This is the last of Crash’s funded videos and it’s a strange video to go out with. It’s shot in a continuous take, and seems to also have been shot at a faster speed and slowed down a little, which is all perfectly fine for a music video.
The trouble is, the camera operator doesn’t seem to be able to guide the camera to where the action is. Lowlights including an extreme close-up of a comedy sticker on the drum kit, and a lingering upside-down, out-of-focus shot of random band action.
The lead singer, who has a perfect music video pale face and power bob – spends most of the time lurking in the corner, either as a blurry blob, or with her face blown out by the bright lights in close up. The camera operator seems to be more comfortable shooting musical instruments, walls and floors. People are hard.
I feel like maybe I’m missing something. Maybe it’s meant to be this messy confusing world. Maybe the floor is deliberately given as much screen time as the band members. Maybe it’s all a trick to distract the viewer from thinking of the titular castrated male.
Either way, even though this is a great mid-’90s pop-rock song, the video doesn’t sell it as well as it should.
Best bit: The “Alien Detection Unit” stick. El oh el.
Director: Greg Page
Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision
Next… buzzy bee indie pop a go-go!
Crash return with “Day at the Fair”, and it is to the credit of the director Greg Page that the video is not shot at a fair. Instead it follows a night in the life of a mannequin, going with the song’s metaphor of love being a roller coaster.
Crash is another mysterious band that managed to show up in the ’90s, release some songs, then vanish without really leaving much of an impact. Yet this video remains as a reminder of what once was.