EQUATE Premiere: NWRVR

16-year-old musician River Codrington, pseudonym NWRVR, is the artist-on-the-rise using his platform to explore themes of identity, climate activism, and social injustice. Unveiling the video for ‘Body Swap’ today, exclusively via EQUATE, this marks a video debut for the star and is taken from NWRVR’s recently released 5-track EP The Train Is Coming, released last month via NWRVR’s own label: Mislabel. The artist explores issues of gender identity and how to find one’s place in the new decade, all coupled alongside relatable teenage curiosity and self-discovery are some of the themes explored in the music.

Having discovered an interest in the arts early, River began writing music at the age of 10 and is a multi-faceted musician who moves effortlessly through genres, performing jazz, pop, classical, folk, and everything in-between – and there’s little holding back on the creativity and vision for this artist who just wants his fans to ‘feel big things’ through his sound. When watching the visuals for “Body Swap”, which were filmed in one day at former Royal Air Force station Bentwaters Park, it’s hard not to notice just how experienced beyond their years NWRVR is; and with expert direction by Ross Clarke and Jade Danielle-Smith, the short-film (because calling it a music video simply doesn’t do it justice) is a highly sophisticated, eerie, cinematic visual that encapsulates the calibre of artist NWRVR is proving to be.

Speaking on the visuals, NWRVR stated: “The video was so important to me because it visualised the sounds I hear and portrayed what I feel about life so accurately. It’s such a beautiful piece of film, and the music hits all the key points in the story, and vice versa -they just bring each other to life. The work all the team did on it behind the scenes is incomprehensible, and I just love it.

Words & Interview by Danielle Temeng

Watch the video for ‘Body Swap’, and read the feature article below…

YouTube/NWRVR

EQ: Hi NWRVR, could you tell us a little about yourself. Who are you mainly influenced by in terms of music?

NR: Hello, hello, hello, thanks for having me. I’m just someone who makes music, in whatever form I can really, be it electronic, pop, jazz, classical, minimal. Inspirations include Radiohead (my friends will back me up on this), and all the members’ solo stuff; Jonny Greenwood’s soundtracks blow my mind. Also, David Byrne of Talking Heads, Four Tet, Massive Attack, Henryk Gorecki. I’m just a compost heap of every sound I’ve heard. Plus, I’m a trombone player so I’ve had opportunities to get to know music beyond pop and rock which has been super formative.

EQ: If you could describe your sound in 3 words what would they be and why?

NR: ‘Feel Big Things’. That’s what it’s all about really. I just want to feel things when I perform, and make other people feel things.

EQ: You’re starting out in the industry at an age some would consider quite young. How do you think this works to your advantage, and what have you learnt so far that you can share with other young musicians hoping to follow suit?

NR: It’s been great for me, I think, cause I’m still molding and growing so quickly. People are constantly changing – so people relate to change. I won’t be the same person, let alone artist, in 5 years’ time, and I think starting young gives you the freedom to change in the way you need to. Starting young can be good, as long as you have people you trust around you. Some of the NWRVR team I’ve known for years, and I know how good they are at what they do. Then it’s not so scary.

EQ: Your artist name is quite an intriguing one, how does having a pseudonym influence your creativity? Is ‘NWRVR’ (‘new’ River) completely separate from (‘old’) River? If so, in what way and why was it important for you to differentiate the two entities?

NWRVR isn’t just me - it’s the music and the art and the people and the message. The NWRVR team, Ross, Liam, all my mates, they are NWRVR too. It’s all about collaboration. Plus, it gives me some leeway to separate myself personally from the public face whilst expressing some of my most personal experiences. NWRVR is a creative life form that can release music and make videos and do interviews. And old River is happy just to hang out with my cat and write little tunes on a keyboard. They help each other out though.

EQ: You touch upon a lot of personal and emotive topics in your music, one namely being personal identity. Your new single “Body Swap” (which is out now - congrats!) highlights a very poignant message. Is it ever hard for you to put out the art you create?

NR: Thank you so much. And no, not at all. I think because when I make music, I make it without the view to record or release it - in the moment it’s just a release mechanism for what’s in my head. So, when I’m writing I never censor or sugar-coat it. I often find that the songs I like the most and want to record are the broadest ones - that express the most human feelings surrounding identity, without being overly specific. Stuff everyone feels.

“I wanted to make something that translated how I feel on the inside, onto the outside. So that’s what I tried to do - I think the music on the EP is basically about life. And as I only know about life from my own experience of it, it’s just that. People, politics, my head, the earth.”

EQ: For those who haven’t listened to your debut EP ‘The Train Is Coming’ yet, what do you hope they fundamentally take away from your music? What message are you trying to portray?

NR: Whatever they want, I think. If it makes you feel something that’s brilliant. Maybe it reminds you of an experience you’ve had or thoughts that have come to you. The message is young and vague I think - it’s really just “sometimes the people in charge aren’t on your side, just be yourself instead”.

EQ: …and what was your creative process like with the project - specifically releasing it during what has been the most tumultuous year ever for everyone. Did lockdowns, quarantines and COVID affect this process at all?

NR: COVID did slow down the process a bit. But I worked with the producer Liam Howe remotely for a couple of the tracks - which was a fantastic challenge, and it was pretty smooth actually. Working on the project gave me a goal during lockdown so it kept me from disintegrating into my bed at home.

EQ: What’s the one thing you’re most looking forward to doing once we can return back to some semblance of normalcy?

NR: Jamming with my mates. I just want to pick up my trombone or a microphone or stand behind a keyboard and make mad sounds with my friends. Nothing compares to that feeling. Plus, all the live gigs I want to go to of course; I hope they don’t cancel Thom Yorke’s UK tour.

EQ: Lastly, what’s on the horizon for you musically the rest of this year? Could you let us in on any EQUATE exclusives?

NR: Good stuff coming, I think. New songs have been written and we are in the studio as we speak… keep an eye out for political madness, and maybe some explorations of different genres. Hoping climate strikes and protests will be able to happen in the coming months - expect to see me there looking angry.

—

Stream ‘Body Swap’ HERE

Taken from NWRVR’s debut EP ‘The Train Is Coming’

Follow NWRVR on socials:

Instagram: @nwrvr_