Thorazine Shuffle “An Affair”

1995-thorazine-shuffle-an-affairI’m getting a very strong Urge Overkill vibe – probably the suits, the hair and the theatrics.

The scene is set in a ballroom on a boat. But it’s a shipwrecked boat at the bottom of the sea, so therefore Aucklandic cool dudes Thorazine Shuffle are all ghosts, singing of the one thing that is haunting them in the afterlife, right?

In their finest suits, the band play up on stage, while in front of them the dancefloor is filled with guests in their finest eveningwear. Joel Tobeck plays the featured guest, jauntily dancing with a blonde-wigged woman.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah! We can have an affair!” sings the flame-haired eyeliner-wearing Josh Thorazine. He is doing his very best to tempt the object his desire into having an affair.

But who is this mystery person? It the blonde woman dancing with Mr Tobeck? Is it the goth chick who stares out from under a face full of hair? Or is it the dreadlocked barman who exchanges a few meaningful glances with the energetic lead singer?

Well, if they’re all ghosts, they’ll be trapped in this neverending nightmare forever, with the affair never happening until Ghost Joel learns that affairs are wrong.

Best bit: Joel Tobeck’s manic performance on the dance floor. He can dance, for inspiration.

Director: Steve Morrison
Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision

5 thoughts on “Thorazine Shuffle “An Affair””

  1. The band did their video there before Bic Runga …her sway video seems kinda similar …wouldn’t you say?

    1. Kind of similar. Bic’s video is slower, gentler. Her crowd is just some people at a bar, whereas the “Affair” dancers are in a grand, ghostly underwater ballroom, dancing at a dizzying pace. “Sway” is more the standard “band playing the song live” video treatment, only the audience is doing slow dancing to the song. I much prefer the Thorazine Shuffle video, though. The “Sway” video feels too cluttered for the song.

  2. It was a fun vid to make with band members and extras having to balance on rotating platforms. The barman is Tosh Graham, vocalist for Semi Lemon Kola who sang backing vocals on the track. Dan Sperber (New Loungehead, Relaxomatic Project, Dan Sperber Complex) is another of the dancers.
    Chris Familton (Thorazine Shuffle)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *