Starset, the cinematic rock band from Ohio, is well-known for having some really impressive music videos. They never take the approach of just jumping between shots of the guitarist and the vocalist, and in fact, the musicians aren’t present at all. Instead, they use their videos to tell really engaging stories within their fictional universe, and it adds a layer to the musical experience that not many bands have been able to achieve.
This list has taken me probably a month to organize, and I don’t know why I decided this was a proper use of my time, but you what? Why not? Here’s my personal ranking of all of the 18 current music videos released by Starset, judging by the visuals, the storytelling, and how well the video fits the song. It was really hard to not just rank this list based on how much I like each song, but I think this is as unbiased in that sense as it can be.
Ready to disagree? Let’s get into it.
18: Icarus
It kind of hurts to put this at the bottom of the list, because Icarus was easily one of my favorite songs off of the Horizons album, but good Lord, what happened here?
This video’s story follows the fictional nation of the New East, and how they have deceived their citizens with propaganda, convincing them to buy various products under the Brain Machine Interface (BMI). The message of the video is very clearly meant to be that we aren’t too far off from a dystopian future like the one developed in Starset’s lore, due to the rapid uprising in new technology.
Let me just start off with what I did like about this video, because it’s not like it’s complete garbage. I like the message it portrays, and some of the “products” demonstrated here are clever references to real-life developments in science and technology. After (unfortunately) rewatching parts of the video to make this list, I thought the “Shyft” technology seemed like a twisted version of Neuralink, which promises to help people with disabilities and paralysis move again.
I also thought the return of the guy from the Ricochet video was really cool. I have no idea what that means for the lore, but seeing a familiar face was something that doesn’t really happen in these videos. The final shot of the video was also just absolutely terrifying to look at, and it made me wish we could have more Starset videos with a slightly eerie vibe like the one for My Demons.
So that’s what I enjoyed about Icarus, but there are some decisions that this video makes that make the whole viewing experience really uncomfortable, and not in an “oh, this feels a little to real” kind of way. There’s just a lot of imagery in here that was so clearly thrown in for shock factor, or to appeal to specific people, and it’s just not necessary to develop the point of the production.
I’m also not a fan of the decision to have a character talking over the song’s breakdown, but maybe that’s a personal thing. I don’t know, I just really like the guitar riff in that part, and the song itself already overshadows it, so to have it be almost completely inaudible here was really disappointing. That sort of applies to the whole video: A lot of cool elements that were overshadowed by a bunch of nonsense.
17: Symbiotic
Yeah, Horizons didn’t exactly have the best run in terms of music videos. However, I will say that this one was better than Icarus, as it had a creative mini-story set in the Starset universe. It essentially follows a man who uses a technology called “Voyeur” to immerse himself in the life of a celebrity in real time, and the tech seems to be set up as a super-advanced form of livestreaming.
The concept is really interesting, but sadly it does what Icarus did, and tries to throw in some uncomfortable imagery that really takes you out of the story. It’s not as bad as it was in the previous video, but it really doesn’t need to be there at all.
I like the use of bright colors in this video, as it’s a change of pace from Starset’s usual gloomy color schemes. Again, the story is really clever, and I loved the twist of the couch-dweller who had been using Voyuer actually being a straight-up serial killer.
The scene where he body-swaps with a celebrity, then kills a bunch of people at a party with a golden AK probably wasn’t intended to be funny, but it gave off the vibe of a cheesy B-rated horror movie, and I couldn’t help but laugh a little. That’s not a bad thing, because again, Starset videos are almost always dark and gloomy. Aside from some of the imagery issues, this was a kind of goofy video with an interesting story.
16: Stratosphere
All of the videos from this point on were incredibly hard to rank, just because of how much artistic power shines in each one in their own unique way.
Stratosphere was a song off the Divisions record, and its video has the vague premise of a woman under the influence of a BMI, who starts to remember her life before she had the implant. The video has a very consistent and visually pleasing color scheme, and the cinematography is really nice. It kind of just rotates between a handful of similar shots for the first half of the video, but the contrasting shots of flowers, shorelines and the woman sitting in an eerie white room blend really nicely.
With this song having such an intense breakdown, I was hoping the story’s progression would pick up a little, and while we do get some shots implying the main character had experienced some kind of tragedy in her life, I almost wish those shots were more explicit, to complement the darkness of that part of the song. Overall, this is a very image-based music video, and the vagueness of it mixed with the quality of imagery really leaves you wanting more.
15: Telepathic
Telepathic is a song off of the Vessels record, and its music video tells a mind-bending story about a woman stuck being a test subject in a human experiment that seems to have to do with time looping and brainwashing. I think about this video quite a bit, mainly because I’m still trying to figure out what exactly is happening in it. In its own fascinating and unique way, this video seems to be playing with narrative themes ahead of its time by focusing on themes of manipulating the human mind, much like what would come with the later album Divisions. There are even references to some of the lore presented in that album, mainly the messages in the TV saying things like “Unity through allegiance” and “There are no contraband ideas”.
That’s not even mentioning the strange triangle imagery that feels very similar to what we see in the visualizer for the later song Waiting On The Sky To Change.
The storytelling, though a bit confusing, really shows just how far ahead Starset is thinking with their lore, and looking back on this video, it’s cool to see that the modern themes and tones of the narrative where planned this far back. What keeps me from ranking this video higher is that I don’t think this kind of story really fits with the musical tone and lyrics of the song itself.
14: Where The Skies End
Next up is another Divisions track, and my personal second favorite off this album, just under Telekinetic. This is a very empowering and uplifting song, so it was very interesting to see it get such a haunting and, honestly, tragic music video.
It shows people locked up in what is called a “Supplication facility”, and they have allowed themselves to be so consumed by their BMI implants that they barely move or speak anymore. The imagery of people slumped over against a wall, staring at nothing is actually kind of creepy, especially when you remember that all of this is supposed to be commenting on the future of real-world technology.
While the song and video couldn’t be more different in terms of tone, they work together very well through a style of pacing and editing that I wish was used in more music videos. Many transitions between shots are timed to the music, and there is repeating imagery for different sections of the song. It really helps strengthen the connection between the audio and visual elements, and it feels like what’s happening on screen is actually somehow relevant to the song. In this case, it succeeds in giving hope to the lost souls in that facility.
13: Diving Bell
Diving Bell was one of those songs that I dismissed initially, then I eventually returned to it and discovered way too late how much of a masterpiece it is. In a similar way, I kind of dismissed the music video as just a cycle random artsy imagery, but rewatching it again, it’s quite powerful, and fits nicely with the tone of the song.
This is another one with a sort of vague plot, but what seems to be happening here is a man with a BMI implant slowly coming to some realization about something. Either he’s being affected by the implant, or he’s breaking free of its hold and becoming aware of the tragic nature of his reality, as implied by the setting of an apartment littered with empty cups and bottles. Either way, the realization clearly terrifies him, and I have to commend whoever the actor is for managing to sit completely still, yet telling a whole story with just his eyes.
The whole thing is also beautifully shot, and the pacing of imagery flows and gradually grows more intense just like the song. The shots of water, moving dirt and a strange silhouette seem to all be representations of whatever is happening inside the mind of this man, and I think my favorite thing about this video is how all of that invites the viewer to come up with their own unique interpretation of how all the symbolic puzzle pieces fit together.
12: Back To The Earth
It’s because of moments like this that I’m really happy I decided to do this list, because I’m only now realizing how much I actually like this song after rewatching the video.
Back To The Earth is unique in that it is one of only two song to ever have gotten an animated music video. It was produced by Essence Cartoons, and tells a heartwarming tale of a little space robot who gains sentience beyond the rest of his race, who are being controlled by another dominant robots race. He finds a crystal that he uses to power a spaceship of his own making, and takes to the stars in hopes of finding a new home.
The story’s sort of simple, but the talent behind this video really shines in the animation. The little robot has a very endearing cartoonish design, the whole thing is well animated, and the development we manage to get within four minutes makes this a very imaginative world. Who knows if this has anything to do with the Starset lore? Even if it doesn’t, this video was definitely a treat.
11: Echo
With the release of the Divisions album, we were lucky to get another animated music video for the song Echo. It introduces undoubtedly the most marketable- I mean, adorable character in the entire Starset universe, something called an Echo unit.
The video follows the Unit’s journey across several beautifully illustrated environments in a post-apocalyptic world to reach some mysterious machine at the top of a lighthouse. Seriously, as much as everyone probably remembers this video for it’s main character, I think the most impressive part of this video is its incredible scenery, made by Anthony Diecidue (By the way, the character art was done by Joey Brobeck and the whole thing was animated by Dan Fusselman. Well done, guys). The art style is an interesting mix that looks partly made digitally, and partly hand-drawn. There is also just a powerful vibrance to this video, and like I said with Symbiotic, it’s nice to see some bright colors in a mostly dark and gloomy universe.
10. Manifest
We have made it to the top ten! These final ten videos were ranked as highly as they were because of their exceptional storytelling, worldbuilding, and visuals, and starting off the countdown is another Divisions track, Manifest.
I think this video does a great job of offering a realistic interpretation of dystopia. Not one where every building is covered in neon lights, or the world is overrun by robots, but one where people are simply allowing society, therefore themselves, come undone. This video establishes what the world looks like after society has been overtaken by the BMI, and we explore the reactions of various people. Some have found ways to rebel and remove their implants themselves, while others succumb to them.
There are some haunting shots of mindless people walking in circles or sitting under a tree, completely unaware of their lack of mental control. What I really love is how this video integrates futuristic elements into a modern-day setting. You see things like people getting shot by futuristic guns outside of some random suburban house, or someone walking down a normal street at night before getting chased by a drone. This video seems to really want to push the message that the future is closer than we think, and it definitely succeeds in doing so.
9: Carnivore
Carnivore is one of Starset’s biggest hits, and it also was the basis for one of the band’s first ever music videos. Interestingly enough, this is the only music video to feature the band themselves (Dustin makes an acting appearance in a video later on in this list). This was one of the glimpses we got into the lore, exploring the impact of the Department of Civil Vigilance and Recovery on society in the near future.
This video definitely has that early 2010’s charm, especially with some of the green-screen and digital effects, but the video is still incredibly well-made, and the storytelling is as present and powerful as ever. Again, it’s an interpretation of the future that feels eerily similar to the present day, something Starset perfectly displays here and in other music videos.
It makes sense that Starset wouldn’t want to make appearances in their videos, as it would risk taking away from the story, but I think they managed to incorporate themselves into Carnivore quite well here, and the shots of the band performing feel like part of the story, not just interruptions from the rest of the video. We might never see this kind of music video again from them, but it’s nice to know it can be done.
8: Trials
It’s at this point on the list where these stop feeling like music videos, and start feeling like straight-up movies. Trials follows a fairly simple story, where two people evade the clutches of the Architecture (The system responsible for policing the New West with BMI) to escape reality together.
Though the narrative of this music video isn’t the most complex, it is still present and prominent. Even then, it more than makes up for the simplicity with the insane set design and visual effects. The industrial setting and constant imagery of Architecture soldiers in attire similar to that of SWAT give this video a more typical futuristic dystopia feel. I think the digital effects implemented at one point in the video are some of the best Starset has ever had in their videos.
This is all a long way of saying that this video definitely was not cheap. It great to see that once they started to hit mainstream popularity, Starset used their earning to further fuel their creative drive, and raise the bar for what they can do with their musical and cinematic storytelling.
7: The Breach
As a matter of fact, there IS a Horizons music video I actually like! The Breach established a chapter of the Starset lore where the BMI becomes commonplace in New West society, and people have been completely overtaken by it. This video follows a family who, when some kind of glitch occurs in the Architecture system, sees a chance to escape their restricted lives in the New West.
I absolutely love the worldbuilding in this video, as it seems to show a tragic look at the future, after the efforts of the rebels in Divisions ultimately fail. The idea of the BMI being present in every aspect of life, controlling every detail down to how much time you spend doing simple activities like reading, is a unique twist on the “AI takeover” concept, where it is very much still a man-made, manufactured product, and true villain is humanity.
But the highlights of this video absolutely come with that incredible car chase scene, because it really has it all; High stakes and tension, great digital effects, and even smoothly recorded drone footage. This was the scene that convinced me that Starset needs to check their finances and just make a feature-length film, because they absolutely have what it takes. With all of that said, the reason I put this video higher up than Trials is simply because of the absolutely incredible detail of the glitching laser wall that makes up part of the narrative being used as a visualizer for the song’s guitar solo. And you all thought Falling In Reverse made cool videos.
6: My Demons
Ah, yes. My Demons. Starset’s biggest hit, the one that made them known, the one with the music video that had all of its rightful Youtube views stolen by a fan-made lyric video. However you identify this song, if you know Starset, you know My Demons.
Speaking of that music video, it was the one that introduced the world to the core themes of Starset’s lore. It focuses on the story presented in frontman Dustin Bates’ novel The Prox Transmissions, and shows someone from the planet Prox sending a transmission to Earth to warn humanity about the future, as well as two points in history where the message was received. There is something so creepy about the shots of a guy in an astronaut suit in some mysterious dark environment screaming at the camera, and its that eerie edge that I miss in the newer music videos.
The scenes where real-life history is brought in with the inclusion of Nikola Tesla discovering the transmission were really well done. I love the inclusion of a film grain and certain filtering to set this apart from other time periods shown in the video, and the footage distortion that makes Tesla look like he’s singing the lyrics to the song is a really nice touch. Overall, this was an iconic first video, one that was not only incredibly well-made for its time and budget, but one that will serve as blissful nostalgia for Starset fans for years to come.
5: Bringing It Down (Version 2.0)
With the release of the special edition of the album Vessels came an alternative version of one of my personal favorite Starset songs, Bringing It Down. Actually, let me correct that- This alternative version is one of my favorites. The original is good, but something about the heavier focus on orchestral and metal elements over the electronic side really gives this song more weight to it. I think Starset might have preferred this version, too, because this is the one that got a whole music video.
I think this video wins the title of best one-off storytelling specifically. It follows a man who receives a ransom message telling him to find the money of a dead billionaire (he faked his death) or watch his wife die. The video is a fun mystery, and on top of the race to find the money, Starset’s signature sci-fi implementation, and the surprising amount of grave-robbing, there’s even a great plot twist in the end credits. Yeah, they gave this thing a whole credit scroll. It’s like an M. Night Shyamalan short film, if Shyamalan consistently made good movies.
This video’s lower budget definitely shows, but you can clearly tell that the people behind this video were having fun. The story is really well-developed, there’s some nice practical effect use, and you can feel the tension as the story progresses. Even if this video doesn’t ever end up being super lore-relevant, I would still love to see more mini stories like it.
4: Monster
Monster was another huge hit for Starset, and its music video is a strange, yet powerful one. It follows a mysterious hooded figure with a face of white static as it walks through a world where everybody has been put in a comatose state by a virtual paradise they can only see through a set of futuristic goggles. The figure notices on person amongst the senseless who actually acknowledges his presence, and he snaps her out of her trance, shows her what the world has become, and takes her away as reality seems to collapse.
This is definitely a video that needs to be interpreted in a figurative sense, and I love the direction Starset took with it. With Monster being part of the Vessels album, this MV feels like a teaser for the concepts that would be later explored in future albums. It’s definitely trying to tell a message, probably something about how preoccupied we are with modern advancements and ways of making things more convenient, to the point where we become unaware of all the problems in the world.
Monster is a very poetic and haunting video, with a story that feels like a direct mirror to reality, and I also think it gets the award for best character design. The cloaked figure is genuinely creepy, as much of a force for good as it seems to be, and his design alone could have some metaphorical meaning. Well done to Starset for making a video that I’m still trying to interpret to this day.
3: Ricochet
This one. This one right here gets the award for “most tragic music video”. Ricochet, just as a song, is really sad, and the music video takes full notice of that vibe. Following a man who is desperately trying to resurrect who seems to be a loved one.
Of course, it wouldn’t be an early-era Starset video without some strange sci-fi elements thrown in. We’ve got it all this time around: Robots, ghosts, failed clones bleeding out in bathtubs, and a house randomly being set on fire. All of these things blend and make for striking visual elements that tell one of Starset’s most heartbreaking stories to date. This one doesn’t go crazy with the visual effects, but what makes this video one of the most powerful is that without major digital alterations, this story feels human.
This video is the first one on the list where I was 100% invested in the story and found myself actually caring about the characters. Though I think the video fits the song really well (And I’m going to need the Starset fans reading this to back me up), I think from a purely lyrical standpoint, this video would also perfectly fit the song Let It Die.
2: Halo
Halo is another personal favorite song for me, and I’m happy that the music video is as amazing as it is. For it having been made when Starset was just starting out, it is incredibly cinematic and visually striking, even by the standards of the band’s present day works.
This one takes place on the fictional planet Prox, and follows multiple storylines. We seem to have a scientist trying to send out transmissions to reveal the corruption of the Free Energy Corporation (FEC), a scientist who eventually burns his funding proposal for an invention, again acting against the FEC, and two people trying to reunite, one captured by FEC.
The visuals in this video are absolutely insane, and the environments and backgrounds are some of the most believable in any Starset video. For the scenes where the main character is traversing Prox, it was probably just filmed in a desert, but the editing and filtering really does give it an otherworldly feel. There are also some impressive industrial settings that look like they were pulled straight out of the movie Alien. The video also handles multiple storylines very well within its four-minute runtime, and the narrative is thoroughly engaging. The music fits perfectly with the more emotional and wholesome scenes, and overall, each element of this video was absolutely top-notch.
1: Satellite
Ladies and gentlemen, the #1 spot goes to none other than the video for the Vessels single, Satellite. This video not only tells a captivating story and display genuine artistic passion, but it undoubtedly has the best visual effects of any Starset music video, both in the digital and practical fields.
This video’s story is somewhat similar to that of Halo, where someone is stranded on a desert planet, trying desperately to reach his partner. Once again, the natural environments are very well done, and the mix of the colors of the sky and the filtering take what was probably just some normal Earth desert and transform it into a whole new world. There are also some great set pieces for the various rovers and spacecraft we see in the video.
Some of the VFX in this video are really impressive, too. The shots of rovers traversing the landscape and the sandstorm that sets up the video’s climax are very convincing.
I think the best part about this video is the acting, however. It takes a lot of talent to express the despair and frantic desperation that the main character does, especially given that he’s in a spacesuit and you can barely see his face. There are some really intense scenes where he’s trying to repair a piece of machinery in the middle of a sandstorm, and through is movements, you can just feel the panic, and it’s amazing how invested in his character you become in just four minutes. Literally everything about this video was top-game music video material, and it absolutely deserves to be at the top of this list.
There you have it! My personal ranking of every Starset music video. I like doing long, hefty posts like this, and if you enjoy them too, I’ve got a music-related breakdown in the works that will probably be even longer than this one. Until then, I would love to hear your own personal Starset rankings. Or, if you would like to see me rank another band’s music videos, let me know in the comments! Hope you enjoyed, and I’ll see you all very soon!
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