Why? The "Pop Up Video" idea is one of my favourites and I wish it was done more in today's music video scene, especially since it's easy and cheap to do as Simple Creatures shows here. It's a simple performance but what they do, however, is mix in lies given what the song references and it becomes a fun activity to seek out the lies.
9. The Menzingers - America (You're Freaking Me Out)
Why? The song title says it all doesn't it? This Menzingers video follows an alien as he tries to live a normal American life but the Americans make it very hard to do so. It's an obvious commentary on life in America today for immigrants (Legal or otherwise) which makes this a very poignant video as well as being one of the best of 2019.
8. Our Last Night - Demons
Why? The First Single from the two EP's that OLN released this year has the best video. It's mostly a band performance video however it has a stunning animation narrative as a backdrop which is what makes this video so entertaining for me. I wish more bands took a chance on animated videos, I suppose they probably cost a lot however OLN are not a huge band so if they can do it than others with label support should be able to manage.
7. I Prevail - Gasoline
Why? I Prevail's two Hurricane videos almost made this list but I opted for Gasoline instead thanks to the influence of one of my favourite movies Fight Club. The video has a long narrative section where we learn our main character was abused by his father growing up which has negatively affected his adult life and left him on the brink of poverty before a stranger invites him to a Fight Club to work out his aggression, while there he gets an I Prevail live performance. Win-Win.
6. Waterparks - Easy To Hate
Why? Waterparks singer Awsten Knight has took the directors chair on all 4 of the videos the band released from their Fandom album this year and Easy To Hate is by far the best. The song itself is about a significant other but given the albums title they worked it to be a Fan-Artist relationship as Awsten has often talked about needing to be someone different around his fans which he sometimes gets hate for so he flips it on it's head in this video where fans won't always like if the band lives up to their thoughts 24/7.
5. The Damned Things - Cells
Why? Supergroup The Damned Things made their triumphant return this year and Cells was their first single and it came with a doozy of a music video. Cells sees the entire band get maimed in various, often hilarious ways while trying to record the song in studio safe for the lead singer Keith Buckley. At the very end of the video we discover that nothing was recorded which is met with hostility towards Buckley given his nonchalant answer however he does get his in the end.
4. Too Close To Touch - F.I.N.E.
Why? Too Close To Touch made the music video for this song part performance art and part social commentary combining for a great video for F.I.N.E. The song obviously tells of someone saying they are "fine" but in this case it stands for "Fucked up" "Insecure" "Neurotic" "Emotional" which ties in perfectly with the video which sees morph suit wearing people controlling the bands every movement telling them how to act and react around people or otherwise. This can be a metaphor for mental illness, societal pressures or anything else that can control your way of thinking.
3. Sleep On It - Under The Moment
Why? Under The Moment is about dealing with Depression and Anxiety so the music video mirrors just that. Lead Singer of Sleep On It, Zech Pluister deals with both conditions daily so the music video is about his daily struggles where he goes from having a great time with a friend or lover to being too paralyzed to move. But fear not, the video ends with Zech riding his bike looking happy wearing a shirt that says "Things Could Be Worse".
2. Anti-Flag - Unbreakable
Why? Anti-Flag reached out to a Nigerian group of filmmakers known as "The Critics" to collaborate on telling their story and the Unbreakable video is the result. Showing the day to day life of children in Nigeria as they make a short film about their life shows all the highs and lows. It's a much better representation than those sad infomercials will have you believe but at the end of the day they're still people longing to tell their story and this is it.
1. Grayscale - In Violet
Why? Grayscale has appeared on this list for the past 2 years and now on year 3 they're finally able to claim the top spot. In Violet deals with death and realizing you don't want people you love to mourn you when you're gone. This song and video was very personable as I lost my Grandmother this passed July. The video matches the song as it starts at a funeral with mourning before the deceased shows up in white and brings everyone else attending to their loved ones (also dressed in white) and all is happy while the band performs and eventually a purple cloud of dust comes to remind everyone to remember the good times and not dwell on the sadness.
