YEAR-END LIST: THE BEST MUSIC VIDEOS OF 2014

Sometimes I feel like I’m the only one who still watches music videos. It seems like the art of the music video’s definitely been lost in translation over the years, what – with shorter attention spans, less time on the go, whatever it may be. But whatever – I enjoy the videos and I’ll continue to use this post to curate some of 2014’s best visuals.

Below the jump, you’ll find an alphabetical list of some of my favorite music videos of the past year.

Previous Year-End Lists: Top Shows of 2014

-grizzly

ASAP Rocky – Multiply (feat. Juicy J)
Director: Shomi Patwary, A$AP Rocky

ASAP Rocky had a quiet 2014, outside of this track, which torched many a speaker around my house. And the video was even better.

Bad Suns – Salt
Director: Daniel Cloud Campos

I’m not usually into socially conscious music videos, but Bad Suns did good by a close friend of their’s, whom this song was written for. Gender identities (or just any sort of crises, really) are in play here.

Beyonce – Partition
Director: Jake Nava

Because it’s queen bee and I’m a pervert.

Big Sean – IDFWU (feat. E40)
Director: Lawrence Lamont

This video reminds me of the golden era of music videos, where big budgets, plots and interesting characters drove the reasoning behind watching the videos in the first place. So Big Sean’s saltiest song, “IDFWU,” gets a video that kinda has nothing to do with it. And I mean, who believes Sean would be a QB? QBs don’t even wear the number 88, boi.

Bleachers – Rollercoaster
Director: Richard Shepherd

This video is cool and all, but after reading their interview on Pitchfork about nearly dying during the filming of this video, it got an extra boost.

Childish Gambino – telegraph ave.
Director: Hiro Murai

I was deciding between this video and Sweatpants, (single shot, with about 20 Donald Glovers) because they’re both worthy of a spot on my list. The scenery and the plot twist in “telegraph ave.” definitely gave it the edge. And Jhene ain’t too bad either.

Chromeo – Old 45s
Director: Dugan O’Neal

Chromeo was another artist with multiple videos that were considered (the other being “Jealous”), but I wittled that list down to “Old 45s,” because none of the others had P-Thugg lip-syncing, nor did they have a very large bar fight with the HAIM sisters and Jon Heder.

Every Time I Die – Thirst / Decaying With The Boys
Director: Doug Spangenberg

This is a two parter, mainly because you have to watch both. Two drunk assholes get a flyer for a house party, get obliterated, set fires and go party with Every Time I Die.

Part II is NSFW: “Decaying With The Boys”

Fat Tony – No More
Director: Justin Petty

For Fat Tony’s Volcom-commissioned single, Noisey premiered his video for “No More,” which gets weird as fuck, as him and a lady friend answer a Craigslist ad…and yeah, just watch it.

Flying Lotus – Never Catch Me (feat. Kendrick Lamar)
Director: Hiro Murai

Hiro Murai with his second video on my list, this one for FlyLo’s “Never Catch Me” – which starts out bleak, but then turns into a 5 minute clip of being uplifted with the help of a pretty great dance routine from a couple of youngins.

Frameworks – LOOM
Director: Samuel Gursky & Eric Teti

This is one of two videos on this list that end in the destruction of a car. I’m not sure why – maybe I have some deeper anger issues that lie within…or maybe I just like fire.

French Montana – Don’t Panic
Director: Eif Rivera

I had to find a way to incorporate DJ Mustard into this list, it just so happens Montana’s video for “Don’t Panic” has plenty of cinematically pleasing aspects. There’s plenty of “The Purge” here, but the most important reason is that French got Khloe Kardashian out of her element and in this video.

Grimes – Go (feat. Blood Diamonds)
Director: Roco-Prime (aka Claire and Mac Boucher)

I’m not a Grimes fan, by any means. This song caught me off guard and is definitely one of my favorites. The video reminds me of the aesthetic FKA Twigs has, but with a sense of “Skins.” You know, that UK show with those horribly behaved children. Anyway, I like all the weird shit going on, and the desert shots are quite good, too.

HAIM – My Song 5 (Remix, feat. ASAP Ferg)
Director: Dugan O’Neal

It would’ve been an acceptable choice to throw “If I Could Change Your Mind,” in all of its choreographic glory. But any video with Big Sean, Grimes, ASAP Ferg, Kesha and my personal favorite, Vanessa Bayer all in the cut is getting the nod.

Katy Perry – Birthday
Director: Marc Klasfeld and Danny Lockwood

Katy Perry’s released great music videos her entire career, and “Birthday” is something else. The premise is her dressing up incognito for five different birthday parties (Washed-up clown, granny stripper, princess, et. al) surprising the birthday guy/girl in each circumstance in her own, bubbly way. It’s a heartwarmer, it really is.

Kendrick Lamar – i
Director: Alexandre Moors

This video is the visual compliment to the song to the T. I mean, Kendrick is dancing the entire time. He’s dancing. And that scene of him hanging out the window rapping the bridge pretty much seals it.

Lil B – Fuck KD
Director: N/A

There’s nothing great about the video itself. But the weight of this song and video’s release is something that can’t go unnoticed. The Lil B curse had never been more strong, and this song was nearly the culmination of it all, as it dropped right before the 2014 Playoffs. We know how that ended for KD.

Mark Ronson – Uptown Funk (feat. Bruno Mars)
Director: Bruno Mars and Cameron Duddy

Swag off the charts in this one. There’s an extended scene where Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson get perms.

Mayer Hawthorne – Crime (feat. Kendrick Lamar)
Director: Rashida Jones

While Kendrick’s name appears in this list three times, I have to mention that he only physically appears in one of them. In “Crime,” which was directed by bae (Rashida Jones) Mayer finds himself invited to a party that requires a bit too much from him. In the end, it’s all about being the party yourself awwwwwwww shucks

The Menzingers – I Don’t Wanna Be An Asshole Anymore
Director: Whitey McConnaughy

This video is a triumphant tale of one Jason Voorhees and his vain attempts to yes – not be an asshole anymore. It’s hard to talk about the video without giving any of it away, so just hit play.

Paramore – Ain’t It Fun
Director: Sophia Peer

The band had been shooting a video for “Ain’t It Fun” for some time, and had scrapped whatever the original idea was for this. Good call. In the clip, Paramore spends quality time shattering (sorry, pun intended) a handful of obscure Guinness World Records, and ultimately breaking the record for most broken world records in a music video.

For a full list of broken records, check this page.

PUP – Mabu
Director: Menno Versteeg

Here’s the second video involving the destruction of a car. This one is a bit more sentimental, as the PUP boys send off the lead singer’s personal car, named “Mabu,” off into the sunset with a proper tribute and burial.

Ryan Hemsworth – One for Me (feat. Tinashe)
Director: Martin C. Pariseau

This video was advertised as “the most boring video ever.” Ryan Hemsworth, as we all know, is a “super cool DJ,” and he wanted to enlighten us with “a day in the life of,” and the end results were pretty entertaining, by not being entertaining. It must suck to have money.