Cartoon Clown Breaks Out of Jail in Ty Segall’s Latest Music Video For “California Hills”

Since the launch of his solo career in 2008, the San Francisco-based musician Ty Segall has become the bulwark of gritty, American garage rock. Though he has partaken in a number of musical projects, the psychedelic rocker is best known for his reputable solo work, releasing a total of eight albums on his own accord, which does not include the music released in other collaborative projects with the likes of Mikal Cronin and the band White Fence.

Segall is known for his integrating tripped-out artwork and animations with his music. For instance, his latest album, Emotional Mugger, was announced via a VHS tape that was sent in to Pitchfork, which featured a short snippet of Segall explaining the concept behind the album name, as well as a clip of him and his backing band playing a new song while wearing giant baby masks. Segall and his band have undertaken a new persona for the latest album, calling themselves The Muggers, while the frontman has kept his newfound identity and is now going by the name Sloppo.

Released earlier this year, Segall is continuing to roll out this experimental project with his latest music video for the track “California Hills”. The animated video follows a cartoon clown’s surreal escape from prison, as he flees from a number of zany creatures through a setting full of colorful strobing lights. Ultimately, the clown seems to be escaping the wrath of the animated world’s king, who ,of course, is clad in a baby mask.

The sluggishly powerful guitar riff serves as the perfect backdrop for this hallucinatory music video. Once the song picks up with a guitar solo and sped up instrumentation towards the end of the video, the colors and creatures in the video become even more intense. Finally, the cartoon clown escapes the ultra-stimulating world, effectively blowing up the jail and ridding itself of the bad trip within it. All in all, the video matches the experimental style that Segall has undertaken with his latest album, which is packed with heavy-handed riffs, animated guitar solos, and and all around weirdness that sets the garage rock musician apart from the rest.

Emotional Mugger can be purchased in physical or digital form from Drag City Records, as well as through Apple and Amazon. Segall will be playing at the Los Angeles-based FYF Fest this coming August, so all of you West Coasters should be sure to catch The Muggers in all of their weird, baby-faced glory.

Watch the video below.