I don’t really watch music videos very much these days but when I do, it’s Dos Equis it’s generally because
a) The music video is good
b) I can’t figure out a way of downloading the mp3, therefore have to resort the the crappy youtube quality version to listen to it
c) I know people in the music video and think it’s amusing that I know people who make music videos
d) Accidentally clicked on a link while watching random youtube videos of say, a goat vs an eagle
The following videos from local bands Papermaps and Ruby Spirit certainly measure up to these requirements and thus, are worth mentioning. It’s pretty cool to know that bands still take the time to make a proper music video and I hope they can follow the Rebecca Black business model and gain millions of dollars from it, but realistically, a good music video is a way to rise above the noise that is the indie music blogosphere.
Papermaps – Reunion
The premise of this video is fairly straight forward and obvious – the band asked their fans to submit videos answering the timeless question – “If you could write some words of advice to 16 year old you, what would you say?”. I think they got the idea from some movie or something. Anyways, the answers from the fans are cute and endearing, with phrases such as “be yourself”, “stay in school”, “follow your dreams”, etc. Ever the thinker, I thought about it and here are the five things I would send to myself.
* invest heavily in Apple Shares post 1998, borrow money from Uncle
* Super Bowl XLII – New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14
* Maybe don’t leave that Perez Hilton party at SXSW, you know, just in case Kanye shows up and plays a secret show
* Maybe don’t spend a few thousand on SLR’s and equipment then suddenly decide you don’t like taking photographs
* Always look both ways before crossing Granville street in the summer of 2001
Anyways, the music video is creative, endearing and sound tracked by a stellar upbeat indie pop track. Hard to do much better than this given the low budget the band probably had.
The Ruby Spirit – Caligari
Taking the completely opposite direction, The Ruby Spirit chose not to crowd source their music video, instead, they chose to spend almost an entire year creating a stop motion video for their song Caligari which to me, is a way cool way to pronounce the crappy city of Calgary (I’m from Edmonton, I’m predisposed to hating the neighbors down south). Directed by respected person Mike Walters, the music video was inspired by the 1920 German film The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari supposedly and features some creative visuals and cannibalism, two things that always go well together. The video also features Alex Pulec in his trademarked striped shirt look. Have a look
The Ruby Spirit – Caligari from THE RUBY SPIRIT on Vimeo.
The Ruby Spirit play The Horseshoe Tavern this Saturday
Papermaps probably play sometime in the near future.