silverchair - Shade

What this video is

Released in May 1995 as the fourth and final single from Frogstomp, 'Shade' arrived at the apex of the international grunge wave's reach into Australia and the antipodean response to it. Silverchair — three 15-year-olds from Newcastle, NSW — had broken nationally after winning a 1994 SBS/Triple J demo competition judged in part by the video's own director, Robert Hambling. The song addresses abuse and the…

Why it matters

As the fourth single from one of the most commercially successful Australian debut albums of the 1990s — Frogstomp sold 3.5 million copies worldwide — 'Shade' and its video represent the tail end of the international grunge boom as filtered through a distinctly Australian lens. The video's…

The director

Australian film director and editor, Sydney-based. Began career at Roger Cherrills editing house in Soho, London, then worked at DJM Music, Island Records, and The Rolling Stones Mobile. Served as assistant editor on Pink Floyd: The Wall (1982), Greystoke…