Betchadupa “Bits”

2000-betchadupa-bitsOh, here’s Betchadupa, with their fresh-faced youthful enthusiasm – “baby Betcha”, as one YouTube commenter says. The group’s second single “Bits” is a short (90 second) punk number and the lads put a lot of energy into the video. And that’s one of the best things about this video – they’re not pretending to be older, world-weary nomads. Like Supergroove’s early videos, they’re happy to just muck around and have a bit of fun.

The video looks to be self-made, with lots of home video footage of the guys mucking around in a backyard (including some selfie shots while jumping on a trampoline), and there’s also time for a game of beach cricket. Plenty of snapshots are used as well, giving quickly edited glimpses of good times.

Despite only being 16 years old, Liam Finn has the moves of an experienced frontman. He throws some cheeky smiles at the camera and expertly delivers the song.

The video is nicely edited, keeping the footage locked in with the pace of the song. It’s a very satisfying video. There is no attempt to make Betchadupa be anything other than what they were – a group of four friends who love to play music and have fun.

Best bit: “Tahi, rua, toru, wha!”

Note: sadly the video has been blocked to viewers in New Zealand and Germany only by Warner Music. It should be viewable in all other regions.

Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… a massive, overloaded rockstravaganza.