Critical Analysis of Music Videos 7

Various Artists


This post is here because after analysing a range of videos made by each specific artist, I realised that I wanted to include other videos on their merit, instead of focusing on the band or singer. Here I have analysed three videos (which I love) that are original, well executed and clever. I hope to use these as influences when we come to make our video.


Dan ~ Grovesnor 

Dan is a great example of a low budget video set in a definable era, in this case the 1970's. It also happens to very funny! The 2 key features that show the 70's influence are costume and lighting. The costumes are very simple and yet very obviously 70's: the cut of the male character's jackets and the prints and colours of his shirts, (orange and mustard) are evocative of this era. The female character's costume is slightly less obvious, however the dungarees and patterns on her clothing reflect the 70's look. The lighting is used in two ways here: in the performance sections the stage lights, combined with a special filter  make them very similar to lighting used on 'Top of the Pops' in this decade.

Example of 70's colouring on photo

The other way is with the narrative sequence, again either lighting, a filter or a combination of the two have made the picture hazy and bleached which is very similar to how photos in the 70's came out. This feature adds a reminiscent and romantic feel to the narrative, as if we are looking at someone's 'rose tinted' memories of that time.  Editing on the beat of the music is a common feature in music videos, however I feel they do it differently in Dan - the technique is used all the way through instead of just as a novelty feature.  Another element I love in this video is the short sequence where the performance is being shown, it then cuts to the narrative and they are watching the performance on the television. This kind of cut has been used many times in music videos but again, it's the way this band has executed it. And lastly, the funny bits. The humour is made throughout the video through facial expressions (especially using 'surprised eyes') and body language/action when the two characters are trying to catch the dog and with the '3rd arm' in bed. I think the reason the humour works here and doesn't detract from the drama of the story is that it is 'silent' and so only through the subtle movements is it created. Also the use of comic actors (James Corden, Jim Howick and Matthew Baynton) means the comedy in the scenes is natural and as a result, much more effectively.


Grounds for Divorce ~ Elbow

There are a number of really good features in this video I would like explore. In the first shot, all the media elements combine to set the scene and emotion of the video. The two shot glasses are dumped heavily on the scuffed bar by gnarled hands, slightly slopping some alcohol over the side of the glass, the other hands pass the money and take the glasses away without saying anything. This unceremonious action is delivered in such a way, that the audience knows the barman and the customer have done this thousands of times.  The colour scheme of the costumes, location and lighting of many shades of brown also reflect the dreary, sloppy, broken mood of the whole video. The other, quite original, element that I really love in this video is the manipulation of the film at certain points, repeating, rewinding and slowing sections, to make the action correspond with the beat. (example at 0:35).


End Love ~ OKGO

OKGO are widley known for their ambitious choreographed videos, and I think that 'End Love' was one of the most labour-intensive and technically challenging of them all. It was filmed over 18 hours in Echo Park! I am just astounded at the amount of calculations that would have gone into this video, because parts are speeded up and parts were slowed down so the rate at which they were mouthing the lyrics along to the song would keep changing! Another humorous element that was not planned was the goose that decided to follow the band around throughout the day. As always, it was an incredible feat of planning and creativity which paid off!


Song for Whoever ~ The Beautiful South
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsLq9rnnTCM


(Unfortunately, we are unable to embed the video into the blog due to copyright issues)

The blancmange has often been used
 as a"comedy pudding". Image
from a sketch in Monty Python

From the generic structure of the beginning of this video: a dark backdrop band performance interspersed with black and white narrative shots, the audience would be forgiven for thinking this is just another generic 80's love song video: But that is exactly the point! I had to watch it twice before I fully understood the joke, it is a sharp satirical look at the pop music industry at the time. Commenting on band management, press reactions (thinking of the subtitle: 'you cant sing, you look awful... you'll go a long way') and the fickle nature of chart shows. A separate feature that is an interesting way to move the narrative along is the use of scenes with captions "The Audition" for example, it makes it easier for the audience to understand the narrative with no audible dialogue. The conveyer belt in this scene is also a funny comment on the disposability of modern artists and the pace at which the industry brings in and discards them.