Eight “No Way to Decide”

2003-eight-no-way-to-decideThe “No Way to Decide” video seems like the path of least resistance. It’s black and white, very serious and goes nicely with the band’s earnest grunty rock sound. Their previous video “Moments Gone” had a goofy plot that was at odds with the song’s feel, but it’s a good match here.

We see the band performing in a black space, with shadowy light making them look all fierce and rock. This is the first time the band has appeared in a music video in a classic band performance pose. (The closest previously was performing on a roundabout in the non-NZOA-funded “Shift”.)

But the main part of the video involves a man with a blindfold. “All this time I’m running”, shouts the chorus. But the video’s hero isn’t running, he’s walking blindfolded. And he’s walking in very straight lines.

Now, I’ve seen the episode of Mythbusters where Adam and Jamie tested whether it were possible to walk straight while blindfolded. They concluded it’s impossible, and indeed YouTube is full of DIY experiments of people staggering all over football fields. So while this guy in the Eight video is cautiously but confidently walking straight along the middle of the road, this is not what an actual blindfolded person would experience.

Our hero crosses a busy road, runs through a forest (which seems an odd choice, given that he keeps crashing into trees), along city streets, stumbles over craggy rocks and finally finds himself standing at a cliff edge. So, is this the end of his journey, or will he take another step forward and plunge off the cliff? Well, if the Mythbusters’ experiment was anything to go by, he’ll just end up walking around in circles.

Best bit: the Frogger-style road crossing.

Next… a warm summer day indoors.

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