UNIVERSAL CITY, California -- For Thrice, choosing band favorite "Red Sky" as their next single was a no-brainer, but choosing the video treatment has been a challenge.

"We don't know what we are going to do with this," singer Dustin Kensrue said backstage at KROQ-FM's recent Almost Acoustic Christmas concert (see [article id="1517968"]"Coldplay Salute System, Stripes, SoCal Torsos At Radio Fest"[/article]). "It's really random with all the ways that we're thinking. Some are very literal and some are very non-literal, but we have no idea where we're going right now."

The band has already shared some ideas with director Jay Martin, who worked with Thrice on Vheissu's first video, "Image of the Invisible" (see [article id="1509963"]"Thrice Bring Ninja Moves, Screaming Kids To New Clip -- With Gerard Way's Help"[/article]). They have also solicited treatments from other directors.

"We're all really happy with the 'Image' video and how it came out, and I think we kind of set a bar that we need to live up to," drummer Riley Breckenridge said. "So it's definitely a challenge for us to get back and make a powerful video. We want it to be the best video it possibly can for 'Red Sky,' so hopefully we'll figure out what the hell we're gonna do."

And remaining hopeful is just what the band needs to do -- after all, that's what the song is about. "Overall, I think 'Red Sky' is dealing with the issues that [people] suffer, but in the end things are redeemed and there's a resolution," Kensrue said. "It's got this image of a storm that comes and in the end this unexplained supernatural change [happens] and everything kind of comes right through these dark times. It's about hope in general."

Fans fortunate enough to catch Thrice's performance of "Red Sky" at the Almost Acoustic Christmas got to witness a special duet of the song with Deftones singer Chino Moreno.

"We've done a couple dates with them in the past, and we've always been big fans," Kensrue said. "We [wanted] to do something a little different for the show. I was just thinking he'd do some harmonies and stuff, and he was like, 'I've got some stuff I wanna sing.' So he kind of went off and sang some melodies that he had made up, and they were really cool."

The onstage collaboration seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime moment, but it could very easily be repeated, as Thrice and the Deftones will be co-headlining this winter's Taste of Chaos Tour (see [article id="1516759"]"Taste Of Chaos '06 Tour Dates Revealed"[/article]).

"Hopefully it will be a good change of pace because there's gonna be a lot of headbanging and shredding and stuff," Breckenridge said of the trek, which will also feature Atreyu and As I Lay Dying. "So we can do a little bit of the heavy stuff and a little bit of the mellow stuff and stick out in that way. Just doing what we do, while other people do what they do."

"I'm hoping to play some of the songs that we didn't get to play on the headline tour we just did," Kensrue added. "I think we really want to play all the songs on the new record. It's hard to choose between them, but I think we'll pick a couple that we haven't played live so far."

Taste of Chaos kicks off February 16 in San Diego.