Finally, a music video sans "hip-shaking" women!

On Wednesday, after watching a short documentary on gender roles in music videos, we were tasked with finding a music video that offered a different perspective on gender roles than mainstream media allows.  The common media viewpoint is that women are simply objects at mens' disposal.  This demeaning role creates a gap in gender equality, and is simply a ridiculous notion.  I thought hard about finding a music video that shows women in a different role than simply a sexual entity, and came up with Hot Chip's I Feel Better.

This music video starts with a bunch of women screaming with excitement as attractive male "musicians" dance and sing on stage.  (These men are not actual members of Hot Chip, they are just for effect in the video.)  Soon thereafter, an unattractive man floats in and disrupts the concert.  The women look at him in horror as he floats onto the stage and proceeds to "laser-breathe" the band members in the face.  I don't know the symbolism of this, but if I were to guess, I would assume it represents Hot Chip's distaste for pop-music from bands like N*Sync, Jonas Brothers, Justin Beiber, etc -- not because they are attractive to women, but because their music is more about appealing to women physically than it is about the actual music.  The uniqueness of this video is that the men are the objects of lust, as opposed to scantily-clad women.

Regardless of the deeper meaning of the video, the video is shot from a perspective of women simply enjoying a concert as opposed to stripping and shaking their hips.  The result is a satirical piece that is nothing like any music video that I have ever seen.  I believe it effectively portrays a different perspective on gender roles, and the song is catchy to boot!

Thanks for reading!