Music Video #47 (Day 17 of 2008)

We're already half way through the month. Today's video is Frontier Psychiatrist by the Avalanches. Take a seat and watch the next four and a half minutes.


Well, anything goes, I guess. I usually recap a lot of the action in the video for no reason but I'm not sure if can with this one.

The video starts with a curtain on stage, just like the last video that was go for broke nuts. Behind the curtain we see two people in mock black and white talking about a kid named Dexter. Dexter's mom believes he's at school, while his principle informs her that he's actually been expelled from the Baltimore public school system. It was always my understanding that you can't be expelled from public school, but I've probably mentioned that before and forgot the explanation. A granny plays the drums in the background while the mother makes excuses for her kid. Principle informs her that Dexter is considered criminally insane by his staff. Ah, swift, brutal discipline.

The lights go on and no one is black and white anymore. The song starts and we see some men play some really funny wind instruments. I have no idea what they are but they remind me of cartoon characters who play furnaces as instruments. Or maybe they are made of old tires. Then we see ghosts rock back and forth to the rhythm. Did they kill this kid too? Two old guys start rapping about how Dexter needs therapy. The second guy argues that it's psychosomatic. Then it gets crazy as we see an old guy's head on a turtle and a guy with a coconut puppet. I didn't make that up. Dexter still needs therapy according to the first old guy. Some cowboys act out Dexter's anger, I think. For some reason we're told that Dexter made false teeth. I know I'm only an impartial observer, but that particular piece of evidence doesn't help the case to get him a therapist.

During the break we just get a lot of random stuff. A skeleton plays a record. Some indians show up. Some guy foams on a therapist's couch. A guy in a diaper shows up. Foam guy (I think) felt hypnotized and in another world that sounds like a harem. I never get to have dream. Then suddenly there's a skeleton with a yellowish glass eye ball. Then there's a woman doing aerobics where her legs can almost touch her head. Then there's a woman selling a juicer. Sure, why not. Frontier psychiatrism sounds like a blast.

We get a repeat of the boy needs therapy part up to the false teeth part. The only thing new is the gorilla playing the drums.

Then there's suddenly a naked woman. Lita! Except she's just wearing a peach colored bikini. Definitely catches the eye though. The song shifts a gear by having a elderly teacher ask a little girl about animals that can talk that aren't human. Girl is stumped until she sees a person in a pigeon costume. This leads to a chimp chasing the pigeon around the stage. Somehow I'm reminded of the strangest Three Stooges short ever.

Teacher asks if the girl can think of anything else. She points to a big record being rolled out on stage. The song ends with a bunch of Mexicans playing instruments while walking away.


Dang what a weird video. Much more random than the one I linked. It's good, but that can be said about a lot of songs that sound like they took a few phrases and remixed them to a good beat. The music video makes it unique.

The awesome thing about this video is the scary old guy head turtle. It's just like my alma mater says. "Fear the turtle!"