Synopsis

Set in the wooded mountains of Big Bear, the video presents Run River North as a group of friends whose retreat turns into a grimly comic survival story. Diedrich Bader plays an outwardly genial but increasingly threatening local figure who stalks the band members through the wilderness. Their attempts to escape give way to a string of violent encounters, with the cheerful folk-rock song creating an intentionally unsettling contrast to the horror-comedy action.

Factoids & Trivia

• Diedrich Bader, known for roles including Rex Kwon Do in "Napoleon Dynamite," stars as the central antagonist. The band recalled that he was unusually enthusiastic about taking part, despite not generally appearing in music videos.

• The video was filmed around Big Bear, California, and was conceived as a dark comedy horror short rather than a conventional performance clip.

• The song's official video followed an earlier homemade version recorded inside the band members' Honda cars. That low-budget video helped Run River North, then known as Monsters Calling Home, attract wider attention.

• The car-shot version became closely associated with the band's breakthrough. Honda arranged a surprise appearance for the group on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in 2012 after executives saw the video.

• The song reflects singer Alex Hwang's thoughts about his father's pursuit of the American dream, including the pressure to provide for a family while dealing with failure and uncertainty.

• A censored trailer-style edit was prepared for MTVu, with the violence toned down while preserving the video's horror-comedy premise.