The art of the music video might not be what it used to be, but 2018 still saw more than a few kickass songs translated into equally kickass visuals. From four-and-a-half minutes of rampaging shlongs, to metal's own "Thriller," here are the 15 clips that kept us at Revolver HQ glued to our screens.
15. The Fever 333 - "Made an America"
Walking in the footsteps of boundary-smashing bands like Rage Against the Machine, Fever 333 are set on writing politically-charged songs for a new generation of headbangers. As an extension of their anti-racism message, the group's video for "Made an America" pulls no punches like a punk-rock answer to Childish Gambino's zeitgeist-defining "This Is America" clip. It might not have broken the internet in the same way, but it hits similarly hard. John Hill
14. Pig Destroyer - "Mt. Skull"
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater infiltrated the public conscious years ago and, to this day, resonates throughout heavy music and beyond. Virginian extremists Pig Destroyer nod to the video game in the best way they know how — via utter absurdity — with their video for "Mt Skull." Prepare yourself for coffin ollies, coffin nose grinds, a coffin ripping through a bowl and so much other skate-related insanity that we should probably just STFU and let you enjoy it. That the clip also serves as a strange, sublime metaphor for riding off into death is an added bonus. Fred Pessaro
13. HIDE - "Wildfire"
Industrial duo HIDE's video for "Wildfire" is at its core a visual collage of images perfectly suited to the group's abrasive sonic collages. Footage of Heather Gabel and Seth Sher's live performance is fractured with long pauses full of spreading infections and spreading lava. The camera gets uncomfortably close to Heather Gabel in a way that's visceral and confrontational, later showing her body contorting in different ways, hands in her mouth. It's a gross, gorgeous and unnerving video that leaves a mark. J.H.
12. The Armed - "Heavily Lined"
Industrialized post-hardcore collective the Armed don't do anything halfway, and the video for "Heavily Lined" is a clear example of — if not a mission statement for — their all-in approach. The first part of the incredibly fun video features a man hard at work on a mysterious project, which we later discover to be a mobile PA unit for blasting his music to the world as he goes on a full-fledged antisocial Falling Down–style rampage. True absurd, punk-rock genius. F.P.
11. Drug Church - "Avoidarama"
Anxiety manifests itself in different ways, yeah? Drug Church manifests those feelings in a weird, relatable way in their cleverly sardonic video for "Avoidarama." It follows someone going about a normal routine, and then later on doing the same things totally passed out and lying down while their friend act as if nothing out of the usual is going on, even as the man is sprawled out in an oven or floating face down in a pool. J.H.
10. Planet B - "Disease Control"
The video for "Disease Control" — a standout cut from the Locust/Retox/Dead Cross provocateur Justin Pearson's industrial-rap project Planet B — is one beautifully horrific ode to politics, tricks and, most of all, big, veiny dicks. Whether it's dicks running the White House, dicks controlling the nuke button or dicks rubber-stamping warfare, it takes an alien force shaped like a vagina to set 'em all straight. Let the extraterrestrial invasion begin. F.P.
9. Turnstile - "Bomb/I Don't Wanna Be Blind"
What do you do if you witness a sports car run over a beautiful bouquet in Los Angeles? Well, if you're one of the skateboarding street toughs in this standout two-song video, you chase down said vehicle and systematically dismantle it with baseball bats and dance moves, arming it with colored explosives and then ironically mourn its destruction with an array of flowers. Fun, colorful and poetic, the video is a near-perfect accompaniment to Turnstile's positive hardcore. F.P.
8. Candy - "Good to Feel"
Candy's "Good to Feel" track screams violence, and fittingly the video for the title track off the hardcore upstarts' excellent 2018 LP feels like a sexy horror flick, brimming with terrifying jump cuts, faces in the shadows and a general looming sense of seductive dread. It's disorienting in the best way possible and sophisticated in a way that belies the young band's years. F.P.
7. Ghostemane - "D(r)ead"
Ghostemane made an indelible impression on many new fans this year, due in part to the strength of his striking visual aesthetic as well as that of his music. "D(r)ead" is a rapid-fire assault of unnerving imagery, flipping between shots of snake skins, ritual daggers, bloody sneakers, bugs, fetish wear and more, like a Nine Inch Nails collage on speed. Ghostemane himself glides around in between the glitchy footage, eventually winding up in a room with Travis Barker hitting the hell out of a wild beat as the song goes into industrial-rock overdrive. J.H.
6. Nothing - "Blue Line Baby"
Shoegaze, or whatever it is that the music of Nothing can be considered now, is a sound that's easy to sink deep into if you let yourself go. Accordingly, Nothing's stunning video for "Blue Line Baby" follows a woman wandering on the roadside, eventually entering a lush forest of wonder and literally sinking into a shadowy lake. It's a smeary surrealistic dream that pulls you along just like the music does. J.H.
5. Behemoth - "God = Dog"
Crucified frontmen. Drummers skinned alive. A satanic children's choir. Naked people everywhere. Behemoth's video for the lead single from I Loved You at Your Darkest pretty much has it all. Filmed by Polish production house Grupa13, this clip sees Nergal and Co. taking their trademark blasphemy to awesome — and gruesome — new heights. J. Bennett
4. A Perfect Circle - 'Eat the Elephant' Full-Album Holographic Video
Plenty of artists have made full-album music videos, but never one to be satisfied with treading familiar ground, Maynard James Keenan pushed the envelope once again with the visual accompaniment to A Perfect Circle's comeback LP. The world's first-ever hologram album (you'll need to purchase the record's deluxe box set edition to view the complete head-spinning visual), Eat the Elephant, the film, is not only a technological wonder; it's also as trippy and beguiling as anything APC and MJK fans could ever dream of. Will Navidson
3. Bring Me the Horizon - "Mantra"
Love is like a cult, according to Bring Me the Horizon's Oli Sykes, and he and his band brought this concept to vivid life with the cinematic clip for Amo lead single "Mantra." Darkly comic and bitingly relevant, it skewers celebrity worship and media-driven conformism with glee, dropping nods to Wild Wild Country and Eighties horror along the way, while brilliantly underlining the cult in culture. W.N.
2. Ghost - "Rats"
With their wacky, impeccably choreographed "Rats" video, Ghost granted the metal world a "Thriller" of its very own, no zombies or theater screenings required. Needless to say, watching Cardinal Copia glibly cut a rug while the world rots will never get old. Zoe Camp
1. Ho99o9 - "Street Power"
Ho99o9 have never been ones to shy away from the provocative — certainly not when they've got the backing of luminary director Philippa Price (Rihanna, St. Vincent). Accordingly, the noise-hop duo's surrealistic "Street Power" clip delivered one of the most kinetic and compulsive viewing experiences of the year: a fever dream of punkish pig-men, post-apocalyptic gimp masks and, above all, joyous anarchy. Z.C.
