In our continuing efforts to take you, the loyal music lover, deeper into the minds of today's artists, MTV News presents "Frame by Frame." Each week, we'll get a musician to give you the inside scoop on their latest music video.
In a little less than 72 hours, OK Go's "This Too Shall Pass" video has been viewed nearly three million times, which makes it the very definition of a viral sensation. But unlike, say, Keyboard Cat or "Chocolate Rain," the video actually deserves all the attention it's getting. Why is it more worthy? Because as frontman Damian Kulash told MTV News, making it was a rather colossal pain in the ass.
Working with a team of like-minded engineers called Syyn Labs, OK Go spent six months designing, building, synchronizing and choreographing an elaborate Rube Goldberg machine for the video, one made up of thousands of moving parts — some big, most tiny — all required to work in perfect unison. Timing needed to be precise, and everyone (not just the band, but a team of 40 engineers) needed to hit their marks exactly. Things were so complex that even after months of planning, the band only made it all the way through the video three times. The final version is two of those takes, stitched together into one seamless clip.
Clearly, this wasn't your average viral video. And while you've probably seen the final version by now, you probably don't know the whole story. That's why we had Kulash break the video down for us, frame-by-frame. In clip below, he describes the inner workings of the device, a complex contraption that, in addition to tons of ball bearings and pianos, also features some sly nods to OK Go's past, their new album Of the Blue Colour of the Sky and even some input from his parents.
Watch and learn. And be amazed. Like we said, this isn't a bunch of kittens and babies. This is truly great art.