3 Music Videos From the 2000s That Don’t Look Anything Like the Song Sounds

These three music videos for 2000s songs don’t look anything like how the tracks themselves sound. The artists behind these visuals drew inspiration from something other than their lyrics.

[RELATED: 3 High-Minded Concept Albums From the 2000s We Love To Sing Along To]

“Mr. Brightside” – The Killers

This song is so wrapped up in the 2000s rock scene that it’s easy to picture an accompanying video that capitalizes on that aesthetic. Perhaps gritty sepia-toned imagery or a faded cityscape; something along those lines. Instead, the band created a feverish, fantastical scene for this staple track.

From near-circus-level costuming to theatrical dance breaks, the video for “Mr. Brightside” isn’t what you’d expect. “Comin’ out of my cage and I’ve been doin’ just fine / Gotta, gotta be down because I want it all / It started out with a kiss, how did it end up like this? / It was only a kiss, it was only a kiss,” frontman Brandon Flowers sings from a glittering stage in front of a luxurious crowd. Despite being unexpected, it works very well for this song. It’s memorable if nothing else.

“Weapon Of Choice” — Fatboy Slim

This Fatboy Slim song has a very unexpected music video. This song is better suited to a club scene or something with similar energy. Instead, the DJ chose to feature Christopher Walken tap-dancing around an abandoned hotel lobby. Viewers get a bit of whiplash between this 2000s music video’s visuals and the song playing over them.

“Don’t be shocked by the tone of my voice / Check out my new weapon, weapon of choice,” the lyrics say as Walken moves to the beat. This music video became very popular for how oddball it is. It’s not every day you see someone dance so austerely to such a carefree song.

“Knives Out” — Radiohead

The music video for Radiohead’s 2000s track “Knives Out” certainly keeps up the band’s surrealist edge, but it’s not what listeners picture when they first hear the song. From brightly colored, trippy hospital imagery to truly off-the-wall scenes with no basis in reality, this music video captures the song’s energy, but in a very roundabout way.

“So knives out / Catch the mouse / Don’t look down / Shove it in your mouth,” the chorus reads. The visuals that accompany this song have very little to do with the lyrical content. While most bands try to match the storyline they push in their songwriting, Radiohead threw the rulebook out here.

(Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for Bonnaroo Arts And Music Festival)