Synopsis

Mike Patton wanders through Berlin before joining a queue at a guarded checkpoint, where the other members of Faith No More are also waiting. When Patton presents his passport, officials discover a problem with his papers and move to detain him. He attempts to escape but is quickly subdued at gunpoint. The video then rewinds through still images from earlier that day, revealing small details that suggest Patton has been involved in criminal activity and that the arrest is not an arbitrary act of bureaucratic violence.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video was filmed in Berlin in late 1997 while Faith No More were touring Germany.

• Billy Gould wrote the screenplay for the clip.

• It was the third and final video made to promote *Album of the Year*, following "Last Cup of Sorrow" and "Ashes to Ashes."

• "Stripsearch" was prepared for a November 1997 single release. Promotional CDs were issued and the song reached radio playlists, but the release was canceled when London Records chose to issue the band's cover of "I Started a Joke" instead.

• The song began as a simple MIDI composition by guitarist Jon Hudson. Billy Gould said that adding the opening loop changed its character from something closer to conventional rock toward a darker, Portishead-like electronic sound.