Brendan Maclean – Love, Music & Hankies

Brendan Maclean is an Australian musician and the man behind this year’s most provocative music video, House of Air. This iconoclastic single was released in February, and it’s accompanying racy content caught the attention of mainstream media like The Guardian. House of Air features gay cruising culture, the hanky code, real gay sex and extreme gay sex too. You can view the (NSFW) video at the end of our chat with the talented Mr. Maclean. Why not listen to Brendan and some of his inspirations as you read?

Essential Info

Name: Brendan Maclean
Country: Australia
Smoker: Yes
Kinky: I’m pretty game. But not scat, oddly enough.
Occupation: Musician, Actor, Artist
Inspirations: Freddie Mercury, Rufus Wainwright, Fiona Apple, Eddie Vedder, whoever is reading this.

The Interview

We’ve selected a few highlights from our in-depth conversation with Brendan Maclean below, or you can read the full interview here. 

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I’m a musician from Sydney Australia. I smoke too much. I love listening to pop and love writing folk music, so what I make generally ends up somewhere weirdly in-between.

Do you think House of Air has opened up doors for you, or quite the opposite?

The answer has to be both. Certainly some companies will never work with me again, I’ll never be on prime time television or in a Disney Movie… but was I ever going to be? I think I’ve always been a little too quirky or too gay for mainstream consumption…

Only Boyfriend is so beautiful and so different. Is it commentary on monogamy versus polygamy?

…”If what they say is, ‘Nothing is forever’ then what makes love the exception?” That piece of wisdom is the lyrics of OutKast – Hey Ya, and I suppose Only Boyfriend is my take on it. I would say I’m single, but it’s a lie to say I’m not in relationships with many people all the time. I have a lot of love, and it hurts, but maybe forever relationships are super duper rare, and it’s okay not to have them, ya know?

Question from a fan: If old gay symbols (totems) are brought back, how do you think they will be reimagined, if at all, by younger generations? 

I think the hanky code was a generational fashion code, and I think every generation has their own. It could be an artist you like that bonds a community. In Russia, House of Air is played in gay bars as a protest, that’s what good art is and that’s what will become our totems.

Ciao for now

If the interview highlights have made you curious to learn more about Brendan, you can still read the full interview here. And here’s the House of Air music video, but we can’t stress enough, it’s not suitable for work NSFW. NOTE to viewers: the last 20 seconds of the music video are particularly provocative, and may be considered shocking to some people. 

Who’s next?

If you have a favorite artist, porn star, queer public figure you’d like us to interview send your suggestion to social@planetromeo.com

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