Synopsis

Gordon Gano appears as a twitchy, trench-coated hitman whose target is Socks, a cat presented as a hand puppet. The assassin stalks the animal through theatrical sets and increasingly absurd situations, while clips from the 1997 film "Grosse Pointe Blank" interrupt the action. The deliberately cheap-looking, surreal comedy gives the song a darker visual edge without taking its nervy energy too seriously. The video plays like a miniature crime spoof built around the band's offbeat sense of humor.

Factoids & Trivia

• Although "Blister in the Sun" first appeared on the Violent Femmes' 1983 debut album, this music video was made in 1997, after the song's appearance in "Grosse Pointe Blank."

• The video was created for a newly recorded version of the song connected with the film. That version was promoted as "Blister 2000."

• The movie's producers initially wanted an updated recording, but John Cusack later pushed to include the original version as well. The film ultimately used neither of the new recordings.

• The video's puppet cat, Socks, is based on a character from "Grosse Pointe Blank," linking the otherwise bizarre assassination plot to the movie.

• The song's renewed exposure helped introduce the Violent Femmes to a much larger audience in the late 1990s, more than a decade after its original release.

• A separate animated lyric video was released in 2021 for the band's 40th-anniversary campaign.