Heartbreaking Bravery

Two weeks may not seem like much of a span in the grand scheme of things but in terms of releases, it means a mountain of art to climb. During that journey, some sections manage to make more vivid impressions than others. This list specifically fixates on music videos and focuses on the clips that made a deep impression. Every artist in this list has been featured on this site in some way before but just because they’ve earned past accolades never ensures a repeat performance. A large amount of credit is due here to five artists who continuously push their own envelope. Take a breath and scroll down to explore their latest works.

1. Gurr – Hot Summer

Gurr made a big impression with 2016’s outstanding In My Head, a record overflowing with memorable basement pop. “Hot Summer” is the emergent act’s latest reminder of their undeniable talent, replete with a mesmerizing visual treatment. A series of vignettes all evoking vivid memories of past summer seasons while looking ahead to the summers that lie in wait, “Hot Summer” makes sure its title is apt. Both the clip and the video are triumphant gems and offer a welcome return for Gurr.

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2. Clearance – Had A Fantastic

Over the past handful of years, Clearance have been kicking around the upper Midwest, touring when they can, and committing to their own improvement. That steadfast insistence has been paying dividends for each of the band’s releases and will see its current culmination in At Your Leisure (which will also be their first effort for Topshelf Records). “Had A Fantastic” is the first look at the record, a driving mid-tempo number that imbues their basement pop with post-punk influences. The compelling video (washed out in faded whites and yellows) is just the cherry on top.

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3. Dusk – Old Magnolia

Uniting with their videographer Finn Bjornerud once again, Dusk have turned in another clip that plays homage to their own reality. Fixating on more central Wisconsin locations, “Old Magnolia” also provides the opportunity for Ryley Crowe (one of the band’s five notable songwriters) to be featured front and center. Leaning hard into classic folk, country, and Americana influences, “Old Magnolia” may be the purest distillation of the band’s overarching identity to date. Warm, tender, and familiar, it’s another worthy addition to an already exceptional repertoire.

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4. Sean Henry – The Ants

“The Ants” immediately comes across as one of Sean Henry‘s most arresting tracks but the video manages to elevate it from memorable to unforgettable. Tapping into the underlying dread and melancholy, “The Ants” becomes a creeping nightmare of a video. Off-kilter and defiantly strange, the clip finds Henry in the spotlight, donning a set of fake teeth and sulking around a cityscape as dusk turns to night turns to day. Weird, unavoidable, and mesmerizing, “The Ants” is as effective of a complement to its attached song as anyone’s likely to produce this year.

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5. Fog Lake – Push

Coming just days after the release of Fog Lake‘s haunting “California” was “Push” and its accompanying music video. “Push” opens up in somewhat generic territory, ostensibly opting for an obvious melodramatic narrative before subverting its story to startling effect. That sudden change comes by way of one of the most brilliant transition edits the music video format’s offered in recent memory, as one scene hurtles into the next, literally altering the narrative (and the central character’s) timeline.

Sudden and extremely effective, that tactic’s employed multiple times, each instance magnifying the effect. It’s brilliant filmmaking from both director Noah Kentis and cinematographer Bella Gonzales. “Push”, as a standalone song, would have stood as another of Fog Lake’s hidden masterpieces. Combined with the video, it becomes the project’s high point. A perfect mixture of empathy, elegance, and artistry, “Push” is the kind of video that doesn’t deserve to be forgotten.