“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is
the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is
a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is
as good as dead: his eyes are closed.” - Albert Einsten
Title: 1, 2, 3, 4 Artist: Feist Year Released: 2007
You've seen this video before-or you soon will. It's the new song and video from the newest Ipod Nano commercial. Which seems like a pretty good choice since the Ipod commercial seems to mirror the style of this video for Feist's song 1, 2, 3, 4. This video, like the ipod commercial, is shot in the style of a "one take" video (though I do believe that there was some sly editing done to make it look this way). In the manner of the song this video is colorful (both literally and figuratively), fun and quirky, and the video style seems to be one (the "one take") that Feist (or at least Feist's video director) likes, as it's the same style used in the video for Feist's song My Moon My Man.
The quirkiness and absurdity of this video reminds me of Sufjan Steven's antics in concert. In the same manner notice the banjo and horns used in this song, which are Sufjan-esque in their own way. Unlike Stevens though, Feist's lyrics won't melt your soul (the title of this song after all is simply 1, 2, 3, 4), but that isn't a knock on this song and video. In this era of hip indie singer/songwriters (Elliot Smith, Aimee Man, Dave Bazan, the aforementioned Stevens, etc.) we have come to put the emphasis on lyrics (see the post on The Album Leaf, a band where lyrics are sparse), and in doing so maybe we have undermined music's ability to simply be fun and quirky. Watching, and just enjoying, this video might just be a step in the right direction.
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