MGMT have shared the second single from their upcoming fifth album, Loss of Life. “Bubblegum Dog” has a distinct grungy/acoustic ’90s alt-rock vibe to it which is underlined and highlighted by its music video. Directed by Julia Vickerman and The Best Show‘s Tom Scharpling, the video features all sort of MTV Alternative Nation tropes, from soul patches to Unplugged performances to oversaturated colors, dutch angles and more.
“We all saw the video for “Bubblegum Dog” as an opportunity to combine the charming, DIY, surreal, cardboard craft aesthetic of shows like Yo Gabba Gabba and The Mighty Boosh with these ultra-serious grunge videos we grew up watching on MTV – all that heavy, brooding angst smashed up against absurd childlike fun,” Vickerman and Scharpling say.
“Ben and Andrew are legitimately funny guys, so we were excited they got to really go for it with their acting, paying homage to the eternally moody mid-90’s rock stars they looked up to when they were kids,” they continue. “They were completely game for everything, playing around with different wigs/costumes/personas/facial hair and continually chiming in with new ideas along the way. That was a wonderful feeling, because it let us know they were having a good time. For the climax of the video, they let us shoot gallons of pink slime at their faces, which we appreciated. Ben got quite a bit in his mouth, which was unintentional … but he thought it was funny, so then we were allowed to think it was funny.”
Look out for a cameo from Mark Proksch — aka What We Do in the Shadows‘ Colin Robinson — when you watch the video below.
Loss of Life is out February 23 via Mom + Pop and was produced by MGMT and Patrick Wimberly (Solange, Lil Yachty, Joji), with Flaming Lips collaborator Dave Fridmann returning to mix once again.