In 2017, Grammy-nominated Lafayette outfit Feufollet released “Baby’s On Fire,” a Cajun take on the Brian Eno classic. Around the time of its release, OffBeat‘s Dan Willging said the effort “takes Brian Eno’s iconic classic and applies jaunty Keith Frank accordion stylings on top of thrusty rhythms and layers of twangy guitars, fiddles and organ all skanking along.”
Today (February 2), OffBeat.com premieres the visual accompaniment for “Baby’s On Fire.”
The video opens with a collection of VHS cassettes, until one in particular is pulled to reveal “The Great Boudini + Feufollet” scrawled over the side. When the tape is popped in the broadcast converter, we see the preface to the anticipated track, “Baby’s on Fire.”
As a psychedelic array of colors and silhouettes flood the screen prompted by the VHS, instrumental music begins braying in the forefront in accordance with the visuals. The video and the musical introduction calls for something Animal Collective-esque, but our minds are jolted by an unfamiliar pairing that echoes a possible oxymoron: psychedelia, Cajun style. What transpires over the 5:10 track is actually a quintessentially Louisiana cover of Brian Eno’s “Baby’s on Fire,” while magician The Great Boudini and Feufollet comically dance and swing over backdrops of hot pink checkers and bright yellow stars. The Great Boudini is an integral facet to the video’s inspiration, thanks to his illustrious history as a popular television host in 1980s and ’90s Acadiana.
A lot of attention to detail was poured into the production of this cover’s music video; co-director Jacob White is our first character, a manager at Acadiana Open Channel, and his digging through the VHS library is meant to symbolize old festival videos in the Lafayette local access station’s archive. When he comes across “Baby’s on Fire” he holds it with a look that spells to us that he has never seen this VHS before. At the end of the video, White pulls the tape out to reveal it has torn apart while running, with a look of dismay and annoyance.
The overall concept is actually a sweet nod to Brian Eno, a self proclaimed “non-musician” who helped to introduce a variety of unique conceptual approaches into contemporary music.
Feufollet’s next date in New Orleans is at Saturn Bar on Friday, February 2, with Michael Hurtt’s Haunted Hearts and Alligator Chomp Chomp DJs. The band will also be performing at Jazz Fest on Saturday, May 5, on the Fais Do Do stage.
