In this week’s top music video picks, we take a journey through icy blue Scandinavian waters, 1960s dance numbers, and the depths of the Internet. From hip-hop to electronic and indie rock, and featuring artists like The Presets and Atmosphere, see which music videos are becoming viral this week.
Lune: “Leave the World Behind”
Welcome back Swedish House Mafia! Well, at least for this music video. The superstar DJ trio performed their final gig together at the Ultra Music Festival in March, calling it quits after a five-year stint. Swedish crooner Lune—whose wavering voice shares similarities with Björk—sang a reworked version of their “Leave the World Behind” hit for this Volvo-sponsored video featuring stunning Scandinavian landscapes.
The Presets: “Fall”
In a fitting video for The Presets’s track “Fall,” two masked skydivers (perhaps disguised to represent the Australian electronic music duo), poetically float and flip in the open, blue skies. The beautiful panoramic footage complements the song’s lyrics: “In this hell we found our heaven, heaven, heaven in it.”
She & Him: “I Could’ve Been Your Girl”
Not only is the adoradorky Zooey Deschanel a triple threat (she can be seen starring as the lead on Fox’s New Girl, tap-dancing alongside of Joseph Gordon-Levitt in 2009’s 500 Days of Summer, and singing as half of the She & Him indie-folk outfit), but she can now add music video director to her resume. In this choreographed and bubblegum-sweet pop video for “I Could’ve Been Your Girl,” Deschanel gives a nod to 1960’s musicals in her directorial debut.
Neosignal: “Planet Online”
The chorus “planet online” is chanted in a robotic voice throughout German electronic group Neosignal’s track, and the tongue-in-cheek music video that accompanies it brings to life all things associated with the Internet, using a nostalgic throw-back to ‘90s children’s toy commercials. Internet Explorer is represented by a dinosaur, Grumpy Cat competes with other cats in a car-racing game, and Google Maps is made into a board game. The Internet takes a dark turn for the kids in 3:12.
Raffertie: “Build Me Up”
What starts off as scenes of a black-and-white documentary about three brothers who dress the same and share a close bond develops into captivating and moving vignettes interspliced with supernatural elements (see 3:42). Nowness reported that director Vincent Haycock met the youngest brother Demantre Mays on a location scout for a video in South Central, and brought their real lives to light in the video for London producer Raffertie.
will.i.am: “Bang Bang”
The Roaring Twenties are back in full effect! The Great Gatsby soundtrack includes will.i.am’s old-school-jazz-meets-electronic-music track, “Bang Bang.” The black-and-white vintage music video is accompanied by some Charleston-esque dancing and a full horn section for this upbeat song.
Atmosphere: “Ain’t Nobody”
The two scantily-clad ladies wearing Christian Louboutin red-soled heels in this Atmosphere video may just be Robert Palmer’s “Simply Irresistible” girls reincarnated or the twin girls from The Shining all grown up. The meaning of the video is fuzzy and left to the interpretation of the viewer, but it’s hard to look away and see what these girls will do next.
London Grammar: “Wasting My Young Years”
Director-duo Bison’s impressive video for London Grammar captures 360-degree freeze-frame images—similar to something out of The Matrix—using 35 mm film. Through a meticulous process, the directors built a homemade camera rig with 625 pinhole cameras that were exposed at the same time. People are jumping forwards and backwards, and the results are haunting and moving.The making-of-the-video is worth a watch.
