Where's Your Head At?
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Where's Your Head At? is a popular song by the band Basement Jaxx from their sophomore album Rooty. This techno/house dance song was recorded circa 2001 and relies on a sample from Gary Numan's "M.E.".
[edit] Music video
The disturbing-for-some music video, directed by Traktor, is almost as well-known as the song. The video starts out with a British man entering an undisclosed location to meet up with a man who claims to have "the latest thing in pop music". Meanwhile, a guitarist is shown being wheeled away in a gurney, with the song starting when he lifts his head.
The man then meets up with a scientist, who then shows him his idea -- monkeys playing music -- with the help of several props. The protagonist seems unconvinced and scoffs it off, but is later led to a room with a view of a large chamber with instruments used primarily by DJs. Monkeys later appear in the chamber and play the instruments, and it's revealed that their faces are actually those of a human (this special effect was accomplished using superimposition). Later, the monkeys suddenly start tearing up the equipment and causing general havoc, a behavior which inexplicably carries over into the scientist in a nearby room as well. They then attack the main character, who promptly flees.
During his escape, the protagonist stumbles upon a room containing a monkey and an unconscious human both hooked up to a machine. The monkey's face then becomes more human in appearance. The protagonist, now horrified, sees a diorama on the wall showcasing pictures of a human brain pointing towards several monkey brains. It turns out the "latest thing in pop music" is actually an experiment where musicians' brains are being transferred to monkeys, and he's planned to be the next victim! The video ends with him being cornered by the scientist and a dog, who also has a human face.
The clip went on to win two awards at the 11th Annual Music Video Production Awards for Best Electronica Video and Best Directorial Debut.[1]
[edit] In the media
- Played in an ad for Pringles
- Played in the 2001 movie Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
- Played in the 2003 movie The Real Cancun
- Played in several VH1 shows and specials, usually when highlighting an event when someone "loses his/her head". The song's video was featured in an "Awesomely Bad Videos" special, (a showcase of 'bad' music videos) but one panelist objected, saying that it wasn't "Awesomely Bad", but rather "Awesomely Creepy".
- Played on C4's "You Choose 40" in their "Most Shocking Video's Of All Time" special August 2006
- Played in the Kingdom Hospital episode "The Young and the Headless" while following a headless spirit.
- Appeared in the video games Dance Dance Revolution ULTRAMIX 3 and Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure.
