During their Superunknown tour in 1994, Soundgarden opened each show with a brief narrative film starring a little boy and a peculiar blue man. The music accompanying the video, titled “Night Surf” was written by bassist Ben Shepherd. Sans lyrics, the track is a beautiful instrumental combining organ and percussion.
“Those who were in attendance and attentive to the intro at a Soundgarden concert during this tour have been the only ones fortunate enough to view and hear ‘Night Surf. The film had been buried in storage, and only recently was it located, dusted off and remastered for its debut here, online or anywhere,” guitarist Kim Thayil told Rolling Stone.
Directed by Henry Shepherd, brother to bassist Ben, the video plays out as a frantic daydream. The audience follows a young boy as he ventures through the woods on his bicycle. It all feels very E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. As the boy navigates amongst the fog, the imagery gets increasingly bizarre.
Watch the video below.
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