THE VIDEO Kix, "Don't Close Your Eyes," Blow My Fuse, 1988, Atlantic Records
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SAMPLE LYRIC "Don't close yourrr eyeeeeeeeeees / don't close yourrr eyeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-eyyyyyyyyyes / don't sing yourrrr laaaaaaaaaaaaaast lull-a-byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee"
EXCESSIVELY DETAILED DESCRIPTION In the distance, cars go around a tall bluff beside the ocean, and in the foreground, there's lots of sand and scrubby beach plants (oh yeah, this is in black and white, p.s. btw). The camera pans left, showing more of the ocean, and as the synthesizer kicks in an image of hands playing a keyboard is superimposed above it. The camera continues left till we can't see as much ocean and are seeing scrubby dunes again, while a sort of "ocean wind" sound effect plays. The camera finally finds and focuses in on one especially crappy looking plants that's apart from the rest.
This fades into a black and white shot of a pretty blonde girl staring at something off-camera. In the background, the leaves of a tree outside the window have been colored in in a fluorescent reddish pink. We then see Kix, playing beneath spotlights set up on a pair of cherry pickers. Though it's black and white the spotlights are sort of highlighting them in this reddish pink color.
We only really get a look at Steve Whiteman before we're back with the girl, who's walking in front of a wall of windows. She's wearing a white button-down shirt tucked into very high-waisted, very shredded jeans. Many of the leaves of the tree outside are red, and her outfit has been shaded a bit red too. The camera goes in for a closer look at the leaves, then we fade into Steve again.
We then finally see the other member of Kix, who are all dressed it would seem as members of different bands. Steve is wearing all skintight black leather. Jimmy Chalfant is wearing a leather jacket over a Zildjian tee. Donnie Purnell is the only member still rocking the Cool Kids look, though I must also say his hair looks like someone threw it up onto his head.
Brian Forsythe is doing a passable Tom Keifer impression with mega-thick black locks, an blousy shirt worn open with a vest over it, and lots of jewelry. Ronnie Younkins is wearing a floppy velvet hat and sort of a dark-colored poet blouse plus a very large necklace (think Faster Pussycat circa 1990).
As the first chorus begins, we see a shot from beneath of something unidentifiable, then the girl looking wistful, with what appears to be a photo of another woman semi visible in the background. Then we're back with Kix, and every last one of them is doing a heck of a job. There's a dramatic pose for every power chord. I love it.
For the second verse, we fade into a shot of the girl lying down on a couch (there's a thoroughly unidentifiable triangular object in the foreground). We then see her from overhead, laying with her left hand across her stomach while looking at something we can't see clearly in her right hand. The camera pans across the room, past a tv that's on and what looks like a decorative ashtray till it comes to focus on a prescription bottle filled with pills (the pills have been colored in bright blue so you can't miss them).
She continues looking elegantly despondent on her couch while the various members of Kix continue artfully tossing about their hair and leaning against each other. It begins gently misting on them as Steve takes us into the bridge. We briefly see a shot of a person in boots stepping on that crappy looking plant from the beginning of the video, and the girl briefly clutches at her stomach in pain.
Jimmy runs a stick through those hangy windchime things, and Brian (or is it Ronnie?) heads into the solo. We see the image of hands playing a keyboard again, now with an image of a woman's finger dialing a phone superimposed over it (it dials 5-7-4, for those who like to watch closely). We then see the girl lying on her stomach, propping herself up with one arm to talk on the phone. There's a lamp on on a table by her heard, and a framed photograph of someone on the table also. The girl lets the phone drop, looking absolutely spent, and we see a bicycle running over that crappy beach plant as she throws the phone down and rests her head on the couch.
This causes everyone in Kix to go nuts, and we see again that weird image I couldn't identify before -- it's a door closing (it was hard to tell because it's from the point of view of being in a dark room with the light on the other side of the door, and also it's shot on an angle so it's not a very natural viewpoint). We then see the girl again, now lying on her back, being consumed by darkness.
This causes the members of Kix to frantically thrash about as never before, as if all that will save her is their hair moving as quickly as possible. Somehow, it works. The girl sits up, looking pretty bedraggled, and grabs the pill bottle off of the coffee table. She smashes it down, spilling the pills, and Steve continues his entreaties, strangling his mic with one hand while gesticulating wildly with the other.
The video closes with the keyboard hands (again), superimposed over an image of the crappy beach plant -- which is now in color and has little pink flowers on it -- and the girl (also now in color), standing next to it. She stares at it like she has never seen a plant before and does not know what it is. The plant is the last thing we see.
THE VERDICT It is tempting to make fun of Kix. Oh, so tempting. I mean, for one, they named themselves after a good-for-you children's cereal (p.s. be forewarned -- I couldn't find a legit link, and this one is crazy. Who knew that "the bible clearly states that the deliberate misspelling of any word in a breakfast cereal name is an affront to god and Christianity?" I'm no religious scholar, but I'm pretty sure that one's not in there).
Two, while totally crappy bands from Loudness to Loverboy (and uhh, much more of the alphabet) managed to get decent coverage in rags like Hit Parader, Kix were forced to run an ad near the back of the book urging readers to join their fan club.
Three, clearly somewhere between Midnite Dynamite and Blow My Fuse, they decided that they had hit upon the ultimate sexual metaphor when they chanced to write several tunes referencing explosives. And four, they're from Baltimore. Need I say more?
I need. Or rather, I do need. Because, you see, in spite of the many counts against them, Kix are just darn good. Yes, Steve's -- I can't even call it a falsetto really -- singing voice can be tiresome (and not just because it is impossible to sing along with). But give the guy a break -- he looks like an amazing cross between Robin Zander and David St. Hubbins, and his stage presence is awfully appealing.
Also, Kix dress like they shop at the Goodwill, which clearly I totally respect. I can't remember the last time I wanted to wear a denim vest this badly. Point is, Kix are decent, in spite of Maryland, the crap fan club, etc.
Which brings me around to the video. The whole black and white with painted on color thing, I must say, I am not a fan of. I am, however, a fan of the girl in the video, because her attire brings back so many memories. Sigh... the glory days of jeans with ten thousand carefully created holes in them.
But back to the not-a-fan part: The whole plot with the girl is fine, makes sense, and goes with the lyrics (which I think are great). But what is up with that shrub on the beach? How the hell does that plant's wellbeing impact hers? I mean, someone runs the thing over with a bike and she drops the phone? Does that mean that at the end, when she casts away her pills and we later see her and the plant revived, the scene that was edited out was of the plant being watered? Go figure. I had seen this video a jillion times, but somehow the subplot with the plant had escaped me until now. Thank goodness I am bringing it to light for you all (whoever the two of you are).
P.S.: Glorious, large, higher-res photos added to this post April 2010