5 WEIRD AND WONDERFUL MUSIC VIDEOS

By Jen Houston 

Okay, so I don’t really watch music television anymore. I admit that even at 24, I feel too old for the idle VJ chatter, shiny hair extensions, and tackily trendy outfits. But watching online, I can bypass the cultural assault and find my own gems. These particular videos I found quite weird and wonderful… you may want to skip all but the Moby one if you’re epileptic though! They’re all full of flashing colours! 

So turn off the lights and expect LSD flashbacks from these five videos: 

Uncalibrated

Bridges and Powerlines

Ghost Types

Consultant: Ben Salley

This NYC quartet calls its music "state-school nerd rock"... whatever that means. In any case, apparently the visual companion to state-school nerd rock is an awesome sock puppet video! B&P says it had already filmed most of a traditional video, when they decided to can the whole thing in favour of this 20-person cast extravaganza. Who doesn’t love sock puppets?

Heart Invaders

Eightcubed

Eightcubed

Creator: Dan Swan

While Eightcubed is Canadian, England’s Dan Swan created this busy video, which gloriously reeks of 80s space cheese.  The flashing neon cartoons made me dizzy; the LEGO space board made me nostalgic.

Okie Dokie

Dan Deacon

Spiderman of the Rings

Director: David Hughes

Beginning to end, this video is exercise for the eyes. It uses intricate cut-ups to show Dan doing his thing, mixed with strange scenes in other techniques. My favourite part is the lady’s petting hand, which brings the video to the peak of abnormality.

I'm Not Going To Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You

Black Kids

Partie Traumatic

Director: Chris Boyle

This video takes the ‘band-performs-in-an-empty-room’ cliché to surprisingly exciting places. Highlights include ballroom dancing, cheerleaders, 70s psychedelics, dance step charts, laser guns, band members’ auras, and cardboard cut-outs reminiscent of a high-school play. At some points it looks like someone beat up an iPod commercial…

Disco Lies

Moby

Last Night

Okay, so Moby is popular enough that your grandma showed you this video last month. This tongue-in-cheek video is about a giant rooster-pimp seeking revenge on a fried chicken colonel. Random shots of singer Shayna Steele as a Foxy Cleopatra-esque diva confuse me.