Ramstein - Engel (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

OLink: video information (animemusicvideos.org)
Author: Kevin Caldwell

IMHO it's very hard to make a good Neon Genesis Evangelion music video. It's an anime with attitude - you either love it or hate it. This naturally is inherited by the AMV, what's more, it is a delicate work to balance the video. It can't be too sweet, nor too hardcore. It can't be too funny, nor too serious. Because it was NGE already that walked on a thin line of genius, almost falling into crappy emo ecchi mecha scifi with a not-so-truly-end happyend. But the point is - it didn't. It remained a genius series, loved or hated.

Now I've seen some NGE anime music videos and honestly most of them fell from that line deep into rubbish just in the first seconds. Because of the popularity, too much way too inexperienced people tried to crack it. What it takes to be able to withstand the NGE?

A man who made his first successes with just 2 video recorders. A man who is such a legend that his userpage at animemusicvideos.org is maintained by others. A man who actually grew out of anime ;].

Kevin Caldwell: I was 2* [probably 26] still watching anime, to be honest it all became childish for me.

His name was Kevin Caldwell. His name was Kevin Caldwell. His name was... ;] Anyway, coming back to the AMV itself. What we have here is a similarly genius concept, mainly built on twisting the voice tones, which fits the hardcore Asuka and lame Shinji perfectly. It takes on humour and seriousness at the same time. Then in the middle of the clip, everything changes - the final showdown of Eva Series begins. And so does the psychical fall of Asuka. You can feel it in the trippy epilogue.

This AMV is made of these little, amazing details that are all over the clip. But the final question remains - is Engel a Rote Engel? or a Red Devil...

Basement Jaxx - Good Luck (Various Anime)

OLink: video homepage (fantasy-movies.net)
Author: Nostromo_vx

Now, something you might not have been expecting, and a quite exclusive thing I dug out from the deeps. This is an interlude video of Fantasy Movies Association, a French AMV group that without a doubt makes one of the best clips, created by a guy with godlike editing skills who is also responsible for Vectorman, which was reviewed earlier.

Therefore it's not a surprise that editing is beyond your imagination. What's even more, we have here real camera recordings, straight from the author's workplace, blended with anime scenes, finished by nice effects on top. Two things amaze me here. Firstly that reality blends so well in this AMV. I haven't seen such an idea before and actually was quite surprised, but it looked so good mixed together I couldn't resist to show it to you. Secondly the message here is very clear, the 'I Create' lays all over, and it touches the bounds of epic just because of that. I mean, humans are best at expressing their egos, ain't they?

Notice the subtle details author included in this clip, that remind of the long hours spent in front of the LCD, all these Blue Screen of Death encountered, clicks, scrolls, and the final 'Connexion' at an hour you should be way asleep. It's like an anthem of AMV creators, a look at their long and hard work resulting in about 24fps show that you watch in less time than you poo, probably. However their work ain't shit at all. While yours certainly is, in this case ;].

This video is a short. A demo. An omake. A bit 'Behind the Scenes' material. And damn I love it. That's all I've got to say. Today ;].

Sidenote: Conversion to flash didn't go that well and some frames went missing ;]. Instead of a black nothing in the middle of the video you should see this.

Tesla - Heaven Nine Eleven (Various Anime)

OLink: video information (animemusicvideos.org)
Author: Pwolf

I won't say anything about the choice of effects or scenes. I won't tell you about synchronization. Nor about editing. There is just no point when you have a video like that. I mean, it's so serious that the usual stuff I take into consideration have really no meaning. In fact I get goose bumps while watching the clip. Like on that 11th of September when the news on TV felt so unreal. Or the 11th of March when Madrid trains split open. Just like the London double deckers on the 7th of July. Would you believe it's been 6 years since the first of these events and still not much has changed with both my local perception and the global conclusion of it?

In fact, we can't feel cool at all. It's not getting any better, now is it? And this video is screaming, yes, screaming about it all over. The thrill it delivers is one of those existential ones - you just know, watching this clip, that the World is going to and end if we keep on living like this. However it's also one of those videos that don't just bring you down but also give a bit hope through this pain. At least that's how I feel about this AMV.

The meaningless in this case things, like synchro, soundtrack, scenes, editing etc. are top notch. How could they not be? I mean, this is not just an anime music video - it's a statement, a roar against the human race and how it lives. A call to change the ways of the World. And on this basis I claim - it's epic.

Oskar - Blade Running (Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040)

OLink: video information (utenafanc.org.ru)
Author: Zen Lord

You may be surprised to see such a video here. Well certainly it's not the best AMV in the world, now is it? Editing is not exactly top notch, however it's good enough. The choice of scenes and synchronization is acceptable... to some extent ;] but really, it could have been better. The clip feels very raw, although there's something strangely appealing in that. It all probably breaks down to 'Russian', and I don't only mean the language ;].

And of course the song. I happen to understand some Russian and for the first time I played the video it put a huge smile on my face. If you don't get what he's singing about, trust me - the words really fit the scenes. And it's difficult to explain, but hearing it in this language feels so different, yet so awesome that just for this fact I wanted to show you it. Not to mention I fell for the music at the first note. And the amazing chorus too ;]. English will never sound this good...

After a bit of mumbling I finally come to the conclusion that an AMV can win just with with the music. But is it actually the win of the video, or just the sound? I don't know. However I just keep on watching the clip over again and again. That should give you the answer there... somewhere. And by the way - don't bother to download the original Oskar's music video. Or rather - just do not do it. You'll regret it. Really ;].

Organization note: Starting today AMV VVeekend goes for a true weekend amv experience - I'll post at Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays only.

And for those who don't trust me, here's a translation, sort of...

With my teeth I
/ Я своими зубами
Crush concrete blocks
/ Разгрызаю каменные плиты
With my words I
/ Я своими словами
Offend those who can't hear us
/ Обижаю тех, кто нас не слышит
Nothing to regret
/ Ни о чём не жалею
And dream
/ И мечтаю
I'm not angry with you
/ на тебя не злиться
Crawling from the burrow
/ Из норы выползаю
And again
/ И опять
You fly like a bird
/ ты летишь как птица

Run on the edge of the knife
/ Бег по Астрию ножа
Cold soul
/ Холодная душа
Move your legs slowly
/ ты двигай не спеша Ногами
Oh, cover your eyes
/ Ой, закрой глаза рукой
And run after me on the edge of the knife
/ И бегай за мной по Астрию ножа
Together with us
/ Вместе с нами

These are nonsenses (?)
/ Это знаки-маки
They pour life into me
/ Они пустят сок в моё начало
I'll close my eyes
/ Я закрою веки
And a steel sting will jab me
/ И в меня войдёт стальное жало
Let the fears pass
/ Пусть проходят страхи,
That you always kept silent
/ О которых ты всегда молчала
Head on the scaffold
/ Голова на плахе
It's always not enought
/ Этого всегда так мало
Not enough
/ Всегда так мало…

Update: Blip.tv is up!

Update(2): Apparently they had a DNS issue and for some people (including me) Blip.tv was unavailable, while it was working fine for others. They claim it won't happen again. I do hope so.

Update: The provider is up again and running. Feel free to view the AMVs, they should load smoothly now. I don't yet know what happened, maybe they'll release some info later. Not that it matters I suppose as long as they keep on-line.

Original Post: My main video host seems to be a bit down, sorry! But hopefully they will resolve their problems later today. Thus if you play the video, but it does not seem to load at all - subscribe to the RSS Feed where you can track the updates on the downtime matter and eventually know when to view the AMVs ;]. You can also register to animemusicvideos.org and download most of the reviewed videos directly, using the OLinks. One way or another - stay tuned...

Joanna Pacitti - Watch Me Shine (Kiddy Grade)

OLink: video information (animemusicvideos.org)
Author: VicBond007

I prepared something different for today, but when I saw this video there was a definite change in plans. It's actually funny, but at the very first seconds of the clip I still wasn't sure - it started slowly and music was somehow monotonic. Luckily there was a noticeable perfection in synchronization and a delicately accelerated animation (which in fact makes it look a lot smoother). And then, just before the chorus, was the unbelievably synced fanservice. And the actual chorus. And I was so sure like never before ;].

As I am writing this post I notice another thing about this video not experienced before - it doesn't sound good ;]. What I mean is, when I just listen to the video, not watching the action, somehow it's magic is lost a bit. It never occurred previously, as I always play the clip in the background to stay in the feeling while making the review. However, I don't consider it a flaw, I would even call it an advantage. The secret lays in the editing, the fact that the author switches scenes and synchronizes the characters' movement with almost every beat. It really pulsates and enhances the music. That's a simple but difficult effect to achieve, and not much AMVs actually have it. Here it's quite perfect to be honest. Especially in the most important moments around the mentioned chorus, with really nice beats ;].

Thus we have a very interesting example of a video that's somehow better than the soundtrack. Words of respect to the author. And honestly I want to end this review and bring the video window to the top. Listening is just not enough ;]. And next time the already prepared experiment of an AMV that, on the other hand, wins with the music only - in my opinion, that is...