Whether she’s a multi-colored chieftain from outer space, a gold-plated disco queen, or a nouveau geisha, Karen O loves playing dress-up. And in the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ latest video, the banshee has a brand-new costume: that of a frizzy-haired, Elvira-esque witch!
In the clip for “Skeletons,” a slow synth track from the band’s 2009 album, It’s Blitz!, O floats above a foggy cemetery decked out in a stark-white, flowing dress and black makeup, singing the track’s similarly eerie lyrics: “Love don’t cry / Love don’t cry / Skeleton me / Skeleton me…” Smoke billows, surrounding drummer Brian Chase and guitarist Nick Zinner, who are dressed in Victorian-era garb and spinning in a star-filled sky.
Combined with O’s voice and the ethereal ambiance of the music, the imagery is less frightful than emotionally touching, and in behind-the-scene footage from the video shoot, Ms. O explains the tune’s stirring power.
“The Yeah Yeah Yeahs wrote this song in a barn in Massachusetts in December ’07 during a snow storm. It has a very wintry feeling to it. It’s atmospheric, melancholy, and unlike any song we’ve ever written before.”
Watch the making-of and final clips below, then tell us what you think in the comment section.
WATCH: Behind the Scenes of YYYs’ “Skeletons” video
WATCH: Yeah Yeah Yeahs, “Skeletons”
