Synopsis

They Might Be Giants perform against the stark concrete expanse of Los Angeles' Sepulveda Dam, dressed in Apollo 18 shirts and surrounded by imagery that suggests a collision between science fiction and cosmic revelation. John Linnell appears suspended high above the ground as space footage, a floating globe, and surreal celestial imagery interrupt the performance. The climax literalizes the song's fatal epiphany, showing Linnell engulfed in flames before the video returns to the monumental, otherworldly setting.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video was shot at Sepulveda Dam in Los Angeles, a location associated with numerous science-fiction productions.

• There are three known versions of the video. Two show John Linnell surrounded by flames, with different visual effects used for the fire. A British television edit replaces the burning imagery with footage of a heart monitor.

• John Flansburgh later recalled that the shoot was a large and somewhat nerve-racking production. The performers had to stand on elevated platforms that produced a strong sense of vertigo.

• The Apollo 18 shirts connect the video directly to the album campaign. In the space sequences, the background constellations include recognizable silhouettes of Flansburgh's guitar and Linnell's accordion.

• The video premiered on MTV's 120 Minutes in February 1992, during the promotional campaign for Apollo 18.

• The song reached number 24 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart and remained there for eight weeks.

• The track's unusual premise was not intended as a straightforward drug reference. John Linnell described it as an imagined experience of being overwhelmed by a monument, while later noting an unexpected resemblance to the Don Giovanni story.