British punks Idles provide a metaphor for life in a churning machine. “Stockholm syndrome.”
Charlotte Gosch directs the clip. The clip features two young children who stumble upon an unusual scene in the desert. They are greeted by a mysterious troupe in all-black costumes and masks. They pass large pink stones back and forth in a strange and choreographed fashion. The clip ends abruptly, with the kids trapped in the middle of this strange process.
Lee Kiernan, Gosch and Idles guitarist, said in a statement that he was happy to be releasing this statement. “The initial idea of the video was to try and visualize the monotony hell of having to work to survive and how the ‘machine’ eventually engulfs you and strips you of your freedoms. But we wanted to achieve this in a metaphorical way that kept the meaning as open as possible. So it becomes rather a visual representation that can be read in many different ways.”
“Stockholm Syndrome” appears on Idles’ most recent album, CrawlerThe album was released in November. The band is set to launch a North American tour in support of the album later this month, starting with a set at the This Ain’t No Picnic festival in Pasadena, California, taking place on Aug. 27 and 28. The run will conclude at Roadrunner, Boston, on Sept. 17.