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120 REASONS TO LIVE

120 Reasons To Live: Nada Surf

Nothing did more to further the cause of Alternative Nation-building than 120 Minutes, MTV’s Sunday-night video showcase of non-mainstream acts. For nearly two decades, the program spanned musical eras from ’80s college rock to ’00s indie, with grunge, Britpop, punk, industrial, electronica and more in between. MAGNET raids the vaults to resurrect our 120 favorite and unjustly forgotten videos from the show’s classic era.

#53: Nada Surf “Popular”

Nada Surf’s breakthrough single was by no means limited to airplay on 120 Minutes—by 1996, alt-rock was the norm on MTV—but it’s one of the best examples of a band getting kinged via its debut video. (We also have a theory that any video taking place in a high school is automatically golden; see also: “Hot For Teacher,” “We’re Not Gonna Take It.”) Fast forward a couple years, and Nada Surf would be dropped by Elektra and left to regain credibility as indie guitar-pop lifers. Matthew Caws and Co. may regret experiencing such early success with the uncharacteristic-sounding “Popular” but, you know, the weight is a gift. The quickening lifespan of alt-rock bands leaves little room for backstory, and at least Nada Surf has its own tragic tale to tell.