Whether you engage in regular YouTube binges or come down watching Rage, the traditional music video is as strong as ever in 2019, such is the power of a well-crafted visual.
2019 saw The National release a striking short film, directed by Mike Mills, to accompany their album I Am Easy To Find. Thom Yorke partnered with Netflix to release Anima and Beyonce premiered Homecoming on the platform. Aldous Harding called for repeated views with the most peculiar images and Caroline Polachek danced with the devil, creating immersive worlds for her lush modern pop songs. But it was Billie Eilish, ever the innovator, who delivered potentially the most 2019 video of them all in Bad Guy.
Closer to home, Australian artists also embraced the format in 2019. Here’s ten that deserve your attention.
Sampa The Great - Final Form
Directed by Sanjay De Silva
If you’ve somehow made it to the end of 2019 without immersing yourself in Sampa Tembo’s work, what the hell have you been doing? The visuals for Final Form are vibrant and visceral as director Sanjay De Silva showcases Tembo’s heritage in a way that makes you feel stronger than any bathroom power pose ever could.
Kaiit - Miss Shiney
Directed by Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore
Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore is fast emerging as one of Australia’s pre-eminent creatives and her work here with Kaiit is sublime. As the camera pans out to reveal three snapshots that look like detailed paintings the effect is mesmerising. Can you release prints Kaiit? I want to hang them in every room of my house.
Stella Donnelly - Tricks
Directed by Julia Jacklin and Nick Mckk
Stella Donnelly’s Beware Of The Dogs is one of the definitive Australian albums of 2019 and the joyous and infectious clip to Tricks only cements that in our minds. Directed by Julia Jacklin and Nick Mckk, it follows Donnelly through Melbourne as she dances through the painful antics of a typical bro. That face at 0.37 – girl, we feel it.
Montaigne - Ready
Directed by Nick Waterman
Opening with a powerful spoken word introduction by student Fergus Clarkson, Montaigne’s video for Ready is a celebration of one of the most powerful moments of 2019: the school strikes for climate. It serves to unite us all in fight against the looming threat of climate change, and is “dedicated to those who inspire us with the fire of anger against injustice so that we may be galvanised to stand up and demand what is right from our world leaders”.
Pond - Hand Mouth Dancer
Directed by Elliott Arndt
What looks like an exercise ball bounces across the screen before Nick Allbrook emerges arms outstretched, almost like Jesus, in the opening of Hand Mouth Dancer. All we can think at this point is how much bloody fun the Perth band would have had making this. There's no point analysing it, so we're just going to get out the Glad Wrap and start hand mouth dancing. Whatever that means.
Ali Barter - Ur A Piece Of Shit
Directed by Anna Phillips
Ali Barter personifies some of the darker sides of life in the excellent clip for Ur A Piece Of Shit. Bathroom stalls offer glimpses into different facets of a personality before Barter comes along to kill them all. But despite this epic finale, it’s Barter's relatability and humour that makes this such a winner. Also look out for the single-shot January for intelligent filmmaking that gets to the root of Barter’s storytelling.
BIRDZ - Black Child ft Mojo Juju
Directed by Amber Mealing
Dream team BIRDZ and Mojo Juju joined forces in 2019 to deliver the killer track Black Child. The accompanying music video features both artists alongside cameos from people like Alice Skye and Kaiit as they “redefine Eurocentric, Renaissance vignettes with bold, empowered First Nations people”. It finds hope in harshness and celebrates Black excellence.
Sui Zhen - Perfect Place
Directed by Becky Sui Zhen
There’s something disconcerting about Sui Zhen’s latest creative venture, but in the best possible way. With weird futuristic, AI vibes and haunting masks, the self-directed clip for Perfect Place ends in a void as black as our hearts and we’re left feeling more confused than when we started. My sleep paralysis demon approves.
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - Fishing For Fishies
Created by Jason Galea
Director: "Hey King Gizz, what kind of video do you want for this one?"
King Gizz: "Imagine Octopus’s Garden, add more acid, jumpsuits and helmets, and then chuck in a crocodile playing the piano for good measure."
Director: "Say no more, fam."
PNAU - Solid Gold ft Kira Divine & Marques Toliver
Directed by Clemens Habicht and Nicholas Littlemore
Normally the comments section is a place to avoid like the plague but one savvy viewer hit the nail on the head with this one: “People who say that you can't see music never heard about PNAU.” The psychedelic clip features Kira Divine pulling shapes that would make right angles jealous and is an instant mood lifter. You could say, it’s solid gold.
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