Yee-haw.
As with regular List posts, these music video posts will take the form of lists of videos on youtube you should go check out. (Or, like today, I might even try including the video. We'll see how this works.) But usually I’m just sending you to youtube because it’s a free way to listen to just about any song. The difference here is that anything from a Video Round-Up will actually have a music video, not just a montage of stills or scenes from some anime set to the song. These are videos worth checking out as much for the video as for the song itself. And like everything around here, they might not always be metal videos. Case in point: this week’s list of videos that are just straight-up cool. Any genre, any style, just cool, interesting, or even thought provoking videos. And speaking of thought-provoking...
- ‘Hunted by a Freak’ by Mogwai
OK, maybe thought-provoking doesn’t fit quite right. Moving, perhaps? Whatever the word, this first video has stuck with me since I first saw it like ten years ago. And it’s not even metal. Seldom does any music video actually elicit an emotion response in the uninebriated, but with its Reboot-esque computer animation and somewhat shocking cartoon violence, this one just might, if you let it. It’s a journey of a whole gamut of thoughts and feelings compressed into just a few minutes and... and now I sound like the guy from the Actor’s Studio. Just go watch the video already.
- “Everlong” by the Foo Fighters
You might not have heard of Mogwai before, but unless you’re a newborn or an alien of some kind, fresh off the spaceship, you’ve definitely heard of Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters. They’ve done a bunch of fun videos over the years (many of which were linked together, with musical motifs from one song featuring at the start of the video for the next single), but the best has to be “Everlong”, both because the song itself is so awesome and because the video is such a good depiction of the silly, surreal way dreams sometimes play out. I particularly enjoy the characters’ transformations into the band for the song’s outro, especially Taylor Hawkins’ magic drumkit.
- “Heretics and Killers” by Protest the Hero
This one’s nothing crazy, but it does have a fun concept: ding, dong, the witch is dead, and her freshly unemployed minions have fallen on hard times, with all the guys in the band spending the duration of the video as winged monkeys looking for direction in a world without their boss. Hijinks and monkey mayhem ensues. It’s not the funniest or most memorable video in the world, but like I said, it’s a fun concept, and if you don’t know Protest the Hero (you should!) “Heretics and Killers” is a pretty decent place to start.
- “The Perfect Drug” by Nine Inch Nails
I’ve heard that Trent Reznor isn’t exactly enamoured with this song or its video, but I’m of the opinion that both are pretty cool, and he’s not here so it’s my opinion that counts. The song itself represents a good example of where NIN was headed as they got ready to leave the 90's: the industrial aggression of their earlier work flavoured with the electronic elements that had always been there but were increasingly coming to the forefront. And the video? Weird, creepy, kinda surreal... and then there’s Trent’s moustache...
- “Points of Authority (Remix)” by Linkin Park (make sure you watch the animated video)
I’ve never been a huge Linkin Park fan, but they’ve had some cool tunes over the years, including this remix from their Reanimation album. More pertinent for the purposes of this post, the song has a cool computer animated video that made me want to play the video game the first time I saw it. Before you ask, there is no sci-fi Linkin Park shooter, but after seeing this video, maybe you’ll agree that there should be. Imagine taking part in the battle in the video, perhaps playing as the flying, missile hurling robot guy, with everything rendered in CryENGINE 3. That’s a tasty thought, if somewhat off-topic.
That about wraps it up for today. Got any video suggestions of your own? Let me know, because this won’t be the last time I do this. And once again, chances are it’ll be more metal next time, so if that’s your thing, you know where to find me.
* If you have a better name, I’m open to suggestions.
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