Nu metal blessed us with some of the most iconic and occasionally unintentionally hilarious music videos of all time. Here are the top 13!
Korn – Freak On A Leash
This video could have so easily ended in tragedy. As a clumsy security guard drops his gun, he comes close to having all sorts of accident claims on his hands. The fired bullet narrowly misses a whole host of folk. Luckily Jonathan Davis is on hand and uses his ability to control bullets through scatting, thus avoiding any serious damage.
Deftones – Back To School
Chino Moreno is a right cheeky monkey in this video. He causes an administrative nightmare for school staff as he skates the hallways and walks over desks while rapping, as the other students are trying to get on with their algebra. Then he locks himself in the principal’s office and blows the bloody windows out! Needless to say, a strongly worded letter was sent to his parents.
Limp Bizkit – Rollin’
Thank god Ben Stiller mistook Fred Durst for a car valet or we might not have one of best metal videos ever made. As well as joyriding all over New York in the Dodgeball star’s car, Freddy D also leads the much-missed Bizkettes backing dancers through the ‘Steering Wheel’ dance. Criticise all you want but Slayer could never master choreography like this.
Machine Head – From This Day
Nu metal wasn’t good news for everyone, and established metal bands such as Machine Head needed a way to stay relevant. Luckily Robb Flynn nailed it by sticking on a silver tracksuit and hanging upside down from two pieces of fishing line. Also, a shout out to drummer Dave McClain, who changed his look to that of the love child of Bono and a leopard.
Incubus – Drive
The shoot for Drive must have been a frustrating day. After having to watch Brandon Boyd draw countless pictures of himself, half the band were bored shitless, sitting around thinking about the ever-growing pile of washing they could be getting on with instead. Still, you don’t see DJ Chris Kilmore complaining, even though someone had superglued his Walkman to the sofa.
Kid Rock – Cowboy
Kid Rock’s modern take on the classic Western had it all: high-speed police chases, fighting midgets and porn star Ron Jeremy playing piano. As Kid Rock selflessly travels across America to save a damsel in distress, he proves he’s a true American hero. It’s no wonder his fans will get his name spray-painted onto their goats.
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Mudvayne – Dig
Everyone has a favourite member of Mudvayne, be it spiky red face on guitar, or good ol’ devil man on the bass, and who could forget the drummer who painted his head to look like a humbug? Not sure what was going on with singer Chad Gray though. His silver face and long, straggly, blue beard just made him look like a plonker.
Linkin Park – One Step Closer
A fascinating insight into Linkin Park’s humble beginnings. Two nosey kids go snooping around the band’s early practice space which, due to low funds, they have to share with spooky, floating ninja blokes. When said kids knock over some boxes, frontman Chester Bennington is understandably furious as they interrupt his homage to Lionel Richie’s Dancing On The Ceiling video.
Methods Of Mayhem – Get Naked
A reaction to Tommy Lee’s leaked sex tape, the subtle video for Get Naked saw Fred Durst surrounded by naked women, while Lil’ Kim rode a giant cock – as in rooster, you pervert! Meanwhile, back at his hotel room, Tommy covered his modesty with a large remote control and Pamela Anderson crawled into bed with him. Alright mate, nobody likes a show-off.
Coal Chamber – Loco
In the video for Loco, a creepy ice-cream man (who may or may not be played by Noel Fielding) runs around terrorising everyone’s favourite spookycore merchants. Transforming one of childhood’s most beloved figures into the thing of nightmares, it was enough to put youngsters off ice cream for good, potentially costing Wall’s millions in lost Calippo sales.
Crazy Town – Butterfly
The brunette girl in the Butterfly video is the envy of all her hippy friends. Wandering through the forest, she hooks up with beefcake Shifty Shellshock, famous for having tattoos he can make fly off his body. As if this wasn’t enough, she ends up sprouting wings, making trips to the joss-stick store even more convenient.
X-Ecutioners – It’s Goin’ Down
Wayne Static wouldn’t stop pestering Mike Shinoda, so as a way of shutting him up, Shinoda agreed that he could be in the video for his collaboration with the X-Ecutioners. It sadly backfired when half of the budget went on Static’s hair product and they could only afford to pay the extras to appear for about five seconds at the end.
P.O.D. – Boom
You remember the coolest kid at school, right? No, it wasn’t the guy who dated the fittest girl in your year or the captain of the football team. It was the G pwning everyone at ping pong down the youth centre. Lucky for us, P.O.D. captured the tension, excitement and giddy head rush of victory in such a noble sport in their video for Boom.
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