I’ve been on a bit of an Eric Fensler kick for the past couple of days. Fensler’s the guy who put together those GI Joe PSAs a while back, but he’s been doing the twisted videos thing for almost a decade now. Lately he’s been doing a couple of music videos for TRS-80, an electronic outfit from Chicago whose latest album, Mystery Crash, relies heavily on the sorts of retro-futuristic synth sounds that would sound perfectly at home played over late-night commercials from the early 80s.

The video for “Special Effect” has plenty of kitsch factor on its own, but it’s the music that sticks. It’s an ominous track with a relentless bass beat and some irresistable synth washes. It’s like a darker Soviet version of the Knight Rider theme song, if you’ll allow me to make a somewhat outlandish allusion. For those of you who like their beats and breaks creepy, cool and vintage, TRS-80 is worth a shot.