The Best Music Videos of the Month (July 2014)

Related: The Best New Artists of the Month (July 2014)

Director: Peter Marsden

You might not know that Lunice's video for "Can't Wait To" has anything to do with cars or even a car company upon first watch, but yeah, it 100% does. For the first single off of his forthcoming release on LuckyMe, Lunice got the help of Lexus in projection mapping op-art patterns and choreographed beams of light in an old church. He interacts with the lights, too, reminding Lunice fans that he is an extremely talented dancer, too. It's an intense, at times even haunting video for a song that draws you in and gives you a taste of the sonic intensity that we expect from the next round of Lunice releases.

Director: SSION (Cody Critchloe)

Mike Hadreas' music as Perfume Genius is provocative and poignant, and his videos are much the same. He's dealt with gender and the prejudices he faces as a gay man before, especially in the brilliant "Take Me Home" video, and he does so again here, albeit in a much more surreal way. Hadreas and a female companion make their way through increasingly strange scenes, culminating in a leap into the unknown. It's at once beautiful and terrifying, and that's probably the whole point.

Director: BRTHR Films

Musically and visually, Jessie Ware is a master of simplicity, which can be hard to continually pull off as a popstar on the level that she is. With the help of BRTHR, "Tough Love" is a video that highlights the contrast between pure nature and industrialism alongside various couples having sparse interactions. It's more beautiful than it is literal, and it's even a little surreal at times, as lightning and rose petals fall on the calm lavender field Jessie stands in. Amongst many unnecessarily complicated videos that get released daily, let "Tough Love" be a gentle, eye-catching respite.

Director: FKA Twigs

FKA twigs: singer, songwriter, dancer, producer, and now director. As well as providing the most experimental production of any Lucki Eck$ song so far (read our interview with him here), twigs made what is likely the weirdest video the Chicago rapper will ever be involved in. Looking like the last bit of handycam footage taken before someone was inducted into a strange religious cult, the video matches the song's creeping menace and strange energy.

Director: Unknown

Although this video has all the trappings of a standard rap music video, from the women to the drink to the cars, it's put together in a way that makes twerking girls look elegant. It's a fashion conscious video, from Rocky's striped turtle neck Frenchman swag to Juicy J's red leather jacket, and that iconic image of Rocky counting money on a moving car is just the icing on the (trippy) cake.

Director: Laura Coulson

Lil Silva's Mabel EP wears its Englishness proudly, from the "rep for the ends" vocal sample in "First Mark" to the UK funky indebted basslines to the "Mabel" video. Directed by Laura Coulson, who also photographed the EP cover and Lil Silva's latest press shots, the video is entirely made up of the regular everyday experiences of children in suburban London (or any British city)—cycling to school, waiting for the bus, or playing football. There is no surprise ending or sudden twist, but there doesn't have to be. This is a lovingly shot portrait of real life in all its beautiful mundanity.

Director: Alex Nazari

YG's "Bicken Back Being Bool" begins with man sort of preaching to himself down the street, as scenes from "Bompton, Balifornia" play out—graffiti, cards, guns, and riding around. While it doesn't show a ton of things that other videos in or about Compton haven't shown before, its strength lies in showing just how fast everything can change. One moment you're chill, the next moment there are cops. Another moment you're talking to yourself on the street, and the next moment your neighbor's telling you to "take your ass home." One moment you're "kicking back, being cool," and the next you've gotta hit the pavement.

Director: Cristina Bercovitz

Spoiler alert: the only thing that happens in clipping.'s "Story 2" video is running. But like most of clipping.'s recent videos, the song tells the story, and the visuals support them as to not overpower what's being told. As the song speeds up, so do the steps. Having an adrenaline rush while watching this video is not only appropriate but expected.

Director: Lance Drake

The first collaboration between Illangelo and Phlo Finister gets a surreal, futuristic, and monochrome video that contains elements of sci-fi and live action film. As Phlo sings "I belong to an artificial life," the viewer sees visuals that feel unnatural and even extraterrestrial. In the case of the "Clockwork" video, the images truly complete the song in a way that not all music videos do. The video brings you one step closer to understanding the future they're imagining in the lyrics.

Director: Nadia Marquard Otzen

Rae Morris ft. Fryars' "Cold" video could easily be watched on mute and judged as a fantastic video, which is probably the ultimate sign of an awesome music video (but then it becomes a silent film, so yeah, we need the sound). The sexes are divided in a brightly lit, empty tunnel, at times interacting during the emotional highs of the song. "Cut me and my blood runs cold for you" repeats as they march towards, through, and around each other in a well-choreographed display of figuring out the opposite sex.

Director: Johannes Greve Muskat

How To Dress Well's "What Is This Heart?" trilogy has taken viewers on a long, heart-wrenching journey through songs from the artist's new album. "Childhood Faith in Love" restores a little bit of one's faith that it's all going to be ok in the end, despite what this couple has been through in the first two videos. Even in their wandering, there seems to be hope that their loss and monotony will dissipate and that their love will help them move on. Director Johannes Greve Muskat took this video series to another level and communicated a stunning vision for what the songs and the album could really mean.

Read our interview with Tom Krell here, discover 10 songs that influenced his new album here, and read his European tour diary here.

Director: Lucy Luscombe

"High Street" is one of the more melancholic songs on Blood Orange's Cupid Deluxe, and the video translates its introspection into visuals shot in the Muswell Hill area of London. While Dev Hynes sings the intro and chorus on the street, Skepta raps most of his verses in a forest while clips of tired, vacant-eyed civilians flash before the viewer's eyes. Eventually Dev and Skepta end up in an arc of double-decker buses, completing the song's ode to nights spent wandering London and days spent working hard to turn dreams into reality.

Director: Saman Kesh

The beginning of Basement Jaxx's "Never Say Never" video begins with an ass. Well, not a literal, real ass, but one that sets the tone for a fun video that has an actual message...PEOPLE NEED TO DANCE MORE! Or humanity will cease to exist passionately, according to science. Basically. Cue the twerking robots.

Director: Nabil

Alt-J's "Hunger of the Pine" relies on CGI to create arrows that soar through the woods and hit a running protagonist for the entire length of the song. As the song builds, his race becomes more intense, even as he leaves the forest. It's brilliantly minimal, and the end packs a strong punch, reminding us of Nabil's ultimate strength as a director—impacting the viewer without having to do too much.

Director: Fleur & Manu

You would think that twerking would be absent from a Lykke Li video, but in fact, "Gunshot" has twerking and other forms of dance that give shades of meaning to the "gunshot" she sings about. Only when a kid points gunfingers at her does it feel literal, but let's face it, none of Lykke Li's songs or videos are really that direct to begin with. Lykke sways with zombie-looking makeup around a deserted, divided parking lot full of people biking, arguing, exercising, and generally existing, but they all seem to be representing physical and emotional extremities. She eventually disappears into the chasm and then falls flat to the ground as motorcyles race around her, completing a video that's as visually mysterious and indirect as it is energetic and impactful.

Director: Nabil

Did the treatment for "Pretty Girls" read zombie movie meets weird sex trade beauty pageant? Maybe. This video represents Nabil's ultimate greatness as a director, allowing crisp cinematography and disparate, enthralling scenes to culminate in a visual that doesn't yield an answer or a real ending; it just gives you an expanded idea of the song's meaning. The lines "Pretty girl, don't get stuck" and "Pretty girl, don't get struck" repeat throughout the video, which displays the twisted nature of beauty and prettiness. Definitely watch this one all the way to the end.

Read our interview with Little Dragon here.

Director: Oliver Hadlee Pearch and "J" from Jungle

Every single one of the videos from Jungle's debut album has been brilliant and cohesive, forming an overall narrative where dance overcomes and empowers the soul. From "Platoon" to "The Heat" and "Busy Earnin," we've watched a series of solo and invidual dancers (notably, the six-year-old in "Platoon") breakdance, rollerblade, and move in synchronicity with such effortless-looking talent that you might even think you could join them. "Time" is an excellent fourth chapter, showing two men move from solo sets in a casual, Jungle-decorated living room to a dance-off in a gym. Jungle's visuals game has been so on point that listening to their new, self-titled album will have you re-living every video and its energetic aesthetic in your head.

Director: Yoann Lemoine

Yoann Lemoine is just too damn talented. Not only is he a brilliant singer, songwriter, and composer, he is one of the most exciting video directors around. From his safe-sex adverts to music videos for Katy Perry and Lana Del Rey, whenever he's involved, the results are a must watch. Maybe his most impressive work has been the four videos accompanying his album The Golden Age. This video is the final in the series and, at 10 minutes long, is more a short film than a music video. Shot in striking black and white, but stripped of any of the post-production magic that made videos like "Run Boy Run" fantasy epics, "The Golden Age" video reflects all the same themes as the album—youth, lost innocence, and the end of childhood.

Read our interview with Woodkid here.