Starlight

Muse

Genre Characteristics

Muse are an alternative rock band, there music video fits this genre as we see them performing the song on a ship which is very common with this genre of music. Another key feature is the lip syncing in this music video which is often used in alternative rock videos giving the sense that the band is playing live or to an audience.

Relationship between the lyrics and the visuals

At some points in the music video the lyrics and visuals can be quite illustrative however, at other times they are contradicting and have no relationship at all. I think the relationship between the lyrics and visuals is amplifying. Although there isn’t a proper storyline in the music video there are times when the lyrics and visuals link well. For example ‘never fade away’ shows the fireworks fading into the dark sky; also reference to the title of the song ‘Starlight.’

However, there are other parts where there seems to be no relationship the band are performing on a ship which has no reference in the song or the music video suggesting it could be seen as a contradicting video.

Relationship between the music and the visuals

I think that the tone and atmosphere in this music video is very illustrative of the music. As we can see most of the cuts are edited very well to the beat of the music. For example, in the music video when the lyrics stop we are shown the inside of the ship from different angles, quite fast paced linking in time with the beat of the music very well. Another point is in the chorus when the pace picks up in both the editing and the song and when the song comes to an end the editing is slowed down panning away from the ship whilst the music finishes.

Demands of the record label

The band is very illustrative in this music video as the majority of the video is them playing the song; appearing as they usually do with their instruments and equipment as though they are playing a live show. There is lots of close up shots on all the members of the band, especially the lead. Suggesting that this music video does meet the demands of the record label including the need of close up shots.

Notion of looking and intertextual references

In this music video the notion of looking does not apply as there is no sign of any female throughout the whole video but only the band playing the song.There could be signs of intertextuality in the lyrics ‘of all the people who care if I live or die’ as this is very similar to a line from The Smiths song which Muse have covered previously ‘Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Know’ which states ‘why do I give valuable time to people who do not care if I live or die.’