When the music video funding for the Veils first song was announced back in 2005, there was a fierce debate on NZmusic.com. Were the Veils a legit New Zealand band, or were they actually an English band using the Kiwi connection of the lead singer for getting funding? Well, it turns out that Finn the Devonport kid fit the criteria (though other New Zealand/England popster Daniel Bedingfield didn’t), so all was good.
So, we find the Veils playing in a small room, crammed into a corner. Finn, wearing fur, eyeliner and a crown, locks eyes with the camera and delivers a very confident performance. When the chorus kicks in, the camera moves back to reveal a room full of revellers. It looks like the band just invited all their friends a long, because they all look like they’re genuinely having fun, in a “Woohoo! I’m in a music video!” way.
Finn rocks the room like a skinny indie prince, before eventually fleeing the confines of the house party and going for a jog along a beach. The partygoers follow their indie prince, as he leads them all into the ocean, where they mysteriously vanish, Harold Holt style.
The song has a meandering, Smiths-inspired sound which seems like it should have had a slightly more sophisticated video. But for a bunch of kids from Devonport, it’s a good debut.
Best bit: the gleeful run to the beach.
Director: Tim Groenendaal
Nga Taonga Sound & Vision
Next… shipshape.