Get thee into the vicinity of a fainting couch, for this news might come as somewhat of a shock: the music video that James Franco directed is kind of weird. The actor/filmmaker/musician/scamp somehow landed a job directing the music video for his band Daddy’s new song “I’m A Sword Swallower,” and you’ll likely be scandalized to learn that the VHS-quality finished product contains human female nipples, strap-on dildos, and the implication of kinky group sex with creepy masks.
The California native chose to film the short trippy piece in a place where a bunch of other crazy stuff apparently happened. “Everything gets wild at the Chateau Marmont. Bungalow 2, where they rehearsed Rebel Without A Cause in the ’50s and Nicholas Ray had his affair with young Natalie Wood,” Franco explained in a statement. “Some hippies threw a party and things got wild.”
The new song is a remix by Prince Rama, the Brooklyn-based psychedelic EDM band led by sisters Taraka and Nimai Larson. “Prince Rama’s remix creates the perfect soundtrack for our short film that explores gender, power play, and Hollywood lore in a cinematic psychedelic dream,” Daddy’s Tim O’Keefe said. “Prince Rama and Daddy are a match made in heaven.” The original, more-’80s-new-wave version appeared on Daddy’s debut LP, Let Me Get What I Want, featuring founding Smiths member Andy Rourke on bass.