The combination of PUP and Chandler Levack and Jeremy Schaulin-Rioux’s collaborative filmmaking team has proven to be historically successful with me over the years. Last year, I cited “Guilt Trip” as 2014’s best music video on this site and in the preceding year, I awarded top honors to “Reservoir” over at PopMatters. In the videos that have come between (and followed) there simply hasn’t been one that hasn’t been highlighted in some form on Heartbreaking Bravery. “Dark Days”, the team’s latest effort, is another triumph of both artistry and form.
Once again, Levack and Shcaulin-Rioux have managed to find an intriguing way to tap into both the bands identity and their unwavering humanism. This time around, they achieve this through a slightly unexpected medium within the format: anime-inspired animations (courtesy of Solis Animation Inc.). Turning the focal point to the deceptively glamorous life of a touring band, all of the trivialities and hardships of life on the road all receive their respective turns under the spotlight.
Yes, there’s still an exhilarating run of the time spent on the stage, playing your heart out for an appreciative audience, and an endless slew of memorable moments spent in transit but the good moments tend to act as cathartic release for touring’s inevitable hardships (sickness, mental and physical exhaustion, fights, hunger, potential monetary loss, leaving your friends after only seeing them for moments, navigating relationships with the people back home, and figuring out how to correlate the peaks and valleys of personal life with life on the road, among countless other factors) but its rarely been presented this clearly. It’s a subject that’s been broached countless times (one of the best examples of this is Thor Harris’ guide to touring and his insights on touring with depression) but has frequently struggled to achieve a finished product so compelling.
The art direction- as it’s always been with Levack and Shcaulin-Rioux at the helm- is breathtaking and the editing gives “Dark Days” a vibrancy that lends to its relatable nature. “Dark Days” took a somewhat staggering six months to create and the considerable amount of work involved shows. Tour documentaries have rarely been this compelling and the same can be said for music video streaks this stratospheric. Unsurprisingly, again, the music and the clip elevate each other in a manner that gives new life to the song and a staggering vitality to the video. It’s something that deserves to not just be seen- but to be remembered.
Watch “Dark Days” below and order a copy of the band’s self-titled record here. Beneath the clip, explore a mixture of 25 great full streams and other music videos to have found release in the past handful of days. Enjoy.
Few bands have meant more to this site and its early development than Meat Wave. They’ve been granted one of the only On the Upfeature spots, they’ve offered premieres, and they played the first (and, so far, only) Heartbreaking Bravery showcase. The band’s earned quite a bit of coverage over here and today’s news ensures that’s a continuing development.
Before delving into their new song, though, I’d like to take a minute to congratulate them on signing to SideOneDummy, a highly revered- and influential- punk label. The trio’s new home looks like a promising one and will undoubtedly push their name recognition to (deservedly) greater heights. Meat Wave weren’t the only band with a noteworthy release today, so a few more bands will be highlighted before circling back to the main attraction.
Ought’s sprawling “Beautiful Blue Sky” nearly wound up with today’s feature, while it fended off strong competition from the likes of Sharkmufffin’s fiery “Mondays“, Reservations’ noir-tinted “Planet“, NE-HI’s punchy “Drag“, Girls Names’ compellingly bleak “A Hunger Artist“, and Helen’s surprisingly massive “Motorcycle“. Comfy’s sunny basement pop tune “Neck Hz“, GospelbeacH’s breezy backwoods number “Sunshine Skyway“, and Elway’s revitalized “Albuquerque Low” all added up to the format’s considerable tally.
Then, of course, there was “Delusion Moon”. Anyone who heard what Meat Wave accomplished with their self-titled (to date, the only tape I’ve worn thin) or their EP from earlier this year, Brother, knows just how much weight this band throws into its punches. “Delusion Moon” is the title track from the band’s forthcoming record and follows “Erased” in its rollout campaign.
While details on the record were scarce when the latter was introduced, a few things have been clarified for this round. Delusion Moon‘s intended to run as a whole (something that’s hinted at by the ending/starting(?) notes of “Delusion Moon”) and is a quasi-conceptual record that was written during a strange period of guitarist/vocalist Chris Sutter’s life. There’s a palpable sense of brooding on “Delusion Moon” that seems like it may turn out be one of the record’s more defining characteristics.
The rhythm section of bassist Joe Gac and drummer Ryan Wizniak continues to be one of the more formidable forces playing shows today. A quantifiable powerhouse, the duo lends Sutter’s playing an additional element of urgency, capitalizing on its inherent immediacy with brute strength. All of this is evidenced in the astonishing “Delusion Moon” and will likely culminate in the band reaching the levels of success they’ve deserved since the very beginning. More and more, Meat Wave are starting to look like the future of basement punk. If that’s the case, we’re all in very good hands.
Listen to “Delusion Moon” and keep both eyes on this site for any upcoming announcements regarding the forthcoming record, which is due out on September 18.
MOURN hit this site with the force of a runaway train and created a crater in the wake of Captured Track’s unveiling of the live clip of “Otitis” that accompanied their signing announcement. Now, the band’s following up their acclaimed self-titled release with a spiky single, Gertrudis, headlined by the almost-title track “Gertrudis, Get Through This!”. As has been the case with the preceding posts, this wasn’t the only release that merited a reasonable amount of attention to have appeared throughout the past week. Chuck Ragan released an incredibly effective artistic lyric video for “Vagabond“, his collaboration with Lucero’s Ben Nichols, Jon Snodgrass, and Chad Price while World Cafe released the full recording of their recent Hop Along session (which made an appearance in the last Watch This). Tomorrow’s Tulips hit a career high with their meticulously constructed video for “When” and Rice Milk’s hypnotic burst of minimalist basement pop, “Take My Weight“.
While each of those four selections deserve to be heard (and seen), it’s MOURN that earn the title feature this time around on the sheer magnitude of “Gertrudis, Get Through This!”. From the opening cadence that gets fired off like a countdown to the anthemic chorus, this exudes powerhouse. Sharp and intuitive, the track serves as a blistering reminder of the band’s unique strengths, providing an extra exclamation point to their spectacular self-titled effort. Fiery and unyielding, “Gertrudis, Get Through This!” bodes well for the band’s future and seems to indicate their resistance to any outside pressure. Call it a declaration or call it a manifest, just make sure to also call it what it truly is: a great song.
Listen to “Getrudis, Get Through This!” below and pick up Gertrudis from iTunes here.
The fact that it’s been a great year for music videos has been stated- and subsequently reiterated- on this site multiple times over. It’s an unavoidable truth and the evidence in its favor continues to mount. While Part 3 (and the fourth collection) brings the featured 2015 music video total to an excess of 100, that number’s fully warranted by the material below. Due to a handful of these clips being Vimeo-only titles, tonight’s video mixtape is presented through a case-by-case basis. No accompanying text is given to the individual titles but most wind up saying more for themselves than I ever could. From familiar faces to determined upstarts to established entities, there’s a lot to mull over. Whether it’s Jack White temporarily negating seemingly everyone’s conflicted feelings with a masterfully-executed experimental interactive video (follow the link for the interactive clip, the animated version’s embedded in the list) or LVL UP getting hit in the face with steaks in slow motion, the 25 videos below are a testament to the creative spirit currently driving the contemporary state of this particular visual medium. Also: even more puppets. Watch all of the clips below, buy the records from the bands you like, and keep an eye on this site for the final installment of this series for the foreseeable future. Enjoy!
In all best-of coverage, there’s no room for any objectivity positing (“Best” is usually just shorthand for “most admired”), which is why this site’s long-held first person restriction will be dropped to allow me to speak more personally in an effort to better explain the contents of this list’s (and all of the lists to follow) personal effect on myself. In 2014, I watched (and covered) more music videos than any year of my life- allowing an intake of genuinely great content that made compiling this list a dream and a nightmare. After spending weeks reviewing old clips (while keeping up with the videos enjoying December releases), I settled on the selections below as the 14 that hit me hardest over the past 12 months. This list will be the first entry in more than a week’s worth of year-end coverage that I’m beyond excited to share with everyone. So, with all of that said- it’s my privilege to present Heartbreaking Bravery’s 14 of ’14: The Best Music Videos of the Year.
14. Left & Right – Low Expectations
A few months ago, Left & Right released this absolute gem of a music video. Imbued with a DIY irreverence, a purposeful sense of direction, winningly off-beat humor, unabashedly committed performances, and some genuinely great cinematography, “Low Expectations” became an unexpected standout; a clip that came out of the gate swinging and (somehow) landing every single blow. Easily one of 2014’s most unexpectedly charming (and ridiculously enjoyable) clips.
–
13. Saintseneca – Happy Alone
Saintseneca’s Dark Arc was one of 2014’s most deserved breakout moments and nothing punctuated that shift more than the Christopher Good-helmed clip for “Happy Alone”. Emphasizing the song’s central themes by providing a bubble that practically forces isolation onto bandleader Zac Little, it’s a visually striking clip that got harder to shake as the year progressed. By grounding its elements of surrealism with an abundance of naturalism, it provided an artful counterpoint to something like Perfume Genius’ “Queen” (which, incidentally, was shot by Good). Importantly, it also proved that Saintseneca were officially on their way to bigger and better things.
–
12. Angel Olsen – Windows
I’m not sure there was a music video to come out of 2014 that was more startlingly gorgeous than this Rick Alverson-directed clip for Angel Olsen’s heart-stopping Burn Your Fire For No Witness highlight “Windows”. By incorporating Southern Gothic Americana style rural imagery into Olsen’s plaintive folk-leaning sensibilities, Alverson managed to create an evocative portrait of one of this generation’s finest songwriters. Leading up to an oddly moving (and admittedly eccentric) climax, the whole thing’s so artfully rendered it begins to feel as complete as some of the year’s best films. Delicate and aggressive in all the right places, “Windows” more than earned a spot on this list.
–
11. Beverly – Honey Do
“Honey Do” was my introduction to Beverly, just as it was for many others, so when news broke that they’d shot a music video for the song, it felt worthy of anticipation. Most of the expectations I had were exceeded in the first few frames and as the video progressed, so did my appreciation. Eschewing any kind of image-building, this was the first in a string of Beverly clips that largely eschewed celebrity in favor of celebrating artistry. Shot in crisp black-and-whites, “Honey Do” is a tender portrait of Los Angeles and its inhabitants and a promising mission statement from one of 2014’s more engaging new acts.
–
10. S – Losers
Initially just a clip that came and went with very little fanfare (from a great record with a similar reception), “Losers” immediately felt deeply personal and genuinely heartfelt. Ostensibly a reflection on perception, self-esteem, and harsh reality, the thematic elements in the lyrics get brought to vivid life in a lovingly shot clip that somehow brings them to devastating proportions. DIY in spirit with a focal point on self-expression and identity, it’s become legitimately unforgettable; a long, heavy sigh of acceptance with only the faintest glimmer of hope reverberating throughout the weary cynicism. While “Vampires” was a great deal of fun, it’s “Losers” that deserves the lion’s share of attention for being one of 2014’s strongest buried treasures.
–
9. Iceage – Against the Moon
Honestly, “The Lord’s Favorite” and “Forever” both could have made this list but it felt more appropriate to limit bands to one entry apiece. With that being the case, it’s Plowing Into The Field Of Love highlight “Against the Moon” that gets the nod; all of the reasons for its inclusion were previously detailed pretty extensively here.
–
8. Anna Calvi & David Byrne – Strange Weather
Soft saturation. An autumnal palette. Digital film. One of the most delicately directed cinematography performances in any visual medium this year. An implicitly tragic narrative arc that suggests internal (and possible external) suffering. All of these come together in the sublime clip for an equally sublime cover of Kareen Ann’s “Strange Weather”, courtesy of Anna Calvi & David Byrne. One view was all it took for this to become one of the most difficult to shake clips of the year. Masterfully composed and brilliantly executed, it’s nothing short of an emotionally intuitive masterpiece.
–
7. Diarrhea Planet – Babyhead
I got to use “diaper skull flume explosion” while writing the tags for this one in the initial write-up; what more explanation do you need? “Babyhead” was pure madcap glee on a level not too dissimilar to Wrong Hole’s equally shameless, equally deranged lyric video for “Wrong Hole“. There are times when total insanity can be kind of beautiful. I’m not sure this is one of them but it’s still ridiculously fun.
–
6. Kid Moxie & The Gaslamp Killer – Museum Motel
No music video kept ricocheting around the corners of my brain more than this deeply unnerving clip from Kid Moxie & The Gaslamp Killer. Operating on a visual level that rivals what was achieved in Under The Skin, it uses waters, shadows, and contrast in a darkly seductive fashion that burrows its way into any brain fortunate enough to find its way over. An ingeniously subtle use of superimposed imagery on a lone snare drum drives up the feeling of unrelenting loneliness and palpable loss. It’s a deeply alluring and deceptively minimal visual representation of a stunning song. One that’s worth putting more than halfway up a “Best of 2014” list.
–
5. La Dispute – Woman (Reading)
Since this was the last one of the last non-list features to be posted here, it’d seem redundant to simply retrace everything that’s already been said.
–
4. Girlpool – Plants and Worms
Catleya Sherbow created this unbelievably stunning clip for Girlpool, 2014’s best duo, and touched on a number of pressure points- namely, acceptance and doubt. In the end, it’s about acceptance, and while that message does come laced with a visual that could potentially double as suicide, it still somehow manages to come off as comforting. “Plants and Worms” hits with the force of a world-stopping realization and echoes long after it ends, providing a staggering moment of beauty for Girlpool and a warm reassurance for just about everyone else.
–
3. clipping. – Work Work
Yes, the video for “Never Gonna Catch Me”- the Flying Lotus and Kendrick Lamar collaboration- was incredible. Not a lot of people are going to dismiss that claim. However, it’s another destined-to-be-iconic clip from that genre field that made a deep(er) impression on me; the video for the clipping. and Cocc Pistol Cree collaboration “Work Work”. Tracing a narrative arc that uses a laser-sharp focus on the act of curb-stomping, enhanced by some thought-provoking visual surrealism, it immediately became one of 2014’s most arresting clips and its status hasn’t let up. If there was a tracking shot more provocative than the one at the start of “Work Work”, then I’d love to see it. Until then, I’m just going to keep returning to this one.
–
2. Cymbals Eat Guitars – Warning
No clip from 2014 came imbued with more unwavering passion than the Crosshair-starring clip for “Warning”. All anyone needs to see is the thumbnail shot for this video to see a glimpse of how unfailingly heartfelt “Warning” winds up being. Matthew Reed tapped into a transcendental kind of magic that collapses a variety of bridges (age, taste) with a near-shocking ease. Ever since this was first released, I’ve been revisiting it with a great frequency because, like most great art, it pulls the viewer back in and rewards investment. Breathtakingly lensed, brilliantly edited, and furiously paced, this was a perfect accompaniment to one of the year’s most emotionally-charged records. Cymbals Eat Guitars may have intended the song to be a warning about love and loss but, backed by the video, it becomes one of the year’s most life-affirming moments.
–
1. PUP – Guilt Trip
Back in 2013, I had the honor of naming PUP’s “Reservoir” the best music video of 2013 for PopMatters. While that video was a cathartic release that was a near-perfect representation of the maelstrom of a particularly rowdy live show, their video for “Guilt Trip” (once again speared by the creative team of Chandler Levack and Jeremy Schaulin-Rioux) was a much more serious affair. Weirdly attuned to my own childhood experiences probably lent it a few small favors in terms of my esteem but, doing my best to separate myself from that strange fact, it boasts a series of career-bests from Levack and Schaulin Rioux: cinematography, editing, the performances they elicited from an impressively talented young cast, narrative, and overall direction among the list. “Guilt Trip” also includes one of the most genuinely heart-stopping moments I’ve seen in any clip, infusing it with a sense of brutal reality (if only for a moment), emphasized by a single shot that drives the point home. My initial claim that it could have a shot at carving out a spot for “Video of the Decade” still doesn’t seem so far off- but it’s worth keeping an eye on Levack and Schaulin-Rioux to see if they can keep repeating a ridiculously impressive pattern.
The 48th installment of Watch This reads like a laundry list of this site’s favorite places to cull videos from; Allston Pudding, The Chris Gethard Show, and Little Elephant among them. Live versions of songs that have previously been fawned over resurface with new levels of urgency and old treasures prove their longevity. Every performance that gets featured here is impassioned and clearly illustrates the respective band’s obvious connections to their own music (with a strain of apathy-fueled music growing steadily prominent, this is- unfortunately- more of a rarity than common occurrence). Trying to wax poetic about most of these videos in this paragraph would most likely just wind up doing them a disservice, so: sit back, turn the volume up, ignore the time, lean in, and Watch This.
1. Little Big League – Property Line (Little Elephant)
There hasn’t been a band in quite a while to pull off what Little Big League achieves by virtue of this placement; this is their third consecutive video to appear in this series- in as many weeks- and they’re all from the same Little Elephant session. So, some straight talk: “Property Line” is one of the year’s best songs and the band’s current career-best effort. Even though the live version doesn’t have the benefit of those chill-inducing horns, it retains its formidable pull. As always, the band reveals themselves to be an excellent live act and provides several reasons to get excited about their upcoming LP, Tropical Jinx.
–
2. Sweet John Bloom – Aging In Place (Allston Pudding)
Allston Pudding’s made a habit of making impressive live videos- this outstrips all of their previous work with an assured ease and a new level of confidence that suits them well. An extraordinary live-edit that features a stunning performance from emerging act Sweet John Bloom to promote their upcoming full-length, Weird Prayer. Expertly marrying high-energy basement pop with deliriously frantic post-punk, it’s inclusion would have been an easy decision as an isolated standalone- the additional edits towards the video’s close put it way over the top and render it one of the more artistically inclined live videos to ever appear in this series. Don’t skip out on this one.
–
3. Protomartyr (La Blogotheque)
Protomartyr’s Under Color of Official Right was one of the highlights of 2014’s first quarter and it’s held its ground ever since its release. Here, the band teams up with La Blogotheque to film stripped-back live performances of “What the Well Said” and “Scum, Rise!” in the moats of Saint-Malo, a port city in France. It’s a fitting backdrop for the band’s take on post-punk, something that bears the influence of their Detroit home. Unsurprisingly, it’s spectacularly shot and bizarrely compelling, continuing La Blogotheque’s unique penchant for producing live footage that excels on those levels.
–
4. Jeff Rosentstock & Friends – Hey Allison! (TCGS)
Don Giovanni comedy darling Chris Gethard hosts a show. These shows host live acts. It seems that nearly every time a video of these performances surfaces, it earns a spot in this series. Jeff Rosenstock‘s “Hey Allison!” has already emerged as one of the more relentless earworms of the past few weeks and the live version is an all-out blitz. Anytime anyone puts this much heart into music this good, it’s going to earn a write-up. The Chris Gethard Show also has the unique advantage of utilizing a crowd of misfits being encouraged to be as weird as possible, turning single song performances into outright events. There are few things more encouraging than watching a band and an audience enjoy each other’s company in equal measure at an absurdly high degree. This is can’t-miss entertainment.
–
5. METZ – Get Off! (Pitchfork)
METZ was one of the more unforgettable debuts of the past few years and the band’s live show, easily one of the best around, pushes those songs to exhilarating heights. Employing humanism and sonic annihilation at roughly the same pace, anytime the band takes the stage it’s a small victory for everyone involved. Here, they tear through a fired-up version of “Get Off” and incite some fierce reactions from an adoring crowd. METZ themselves remain as entertaining as ever, putting just about everything they have on the line every time they take the stage- and they’re showing no signs of slowing down.
Today saw the release of three fuzzed out songs. Two were heavily indebted to shoegaze while the other was a wiry post-punk bruiser. In the case of the former, one of those songs marked one of the most interesting anomalies of Mogwai’s considerable career. “Teenage Exorcists” found the band sidling up to a sound that wasn’t too dissimilar from The History of Apple Pie. Bratty vocals, fuzzed-out riffs, swirling guitars, bright vocal melodies, and a killer middle eight all add up to one of the most intriguing sidesteps any major name’s made this year. Joining Mogwai in the ranks of great bands releasing strong shoegaze-leaning basement pop songs today was The Lees of Memory, a band that features at least one ex-Superdrag member. That 90’s influence pays huge dividends on the towering “Little Fallen Star“, a slow-burning six-minute cut from the band’s just released Sisyphus Says. In the territory that wasn’t overtly occupied by a punk-laden ambient sprawl Thalassocracy‘s “Shimensoka” bared teeth sharp enough to ensure that it’d get noticed.
“Shimensoka” is aggressively minimal without also blending in the increasingly trendy chaos a la Parquet Courts and Naomi Punk (not to mention an endless amount of others setting up camp with that formula). It’s Thalassocracy’s contribution to Art Is Hard’s increasingly on-point Pizza Club singlesseries. Opening with a few light touches of organs, that soft palette is quickly cut to shreds by a jackknife rhythm section and a threatening guitar line, which is fitting considering the song’s title (shimensoka is a Japanese word with a meaning that roughly translates to “facing extreme hostility; defeat is inevitable”). Populated by genuinely strange moments, it becomes an incredibly compelling look at what Thalassocracy is capable of achieving. They’ve already got an impressive pedigree, thanks to a lineup that boasts members of Grubs and Slothboat. Easily the darkest track of today’s trio of tunes- it’s also the most hypnotic, aptly showcasing the band’s penchant for quiet ferocity. “Shimensoka” is a remarkable step forward for a band that seems intent on making a run of things. Expect to be hearing more about them in the future.
Listen to (and download) “Shimensoka” below and sing up to be a member of The Pizza Club here.
This week was kicked off in powerful fashion thanks to the most recent additions to the never-ending avalanche of new releases. Mitski, Slothrust, and Jeff Rosentstock all had outstanding new songs, increasing the anticipation levels for each of their upcoming records. Mary Timony’s newest project, Ex Hex, have their upcoming record streaming in full over at NPR’s First Listen. On the music video side of things, Nothing offered up a sinister clip (directed by band member Domenic Palermo) composed of nothing but home invasion archival footage for a recently-remastered early acoustic version of “B&E“. There were also two visually stunning videos that surfaced from Haley Bonar and The Bug, the former being a gentle oneiric caress and the latter being a masterfully composed nightmarish descent of towering proportions. The History of Apple Pie staked out a place in a similar camp with their visually meticulous clip for Feel Something highlight “Jamias Vu”.
Director Alistair Redding has said that the video for “Jamais Vu” took cues from French New Wave pioneer Jean-Luc Godard and indie darling Wes Anderson. From the Robert Yeoman framing symmetry to the highly stylized art production, both influences cut through the clip like a knife. It’d all be distracting if it didn’t wind up being a perfect complement to The History of Apple Pie’s particular brand of whimsy; their exceptional fuzz-cloaked outsider pop somehow given greater emphasis by the striking visual palette. They’re a band that seems to operate in multicolor already and they’ve found a perfect match in Redding’s distinct and well-versed grasp on varying filmic influences. At just past the minute-and-thirty mark, there’s a long shot that switches the focal emphasis to the environmental foreground (which is generally relegated to the backdrop), double-framing the character subjects and providing a perfect point of reference for the composition mastery on display in “Jamais Vu”. Guns fire stars, uniformly dapper battalions stride through fields and scout the woods, and the whole thing’s brilliantly soundtracked by the song it was designed to enhance. It’s a monstrously winsome work of multimedia perfection, with every element working together to hit a surprisingly comprehensive level of artistry. “Jamais Vu” is far too fun to miss.
Watch “Jamais Vu” below and order Feel Something from the excellent UK-based Marshall Teller Records here.
With another day drawing to a close, there’s another array of riches to examine. Full streams were made available for two very different releases; It Must Be Love threw their hat into the “Best EP of the Year” ring with their just-released self-titled effort, Art Is Hard’s Jam Kids: 20 Years since Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, an excellent compilation which featured contributions from a few site favorites (PAWS and Trust Fund, most notably) and- on the heavier, more doom-oriented side of things- Windhand’s side of their upcoming split 10″ with Salem’s Pot, which shows the band hasn’t lost a step last year’s outstanding Soma. Vacation shared an unmastered demo of their highly-anticipated upcoming record and Negative Fun Records made No Other’s exceptional contribution to their ongoing Singles Club series publicly available. As for music videos, any day PUP releases something, it’s going to be a notable day- and their demolition derby-centric clip for “Mabu” kept them in the conversation for “band with the best music videos”. Eugene Quell also released a charming, low-key video for A Great Uselessness highlight “Alta Loma“. In addition to all of that, recent Watch Thisact Little Big League unveiled the latest look at their upcoming record, Tropical Jinx; “Property Line”.
Following the easygoing basement pop of the title track, “Property Line” finds the band digging a little bit deeper and unearthing something spectacular. There’s a sense of unease on display throughout “Property Lines” that ultimately gets outweighed by the song’s underlying determination, making it an unexpected spiritual companion to All Dogs’ “Say“. As if that dynamic wasn’t enough, the song showcases the band’s creative growth in each members’ various roles. Everything from the composition to the lyricism is sharper than anything Little Big League’s produced to date (which shouldn’t detract from an immensely impressive body of work), rendering the expectations for Tropical Jinx a few levels above where they previously were. When the cathartic brass-assisted climax kicks in, one thing becomes abundantly clear; Little Big League have officially arrived. “Property Line” is a career-best from an emerging band that’s still young enough to improve- though it’ll be difficult to top something as sublime as this.
Listen to “Property Line” below and pre-order Tropical Jinx from Run For Cover Records here.
While today’s Watch This marathon still won’t be over with this installment, it is drawing to a close. Several of the very best performance clips were reserved for both the 36th and 37th installments of the series. A lot of site favorites are included, giving performances that completely validate their status as such. Everything from Marissa Paternoster’s outstanding solo project to Lydia Loveless’ first spot to PUP delivering a blistering take on the song that drives the best music video of the year-so-far, it’s a lot to celebrate. So sit back, refocus, and Watch This.
1. Noun – I Don’t Love Anybody (Don Giovanni)
Marissa Paternoster’s experienced no shortage of success with her main project, Screaming Females, but her finest album to date may very well be the debut full-length for her solo project, Noun. While that record, Holy Hell, isn’t as revered as Screaming Females’ most popular works, it stands up right alongside them as a full-bodied work. Here Paternoster strips back and takes an all-acoustic attic run through “Make Me”, solidifying her status as one of the most magnetic performers out there today.
–
2. Beverly (BreakThruRadioTV)
Ex-Vivian Girls/Dum Dum Girls member Frankie Rose and Drew Citron teamed up earlier this year under the name Beverly and surprised just about everyone with one of the more definitive summer records, Careers. In this performance for BreakThruRadio, the pair have a full band backing them and prove to be much more than just a great studio act. Careers highlights “You Can’t Get It Right” and “Honey Do” (which also has a lovely music video) are featured here and sound as perfect as ever.
–
3. Radical Dads – Know-It-All (TCGS)
Riff-happy trio Radical Dads were one of the last bands to earn a spot on The Chris Gethard Show and it’s easy to see how they wound up there; this is boldly aggressive and intriguing work along the lines of Sonic Youth while doing away with their particular strain of detached NYC cool. Bananas dance, rimshots ring out, guitars get thrashed on, and everyone gets into it- it’s just about impossible not to.
–
4. Lydia Loveless (NPR)
Lydia Loveless has been making quite a name for herself these past few years and has continuously lived up to the attention she’s been given. Possessed with a gift of a voice and genre sensibilities that rival and recall both Neko Case and Gillian Welch, the young songwriter’s well on her way to leaving behind a legendary discography of her own. Loveless and her band recently took over NPR’s Tiny Desk Session and, more than likely, converted a whole lot of people while doing so.
–
5. PUP – Guilt Trip (KEXP)
“Guilt Trip” already stands out for having one of the most stunning music videos to come out of this decade but, as great as that video was, the song really comes to life in a live setting. While the rest of the band’s KEXP session was admittedly outstanding, “Guilt Trip” was just a few levels above the rest of the batch. This is one of the best performances the station’s seen since Cloud Nothings’ towering Attack On Memory session (which still stands as KEXP’s high-water mark) and, just like the video, deserves to be seen by as many people as possible.
Heartbreaking Bravery 