Obits - Operation Bikini

What this video is

Released in November 2013 as a companion to Obits' third LP 'Bed & Bugs' on Sub Pop Records, 'Operation Bikini' arrives during a period of renewed critical attention to garage punk and post-hardcore legacy acts. Obits, formed in Brooklyn in 2006, drew lineage from Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes — canonical post-hardcore acts — while filtering their sound through a more melodic, bar-band garage sensibility. The…

Why it matters

Represents a key artifact of early 2010s Sub Pop-aligned garage punk revival, merging the visual traditions of underground comix and hand-drawn punk zine art with music video form. The video's fully animated, cell-by-cell construction is a rare example of bespoke hand-illustration in contemporary…

The director

Woody Tobias Jr. is a music video director active in the early 2010s indie underground scene, with a Vimeo presence documenting his work. His directorial identity in the music video context is distinct from the fictional SCTV character of the same name. He…