Eric Thurm doesn’t know where the bathroom is.
It’s taken Thundercat a while to release a video off Apocalypse. Fun and funky dance floor burner “Oh Sheit It’s X” seems like the obvious choice. But the man responsible for bringing back the space bass doesn’t roll like that. Instead, the first visual offering from Apocalypse is a joint video for “Evangelion” and “We’ll Die,” two of the album’s more somber cuts.
The “Evangelion” segment shows Thundercat as post-apocalyptic samurai, walking through the ruins alone with a giant sword over his shoulder. Few artists could make full Afro Samurai seem natural, but Thundercat has long embraced pop culture (see his cover of the Adventure Time closing theme and the goofy lightsabers in the “Walkin’” video). Thus, the lone warrior pathos of the video never turns into a punchline.
Once “Evangelion” ends, Thundercat delivers a stripped-down rendition of “We’ll Die.” It’s both depressing and uplifting, best left unadorned by anything visually complicated. First is a shot of the setting sun as it gilds the blue surface of the ocean. Then Thundercat plays with his back turned away from it. Fittingly, he only realizes the fog is rolling in once he’s finished playing.
