Published: September 03, 2008 04:18 pm            

MUSIC: Music video spotlight

Millions of people still watch music videos.

Though it may be hard to believe, considering the lack of music videos being shown channels that used to be known for them, it’s true. As with anything else, fans have flocked to the Internet to satisfy their needs. Many of the most-viewed videos on YouTube.com are music videos, with a few videos registering more than 50 million hits.

None of the following recent videos have hit those heights yet and probably never will, but that doesn’t mean we can’t see how they measure up.

The Verve — “Love Is Noise”

The Verve, the English band best known for the huge 1990s hit “Bittersweet Symphony,” has returned after being split up for more than a decade.

The video for “Love Is Noise,” the band’s reintroduction to the rock world, is underwhelming. As the band plays in a room, random shots of a young couple, fire and mountains flash onto the screen. Lead singer Richard Ashcroft brings some intensity to the proceedings, but it’s not enough to get you excited about The Verve again.

Grade: C

Fleet Foxes — “White Winter Hymnal”

Claymation! Immediately, the first video from the Fleet Foxes’ much-hyped self-title debut draws you in.

A man is turning a crank, changing the days and the seasons. Not much happens, really, but it’s short, sweet and pretty.

Grade: B+

No Age — “Eraser”

No Age’s “Eraser” starts with nearly two minutes of instrumental before the singing begins, which leaves the director in a quandary. How to fill the time?

The answer comes from repetition, as the band runs into a backyard party a few times before picking up the instruments and playing along as the vocals kick in. Things get distorted. And then everything gets smashed. Not much of a concept.

Grade: B-

Beck — “Gamma Ray”

Essentially a collage of strange, random images, some of them fuzzy. It sounds very Beck, and it is. But that doesn’t make this one of his best — not by a long shot, considering his career (one could also say the same thing about “Modern Guilt,” the album from which “Gamma Ray” sprang forth).

Grade: C+

The Walkmen — “In the New Year”

At first, it seems to have a silent film vibe, but then it’s revealed to more than a vibe. . . it’s lead singer Hamilton Leithauser, merely singing in front of silent film clips. At least Nosferatu found his way into the video.

Grade: C

Vampire Weekend — “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa”

A goth girl shows up at a young preppie party and walks in on singer Ezra Koenig, who’s singing to a young preppie girl.

The goth girl is heartbroken and runs off as the band pursues her. Koenig eventually ends up in the forest, where she uses her goth powers to turn him into a Robert Smith-type singer (the transformation is not totally unlike MJ’s in the “Thriller” video). The whole thing is very ’80s, including a keytar appearance.

Besides that, an actual concept? I think I like it.

Grade: A-

        

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