2. Mumford and sons are an English Indie/folk rock band, formed
in London in 2007. The band consists of Marcus Mumford (lead
vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, drums), Ben Lovett
(vocals, keyboard, piano, synthesizer), Winston Marshall
(vocals, electric guitar, banjo) and Ted Dwane (vocals, bass
guitar, double bass). They have won a Brit award for the Best
album, and have 6 overall Grammy awards. Since 2007 they
have released 3 albums; Babel, their second album sold over
600,000 copies in the US in the first week alone.
They have now been titled ‘The biggest Alternative band in the
world’ by the Guardian.
Wikipedia
MUMFORD AND SONS - THE BEGINNING.
3. THE MESSAGE/STORY BEHIND THE VIDEO
Directed by — and starring — actor Idris Elba, the "Light" video tells
the story of a blind man who literally leaves his disability at the door,
ditching his cane and wandering out into the wide world. And though
he's sightless, he bravely dashes through a forest, sprints toward the
edge of a cliff and lives his life unencumbered, for the first time. It is
an incredibly powerful, moving thing, a clip meant to both inspire and
empower ... which is exactly what they were going for when they sat
down with Elba to discuss the treatment.
Source - mtv.com
4. ANDREW GOODWIN- HOW TO ANALYSE A MUSIC VIDEO
According to Goodwin there are 5 key ways to analyse a music video, these are:
- Thought beats – Where you ‘see’ the sound
- Narrative and Performance
- The Star Image
- Relation of visuals to song
- Technical aspects of a music video
5. FIRST IMAGE - THE REINDEER
▸ The music video starts with a wide shot, revealing
the setting and an introduction of a reindeer, which
will play a prominent role later in the music video.
The wide shot is used to display a peaceful setting,
this is done by allowing the audience to see a large
amount of space, which is only taken up by nature
and wildlife. These types of shots and themes are
commonly used within the Indie/folk/folk rock genre
and connote tranquility, peace and positive thoughts,
which supports the conventional type of messages
Indie/ folk artists like to communicate through their
music. Common music videos of this genre often
use un-materialistic, raw or personal
experiences/feelings towards a particular situation to
tell their story. Mumford and Sons have conformed
to this convention, creating a beautiful opening shot
for the audience to engage with.
The use of a reindeer in the first
shot of the music video relates
to the main concept of the lyrics
and narrative. The reindeer
symbolises the religious aspect
of gaining strength and
empowerment and it is most
associated with at Christmas
season. Furthermore, reindeers
represent journeying,
wandering, safe travels and
endurance, this represents him
regaining the freedom he lost by
leaving his disability at home
and following the light, which is
also a religious association.
6. THOUGHT BEATS
▸During the entirety of the music video the rhythm and pace of the visuals matches the structure of
the song. For example at the start of the song when there are slower verses, the action is
reduced and there is a slower pace of editing to match the lyrics. We see lots of close up shots of
the Idris Elba performing his morning routine. But then when the drums and main guitars kick in
and the lyric pace increases, there is a juxtaposition between the shots and the lyrics because we
see a lot more slow motion shots. The visuals however have a lot more movement and action
and do therefore match Goodwin’s theory of thought beats. There are wider shots of him in his
luxury house and when he is at the beach. The lead singer (Marcus Mumford’s) voice is very
distinctive, and is therefore easy to match the lyrics to the visuals. In the instrumental interlude,
there are still slow motion shots, however there are shots of him running, and having fun. Though
there are no lyrics to match the visuals at this point, the audience are able to see the sound and
still gather an idea of what it is about.
7. NARRATIVE AND PERFORMANCE
▸There is a strong link between the lyrics and the visuals, but this video is not a performance video. It is
very much narrative, and therefore the lyrics have a huge impact on the direction and style of the music
video. There is constant reference to the Deer and the outdoors, two key features of the video, this
creates coherent repeatability within the film. the link between the lyrics and the visuals is very strong,
and the audience are able to fully understand the narrative behind the visuals. So much so that if you
watched the video without lyrics and vice versa you could still develop and understanding. The lyrics
suggest that this is a man trying to escape from his disability ‘’Skin too tight and eyes like marble…you
spin me high so watch me as I glide’’. There are constant references both in the lyrics and the visuals to
enforce the fact that he has disabilities, and that he is trying to escape them.
▸As Marcus Mumford said in an interview to MTV, he wanted this music video to be ‘’Observational and
not narrative’’ - This makes it a bit more challenging to understand than just a simple narrative video.
8. THE STAR IMAGE
▸The star of this video is Idris Elba (OBE), a well loved and highly regarded actor, musician, DJ
and TV personality. As well as being the sole actor in this production, he also wrote and directed
the video himself, with input directly from Mumford and Sons. The image he is promoting is purely
to promote the narrative. But the importance of Elba is that people are keen to watch this video
because he is starring in it, and the audience pose the question ‘’isn’t that the video with Elba in
it’’. He is already an acclaimed star, and the image he is representing to support the star image is
associated with the folk rock genre, wearing smart yet bland clothing. So that in theory anyone
watching the video without sound could instantly know that this is a folk/indie/alternative style
song/video. The style of the video alongside Elba’s star image is very reminiscent of peoples
assumptions of the folk genre, with countryside, rolling hills, sunsets and wildlife (all common
styles/features occurring in folk music videos).
9. RELATION OF VISUALS TO THE SONG
▸In this music video there are a specific set of images used to illustrate the meaning of the lyrics and
genre, therefore it is very illustrative. But also these images are constantly shown throughout the
video, enough so that they are drummed into our vision.
▸The image of Elba, who is disabled, is used to illustrate the lyrics. For example in the lyrics ‘’There'll
be no comfort in the shade’’ there is an image of Elba crying, shortly followed by a wide shot with a
sunset in the background and Elba in the foreground. This matches the lyrics because of the ‘’no
comfort in the shade’’ in the lyrics and the sunset in the visuals. To exploit his disability in the
visuals the same concept is used, in the lyrics ‘’to close my eyes and ears’’ are represented by a
shot of Elba’s shadow, not him. By using a shadow to represent his disability, it connotes a sense of
inability to see, the fact that the shadow looks like a grizzly bear suggests they are trying to
represent Elba as having strength and power, and being able to ‘lose’ his disability.
10. TECHNICAL ASPECTS
▸The film is more often than not edited to the beat of the song. Also when there are slower verses, there is a slower
pace of editing to match the lyrics. But then when the drums and main guitars kick in and the lyric pace increases,
there is a juxtaposition between the shots and the lyrics because we see a lot more slow motion shots. Yet the pace
of editing will still increase to match the increase in pace of the lyrics.
▸The camera is handheld to create a natural look and feel, and to match the un-easy movements and lifestyle of
Elba through his disabilities.
▸The trees, countryside, hills, deer, beach and sunset all conform to the overfall feel of a folk/indie music video. This
allows the video to attain an authentic and professional feel, because it matches the song/instruments used.
▸The lighting and colour has allowed the audience to know when to feel sad for him, for example the clear shots of
his disability and when he is crying, the editor has chosen to use darker colours and use less lighting. But in the
happier scenes, like when he is running and on the edge of the cliff, they use bright and vibrant colours and lots of
natural lighting from the sun to resemble the joyful and happy mood.
