Are you ready to be freaked out by Loïc Nottet and his new EP and music video film, titled “Candy”? We sure weren’t when we first watched it, although we were expecting something weird and creepy, especially after last year’s release of “Doctor“. It’s clear that Loïc Nottet loves Halloween and we are living for his creativity around this event. The song follows up his single release “29“.
Loïc Nottet is best known for representing Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song “Rhythm Inside”, where he placed fourth with 217 points. Prior to Eurovision, he was a contestant on the third season of The Voice Belgique, where he came second; as for after Eurovision, he was a contestant on the sixth season of Danse avec les stars (the French version of Dancing With The Stars / Strictly Come Dancing), where he went on to win the show. He dropped his debut album Selfocracy in March 2017 which gained critical acclaim and was also named as one of our favourite albums of 2017. Recently, he’s been on fire with a brand new era, with the first single “On Fire” and his most recent release, “29”. His clear creativity with Halloween is exciting, having dropped a single last year titled “Doctor” and now he has released this EP titled Candy, could we potentially be heading for a full Halloween album next year? We can only hope.
Two versions of the accompanying music video have been released, one is the “long version” which we plan to discuss as a music video film since it is practically a short film, and there’s also a “short version” which shows the final scene from the “long version” which is accompanied by lead single and title track, “Candy”. The music video is open to interpretation, with many people receiving different concepts upon analysing the visual.
The music video film opens with a long list of credits, accompanied with the first song on the EP which is “Candy House”. We couldn’t possibly include all the credits in this article however there are some worth mentioning. The music video film was directed by Kevin Antoine, it stars Loïc Nottet as Lo, Amy Morrey, Karen De Paduwa, Simon Gérard, Fanny Gillard as The Witch, and Miel Van Hasselt as The Psy. The choreography came from Justine Vercleven and Loïc Nottet, whilst the director of photography was François Dubois. All music was composed by Loïc Nottet and he also wrote the songs alongside Amy Morrey. The song played during this part is rhythmic and interesting, it easily builds tension for the film and the EP, depending on whether you’re watching the music video film or listening to the EP.
Watch Loïc Nottet’s Music Video Film For His Candy EP Here:
The next scene sees the camera zoom into a house, where Loïc Nottet can be seen as his character Lo. He is a clown who is fighting an internal battle whilst his doctor is lying dead on the floor. This visual is accompanied by the song “Candy Maker” and sees the room come to life including the teddy bears, who nail some choreography before becoming slaves to Lo. This is one of the best scenes of the music video film as it showcases Loïc Nottet’s awesome acting skills and his ability to fully encompass his character. He talks about being locked up in a cage by a witch, making us think of Hansel and Gretel. The song is addicting but the concept is twisted as it has a fun, light-hearted sound to it whilst Loïc Nottet is dressed as a clown and talking about how the witch filled him with sweets and candy until he felt sick. It’s quite a child-like enthusiasm behind the song and that’s what makes it seem so twisted.
The scenes follow for “Witch Possession” which is a purely instrumental track that continues the suspense for what is to come. We watch Lo’s inside battle clearly siding more on the dark side and determination to get revenge on the witch.
Next, we watch the teddies pulling a car full of candy which Loïc Nottet is munching on, as he heads to rally his friends to get revenge on the witch. When he arrives at this den-like home and starts to walk past the “Keep Out” signs, he starts to sing “Candy Land”. Soon enough, he encourages his friends to join him and they pull off an awesome dance sequence before heading to the woods and towards the witch’s house. The woods see a bunch of adults, who Lo calls children – so they must also be children who escaped the witch, come out from behind the trees to join them in their choreographed number. Loïc Nottet sure has it all, a great singing voice, brilliant acting skills, and great danceability. We also have to give a special mention to the teddies who also play their part by playing the drums – so comical and yet so brilliant. The track is absolutely incredible with one catchy chorus that will get you searching the lyrics and learning them for every single Halloween to come!
The final scene is the biggest one and is accompanied by the official single and title track from the EP, “Candy”. This scene has been cut and created as the “short version” music video, which isn’t surprising since it is the lead single. The visual sees Lo and his three friends sneaking up to the witch’s house – which is made of candy (totally Hansel and Gretel vibes). They try to decide who will enter the house, and Lo chooses himself since the others are scared. He gets distracted by the candy but he soon carries on with his plan, sneaking in and playing his music and capturing the witch. They feed the witch candy just like she fed them when they were children, filling her up whilst also munching on the sweets themselves. They soon kill the witch in revenge, and the final scene sees Lo also dead in much the same way, which begs the question of whether we were just seeing his imaginations and he was in-fact the witch, or maybe by killing the witch, he died too. There are so many interpretations of the ending and we love the fact that it’s not crystal clear. We also love the break in this scene where his conscience kicks in, telling him not to kill the witch.
Watch Loïc Nottet’s Short Version Of The Music Video “Candy” Here:
https://youtu.be/AAcpR8Ds964
Halloween may be over, but Loïc Nottet’s EP Candy, as well as the music video and the short film, will be available to watch, stream, and download all throughout the year, so whenever you’re feeling in a Halloween mood, you know where to go to.
Candy EP by Loïc Nottet is available to stream and download now via Sony Music Entertainment France. If you want to see more of Loïc Nottet’s Halloween-themed creative, we highly recommend checking out last year’s single and music video, “Doctor“.