Tag: New Video

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Boogarins Returns with Yet Another Breezy and Contemplative Song, and Gorgeous Visuals

Boogarins latest single “Tempo” is an contemplative song with an expansive song structure consisting of alternating dreamy and moody section with a loud, anthemic section featuring buzzing guitar chords and feedback — and much like the album’s previously released singles the latest single sounds as thought it draws from Pink Floyd, 60s garage psych, Tropicalia and jazz, which gives the song a breeziness that belies its thoughtful and psychedelic nature. According to press notes, the song’s lyrics speak about stopping time and freeing yourself from the everyday grind of work, school and obligations and escaping from the pressures of daily life.

Interestingly, the members of the band reached out to their fans on social media and asked them to shoot footage of two different moods: the first being “man’s world,” a world full of soul-crushing and demeaning imagery of urban life — commuting and rushing about, working, studying and starting at computer screens; and the second being images of sanctuary and safe places — friends, being out in nature, music, art and anything that would make you feel open, free and whole. As a result of their open call, the band received hundreds of submissions, which were then edited and crafted into a gorgeous, surreal and coherent whole by Cobrandit Films’ Owen Mack.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The 80s Inspired Visuals for Iconique’s “Sitting Pretty”

Building upon the buzz they’ve received for their first two singles and the video for “Step Into the Mood,” the Los Angeles, CA-based electro pop trio Iconique recently released the fittingly 80s influenced video for “Sitting Pretty,” a video that visually reminds me quite a bit of the visuals for Roxy Music’s “More Than This,” The Human LeagueR’s “Don’t You Want Me” and others — but with a focus on the video’s glamour being seemingly fleeting and unattainable for most.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Coquettish Sounds and Playful Visuals of Up-and-Coming Chicago-based Electro Pop Duo Chrissy and Hawley

As the story goes, Chrissy and Shoffner are both originally from Kansas — although they met in Chicago and began working together on an album that effortlessly meshes both of their unique styles — and as you’ll hear on their latest single “My Top Twenty,” off their soon-to-be released self-titled debut effort, Chrissy pairs a propulsive production of shimmering, brief bursts of twinkling keys and wobbling synths and skittering drum programming with Shoffner’s coquettish vocals singing lyrics about the connection between love and your favorite albums. And in some way, the duo’s latest single reminds me quite a bit of the propulsive and shimmering sounds of Soft Metals impressive Lenses album and classic house music — although “My Top Twenty” is far more coquettish and airier.

The recently released music video is an appropriately lighthearted and goofy video that features the duo’s Hawley Shoffner singing the song at a karaoke bar while the video within the video features Shoffner pensively wandering around parts of Chicago and goofing around in the karaoke-styled visuals you’d expect to see in a karaoke bar.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Mournful Sounds and Surreal Visuals for Stefan Weich’s Latest Single “Louie”

Stefan Weich’s second and latest single “Louie” continues on the same vein as “Holy Night” as swirling and ambient electronics are paired with soft padded drumming, bursts of bluesy guitar chords and Weich’s plaintive falsetto crooning lyrics about a relationship in which both people are slowly drifting apart. At the heart of the song is the unspoken and built up resentments that can cause people to slowly drift apart over time, and a lingering sense of regret of what happened — and how it happened.

The recently released music video for the song also fittingly featured some warped and kaleidoscopic, psychedelic imagery — in some way, it evokes what I would imagine tripping on hallucinogens would feel like as you were wandering around a lonely and surreal city landscape.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Eric Wareheim’s Kinky Video for Blonde Redhead’s “Dripping”

Back in 2014, Blonde Redhead quietly released their ninth full-length effort Barragan, an effort that includes the shimmering and sultry single “Dripping.” The New York-based trio promptly released a hazy and gorgeous video for the song that also doubled as an advertisement for British fashion label All Saints, which you can catch below. Interestingly, comedian, actor and musician Eric Wareheim, best known for his work in comedy duo Tim and Eric is a huge Blonde Redhead fan and he figured that he could two things — create a better video and craft a love letter to his favorite band. And much like the original video, Wareheim’s video is gorgeous, featuring worshipful imagery of beautiful women of all shapes, sizes and colors smoking, drinking whiskey or delicately pruning hedges until the camera gently pulls back and reveals some incredibly kinky activities.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Trippy Postcard-Inspired Visuals for Gold Panda’s “Chiba Nights”

“Chiba Night,” Gold Panda’s latest single sounds as though it owes a major sonic debt to classic, Larry Levan-era house, The Chemical Brothers’ “Star Guitar”and Kraftwerk as the song is comprised of twinkling and cascading synths paired with thick, choppy keyboard chords, swirling electronics and skittering yet propulsive drum programming before quickly fading out.

Directed by Dan Tombs, the recently released music video for “Chiba Night” is a trippy and kaleidoscopic travelogue of Japan featuring footage shot in Tokyo and the surrounding areas of Chiba and Minowa.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The 80s Inspired Visuals and Sounds of Finland’s Beverly Girl

With the release of “Contagious” Finnish trio Beverly Girl have started to receive a bit of attention internationally for an electro pop/funk/R&B/freestyle sound that immediately channels nostalgic memories of the 80s — while simultaneously comparing quite favorably to a number of contemporary artists including Rush Midnight, St. Lucia, Dam-Funk and others but incredibly club friendly. Or simply put, a sleek production consisting of sinuous bass lines, shimmering cascades of synths and propulsive boom-bap drums are paired with sultry vocals and a ridiculously infectious hook

Video by William Ruben Helms

Live Footage: Oakland, CA-based Duo Introflirt Return With Another Dark, 80s Inspired Electro Pop Song

Introflirt’s latest single “Orange Light” has them pairing undulating and cascading layers of synths and propulsive drum programming with Benjamin’s crooning and sonically, the song sounds indebted to 80s synth pop — in particular, Depeche Mode, The Human League and New Order but with a modern production sheen. And much like their previously released singles, the duo’s material thematically speaking the song focuses on the fractured psyche of its narrator, a narrator, who seems plagued by an overwhelming sensation of disappointment and frustration, repressed feelings and desires finally bursting out at an inopportune time.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Surreal Dali-esque Visuals for BRAIDS’ “Companion”

Over the course of three full-length albums and their latest EP Companion, Montreal-based electronic act BRAIDS have developed a reputation for restless experimentation, which has resulted in each of their recorded efforts sounding different from each […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Dramatic Visuals for Oh, Pep!’s “Doctor Doctor”

This year may arguably be one of the biggest years to date for Oh, Pep! as their much-anticipated full-length debut Stadium Cake is slated for release next month through Dualtone Records. Recorded and produced by renowned Canadian producer Daniel Ledwell in Echo Lake, Nova Scotia last August, the album reportedly has the duo expanding upon the songwriting approach and sound that first won them national and international attention — namely the duo’s ability to subtly mesh lightness and darkness within their material. The album’s first single “Doctor Doctor” has the band pairing stuttering cascades of synths, propulsive boom bap drums with Hally and Emmerich’s ethereal and sultry vocals singing lyrics focusing on a narrator that is not only suffering through self-doubt and indecision but someone who from their own foolishness has found themselves forced to make one of the most difficult life-altering decisions of their entire life — in the case of the video, the song’s narrator discovers that she’s pregnant. And her decision not only impacts her life but the life of her partner — although to be fair, the bulk of impact will be on her. Of course the video reflects the palpable sense of tension within the song as you’ll see the fear and uncertainty on the faces of both of the video’s central pair.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Surreal 70s and 80s Found Footage-based Visuals for DBFC’s “Automatic”

Comprised of its frontmen Manchester, UK-born and Paris-based David Shaw and Paris-born and based Dombrance, along with Guilluame Rosel (percussion) and Victor Paillet (bass), the Paris-based electronic music collective DBFC emerged onto the French electronic music scene with the release […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: The Blaxploitation Channeling Visuals for Homeboy Sandman’s “Nonbelievers” Video

Homeboy Sandman’s latest single “Nonbelievers” which pairs the Boy Sand’s ridiculously playful rhyme schemes with a hip-hop golden age-leaning production consisting of a looped, slinky guitar line and a propulsive rhythm section of stuttering drum programming and a rolling and swaying bass line. But just underneath the surface is an equally playful sensuality as the New York emcee talks about being in love with what may be one of the more interesting women in the entire world.

The recently released music video for “Nonbelievers” plays with some of themes and motifs of Pam Grier’s most beloved Blaxploitation films while subtly suggesting that the entire time the New York-based emcee was having an extremely vivid dream — or maybe not.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Check Out Neon Indian and Friends’ Funky and Breezy Cover of Prince’s “Pop Life”

As a child of the 80s there is a rather lengthy list of songs, artists and albums that have profoundly influenced and transformed my life — in particular David Bowie, Talking Heads, Madonna, DEVO, R.E.M, […]