Breathe me

Let’s face it: there are plenty of music videos out there that are neither original nor suitable for the single they’re supposed to visually interpret. So it’s been a pleasant surprise to find that the video for a song I’ve liked for a while, ‘Breathe Me’ by Sia, is actually quite becoming. Australian-born Sia Furler‘s commercial success began along with her solo career in the UK in 2000. She has since released two full albums, Healing is Difficult and Colour the Small One, and received major acclaim for her hit-single ‘Taken for Granted’ which features a sample of Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet Op. 64. She is also known for providing vocals to several tracks by the popular UK downtempo group Zero 7. Her music video for ‘Breathe Me’ is without a doubt original, using 2,500 Polaroids in flip-animation to reflect a rather desolate passage of solitude indoors in what appears to be West London in October. The choppy, fast-paced technique, along with the muted colour palette, really suits the solemn hue of the song’s simple yet resultant emotionally tense refrain (see below). Unsurprisingly, it is for this lyrical imagery and aptness that this video was one of the top videos of 2005.

‘Breathe me’, Colour the Small One (2004)

Help, I have done it again
I have been here many times before
I hurt myself again today
And the worst part is there’s no-one else to blame

Be my friend
Hold me, wrap me up
Unfold me
I am small
I’m needy
Warm me up
And breathe me

Ouch, I have lost myself again
Lost myself and I am nowhere to be found,
Yeah, I think that I might break
Lost myself again and I feel unsafe

Be my friend
Hold me, wrap me up
Unfold me
I am small
I’m needy
Warm me up
And breathe me

See also: Sia (Official Site)

Listen to ‘Breathe Me’ and other tracks on MySpace