Celluloid Bachelor #49: Ash "Space Shot"

Earlier this month, I posted they moving photo-based video for Ash's "Pripyat," the latest track in the Irish rockers' A-Z singles series. I have long had a passion for Russian history and culture, so it made a lot of sense to me that a band that combined rock and Chernobyl would capture my attention. But now they've gone and captured my heart.

Like any young man born in the 1970s (the late 1970s, but the 1970s nonetheless), I had a strong appreciation for the Star Wars franchise growing up. The frequently disgraceful follow-up prequel trilogy threatened to ween me of that love - surprisingly, it wasn't the atrocious Jar Jar Bings character I despised, but rather the cultural fraudulence of Hayden Christensen's "acting" that brought me low - but I withstood the assault and still consider myself a staunch supporter of the franchise.

Now, a half-decade since the release of Revenge of the Sith, I'm back to default visualizations of Darth Vader and the Death Star when I hear the phrase "Star Wars," rather than cringing at unwelcome images of Gungans and Toydarians (please note wikipedia has helped immensely with these species names; I'm not that big of a nerd). In other words, I like it when things remind me of the holiest of all film franchises, and when it is a well-executed rock video, well, I really like it.

Leave it to Ash, then, to make my day. Their newest addition to the A-Z series, released just yesterday, is a mod nod to George Lucas, is an admittedly overwrought bit of pop pap, but c'mon - it's fucking Star Wars-centric! Plus, between the Michael Jackson meets a slo-mo Britney Spears dancing storm-troopers and the hijab-sporting fighter pilot protaganist, there are plenty of references for readers younger than myself to grin about.