The music video format is alive and well with big bands releasing some amazingly creative videos this year. Here are the ones that topped the heap for us including a few of our own (don’t mind if we do!).

Young Galaxy – Pretty Boy
A touching love story between a woman and her ‘not-so-pretty’ boy.

 
Arcade Fire – Afterlife
A gut-wrenching but beautifully executed exploration of family bonds, adolescent youth, life, and ultimately death.

 
The National – Graceless
The gents of The National do a lot of drinking, horse around in the family pool fully-clothed, smash beer cans with a baseball bat, and just generally lack good grace. We find the whole affair remarkably endearing.

 
Pixies – Indie Cindy
A dark murder tale set to the unmistakable sound of the Pixies.

 
The Darcys – Muzzle Blast
A young woman finds peace among the ruins.

 
Franz Ferdinand – Evil Eye
Franz Ferdinand’s new morbidly humourous video is directed by Diane Martel, director of Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” and Miley Cyrus’ “We Can’t Stop.” Intrigued?

 
July Talk – Guns + Ammunition
A sexy one-take video in stark black and white from one of Toronto’s most interesting bands.

 
Best Coast – This Lonely Morning
One of the best lyric videos we’ve seen this year produced with the help of the folks at “Funny or Die”

 
Beach House – Wishes
A visually beautiful, and twisted fantasy directed by Eric Wareheim

 
Animal Collective – Monkey Riches
A psychedelic trip from one indie-pop’s most consistent innovators.

 
METZ – Get Off
Metz’s Sub Pop Labelmate Chad Vangaalen Takes Us On A Futuristic Journey Depicting The Bizarre Genesis Of A Flying Junkyard Dog.

 
CHVRCHES – The Mother We Share
A dramatic narrative about a woman recovering from the wounds of love. Incredible effects and beautifully set, this is one the years best.

 
Arctic Monkeys – Do I Wanna Know?
A simple line, all kinds of sexy, and an awesome song.

 
Broken Bells – Holding On for Life
The video is part two in their Jacob Gentry-directed sci-fi series. It stars Kata Mara and Anton Yelchin at a disco in outer space.

 
Austra – Forgive Me
Set in the deep dark woods, the video features flashes of Katie Stelmanis alternating with a couple engaging in forbidden acts.

 
Hollerado – So It Goes
A powerful video about a life altering experience that band member Menno Versteeg’s grandfather had during WW2.

 
Pup – Reservoir
The energy off the band’s live show takes things to a dark bloody place.

 
Disclosure – White Noise
An homage to birthplace of techno – Detroit City.

 
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Sacrilege
A young woman indulges in fantasies and pays the ultimate price

 
Vampire Weekend – Diane Young
Vampire Weekend recruit some famous friends for an out-of-this-world last supper re-inactment

 
Tame Impala – Mind Mischief
A two-part video exploring a teenage crush and the student/teacher fantasy of a young schoolboy

 
Django Django – WOR
Django Django team up with Noisey create a short film about India’s “wall of death”

 
Passion Pit – Cry Like a Ghost
A woman literally dances through her relationships

 

BEST OF INDIE88

Hanna Georgas: Indie88 Black Box Sessions
Hanna Georgas was one of our first guests in our Indie88 Black Box Sessions series, and she set the bar pretty high with a special acoustic version of “Enemies”.

 

Driving With Joel Plaskett
Before we even hit the airwaves, we picked up Joel from his hotel and brought him to the still under construction Indie88 studios to host Throne of Glory. Getting stuck in typical Toronto traffic gave us a chance to chat and catch up, and hear some classic Joel stories.

 

The Wooden Sky Travelling Adventure Show
The Travelling Adventure Show was a collaboration between The Wooden Sky and The SummerWorks Performance Festival. While the band played, they took their audience on a journey through the streets and back alleys of Toronto – including blocking off Queen Street for a super fun dance party/sing-along in the middle of the street.

 

Royal Canoe – Hold On To The Metal
We met up with Winnipeg’s Royal Canoe at their Toronto rehearsal spot and got to talking about their songwriting and recording process, and recorded a special stripped down version of their song “Hold On To The Metal”.