2000 – Page 3 – 5000 Ways to Love You

Fou Nature “Love Come Down”

There was a period in late 2001, early 2002 where I spent about five months watching a lot of Juice TV. Many of the videos from that period are seared in my memory, and “Love Come Down” is one of those.

It’s a brilliant pop song. Fou Nature are a Pacific pop group and one of their reasons for forming was to create “positive messages for youth at risk and underprivileged children”. Yay! And “Love Come Down” is about as positive as you can yet. The song and the video are like a big pop hug.

Suburban Auckland streets provide the location for the video. We see male dancers wearing lavalava busting some moves in the middle of the road, and a group of local kids shooting hoops.

The video is mainly split between the group’s two female members and two male members. The guys are hanging out on the street, wearing sports shirts and hi-viz vests. Meanwhile, the girls are cruising along the leafy streets (probably on the back of a ute) wearing a variety of different outfits, from casual streetwear to glamorous fun fur.

There’s also some not-bad formation dancing, like a chilled out version of full-on ’90s pop dancing crossed with traditional Polynesian moves.

The video ends with a slightly awkward sunset breakdancing display for a group of children who aren’t quite as enthusiastic as the band are. (It reminds me of the awkward crowd of kids in Mana’s “Ain’t Gonna Stop” video, though the “Love Come Down” kids do remember to jig around a bit.)

It’s strange but this song and video stand out because of their relentless cheer. There’s no attempt to show the mean side of suburban Auckland streets. This is just a group of young performers who are having a good time in the suburbs and want to share the experience with you.

Best bit: the big rainbow arching across the screen. Awww…

Next… back from the dead.

DLT featuring Rascalz “Can’t Be Stopped”

DLT teams up with Canadian hip hop group Rascalz. I’m guessing that the trans-Pacific collaboration might be why neither DLT nor the Rascalz properly appear in the video.

Instead it’s a combination of animation and live action footage of skateboarding. The animation is pretty basic, and it reminds me of the sort of thing that students of today knock out in their first year of animation school. It doesn’t seem such a wise choice to have an animation of a dude doing an ollie off stairs, then showing a clip of the real (and far more awesome) thing shortly afterwards.

More successful is an animation of some dudes spraying a massive graffiti mural on a wall. It’s a work in progress throughout the video, and is revealed near the end to be an impressive piece.

The rest of the video is animation of hip hop dancers, fisheye film of skaters doing ramp tricks, and occasionally we even see the man himself, DLT.

This is the second DLT video where the guest MCs haven’t been able to appear in the video and I think it’s suffering for it. The “Chains” video was so powerful with Che Fu’s presence in it. There’s just something that a human being does that animated people can’t.

Best bit: the bad-ass graffitists spraying the camera, heist movie style.

Next… a fine day in the suburbs.

Dimmer “Seed”

“Seed” is the second video I’ve come across that’s entirely computer animated (the first was Strawpeople’s “Drive” vid). And by this stage, it doesn’t feel like a gimmick. CGI technology has advanced enough that a talented animator (in this case, Gary Sullivan) can create a world that expresses the song.

At the heart of “Seed” is a train. We follow it as it travels through the countryside, sometimes joined by birds flying overhead. But it doesn’t quite feel like an ordinary train journey. The animation has been done in black and white, giving the video ominously gothic tones.

And then things start to get slightly surreal. Song lyrics start popping up all over the landscape. A church-like building has “hate” sitting along its roofline. Other words leap and fall with the rhythm. Then things get really surreal with the train climbing up a roof (or is it a mountain with a giant chimney?) before it falls through a giant disembodies mouth.

It actually all reminds me of the legendary “12” animation from Sesame Street. Rather than a pinball, it’s the train that’s going on a similar fantastic journey, sometimes through familiar landscapes, other times through weirdness. Though Sesame Street never had a giant floating head of Shayne Carter.

Note: there’s more behind-the-scenes info over at Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision.

Best bit: the weathervane rooster being spun around by real birds as they fly past.

Director: Gary Sullivan
Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… the case of the missing rappers.

Damien Binder “Good As Gone”

The video begins with two staunch-looking men standing in a room. They’re wearing suits, no ties and seem to be in serious-business mode. In walks Damien. He greets the two men, who stand either side of them. Then Damien begins singing and it becomes clear what the heavies are there for. Whenever Damien sings, the blokes grab him and pull him back. Such is the power of his pop-rock skills, he must be restrained.

While the ’90s saw a rash of Tarantino clone videos, this one seems to have taken the Tarantino style as an inspiration but has done its own thing. It’s a familiar look, but there’s something delightfully unusual happening in this video.

The tussle continues with Damien singing, the heavies pulling him back, Damien flashing a nice-guy smile, and the cycle repeating. The heavies get a bit sick of this wide boy and kick him to the floor. But he magically emerges from the side, starts singing again and the scuffles continue.

Then a young woman appears with a tray of half-time oranges and everyone takes a little time to refresh. We also see a mysterious fellow sitting in a director’s chair. The action resumes, but this time it’s even more crazy. The young woman joins in, attacking the goons with a toilet plunger and a bag of oranges. Eventually the action ends with smiles, hugs and hearty cheques for the heavies – proof that people get paid for work in New Zealand music videos.

Best bit: the ornament, lovingly put back in place after being knocked off.

Director: Jonathan King
Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… all aboard!

Joe Dukie & DJ Fitchie “Seconds”

Taking some time out from Fat Freddys Drop, Joe Dukie and DJ Fitchie (aka David Dallas and DJ Mu) released the smooth groove of “Seconds”. And – it must be noted – this is as close as you’re going to get to NZ On Air video funding for Fat Freddys Drop – the group didn’t receive a cent.

Partly shot during Fat Freddys were on the road Kaikoura and Raglan, the video takes its cue from the digital meets organic sound of the song. Fitchie is messing around with his sampler, while Dukie is hanging out on a rocky Wellington beach. Fitche, being in urgent need of his musical partner, kind of takes control of Dukie, sending him running up a hill.

Fitchie is in a secret location in downtown Wellington, but he makes Dukie take the scenic route, going by Mount Victoria (complete with a panoramic shot of the city). And while he’s on his journey, he’s also treated to a couple of flashbacks of previous visits to Kaikoura and the Soundsplash festival in Raglan.

Eventually the two are reunited and Dukie hands Fitchie a disk that has the ability to create something far more valuable than remotely controlling your creative partner. Their eyes light up as they see the sampler create a big can of corned beef.

I like the tone of this video. It’s lighthearted without being silly. While the video plot does seem a bit complicated, the song is allowed to dominate and it’s a load more interesting than a run-of-the-mill “band on the road” video.

Best bit: the look of absolute glee as the can of corned beef appears.

Directors: Sarah Hunter and Jacob Luamanuvae
Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… lemme at ’em!

Betchadupa “Awake”

It’s morning and the Betchadupa boys are in bed. But not all in the same bed with each other (which has happened in other videos) – no, we see a four-way split screen with each band member in a different corner. And the video continues like this, with each corner focusing on the domestic goings-on of its allocated band member.

In the top left is Liam. He wakes up and jumps in the shower, which is filmed so the bottom of the shot ends mere millimetres above his area. Oh my. But he’s out of the shower and has a play with his Scalextric set. He then grabs his guitar for some rocking out, and ends the day writing some lyrics. (Not seen – the bit where he grows a beard and gets all serious.)

Down in the Matt corner, he wakes up, snaps on a sweat band, has some toast, idly does some authentic knee drumming as he watches the telly, and then gets on his drumkit to rock out at the same time as Liam.

Next to Matt is Joe, the more metrosexual band member. He awakes with cucumber circles on his eyes, enjoys a healthy breakfast, grooms his thick eyebrows (he must have consulted Petra Bagust’s beauty book) and rocks out on the deck, to the appreciation of a group of kids, before tidying up with a spot of vacuuming.

As for Chris, well, like Jeff Wiggle he spends most of the video alseep. When his three bandmates all rock out, he just lies there. Why could this be? Is he a lazy arse? Hungover? No, as we discover right at the end, Chris is tired from being up all night with the three young women who are sharing a bed with him. Three? That’s just greedy. Think of your bandmates, Chris!

For a short song (less than two minutes) this video packs a lot in. I kind of wish there was more connection between the four situations than the rocking out. But it’s a fun video that captures the spirit of Betchadupa’s early years.

Best bit: Liam’s near-naked hip wiggle. Crikey!

Note: The YouTube clip is annoyingly geoblocked to viewers in New Zealand and Germany, but should work anywhere else. The clip also includes the Betchadupa video for “Sleepy News”.

Director: Gerald PhillipsNgā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… search for the golden beef

Zed “Come On Down”

“Come on Down” doesn’t really do it for me as a song – it’s a fairly ordinary pop-rock ballad that sounds like one of those Christian pop songs that pretends to be about romance but is secretly about Jesus. But the video is much more interesting.

Much of it is tour footage, capturing Zed during their peak, touring New Zealand and playing to packed out venues full of adoring teen fans. However, the video starts with the band playing amongst snowy mountains, which turns out to be a painted backdrop in a hall.

We also see Zed mucking around on the road. There they running up Baldwin Street in Dunedin, signing autographs, visiting a radio station, and generally just having fun. But the serious tone of the song casts a shadow on all these antics, and it feels like something awful is about to happen.

Awful like artistic black and white footage of the band playing on a beach? The tone of the video is all over the place. It feels like two separate videos that have been edited together – serious Zed meets fun Zed. And each bit cancels out the other, so it ends up feeling really messy.

And then there’s the strange behind-the-scenes shot of the clapperboard with the bottom part blurred out. Did the director and DOP not want their names associated with the video? I still have a lot of affection for Zed, but it’s a strange moment when I’m finding myself with newfound respect for the Feelers’ life-on-tour “Pull the Strings” video.

Best bit: Andy twisting his whiteboy dreads.

Trip to the Moon “Pretty Cool”

“Pretty Cool” is pretty cool. It’s a chilled out jazzy number with dub echoes and the video goes with this vibe.

The biggest strength of the vid is that it focuses on the musicians. I rather dislike videos for instrumental songs that ignore the people behind the music. “Pretty Cool” layers shots of the group over various scenes, including downtown Auckland. There’s the drummer, the keyboard player, the guitarist and, of course, the trumpet player.

Brass instruments are very photogenic. They’re shiny and cut a fine silhouette. While the ubiquitous ’80s sax may be long gone, there’s still a lot of power in a good brass silhouette.

The video also takes in sweeping cityscapes of Auckland at night. There’s the Sky Tower, now firmly established as an icon of the city. The combination of the editing and the glorious night time footage turns a small city like Auckland into a bustling metropolis. It lets us briefly pretend that the Auckland Town Hall has a Manhattan ZIP code.

Director: Jed Town

Next… the life and times of teen idols.

Fur Patrol “Lydia”

Before Adele and “Someone Like You”, “Lydia” was the default white-girl-blues song for those evenings requiring white wine and bitter tears. It’s a great song (it hit number one in the charts) and has a perfect singalong chorus – “My babeeeeey! Don’t you want me anymore?”

Director Jonathan King sets the band performing in an intimate venue (filmed at Verona on K Road). It soon becomes clear they’re miming their instruments. It’s not just air guitar, but also air bass, air drums and air microphone. As sultry nightclub singer Julia Deans sings the song, the camera captures her dramatic eye rolls and sarcastic facial gestures. She’s singing across the room from a couple at a table – a crusty looking guy sitting with a blonde chick. Lydia.

When the chorus comes around, the sarcasm leaves Julia’s face. She gets right to the emotional core of the song, that feeling of awfulness.

As the video progresses we discover that Lydia is played by Julia Deans in a wig, complete with the same labret piercing. Julia walks over to the crusty guy and Lydia and climbs up on their table. But she seems to be as invisible to them as the band’s instruments are to us. But something happens. Julia turns to Lydia and cries, “My baby, don’t you love me anymore?” Lydia acknowledges her, her face dropping. And we realise – Julia was never singing to the crusty guy (good, because gross); she was singing to Lydia, a blonde version of herself.

Such a simple and such a devastatingly good video.

Best bit: the crusty guy’s wine tasting mime.

Director: Jonathan King
Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… a pretty cool night in Auckland.

Eye TV “Soul Train”

There’s something a bit uncanny valley happening in the “Soul Train” video. The song is a bright, upbeat soul number with electronic undertones. The video uses elements of the classic soul look, but things get a little strange. The band members have each been shot separately and they’re lit with bright, washed-out lighting that gives the band members a strange android-like appearance.

The motion of video is also has an unusual twitchy feeling, again making the band members seem more like robots than humans. With the band members never seen together, instead shot against different colour backgrounds, it’s as if they’re being held in cells for their pop-soul crimes. Or maybe being pop-soul androids, they don’t actually need all that much space to live in.

I’m actually really disappointed by this video. I like it better when Eye TV look and act like humans. This video obviously had a lower budget to some of their more impressive earlier works (like “One Day Ahead” and “Wish It All Away”), but having a low budget doesn’t mean having to make a bad video.

Best bit: Luke the drummer’s Playboy bunny logo t-shirt.

Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… an awkward encounter with an ex.