Category: Video

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Australia’s Two People and Their Gorgeous, Cinematic Visuals for “If We Have Time”

The duo’s second and latest single “If We Have Time,” pairs vocalist Phoebe Lou’s aching vocals with a moodily atmospheric production consisting of swirling electronics, stuttering drum programming, twinkling keyboards and guitar played through reverb. And sonically speaking the song will likely remind a great deal of readers of Portishead and Goldfrapp‘s gorgeous Tales of Us — while thematically being a song that focus on the intangible and fleeting nature of time, as well as on a relationship that is in an uncertain place, and on the verge of dissolution. Both scenarios force people to stop and look into the mirror.

The recently released music video is shot in a gorgeous and expansively cinematic black and white in the desert, complete with long pans and much like Martin Amis’ incredible Time’s Arrow with some performance footage and moody and lyrical footage of a woman walking in the desert going in slow motion or in reverse. It’s a trippy yet visually arresting video.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Peruvian Septet Bareto Returns with a Cosmic Take on Traditional Cumbia Paired with Satirical Visuals

The album’s latest single “La Pantalla,” will further cement the Peruvian septet’s reputation for pushing the sonic boundaries of cumbia as a looping guitar line played through gentle amounts of reverb are paired with soaring organ, electronic bleeps and bloops, an infectious hook with call-and-response vocals — and as a result, the song possesses a subtly psychedelic and cosmic feel. And along with that, the band manages to play with a coolly swaggering, self-assuredness.

The recently released music video is a rather satirical take on Peruvian TV shows, featuring shows hosted by grotesque talking heads, violent and absurd situations, spliced with footage of the band performing the show on a shitty late night talk show and footage of dancers splashing, sloshing and getting even filthier in the mud; in fact they get so filthy that they manage to spread their filth on to a nearby child.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Live Footage/Throwback: Saul Williams performing “Telegram” at Afropunk Festival 2013

Over the past twenty plus years, poet, singer/songwriter, emcee and actor Saul Williams has developed a reputation for being one most inventive, challenging and uncompromising artists and poets of his generation; but perhaps just as important, he’s proven to be a thoughtful and incisive social critic, who’s frequently commented on Donald Trump and the 2016 election cycle. In honor of his much-anticipated SummerStage set at Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park, I think it’s fitting to check out some live footage of Williams with Dragons of Zynth performing “Telegram” at 2013’s Afropunk Festival. Also if you pay close attention, I’m pretty certain that you see me in the photo pit snapping as many pictures as humanly possible during an incredible and comprehensive set featuring material from both Williams’ self-titled effort and The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Radiohead “Paranoid Android”-like Visuals for Coastgaard’s “A Well Adjusted Man”

“A Well Adjusted Man,” the first single off Coastgaard’s forthcoming sophomore full-length Devil on the Balcony pairs upbeat jangling guitar pop with lyrics that follow the psychological makeup and inner monologue of a decidedly average man, who frequently vacillates between brooding self-reflection and self-doubt and self-assured potency — often simultaneously, ultimately revealing that the kingdoms of heaven and hell are actually within.

The recently released, animated video follows the daily exploits of a decidedly average man, struggling to survive through the indignities of working a corporate job, stopping at a local shitty bar before presumably dying in a car accident that quickly sends him to his own hell. Visually speaking, the video reminds me quite a bit of the visuals for Radiohead’s “Paranoid Android.”

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Goofy and Gloriously 80s Public Access TV Visuals for Neon Indian’s “Annie”

With the release of Vega Intl. Night School last year, Palomo and Neon Indian quickly became a JOVM mainstay; in fact, you might recall that I wrote about the album’s first single “Annie,” an immensely slick and crowd pleasing single that lyrically and thematically draws from Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” and “Dirty Diana” as the song’s narrator is a bit of a lovelorn fool, who can’t find his missing girlfriend either because she suddenly skipped town, never to return — or perhaps much more darkly, because the song’s narrator has had something to do with it. Sonically, the song is comprised of a taut yet sinuous bass line, angular funk guitar chords and shimmering and cascading synth stabs paired with Palomo’s plaintive falsetto, which reminds me quite a bit of Rush Midnight’s +1 EP but funkier.

The recently released music video is a gloriously goofy video shot on grainy VHS tape and splices live footage of Palomo with his backing band in Japan, versions of shitty chatline commercials, footage of Palomo’s character being questioned and then beaten by the police, Palomo doing his best Moonwalker-era Michael Jackson impression, an interview of Palomo’s character being interviewed on a Morton Downey, Jr.-like talk show, complete with shittier special effects and cuts, and a follow-the-bouncing ball crawl on the bottom of the screen. And as a child of the 80s, public access TV actually looked that awful and for a song that draws so much from 80s synth pop, the aesthetic is fitting.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Post-Modern Art-Inspired Visuals for Preoccupations “Degraded”

The self-titled album’s second single “Degraded” pairs their tense and angular song with what may arguably be the possess the most straightforward and hook-friendly song structure they’ve written to date; however, the song lyrically reveals itself to be full of bilious accusation and recrimination, ill-feeling and seems to evoke a relationship slowly splintering at its core, complete with the realization that as a result the relationship will be irrevocably altered; but simultaneously being a plaintive and urgent plea for understanding, for forgiveness, for the dysfunctional train ride to just stop. Sonically, the band employs synths to give their already tense material a subtle atmospheric feel much like “Anxiety;” however, the album’s latest single pushes that feeling of anxiety outward so that it becomes an enveloping fog.

Although the recently video manages to evoke a post modern painting with colors and shapes appearing as though reduced to abstraction, as the video’s director Valentina Tapia explains “The video offers an encounter with the primordial ruins of a post-human landscape, where sentient sculptural artifacts attempt to reassemble themselves piece by piece.” And while being surreal, the video manages to evoke a world splintering apart into something both unrecognizable and recognizable if you were to pay close attention, accurately capturing the tense and anxious sensibility within the song.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstay Charlie Greene Returns with an Aching, Country-Leaning Cover of Ziggy Stardust-era Bowie

Several years have passed since we’ve heard from Charlie Greene but as Greene has told me via email, he’s been pretty busy of late as he’s putting the finishing touches on an album that is tentatively slated for release sometime over the winter, along with some tour dates; but in the meantime, the Atlanta-born and Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter has started a video series he’s titled “Dead Man’s Cattle Call,” in which he an this backing band pay tribute to a recently deceased musician of note with a one-take recording in a Topanga, CA-based grape arbor, then they release an accompanying video. And the latest installment is a slow-burning country music rendition of David Bowie’s “The Prettiest Star,” which pulls out the nostalgic wistfulness and ache at the core of the original.

The recently released music video was shot by the folks at Beard and Glasses VR and to get the full effect of the video, please check it out on Google Chrome or on your smartphone. It’s a trippy and immersive effect to be able to view everything the musicians did while performing the song.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Charles Bradley Reflects on His Life in the Gorgeous and Cinematic Video for “Good To Be Back Home”

Interestingly, Changes’ third full-single “Good To Be Back Home” has Bradley at his most pensive, as he reflects on the emotional and spiritual whirlwind of his life over the past 6 years, a period that has seen him become an internationally recognized artist playing in front of adoring crowds all over the world and the death of his mother among other things. And as a result the song manages to be one of the more ambivalent songs Bradley has ever released as the song is both a triumphant and weary — triumphant in the fact that the song’s narrator can admit pride over being able to perform in front of adoring crowds but wearying in the fact that he’s hurt over the death of his mother, and there’s the subtle implication that no matter how successful you could be, you still somehow wind up alone. Perhaps Thomas Wolfe was right, you could never go back home again, as there’s a point in which you’ve changed way too much — or things have changed to the point that it doesn’t resemble anything you remember. Sonically speaking, the song continues along the path of its preceding singles as the single leans towards psychedelic soul — in particular think of The Temptations “Papa Was A Rolling Stone,” James Brown’s “The Payback” and others as it’s a slow-burning and moody song.

The recently released music video is shot in a gorgeous and cinematic black and white and splits its time between footage of Charles Bradley and the Extraordaires performing on stage in front of adoring crowds, giving hugs to fans, pensively walking through his Brooklyn neighborhood and hanging out at home. The video arguably gives the most complete picture of Bradley as a public figure and everyday person.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Milemarker’s New Video Captures Their Live Song and An Anthemic, Mosh Pit Worthy Song

Over the last few months I’ve written quite a bit about  Chapel Hill, NC-based experimental/post-hardcore punk/new wave-leaning trio Milemarker. Initially comprised of Al Burian, Dave Laney and Ben Davis, the members of Milemarker quickly developed a reputation in indie […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Indie, Experimental Electro Pop Supergroup’s Latest Pairs a Tight Groove with Deeply Empathetic Lyrics and Visuals

Interestingly, the album’s latest single and album title track “Our Puram,” has a narrator, who describes the sense of ecstasy and belonging that members of the Rajneeshpuram community felt and the gaping sense of dejection and hopelessness when they were forced to return to what they felt were dreary, ordinary, meaningless lives. While sonically, the trio pair distorted four-on-the-floor-like breakbeats, layers of wobbling and distorted synths, twinkling keys, distorted and droning guitar chords and mournful horn notes held together with a motorik-like groove that builds up towards the song’s last half/last third or so. It’s arguably the trio’s most mournful song but paired with one of the deepest and trippiest grooves they’ve released to date, while retaining a cinematic quality.

The recently released video features found footage that provides an intimate peek into the daily lives and practices of the Rajneeshpuram community and it gives the song a deeper, empathetic feel as it reminds the viewer and the listener of the subject’s essential humanity.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Devil Makes Three’s Reefer Madness-Like Visuals for Their Sun Records-Inspired Cover of Muddy Waters’ “Champagne and Reefer”

Redemption and Ruin‘s latest single is a slightly slowed-down, twangy, Johnny Cash, Sun Records-era-leaning cover of one of my favorite Muddy Waters tunes “Champagne and Reefer” that retains the original’s wicked sense of humor and gleeful debauchery. And interestingly enough, the recently released music video features a ton of old Reefer Madness-inspired movie footage of people smoking, getting high, partying hard, hooking up and generally just having a shit ton of fun; in fact, so much fun that I think I might want to join them.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Live Footage: The Mystery Lights Performing “What Happens When The Devil Turns You Down” on Daptone Records’ “Live From The House of Soul” Video Series

Daptone Records recently released some gorgeously cinematic, black and white shot footage of The Mystery Lights performing “What Happens When The Devil Turns You Down” as part of their “Live From The House Of Soul” video series. And the song is comprised of layers of guitar chords fed through reverb, an incredibly dexterous guitar solo reminiscent of Robby Krieger’s solo in “Light My Fire,” and propulsive yet subtly jazz-like drumming paired with Brandon’s falsetto singing lyrics about a surreal encounter with the devil.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Gonjasufi’s New, Cinematic Visuals and Sounds

Ecks’ soon-to-be released effort Callus is reportedly his most soul-baring and cathartic material released to date as the album thematically is about embracing pain, hurt and anger to create something that could potentially resonate with someone else. The album’s fourth and latest single “Vinaigrette” finds the renowned producer and electronic music artist pairing layers of abrasive and droning synths, propulsive drumming, wobbling and buzzing guitar and equally wobbling bass, industrial clang and clatter with Ecks’ croaky, aching vocals singing a song that’s actually quite playful. As Ecks explains in press notes “The truth is I wasn’t trying to get too serious with this song. It was recorded when the world was in a better place, hence the mood is light. I imagined a runway model struggling with her own skewed perception. A girl who was trying to run away from herself, only to find out she only has herself at the end of the day.”

The recently released music video is shot in a cinematic black and white for the first 2/3rds of the video and nods at Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill, Vol 1. and others, as it features a contemplative female protagonist, who hits the road and literally runs away only to be hopelessly trapped within her own subjective interiority. No matter what, her own thoughts, memories and perceptions follow her along, and in a subtle fashion the video will remind the viewer that the only one you’ll ever have is yourself.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Woozy and Trippy Visuals and Sounds of Amber Arcades’ “Turning Light”

According to de Graaf, “Turning Light,” Fading Lines’ latest single is about time, continuity and the magic in that; about being the protagonist in your own story while simultaneously being a supporting player in the lives of everyone around you and about how those roles and lines intertwine.” And as the Dutch singer/songwriter and musician explains the recently released video “captures these sentiments in a continuing movement (a.k.a. the most basic dance I could think of – and probably the only one I am capable of” and it continues throughout the video uninterrupted while locations, perspectives and even boundaries between moments fade and seem to collide into each other.

Sonically speaking, de Graaf and her backing band pair rapid fire, four-on-the-floor drumming, swirling and shimmering strings, twinkling electronics, a driving bass line and de Graaf’s ethereal vocals singing lyrics that reflect the relativistic nature of time and as a result, the woozy single manages to sound as though it draws from shoegaze and Brit pop equally.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Introducing the Surreal Visuals and Club-Banging Sounds of Austin, TX’s Holiday Mountain

Holiday Mountain’s latest single “Coffee and Weed” is a trap house-leaning club banger consisting of sparse, twinkling synths, stuttering drum programming and pairs it with Patiño’s swaggering yet mischievous flow about being lazy and bullshitting with some coffee and weed after presumably partying your face off, along with a chopped and screwed vocal sample and wobbling low end to craft a song that’s both ridiculously and ironically post-modern while being a slow-burning club banger.

The recently released video manages to be simultaneously surreal and sensual as it features the duo hanging out in outdoor tubs — Kagle looks like a luchador while Patiño is in a neon green two piece bathing suit, strutting, vamping, twerking and swaggering through the video.