music videos

1. Music Video Analysis

2. Andrew Goodwin’s 7 features of music videos
• Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics. (e.g. stage performance in metal videos, dance routine for
boy/girl band, aspiration in Hip Hop).
• There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals. The lyrics are represented with images. (either illustrative,
amplifying, contradicting).
• 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 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).
• There is frequently reference to notion of looking (screens within screens, mirrors, stages, etc) and
particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body.
• The artist may develop motifs or iconography that recur across their work (a visual style)
• There are often intertextual reference (to films, TV programmes, other music videos etc).

3. 'Carry Me'- Bombay Bicycle Club
'Carry Me' is a song by the English indie band Bombay Bicycle Club. This
song was released as a single prior to the album 'So Long, See You
Tomorrow' (2014).
The single was accompanied by an interactive music video which was
used to promote the upcoming album. The video was set in a studio
where the band are shown playing the drums and singing while a couple
dance perfectly in time to the music. Animation has been drawn over the
top of the video which is very unique and shows the band's sense of
originality. The illustrations have been drawn by multiple artists as a way
to promote their work, as well as the band's.

4. Genre description
When comparing 'Carry Me' to other music
videos, it is clearly shown how original and
interesting it is. Bombay Bicycle Club are an
indie rock band who primarily produce
imaginative ideas for music videos. 'Carry
Me' isn't any different to this. This video (as
well as their others) fits into the indie
genre. ' How Can You Swallow So Much
Sleep' and 'Luna' are examples of other
interesting and inventive videos which the
band have created.
'How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep'
'Luna'
Bombay Bicycle Club's music videos vary from song to song. 'Carry Me' would be
described as fitting into the illustration video genre as there is a mixture of performance
and a simple narrative, between the couple dancing, have been used. This is similar to
'Always Like This' as that follows similar conventions to the 'Carry Me' video. However
other videos, for example ‘Feel’, could be described as fitting into the amplification
genre. This is where there is a narrative throughout the whole video. The diversity
between Bombay Bicycle Club’s videos show how their music adapts to different styles
of video due to the original and alternative type of music.
‘Feel’
‘Always Like This’
Most indie music videos follow the same conventions. A typical
convention is live performance which is shown during the ‘Carry
Me’ video. This allows artists/bands passion for their music to
come across. It allows the audience to focus on the music which
is important with a single that is promoting an upcoming album.
This could describe why performance is such a big element of the
‘Carry Me’ video. A lot of alternative artists now place some
narrative aspects within the performance/have a video which is
purely just narrative. Bombay Bicycle club did this with ‘Carry
Me’ and ‘Luna’ for example. A lot alternative/indie bands have
fully performance based videos, which usually feature some sort
of lighting effect. Bombay Bicycle Club challenge this convention
by making their music videos individual and unique to their band.

5. Relationship between lyrics and visuals
‘Carry Me’ is largely performance based which means that there is little relationship between the lyrics and the visuals. However there is an
aspect of narrative which forms a relationship. During the video a man and a woman are shown dancing together. It could be inferred that they
are representing the lyrics of the song.
Towards the middle of the video the lyrics say ‘If anybody wants to know, Our love's getting old’. This is shown
to describe the relationship between the two actors in the video as declining and getting worse. The repetition
of ‘carry me’ then begins. During these lyrics the woman is shown leaning backwards, as if she is going to fall.
It could be inferred that she is wanting the man to come and ‘carry’ her. The man then appears running which
shows that he is going to catch his partner. The enhances the relationship between the lyrics and the visuals as
the relationship is clearly shown. This again is developed when the man is shown rescuing the woman when
he catches her before she falls. The lyrics ‘carry me’ are describing the relationship between the two
characters in the video. As well as having the literal meaning of the man carrying the woman, it could
metaphorically mean that two people in a relationship rely on each other to stay strong. This strong bond is
shown when the couple are shown holding each other towards the end of the video, after the man has
stopped the woman from falling.

6. Relationship between the music and the visuals
Throughout the whole ‘Carry Me’ video the music and visuals match one another. There
is one heavy main beat which continues throughout the whole video. Throughout the
video the visuals always match that beat. At the start of the video, the band are shown
hitting a drum in time to the beat. A close up shot from a side angle is used to show the
drum playing. The drums are shown moving position at every beat in the music. This
precise editing allows the bond between the music and visuals to build.
During the video there is a couple dancing. Their
movements are shown being in time to the beat
due to the jumpy effect that has been used. This
makes their actions seem less smooth which
matches the music perfectly. The lighting during
the aspects where there is dancing has been
manipulated to build the music and visuals
relationship. The lights flicker in time to the music
which makes the bond between the movements
and the beat much stronger. The relationship
between the music and visuals stays consistent
throughout the whole video. This makes the video
as a whole very put together and sophisticated.

7. Close ups and motifs
Throughout the video, Jack Steadman is shown as being the main singer. Barely any close ups are used during the video which demonstrates and
reiterates the genre and sense of individuality that the band has. The video hasn’t followed the common convention of using many close ups of the
main artist. Mid way through a semi-close up is used on the main singer. This shot only lasts few seconds but is then repeated later on. This helped to
build a relationship between the audience and the main artist. This would allow a fan base to form, meaning that the band have more sales when
their album is released.
Even through not many close ups are used, many motifs have been used.
This is another common convention used in music videos, which Bombay
Bicycle Club have followed. The shot of the band playing the drums is
repeated multiple times. This allows the audience to feel connected to
the music as well as the band. When the singing begins Steadman is
shown stood forward while the rest of the band stand behind him. This
demonstrates how their record label wants there to be a main singer who
leads the rest of the band. This is different to the beginning of the video
where Steadman is stood with the rest of his band members. This
showing diversity throughout the video.

8. Reference to the notion of looking
During the ‘Carry Me’ video the notion of looking is used by the
band members. Eye contact with the camera is gained which
allows the audience to feel more involved with the band
themselves. However this is mainly only used at the start of
video. This is because the visuals match the main beat which
continues throughout the song. The bands head moves in time to
the beat which results in a lack of eye contact. Due to the indie
genre, the lack of eye contact and notion of looking is expected.
The reference to the notion of looking is a very common
convention in pop videos. This demonstrating why it hasn’t been
used that often throughout the ‘Carry Me’ video.
The notion of looking, when used, is mainly used by Steadman. This
allows him to stand out as being the main vocalist and leader of the band.
Record labels like bands to have one main leader/vocalist. This has been
achieved in the ‘Carry Me’ video by Steadman having the most eye
contact with the camera. This allows the audience to feel more involved
and it helps build a relationship between the band and the fans.
Even though eye contact is used, the band members facial expressions do
not allow a stronger bond to form between the audience and themselves.
They look emotionless during the aspects with eye contact. This doesn’t
allow their personalities to come across to the audience. The band have
followed the common convention of using eye contact and the notion of
looking. However they haven’t used it as much as most videos. They also
haven't used it in a seductive way which a lot of music videos do. This has
allowed them to keep their originality as well as using aspects of common
conventions during music videos.

9. Intertextual References
The main story throughout the video is about a couple who are struggling with their relationship. However despite this, they still rely on each
other. This relationship is shown through their movements. Their dancing is very intimate and shows their love for one another. There is a line in
the song which says ‘if anybody wants to know our love is getting old’ which is telling the audience that they aren’t as close any more. However,
the man is later shown running to catch his partner which shows that they are still there for one another.
Despite the meaning behind the song and video, it has no
intertextual references to films or other music videos. This is
expected due to indie genre of music. The band’s style is
very original and therefore the ‘Carry Me’ video doesn't
have any intertextual references.

10. ‘Falling’- HAIM
‘Falling’ is a song by the American girl band HAIM. The band
consists of the sisters Este, Danielle and Alana Haim. ‘Falling’
was apart of the band’s ‘Days Are Gone’ album which was
released in 2013. It was the third single from their debut
album, showing that it was used to help promote the band and
album. ‘Falling’ was accompanied by a music video which was
nominated for an NME Award for Best Music Video. The video
is set in a jungle and it introduces the band members and their
relationship with each other. It allows their unique ‘Indie-Rock’
style to come across. Over the top of the video a filter has been
used to make the picture seem vintage and unique to any other
video.
As well as the video itself, a behind the scenes video was put
together for the making of ‘falling’. This would allow the fans to
see the band’s real personalities as well as seeing how the
video was made and what they thought of the process. This
may have been used to help market the album as fans are more
likely to buy the album if they feel like they know the band.

11. Genre description
Haim’s music videos follow similar conventions throughout them all. They all fit into the illustration description as they involve both
performance and narrative. ‘Falling’ is no different to this. Despite the similarities between the band’s music videos, they are all still very
unique and well thought through. They all fit into the indie-rock genre of music which is expected for the style that Haim aim to achieve. Haim
are a pop rock band with a slight edge. Their music videos are always extremely different and stand out as being their unique style.
‘Falling’ is about the three sisters exploring a jungle-like area.
During the video viewers get to see survival activities as well as
the band messing around and being their usual selves. Small
dance routines commonly feature in Haim videos which is an
individual trait that the band have adopted. The dancing is never
normally too serious however, this making it more interesting and
rare. For a part rock band, dancing and acting isn’t common
throughout music videos. Therefore these features allow their
indie approach to be shown.
The mise-en-scene chosen for Haim’s music videos are
always very individual and interesting. The location for
‘falling’ is very different to other videos. The use of the
environment during the video allows it to have a
professional and individual finish.

12. Relationship between lyrics and visuals
The ‘falling’ video is largely performance based as the band is constantly lip syncing throughout the video. This makes it hard for their to be a
strong relationship between the lyrics and the visuals. There are many interpretations as to what the lyrics mean, however some may think
that they are about falling in love. It could be believed that the person that they are falling for isn’t approved by others due to the lyrics ‘don’t
stop, no, I’ll never give up’. This may be the narrator encouraging herself to do what she wants to do; rather than listening to the ‘voices’.
This analysis of the lyrics shows that the bond between the lyrics and visuals is very weak. By just watching the video, without the lyrics, this
meaning would not be seen. The only link is the band actually lip syncing the lyrics during the video. Other than that, the visuals are very
unrelated to the lyrics and the meaning behind them. This demonstrates that the band is diverse and doesn’t just do the expected. They think
of something exciting and create a video based on that- rather than the lyrics. This makes the band much more interesting as their videos are
unpredictable. ‘The Wire’ however does have a stronger relationship between the lyrics and the visuals. This shows how diverse Haim are
when it comes to their videos.

13. Relationship between the music and the visuals
At the start of the video there is a quieter beat which
continues four times. These beats indicate a cut and change
of mise-en-scene. This builds a relationship between the
music and visuals from the very beginning of the video.
However, despite there being a strong continuous beat
throughout, the band have not chosen to match that beat
with the visuals all the way through. At certain points there
are cuts which match with the beat, this mainly happens
towards the middle of the video.
The band’s movements match the continuous beat at certain points.
Most of the movements are very slight but this makes it more effective
and professional. For example slight head movements have been
matched with the music. This creates a bond between the music and
visuals. Towards the middle of the song the music gets slower and the
lyrics ‘falling’ is repeated. The band is shown running in slow motion
during this part. This strengthens the bond between the visuals and the
music. When the music begins to speed up again, the band is shown
dancing in time to the music. The relationship between the music and
visuals is very subtle.

14. Close ups and motifs
Close ups have commonly been used throughout the ‘falling’ video. This is expected as it is a camera angle that Haim often adopt. All three
sisters have long hair which has been used during the video. Close ups of band ‘swishing’ their hair has been used multiple times. The use pf
these close ups allows a close and personal relationship between the fans and the band to be built up. There are many close ups of the band
whilst they are singing. This would allow the viewers to feel connected to the lyrics as well as the band. As ‘falling’ was used to help promote
the album, these close ups are an important aspect of the video as it would encourage fans to buy the album due to the closeness. Towards
the end of the video, the colour palette gets a lot darker and the band are shown with shadows over their faces. These close ups make the
band members look fierce, showing a different side to them.
Dancing is a very common feature throughout all Haim music videos. It is always the band themselves who dance too, this showing that they
are not afraid to get involved, this making them much more likeable. This allows all the band’s videos to stay consistent and similar. ‘Falling’
features a small dance routine towards the end of the video. The dancing isn’t really that serious however it is still at a high standard, showing
that they have found the correct balance. The dancing aspects shows their personalities and confidence. This would make the audience feel
connected to and like they know more about the band members.

15. Reference to the notion of looking
Eye contact is quite common throughout the ‘Falling’ video. This allows the audience to feel more
connected to the band and the song. As ‘falling’ was a single before the band’s album was
released, the use of the eye contact would allow the band to gain more fans and promote the
album better. The use of the eye contact allows the video to feel more performance based as the
band interact with the camera. They don’t act like the camera isn’t there, like a lot of artists do in
their own music videos. Haim find the correct balance between performance and narrative. This is
partly due to the notion of looking. The use of the interaction with the camera makes it more of a
performance, compared to the acting parts which is more narrative. Majority of Haim’s videos
have a similar balance of narrative and performance, due to the use of eye contact. I believe that
this balance is one of the reasons that Haim are so popular.
Eye contact is used at different points in the video. Some parts
involve the whole band interacting with the camera, while
other parts involve individual band members. These individual
parts are commonly close ups. This allows the audience to feel
even more connected to the band. This would help with sales
of the album as the band would seem more likeable.

16. Intertextual references
The ‘falling’ video is very similar to ‘Hothouse’ by 78Violet.
Both videos involve the same amount of performance as
one another. The mise en scene is very similar as both
involve fields and flowers etc; they involve a lot of nature.
The women in both videos are wearing similar clothing, all
outfits are quite plain but effective for the location that they
are in.
Other than the 78Violet video, ‘falling’ doesn’t have any
direct references to any other film or TV programme. Haim’s
videos are very unique which is why there might not be any
intertextual references. Programmes such as Skins use a
similar location to be free and chill out with friends. This is a
similar idea to Haim’s video which is set in a jungle. This
band are shown exploring the location which is similar to
the activities that the Skins cast get involved in.

17. ‘Houdini’- Foster the People
‘Houdini’ is a single from the American band Foster the
People’s debut album ‘Torches’ (2011). It was the band’s
forth single from the album, following "Helena Beat",
"Call It What You Want“ and "Don't Stop (Colour on the
Walls)”. The single ‘Pumped up Kicks’ kick started the
band’s singing career, landing them a record deal with the
company Startime International.
‘Houdini’ was accompanied by a music video which
featured the band members Mark Foster, Mark Pontius
and Cubbie Fink. The video would be described as being
in the amplification category of music videos. It is
primarily a narrative as it has a strict plot throughout it
all. The plot is that the band have an accident and end up
being killed. They have a gig the next day so they get
turned into robots so that they can still perform. Towards
the end of the video there is a slight performance,
however despite the performance it is still part of the
narrative as they are still acting.

18. Genre description
Foster the People would be described as being an Indie Pop band due to the upbeat, infectious albums. The band’s music videos are usually
very inventive and unusual. They predominantly fit into the amplification category of music video due to the common use of a narrative. The
band’s videos aren’t necessarily that similar however this makes each video very individual and exciting. The single ‘Pumped up Kicks’ was the
band’s first single which got them famous. The video for that single is one of the band’s only video which is mostly a performance. This show
that the band might have decided afterwards what sort of path they wanted to go down for their videos.
The use of the narratives throughout their videos makes them a lot more interesting and exciting. ‘Houdini’ is about the band getting turned
into robots after they were killed rehearsing. They go on to do a gig while they are robots. This plot is very inventive and different to other
music videos. This sort of plot is not common, this making the video popular and unique. The videos shows that the band do not mind getting
involved and having fun with their videos- a lot of indie bands would not be like this. This would make them a lot more likeable, helping them
to sell their single and later their album.

19. Relationship between the lyrics and the visuals
The ‘Houdini’ video is very bizarre and random. It is very unique and has a very
unusual, comical plot to the narrative. Due to this, the relationship between the
lyrics and the visuals is very weak. There isn’t as bond between the two. The band
decided to create a video that doesn’t have any relevance to the song, other than
the slight aspects of performance. For an indie band this is expected. After
watching many of Foster the People’s videos, you can see that they enjoy creating
‘weird’ videos. They stand out as they are so uncommon. As a viewer, you would
be able to pick the video out as being a Foster the People video. This is very
important and would make the band as a whole a lot more popular due to their
unique music videos.

20. Relationship between the music and the visuals
The relationship between the music and the visuals is much stronger than the relationship between the lyrics and the visuals. The visuals
throughout the video matches the beat and most phrases in the music. At the beginning of the video the band are performing and therefore
the music matches the visuals perfectly. After the lights fall the relationship weakens slightly. The visuals are just of the production crew
panicking, so therefore this isn’t in time to the music. However once the lyrics begin the visuals begin to match the music once again. For
example the crew’s heads all turn in time to the beat. The Asian man is also shown clicking in time to the main beat with continues through the
song. The relationship is very subtle as there are only slight movements which match the beat in the music. However all of these slight
movements together make a strong bond between the music and visuals.
Mid way through the video the band are shown
being made to dance. Their movements are in time
to the music perfectly which builds the relationship
between the music and visuals. This bond grows once
again after the band have been turned into robots
and begin to perform. The visuals match the beat
perfectly.

21. Close ups and motifs
Throughout the video close ups aren’t commonly used. Closer shots have been used to show facial expressions and emotions but this isn’t
always just on the band. After the lights fall onto the band, the crew’s emotions are shown by the use of close ups. Throughout the video a
lot of zooms to close ups have been used. This camerawork empathises the emotion in the actors face. A close up has been used to show
the process of one of the band members being turned into a robot. This is very unusual for a music video and therefore reiterates how
unique the band are. Throughout the video the band are shown performing the song multiple times. Due to this being repeated, mainly on
the chorus, repetition occurs which allows the video to look professional.
Reference to the notion of looking
The video has a strong plot which means that the band are constantly acting throughout. This results in there being a lack of eye contact
with the camera. If there were eye contact with the camera it would ruin the effect that they have desired. The only slight part which
has eye contact with the camera is after the band has been turned into robots and are walking to the stage. There is about 3 seconds of
eye contact which shows that it isn’t that significant.

22. Intertextual references
‘Houdini’ doesn’t have any direct intertextual references
however it has had some Television features. It appeared in
series five, episode one of Gossip Girl and the video game
SSX. These features show that their music is very popular
however so unique that it doesn’t have any references to
films. For example the music video for the single doesn’t
have an direct links to films or any other music video. This
is expected however due to how unusual the video is.
The plot for the video is very unique and well thought
through. No other band/artist has created a video with a
similar storyline. This would be because it is so unusual
and some might say brave. Despite the video being very
different, it is incredibly entertaining and interesting. This
is what makes it so popular. However this is also why it
doesn’t have any references to films- its so exclusive.