Every month, Decibel scribe Shane Mehling reviews the four videos that appear in the monthly metal mag. under “Decibel’s Clips of the Month at Metal Injection.” This month, watch picks from Arch Enemy, Devil You Know, Nothing, and GWAR Classic Clip.
Arch Enemy – “War Eternal”
Well, there are a lot of spotlights and flags and fire, and apparently they have a new singer who has that performance tic where it looks like she’s trying to cast spells and doesn’t give a shit if they work or not. And so much silly guitar playing. Not the music, but the way they’re just noodling around in the video it seems like they don’t even know how the instruments work. Honestly, as far as I can tell they just air-mimed everything for the video and then CGI’d those fuckers in afterward.
Devil You Know – “Seven Years Alone”
So, know those videos where someone chases or fights a masked someone else, and at the end the mask comes off and They’re The Same Person?! This is one of those, but the real important thing to note is that after the guy is arrested, he just keeps screaming song lyrics at everybody. In the interrogation room, in his cell; he gets one phone call and grips the thing like a mic to yell all crazy and wide-eyed into it. No wonder they threw the book at him. This guy’s probation hearing’s gonna be a nightmare.
Nothing – “Bent Nail”
So, the band plays live and everybody hates them, and halfway through the crowd goes outside to the rotten fruit/egg vendor and hurls everything at the band. Pretty simple idea—not much else to say, really. Well, the singer is dressed like some sort of Junior J. Mascis, which makes my throwing arm twitch, but that’s it. Oh, and I think this was filmed in Philly, so maybe my editor can add an anecdote about puking on a table at the club or shitting in a urinal or something. (It was filmed at the Boot and Saddle; the small plates are just divine! —ed..)
CLASSIC CLIP: GWAR – “Sick of You”
A lot of people think of GWAR as giant-phallused, president-beheading, fake-blood-gushing gross-out shock-rockers. And sure, there was that, but there was also so much goofiness and camp and sweetness suffused into everything. This video from 1990 is the perfect illustration of how much goddamn fun they had, and how much goddamn fun it was to be a part of that. A crowd being beaten and coerced into a dungeon will never have the same kind of heart again.
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