MUTEMATH’s New Video “Blood Pressure” Gets Our Blood Pumping

Usually a music video doesn’t say too much about the musicianship of the artist, but “Blood Pressure,” the new video from MUTEMATH, is a different story. The band has made playful videos before—see 2007′s “Typical”—but this all-night stop-motion fest, directed and edited by drummer Darren King, is a monument to timing. Stop-motion animation is a timeworn music-video tactic for bands with really patient members, but this clip stands beside similar clips helmed by Hammer & Tongs (Vampire Weekend‘s “A-Punk”) and Michel Gondry (The White Stripes‘ “The Hardest Button To Button”).

What does MUTEMATH’s clip bring to the table? For one, a keen eye for visual aesthetics: whether the clip includes intentional homages, or just coincidental similarities, to Kraftwerk album jackets and the midair portraiture Philippe Halsman, they’re a good look. For another, a pumping rhythm that allows the guitar to alternately serve as a second bassline and carve out its own melody—and which the title suits perfectly. MTV’s Buzzworthy premiered the video this morning, then sent it our way, and we can see why.