Godsmack - Straight Out Of Line

2003

Godsmack - Straight Out Of Line (2003) Director: Dean Karr Era: Post-Grunge Peak / Nu-Metal Twilight (2003) - A transitional moment as nu-metal receded and post-grunge heaviness dominated mainstream rock radio, anchored by major-label hard rock acts crossing into the Billboard Hot 100. High. This is a confirmed #1 Mainstream Rock chart single from a pivotal album cycle ('Faceless', 2003), directed by Dean Karr, one of the defining visual architects of the hard rock music video form. The production's quantitative profile (extreme shadow bias, sepia tone, sub-2s average shot length) makes it an analytically rich specimen of the genre's early-digital aesthetic. Its Grammy nomination further elevates its archival weight as a culturally significant artifact of the era. Context: Released in March 2003 as the lead single from 'Faceless,' the video arrived at an inflection point in hard rock's commercial trajectory. Nu-metal's dominance was waning, and post-grunge acts like Godsmack were increasingly the standard-bearers of mainstream rock radio. The song debuted at #1 on the Mainstream Rock chart, the band's third chart-topper, and received a 2004 Grammy nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance, ultimately losing to Evanescence's 'Bring Me to Life,' signaling a genre moment of competing aesthetics. The decision to film a pure performance video reflected both budget pragmatism and a philosophical commitment to band-forward, no-gimmick presentation that resonated with rock's post-spectacle ethos in the early 2000s. Director notes: Confirmed via IMDb (tt11937222), Wikipedia, and IMVDb as directed by Dean Karr. Wikipedia notes the video was filmed in Los Angeles before the release of the album 'Faceless' and is explicitly described as performance-based. Frontman Sully Erna explained to MTV.com that the band chose a performance format because integrating a narrative story around four band members in a four-minute video was logistically and creatively difficult. The approach aligned with Karr's established hard rock visual vocabulary, dark, high-contrast, physically energetic performance footage. The video served as the launch vehicle for the lead single of 'Faceless,' which debuted at #1 on the Mainstream Rock chart in March 2003.