Video: Willy Moon Railroad Track Director: Michael Carter Genre: Blues

Features
Genre characteristics

Critical Observations
- Amplified song - Real life - Sorrows - Poverty - Escape The lyrics, Ill take you to a place you never did see are sung after images of a town full of poverty are replaced by an image of fireworks over a city which suggests that the artist is talking directly to the people in the town and saying that there are places that we take for granted that they have never seen. Too many people living life thats sweet relates to this as he is telling them all that they deserve to have a better life. The line, I'm leaving town and I aint coming back no more is amplified during the song as it is trying to tell the viewer about these places with people living in poverty and how they want to leave and never come back. The meanings behind the lyrics in this song and genre are literal as the artist wants to get right to the point and tell the viewer exactly how he feels. The video moves with the exact pace and sound of the song. Examples of this are shown when he is walking up the stairs in slow motion as the music slows down and the notes stretch for a few beats. This provides a slowed down mood to the song, allowing the viewer to think about what is happening. The fairy lights at one point flicker to the sound of the thunder which allows the video to flow with the sound effects, linking all the parts of the song. This technique is used again with the sound of screaming along with the fast paced edits and flashes of light when showing the graffiti on the wall; and again when shown an ambulance driving off along with the sound of shouting to replicate the sirens on the ambulance. Only mid shot are used when filming the artist which gives the impression that the video isnt about him but a place in which he is trying to show and talk about, therefore, he doesnt want to be the

Visual Examples

Relationships between lyrics and visuals

Relationship between music and visuals

Are there close ups of the artist and star image motifs?

Is there any reference to the notion of looking/voyeurism qualities? Are there any intertextual references?

one to have close ups as he doesnt want the attention. This provides a selfless image of the artist as he is using his music to tell others about the world, rather than for his own pleasure and gain. This differs from his other videos as they mainly focus on himself as the centre of attention rather than others in the world who would be considered less fortunate and helpless which then contradicts the image he has created in this song. This could then represent a change in image, sound and style. There is a notion of looking in this video as the camera is allowing the viewer to feel as if they are there, looking into all the deserted houses and at one point, they are looking at the crumbling city through the window of a moving train which relates to the song title. There is not any hint of voyeurism in this video. The intertextual references relate to religion as it is a big part of the place that the artist was in when filming the video. It could have also been used to show what the artist himself believes in, or it could be mocking religion by saying that this town believes in a God, yet, they are living in hardship. This video is mainly concept based as the artist is trying to get a message through to others in how people in the world are living in such conditions. It is also narrative based as he is telling a story and using literal meanings in his lyrics. The audience for this video would be people in richer, more economically developed countries as they would be the ones who would be able to help those living in poverty. This could be narrowed down to people such as members of parliament or those who earn a lot of money as they would be the most likely to be able to help and to tell others about it so that they can also give what they can. Another audience could be people living in similar conditions or in the place that it was filmed as they would hear lyrics, such as, Yeah, 'cause imma go down on a railroad track and I ain't going back and no

Is the video performance, narrative, or concept based? How much of each?

How would you describe the audience for this music video?

I ain't coming back. 'Cause imma leaving town and I ain't coming back no more which could be the artist motivating these people to leave the place they are in a find a better life somewhere else. It is a way of giving them hope and telling them to think of what they are happy about and grateful for.

Video: Bjrk Human Behaviour Director: Michel Gondry Genre: Electric

Features
Genre characteristics

Critical Observations
- Surreal theme - Techno sounds - Electric instruments - Amplifying the meaning and illustrating it The name of the song human behaviour is amplified throughout the song and is illustrated through a story showing men hunting in the forest. This is also contradicted as the bear in the video is acting as like a human in the way that he is hunting the men that are hunting him, and at the end of it, he beat ups the man and eats the girl which shows that humans and animals arent that different. The reason behind this video is that the artist may be against hunting and animal cruelty, or she may be contradicting those who do believe in these things as she is trying to show her viewers that humans and animals are all the same. When the music changes, or the pace changes, then the actions and edits in the video change to fit it and allow the video and music to flow to the same beat and create a link between the two. During the scene when a bug flies into the house, the music pace quickens and the bug and girl move about to the same tempo around the light bulb. This could have been done as the girl is mimicking the way a bug would fly around the light and fitting it into the song which again shows the way humans and bugs now are also the same. When the girl is sitting at the table, she taps her cutlery on it at the same time as the beat is played during the song which allows for there to be a connection between the two functions of the music video to form a visual link.

Visual Examples

Relationships between lyrics and visuals

Relationship between music and visuals

Are there close ups of the artist and star image motifs?

Is there any reference to the notion of looking/voyeurism qualities?

Are there any intertextual references?

Is the video performance, narrative, or concept based? How much of each?

The song is being sold through this intriguing way of animation and storyline to appeal to a variety of people. The use of surrealism allows the audience to be interested in the video as they would try to work out what it is about. This then makes the video memorable as it is visually different to other videos. An environmentalist image of the artist is being provided as the theme could be that she is trying to tell people that every kind of animal is endangered because of hunting and even cars on the road. Only a few close ups of the artist were used which could have been to show the emotion on her face or a deeper meaning of how the space of animals in a forest is invaded when people and hunters are around. Other videos by this artist also focus on nature, such as her video Moon. There is no sense of the artist or anyone else being on sexual display or being seen as a sexual object as it wouldnt fit in with the video. There are however references to looking because the camera uses as wide shot to focus on the house from the outside and then uses a jump cut to the girl inside the house. This allows the viewer to feel as if they were looking at the girl through the window and could have been used to replicate how the artist thinks that animals feel when people trespass on their habitats and look inside at them. This video could relate to an aspect of the stars image if she believes in things such as being against hunting, etc., as this is the theme for the video. Fairy tales seem a part of this video because of the house in the woods with a bowl on the table and a bear which could indicate that the artist is recreating Goldilocks and the Three Bears. This video is mainly concept based as the artist is trying to show an idea and her own views on a certain subject. She does this by also making the video narrative based as she has created a story based on the idea which then includes performance as her and other are performing her story in order for the viewers to see her idea in a visual way, rather than just trough the lyrics.

How would you describe the audience for this music video?

The audience for this video could be children as there are oversized teddy bears and a house in the forest which could link to fairy tales such as Goldilocks and the Three Bears. These things are seen as quite magical, unique and fun which would attract children to it. The girl on the moon could show that when children are young, they would always say that they want to be an astronaut when they grow up which allows the artist to include some sort of message to them saying that if you destroy animals habitats, then there will be nothing left, and you wont even see the amazing image of land from space. This could describe the audience as naive and easily moulded into thinking certain things which would make them the best audience for such messages.

Video: 30 Seconds to Mars The Kill Director: Bartholomew Cubbins Genre: Punk

Features
Genre characteristics

Critical Observations
- Surreal - Loud/angry - Dark colours - Artists wearing black eyeliner/nail vanish - Illustrative - Amplified meaning or lyrics and theme One of the most repeated lyrics in this song is, look in my eyes and this is usually sung with a close up on the lead singer so that the viewer is able to actually look into his eyes. A theme throughout this video is twins, therefore, when the lead singer finds his twin dressed in a suit, he sings: I tried to be someone else which illustrates the meaning of the lyrics as he really did try to be someone else because it is as if he is looking into a mirror and seeing who he tried to be which was the man dressed in the suit. This represents the change in character and style that he tried. The lyrics, this is who I really am is screamed when the man and his twin or mirror image grab hold of each other is an aggressive manor to show passion and anger as he has now found out who he himself really is and he is trying to tell his twin so that they can go their separate ways. The video has a film like feel to it (John Stewarts theory) which is shown when the edits match the sound of the ball hitting the wall. This create a chilling mood because it is shown after the screen reads one week later which makes you wonder what has happened to the people in the hotel. In another point in the video when the main character meets his twin, and just as the twin turns around, the chorus starts which changes the sound of the music slightly and the mans face is revealed to show that he looks just the main character who was chasing him. This is used to shock the viewer and create a surreal feel as you don't know if he is real or not. The band who are the characters in the video, are also shown

Visual Examples

Relationships between lyrics and visuals

Relationship between music and visuals

Are there close ups of the artist and star image motifs?

Is there any reference to the notion of looking/voyeurism qualities?

performing in suits on a stage to the song that is playing throughout and because they are in suits, it makes the viewer slightly confused as the characters in suits in the video are supposedly the twins or mirror images which makes you wonder if they are really there. Near the end of the story, during the instrumental part of the song when the vocals are more relaxed but the snare drum is hit on a roll, the images on screen change to the beat of the snare drum to evoke a feeling of losing your mind which can reflect the feelings of the characters within the video. There are mostly only close ups of the lead singer as he is considered the face of the band and the one who represents them which is how the record company sell the track and their image. The image of the band is shown in the video as they are men who wear black eyeliner and nail vanish in a way that allows it to look manly and expressive which shows they don't play by the rules or follow the norms of society that would say that only woman should wear make-up. This could represented in the line, what if I wanted to break, which could be seen as them telling society what would happen if I broke the rules. This separates them from the rest of the world and creates a new system and hierarchy of which they are at the top. This is quite similar to their other videos as they and others are always shown as if they feel alone in the world or different to everyone else. The structure of the song and the way they edit the images to the beat of the song is also quite similar, such as in their video: Up in the Air. The notion of looking is felt as the video provides a cold atmosphere as if someone is spying on them and watching from afar. This is done through the use of establishing shots which show how empty the hotel is and why it is still so empty after a week when it should have only been three days. In the scene when of the band members goes into room 6277 and walks slowly into the bathroom, a woman emerges from the shower in a small towel. This provides the voyeurism for the video because

Are there any intertextual references?

Is the video performance, narrative, or concept based? How much of each?

the bathroom is a private space within a home and seeing the woman in nothing but a towel makes you feel as if you are spying on her as she is in an exposed and defenceless situation. She slowly walks over and kisses the man which shows her a sexual object as if the only reason she is there is to kiss this man. The look on his face shows you that he has never met her before which then puts her in the position of a prostitute or for sexual display. This may have been done to represent the meaning of the lyrics, such as wanting to be broken free from a certain woman who doesnt want the same things she is only interested in the sex side of a relationship, whereas, the man might want an actual relationship with everything else. The music video is based completely on the 1980 film, The Shining (which was based on a book). Almost every scene in the video has been taken and adapted from the film in order to illustrate and amplify the song and its lyrics. The iconic characters of the two little girls who were twins are also used as quite an important theme within the video. The scene in the film when they have been shown dead in the hallway is replicated during the end of the video when the woman in the towel is frequently shown is fast edits, covered in blood. In another scene within the film when someone opens the door to a room occupied by a man in a suit and a man in a bear costume is again replicated within the video but by using the theme of twins as the band member who opens the door to this room is shocked to find his twin is the one in the suit on the bed. This theme is quite essential because the lyrics describe the artist as trying to find himself and who is really is, and so by using twins, it shows his other side and which side it is that he wants to be. This video is equally performance, narrative and concept based. It is performance based because it has almost completely copied The Shining, therefore, the performance by each actor and artist must be almost accurate and very well executed in order to see the link between the two. The narrative links to the performance as the story

How would you describe the audience for this music video?

must explain the lyrics and be able to be understood by the viewer. The concept is the idea to relate the video to the film in order to illustrate the lyrics, therefore, if the video isnt similar enough or done well enough, then the viewers won't be able to see the resemblance. The audience to this music video would mainly be those who have seen The Shining, as they would understand the meaning behind the lyrics and the link between the two. Others would be fans of the band and those of similar music tastes as they would be able to appreciate the video as it fits in with the connotations of this type of music.