Groucho accidentally made a short film: Sci-fi saga concludes with »A Better World« August 14!
»Intermission – 18 Months Later« arrives July 31, and a secret screening will show the complete film before anyone else hears or sees the finale!
Tulsa, Oklahoma – The end was always near. Now it’s here. Groucho concludes the multi-chapter sci-fi narrative that began with May’s »The End Is Always Near«, releasing the final chapter, »A Better World«, as a single on August 14, with the music video following August 15. The dates were chosen to reflect the 1971 Nixon-era gold standard decision, a small nod to one of the many very real elements of “conspiracy” buried in the first single. The bridge between chapters, »Intermission – 18 Months Later«, arrives in full July 31 after being teased in parts and sprinkled across the band’s social channels leading up.
Together, the three installments form what Groucho has been quietly building all along: a complete, self-contained sci-fi short film with a total runtime of roughly 20 minutes, built around two singles and an intermission. “We’ve accidentally made a short film,” says frontman Dustin Edward Howard. “Except it wasn’t an accident. The entire project was always planned around seeing it as a whole.”
Photo credit: Adam Koloff
To that end, Groucho will host a secret screening of the entire film two weeks before the public release: Part 1 »The End Is Always Near«, »Intermission«, and the never-before-seen finale »A Better World«, at an undisclosed Tulsa location. There is no address. There is only a message: “Visit grouchoband.com and use the contact form to submit – we will email the address and RSVP location a few days before.” Attendees will see and hear »A Better World« before anyone else on Earth, which is exactly the kind of thing Team Bad Guy Inc. would not want you to do.
The final chapter picks up where the story left off and finally answers why the hacker built the robot in the first place: to get them. The shadowy, organized world powers keeping everyone dumb and divided. Enter Suit Guy, played by beloved Tulsa comedian Evan Hughes, a top-tier dark money mover for corrupt world leaders who is too far gone in reprogramming to be saved. His hand is required for biometric login at Team Bad Guy headquarters, and since he won’t lend them a hand, they take it… The gates get stormed. The master plan gets stopped. The better world, our AI tech bros are building us, has been thwarted. At least for now.
»Intermission – 18 Months Later« fills the space between singles with flashbacks, hero’s-journey power-ups from a wizard friend, small talk between a man and his robot, fabricated news segments, and the debut of The Enchanted Trunk of Holding, which, in keeping with project policy, will not be explained.
The saga’s signature collision of tones remains fully intact: cinematic production against intentionally low-budget, self-aware effects, never settling into sincerity or parody, inviting interpretation rather than dictating it. The entire film was shot as one production, with Howard directing and editing alongside a full crew of working film professionals, from producer and cinematographer to lighting, gaffers, set decorators, and extras. “I’m very lucky, and very grateful,” Howard says. “Tulsa’s film community showed up for this.”
And Groucho isn’t slowing down. The band’s next release is already recorded, and plans are underway to re-record material from the project’s 2016 origins, evolved by a decade of playing, and attach it to new singles.
About Groucho:
Groucho is the ongoing project of Dustin Edward Howard and friends, known for blending alternative rock with conceptual storytelling and genre experimentation. Written, recorded, and produced in-house at Noise Town Tulsa, Groucho has built an audience in over 90 countries, with regional touring across the Midwest, coverage from Tulsa World and News9, international press from outlets like Doomed Nation and Soundville, and radio support from national college stations to Oklahoma City’s KATT 100.5.
Video credits:
Director / Editor – Dustin Edward Howard
Assistant Director (Part 1) and Production Designer – Kels Cooper
Producer: Kyle Brewer / Dustin Howard
Character Development and Design – Kyle Brewer / Dustin Howard
Cinematographer, Lighting and Camera- Bryce Riedesel
Additional credits:
Production and Costume Design / Locations / Story board – Kyle Brewer
Script and Character Dev – Dustin Edward Howard, Kyle Brewer
Set and Prop Design – Brett A Jefferies, Seth L
Production Assistant: TJ Berryhill
Characters: Evan Hughes (Money Mover for World Elite Tech Bros / Suit Guy), Kels Cooper (Settler), J Chace Sokolosky (Underground Newsguy), Delton Brack (Settler), Hayley Twyman Brack (Settler), Drew Sanchez (Wizard), Layne Sanchez (Wizard’s thane), Jacob Brown (Ultimate Henchman), James Barcelona (Motorcycle Henchman) Maddi Hope (Bag Girl)
Release info:
Secret Screening (complete film series/both singles): [7/31] – message at grouchoband.com/home/contact for address
»Intermission – 18 Months Later«: July 31
»A Better World« (single): August 14
»A Better World« (music video): August 15
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well