. What might not be intended as a phallus can be interpreted that way.
With “BRONTO” – meaning “thunder” in Greek – The Hidden Cameras deliver an album that redefines the boundaries of pop. Joel Gibb has created an unconventional meta-dance-pop record dedicated to his adopted home, Berlin – working with electronic heavyweights such as Pet Shop Boys, Vince Clarke, and many more. Pulsating basslines, soulful piano chords, and melancholic string arrangements (performed and arranged by longtime collaborator Owen Pallett) shape How Do You Love? – where Joel perfectly captures that bittersweet space between euphoria and pain, the very soul of disco.
The Pet Shop Boys transformed How Do You Love? into an emotional disco banger, complete with bombastic strings and jubilant house pianos. The second single, Undertow, also received its own remix EP. Vince Clarke wrapped the track in shimmering 80s synth-pop textures in true Yazoo style – turning it into an irresistibly catchy anthem guaranteed to lift the mood.
Q: Pet Shop Boys and Erasure – alongside Soft Cell and Bronski Beat – have, directly and indirectly, done a lot to open up acceptance of gay people, not only among the LGBTQ+ community but also far beyond. In the 1980s, despite Thatcher-era homophobia, there was in some ways more openness than today – when certain politicians attempt to profit from exclusion through hateful campaigns. Who gave you courage back then? Who were your musical role models in the gay-pop scene? Do you have a personal favorite in the discographies of Vince Clarke/Erasure or Pet Shop Boys?
Joel Gibb: I was a child in the 80s and liked both Depeche Mode and Pet Shop Boys. “Just Can’t Get Enough” and “What Have I Done to Deserve This”!
With his seventh studio album “BRONTO”, Joel follows in the footsteps of pioneers like Lou Reed and David Bowie, delivering a record inspired by his adopted home of Berlin, though recorded in Munich – the Bavarian disco and nightlife capital. The Canadian-born Gibb has lived in Berlin for over a decade – something that has inevitably shaped his sound. After folk and country explorations, Gibb teamed up with Munich producer Nicolas Sierig (Joasihno) to create “BRONTO”: an unconventional electronic meta-dance-pop album for the night’s clusters.
Clubs have always been central to resistance and community in queer history. “BRONTO” explores these colorful aspects in its own unique way, paying tribute to pioneers – while rightfully placing itself among them.
Q: Munich, in terms of queer music, immediately brings to mind Freddie Mercury. As his biopic also pointed out, the Queen frontman often visited the city’s gay clubs, and it was in Munich that he began working on his first solo album. As Mercury once said: “I had a lot of ideas bursting to get out, and I wanted to explore musical areas I couldn’t really pursue within Queen.” Did something similar happen with you, when you set sail into electro-disco waters with this new record?
Joel Gibb: I regularly think of Freddie when I am in Munich, especially when walking around Gärtnerplatz. I think it was important to record “BRONTO” in another city. Munich has always been a place I feel comfortable and at home. There are also warm electronic associations (Moroder) which I was loosely inspired by.
On “BRONTO”, Joel Gibb tries on different musical costumes. The semi-instrumental Full Cycle and Wie wild recall small-scale film epics reminiscent of Ennio Morricone and Vangelis.
Q: When I first listened to Wie wild, I immediately thought of one of my favorite instrumental synth albums, Vangelis’ China. Am I right in my instincts, or did the inspiration come from elsewhere? Do you have a favorite film score you can listen to outside the cinema, again and again?
Joel Gibb: Wie wild is a unique song, half film soundtrack instrumental and half emotive ballad banger. I wanted some music on either side of the album to break up the dance textures and add some different drama to the whole. Although I greatly admire Vangelis and Morricone, I must admit I do not listen regularly to film soundtracks. If I had to choose though, the Blade Runner soundtrack is iconic and something I do go back to.
The dubby downtempo synth track I Want You plays with one of pop’s most common expressions – with a wink from Depeche Mode. It’s easy to imagine Martin Gore singing this track, so vividly does it echo his voice – capturing desire, urgency, and aching need. For me, this is the peak of the album.
Q: What’s your take on this? How do you relate to Depeche Mode’s music? As a signee to Mute Song, how do you view the label’s first commercially successful band? Do you share a kind of bond with Daniel Miller as well?
Joel Gibb: Depeche Mode hold a special spot in my musical DNA. I was seven when I heard “People Are People” and since then I was always a fan. I have been with Mute Song for 20 years now so it feels quite like being part of a family.
Finally, the epic Don’t Tell Me That You Love Me closes the album perfectly – its echoing string arrangement by Owen Pallett lingering in our ears as we walk home. This is the track on “BRONTO” that most closely resembles The Hidden Cameras’ deeply emotional folk-pop – and in fact, it’s a tribute to the past: Gibb originally wrote it in 2007, and the vocals stem from that era. “BRONTO” thus becomes a time capsule spanning decades, in which Gibb enters into dialogue with his younger self and recalls the roots of The Hidden Cameras two decades later.
Q: Looking back, how do you evaluate your musical journey so far? What are you most proud of? Which Joel Gibb is the “true” one – the folk-pop songwriter, or the electro-disco troubadour (sometimes flirting with Jake Shears’ style) singing dancefloor-fillers? Do you already know what direction your next album will take?
Joel Gibb: I don’t think there is any true version of myself. I always want to do something different. Perhaps it’s a fault not to stick to one genre of music, but I always admire artists who reinvent themselves or try something new; at least evolve in some way. I don’t like talking about things before they are finished but yes I have already been recording new material and it will be something unexpected.
For those who want to catch Joel Gibb live, here are the first tour dates – with more to follow:
- 11.09. Berlin, Rough Trade Store
- 15.09. London, Rough Trade East Instore
- 03.11. Prague, Café v lese
- 15.11. Warsaw, Niebo (special guest: Efterklang)
- 06.11. Vienna, Chelsea
- 19.11. Berlin, Berghain Kantine
- 09.12. Madrid, El Sol
- 10.12. Barcelona, Upload
- 12.12. Lisbon, Musicbox
Q: On this new tour, will you focus entirely on the songs and style of “BRONTO”, or will there be room for folk-pop as well? Is there a particular venue you’re especially looking forward to?
Joel Gibb: The way I have normally structured my show this year, I often open with “Don’t Tell Me That You Love Me” and then do a whole set of old material with my guitar, then I do a whole electronic set in the middle which also includes “Carpe Jugular”. I finish the set often with a guest singer or musician. I am most looking forward to playing Poland for the first time, also because it will be with friends Efterklang.
Two decades after his first songs, Joel Gibb is still writing a dialogue with his younger self – only now the soundtrack is louder, brighter, and unapologetically alive.
About The Hidden Cameras / Joel Gibb
The Hidden Cameras began in Toronto, Canada, in 2001 when Joel W. Gibb (born 28 January 1977, Kincardine, Ontario) issued “Ecce Homo” on his imprint EvilEvil, then built a rotating ensemble to perform the material. Early collaborators included musicians from Toronto’s indie community; but the lineup has continued to change around Gibb, who writes and produces the recordings.
By 2003 the project signed with Rough Trade for “The Smell of Our Own” and “Mississauga Goddam,” while Arts & Crafts handled U.S. releases for “Awoo” (2006) and “Origin:Orphan” (2009). Gibb later issued “Age” (2014) via EvilEvil and “Home On Native Land” (2016) via Outside Music after relocating to Berlin, where he is also active as a visual artist and video director.
Hidden Cameras shows have featured choirs, strings and go-go dancers, occasionally staged in churches and other unconventional spaces.
Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil.
Since you’re here …
… we have a small favour to ask. More people are reading Side-Line Magazine than ever but advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news organisations, we haven’t put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as open as we can - and we refuse to add annoying advertising. So you can see why we need to ask for your help.
Side-Line’s independent journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we want to push the artists we like and who are equally fighting to survive.
If everyone who reads our reporting, who likes it, helps fund it, our future would be much more secure. For as little as 5 US$, you can support Side-Line Magazine – and it only takes a minute. Thank you.
The donations are safely powered by Paypal.
