I have chosen to analyse ‘Always Like This’ by Bombay Bicycle Club as I feel it is an interesting music video as it chooses creative and arty ways to present what could be squeaky clean and studio made, making it actually have more appeal for me and also allowing me to gain inspiration that successful music videos can have a ‘home made’ feel if it is used correctly and to an advantage. This is particularly useful information as for us to make a music video to a professional standard, something more studio based (take for example, Cheryl Cole’s or Rihanna’s videos) would be really hard to achieve with such limited equipment available to us however this more creative arty take on things is equally as effective but would be much more realistic for us to make.
The video starts with what looks like an old video tape flickering and the noise of a working video player. This initiates the feeling of ‘home made’ as it makes us reminiscent of old family videos and so actually can draw us into the video as it feels familiar and non-threatening. We then see the controls of the video player and see the fast-forward button being used which confirms suspicions of a video player and tape. The video shows us various settings on fast-forward all which again seem familiar and reminiscent of family like tapes, we see a roundabout, garage doors and a drum kit outside what we assume to be a house; these all set the scene as again they are familiar and therefore comforting and we are allowed to gain context as these settings all are seen throughout the video again.
We then see the lead singer walk into the scene with a guitar so we are allowed to assume that this is the frontman and whom the focus of this ‘home video’ is going to be on. Once the singing begins with ‘oh she can wait for what I can give’ the video player noise continues to make the ‘home made’ feel seem more believable, however it is hardly noticeable above the singing so doesn’t take away from the music. The rest of the band is then filmed in other various locations and finally they all come together outside a house when the beat kicks in, which allows us to see that together they work best as the beat climaxes with them all in harmony.
The pause, play and fast-forward buttons are made apparent throughout the video and used frequently to speed up the video which allows condensing of time but also an ‘arty’ feel as to see things in fast-forward adds interest to the video. There is also a constant altering of quality throughout the video constantly reminding us that this is supposed to have a home tape feel. It also adds to the appeal as it gives different perspectives and allows us to focus on certain aspects as the focus literally improves to allow us to take this hint.
The homemade and arty feel is furthered by certain angles such as the close-up angle of a guitarists hands strumming to the beat which adds to the arty feel as it offers an alternative and creative angle but also gives musical context as the guitar is present in the mise-en-scene. The alternating and fast changing colours of the garage doors also adds to the feeling of creativeness and goes along to the beat, this is an example of quick jump shots which are edited accordingly to the music and I believe is incredibly effective and adds appeal and is something I would like to consider when making our own video. Further uses of being creative yet abiding to the beat is the shot of the band on the swings as it adds a fun feel but they swing to the tune making it relevant and not completely disjunctive.
The locations shot include a play area, a park, a car park, a high street, an outside of a house, outside flats, outside shops etc. These all are familiar and generally accessible to the general public all which add to the believable ‘home tape’ and all which could be considered for similar use when making our music videos.
The video finishes with the old video tape flickering before turning completely black as the sound ceases. This brings the video full circle and shows the video has stuck to the same feel throughout the entire music video showing consistency and professionalism. Despite the whole video being done to look alike a home tape it is obviously professionally done using special effects and editing to get the good resemblance. However the whole feel of being creative and arty is down to the producer and you don’t need specialist equipment but good ideas to make that a reality- this is something that needs to be seriously considered when making our video as we can use some aspects of this to allow for a successful and professional yet slightly homemade feeling video.
This video has aspects of illustration and disjuncture however I feel it is mostly amplification as it uses creative scenes, angles, mise-en-scene, editing etc in a new and interesting way allowing for a successful video. However aspects of illustrative references include much of the action being in beat to the music and aspects of disjuncture include the video not really referencing the lyrics in anyway as the general feel of the lyrics ‘I’m not whole’ being repeated and ‘try to look proud but you’re not in the slightest’ gives an ‘I’m not good enough’ feel which the on screen action doesn’t demonstrate.
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