Art vs Science have returned with their latest single, ‘Powder’, a snow-inspired, tongue-in-cheek anthem that manages to blend Daft Punk, Kraftwerk and, unexpectedly, yodelling into one irresistible package.
The track, which frontman Dan Mac openly describes as “silly from the get-go,” was born out of the band’s shared memories of ski trips. “I thought about the times I’d been skiing with Dan and Jim, and how fun it was,” he explains. “When I recorded it, it would make me laugh. This song is basically a pile of my laughs stacked on top of each other.”
‘Powder’ arrives with one of the most ambitious videos the band has ever released. Collaborating once again with Alex Roberts-who directed the band’s iconic clips for Parlez Vous Francais? and Magic Fountain-Art vs Science leaned into cutting-edge AI technology to build a video that reimagines the snowy slopes as the domain of a singing Yeti.
“We started imagining scenes while listening to the track-like the Yeti chased out of the village, hiding in a cave-and typed them into the computer,” says Mac. “To shoot something like this for real would have cost a million dollars, and burnt through an insane amount of resources. With AI, we were able to bring a weird story to life and capture lots of laughs between friends.”
The result is a surreal, colourful clip that mirrors the energy of the band’s live shows-chaotic, joyful, and unashamedly fun.
Formed in Sydney in 2008 by high school friends Dan Williams, Dan Mac and Jim Finn, Art vs Science stumbled into existence when they were offered a gig before they even had any songs written. Within 48 hours, they’d knocked out seven tracks and set themselves on a path that would see them dominate Australian festivals for more than a decade.
After winning a triple j Unearthed competition, they quickly became festival staples with appearances at Splendour In The Grass, Falls Festival and triple j’s One Night Stand, while also building a reputation as one of the country’s most thrilling live acts. Their commitment to playing 100% live, rather than relying on backing tracks, helped secure support slots with international heavyweights like The Chemical Brothers and Datarock.
Their debut album The Experiment (2011) won an ARIA Award for Best Independent Release, and their follow-ups Off the Edge of the Earth and into Forever, Forever (2015) and Big Overdrive (2022) cemented their reputation for quirky, danceable pop-rock that toes the line between festival anthems and underground electronica.
Along the way, they delivered fan favourites like Parlez Vous Francais? (#2 in triple j’s Hottest 100 of 2009), Magic Fountain (#9 in 2010) and Flippers (#44 in 2008), while their Daft Punk Like a Version cover remains one of the most talked-about in the segment’s history.
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