Classic Video:

The New Pollution
Beck



On a bit of a hellbent to see how much I can get written before Viacom completely obliterates my video budget - my non-existent video budget - we've got a classic effort from 1996's Odelay by none other than mad genius Beck. "The New Pollution" is easily one of the best expressions of the music video ever, and becomes doubly impressive when you consider that Mr. Hansen himself directed it.

All of the videos released for Odelay are not easily forgettable; it's a list which includes "Devil's Haircut", "Where It's At", and "Jack-Ass". And while "Devil's Haircut" vies for the best of the elite with its razor-sharp editing and cinematography, "The New Pollution" earns points by being the most colorful, most expansive, possibly most Beck video off this album - which, by extension, makes it the most Beck video he's put out.

It certainly tells a story... something about fads and eras and such. But as with all things of this nature, it's best to not overanalyze. Just enjoy.

Pieces of the People We Love
The Rapture


Been awhile... a long damned while, but so it goes (RIP Mr. Vonnegut). We, and by we I mean I, return with a very stylish release from The Rapture in Pieces of the People We Love. The video, with its stark images of the suited band, darkly-dressed random, and oh yes the dancing girls, brings memories of 80s era videomaking. All imagination, light on the visual fireworks. It all comes together perfectly, allowing you to be drawn into the music and the four-minute world that exists solely for the video.

The Rapture

Album: Pieces of the People We Love
Year of Video: 2007

A Rewarding Video about Awards...

Grammy Family
DJ Kahled, Kanye West, Consequence, John Legend



(Note: Video no longer available at YouTube)

A concept you'll hear me mention quite often when talking about music videos is "fit". There are a lot of brilliant videos, as there are a lot of brilliant songs... but something magical happens when the pictures and the music "fit" together perfectly. As if they shot the video first and said: "Now put some backing music to this."
Something about this video with this track just fits together so well, and I really can't say enough about them both. There's this terrific feeling of both overcoming (especially in the shots of the city people) and of celebration. Along with the droning of the backing beats and the imagery and the lyrics, you feel like you're watching a story of conquering and knowing when one deserves victory. The usage of black-and-white is very tasteful, and the video also has a tremendous playful side that stops everything from being taken TOO seriously.