The 5 Best Videos Of The Week

The 5 Best Videos Of The Week

T.O.P., the most effortlessly charismatic member of the South Korean boy band BigBang was released from the hospital today after overdosing on anti-anxiety pills. T.O.P. isn’t the most visible member of BigBang; that’s G-Dragon. And he’s also the one who seems least comfortable being in a boy band; his dance moves are, let’s say, perfunctory. But T.O.P. is a tall drink of water with a sleepy-eyed lean and a deep voice and a laconic Clint Eastwood sort of vibe. This is a guy who can project that sort of cool even while wearing some of the most ridiculous, unhinged outfits that South Korea’s costume departments can assemble. BigBang’s videos, more often than not, are little masterpieces of wigged-out neon surreality, but T.O.P.’s grounded, easy charisma has always been a huge part of what made them work. Think good thoughts about him. This week’s picks are below.

5. Sia – “Free Me” (Dir. Ryan Heffington)

Public service announcement music videos are a drag, and “Gamora gets HIV, does ballet” is a fundamentally goofy music-video concept. But it’s all in the staging, and the staging here is immaculate enough to make it moving despite itself.

4. Mac DeMarco – “One Another” (Dir. Pierce McGarry)

Sometimes, it seems like Mac DeMarco only makes music so that he’ll have an excuse to do these absurdist, shambling comedy bits. Sometimes, it seems like he’s better at those comedy bits than he is at music.

3. Rozwell Kid – “Wendy’s Trash Can” (Dir. Blackmagic Rollercoaster)

No idea why this needed to repeat over and over for 10 hours, but this is a fun, creepy piece of low-budget ridiculousness, and it reminds me of when a bunch of art-school friends of mine made a haunted house in their basement one Halloween, which meant they wore mummy bandages and tutus and rubbed raw meat all over themselves. It was creepier than it sounds.

2. Torres – “Skim” (Dir. Ashley Connor)

Imagine the otherworldly swagger it takes to pull off something like this.

1. Björk – “Notget (Version 2)” (Dir. Warren Du Preez & Nick Thorton Jones)

Björk is one of the great music-video artists of all time. Over the decades, she’s conjured up all these beautiful, fascinating, alien images, and this is the best of those in a long time. “Björk spends seven minutes being a moth” should be a boring video. But here, it feels like a whole universe.

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