Video: The Long Blondes: "Century"
The Long Blondes were plenty cynical already about love on Someone to Drive You Home, Pitchfork's #48 album of 2006. The odd, unsettling video for "Century", the first single from the Blondes' forthcoming sophomore LP Couples, suggests some of charismatic frontwoman Kate Jackson's apparent relationship problems might stem from, well, her own Godzilla-like powers. "Everything I touch, lightning trails of human lust," Jackson repeats, and the clip shows an apocalyptic scene of people running in fear. Only a few small children in white are able to resist her terrifying charms, perhaps too preoccupied by their silvery pinwheel toys.
The bigger story, though, is Erol Alkan's production, much more conspicuous on "Century" than on previously posted Couples cut "Here Comes the Serious Bit". Here Alkan fast-forwards from the likable Britpop-isms of the production by Pulp's Steve Mackey on Someone to Drive You Home to the gloopy electronics of some of the groups that followed in Britpop's wake. I know the Long Blondes don't kid themselves about happy endings, but I was at least hoping for a happier second date.
[from Couples; due 04/07/08 in the UK and 05/06/08 in the U.S. from Rough Trade]