Music Video Analysis

Is it narrative, performative, conceptual or a combination?

• The video is both narrative and performative. The singer is telling a story while simultaneously working through a very intricate performance with the rest of the band.

What visual elements are used to style the video (color, shape, line, tone, light, rhythm)? Does it stay consistent throughout or does it change? When and why does it change?

• Lighting: The warehouse is very well lit. Ceiling lights are covered with softboxes to avoid harsh shadows while still keeping everything extremely visible.
• Colors: The colors are extremely bright and vibrant, so they may have increased the contrast and brightness just a bit, but I believe that was mostly due to their color choices for the installations. The tone stays in the mid-range, never really leaning to brights or darks.
• Lines: The audience is constantly getting a changing view. The camera tilts frequently. Very frequently.
• Rhythm: The video is fairly consistent throughout - with one notable exception. The tracking speed generally travels about the speed of a person walking, because that’s exactly what’s moving it, but during one segment the camera is slowly and evenly rolling past a set of boxes filled with words. This helps pull the viewer out of the chaos for a moment so we can give the content our full attention. While not from the lyrics, the words help us understand what write is feeling about the actual relationship itself.

What are some of the key moments in the video? How are they photographed?

• The very first shot of the video sets up the entire performance. The audience sees the band’s logo large and centered in the screen in front of a white background, but then it turns and we realize it has more depth than we would have even considered. What else isn’t as it seems? Another very key moment, in my opinion, is the final few seconds. The camera is placed at a high angle and shows a long shot (extreme long shot?) of the one whole side of the warehouse. The audience is given a moment to process (and the video gets its “handles”) and then the crew bursts out from behind the pillars. The exuberance shown by everyone is just the perfect ending. They had “pleasure in their eyes”.

Does the camera stay static or is there movement? Why does the camera move?

• The camera uses tracking shots for a majority of the video. It is set down occasionally to give the viewers a chance to look at the picture that has been created by its new position and angle. The camera follows the band around the warehouse since each installation of the performance must be able to accommodate an entire human along with its own components.

Does the video follow the story of the song or reinterpret it in a new way? 

• In some ways the video does follow the story of the song - while also being its very own story:
• The lyrics speak of an imminent breakup, and the writer is expressing his desire to have just one more happy night with his partner. “It seems like forever since we had a good day” and he wants “to see some pleasure in (their) eyes.” The video is bright and playful and I believe in every way is a good representation of a person attempting to cheer someone else up.
• The video also tells the story of the creation of this intricate setup. As the camera moves through the elements we can see all of the details that had to be perfected to make the images believable. The final shot when the entire crew steps out from their hidden locations on the set and the realization that they have been moving there all along really drives home the story of the video production aspect.

I love this video!