How has Carl not posted this yet?

LIAB Video

Dude, that's sooo last summer.

very modest mouse, yet funnier. i love rollum's expressions.

may i be the first to say that roger's mustache is fuckin' awesome.

anyone else think it might just be a little *too* goofy?

I don't think it's goofy at all, I think it's really great.

I'm not sure what I think about that one. I'll have to watch it some more.

the "whoaaaaaaa"-ing in the boat where Roger and Rollum are dancing kinda of freaks me out....

Oh man, I have got to see this...

By the way, fuck Launch for not offering .movs already. I don't want to download Netscape 7.1 to watch your crap!

EDIT: Okay, that was pretty out there. Never knew Matt would dress up like that...anyway, although the band has already done two live videos I think this one would've benefited from some interposing of band-playing footage, or at least some use of instruments somewhere. It was neat, but if I didn't already know the band and I saw this video on TV, I'd definitely be confused and confounded.

(Edited by Jakob Dorof at 6:26 pm on Nov. 17, 2004)

I think this video could do "it" for them....perfect single for radio .....i saw this in the summer and i had a feeling about it then ........push this universal and you will have a hit ......who am I to say?

I'm still not sure what I think of this, but you wonderfully put into words what I was thinking.

That was my first comment, too. The director told me that he was really surprised (and pleased) with how willing the band was to do pretty much whatever he asked.

I think the video is cute, but I'm still waiting for that big budget, glossy video that will set them apart from other bands who put something together on next to nothing.

Carl, I think that was it. I just hope that if it doesn't manage to break the band over here, if they can get just enough attention from it in Europe to warrant a second single (and another, perhaps "glossier" video) and another shot.

But I'm not trying to say that the band has no chance with this one. The song is great, of course, and the video is very interesting above all else. Maybe it'll hold people's attention.

it held my niece's and nephew's attention (2.5 and 5 y.o.). they watched it about 7 times in a row before i finally distracted them with pizza. they watch "million ways" ALL day and have these hilarious dances that go along with it. when my brother puts in Exhibit A, my nephew says "Number 5 please!" precious!

Maybe the editor of the next video should beg for that "glossy" filter that's apparently all the rage.

BrianW you ignorant slut... we all know in the production realm that the "glossy filter" goes on the front of the lens. So, take your trogladyte editor "we can fix anything in post" god-like mentality and shove it in your banana hole.

They just need some short shorts.

Here's a pretty funny blog on the video courtesy of the Nashville Zine.

I agree with Jakob.

Though I would like to see the video again in higher quality.

i like music a whole hell of a lot, but music videos have never really interested me much. honestly, i've always detested the influence videos have over the entire music industry. i'm not trying to offend anyone, mind--if you like music videos, that's fine with me. it's only entertainment. whatever.

that said, the new vid is kind of silly, but not offensively so...i like it just fine. i wouldn't mind watching it in some kind of viewer-friendly format. launch is a pain in the arse.

I think the video is cool. I liked the look and simplicity of it all. It's not about the video, but the music. Obviously they are gettin alot of people talking about it. Even if it's bad, smart people will make their own judgements. The guys looked like they had a good time with it. I love it! I think it's great!

It's...well, it's different. I do like it and I think that it is hilarious and it completely changes what I had in my head for the song. Ah, it's very good indeed.

I dig the video. It's surreal to see a video with special effects and costumes for these guys. When I hear the Features I think about being at the Boro at 1am. I'm excited that they've finally made it.

I love it. I think it's adorable. I think it's hilarious, and the colors just look so nice and pretty. I'm a big fan. I think I probably like it better than all the other videos.

After a day of thought, I'm still not sure about it. I see it as a "Float On" wannabe. Yes, I know thats a very bad way too look at it, but that's gotta be in the back of EVERYONE'S mind. My favorite video thus far has been TAMWTSTB.

Personally, I'd like to see a video made for The Idea of Growing Old.

Hmmm...

Well, we no longer have cable so I have seen practically zero videos in the last year, let alone the Modest Mouse "Float on" one people seem to be comparing this to. Did it also feature seafaring characters?

Anyway, I'm not really sure what to think of this video. It's kind of silly, kind of fun. I would hope that viewers of this video would also get to see the other videos to compare it to so they wouldn't think the Features entirely gimmecky. (sp? -- I'm too lazy to think right now)

As a 9th grade English teacher who yearly has to teach Homer's Odyssey, I appreciate what seems to be a Sirens reference (with Parrish) and perhaps even a loose Scylla reference (the octopus thingy). Maybe I can somehow work this video into my curriculum. If so, that gives this video muchos added points.

Don't forget returning home to the faithful wife....

I must say it's a very odd video... but odd in that, (yes I'll jump on the bandwagon), "Float On" sort of way. So I think it could do them well.

I've seen it a few times and basically the similarity is that they take band members and immerse them into an artificial environment. I think the same can be said for Franz Ferdiand's breakthrough video. To me, the similarity is strong enough for the average viewer to ponder whether The Features ripped off those videos on purpose. Although I don't think it's true, I still think it hurts them overall because I believe most viewers will assume they're riding the coat-tails of their contemporaries.

I think the video is alright, but I'd rather they be remembered for TAMWTSTB or TWIMTB.

it bothers me that the whole band gets killed off...especially Roger by lightning-my biggest fear!!! but i still think the video rocks!

i still gotta say the TAMWTSTB video is by far my favorite... one of my favorite videos i've seen before, actually. the band projected on the band is a pretty great idea... something novel i'd love to see for a breakthrough video.

i gotta go with carl on this, the new one is just too similar and will be dismissed as imitation. not that it isn't pretty great in its own right... roger's mustache is incredible, and matt makes a convincing napoleon-esque pirate.

is there any way i can see this video without launch.com? i downloaded 3 different versions of netscape and i keep getting that goddamn error.

the only similarity between leave it all behind and the modest mouse/franz ferdinand videos is that there is 2-d animation; and i dont think that 2-d animation is going to go away any time soon. if you look at any of hte new "indie" videos, every single one is doing it. and the reason is because it is a way for animation to be cool again. even though im sure it is a very tedious process, its a way for bands to use animation without it looking like they spent millions of dollars and years of rendering to get some shrek-like product (although i would like to see a "song of the south"-esque video with bluebirds on shoulders and descrimination, etc).

but other than the 2-d, this video is extremely different than the others. it has a completely different pace and the bands heads arent superimposed onto animated bodies. its just four guys in a boat. no screen-wiping, no robots, just four guys in a boat. everybody dies. no magic. no animated guitars. no lame sepia color scheme. as someone else pointed out to me, its very windwaker, actually. if people cant tell the difference between this video and other videos, then they shouldnt assume that they know anything about anything.

if this video doesnt do it for them, i dont know what will.

well, actually, now that i think about it, i like it because rollum is hot.

(Edited by stopforme at 2:34 pm on Nov. 20, 2004)

hah!

i mean seriously, what isnt funny about racist undertones

amen!

Unfortunately, that's probably 95% of the people who buy albums and go to shows.

I have nothing to back this up.

i like it. i wish it had more of a story, but that's ok. good things leave you wanting more, right?

i watched it again on fullscreen... rollum absolutely cracks me up in this, from the facial expressions to the kung-fu/fisticuffs with the octopus.

and roger's moustache is still fuckin awesome.

I totally agree! You crack my shit up!

The new Flaming Lips video for the Spongebob movie features the band in a fake pirate ship in full pirate garb. There's even a line or two about sweet mustaches. They totally ripped off The Features!

The new video is allright but I like the performance ones better---million ways to sing the blues is by far my favorite!

I like the video.

Personally it reminded me of "Tonight Tonight" by the Smashing Pumpkins in terms of the 2-D animation, especially of the sea.

The band members all getting killed was funny.

Having checked out the video for "Float On", I don't think they're that similar.

"Float On" is much more like some of the old Super Furry Animals videos, like "It's Not The End of the World" and "Do or Die".

Oh yes.

the closest thing to this video Ive seen is the 70s UK cartoon Captain Pugwash. the sea especially reminds me of this. I doubt American Features fans will have seen the cartoon, but in the UK its a bit of a classic.

I cant decide what I think about the video. At first I found it funny, but surely to be noticed as the great rock band they are they shouldnt represent themselves in a video as some kind of novelty act. Im all for a bit of humour, but the video looks really shoddy. I say more videos like 'There's a million ways...'. Live performance, but with something a bit innovative i.e:the bands image projected onto themselves.

Would you like your payment in american or pound sterling mr. kezman?

The video has finally been added to the site. Sorry about the delay on that one. I had to get a copy of it on DVD and that took forever.. then I had to get it to Brian.. then Brian had to rip / capture the DVD somehow and that brings us up to now.

So, mild apologies for the delay on that one because now you've all seen it and it's a lackluster addition to the site for the loyal fans.. but at least it's there and you can tell people "you haven't seen it?! well go to thefeatures.com and watch it immediately!"

Mildly compliant with Netscape / Mozilla browsers.



Michael

well i thought i might as well add here...Im NOT even half as big a fan as you guys are here...I saw them when they were supporting the Kings of Leon in Dec, and just thought they were brilliant(the features and KOL)...so whatever im saying here isnt going to be half as technical or what not...

i dont really know too much about the guys, but decided to check out all the vids that were on the site...so yeah ive got a feel from the different vids, the live ones then theres the comical one you guys are on about...

i like this one, ive not seen anything too similar too it before, and its just really laid back and enjoyable actualy. I love th colours and cotumes look pretty good..and yeah im agreeing Rollum is soo funny in it...its just a cool vid...

I did see it the other day for the first time on a music channel...and apart from that thats all ive seen of them over here actualy...i really would like to see them get a little bigger over here...

The comparisons to "Take Me Out" and Float On, off as they are for aesthetic reasons (I think the "Tonight Tonight" video is a much closer match in that regard), neglect part of what made those videos a great way to introduce those bands to the world: they presented the bands as, well, bands. There is nothing in the "Leave It All Behind" video that makes it readily apparent that the characters on screen are a band that plays music in the real world in which we live. And that's why it doesn't work for me. When I took my friends to see the band a couple of days ago, one of them had only seen this video, and had no other exposure to the band. Boy was he surprised, and pleasantly! When the band took that stage, he suggested that it'd be great if Matt were wearing the pirate hat. It just felt like all of the wrong things to latch onto, things that fall away immediately if we see the band as a band. It is all about the music, after all, and we can't really connect them to that, so it ends up being about the image vs the audio, and audio never wins that fight in the psyche. So the image makes more of an impression, and people identify the Features less with the song they heard than with the goofy pirate antics they saw.

Say what you will about performance videos (I personally like videos that offer a mix of performance and concept), they do connect the band to the music that you hear. And for a new band that audiences don't know, that's key. Peacefrog's videos, especially "Million Ways," become perfect for a new band: they're new and interesting, but the celebrate the band as a musical concern above all else. They cement the musical aspect of the experience to your impression of the band. And that's the most important part of all.

The video just doesn't work for me. It's the kind of concept that only works for people that know the band (and then not universally). U2 could pull something like this off; people know who they're looking at in that case. Meanwhile, The Features need to make a good first impression. I hope that, for most people thet hear them, this isn't it.

(Opinionated) Will

Nice observations, Wiyum. Sort of what I was trying to say, but in much more elegant terms...

i had never really realized peacefrog did the million ways video.

honestly, that's one of my favorite videos i've ever seen. it's a great song, and a great idea done very well. it's unique enough that i had really hoped it'd be pushed as a single so we could see it on tv.

Thanks.... I'm really proud of it, and like all father's of good looking babies... I think Million could stand alone with any rock vid out there now...

I'd agree.

Will

If it was standing with other rock videos, would it really be alone?

How about stand toe to toe? It can't live its life with Big Brother "Silver Black and White" standing up for it all the time...

I just seen the video for that leave all behind song and think it was very funny and wacky like the monkeys show. maybe the features will have a show too!

wow.

I wish launch.com would put the video on the main page to get more people exposed to it. I first saw it a while back and was rather pleased by it, and just the other day i was surfin launch and i remembered that video and I watched it again. The Features should difinitely make more videos!