Today’s Friday Video Pick comes from the vibrant world of Swatch. This Australian ad features the best of ’80s design…in-your-face colors, quick bursts of flashy geometry, and…a street carnival setting? The commercial is “set” in Vienna, which clearly inspired an Old Word-meets-modern vibe. Attempts to jazz it up with glass block and neon lighting prove quite interesting
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Friday Video Pick: “What Have I Done to Deserve This?” by the Pet Shop Boys
For today’s Friday Video Pick, we spotlight the Pet Shop Boys’ “What Have a I Done to Deserve This?,” a track featuring the vocals of Dusty Springfield. Filmed in a music hall, this 1987 video makes use of chorus girls and theater curtains to keep the action moving, then culminates in a dramatic stage finale.
Friday Video Pick: “So Unreal” by LA Vampires Featuring Matrix Metals
Today’s Friday Video Pick is a new piece that’s exploding with ’80s motifs. Grids, LaserDiscs, Trapper Keeper-ish graphic design and references to artist Patrick Nagel are a few of the many 1980s flourishes packed into this six-minute style fest featuring LA Vampires. There’s even a plasma ball that may as well have been plucked from the shelves of The Sharper Image in all of its electrified glory.
Friday Video Pick: “Reflection of You” by Bear in Heaven
Today’s Friday Video Pick is a new piece from Brooklyn rock band Bear in Heaven. With a voice that carries like the singing of Christopher Cross, lead singer Jon Philpot creates a modern take on synth-driven rock. The video consists of a series of rapid zoom-in shots (the dizzy- or seizure-prone may wish to avoid it), and a neon background peppered with flashing lights is contemporary awesomeness at its best.
Friday Video Pick: “Urgent” by Foreigner
Today we travel back to a time when the message of a rock song was so urgent, it made band members pulse with energy as they belted it out. Maybe the message was “Someday Love Will Find You” or “You’re as Cold as Ice,” or even more urgent that that: “Urgent!” Yes, today we celebrate that dire word proclaimed by the band Foreigner in their 1981 hit.
Friday Video Pick: “Cowbell” by Takeshi Itoh
Today’s video comes from Polish director Zbigniew Rybczyński, whose work includes two previously-mentioned music videos on Mirror80: “All the Things She Said” by Simple Minds and “Candy” by Cameo. Known for his innovative visuals, often involving overlapping multiples of the musicians featured in each piece, Rybczyński is the perfect man to take Takeshi Itoh’s “Cowbell” into the realm of music video.
Friday Video Pick: “Big Time” by Peter Gabriel
Today’s Friday Video Pick comes from Peter Gabriel, who is known for his artistic, visually stunning music videos. “Big Time” was a hit from his 1986 album So. Wayne White served as the video’s art director, and he won a Billboard award for his work. We’ve featured White this week at Mirror80, noting his many amazing talents. Watch this video and you’ll see it in action…
Friday Video Pick: “Don’t Change” by INXS
Today’s Friday Video Picks come from Australian rock band INXS. Plucked from the album Shabooh Shoobah, “Don’t Change” features a raw, guitar-driven sound, less sleek and processed than the band’s later hits. Which is why we love it. There’s an irresistible energy here, and the two videos featured today do not disappoint.
Friday Video Pick: A Swatch Watch Commercial From 1989
Today we delve into the magic of the Swatch. Did you wear them in stacks on your arms? Did you cover them with neon guards? I still remember occasionally having to move my rubber Swatch guard to the side so I could read the time. But I didn’t care–the guard was cool! To some, these Swiss-made gems may as well have been bangles–collectible fashion statements rather than functional watches. To others, they were the ultimate time-keeping device.
Friday Video Pick: “Two Doors Down” by Mystery Jets
Today’s Friday Video Pick is not from the ’80s, but it might as well be. What do you get when you mix a lead singer whose style evokes Thompson Twins’ vocalist Tom Bailey, verses that recall the guitar magic of Aztec Camera, a chorus with the power of Dexy’s Midnight Runners’ “Come on Eileen,” and the wardrobe of James Spader’s ’80s preppy villains? The video for “Two Doors Down” by Mystery Jets!
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