The Chemical Brothers do it again.

After watching Babel I saw the Chemical Brothers video for their new single “Do it again,” and noticed some similarities… coincident or not? In the video two young Moroccan brothers leave their normal lives after coming across tape. When the tape is played it plays “do it again” by the Chemical Brothers. The song seems to evoke uncontrollable and sporadic movement in those who hear it. The brothers take the tape to a nearby village and let the havoc unfold. The two Moroccan boys and the setting of the video are very similar to that in Babel, although this video is much happier and the events are far less unsettling. The video is light-hearted and fun.

This chemical brothers video is also extremely similar to an older video for the Fat Boy Slim single, “Ya Mama.” In this version three hill billy American simpletons stumble across an identical white tape. This video is also set somewhere in Africa, perhaps Zimbabwe or South Africa. The video follows a similar format, the tape is played and the music causes its listeners to move erratically, creating chaos throughout the town. In both cases this new urban and dynamic music is taken to a rural area of a developing country where music is more limited.
What I liked about both these videos was the attempt to bridge the gap between the cultures, showing that people of different races and cultures can all enjoy the same music, even if it is not stereotypical of there nation. The way the people in the video move also reinforced this. The strongest element was the head nodding. This simple repetitive movement helps people to bridge the gap and relate back to their own culture, even as I listened I found myself nodding along to the songs contagious beat. I found the comic element to both videos uplifting; it was nice to see these countries portrayed more positively within western media.




To see both videos visit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xidZW3x8AGo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WCJZjdP-eQ