Welcome back to The Last VJ, music fans. I'm pleased to present a pretty diverse group to you this week. We've got everything from Disney pop princesses going goth to a short music film directed by -- not making this up -- Lena Dunham.
Electronica, pop-rock, and hardcore are on the menu this go-round, so open your eyes and please play at maximum volume.
Provision, "In November" A local band to starts us off this week, and it's somehow the first Provision video I've ever seen. On the surface director Erin Diaz's creation isn't all that special, mostly a mixture of light tricks and stock footage. However, if you know what she was going for, then "In November" is just brilliant.
The video is obviously meant specifically to be showcased on the big screens at Numbers, and is heavily influenced by the late Robert Burtenshaw's work. It's wonderful to see his video legacy live on through a new generation, especially since it's unlikely that Robot's collection is not likely to see the light of YouTube any time soon.
VerseCity, "Movin Up" I can't lie. VerseCity is a guilty-pleasure band of mine. I actually have tried to hate them in the past for their particular brand of pop-rock, but just can't do it; they force the smile onto my face. "Movin Up" is short on story and long on shots of hot girls, fast cars and musical shenanigans in an elevator.
Directors Kyle Lamar and Alister Auguste bring their peppy ode to accomplishment to extremely crisp life in what may be the slickest local video I've ever seen before, and certainly ranks among the prettiest. Like VerseCity itself, sometimes I wish there was a bit more to the execution than upbeat music to skate to, but I can't deny it's fun.
REWIND: Last Week's Music Video Roundup
Bleachers, "I Wanna Get Better" Welcome to my current favorite music video of 2014, directed by Lena Dunham of all people. I love it when music videos go the extra mile to become little musical films, and "I Wanna Get Better" definitely does so. It's the story of a psychiatrist whose life is falling apart as he grimly goes through the motions of listening to his parade of freakish clients. My favorite is the young nymphomaniac who utters the John Waters-worthy line "My parents got me this do so I'd get an abortion. It's an abortion dog." That is trash genius right there.
The clients express themselves through the song's lyrics, and I must say that Bleachers has a real gift with words. "I put a bullet where I should've put a helmet and I crashed my car because I want to get carried away" is something I wish I'd heard back in high school so I could have angstily carved it into my forearm with the tip of a paper clip. It all builds to a concert featuring all the patients that plays out in the psychiatrist's mind. The moment is most triumphant, and I have now watched this video six times in a row. Love. It.
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