The Bay Area theatrical rock collective HeyBobby! has released their brand new song and video, “Function of Friction,” giving audiences another enticing look into their wildly ambitious world. This latest track arrives ahead of the group’s debut concept album, ‘The Unclouding of Otilla Vanilla’, which is set to drop in March 2026. The full-length is a 12-track rock opera centered on Otilla Vanilla, a rising singer whose search for meaning and identity pulls her into the orbit of the magnetic yet dangerous music promoter Vivienne St. Clair, also known as “Big Shooter.” HeyBobby! introduces a fresh voice in rock ’n’ roll storytelling, expertly blending cinematic rock with layered songwriting and immersive visuals.
The entire project is written, performed, and produced entirely by humans, ensuring real instruments, real voices, and real emotion ground the experience, yet it embraces innovative tools such as artistic artificial intelligence to build out characters and visual avatars. Every single track will be accompanied by its own video episode, guaranteeing a full sensory experience where music, technology, and imagination collide to construct a fully imagined universe. When speaking about the new single, the artist shared that “The Big Shooter has a few sexual lessons for the very innocent and naive Otilla,” underscoring the narrative’s exploration of the line between empowerment and exploitation.