By non-Japanese artists that is.
The gaijin’s popular impression of Japan is that of a sprawling urban jungle of neon lights, imposing structures and narrow, winding streets populated by crushing throngs of people (and occasionally beset by gigantic creatures). There are plenty of these themes in the following videos.
Madonna’s cute video shows her cosplaying throughout; Elastica and Beastie Boys’ feature a giant monster and robot, respectively; Bedouin Soundclash’s video’s opening hotel setting is almost Lost-in-Translation-like; inexplicable red, bold katakana pops up regularly in Kanye West’s video; Shampoo’s “Delicious” shows plenty of girly fashion by these self-confessed Hello Kitty fanatics.
My personal favorites include The Police’s “So Lonely” most of which was shot inside the subway; The Killers’ “Read My Mind” which shows Tokyo’s quieter back streets; Jay Chou’s Common Jasmin Orange, the only Chinese (Taiwanese) song on the list and the only one that shows non-urban Japan; and Sofa Rockers’ minimalist video, shot with Super-8 film.
Any videos that I missed? Please post them in the comments. Arigato gozaimasu. ^_^;
1. Read My Mind by The Killers
2. Car Song by Elastica
3. Common Jasmin Orange (七里香) by Jay Chou
4. So Lonely by The Police
5. 12:59 Lullaby by Bedouin Soundclash
6. Intergalactic by Beastie Boys
7. Jump by Madonna
8. Stronger by Kanye West
9. Sofa Rockers (Richard Dorfmeister Remix) by Sofa Rockers
10. Delicious by Shampoo
Bonus Video: Don’t You Evah by Spoon (danced by Keepon)
Addition: Nothing to Worry About by Peter Bjorn and John
Contributed by nihonjon. Filmed in Yoyogi Park in Tokyo. Nice. ^_^;
Addition: Love Letter to Japan by The Bird and The Bee
Contributed by 80slitenite. Probably not filmed in Japan but cool nonetheless.
Addition: Lento by Julieta Venegas
Contributed by Dabittokan. Julieta Venegas looks like a Gravure idol. ^_^
Recent Comments