Hardcore super group Dead Cross, featuring ex-Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo and Faith No More vocalist Mike Patton, have just released a new video for their song "Church of the Motherf---ers" and it's the best horror short of the year. This is the band's second video off of their debut album and it is an intense look at religion with some harsh undertones of what has been happening in the entertainment industry's sexual misconduct scandals. When a band sounds as brutal as Dead Cross, it's hard to find imagery that heightens that feeling instead of parodying it, and director Michael Panduro has done a perfect job of capturing the pure essence of this type of music.
The Fight Club-themed video for "Church of the Motherf--ers" opens with a quote from German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, who states, "The influence of a man has never yet grown great without his blind pupils." The video then shows two priests in a basement beating each other senseless while children cheer them on. Another storyline in the video features a pregnant boy going into labor in what appears to be immaculate conception. This extends to a nun doing some questionable things with communion wafers. The black and white video is as haunting as the brutal song, and it ends with the priests ceasing to fight and looking upwards into the sky, mouths agape, while the pregnant boy gives a violent birth to something evil.
The idea behind the video has heavy religious undertones. Bassist Justin Pearson, also of Retox and the Locust, says the band's "Church of the Motherf--ers" video is a view of the band's stance on organized religion, which is a horror staple. Pearson says, "We are not capable of understanding aspects of molecular genetics, let alone the universe. I'd rather not fill in the blanks with outlandish oppressive morals, offensive social politics and patriarchal garbage. In the year 2017 A.D., some humans still think there is a god." While the creepy religious motif is going on, it's hard not to draw parallels into the Hollywood sexual misconduct scandals that are popping up every day.
While the lyrics are clearly about organized religion and taking advantage of one's power, they definitely apply to the post-Harvey Weinstein era of Hollywood. Lines like, "Can't hide Cardinal cartel Pockets are full Corrupt intel Face down in the pool Power absolute An orgy institute" can easily be applied to the corrupt underbelly of the entertainment industry and people protecting men of power. The song goes further into so-called "child lovers," which also shows a direct line into the Hollywood pedophile ring that Corey Feldman is trying to bring public.
The incredibly NSFW video for Dead Cross' "Church of the Motherf--ers" is the perfect hardcore song for these times, whether it was intended or not. With anything Mike Patton does, there's also room for the humorous and the absurd, which lends itself beautifully into the horror genre and director Michael Panduro has done an excellent job peeling back the layers of Patton's imagery into one hell of a horrifying video. You can check out the NSFW video for "Church of the Motherf---ers" below, courtesy of Ipecac Recordings' YouTube channel.