Giorgio Moroder and Sia have just dropped the video for their new collaboration Déjà Vu from Moroder’s forthcoming album. Unlike the infectious, disco riddled track exuding happiness, the video follows a man who is anything but content. Embroiled in a complicated relationship, he repeatedly turns up to a hotel in search of his love, only to encounter a stream of Sia look-alikes, dressed in blond bobs that evade him. Falling in pools, spilling milk and generally just having a bad time, he finally heeds the advice of Moroder who through his cab driver cameo advises the young man “Well I can tell you, the girls who make a shadow — if you follow them, they flee. If you flee, they follow you.” Accordingly, he ends up running away with a gang of Sias following behind him. Of course, the real Sia is nowhere to be found.
Although Sia seems to be riding on a never-ending run of success spurred by her recent album, Déjà Vu will mark Moroder’s first album in 30 years. In recent interviews, he has spoken about the ease of collaboration in the current music scene. It also helps that he was collaborating with one of the most renowned songwriters in recent memory in Sia. However, artists such as Charli XCX, Mikky Ekko and even Britney will be featured on the album.
Raury – Fly ft. Malik Shakur
On April 21 Raury released a moving new music video for his song Fly. In the description he wrote, “Deep in my heart, I know everything is going to be alright.”
Fly deals with racism and police brutality against African Americans with a disarming honesty. It is paired back and raw, almost childish. The music video takes a similar vein, using stop motion paper cutouts to show the history of African slave trade in America and the racism that has come with that.
The last verse reads like a modern day appropriation of Martin Luther Kings speech; ‘I hope my son dreams to be mountains… I hope he never becomes a hashtag… I hope that no man in no uniform, assumes he’s reaching for something in his pocket… I hope he flies’. Sobering stuff.
Holy Holy – You Cannot Call for Love Like a Dog
Holy Holy have been killing it recently. They’ve just been announced on the Splendour in the Grass line up and are about to commence a massive tour of the UK and Europe, not to mention serious radio play for their latest single You Cannot Call for Love Like a Dog. It’s unsurprising – the song is seriously good, with some stunning drums and guitar work. They’ve now released the accompanying video clip, so intensely Australian it makes you want to go out to the bush, sink a couple VB longnecks and grow a big bushy beard. Well at least that’s what it made me want to do…
I expect good things from these guys.
Sia – Fire Meet Gasoline
Perhaps it is because Sia has such a reputation for unique or controversial music videos, but her latest clip for Fire Meet Gasoline seems a little soft.
Featuring Heidi Klum as the lead female, the film starts out in a picturesque countryside. Klum and her lover – YES, that is Oberyn from Game of Thrones (RIP), real name Pedro Pascal – drive around, occasionally pausing to embrace, clearly moved by the beauty of the landscape around them. Interspersed with this are shots of a sad, disillusioned Klum burning their country house to the ground.
In the final scene she walks out of the flames and puts on the recognisable Sia wig. Cut to a wolf. I’m not joking, it really does randomly cut to a wolf…
I’m sure the clip does have a greater meaning. Perhaps this is a metaphor for the birth of ‘Sia’ as she is known today, a birth of fire. Unfortunately it just doesn’t resonate as strongly her other work.
OverDoz – F**k Yo’ DJ ft. A$AP Ferg
OverDoz have been pumping out some awesome tunes lately and this is no exception. The group spends most of the music video bouncing around in front of various different coloured backgrounds. The film is simple, but they manage to capture that same laidback, slightly daggy sense of humour in their music video that they do in their lyrics.
And just in case you missed the irony and mistakenly thought these guys actually were actually taking themselves seriously, they’ve included a little bloopers section at the end.
Sia has just released the wonderful video clip for her single Big Girls Cry. The third to feature dancing from the wonderful Maddie Ziegler, it follows in theme and style from the chart-topping Chandelier and Elastic Heart, which some silly people found controversial for no real reason. Those two have amassed close to ONE BILLION views on YouTube, so we can only assume this one will be just as successful.
Sia’s been deservedly praised internationally for her beautiful 2014 album 1000 Forms of Fear. She recently became the first ever artist to win the APRA Songwriter of the Year award for three years consecutively. An immensely talented singer and songwriter, which I’m sure you can hear from her three singles, I highly recommend you check out the full record if you haven’t yet.
The video features a really different kind of interpretive dance to what we’ve seen in the other two. Directed by Sia alongside Daniel Askill, using little besides her face and hands, it seems like a noxious descent into anxiety.
It’s also just been announced that Sia will be returning to Australian television for the first time in nearly five years, for a performance on Channel 7’s Sunrise on April 21 (which incidentally is my birthday.)
Check it out here.
It’s only been three short months and we’ve already seen some phenomenal new music this year. This post is not dedicated to the tunes however, but to the video clips that go with them. Some of them have been chosen for their content, others because they are technically stunning, and some because they are simply hilarious.
1. Childish Gambino: Sober
At the end of last year Donald Glover (Childish Gambino) wiped all of his social media accounts. He made no explanation. On January 7 he broke his online silence with a link to a website that contained a countdown clock. When the clock struck zero, the timer revealed the new music video for Sober.
Speculation has led to a lot of different theories for the meaning of the clip, which portrays a zombie-like, Michael Jackson-esque Gambino attempting to woo a lady in a diner with dance moves and magic tricks. Perhaps the film is a comment on online racism, and the white privilege that Gambino still sees as prevalent on social media platforms. Or perhaps he is mocking the public perception that he had gone slightly mad, because of his online behaviour, by presenting himself as high in the film clip. Whatever your take on it, there is an undeniable darkness to the video that makes it truly engaging to watch.
2. FKA Twigs: Pendulum
FKA Twigs had already released some epic music videos in 2014, but this is one of her most exciting films so far. The clip starts with an extreme closeup of Twig’s lips and gradually moves backwards, twisting slightly to reveal that the singer is in fact being suspended by her hair.
The film is incredibly engaging to watch, and gives the song, which on its own is a little bit of a yawn, a sense of purpose and anticipation. The only criticism I have for it is the slight bondage theme that it carries. FKA Twigs is a beautiful, powerful female icon. She doesn’t need to rely on her sexuality to engage her fans. Here the shots with her wrapped up tightly in black ropes, with her breasts pushed up towards the camera seemed more like a bizarre distraction than a necessary part of the film.
3. Grimes: RealiTi
Grimes’ new video clip for RealiTi, which she directed and edited herself stands in complete contrast with Twigs. The film uses a gorgeous colour scheme of oranges, pinks and blues, and has an amateur, almost childish nostalgia to it.
Also in contrast to Twigs, Grimes in no way sexualises or objectifies herself. She dances with a mesmerising youthfulness, giving the sense that she would dance in exactly the same way if the camera was not there. Female artists that are brave enough to make music videos that don’t draw attention to their sexuality are so important, as they give the young girls who watch them permission to act the same. Grimes and artists like her should be celebrated.
4. Rihanna, Kanye West, Paul McCartney: FourFiveSeconds
Rihanna’s FourFiveSeconds may be one of the more random songs that she’s produced in her career, but that hasn’t stopped her from releasing a hilariously awesome music video to go with it.
The director of FourFiveSeconds, Vinoodh Matadin, made the intelligent decision to keep the clip stripped back and simple. Opening with a black and white closeup of a glistening, tormented RiRi, the film hooks you in an instant. We’re thinking why does RiRi look like she has a drug addiction? Moreover, why is she decked out head-to-toe in denim?
The film is a surprisingly appealing hot mess, somewhat like the song. You may think it’s tacky, but try to get through the entire song without singing along to the chorus. It’s not easy.
5. Sia: Elastic Heart
If you haven’t already seen Sia’s film clip for Elastic Heart, you’ve been living under a rock. The music video sparked an enormous amount of controversy over whether it should be considered paedophilia, which you can read about here. We need not get into that discussion again, so lets just suffice to say that it should not.
It’s a shame though that such a futile argument took the attention away from what is a truly interesting film clip. The film features retired actor Shia Labouef, and the 12 year-old female dancer from Sia’s previous clip, Chandelier, Maddie Ziegler.
The two characters challenge traditional gender roles and the sense of imprisonment that people feel when they aren’t able to express themselves. That’s what we should have been talking about. Not whether Shia Laboeuf is a bloody paedophile.
Just hours after the release of Elastic Heart, Sia was forced to acknowledge a media frenzy that the video clip, contained themes of paedophilia. She had to make a public apology, posting several times on twitter, “I anticipated some ‘pedophelia!!! Cries for this video. All I can say is Maddie and Shia are two of the only actors I felt could play these two warring ‘sia’ self states.” As well as, “I apologize to those who feel triggered by #ElasticHeart, my intention was to create some emotional content, not to upset anybody.”
Sia really shouldn’t have felt the need to defend herself. Because, as anyone who has actually seen the youtube video will be able to tell you, it ain’t paedophilic in the slightest.
The film portrays 28-year-old actor Shia LaBeouf and 12-year-old actor and dancer Maddie Ziegler (also the star of the video clip for Chandelier) in a cage. They are filthy, wearing skin coloured leotards, and when the song begins, so begins a sort of interpretive dance routine.
The relationship between the two characters is definitely intimate. The acting by both parties is impressively strong, and the dance routine is artfully composed. But not once did the warning bells go off that their connection could be anything sinister. If anything, Shia LaBeouf gives off this adorable cuddly feel, more like a loving big brother than anything else.
Critics pounced. Pulling the whole piece apart, they pinpointed specific shots, took the image entirely out of context and slammed Sia for alleged paedophilia. Because writing an article with Sia’s name in it sells papers, regardless of how inaccurate the actual content might be.
It’s not paedophilic. It’s just not. It involves a little girl and an older man, yes, but that is the one and only reason the argument was made. They do not engage in any kind of act that comes vaguely close to implying some kind of sexual nature to it. Anybody who identifies with that sentiment either didn’t actually watch the clip, or were looking specifically through their “let’s find a controversy to rake in some headlines” glasses.
It’s a shame, but entirely unsurprising that we live in a world where critics and journalists are so quick to rip an artist to pieces over something so obviously misinterpreted. Does anybody SERIOUSLY believe that SIA, an extremely well-established, award-winning and highly revered veteran of pop music would do something like that?
No, we didn’t think so. But hey, in spite of all the controversy, the song has catapulted to over 42 million views in under a week! Let’s be honest, she’s probably cheering.
The usual suspects. A few wildcards, but nothing unexpected. The announcement was made on CBS This Morning early Friday by pop heavyweights Pharrell Williams and Ed Sheeran (a sign of things to come perhaps?), who revealed four major categories of nominations.
As usual, most of the nominees are artists who have dominated the charts over the past year. But could we expect to see some more surprise wins like Arcade Fire’s 2011 album The Suburbs? Wins are usually a mix of the critically acclaimed or the commercially successful, but sometimes even an unheard of underdog takes home the bacon. Below is a breakdown of some of the biggest categories of who could be winning big at next year’s 57th Grammys.
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Beck, Morning Phase
Beyoncé, Beyoncé
Ed Sheeran, X
Sam Smith, In the Lonely Hour
Pharrell Williams, Girl
Look, let’s be honest. We all knew who the winner of this category would be the moment her album came out, and it goes without saying that Beyoncé will clean up big this year. No one else on this list even comes close in terms of musical prowess, star power and commercial success of her self-titled visual album. She didn’t even need to promote the album, she just dropped it on iTunes, lay back and watched the Internet go into overdrive. Such was the frenzied chaos of eager fans rushing to buy her album that they literally crashed iTunes.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSAOsm1u-OE]
What other artist can boast that, in an age where just actually buying an album is a feat in itself? Not only is it a financial success (it sold a total of 430 000 digital copies within 24 hours), but it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 – Beyoncé’s fifth album to do so. It’s also the most critically acclaimed album on the list, with a Metacritic score of 85. The only other competitor that comes close would be Ed Sheeran’s X (pronounced ‘Multiply’) or Sam Smith’s In the Lonely Hour. They are both musical powerhouses in themselves, but it’s a pity that they go grouped together with Queen Bey.
BEST NEW ARTIST
Bastille
Iggy Azalea
Brandy Clark
Haim
Sam Smith
This category is a little trickier because we have a few big contenders here all vying for the top prize. Personally, I think Iggy Azalea has the biggest chance at winning. She has dominated this year with her debut album The New Classic and the colossal success of Fancy, as well as making history by having two Top 100 songs at number one and two at the same time – the first person to do so since the Beatles in 1964. She’s collaborated with all the big names in the music biz, from JLo, Ariana Grande to Rita Ora. Although her album didn’t receive a standing ovation from the music community (especially the rap community), her star is certainly one that’s rising, and will continue to rise for the foreseeable future. However, I feel that this is a category in which actual newcomers might have a chance. For the past few years, unforeseen chart toppers like Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Fun and Bon Iver have taken home the gold. Another interesting trend to note is that the most recent winners in this category are all Americans. There have been a few sporadic non-American wins such as Amy Winehouse and Adele in the past, so perhaps it’s the year of the Brit this time round? Maybe the so-called ‘male Adele’ Sam Smith or Bastille might secure another victory for the Motherland. Only time will tell.
RECORD OF THE YEAR
Fancy, Iggy Azalea ft. Charli XCX
Chandelier, Sia
Stay With Me (Darkchild Version), Sam Smith
Shake It Off, Taylor Swift
All about that Bass, Meghan Trainor
Again, this one is tricky. The real contenders here are Taylor Swift, Iggy Azalea and Sia. It would be hard not peg Azalea as this year’s winner considering the enormous success and seemingly unending reign of her hit single Fancy. The song was on the Billboard Hot 100 charts for seven weeks and catapulted the Aussie MC and Charli XCX to superstardom.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-zpOMYRi0w]
In saying that, she is going up against Billboard’s Woman of the Year, country crooner Taylor Swift. Such is the magnitude of Swift’s success that her album 1989 sold 1.287 million in its first week of release, a feat that hasn’t been equalled since 2002 by Eminem’s The Eminem Show, when people actually bought records. However, we could also see a surprise win from the publicity-shy Sia. Despite her reluctance to appear publicly for any of the accolades so generously bestown upon her, Sia’s Chandelier was everywhere as she continues to ride on a wave of successful hits, with little to no promotion.
BEST RAP ALBUM
The New Classic, Iggy Azalea
Because the Internet, Childish Gambino
Nobody’s Smiling, Common
The Marshall Mathers LP2, Eminem
Oxymoron, ScHoolboy Q
Blacc Hollywood, Wiz Khalifa
It would be easy to say speculate that this year’s best rap album would go straight to Eminem. However, the usually untouchable star’s latest album has come under fire for featuring extremely offensive lyrics about both Lana Del Rey and Iggy Azalea. Eminem is no stranger to misogyny, but the reaction to these jibes were much louder this time than to his previous diatribes, and it could potentially cost him the accolade. Oxymoron by ScHoolboy Q and Nobody’s Smiling by Common are the most critically acclaimed on the list, both tying in with scores of 78 on Metacritic. But could it be Iggy Azalea’s The New Classic which takes home the top gong? If crowned the winner, Azalea would not only the first woman to win a grammy in this category, but the first Australian as well. The only other non-American to win Best Rap Album was Drake back in 2013. This could potentially stir up a great ol’ big shitstorm seeing as Azalea is constantly under fire for allegedly appropriating black culture. Personally, I’d want to see Childish Gambino win. His sophomore album Because the Internet brings way more to the table in terms of originality than anything else.
BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM
Ghost Stories, Coldplay
Bangerz, Miley Cyrus
My Everything, Ariana Grande
Prism, Katy Perry
X, Ed Sheeran
In the Lonely Hour, Sam Smith
God forbid if Bangerz wins this one. I just don’t think the world can handle any more of Miley’s brainless trash pop excrement. Same goes for Prism. Katy, you and your barely disguised sexual euphemisms have had their time in the sun. Let’s be honest here: Ghost Stories isn’t going to win. It got absolutely trashed by the critics and Coldplay fans alike and scored a measly 61 on the Metacritic scale. You know you aren’t doing well when even your most loyal fans won’t flog your shit. I’d say this one is going to pop powerhouse Ariana Grande. No one can get enough of the baby prostitute Mariah 2.0 act. Hopefully Ariana won’t have to deal with deadly onslaught of tanned limbs and sharp wings like the last time she performed:
“Don’t rain on my parade, bitch.”
BEST DANCE/ELECTRONIC ALBUM
Aphex Twin: Syro
Deadmau5: While (1<2)
Little Dragon: Nabuma Rubberband
Rôyksopp & Robyn: Do It Again
Mat Zo: Damage Control
(NB: Lauren wrote this bit)
This was an unbelievably impressive year for dance music, and the nominations are a clear showing of that. Each of these albums not only showcase completely different styles of electronic music, but in their own right, each absolutely shines. Aphex Twin‘s nomination is interesting – the sheer amount of reverance that the dance music community overshadows the pure strangeness and utter obscurity of so much of his music. In a nutshell, it wouldn’t be easy for a newcomer to release an album like this, and receive the same praise. (Same would go for FlyLo.) Little Dragon’s album was a surprise nomination but absolutely deserving; it is truly special and I highly recommend a listen. While I don’t think he’ll actually win, though, my personal vote goes to Deadmau5. I fucking love this album, despite the two hour running time. I love the extended instrumentals, the musical breakdowns that have probably freaked the shit out of techno-heads and the fact that it’s essentially a Nine Inch Nails tribute album. (Some people wrote that as an insult. I see it as a compliment). As for who might actually win, it will probably go to Aphex Twin of Royksopp & Robyn, though I’m hoping for Mau5 or Little Dragon.