The Best Music Video Of All Time: Pearl Jam’s “Do the Evolution”
People watching MTV in 1998 had their eyes glued to the TV when Pearl Jam’s stellar song “Do the Evolution” played. Released through their album Yield of the same year, the seminal music video amassed a wave of positive exclaims from critics and fans alike. Turns out, it may be the best music video of all time, although it’s reaching its 25th year.
The music video “Do the Evolution” does exactly what the title suggests. Directed by the illustrious Todd McFarlane, father of the Venom and Spawn franchise, and the director Kevin Altieri, it combines the talent of Pearl Jam’s lyricist Eddie Vedder and one of Marvel Comic’s powerhouse. It follows a sped-up version of the evolution of humanity, including the earliest forms of mankind and the darkest snippets of history.
McFarlane did not skimp out on humanity’s vicious nature and power trips. Animating the tragedies caused by the first contact that Europeans had with Native Americans, as well as hinting at the disaster of the Vietnam war and the human trafficking during the transatlantic slave trade, “Do the Evolution” questions our will and truth dependent on what history tells us.
Everything is encompassed by the charm of a sultry cartoon goth girl, personifying death, dancing throughout the song, reminding us of our fatality regardless of how great or miserable our lives are. Through the rhythm of it all, McFarlane illustrated a hypothetical future, sick and twisted as could be, manipulated by power-hungry people and machines.
The punch is not just the timeless message, which is more important today than ever, but the animation. The four-minute video feels like a breeze, entrancing the viewer with the sick riffs combined with the flashy imagery. The incredible transitions, jumping from one era to the next and from one person to another, go far beyond what the 90s are remembered for. McFarlane skillfully embodied the true nature of humanity in a brief four minutes.
About the Author:
Mizuki Khoury
Born in Montreal, based in Tokyo. Sabukaru’s senior writer and works as an artist under Exit Number Five.
