Sometimes a great music video can take an amazing track to a whole other level. Check out our favourite new video clips released over the past week and see for yourself.
Calvin Harris ft. Pharrell Williams, Katy Perry & Big Sean – Feels
Stuck at work and looking to escape to a tropical paradise? Calvin Harris and co. have you covered. ‘Feels’ follows a string of single releases, ‘Slide’, ‘Heatstroke’ and ‘Rollin’ off Harris’ upcoming album Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 but is the first to get the video treatment. Directed by long time Harris video director, Emil Nava, the psychedelic and vaguely trippy clip offers us three different options. Do you want to chill with Pharrell in a rowing boat on top of a lagoon? Maybe you want to lay in a flower-filled field with Katy Perry? Or hang out with king of the jungle, Big Sean and his menagerie of parrots and monkeys? Harris himself makes brief appearances in the clip with a bass guitar. This breezy slow jam clip is someone’s idea of the mildest LSD trip ever. Funk Wav Bounces vol. 1 is out this Friday.
By Lucy Li
Kodaline – Brother
With a combination of cinematic beats and electronic vocal effects, Irish band Kodaline, have done it again with their track ‘Brother’. Known for giving us the beauties of ‘High Hopes’ and ‘All I Want’, the band have taken a step back from their soft-indie-rock type sound and instead into one that consists of some new, unique sounds that are revolutionising the band and their style. The song is almost one that you can picture at the end of a sappy rom-com but what takes it away from that cliche, cinematic feel is the subtle yet beautiful inclusion of electronic vocal effects that absolutely makes the chorus come alive.
But if the song wasn’t enough and you needed a couple of heartstrings tugged on this week, you’re going to fall in love with the music video. Tears were definitely shed here at FIB and you should check it out to see why. The song encompasses the idea of love, family, strength and sorrow which is so beautifully portrayed through two young brothers, one of which has passed away. Need I say more? The video is full of emotion as it encourages listeners to explore a sense of darkness in death that is soon washed away by the power of family that encompasses love in its entirety. The song will definitely bring you a sense of warmth that you’ll feel like you needed this week.
By Emma Houghton
ODESZA ft. WYNNE & Mansionair – Line of Sight
‘Line of Sight’ is the first of ODESZA’s new releases to cop an official film accompaniment, and it hasn’t disappointed. Directed by Daniel Brown of UNHEARD/OF, the clip follows a displaced boy roaming through a lush jungle. In what may be a vague nod to Grave of the Fireflies, the boy stumbles across an old lolly tin and following a confusing, nostalgic moment we soon learn that the world has been overrun by an army of droids. We can’t help but notice their resemblance to the imperial droids of Rogue One…in a similar twist of fate, the young lad stumbles across a reprogrammed droid, and the pair become fast friends.
We won’t give the rest away, but the official video for ‘Line of Sight’ combines a compelling, semi-dystopian tale with ODESZA’s signature dreamy synths and empowering lyrics performed by Mansionair. The lush green of the jungle juxtaposed against the droids are a reminder of how close we teeter to a fully-fledged artificial intelligence revolution. The lyrics “Cos you always seemed so kind/ And I don’t learn, no I don’t learn” may merely be referencing a relapse with a dropkick ex, but in the context of this clip it could very well be a comment on humankind’s reluctance to cast off the metaphorical cuffs of technology.
Keep an eye out for ODESZA when they swing by Sydney on their A Moment Apart tour in September.
By Ashleigh Douglas
Kendrick Lamar – ELEMENT.
Kendrick Lamar’s track ‘Element’ is another bloody banger from the 30-year-old, California-based rapper and the visuals for the track are just as stunning. Directed by Jonas Lindstroem, the video encompasses life on the streets of Compton. Kendrick, of all artists, is known to create a sense of power and meaning in a song that translates beautifully into video.
While portraying some borderline MA15+ content, the video was seen to highlight the violent side of life on the streets in the black community. However, the street fights, gang violence and the all-round blood bath was balanced with the inclusion of children portrayed in a way that emphasises their innocence in the world. Certain visuals including the kids aiming a gun at a car evoke a sense of sadness. Overall, we promise this powerful video will remind you why Kendrick is one of the most important rappers around today.
By Emma Houghton
Jillian Jacqueline – Bleachers
It’s been over ten years since Taylor Swift released her debut album and tapped into a country-pop crossover sound. The recent wave of rising pop-country women from Maren Morris to Kelsea Ballerini to Jillian Jacqueline proves that this sound has found an audience. On the spectrum of country to pop, Jacqueline skewers pop with her song ‘Bleachers’. With a heavy drum line snare and lyrics made for chanting, the pep rally-ready ‘Bleachers’ takes inspiration from both Gwen Stefani’s ‘Hollaback Girl’ and Swift’s ‘You Belong with Me’. But where Swift mines the outsider versus cool kids narrative with “she’s cheer captain/ and I’m on the bleachers”, Jacqueline says it doesn’t matter as “we’re all a little bit hallelujah or heathen”. Jacqueline is expected to release an EP later in the year.
By Lucy Li
