Eyes On Rock

Mumford and Sons - I Gave You All

2011-01-15T00:21:00.007-05:00

Mumford and Sons are the first folk rock band that I discovered the old fashioned way, the radio. And for some reason I immediately felt they had already "made it". A short while later I saw they had been nominated for a Grammy.

Having your small unknown band brings great hope they will manage to gain the mass appeal that will allow them to make records for a long time, without selling out of course but that is not reality(lol?). Silversun Pickups were nominated last year and I thought things would really get moving. Many late night show appearances later, nothing. And when I speak of nothing, it relates to the mainstream media, not some hipster's plaid based blog.

Let's hope Mumford and Sons have an Oprah moment or something of the like, so they can keep producing great works of music for years to come.

Linkin Park eyeing The Catalyst

2010-08-27T00:20:00.003-04:00

Linkin Park is back with a new sound and video from the upcoming album A Thousand Suns directed by their turntablist Joseph Hahn.

Reading the comments on the video, one would think the fanbase has deserted their former favorites. It is only when one notices that these sentiments are the cries of teenagers begging for the angst ridden, younger Linkin Park that one knows the boys of California have surpassed their 'me' phase and are now worldly.

Linkin Park - New Music - More Music Videos

Breaking Benjamin eyeing I Will Not Bow video

2009-08-24T20:49:00.005-04:00

Directed by Rich Lee from the album, Dear Agony.

In contrast to the last rock single movie tie in, Breaking Benjamin received the raw end of the deal and were handed the scraps of the movie advertising budget. The video was filmed in a building that's part of the World Trade Center complex, and that's all there is to it, a big office space with the band performing.

It all ends up being about 80% of shots from the movie, that after watching felt like some sort of Stepford Wives meets I, Robot, clone. Great to see Breaking Benjamin back, but not in this fashion.

Attack In Black eyeing Liberties video

2009-07-30T20:31:00.007-04:00

Directed by Marc Ricciardelli from the album, Years (by One Thousand Fingertips).

An alternate universe where childhood games can lead to painful conclusions. And also a place where the street corner based food cart serves food on par with 5 star restaurants, though in a stomach turning form. The final destination franchise would love to have this director on hand, a blade in an apple?(Most likely a phrase that went over my head but still gruesome to depict)

Attack in Black | Dane Alone Records

Friendly Fires eyeing Kiss of Life video

2009-07-27T20:07:00.005-04:00

Directed by Chris Cottam from the album, Friendly Fires(re-release version).

According to a UGO interview, the band's first performance at a birthday party was shut down and they were replaced by a DJ.

Vibrant music video that reflects the theme present in the backing track. The dancing procession behind Macfarlane draw the eye with their colored outfits versus the dull colors the band wears, reverse for most videos. Maybe the costume designer was asked to do so to keep us from watching Macfarlane dance(try?) He does pretty well, with the strange shimmy he does at the three minute mark one of a couple exceptions. Simple clip that does what it needed to do, nothing more can be asked.

Bowling For Soup eyeing My Wena video

2009-07-27T19:53:00.003-04:00

From the album, Sorry for Partyin'.

Jaret Reddick(vocals) is part of comedy troupe called Fourth Wall Comedy. Fans can see him and the group out of their base in Denton, Texas.

Wow, this video is just, wow... For some reason I didn't notice the title of the song and after the first couple seconds, it clicked. A self gratuitous song about the male member that I'm surprised I've never come across. Who would've known that Wena likes fish tacos? All in all, hilarious clip.

Bad Veins eyeing Gold and Warm video

2009-07-20T20:45:00.003-04:00

Directed by Benjamin Davis from the album, Bad Veins.

Bad Veins are rising quickly in the music world. While opening for another band, that band liked them so much that they shopped them around and some weeks later, they had a record deal. So far they have only over a dozen shows in their young careers and they have already played with the likes of Silversun Pickups and Apples in Stereo.

Simple, extremely simple video with only one scene and two people. Yet it works, the band gives off enough energy and the on screen lyrics keep one watching.

Lord Cut Glass eyeing Look After Your Wife video

2009-07-20T20:19:00.003-04:00

Directed by Tobias Feltus from the album, Lord Cut Glass.

“If Lord Cut-Glass was a political leader he’d be more dictator than democrat."

Great art style with guys riding pigs and female heads in cages, great fun for all. Most of the video is literal and therefore easy to follow, until we reach the last minute when actions seems to be randomly happening on screen. Some guys would love to have that paper bag...

Týr eyeing Hold the Heathen Hammer High video

2009-07-16T20:11:00.006-04:00

Directed by Silvan Büge from the album, By the Light of the Northern Star.

The Faroe Islands, home to Týr, fits well with the themes the band uses in their music. Their newest release is their fifth album to date. You can download the Hold the Heathen Hammer Here video here.

The viking imagery was there with the ship and the rowers but the drummer decides to throw it off with his shirt. It seems they decided to spend zero on wardrobe for the band, therefore they had them go shirtless. The drummer, maybe feeling insecure, keeps his shirt on and the entire mood of the video goes overboard(haha?)

Roche Limit eyeing My Friend Ship

2009-07-16T19:43:00.004-04:00

Directed by Dave Righton from the album, Sometimes We Must Change Shape.

Roche Limit is Dave Righton, a one man band based in Canada. The music video, created using Google Sketchup , cost Righton 11 U.S. dollars to create, with the only cost being the tape he used to record his creation. [Roche]

This goes to show that sometimes money doesn't always get you the best video. Google Sketchup is a CAD program that was used to create a visually unique piece of work. The only thing that's out of place was the 3D text used that looked like it came straight out of MS Word. If Righton keeps it up, his production costs will be very low...

The Offspring eyeing Stuff is Messed Up video

2009-07-15T13:42:00.004-04:00

Directed by F. Scott Schafer and Sean Evans from the album, Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace.

The band's smash hit album, Smash, was remastered and re-released in April last year. The album, which was originally released in 1994, is still the highest selling indie label album of all time.

Don't judge a book by its cover, or judge all the way, according to this music video. The scene(1:25) with the female bodybuilder and the pageant girl is extremely disturbing for some reason...

Omega Lithium eyeing Stigmata video

2009-07-15T12:59:00.003-04:00

From the album, Dreams in Formaline.

Dreams in Formaline is the band's debut album and will be released on Drakkar Records. The band signed to the record label earlier this month.

Vivid imagery awaits those who watch the video below, as vivid as the color grey can become. The set pieces were intricately designed, kudos if it was all CG for the artist captured the gothic look and feel extremely well. Don't drink the drink...

Julie Doiron eyeing Consolation Prize video

2009-07-15T11:42:00.004-04:00

Directed by Tim McDonough from the album, I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day.

As a Canadian, Julie Doiron's home fans take pride in her work. So much so that the mayor of Bruno in Saskatchewan province named June 7, "Julie Doiron Day". As part of the ceremony, she was awarded a bench. [Exclaim]

Download Consolation Prize here. [Link provided on artist's website]

The video follows everyone's childhood nightmare, the visit to the dentist. Julie Doiron didn't leave her teeth for the tooth fairy to collect like most other kids, she buried them in her backyard. For some reason she decided to retrace her steps to find where she buried them and comes up with a strange surprise. Beware the tooth clones...

The Dead Weather eyeing Treat Me Like Your Mother video

2009-07-15T11:19:00.005-04:00

Directed by Jonathan Glazer from the album, Horehound.

Fans of all degrees can join The Dead Weather's, "The Vault," and depending on your fandom(money spent) you will be receiving unique material in your mail. The social networking style site is run by the band's label, Third Man Records. Those who sign up for the maximum $20 fee, quarterly Third Man 12"s and the occasional limited 7" will be coming your way.

The video builds and builds and then it just ends. The two characters are horrendous shots, and who plays chicken with guns anyway? Quite disappointed overall, the production level was high but the visual story was missing, unless I missed something...

Suicide Silence eyeing Wake Up video

2009-07-15T10:51:00.004-04:00

Directed by David Brodsky from the album, No Time to Bleed.

Mitchell Luker(vocals) is featured on the cover of the July 21st issue of Revolver magazine. It is the band's first metal magazine cover.

An extreme drug therapy session is witnessed in this video. It's extremely simple, scream in someone' face, but it could be effective. If nothing else, this would be a great track for an alarm...

The Veils eyeing Begin Again video

2009-07-14T20:57:00.004-04:00

Directed by Sean Gratton from the album, Sun Gangs.

Three weeks after the release of Sun Gangs in April 2009, Henning Dietz(drummer), left the band after the birth of his daughter.

Disturbing images fill this faux news report style video. The interweaving between the lyrics and the stock footage is done quite well. And some of the clips are disturbing, those with weak stomachs beware. At the end of the video, it's almost like the director is saying, with all that's going on, there's still peace out there...

Farewell Continental eyeing Do You Wanna Tangle? video

2009-07-14T19:22:00.003-04:00

Directed by Shane Nelson from the EP, Farewell Continental.

As can be seen on the band's Myspace, "Feel free to support us or not...Our goal is to have a perpetual bank balance of $0".

Is this what happens if you try to leave a band? The video shows one of the reasons some bands seem to somehow come back together after a feud. They have this hanging over their head. Or it could be an allusion to the music business where it seems to be play and make money or we could care less...

Alice In Chains eyeing A Looking In View video

2009-07-10T20:43:00.004-04:00

Directed by Stephen Schuster from the album, Black Gives Way to Blue.

Black Gives Way to Blue is the band's first album since the death of vocalist Layne Staley in 2002. William DuVall of Comes With the Fall is the current lead.

A music video bordering on epic length, three distinct story lines are exhibited with all carrying the same underlying theme. The teen suffering from childhood based PTSD has the most constructive method of concealing his pain compared to the other characters. The NSFW female's section has a redemptive quality after she undergoes a self inflicted near death experience. The adult male's final scene on the bed has a whiff of contradiction. Will he bend to his temptations within a room filled with the symbols he used to try and cleanse himself?

The Sound of Animals Fighting eyeing Another Leather Lung video

2009-07-10T19:58:00.004-04:00

Created by Eric Stodolnik from the album, The Ocean and the Sun.

The musical collective, The Sounds of Animals Fighting's, body of work ended with the release of The Ocean and the Sun. Nine rotating members had only four live shows under the Animals Fighting banner.

Those in an altered state of mind will find greater appreciation watching the video than those sober. It features the works of painter Vasily Kafanov though the manner in which they are exhibited greatly enhances the paintings in a manner that draws one's attention to certain elements. I would really like to know how the animator came up with his trippy vision...

[AbsolutePunk]

Third Eye Blind eyeing Don't Believe A Word video

2009-07-10T19:47:00.005-04:00

Directed by Stephan Jenkins from the album, Ursa Major.

Those who will be in New York city on July 17 can attend a free show at Central Park. Third Eye Blind will be taping for Good Morning America for those willing to be there at 6 a.m. when gates open.

Stop motion + performance video = whatever this was...

Odium eyeing At the Bottom video

2009-07-09T20:53:00.005-04:00

Directed by Chad Archibald from the album, Year of the Sun.

2009 has been the breakout year for Odium. They signed to Year of the Sun records earlier in the year, released their debut album Year of the Sun(coincidence?) and filmed their first video, At the Bottom.

Great video that uses both the name of the band, and underlying track to create a captivating clip. The kid's transformation at the end was unexpected, though children in these kinds of videos seem to always have an otherworldly way of solving their problems. Why is everything but his face completely clean?

[Blabbermouth]

Neverdice eyeing Praying In the Name Of video

2009-07-09T20:20:00.004-04:00

Directed by Janne Tamminen from an as of yet announced album.

The Finnish band has a quite a lot of free media on their website. All the tracks from the Neverdice EP and the video for Praying In the Name Of are available for download.

The concept for the video, don't judge someone by the clothes they wear, was interesting. Too bad the execution faltered with long shots of the girl driving. They should have hinted at the twist earlier on so as not lose the viewer's interest. Tattoos...

Daath eyeing Day of Endless Light video

2009-07-09T19:41:00.004-04:00

Directed by Robin Fuller from the album, The Concealers.

Eyal Levi(guitar) on the band's current album, "call me cocky if you will, but check out the record and if you disagree feel free to write me on our Myspace and call me a prick". Levi states that The Contenders features the best writing he has ever done and that everyone else's play level has increased since their last release. [CenturyMedia]

Interesting animations in the background but nothing else but a performance clip...

Blitzen Trapper eyeing Black River Killer video

2009-07-08T20:48:00.003-04:00

Directed by Daniel Elkayam from the album, Furr.

Furr was released September 23, 2008 and was listed 13th on Rolling Stone's "Top 50 albums of 2008". Two tracks from the album, Furr and God & Suicide were featured on the NBC show Chuck.

Country songs have some of the most literal lyrics in the music medium. "Black River Killer" takes a queue from that genre which gave the director a pre-made screenplay ready for filming. Which means if you liked the song, the music video is going to be an easy fit.

The Human Abstract eyeing Counting Down The Days video

2009-07-08T20:13:00.004-04:00

From the album, Midheaven.

Midheaven is a concept album that follows the rise and fall of an unnamed man. Former bassist Mike Nordeen's sections were entirely re-recorded by Sean Hurley, who tours with John Mayer.

Claymation video that features an array of unique characters building a doomsday clock. Too bad they included live action shots of the band because it took away from the storyline that was unfolding. Every time you got lost in the alternate world, you would be snapped back into reality with performance shots of the band. And for those not in the know, a doomsday clock is always approaching 12 O'Clock. If it ever reaches that time, the world ends. The clock in the video doesn't make any sense if it is supposed to be one...