No shade to OK GO, because “Here It Goes Again” is a masterpiece of the well-timed one-shot. But we all know it, right? How about a few music videos you might not think about as often, but that all expertly employed a long take?
“undone – The Sweater Song” — Weezer
As Weezer’s first-ever music video, “Undone – The Sweater Song” is still a pretty good one. It was also one of Spike Jonze’s early directorial projects, and his pitch was simply “a blue stage, a steadicam, a pack of wild dogs,” according to the Weezer history Rivers’ Edge: The Weezer Story. The band was adamant that the video have nothing to do with sweaters, so Jonze’s idea stuck the landing. It begins in black and white, traveling down a hallway upside down, before honing in on the soundstage rightside up. The camera continues circling the band as they play, while several dogs come running in. However, after more than 25 one-shot takes, the band was getting frustrated during filming. But, that frustration lent itself to the antics of the final video.
“oxford comma” — Vampire Weekend
The music video for Vampire Weekend’s 2008 single “Oxford Comma” was directed by Richard Ayoade, and drew inspiration from the band members’ favorite films, including a heavy Wes Anderson influence. After releasing the video for “A-Punk,” the band wanted to go in a different direction. Enter the one-shot format. The camera follows frontman Ezra Koenig as he wanders through a complicated movie set, weaving among various scenes and characters in a large open field. Each scene change is noted by numerical chapter titles, but the video remains one long continuous shot.
“Lonely Boy” — The Black Keys
The Black Keys released the single “Lonely Boy” in 2011 accompanied by a simple yet fun one-shot music video. Initially, the video was supposed to feature 40 people dancing to the track, but the band hated the final product. However, they were taken by the dancing of Derrick T. Tuggle, musician, actor, and part-time security guard. His dancing was improvised at the time, as he was initially cast as an extra tasked with handing Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney their motel keys. But director Jesse Dylan noticed him dancing and asked him to do some more. According to Tuggle, he pulled moves from famous dance scenes in Saturday Night Fever and Pulp Fiction, The Carlton from The Fresh Prince, and Michael Jackson. The Black Keys ended up using his single shot as the entire music video.
“Redundant” — Green DAy
The music video for Green Day’s 1998 single “Redundant” is a one-shot of the band performing in a brightly decorated house. Meanwhile, several people go about their lives around them, an homage to director Zbigniew Rybczyński’s short film Tango. The characters in the video carry on with the same repeated mundane actions, while the camera angle remains stationary. It starts with a woman picking up a newspaper. Then, people climb out a window, put on pants, or just wander around trying to find a way out. At one point, Dita Von Teese shows up, undresses, and leaves again in only her underwear. At the very end, it seems like the day is doomed to repeat itself into infinity. Instead, Billie Joe Armstrong picks up the newspaper and leaves. When the woman from the beginning goes to pick up the paper, she finds it gone, disrupting the redundant time loop.
Photo via YouTube/Weezer/Geffen Records
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