james gulliver hancock

I've absolutely fallen for the artistic talents of Mr. James Gulliver Hancock.  This Australian creative genius stumbled into my world through the musical wonderings of Lenka.  This creative pair brilliantly incorporates a visual outlet to the music that so pleasantly graces our ears.

James has, in fact, created the visual representation of the world in which Lenka and her music thrives.  The picture above is a clear-cut example.  It's the album artwork for Lenka's debut album and it so perfectly captures the essence of her whimsical and fun music.  For me, it's close to a perfect combination.

One of my favorite pieces by James includes his visual imagery of Lenka's lyrics.  He takes the words, the story, the feeling from the song and creates mesmorizing pieces of art.  I've actually purchased the two examples shown below.  The first includes the lyrics for the song Skipalong, and the second includes lyrics for We Will Not Grow Old.

James and Lenka have also collaborated on her music videos, which often include stop-motion techniques.  Below are a couple of my favorite collaborations between the two.

Here's the video for the track We Will Not Grow Old.

And here's a link to the promo video for the track, The Show.

James also recently designed set designs for Lenka's tour.  From what I've seen in some fan photos, it really helps to bring the stage to life.

I'm really quite glad that I happened to come across James and his cheerful pieces of art.  I can't wait to see what he debuts next!

lenka

I must have seen one hundred references for Lenka on twenty different sites before I actually listened to her music.  Sometimes a good new tune is right under your nose, cliche as it may seem.

Lenka doesn't go by her full name, Lenka Kripac, and it seems appropriate.  It's almost too formal for her music.

The Australian-born singer released her self-titled debut, Lenka, in September of last year, sweeping audiences with her single, The Show.  The song is so unbelievably catchy, it's no surprise she co-wrote it with none other than the wonderfully talented Jason Reeves.

Lenka's songs are buoyant, full of life, and undeniably put you in a good mood.  In a sense, they're quite youthful, but touch on subjects a person of any age could relate to - which seems reasonable coming from a (surprisingly) thirty-year-old.  Regardless, my feet are sure to tap along every time one of her songs reach my ears.  

My current favorites off of her album include the obvious mention of The Show, along with the sultry Skipalong and the kickdrum-heavy We Will Not Grow Old.

Lenka's music video for The Show is quite cute and innovative.  Look for the dancing tomatoes - they're my favorite part.  I'd link to the Youtube video here, but embedding is unfortunately disabled.  A simple link will have to suffice.  Check out the video here.

Lenka has also released quite a few promo animated stop-motion videos you should be sure to watch.  They're quite entertaining and done with Lenka's partner in crime, artist James Gulliver Hancock, but more on him later.

It might just be the obvious Australian accent incorporated into the music, seeing as how I also love Kate Nash's noticable British tint in her music, but nevertheless, Lenka's music sure makes smile. 

Since I have no official video clip to leave you with, here's a short VH1 promo as the network's You Oughta Know Artist.