There are some music videos that are truly just stunning pieces of art. Videos that are as much about aural stimulation as they are visual. The VANE offer viewers this sensory dichotomy with their MV for “Round & Round.”
The VANE offers music that’s very simple: a voice, some drums, a guitar. In fact, nothing in the song construction itself is particularly nuanced. It’s good, strong music that follows much of the same conventions as most music housed under the “indie” umbrella. However, the band adds a drop of something truly spectacular in the ever-expanding (but at times stagnant) universe of indie music: singer and lead guitarist Chae Bo-hun. Though at this point in my Korean music listening experience the shock of seeing a pretty face sing with so much power should’ve faded. But it never ceases to amaze me just how much soul some of these young singers have. Bo-hun sings like a man who’s gone through so much turmoil in his life his throat has been shredded from the nights he’s cried himself to sleep.
I suppose it’s in that same light we were given this music video. It’s highly visual, very reliant on symbolism. Yet even though the emotion is very palpable—given texture through the crunch of the leaves, the scratch of wood, thick slap of paint, walking barefoot—there’s an understated grandeur in the imagery. Round & Round does rely on common conventions as far as overdramatic visuals in music videos; however, there’s something remarkably soft in the delivery and scope. Perhaps it’s the feather-lightness of the dancer’s movement. Or maybe it’s the pacing of the video, the moments elongated, stretched out to give viewers a chance to appreciate the video’s textural elements.
While not wholly original or nuanced, “Round & Round”is visually quite stunning.
Rock 'N Seoul 