April 2010

WATCH IT: Mother/Father "Order" (Robby Starbuck, dir.)

A little bit Western, a little bit Occultish and a whole lot of mysterious is this new and pretty different video from director Robby Starbuck for Mother/Father. The B&W grading and styling touches seem like an homage to Depeche Mode "Personal Jesus," while the storyline plays out a sort of black/white/voodoo/christianity creepy cahse sequence that somehow reminds me of Madonna "Like A Prayer." Or maybe it's what a Western would look like if Lars Von Trier directed (speaking of which, I think the subtitles are some sort of Scandinavian here).

WATCH IT: Devendra Banhart "Baby" (Ron Winter, dir.)

A humdrum walkaround video through sunny Brooklyn gets much more interesting when a giant cylindrical obelisk suddenly appears. That it kind of looks like a joint or a pill is quite fitting, since Devendra Banhart and pals suddenly find themselves in bizarre and perverted world of pure insanity. --> watch "Baby"

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WATCH IT: Titus Andronicus "A More Perfect Union" (Claire Carre, dir.)

Releasing a music video shot during the Blizzard of '10 just as the Northeast starts to bathe in warm sunlight seems insane, but lots of the things that seem insane about Titus Andronicus are exactly what makes 'em so compelling. Director Claire Carre captures a snowy performance and some general rabble rousing that come across like a patriotic indie rock recreation of the American Revolution (or, to be more topical: Like a Tea Party, but with more facial hair and less raging against the wrong machine). --> watch "A More Perfect Union"

WASHINGTON POST: The Vids Are Alright...

Washington Post TV critic Hank Steuver will someday be named a patron saint of music videos. The fact that his article about the prevalence and power of music videos on TV ran on Easter just makes it all the more clear.

Although I'm predisposed to enjoy any article which quotes me and shines a positive light on the industry I work in, Steuver's article is a must-read for anyone sick of the usual narrative about music videos.

Read: The vids are all right: Hank Stuever celebrates vitality of music videos on TV

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