In what could mark the slowest editing job in history, Kanye West's controversial video for "Monster" officially premiered this weekend, nearly six months after it leaked. It's still too-NSFW for The Amp, so check out the bloody clip over at Kanye's official website, where it was posted this weekend without explanation. Why did it arrive now? Here's our theory: Kanye went to see The Hangover: Part 2, heard "Monster" in the scene that segues into the hangover, and suddenly remembered he forgot to unveil the completed music video.
That must be the only explanation. "Monster" the song debuted as a G.O.O.D. Friday track back in August 2010, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy came out in November 2010, this video leaked with time codes and watermarks in December 2010... then nothing. The finished clip is pretty much the same video as the leak, except now there's more dead models and children, more CGI (the gargoyles during Bon Iver's closing verse), and even a disclaimer: "The following content is in no way to be interpreted as misogynistic or negative towards any groups. It is an art piece and it shall be interpreted as such." Who could ever accuse a music video where a female model's corpse is used as couch cushions as misogynistic?
The scariest moment comes at the 3:30 mark, when Kanye is dressed in a ridiculous cowboy ensemble; he's also carrying a severed head at that point, but the outfit is horrifying. All that being said, subtract all the gruesome stuff, it is a cool video. Much of the initial controversy surrounding "Monster" has tempered, especially since already this year we've seen music videos handle extreme violence in much more inventive and more adorable ways.