Massive Attack’s Robert Del Naja Instigates a Dark Fusion of
Music, Art and Discourse in His Newest Project
Frozen roses collide with a dancing rooster in
today’s kaleidoscopic premiere of “Battle Box 001” by Robert Del
Naja, known to Massive Attack fans as the band's co-founder, 3D. Featuring
haunting vocals from Elbow frontman Guy Garvey, the track ventures into the
militant dub territory of the Bristol band’s 90s reign. “We used about 50
different types of roses,” says co-director Dusan Reljin, who created the
video's shattering visuals with his wife Hilde. “After dipping each one into
liquid nitrogen we blew them up with dynamite and makeup powder. Some of them
exploded really nicely and some of them were a complete disaster.” Using a
phantom camera to slow the footage down, the result is an otherworldly fantasia
reminiscent of animated Rorschach ink blot tests. The untraditional
collaboration grew organically out of shared interests between Del Naja and the
Norway native Reljin duo. “[Robert] was starting to work on Battle Box, and at
the same time we were experimenting with these images, trying to morph things,"
says Dusan. “We started talking to him about the project and he responded
well. We wanted a slightly gritty, home-made feeling to it. That’s the way 3D
works with his music, too.”
