Synopsis

Queensryche perform "Revolution Calling" on a dark, blue-lit set surrounded by television screens. The performance is intercut with images of protests, police violence, unrest, and other scenes of social conflict. Rather than dramatizing Nikki's story directly, the video presents the song as a confrontational political statement, using its imagery to echo the corruption, institutional power, and public anger at the heart of the Operation: Mindcrime concept. The stark studio staging and rapid documentary-style inserts give the clip an urgent, late-1980s newsreel atmosphere.

Factoids & Trivia

• "Revolution Calling" was released as a promotional single in October 1988, following the May 3, 1988 release of Operation: Mindcrime.

• The clip is built primarily around Queensryche's performance, with the band playing beneath blue lighting and a set decorated with television screens.

• Footage of protests and police violence gives the video a documentary edge and reinforces the song's criticism of political corruption, mass media, and abuse of power.

• The video was included in the 1989 VHS release Video: Mindcrime, which assembled visual segments for songs from the Operation: Mindcrime album and helped present the record as a connected rock opera.

• Unlike the later concert film version of Operation: Mindcrime, this clip does not attempt to stage the complete narrative involving Nikki, Dr. X, and Sister Mary.

• The song was written by Geoff Tate and Michael Wilton. Its opening position after the instrumental "Anarchy-X" makes it the album's first substantial statement of Nikki's political disillusionment.

• A remastered version of the video was included in the 2021 deluxe Operation: Mindcrime box set, preserving the clip as part of the album's visual history.