I really like this video, mostly because it starts out all light-hearted before then suddenly turning into Event Horizon just to then become light-hearted again before ending a note of senseless tragedy. It’s a bit like life and probably a more realistic look at intergalactic travel than something like Passengers. (Remember that movie?)
To be honest, if I was stuck in the a space shuttle and I didn’t have anyone around, I’d probably end up dancing and singing too. That’s why this video gets to me. I can relate.
This video was directed by the prolific Andrew Donohoe, who has also done videos for twenty-one pilots, Skrillex, and Janelle Monae. The lonely astronaut was played by Kally Khourshid while the doomed gentleman on the space station was played by Damian Lang.
It may not technically be a horror video but it’s still creepy enough for October!
Yes, that’s Rosamund Pike starring in today’s music video of the day. This video was released two years after Rosamund Pike found fame starring in Gone Girl. Of course, I’ve been a fan of hers ever since I first saw An Education, in which she played Dominic Cooper’s glamorous girlfriend.
As for this video, it’s pretty obviously a take on the 1981 classic, Possession, with Pike playing the role that was taken by Isabelle Adjani in that film. This video may feature a lot of blood but it’s nowhere near as much blood as shows up in Possession. Agck!
If you watched Raiders of the Living Dead earlier today, you heard this theme song:
The dead are after me….
We are the Raiders of the Living Dead….
Seriously, how can you not love that!? Yes, the song is totally mid-80s and it’s kind of silly but it’s also kind of perfect. Certainly, it’s the best thing about the film and the song has even gone on to achieve a life outside of the movie that it was written for. There are bands that regularly cover this song. It’s a permanent part of my Halloween playlist.
Seriously, you can ask my friends and they’ll tell you that, every October, they’re forced to listen to me sing this song in my off-key way. The deeeeeeeead are afterrrrrr meeeeee….
Many sites incorrectly refer to this song as being called, like the movie in which it appeared, “Raiders of the Living Dead.” The actual title is The Dead Are After Me. It was written and performed by a musician named George Edward Ott. I did some research and I came across some comments that Ott left on another site, in which he discussed how this song came into existence. From Morgan on Media:
In 1986, after viewing early outtakes of the film with Sam Sherman and Tim Ferrante, I went home and wrote the song in about 15 minutes. Cheesy song for a cheesy movie!
Yes, it is a cheesy song but it’s also rather brilliant in a cheerful, no apologies sort of way. Just try to get out of your head.
Since this is the first post of the first day of Horrorthon, it just seemed appropriate to select the video of Big Data’s Monster as music video of the day. This wonderfully paranoid video will inspire you to put Alexa back in the box. Or, at the very least, to consider doing it. I mean, could you really live without her? Anyway, this video has a nice sort of Wes Craven/John Carpenter feel to it. Those glowing red eyes are haunting.
It’s a well acted video too and Big Data was kind enough to list the full cast and crew on YouTube. (More artists should do this.) Here they are:
Special thanks to alldayeveryday productions, De Boer Media
EXTRA SPECIAL THANKS to the Gudis Family for their incredible generosity.
As for the rest of October, I can’t guarantee that every music video that we’re going to share this month is going to have a horror theme. To be honest, there aren’t that many good horror-themed music videos out there and we already featured the majority of them over the past two Octobers. I mean, there’s only so many times that we can analyze Number ofthe Beast. Still, we’ll be keeping our eyes open for any good videos we may have missed and, as we do every October, we’ll do our best to keep things properly spooky here at the TSL Bunker!
Enjoy October and get ready for the greatest Horrorthon ever!
Saturday was my sister Melissa’s birthday! This is her favorite Radiohead song and I have to admit that I like it a lot as well. I’m also a huge fan of this video.
But you know who reportedly does not care much for this song or this video? Thom Yorke. The leader singer of Radiohead has called the song “very bad” and apparently, it was only released because the band was being pressured by their label to release something with “commercial appeal.” And I can understand why Yorke would by annoyed by that. Certainly, the song is not as complex or enigmatic as other Radiohead songs. It’s pretty simple by their standards.
But, I still like it. If it’s a guilty pleasure, so be it. It’s a song that you can sing along with and it just puts you into a certain mood and …. okay, I’m kind of starting to understand why Thom doesn’t care for the song. It’s a good song but, outside of the melancholy tone, it doesn’t seem like a song that only could have come from Radiohead. It’s a little bit generic when compared to some of the band’s other songs but it’s still definitely effective. So if I ever meet Thom Yorke, I’ll probably keep my feelings about this song to myself.
(Either that or I’ll blurt out, “My sister loves High and Dry! If I call her, will you sing it to her?!” And then I’ll probably be escorted outside by security.)
I read that he also didn’t care much for this video. Again, I have to disagree. I like all the drama in the diner and I also like the fact that no one seems to notice either the car blowing up or the businessman getting murdered. Instead, of everyone’s too busy in their own little world.
It’s been said that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions and perhaps that’s true. Actually, I’m totally sure that’s true. That’s one reason why I don’t ever assign any sort of moral judgment to my intentions. I just intend and hopefully, things work out.
Anyway, that doesn’t have much to do with this video, which is actually kinda trippy and hypnotic. What would you do if a brain ever floated near you. I’d probably freak out a little. Brains are very strange looking and it kind of disturbs me that apparently, everything about us is collected in something that looks like an alien. For that reason, I’m definitely happy that people have both heads and skulls because really, you don’t want to see anyone’s brain. That would just be disturbing.
“I remember shooting the video with Wayne Isham in front of a sold out crowd at the Spectrum in Philadelphia, unfortunately it received minimal airplay as MTV was changing its format… still, I think it’s one of the best videos we’ve done…”
–– David Coverdale on Now You’re Gone
Whitesnake was one of the top bands of the 80s but, by the time they released this video, their popularity was in decline as both rap and grunge eclipsed hair metal. Now You’re Gone is one of Whitesnake’s best songs but, when it was first released, it barely charted in the United States. Shortly after this video, Whitesnake broke up. After a 1994 reunion, the band officially reformed in 2002. Here I Go Again is now used in motorcycle insurance commercials, proving the circle of life.
The video for Now You’re Gone was filmed in Philadelphia, before and during an afternoon show. It’s one of Whitesnake’s best videos, though the presence of Tawny Kitaen is missed.
Tragic Comic was a third third and final single to be released off of Extreme’s third album, III Sides to Every Story. This was Extreme’s last single to crack the UK Top 40, reaching #15.
The video for Tragic Comic features Extreme’s lead singer, Gary Cherone, trying to have the perfect date with his neighbor and failing in almost every way. Even when things look like they’re finally going right, she ends up falling down an elevator shaft. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find the name of the actress who played Cherone’s neighbor in this video.
As for Gary Cherone, he is probably best known for being Van Halen’s third lead singer. Cherone joined the band in 1996, replacing Sammy Hagar. He stuck with Van Halen for three years, recording one album with the band. Though Van Halen III was a success by most standards, it still didn’t sell as much as previous Van Halen albums and Cherone and the band amicably parted ways in 1999. If nothing else, Cherone is probably the only person to ever leave Van Halen on relatively good terms.
This video was directed by Paris Barclay. Today, Barclay is best-known as an Emmy-winning television director. Among the shows that he’s worked on: NYPD Blue, ER, The West Wing, CSI, Lost, The Shield, House, Law & Order, Monk, Numb3rs, City of Angels, Cold Case, Sons of Anarchy, The Bastard Executioner, The Mentalist, Weeds, NCIS: Los Angeles, In Treatment, Glee, Smash and The Good Wife, Extant, and Manhattan, Empire, and Scandal. Barclay also served two terms as the president of the DGA.
Through the Shattered Lens