With 2017 drawing to a close, it’s time to look over the best visual accompaniments this year has had to offer. With otherworldly settings, just plain ridiculous and intensely moving pieces, the last 12-months have provided us with some of the best videos in years. Here are 9 of our favourites, which keep us coming back again and again.
Björk – ‘The Gate‘
The stunning visuals for ‘The Gate‘ begin with Björk playing the flute outside in a tranquil dream-like setting before being taken over by a number of hypnotising and hallucinogenic designs. Director Andrew Thomas Huang envisioned “a kaleidoscopic world inhabited by the singer-songwriter” who is decked out in iridescent otherworldly Gucci garments. The visuals and Arca’s production on the track prove for an unforgettable dreamlike experience.
Visionist – ‘Value‘
Directed by Frederik Heyman, ‘Value‘ is a beautifully unsettling CGI infused depiction of people in situations of dire need. Themes of torture and self-preservation are at the forefront of this warped and emotive piece edging the gap between machine and human ever closer.
Kendrick Lamar – ‘ELEMENT.‘
The blood-soaked visuals for Kendrick‘s ‘ELEMENT.’ pack a powerful punch. Fight-club like scenes separated by ambient sequences of buildings burning pad out this gritty Jonas Lindstroem and the Little Homies directed clip making it one of the most unforgettable of the year.
Charli XCX – ‘Boys‘
The star-studded ‘Boys‘ has been recognised globally as one of the strongest visual offerings from 2017. Its playful nature and incredibly catchy hook saw the already acclaimed artist Charli XCX grow to a gargantuan household name. XCX co-directed the clip and roped in a number of A-list names for the video including Mac DeMarco, Diplo, and more.
Tyler, The Creator – ‘Who Dat Boy?‘
‘Who Dat Boy?‘ saw Tyler, The Creator enlist the help of A$AP Rocky for a warped journey of facial surgery and high-speed car chases. Dark and twisted the Flower Boy track’s video fuses both Tyler’s creative side with his incredibly dark sense of humour.
Radiohead – ‘Lift‘
The claustrophobic video for ‘Lift‘ sees frontman Thom Yorke take a long and strange elevator ride bumping into a variety of weird and wonderful strangers across a number of skewed settings. The Oscar Hudson directed video finishes with a twist ending that’ll keep your mind ticking over.
Fever Ray – ‘To The Moon And Back’
This horror-inflected visually intriguing video centres around our main character who according to Fever Ray‘s Karin Dreijer “wants to be loved and to fit in.” The video stars Dreijer and sees her reborn in a laboratory as a grey-skinned bald sex alien. She then proceeds to partake in a scandalous tea-party where her head is used as a table and the guests pee on her. Just watch it.
Young Thug – ‘Wycliffe Jean‘
“Hi, this is Ryan Staake. I “co-directed” this video with Young Thug,” the video explains in its opening frame. The video then goes on to explain that Young Thug and Staake never met each other during the process and the director only received a voice clip of what the rapper wanted. Miniature plush cars and a lot of “bad bitches” racing them was the brief and Staake seriously delivered.
King Krule – ‘Dum Surfer‘
The Brother Willis directed short for ‘Dum Surfer‘ sees the singer, real name Archy Marshall, front a band of the undead in a creepy underground pub-diner. It begins with Marshall emerging on a runaway hospital stretcher before taking to the stage in what can only be described as a grimy British village pub.
