February 2007: The Datsuns, The Feelers, The Rabble, The Veils, Tourist, Voom

Smashing goldfish, codgers and saveloys, scribbly guys, city life, sadness, and a gloomy cellar.

Continue reading February 2007: The Datsuns, The Feelers, The Rabble, The Veils, Tourist, Voom

August 2006: The Decoders, The Madison Press, The Rabble, Tourist, Tyree, Voom, Young Sid

The four corners of punk, a fantasy marionette world, a dystopian landscape, cruisin’ down a country road, and a minimalist bellboy.
Continue reading August 2006: The Decoders, The Madison Press, The Rabble, Tourist, Tyree, Voom, Young Sid

April 2006: The Have, The Madison Press, Tyna & JB, Tyree, Voom

Toronto booty girls, a freaky fairground, rooftop rock, grotesque cinéma, and some quite good graffiti.
Continue reading April 2006: The Have, The Madison Press, Tyna & JB, Tyree, Voom

Found videos from 1998

A high street strip, a gothic seductress, a cultural lesson, a bomb threat, a photo booth, a photo shoot, a cruise down the main street, a broadcast from outer space, a floaty necklace, a Harajuku girl and a mysterious staircase.
Continue reading Found videos from 1998

Voom “King Kong”

2000-voom-king-kong“King Kong” is Voom’s ode to feeling awesome and the video is also pretty awesome. It starts with the two-piece playing the song in what looks to be a fairly ordinary spare room in an ordinary house. But wait – there’s a gorilla spazzing out in the corner.

As the video progresses, the two Voom dudes are seen wearing the gorilla costume – and sometimes only the gorilla head or the gorilla pants. It’s like the costume gives them powers. We also see the full gorilla go out wading through the sticky mud of a mangrove swamp and having a roll around in the mud. As gorillas do.

Back in the house, the two gorilla-headed dudes relax with a class of sparkling wine in a hot tub. They’re joined by a sexy lady gorilla. We know this because she has pink fur and pouty lips. (And I just checked in case it was something made for the video – pink lady gorilla costumes are a real thing that actually exists).

The two kongs also do a little dance with pompoms. And it’s at this point I started to wonder if this state of feeling awesome and invincible wth the occasional burst of aggro was actually a cautionary tale about smoking the P. After all, it’s one thing for a cool music video gorilla to go frollicking in mud, but as the video’s coda demonstrates, it also means there’s a dude in a gorilla costume asking “Shall I go over there where there’s no sticks?”

Best bit: the dog, with a thought bubble saying “Voom”.

Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… things that make you go uh-oh.

Voom “Beth”

1998-voom-bethThis is a lovely song. It makes people cry with its heartfelt experience of having a loved one move to Australia. The video, directed by Andrew Moore, is simple and gentle but has a fun, surreal setting.

The video opens with Buzz filmed in golden close-up, but we soon see him find a strange ring lying in a field. This ring has a power (and if I’d actually seen Lord of the Rings I’d make a specific reference here) – the power of flight. Can it take him to his trans-Tasman sweetie? No, but it’s still cool.

A pyjama-clad buzz flies amongst the clouds and ducks, which promoted YouTube commenter Anna to proclaim “I DONT KNOW HOW THIS CAN GET ANYMORE RIDICULOUS !! A MAN FLYING THROUGH THE AIR AND SINGING, WT ACTUALL FUCK!”

Sucked through a black hole into the centre of the earth, Buzz finds himself in a strange subterranean cave, where the palm of his hand sings and his bandmates appear in the form of a policeman and a prisoner. The three have an earnest conversation, before buzz takes off into space and is reunited with his guitar.

The end of the song – where the man’s voice flies through the air, like a duck – is a glorious explosion of colour and light and OMG-rool-trippy-as visuals. It’s probably not enough to make a girl come back from Australia, but it’ll help ease the pain for the boy.

Best bit: the cop and crim expanding from little to normal.

Director: Andrew Moore
Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

Next… low-tech virtual reality love.