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Friday, February 06, 2009

Friday Morning Videos: "Sledgehammer"

So, I've been getting complaints from a few friends, asking me, why don't I ever choose any good videos, videos that, like, average people our age can remember? The easy answer is, those are the videos easily accessible on YouTube; half of the really famous ones have their embedding disabled. But the fuller answer is...well, I don't really know. Contrariness, I guess. I mean, there are hundreds of these, tucked away in the almost entirely forgotten recesses of our mind; why should I haul of just the most popular ones, the ones that everyone has seen dozens of times? But I take their point; I should intersperse lesser-known videos with critically acclaimed, award-winning ones. No pop-rock radio station, after all, no matter how hip, plays nothing but XTC or Belle and Sebastian over and over again, completely ignoring Peter Gabriel.

Speaking of whom, let's start with him, and perhaps the finest, most inventive, most original music video of them. Enjoy, everybody. Feel free to sing along.

5 comments:

The Modesto Kid said...

W-wait, so... people ask you why you're not posting good videos; and you respond by posting "Sledgehammer"? Somehow I'm missing a link here... (grin)

(Fresh from reading the unending debate at the Robyn Hitchcock mailing list over whether bands that sell a lot of albums are worthy of the same consideration as, well bands I like...)

Russell Arben Fox said...

Dude, are you saying you don't think the "Sledgehammer" video is awesome? I mean, I can understand criticism of the song (though I'm probably MOR enough not to fully appreciate such a critique; it sounds to me like a perfectly fine bit of 60s-style R&B/pop, updated and with a dash of "world music" instrumentation thrown in), but the video? It was done by the same people who did Wallace and Grommit! They can do no wrong!

The Modesto Kid said...

Interesting, I didn't realize it was Aardman. You're right, it is some interesting visuals; I wouldn't have thought of looking at a video independent of the song, I guess I always thought of videos as an extension of the song. This song is pretty annoying to me.

A video that I have been really loving recently: Mind Wall, by Towa Tei.

Anonymous said...

Damn, man, I wish you'd have posted an advisory for us epileptics.

Russell Arben Fox said...

Anonymous, I'll make you a promise: if I ever get around to putting up Wang Chung's "Everybody Have Fun Tonight", I'll attach a warning.