This was obviously going to be a part of my Halloween Special. This music video is monumental, it's iconic, it's the one everyone still talks about today! My blog has been going for over five years, and it shocks even me that I have never reviewed this music video, actually I don't think I've ever watched it from start to finish before today. But now, it's time to redeem my blog by making sure this gets reviewed, and what better way than being a part of my Halloween Special? Michael Jackson turns into a werewolf and a zombie in this "Thriller" music video, but is it all just in her head?
Michael Jackson, what am I meant to say about THE Michael Jackson? He's a total legend, everyone knows who he is and he definitely shaped music as it is today. Surprisingly, this song didn't chart as well in the UK as it did everywhere else as well as his other singles. It got to number 10 in the UK and has yet to peak higher than that, regardless of the multiple entries in the UK chart. The song will forever appear on Halloween playlists and is always the first song people think of regarding Halloween. "Thriller" was written by Rod Temperton. It was originally called "Starlight", but through many transformations, it became the title it is now.
Michael Jackson had a vision for this music video, having seen 'An American Werewolf In London', he wanted the director of the movie to be the director of his music video. John Landis agreed. The love interest is played by actress Ola Ray.
We watch as a car runs out of fuel, Michael Jackson and Ola Ray start to walk home. He asks her to be his girl and gives her a ring to make it official. That's when he admits that he's not like other guys; he next transforms into a werewolf and chases after the girl.
The scene changes to modern-day with Michael Jackson and Ola Ray in the cinema, watching the previous scene. She leaves the cinema because she's not enjoying it. Michael Jackson follows her out and starts to sing the opening verse, whilst dancing around her.
They walk past a graveyard; this is when Vincent Price's vocal part kicks in and we watch skeletons rise from their graves, almost like zombies. They catch up with Michael Jackson and Ola Ray circling them.
This is where Michael Jackson turns into a zombie and the iconic dance scene begins. This is completely flawless from start to finish. The choreography really focuses on the storyline and makes it relatable. Everyone is in sync and it's more than perfect.
Ola Ray runs into a house and shuts the door but that doesn't stop the zombies from coming in and chasing her. Zombie Michael Jackson closes in. But the next moment, he's back to normal and there are no zombies. Ola Ray calms down and gets off the couch, allowing Michael Jackson to take her into his arms. What she doesn't see is Michael Jackson looking back at the camera and his eyes gleam yellow. He surely isn't like other guys.
The ending was recreated for Britney Spears' epic video for "I Wanna Go". The iconic dance scene has been covered plenty of times. This video as a whole has got it all, and it is definitely one of the best music videos ever made. It's got a great narrative, a brilliant performance piece, and an eerie ending that you can't help but love!
To be totally honest, I wasn't aware of this song until the Glee Cast covered it in a mash-up with Michael Jackson's "Thriller". Now it's become a global sensation and definitely a song to feature on all Halloween playlists. It totally deserves to be a part of my Halloween Special. This haunting song didn't do so well on the charts, but it is still an iconic haunting track. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs perform "Heads Will Roll" in front of a small audience, as a dancing werewolf finds its way on to the stage who later rips into everyone, rolling heads everywhere.
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are a three-piece American indie band consisting of Karen Orzolek, Nick Zinner and Brian Chase. They have had moderate success in the UK, both single wise and album wise. They are currently on a hiatus. This is probably their most known song, regardless of it only reaching number 89 on the UK Chart, it managed to place on other charts around the world too. Although, their highest charting single was in 2003 with "Date With The Night". This song was written by Brian Chase, Karen Orzolek and Nick Zinner.
Directed by Richard Ayoade, the music video uses comedic horror which allows for a humorous scary music video.
I love that they have used red glitter and confetti as blood, and the conclusion of Karen O continually singing whilst being decapitated is epically original.
The story is easy enough to follow, and what seems to be a performance piece easily turns into a narrative which is such a simplistic engaging move.
We watch the band perform, they're energetic and enthralling, but then a dancer appears. He struts towards the stage when we realise he's actually a werewolf. It isn't long until he becomes blood hungry and chases the audience, ripping them apart as red confetti pours out of the bodies. The ending sees the band murdered in red glitter, but Karen O continues singing.
How can anyone not love this music video? It's pure genius, even if it is a little too simplistic for my liking. More development of the story is needed, as well as making it a little more relatable to the music video. Apart from those slight things, it works magically.
Miley Cyrus, real name Destiny Cyrus, has appeared on my blog quite a few times. This time my iTunes decided to get it stuck in my head, and it sure managed to do that. This song is probably one of my favourite songs from Miley Cyrus, and I'm interested in what she has in store for us in the future, clearly it's going to be big, but can she get higher up the UK Chart?
"Fly On The Wall" was written by Miley Cyrus, Antonina Armato, Tim James and Devrim Karaoglu. Many different interpretations of the song has been made, from sympathy to the boyfriend, to the boyfriend wanting to know everything. Miley Cyrus soon enough cleared it all up, saying it was about the paparazzi... And the music video empathises that perfectly.
This music video shocked me over and over again, from the start to near to the end, and then the completely surprising ending. This video really reflects what it is like to be followed by the paparazzi. Britney Spears has been portraying her concerns for ages now in the videos for "Everytime", "Piece Of Me", "If U Seek Amy", "Hold It Against Me" and "I Wanna Go", I'm sure there's probably more. Other music videos include: Stone Sour's "Through Glass", Kelly Clarkson's "Mr. Know It All" and Cher Lloyd's "Swagger Jagger".
And although this song came out it hasn't stopped anything, and it's only getting worse, only a few months ago, Miley Cyrus posted a video of her walking her dogs while one of the paparazzi parked in a handicapped place and ran in front of her taking pictures (video can be found on the right).
Once again we have a narrative and a performance piece. First off we think her boyfriend is going to turn into a werewolf with the full moon being out and stuff. Instead he turns into one of the paparazzi. She then ends up in the car park and is being chased everywhere she goes.
The best bit has to be when the paparazzi start to dance, I can't help but laugh as I'll always remember the first time I saw this and I really wasn't expecting it, and it still manages to draw me into that surprise every time. And then we get the more shocking ending, where her boyfriend sells her story about the paparazzi. That's just wrong on so many levels.
There's a bit of a performance side in the car park, which she lets lose and has a little bit of fun. I reckon she really enjoyed filming this music video, and in doing so, it's just as fun to watch.
Overall a great song that only managed to get to number 16 on the UK chart, it clearly deserves a higher position. The music video is pure brilliance, and definitely one of my favourites. It has a close theme to Michael Jackson's "Thriller". So you can all guess what my rating is going to be...
David Guetta, real name Pierre David Guetta, is a name that is on everyone's lips and will be until the end of time, he has made such an impact on the music industry, that it's difficult for him to disappear, and for him to get better, that's just as impossible. But if anyone can do it, it's him. This song is his second to most recent, the latest being "Just One Last Time" featuring Taped Rai. So where is he now? My guess is that he's touring in some place or another, or he is working on a new album, maybe he is doing both... This song features singer Sia, full name Sia Furler, who's been working on her career for quite some time, however she is finally scoring the success she is definitely entitled to. Will she continue to be the next big thing, or has she already soared past that, and will disappear once again? I am hoping it's the former and not the latter.
"She Wolf (Fall To Pieces)" was written by David Guetta, Chris Braide, Sia Furler and Giorgio Tuinfort. It's not one of those instantly catchy songs, and it fails to meet my standards, it's more of an album tack (in my eyes) than a single, however each to their own right? The song managed to get to number eight in the UK, which is pretty good considering.
The music video is narrative, reminding me of similarities with "Titanium", in which both artists previously collaborated on. It is yet again part of the supernatural, involving Werewolves, this time, hence the title 'She Wolf'.
Hands up I don't like this video, however I can appreciate what it is. They have made the storyline more life like and surprising. The thought that cavemen used to go out and hunt wolves is surprising, but it even happens nowadays and yet we pretend it isn't.
The thing that sets this out as something for me to dislike is the editing, and the use of the Werewolf's supernatural powers, everything goes pixelated, so much so that it becomes obsessively so, and turns me off. However this can totally been seen a different way and people actually like this sort of thing.
Overall a song that isn't that amazing, along with a video that coincides with the song in it's amazingness. It's just not my thing, on the other hand it's other people's thing, and taking that into account compared to the bad music videos I have reviewed in the past, they are far worse. And so this rating is based on an overall concept and not my personal feelings.
Today I was struggling for a music video to review, so once again I went on the music channels, and guess what I saw, this exact video was being shown on a "best of the boys" show. I was so surprised I couldn't resist but tweet about it. Tyler James, most recently, appeared on The Voice UK, he didn't win, but he came very close, and he was technically brilliant. However, his life has been really difficult, not only did he release an album which spawned 3 singles and then was subsequently dropped from the label, he also lost one of his best friends; who was, in fact, Amy Winehouse. I would bet that she was looking down on Tyler during The Voice UK and she was helping him along the way. I know he is going to have an amazing career very soon, and I cannot wait for his new material. I also could see him being a werewolf in Twilight or some other vampire film/TV show, he would definitely look the part.
"Foolish" was the second single released from Tyler's debut album The Unlikely Lad. It was definitely his best selling single and he even performed it on Top Of The Pops, do you remember that programme? I kind of really want it to return, been missing it for ages now! It got to number 16 on the UK chart, which is currently his highest chart position to date, but he's going to knock that position out of the park soon with his upcoming songs, they're bound to be chart hits!
Now this music video actually links in with the style of this song. If I heard this song without seeing the video, I would really think of this sort of performance. But does Tyler James pull it off? Or does it not work out exactly the way it should do?
This is totally a performance piece, no sign of any narrative sections, which is quite interesting since I'm used to a performance piece being in front of a crowd while the artist is on tour. However this is totally set produced. To be honest, in an overall sense, it seems like a good top-notch music video, however it doesn't turn out that great.
We see all 4 girls, a few more here and there, and they really aren't that great at dancing are they? Those flirtatious poses, if you can call them that, was disastrous. I can't help but laugh every time I see it. As for Tyler, he does a great job at keeping in one place, and he looks smart and in-style at the same time. However we are still greeted with those awkward dance moves, or should I say aeroplane wings? I think in his future music videos that there should be an on-screen choreographer, just to instruct him how to move, because nothing has changed. This was released in 2005 and it's now 2012 and during The Voice UK he did the exact same thing.
Overall a great song that is incredibly catchy, and an accompanying music video that fits in well with what you would've expected from this song (which makes a change), however there is many small problems that can been a bit on the obvious side. On the other hand, this may have been low-budget, and I commemorate them for making a music video that we sort of expect, without being typical.
