Ok, rant aside, my purpose today is to present to you the new video, show you the nods it makes to old videos, and explain to you why this is not “homage,” it’s a “rip-off”.

Also, btw, excuse my clumsiness with screengrabs and the like.  Still figuring out the kinks in this blog-writing, internet business.

Christina Aguilera – “Not Myself Tonight”

First reference I caught was to Benny Benassi:

This is a screen grab from “Who’s Your Daddy.”  Not a woman-friendly video, to be sure.  No girl power, I’m-gonna-do-it-my-way ethos to be found.  This shot looks familiar:

If it’s a song about doing your thang, don’t rip off a guy who is resolutely not about letting ladies do their thangs.  Granted, it’s debatable whether this reference was intended; the close-up of the screaming pop idol is not unique.  It’s just what popped into my head when I saw the video, and I thought I’d share the connection.

From the first shots of bondage themes against a white background, I already am beginning to get flashbacks of Madonna’s 1995 hit “Human Nature” off the album Bedtime Stories:

Granted, black cornrows probably weren’t Madonna’s best look, but this video was still a thought-provoking groundbreaker.  She toys with the concepts of bondage, sexuality, gender, intimacy, just to start.  She manages to be sexy without being revealing, and can make you think while turning you on.  Her lyrics challenge the listener to reconsider their own notions, and the choreography plays with dominance, control and shame.  Exquisite.

Christina fails here.  She references Madge but misses the message.  Her bondage is pure titillation.  She is sparkly and almost naked, but we can only see that in quick glimpses, jarring jump cuts that serve only to confuse and arouse.  Why is she tied up?  Who tied her there?  Is she in control of the situation?  The scene we’re given leaves us to assume that she is tied up simply for our entertainment, that we control her situation, and that she is only there to be a sparkly sexy thing for us to have our fun with.  The lyrics say that she’s trying out stuff she doesn’t normally do, and that’s cool, but it’s a declaration, not a conversation.  Is she doing it safely?  Consensually?  Who cares?  Not her.

Ok, moving on.  Now she’s crawling toward a bowl on the floor, standing backlit in an open doorway, sexy dancing-in-the-rain men…deja vu?

Another example of where Christina seems to have absorbed the aesthetic but not the message.  “Express Yourself” was about keeping your standards, realizing you were worth those standards, and making sure you never settled for less than you deserved.  When Madonna crawled toward that bowl of milk, it was an image in juxtaposition.  She also danced in a pantsuit, using a monocle that was a symbol of the dominating male figure she was rebelling against.  It does not do to take those scenes out of the context of the larger video and the song itself and co-opt them for a weak song about selfish, pointless indulgence.  It does not do at all.

Oh, also Christina would like you to know that she’s seen the “Like a Prayer” music video also, and completely missed the train on that one:

Questions: Sexy dancing in a church?  Pour quois?

So the Madonna spree in the video is over.  But wait!  There’s one more oddly intentioned reference!  To…George Michael?

George Michael’s “Freemdom! ’90″: About being your own person, etc.  =/= “Not Myself Tonight”

None of these references could possibly be considered homages.  All I see is a faded pop star trying desperately to revive her career by hoping that the nostalgia of one generation and the pride in pop knowledge of another will help to do so.  Unable to find intriguing original ideas of her own, she is aping the outrageousness of other current pop stars without understanding any of their deeper motivations (looking at you, Gaga).

It’s not working, Christina.  I’m sorry.  Quit now before you mire yourself too much deeper in this new image, it will be the absolute, final death of your career.

Love,

Sprinks

This second part of my review of 2009 videos focuses on narrative music videos. These videos tell stories which, upon a first viewing, appear to be just for shock value. But beneath the shock in each are artfully presented themes and dilemmas.

Bob Dylan – “Beyond Here Lies Nothing”

This video was a clip Bob Dylan did in conjunction with the Independent Film Channel (IFC). It shows. I’m including this clip not because it was recommended so highly by other top-whatever lists that I’ve been reading, but because I felt it move something inside me. My pulse sped and I felt like retching. I’m not the only one to react to viscerally; read any comment section about the video and you’ll see people torn about it. Is it art? What is its message? At first, I hated it. I think that’s a good immediate reaction to have. However, I was intrigued enough about it to read other discussions and have a couple of my own. In the end, I like it. It makes me think, not only about the song itself and the themes Dylan is dealing with in this track and the album as a whole, but I also considered the theme of domestic violence. This shit happens in real life, and in real life the abuse victim often returns to her abuser, even when she could easily get away. It’s the best kind of food for thought: it tastes awful, it’s hard to swallow, but boy howdy does it give you something to chew on.




Depeche Mode – “Wrong”

I’m sandwiching this once between the two denser videos. This is not to suggest it’s lighter – it’s the darkest, aesthetically, of the three – but it is less nuanced, I think.  I was thrilled to hear that Depeche Mode had released a new music video; it’s been a while.  I love how the look of the video reflects the mien of the song.  Deep bass matched by a dark palette, crescendo marked by crashes and rising tension.  The mystery of the video is undeniable…who is this guy?  Who put him in that position?  What did he do to merit it?  It’s a fun video to speculate on.




Lady Gaga – “Paparazzi”

Well, at this point discussion of this video is wildly out-of-date, but I’ll write about it anyway.  Don’t get me wrong, I think there is heaps to be said about Gaga’s more recent videos “Telephone” and “Bad Romance” (La Senora Gaga will eventually get her “Artist Profile” entry on this blog) but I really really liked “Paparazzi,” and the other two videos were released in 2010 anyway so they wouldn’t work on this list.  To be fully honest, part of my deep deep love for this video is specifically reserved for the ethereally gorgeous Alexander Skarsgard.  But beyond that paragon of masculinity, I enjoyed the exploration of celebrity culture that Gaga goes on here.  She plays with the ideas of servitude, the “handicap” of fame, the performance that is celebrity, voyeurism…it’s so multi-faceted!  So refined!  I used to dismiss her as just another incarnation of bubble-gum pop music, and I’m still not the biggest fan of the music itself, but this lady is a performer, truly.

More updates soon!

~Sprinks

Chairlift – “Evident Utensils”

OK Go – “WTF”

Ok, so I listed these two together for a reason. Chairlift is an exceedingly cute hipster, Williamsburg, Brooklyn (think of these less as locations and more as adjectives) band. Sigh. The video is incredibly inventive, a really entertaining, disorienting clip that effs with your eyes the way those hidden image paintings do. I dig it, really, I do. On mute. I try not to insert TOO much opinion into this blog, I try to keep it mostly analysis and discussion of the video, but I cannot stand to listen to this song. Just not my thing. Still, it is a remarkable video so I had to post it. For you, dear readers, for you.
OK Go, with whom I have had a desperate love affair (one-sided…sigh) for years, released a video using very similar effects. I have to do a bit more research, but I suspect at the most basic level the same effect is behind both videos. Consider OK Go’s video a more palatable version of Chairlift’s. Chairlift’s video is High Art, difficult to watch but subtle, layered, intelligent; OK Go’s video is candy candy candy. For more information on the process they used, I’ll refer you to a fascinating little how-to the director and band did.




Grizzly Bear – “Two Weeks”

Here’s another for the collection of the weird and perception-bending. Grizzly Bear seems to find themselves often on Best of the Year lists for their videos. I have always appreciated the direction they take their music videos in, even if I haven’t understood it. Often they skew a bit too weird for my taste, leaving me frustrated or uncomfortable. Maybe that’s the idea.
This video takes a much more subtle approach than their other clips have. Yes, their heads short circuit at the end. They light up like light bulbs on a dimmer on the fritz. But it is done with a light touch, slowly building up to the explosive (hur hur) finale of the song. It was directed by one of my favorites, Patrick Daughters, a man who brings elegance to any video he touches. Note the eyes on the boys: they were added post. They’re too big for the face, and they blink funny. Mesmerizing.




The Dead Weather – “Treat Me Like Your Mother”

I’ve been obsessed with this music video for the past few weeks. I really enjoy The Dead Weather, having been a big fan of Allison Mosshart for a while. I’m not gonna pretend like I get the lyrics of the song; the subtlety of words has always been kind of lost on me. The images in the video are what interest me the most, and it’s been a long while since I’ve seen a video so perfectly capture the feeling of a song.
The choice of location was inspired. I grew up in Florida and saw so many neighborhoods like this go up around me. Cookie-cutter houses with huge expanses of undeveloped land between tracts. It’s incredibly unattractive and wasteful…what better place for a pointless, reckless shout-out between two unstoppable forces? This video is an amazing vehicle for the two singers, so similar yet still battling for the upper hand. I think it’s fun that no one wins, they just spend their bullets and walk away, riddled with holes.

Ok, that’s one post down. I’ll have another up tomorrow!

T-minus 4 days,
Sprinks

“Hard” is another in a line of Rihanna’s “I’m sexy in my own way” type videos (see also: Disturbia). It’s been an interesting year for the songstress, personally, professionally and artistically, and it seems only fitting to end ’09 by debuting a video this brutal. While it’s not my favorite song or video of hers, I do think it touches upon some valid themes for a young woman in the spotlight.

The video starts with Rihanna showing you just who is in charge. Not only is it literal – she’s ordering about a bunch of plainly styled male soldiers – but even the wardrobe reflects it. Those shoulders! The stiff, commanding cut of the jacket-thingy! The brilliant ivory color! She plays with a kind of outrageous wardrobe the whole video (although she does that pretty much every video…egads I adore this girl), sporting cuts that are sexy but still authoritative. Later, it’s a metal strapless bra, in another shot garters with knife sheaths, and in yet another a shrapnel helmet…with Mickey Mouse ears. She holds the cards, she sports the spikes and the war paint, she declares victory. There might be some discussion over the pink battle tank she straddles later in the video, but I think dig it. She’s taking something that is iconically masculine, and making it hers. It’s like what she is, a mix of pretty and tough. And even though the song features a well-known rapper, Young Jeezy, who normally does the typical rap video of boobies and bling, in this video he sits on the ground, in the dirt and dust, like the rest of the men in the video. Girl power!

For another interesting analysis, with screen grabs to demonstrate, check out one of my favorite blogs’ take on it: Jezebel – “Hard” Times: Analyzing Rihanna’s New Video. Otherwise, enjoy the video:

Rihanna – “Hard”

Considering chopping off all my hair so I can rock it like that,
Sprinks

A little bit of information on the artist, Dimlite: His real name is Dimitri, he’s Swiss. His website is bare-bones, infrequently updated and yet still fascinating. Other than the fact that he is currently signed to Stones Throw Records, a relatively well-known label for good music, I can’t seem to dig up much else! Dimlite mentions the director of the vid, Crouced Tif, on the site, but Senor Tif himself has little to no information on the interwebs. So, loyal readers, if anyone has any information on this gentlemen, do tell.

This video is a lot less flash-and-bang than most videos. It’s got this grimy, old-school look. I mean, check out that girl’s rad leotard! And all the pop culture references on her walls! I totally dig the art direction; I wish I knew more about the video, so I could either congratulate whoever found this ridiculous retro clip or applaud the director and his amazing art team that put it together in such loving detail, but alas I’m lost as to the details. The cinematography is also fantastic. I like how the footage seems to vibrate, like how things look when you’ve been running really hard and your heart is racing and you can feel the blood pumping in your eyeballs and it makes everything look like it’s pulsing. The use of color filters for certain beats is also interesting, just adding to the weirdness of it all. Also, the mom with the weird, will-she-shoot-lazers-out-of-them eyes.
Anywho, it’s entertaining. Enjoy!

Dimlite – Ravemond’s Young Problems

Lauf,
Sprinks

The video was directed by the art collective known as Fluorescent Hill (see their stuff here, it’s great: Fluorescent Hill via Vimeo). I like the aesthetic themes they play with in this video, particularly the technical drawing style mixed with the brilliant ink splotches. Also, notice the delicate shading of the ball-head character, particularly under his arms. The elegance of the way the mouth is animated is great: none of those filler mouth movements, each movement corresponds exactly to the phoneme coming out. Now, my brother, Naut, was unimpressed by these details. He was especially offended by the ink-splotch effect, which he says is a dead horse that the hip-hop album cover artist community feels like they need to continue beating. My brother is particularly well versed in all things hip-hop, be it mainstream or underground, so I’m inclined to believe him. Still, lacking that sort of personal over-exposure, I found the ink splotches to be entertaining. Who doesn’t like well-placed bright colors?

Judge for yourself:

or:

“Spacious Thoughts” NASA feat. Kool Keith & Tom Waits from Fluorescent Hill on Vimeo.

As usual, comments are appreciated,
Sprinks

It’s not surprising that many music videos now prominently feature intricate dance routines. The popularity of many songs hinges on their danceability (think any major hip-hop or pop single), so it only makes sense that the videos for these songs would feature some kind of dance routine. What I want to present here today are some of the more notable or surprising uses of dance in music video. Some of these songs, you can’t help but dance to them. Others, using a dance routine seems like a bold decision. Enjoy:

Alanis Morisette – So Pure
To be honest, I have no clue what the larger meaning behind this video could be? I think it’s just Alanis taking her lyrics “I love you when you dance/When you freestyle in trance/So pure, such an expression” seriously and having a fucking blast. I love that she took the time to learn all these different routines so well. I bet it was fun, especially with such a hunk for a partner. I don’t really get the Stevie Nicks segment, what with the smoke and the woodsy goddess, carry-me-around-the-set-ness, but whatevs. Personally, mostly jealous of the tap-dancing and sock-hopping segments. Rock on.

Finger Eleven – Paralyzer
Here is a video that I was genuinely surprised by. The song itself, not ground-breaking. It was a huge hit for Finger Eleven, a rock band that’s been around for years but never got really serious radio airplay until this song. That said, I think it was a bit daring for director Barnaby Roper to decide to give this video the modern-dance treatment. The result is an aesthetically engaging clip; the color palette screams rock (cool greys punctuated by the deep blacks and bright whites of the dancers), the dancers themselves are super into it, with facial expressions that seem to say “I know I’m doing modern dance…I’m still soooo much cooler than you.” Personally, I’m a sucker for the effect of dancers growing out of each others’ shadows. It looks sharp and well-coordinated.

Ok Go! – A Million Ways
Ok Go! – Here We Go Again
I wanted to present both these videos because I think they’re both landmark in their own way. Both music videos were made by the band themselves, on their own free time and in their own homes. The band got lucky that lead singer Damian Kulash’s sister is such a talented, resourceful choreographer. For the first video, Ok Go spent weeks practicing in their back yard, and then shot the routine on a camera borrowed from a friend. Within weeks the video shot up the YouTube charts, eventually topping it as the most downloaded video to date. I even remember my father calling me around that time, telling me about this thing he’d heard on NPR about this outrageously popular ” Ok Now Go video on the interweb,” as he put it. This video revolutionized low-budget advertising for struggling bands everywhere. It woke people up to what an amazing tool YouTube, and user-generated media in general, can be as a means of spreading information.
Their second self-choreographed YouTube video, “Here We Go Again”, was a fantastic evolution from the first, and so popular that the band was asked to perform it live for the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. Naturally, their record label threw a fit when they saw what kind of liberties the band was taking with their safety (treadmills can be really dangerous, OK?), but it was such a huge (financial) success that I guess that label got over it.
For your viewing pleasure, both hilarious videos:

Beyonce – Single Ladies
Now this video is a gimme. This song is just SO danceable, I would have been shocked at anything less than an intense, Beyonce-helmed dance routine. Talk about fierce facial expressions! These ladies are serious. I adore this video for a million reasons, first and foremost being my undying love for anything Fosse. A lot of people commented (and none too nicely) that this routine is very similar to a Fosse routine recorded in the 1960′s. Rather than assume Beyonce is ripping off the famed choreographer, however, I think she is doing an amazing homage. This routine is outstanding, and she and her fellow dancers pull it off with the kind of aplomb I know Fosse would have applauded. And the dance costumes! Perfect for showing off those moves, each and every hip roll those ladies lay on us. Sublime.

Hope you enjoyed this extra-long post. If you’ll excuse me now, I have to go queue up every movie Fosse was ever involved in on Netflix, and then see if I can convince my tall, skinny boyfriend to dress like those nice boys in Ok Now Go.

Hearts,
Sprinks

Enjoy:

With mashed taters, cranberry sauce, and Tofurkey in her mouth,
Sprinks

Animation gives the artist complete freedom. Every decision in a cartoon had to be made; the colors, characters, objects and movements all have to be meticulously deliberated over. Every single noun, verb and adjective. As such, animation is both an incredibly elastic and diabolically tedious, but the results are always wildly imaginative.

As cartoon videos go, this one is a great example of how animation does not need to be vibrant and chaotic to be interesting. The use of black and white is refreshing, lending the story a simple feeling rather than the barren sense you often get from grey tones. It suits the song perfectly, reflecting its thoughtful tone. Upon researching the song, I discovered that the band, Kashmir, released a DVD of the same title, a documentary about the making of their second album Zitilitis, but for the life of me I could not find the name of the director of this particular clip.

Gorillaz is a group that is the melding of great minds, and they have the videos to prove it. They are technically a “virtual band” comprising of Damon Albarn of Blur fame and Jamie Hewlett, the author and artist for such critically acclaimed comic books as Tank Girl. So Albarn makes the music (collaborating with other musicians) and Hewlett makes the videos. The rest of the members are fictional: 2-D, Murdoc, Noodle and Russel. “Clint Eastwood” is the first single off their self-titled 2001 album and the introduction to these characters. These personalities are probably one of my favorite parts of the clip, and the band in general. Each has a distinct identity, which are fleshed out further in subsequent videos. At least one of the characters has been in each Gorillaz music video to date, and they are totally worth checking out.

This clip was perhaps the most highly recommended of the bunch. The story told has been inspired by the iconic book Ishmael according to songwriter Eddie Vedder, and author Dan Quinn said it was as close as anyone had come to capturing the message of the book. Does the animation style look familiar? Was I the only person watching Saturday morning cartoons fifteen years ago? The co-director was Kevin Altieri had also directed Batman: The Animated Series! The decision to go with that kind of bleak, angular animation style was excellent. Combined with the choppy editing and graphic imagery, the style worked to really express the idea behind the song. Ironically, this song about greedy fatcats controlling the masses was exported to Korea after the design and storyboarding process, so it could be meticulously animated by factory artists. Makes you think, no?




There are definitely a few other cartoon animation music videos to discuss, but another day. As usual, let me know if you can think of any I haven’t mentioned yet. If I don’t already have them on my list of Things to Discuss, I’d love to have something to add.




Cheers,
Sprinks

That said, in order to begin discussing music videos academically, we must first define the certain characteristics that set music videos apart from one another. What I want to explore today are the different ways music videos tell their stories. There are three major catagories that exist: performance videos, narrative videos and abstract. I’ll use my favorite band of all time, Radiohead, to give an example of each of these styles.

Performance:

The basic idea behind a performance video is that it is a music video showing the band performing that particular song. Although I already discussed performance videos in my first post, Radiohead’s take on the performance video shows the band’s ingenuity and wit. Rather than having a set of static camera set-ups recording their performance, the band took it upon themselves to hook up cameras to helmets to get a personalized, and at times disorienting, concert. Few music videos nowadays are strictly performance; more often, you’ll have a performance inter-cut with a narrative storyline or abstract images.

Narrative:

This moving music video was made by Radiohead in conjunction with MTV and is an excellent example of a narrative video. Narrative videos aim to tell a story, linear or not, through the course of the song. They have a clear beginning, middle and end, although the ways of telling the story are as varied as the approaches you see on the big screen. I chose this particular clip because it demonstrates the power of the narrative video. Music is so inherently tied in with emotions that pairing a poignant song with an equally touching story can have amazing results. The video for “All I Need” was released on May 1, 2008, International Labour Day, as part of MTV’s EXIT campaign to bring attention to human trafficking and has been an invaluable source of publicity for the campaign.

Abstract:

Abstract video is the anti-narrative video, and due to the sort of all-encompassing-ness of the abstract label, somewhat difficult to define. According to Dictionary.com, abstract is “of or pertaining to the formal aspect of art, emphasizing lines, colors, generalized or geometrical forms, etc., esp. with reference to their relationship to one another.” In fine art, abstract pieces are non-representational, in video abstract pieces are non-narrative.

Combination videos

Often music videos contain a combination of these styles. Although abstract and narrative can’t intermingle (by definition they kind of cancel one another out), performance videos can easily be hybridized:

Performance + Narrative

This music video is one of my favorite clips of all time. The narrative is incredibly compelling, with one of the most satisfying endings I’ve ever seen. The performance is equally fascinating; it’s hard to take your eyes off of Thom Yorke’s impassioned act. The editor did a fine job of cutting between the story and the concert, composing it in such a way that the audience’s anticipation is slowly built up without stumbling. What’s even more clever about the video is that it seems to make the performance part of the narrative. It’s the sort of video that captures you, entertains you, and leaves you pondering afterwards.

Performance + Abstract

“No Surprises” is a video that’s beautiful in its simplicity. Throughout this brief, threadbare video all the audience is allowed to see is Thom Yorke’s uniquely expressive face attempting to sing as he is slowly engulfed by water then gratefully freed. Meanwhile inverted lyrics and flashing lights dance on the glass surface, contorting the appearance of his face (notice that one bright light that completely covers his right eye?).




While I believe these videos are fairly straightforward representations of each of these categories, it is often difficult to determine how to classify a given video. However, it’s the conversation and debate that results from this difficulty that make music videos such a worthy subject of academic consideration, methinks.

I hope you enjoyed all this Radiohead goodness. To anyone out there who wants to see some fine, fine music video-making, I highly recommend you check out every single music video Radiohead has ever released. Some very popular videos that I was not able to include in this post but that are must-sees are “Paranoid Android” (ground-breaking animated clip), “Karma Police” (another beautifully simple narrative), and “House of Cards” (for which Radiohead developed their own new electron-capture technology).

Keep your eyes peeled, y’all, and let me know if I missed/misrepresented anything. Seriously, I love me some feedback!

Hearts,
Sprinks