Recommendations: Censorship In Music

[Liam]

I'm doing a 15 minute presentation for one of my modules which I'm calling The History of the Music Video.

What I need is some good examples of ground breaking music videos (or so you feel).

Already going to look at:

Michael Jackson's videos

Peter Gabriel - Sledgehammer

Possibly some of The Beatles stuff

Madonna - Like A Prayer (for the furore)

Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up (possibly)

Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Two Tribes (possibly)

Any other good examples people can give me will be much appreciated.

[King Ellis]

Buggles - Video Killed The Radio Star

First video on MTV

[Liam]

...I know that

I doubt I'll look at the video though, just have that as an interesting aside.

[Cactus Drags]

Two Tribes has to go in, don't maybe it. Great song, greater video. Thriller's got to be in there. Californication is pretty impressive, all the computeryness and whatnot. What makes them groundbreaking? Visual impressiveness/technology or affect on people (politically/disgust etc.)

EDIT: If I remember rightly, there was uproar over Iron Maiden's Number of the Beast, although that might have been just the song.

Edited March 14, 2006 by Dragsy Twenty Seven

[Liam]

I was saying to Ellis...it's a mixture of the two, as to whether they were groundbreaking visually/technologically and the affect they had.

I'll either mix them both up, or see if I have way more of one than the other, and work with that one.

I mentioned to Ellis about Californication, I'm pretty sure I'll use it as it's pretty impressive.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Chris Cunningham would be very interesting to look at - his work being pretty amazing. He did, among others:

Aphex Twin's "Come To Daddy" which was banned on MTV

Aphex Twin's "Windowlicker" which was released on video

Bjork's "All Is Full Of Love"

Squarepusher's "Come On My Selector"

Leftfield's "Africa Shox"

He's highly rated and has won many many awards.

Edited March 14, 2006 by ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster

[Liam]

Yeah, I was tempted to look specifically at a director, but I decided not to, not having enough knowledge of one guys work to really do justice with it.

I might use an Aphex Twin video though, something which I had been debating.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Intruigingly on the subject of Aphex Twin I've just found out that if you run "Windowlicker" through something called a "spectograph program" which visualizes the sound spectrum.

The image is ten seconds long from 5:27 into Windowlicker.

Shown through a "logarithmic" frequency scale somehow Richard D. James (Aphex Twin) has managed to insert his face, through sound, into the song!

[Guest muddatrucker]

Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody was the first actual music video rather than a musical performance recorded on tape wasn't it?

[Liam]

Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody was the first actual music video rather than a musical performance recorded on tape wasn't it?

Yeah, it was something like that.

I know it's not the best reference place necessarily, but I looked at Wikipedia, and it mentioned Bohemian Rhapsody for something like that, gotta go and check.

[YI]

Intruigingly on the subject of Aphex Twin I've just found out that if you run "Windowlicker" through something called a "spectograph program" which visualizes the sound spectrum.

The image is ten seconds long from 5:27 into Windowlicker.

Shown through a "logarithmic" frequency scale somehow Richard D. James (Aphex Twin) has managed to insert his face, through sound, into the song!

Edited March 14, 2006 by YI

[Liam]

I was thinking to myself that I was getting too many (with regards to showing them) for a 15 minute presentation, but I then remembered that I don't have to show all my examples.

So the more the better is basically what I mean, if only to be used for footnote purposes

[SeanDMan]

From the top of the VH1's top music videos list, a few I haven't seen mentioned:

Radiohead's Just. It's a great music video, one that's just as good muted as with the sound on because, independent of the song, it's a great story.

A-Ha's Take On Me. Sure, the song is not that great, and the band went on to do nothing, but the video really stands out as a great piece of work.

Pearl Jam's Jeremy. Great video. Same as Just, turn the sound off and just watch it, it's still good.

Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit. A maybe one from me, considering how most people regard the song as all fundamentally world changing, the video is kinda the same I guess. I dunno.

Some others I'd reccomend.

Franz Ferdinand's Take Me Out. It's so art fag, I'm reminded of the eighties all over.

Jamiroqui's Virtual Insaity. The anti gravity, the blood leaking everywhere, it's just so odd, but fun to watch as a dance video.

Foo Fighter's Learn To Fly. It's funny, it's got a short story to it, and it has Jack Black in it.

I can think of more that I like, but in terms of being defining, true stand outs, those ones strike me as must includes.

[Liam]

A-Ha's Take On Me. Sure, the song is not that great, and the band went on to do nothing, but the video really stands out as a great piece of work.

Thank fuck you reminded me of that, that's definitely one to be included, just due to how good it was for its time technologically.

[SeanDMan]

It's easily forgetable. You're forgiven.

Oh, good. I finally thought of one.

You should give the Matthew Good Band's "Carmelina" a watch, since it has some political overtones in it that are relevant to today's culture. Plus, it's good watching.

Edited March 14, 2006 by SeanDMan

[YI]

Take On Me isn't a good song?

[Liam]

Take On Me isn't a good song?

Yeah, I was going to point that out, but he gave me so many good examples I decided not to pick at it

[SeanDMan]

It's catchy, but it's very easily forgettable and doesn't really have any depth to it.

[King Ellis]

Another Brick In The Wall by Pink Floyd

Not only quite distinctive but also firmly nodded at by TV shows and what not down the years.

[YI]

It's catchy, but it's very easily forgettable and doesn't really have any depth to it.