Music video analysis

Andrew Goodwin • Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (e.g. stage performance in metal videos,

dance routine for boy/girl band, aspiration in Hip Hop). • 2.There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with

images. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting). • 3.There is a relationship between music and visuals. The tone and atmosphere of the

visual reflects that of the music. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting). • 4.The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist

and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style). • 5.There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors,

stages, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.• 6.The artist may develop motifs or iconography that recur across their work (a visual style)

• 7.There are often intertextual reference (to films, TV programmes, other music videos etc).

‘Forever’ Haim

Haim is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles. The band consists of sisters Este, Danielle and Alana Haim, and drummer Dash Hutton. The group's pop sound on their studio work stands in contrast to the more rock-based music of their live shows.

Andrew Goodwin states that music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (dance routines, stage performances)

• One of the main characteristics for a indie pop rock band is that there is a narrative and a performance. An indie pop rock band also usually has a dance routine, especially in girl bands. Usually this genre of music has very dim lighting, however this music video challenges these conventions as it is very bright and it is bright throughout the video, this may be because it is a happy period of their lives and shows flashbacks of the three sisters of when they were younger. Haim also perform with their musical equipment in the videos showing their rock band conventions, but they have also filmed outside which is also unusual to the indie pop rock band conventions as they usually film indoors with dark lighting and bright unusual backgrounds.

There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with images. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).

• This music video ‘Forever’ is a performance video as the three sisters are performing there song with a dance routine in an environment that they are used to. There are also a lot of close ups on the main singer to prove her power and how important she is. This also makes it clear that she is the main singer.

• This song is all about the three sisters past and their flashbacks to when they were younger. But it is also about relationships, Questioning her past lover on whether he remembers the time they spent together is her way of calling him out. At the same time, it’s hurt that’s making her teasingly question him in this passive fashion. The fact that he seemed to get over the relationship faster than she did after their failure in trying to save it is causing her a bit of mild grievance.

• Every time the beat hits there is also a clear cut onto the next slide/image.

“You tried to see”

“I know, I know, I know you ain't the one to play the game”

The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style).

• This music video does show a lot of close ups, most of them are o n the lead singer, but there are also close ups on the other two sisters when they are playing the guitar. These two sisters are also usually behind the lead singer, this is to make it clear of who the lead singer is. It is not clear that a motif is presented through this video, but there are defiantly various different close ups used.

There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors, stages, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.

• During this music video ‘Forever’ there is always eye contact from the band members to the audience. Due to the empty setting it allows the main focus to be on the band, therefore the audience have all the attention in them and can see them clearly due to the bright lighting. This video also focuses on the eyes and mouth of the lead singer to allow it to be more personal to the audience.

• In this video there is not much sexualising if the body, although when some of the long shots are taken they also pan up the body slowly so that the audience can see their bodies clearly. One of the sisters also has her stomach out as she is wearing a crop top this is also focussed ion by the audience.

• There are various different slow motions shown in this video as it is used on the motorcyclists to symbolize the sisters trying to get over their lover.

The artist may develop motifs or iconography that recur across their work (a visual style)

• Haim usually use different filters to add a unusual colour to their videos, these are used across their work, this video has a bright but also has a dull sense to it due to the filter added. It seems to be a colourwash filter. The clothing used in their videos is very vintage and stylish, they look neat and smart. This suits them due to their figures and looks, they also wear clothing that all matches, therefore they wear some plain clothing and then some patterned.

The 1975- ‘Girls’

The 1975 are an English indie rock band originating from Wilmslow, Cheshire. The group consists of Matthew Healy, Adam Hann, Ross MacDonald, and George Daniel.

Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (e.g. stage performance in metal videos, dance routine for boy/girl band, aspiration in Hip Hop).

• In indie rock bands it is a common characteristic fro them to have filters on, at the very start of this music video it is in black and white. This does soon change to be natural lighting. But it then changes again and there are very bright colours. This video also shows the performance as one of the main genre characteristics. As they are in a casual environment and look as if they are socialising with their friends. As the song is called ‘Girls’ and there are girls always coming into the video, this proves that the style of the video. They also challenge the conventions of this genre as there is usually dark dull colours, but in this music video they are bright colours throughout the video. This makes the video look like a pop music video due to these bright colours and the costumes worn.

• The band members are all wearing plain items of clothing and leatherjackets which is also a characteristic of indie rock music.

There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with images. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).

• After looking at the song ‘girls’ it is clear that it is about girls, it is also about not being single and trying to find a lady/ young girl to be in a relationship with., but he is only finding a young girl who will stay with him for one night only, this is not what he wants.

• This video is a performance based video, therefore there is not much relationship between lyrics ad visuals. Although when they say ‘girls’ and ‘just girls’ there are girls in the shot which allows the lyrics to fit in with the visuals.

• You could also say that when the say ‘I told her from the start destined to be hard I told her from the start ill break your heart destined to be hard break your heart.’ this could mean that the whole time that they are together he knows that it wont workout. This could be why there is a girl hanging out of the car door, to show that it has not worked out.

There is a relationship between music and visuals. The tone and atmosphere of the visual reflects that of the music. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).

• The relationship between the music and visuals is shown through the loud and cheerful tune this then matches the bright background colours and allows the whole video to be happy and cheerful, it is a very upbeat song. The girls are also wearing bright coloured clothing and are on bright backgrounds, allowing the meaning of the song to be shown.

• The atmosphere of the music video is very calm and everyone seems to be happy, although this does not completely show the meaning of the video as they are not completely happy. As their video is performance based, this also meant that they look as if they are in a socializing environment.

The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style).

• Throughout this video there are various different clos ups, on both the band member and the girls. There are a lot of close ups on the girls mouths, they have different colour cigarettes and have a pink liquid coming out of their mouth. The close ups used emphasize a lot on the singer, this makes it clear at who is singing to show who has the power. They repeat the close ups of the girls mouths with different colours. This is to give the motif of the girls and to show the meaning of the song. Allowing them to be shown as a main part of the video. With these close ups it also shows the creative work shown throughout this music video. This is shown through the use of bright colours and various different patterns.

There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors, stages, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.

• In this music video ‘Girls’ the girls are dressed in very minimal clothing, making it look very sexualised. This then links into the meaning of the song, but also the camera is always showing the female body. There are also a lot of close ups on some of the girls. They have bright lipstick which stands out to the audience, this makes the audience concentrate on them.

• There is also voyeuristic treatment of the female body towards the end of the video, as the female lies over the drummer and she promiscuously lies herself on him with very minimal clothing.

The artist may develop motifs or iconography that recur across their work (a visual style)

• In a few of their music videos they have a black and white effect on them. ‘chocolate’ has this effect on although only the start of ‘girls’ has black and white. ‘the sound’ also has monochrome colours. Therefore they use fairly dull colours throughout their work. Another thing that The 1975 use throughout their work is that they have a lot of writing on their music videos. For example in ‘girls’ they girls written and they always have the 1975 sign at the very start of the video.

Lana del rey ‘Young and beautiful’

Elizabeth Woolridge Grant better known by her stage name Lana Del Rey, is an American singer, songwriter, and model. Born and raised in New York, Del Rey embarked on a music career in 2005 and first received widespread attention in 2011.The genre of this song is indie rock.

Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (e.g. stage performance in metal videos, dance routine for boy/girl band, aspiration in Hip Hop).

• This song ‘Young and Beautiful it was clear to me that it is also very like her other music videos, showing that she goes fro the same style. She uses dark, dull effects that appear to look blurry. This makes it look like old vintage footage to allow it too look indie to meet the genre characteristics. There are also colourful lights used on the musicians which is also part of her style in which she follows through some of her other work.

• Throughout Lanas video there are also a wide range of close ups of her singing, they are usually performance, this allows a connection between he audience and the artist. This music video has a very dark dull colour theme, with dark blues and red being some onto the orchestra, then very dull lighting on the artist, this then allows it to fit the genre of indie rock.

National anthem

Video games

There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with images. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).

• This song is performance based, therefore there are very little lyrics that fit the visuals. One of which could be that the verse that starts with 2dear lord , when I get to heaven” the video then goes onto another shot of Lana in some dark dull lighting which makes a shadow of her. This may link to the heaven that she is singing about.

• The chorus says “will you still love me”, this can be seen as a rhetorical question, in which is personal to the artist which then creates a bind between the artist and the audience. But when the artist says this it is a close up meaning that their could be a link between the personal questions and the artist.

There is a relationship between music and visuals. The tone and atmosphere of the visual reflects that of the music. (either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).

• The relationship that there is between music and visuals is that the song has a dull tone, which is then portrayed through the setting and lighting, as there is dull lighting with lighting that form shadows to show images of the meaning of the song. This is also shown through the filters that allow it to look vintage. There are also many clear cuts when the drum beats, they are cut from close ups of the artist to the musicians.

The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work (a visual style).

• Throughout this music video there are lots of close ups on Lana but they are repeated as they are always the same shit at the same angle. But she is singing the song in these close ups. Due to the dark lighting used in this video, there are also times in which it is only clear of seeing her eyes and lips due to the shadows made from the dull lighting. These close ups made allow the audience to feel involved with the singer and allow them to feel as if they are in with her personal life. Her dull tone of voice still fits in with these close ups and allows it to be emphasized when the audience are focused on just her lips.

There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors, stages, etc) and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.

• Throughout this music video it is filmed with a black border in a square with curved edges, this makes the effect look vintage and different. This also shows a screen within a screen. The voyeuristic treatment of the female body is very subtle and is not to outstanding. This video does not focus on very sexualised areas although the lighting around Lanas body shows her figure off. Making the audience have attention to this. As Lana wears dark lipstick this makes the audience focus straight onto the lips of her movement. She also has very bold eye makeup, gaining attention from the audience, although not in such a sexualised way.

The artist may develop motifs or iconography that recur across their work (a visual style)

• Lana uses filters throughout her videos that make it have a fuzzy and blurry effect, this allows it to look vintage. She does this across all of her work, she also dresses the same with lain clothing and usually has her shoulders out. Throughout Lanas video she also wears very bold and outstanding make up, this is so that the audience focuses in on her to prove that she is the singer and for the male gaze.