The Duke Spirit: "Cuts Across The Land"

So far 2006 has been off to a bit of a slow start as far as great music videos are concerned, but Woof Wan-Bau's newest video for The Duke Spirit's "Cuts Across The Land" is one of the top videos of this or any other year in recent memory. For those of you not familiar with The Duke Spirit, they're a female-fronted power-chord rock group from the UK that possesses a distinct Sleater-Kinner-meets-Blondie sound. The five-piece released their debut album, Cuts Across The Land, in the UK last year and it just saw a domestic release earlier this month, in conjunction with the start of their US tour with Ted Leo & The Pharmacists.

Director Woof Wan-Bau, who's best known for the haunting black and white clip he made for Four Tet's "My Angel Rocks Back And Forth", creates another black and white masterpiece here. The video revolves around lead singer Liela Moss's brilliantly blonde locks, which Wan-Bau highlights with diffuse lighting and projects as a spotlight from various standard light sources (a lighthouse, car headlights, a flashlight, etc.). It's a bit hard to explain but it's brilliantly executed and you'll understand when you watch the video.Video: [iPod Compatible]
"Cuts Across The Land" - The Duke Spirit [highly recommended]
{Director: Woof Wan-Bau}