Friday Five: John Mark Nelson, the One Men series, and more of the latest Minnesota videos
June 07, 2013
With the work week winding down, here's a handful of the latest Minnesota music video releases to help you usher in your weekend in style...
Ian Rans' One Men series
Ian Rans, host of the long-running Drinking With Ian series and a familiar face on the stage of many of the summer block parties, recently started publishing a series of mini-documentaries about one-man-bands in the Twin Cities. For his third installment, he profiles Joe Hastings, who is known for his contributions to bands like the Sex Rays and the F Knights and performs as the flashy, smoke-and-mirrors solo artist Hastings 3000.
John Mark Nelson
Singer-songwriter John Mark Nelson was recently profiled by Fuse TV, and this segment actually serves as a preview to a larger "Fuse TV Loves Minneapolis" show that was taped in town this past winter and is expected to air soon. And for even more John Mark Nelson, have you seen this video of high school seniors singing "Reminisce" at their graduation?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=FlKQ49vEel0
C.M.J.
As an '80s child myself, I have a certain affinity for this recent trend of incorporating early 8-bit video game sounds and visual effects into music videos. The latest local artist to channel these retro influences is Christopher Michael Jensen, whose new "Tie-Dye Sky" has one of the more intriguing minimalist beats I've heard in a spell and then blossoms into something quite beautiful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=zCNNNvtsUX8#!
Tom Selleck's Moustache
Behold, Tom Selleck's Moustache, the greatest Twin Cities band name since the defunct Mel Gibson & The Pants were still in action.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=YPDQCjrwYOc
Botzy
Botzy, who until recently was known as the MC for ska-rock-hip hop hybrid group Culture Cry Wolf, has a few new tricks up his sleeve. The release date for his new solo album, Buck Fotzy, is coming up fast—and if these first singles are any indication, it'll be a hot record for the (hopefully soon-to-arrive, any day now, seriously where is it?) summer.
