MUSIC VIDEO ANALYSES

Lily Allen – Littlest ThingsKate Nash – Pumpkin SoupLucy Spraggan – Last Night

LILY ALLEN – LITTLEST THINGS

Theorists

Sven Carlsson

•Monger – selling their body image, voice, face, lifestyle, etc.

Michael Shore

•Surface without substance (lyrics don’t have anything to do with the video)

•Classical storytelling motifs.

Andrew Goodwin

•Cinematic genre,•Visual art,•Post-modern texts.

GENRE

The genre of Lily Allen’s Littlest Things song is the pop genre. It is this particular genre because it follows all the conventions like selling their image in their videos and conventional verse, bridge, chorus songs.

CONCEPT MEANINGS

• The concept behind this music video is an old-movie feel. However, this is ironic because the lyrics do not match up to the video. For example;

• “Drinkin’ tea in bed, watching DVD’s when I discovered all your dirty grotty magazines”.

• Although the lyrics and the song do not match up – perhaps she is using the old-fashioned movie style video to emphasise that she wants her relationship to be like the old-fashioned movie and like the images that we see.

CAMERA1. The first shot is a birds eye view of a piano that then pans

forward.2. The camera then zooms into an old fashioned camera to show

an older version of the video. 3. Medium close-up4. Pans out to show establishing shot of Allen and the man.5. Close-up of piano playing itself.6. Zooms out of old fashioned camera – opposite of start, shows

that the video is coming to an end.

1. 2. 3.

5.4.

CAMERA SHOTS

SOUND

• Can hear people talking faintly in the background (diagetic).• Song structure is very conventional for the pop genre.• Music starts with an old sounding piano and crackling (like on

a TV show). • Juxtaposition when it goes through the camera into an ‘old

movie’ feel. Also the sound changes.• The sound changing is clever because the sound starts to

sound like old-fashioned piano playing yet we are clearly in the present day, but when we go through the camera into the old fashioned days – the sound becomes more modern and present.

EDITING

1. 0.00-0.37 – sequence shot. No other editing is being used.2. 0.39 – close up.3. Establishing shot of building.4. Cut shot used before she starts to dance with the man.

1. 2. 3.

4.

EDITING SHOTS

MISE-EN-SCENE

• Colour – black and white is the dominant colour. This is used to give the video an ‘old’ feel to it.

• Dressed in old-fashioned clothes. Re-enforces that the video is supposed to be set in olden times.

• Lighting – lighting is kept dark (this usually connotes to having a mysterious feel to it).

• Set design – looks like it is all filmed on one set because there are a few sequence shots.

KATE NASH – PUMPKIN SOUP

Theorists

Sven Carlsson

•Televised bard – she is telling the story of how she likes this guy and she is using the power of images to show this.

Michael Shore

•Clichéd imagery ,•Stimulated experience, •Album art come to turgid life,•Surface without substance,•Immediate gratification.

Andrew Goodwin

•Visual art,•Dreams.

GENRE

• Kate Nash’s Pumpkin Soup is most likely to be in the pop genre because it follows the typical pop genre conventions. For example; the song is about love/relationships and the artist is wearing stylish/modern clothing. Some could argue that it could also fall into the indie category because she is more quirky than most current pop artists. Also, her voice is more like talking than usual auto-tuned pop artists.

CONCEPT MEANINGS

• The main concept behind this video is an upbeat, quirky love story.

• This is done deliberately so that it does not follow the typical pop genre conventions of soppy love stories told through music.

• For example; “you’re chatting to me like we connect, but I don’t even know if we’re still friends”.

• I think the main message in the video is that she doesn’t want a relationship but to be ‘loved’. Like a ‘no-strings-attached’ relationship.

CAMERA

1. The opening title is set out like a TV show opening title, e.g. “starring”.

2. Close up.3. Establishing shot of the kissing booth.4. Medium close up of shoes.5. Panning sideways – showing the two cats.6. High shot.7. End scene is zooms out with a heart.

1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

7.

CAMERA SHOTS

SOUND

• Images shown change in time with the beat.• Non-diagetic used – boy is talking to the artist but we don’t

hear (used as a storytelling motif). Also see it when the boy is watching TV.

• Song follows typical pop genre conventions, e.g. verse, bridge, chorus, key change.

• Also see the boy singing along to the lyrics but we can’t hear him.

EDITING

1. Set out like a cartoon TV show in the opening.2. Experimented with different font styles (emphasises the

cartoon feel to the video).3. Editing is showing the boy ‘putting a spell on her’ and

blindfolding her (this matches the lyrics) – “but I trip fast and then I lose”.

4. Continuous cuts when they are in the kissing booth.5. Cutaways between the acrobatic cat and them at the kissing

booth.

1.

EDITING SHOTS2. 3.

4. 5.

MISE-EN-SCENE

• Colour – pink and red are the dominant colours in this video. This is re-enforcing the valentine/love/romantic feel to the song because the lyrics do not give this away. The connotations of red and pink are often love and romance so it is easy to assume this has been done for a reason.

• they are dressed quite modern but not in an obvious ‘pop-star’ way.

• The lighting is kept bright and colourful to emphasise the cheeriness and show that it is upbeat.

• Set design – the set is just one big set with different props but with the same lighting, etc.

LUCY SPRAGGAN – LAST NIGHT

Theorists

Sven Carlsson

Televised Bard – she is telling a story to us about last night. This is done through images and short clips.

Michael Shore

Album art come to turgid life, Classical storytelling motifs,Ambivalence, Clichéd imagery.

Andrew Goodwin

Cinematic genre,Visual art.

GENRE

• Lucy Spraggan’s Last Night falls into the indie category because her voice is more unique than most pop artists because it is almost like she is talking. Also, her lyrics are different and written about different things (alcohol) rather than typical pop genre meanings like love.

CONCEPT MEANINGS

• The main concept behind this video is talking about her night and referring to alcohol.

• For example in the lyrics she said “last night I told you I loved you, woke up, blamed it on the vodka”.

• The difference between this video and the message is that she wrote the song deliberately so that the audience could connect and understand what she is singing about.

CAMERA

1. The opening starts with a close up of the artist – already the audience knows that this is the singer and the video will be focused around her.

2. Over-the-shoulder shot when a man is playing darts.3. Panning when following the artist.4. Extreme close-up of her playing the piano.5. Birds eye view of her ‘dancing’.6. Ends with a close up of the artists – this is interesting

because it starts in the same way as it begins (set, costume, etc).

CAMERA SHOTS1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

SOUND

• Song starts off simply with a guitar and her singing.• Diagetic sound of bottles clinking.• Lyrics are quirky and a mix of indie-pop. They do not follow

the typical pop genre conventions of lyrics. For example; “Wish I could stop, and I’m not joking, drinking too much and socially smoking”.

EDITING

1. The video is set out like it is in reverse (this is done continuously through the whole video).

2. However, she appears to be walking forwards while everyone else is going backwards. Again, this re-enforces that she is the main singer.

3. Sequence shot when she is walking through the streets.4. The video is set in slow-motion.5. Cutaways from her dancing to playing the boxing game.6. The last 15 seconds are all in normal (not reverse) – showing

that her night has finally come to an end and so has the video.

EDTING SHOTS1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

MISE-EN-SCENE

• Colour – the colour theme is quite dark because she is singing about the night before and so the setting is in a pub and outside when she is walking.

• Her dress sense is very casual. It also fits in appropriately with the setting which is a night out in the pub.

• Lighting – the lighting is kept dark because it is being presented in a pub in the evening. However, there are a few colour juxtapositions. For example; the multi-coloured dance floor.

• Set design – the set design looks like a pub. It is most likely that the set was specifically designed for this video and made to look like an actual pub.