iDKHOW fans may think they've seen the video for "New Invention" before

The anticipation for Razzmatazz, the debut album from I DON’T KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME is feverish. The iDKHOW duo of Dallon Weekes and Ryan Seaman are now ratcheting the excitement up a few notches with the release of a video for “New Invention.” But at first look, we wondered if our minds were playing tricks on us.  

Part lyric video, part sci-fi dystopia and all groovy pop, “New Invention” finds the duo on point and on brand. Here Weekes is experiencing voice-texting mind control with a super-computer programmed straight out of 1986. Seaman is making adjustments and tweaking technology. But iDKHOW fans might wonder why that set looks so familiar. That’s because director Raul Gonzo shot it in one take on the set of  “Leave Me Alone” back in August 2020. 

Read more: iDKHOW play unreleased “Lights Go Down” at Riot Fest

“It was all pretty spontaneous,” says Weekes. “We wrapped shooting on ‘Leave Me Alone,’ and we had the studio for another few hours. So we decided to do a single-take lyric video for ‘New Invention.’ The set pieces really seemed to lend themselves to the song pretty well, so it all worked out great.”

The ambiguity fits perfectly with iDKHOW’s worship of antique technology and devices from decades gone by. What’s great about Weekes and Seaman is that their vision is never kitschy. There’s a genuine resonance and fascination with all of the throwback motifs they ply in their videos. That dome Weekes is under could be an old-school salon hairdryer that keeps his coiffure looking just-so. And Seaman didn’t spend five hours dumpster diving and haunting yard sales for old electronics so he could glue it all together on set.

We’re trying to think if another band has ever filmed a video within a video before. Until then, we (like you) are totally stoked knowing that Razzmatazz is finally coming out on Fearless Records Oct. 23. Check out “New Invention” below.

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