Thai instrumental jazz-funk duo The Photo Sticker Machine have enlisted fellow countryman and popular singer-songwriter Phum Viphurit on their latest single, ’25’.
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The track was released today (January 25) with an accompanying music video featuring lively pop-art animated visuals depicting everyday life in Thailand’s cities and countryside as Viphurit supplies his signature smooth vocals over a bright jazz tune spruced up with minimalist electronics.
Watch the music video for ’25’ below.
The upbeat nature of the track disguises the darkness of Viphurit’s musings as he wonders, “Am I growing up or growing old? / The line, it gets so blurry for a man at 25, you do as you’re told / They said, “Son, this is your prime!” / but all I know is compromise and sacrifice / I just want to close my eyes”.
Viphurit shared his thoughts on the lyrics he penned for the track in a post shared two days ago on January 23, saying, “There is an old Thai superstition that lives in the subconscious mind. Turning 25 either brings luck or tragedy upon you.”
“I spent my quarter-life milestone somewhere in the middle; sulking and delaying premeditated ideas. This collaboration is the child of those thoughts,” he concluded.
Viphurit recently collaborated with Japanese pop-rock band Nulbarich on the song ‘A New Day’ from their brand-new album ‘New Gravity’ exploring the idea of isolation even amongst friends, but also feeling contented in said isolation and being hopeful for the future. His most recent solo release was the single ‘Wings’ in October 2020.
Viphurit first rose to fame in 2018 with his single ‘Lover Boy’, which became a bonafide hit on YouTube and attracted the attention of 88rising artists Higher Brothers, who went on to invite Viphurit to Chengdu, China with the help of regional airline AirAsia to create a remix of ‘Lover Boy’.