Cool Hunting

by Laura Neilson

MoMA recently hosted the world premiere of Department of Eagles' music video "No One Does It Like You" as part of the museum's ongoing PopRally series. Produced by the creative tank The Directors Bureau, Patrick Daughters and the artist Marcel Dzama co-directed the video with costumes and sets designed by Dzama.

Concept wise, the piece draws heavily on Dzama's melancholic portrayals of army scenes, depicting a bloody battle between a marching troupe of ghost-faced soldiers and a battalion of short-skirted, rifle-carrying ballet dancers. The upshot is a hauntingly beautiful accompaniment to what Pitchfork calls a "noirish" track with frontman Daniel Rossen's wistful vocals.

Featuring visual effects by The Mill, the video took several months to create. The entire project was shot on blue screen, with only six dancers to duplicate and layer into a field of bodies.

Other videos projects by Patrick Daughters include Feist's "1234," as well as collaborations with Beck, Interpol and the Shins. Marcel Dzama is a New York-based Canadian artist, best known for his small-scale ink and watercolor drawings. Department of Eagles is a two-man collaboration between Daniel Rossen, more well-known as the guitarist and vocalist of Grizzly Bear, and Fred Nicolaus