10. Pearl Jam - Jeremy
Pearl Jam's Jeremy is one of the most stunning tracks on Pearl Jam's most widely celebrated album, Ten. Released in 1992, the song itself courted controversy because of its subject matter: the in-school suicide of schoolboy Jeremy Wade Delle in 1991. Eddie Vedder's lyrics attempt to empathise with Jeremy, and it is a sympathetic portrayal of a child whose parents ignored him and whose life was isolated and lonely. The video, though, takes the themes pretty close to the bone. Featuring newspaper cut-outs and quotes relating to the incident, the narrative builds to its inevitable conclusion as Jeremy walks slowly into his classroom. Although the shooting itself isn't shown (instead, a sequence of expressionistic flashing lights are presented to the viewer), the aftermath is genuinely shocking. Over-exposed panning shots of the rest of the class, hands in front of their faces, garishly red blood splashed across their crisp, white school shirts. It is a gorgeous shot, and the video itself breaks down many taboos surrounding childhood depression, but it certainly caused quite a stir on its release. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MS91knuzoOA