Eye Candy # 13: TV Rock, Metric and Tokyo Police Club

Fresh videos from Canada and Australia...


The Dukes of Windsor "The Others" (TV Rock Remix)
dir. by ?
Starting out with a verifiable bang, this video loses most of its steam by the end. Nevertheless, points for the vibrant use of color, an exuberant performance from the singer and the song itself - which is all kinds of catchy. Of course the "others" being celebrated here are the counter-culture artists who freely express themselves in abstract and unique ways - like the musicians themselves. For that reason the video succeeds overall, despite the repetitive nature of the visuals.

Also, props to the burgeoning Aussie indie scene in general (this has already topped the charts over there).



Tokyo Police Club "Cheer It On" (Canadian Version)
dir. by Sean Wainsteim
In this entertainingly small video, Tokyo Police Club invade a quiet miniature town with an infectious form of rock 'n roll. The results are catastrophic for the mild-mannered man who oversees this toy community. The townspeople are liberated from the mechanical routines of their day, and the city is suddenly awash in violence, sex, and animals.

The toy figurines are at the mercy of the old man prior to the arrival of the music, but afterwards they slowly come to life. As Tokyo Police Club spread their sound around town, the people join together to destroy the system and overthrow their "god" (or "president of the world"). It's a short but sweet video that reminds us why music is so vital to the human experience, and why certain groups in society have always feared its power.


Metric "Empty"
dir. by Jaron Albertin
"I'm so glad I'm an island now"

We start covered in the messy aftermath of a relationship. It's an inner war-zone of the mind that has all but consumed the people involved. But the use of the house isn't just metaphoric, the piles and piles of things - from shirts in the closet to trash in the kitchen - are actual physical objects that one collects while living with another person. Sometimes the hardest part is just lifting yourself out of all that stuff.

It's both a celebratory and solemn emptying of the head - literally disconnecting oneself from the events that have passed. Even as they "cough out" their hearts, the group find themselves intact. They are no longer lost amongst the debris of those intense emotions, and instead they can think clearly once again.