Apollo 440 - Stop the Rock (IDS Version Without Shouting) [Video]

What this video is

Released 16 August 1999 via Stealth Sonic/Sony Music, 'Stop the Rock' was Apollo 440's breakout single, arriving at the commercial apex of the UK big beat movement alongside acts like Fatboy Slim, The Prodigy, and The Chemical Brothers. The track fused Status Quo's classic rock guitar riff 'Caroline' with breakbeat electronics, embodying the genre's practice of cross-generational sample collision. The IDS 'Without…

Why it matters

A canonical document of late-1990s UK big beat at its commercial peak, 'Stop the Rock' demonstrated how electronic acts could achieve mainstream crossover by grafting recognisable rock DNA onto breakbeat production. Directed by David Slade — then building the music video portfolio that would…

The director

Born 26 September 1969 in Yorkshire, England. Studied fine arts at Sheffield Hallam University. Began career directing amateur music videos for local bands in southern England before graduating to major acts. Later directed feature films Hard Candy (2005),…