It isn't every day an employee is asked, or actually demanded, by his boss to hit him in the face with a big glob of paint. But that's what John Rzeznik of the Goo Goo Dolls wanted during filming of their latest video for "Miracle Pill."
The clip ends with Rzeznik, fellow Doll Robby Takac, and their set being splashed with multiple colors in gallons of paint.
"It was at the end, and there were about eight or 10 passes of us getting splattered," Rzeznik said. "It was fun, but you can see in the video - I don't know why it's still in there - but you can see me pointing to my face and they wouldn't throw it. Finally they did."
Rzeznik said the song is an observation on life, how ignorant we have become about the world around us and what is important, and how people seem to simply want a miracle pill to do and fix everything for us.
"Not ignorant in the usual way," he says, "but in the way we just ignore things that are going on around us. And I'm not talking Trump, either. But things like how automation is taking over. What are people supposed to do with themselves when robots deliver and do everything for us?"
If you go
› What: Goo Goo Dolls — The Miracle Pill Tour with Beach Slang› Where: Tivoli Theatre, 709 Broad St.› When: 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15› Admission: $34.50, $44.50, $59.50, $74.50› For more information: https://www.tivolichattanooga.com/events/795877/Goo_Goo_Dolls
The band will perform Friday night, Nov. 15, at the Tivoli Theatre. Rzeznik said the album is the result of his moving into a new house that left him feeling isolated and stir-crazy.
"I moved to a house way out on Long Island. I mean way out. I felt like I was in a witness-protection program, and I thought 'I can't sit here all by myself anymore.'"
He called a friend, and they sat around laughing and telling stupid jokes and started writing songs. He said he likes to record with a variety of producers because, "When I work with one, I burn them out and they wind up being miserable."
He said he loves tinkering and trying new things and that tends to overwhelm just one producer. He also enjoys learning, and having different voices and input lends itself to that.
"I love experimenting and trying one more, one more, one more. I'll say, 'Let's try it with this microphone.'"
His is the final word on things, however, and "I'm there to make it cohesive. It's my job to find the common thread and make it all fit together. And I have one guy mix the whole thing."
Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6354.