Music analysis- The script

Analysis of The Script

Before the worst video
The script follow the indie rock genre, which we are doing therefore I thought it was a good idea to analyse one of their videos in order to help with the planning of ours.
I am very fond of the video Before the Worst as it conveys a great performance with fantastic lighting throughout and overlays. The script- Before the worst due to its performance and narrative based video. This is definitely what we wish to achieve in our music video and the similar genres reflect this. The video starts with the lead singer simply walking through the backstage of the 02 and joining the rest of his band on the stage with an empty audiences, instantly this creates a tense atmosphere

ANALYSIS OF THE SCRIPT- NOTHING
The music video I wanted to analysize was Nothing by the script, it has a very similar narrative to what we hoped to achieve and the genre is the same therefore would help us greatly in planning our video. The lyrics are very much conventional and clear to interpret which I shall demonstrate throughout.

The scripts house style is very much similar to all the video's they have produced. Most of their videos are located in a busy town or city with the lead vocalist Danny O'Donoghue walking through crowds with a narrative as well as a performance from the band. 'Nothing' is based in Camden town London, this is the part of London we were very interested in shooting our video at, it has a very quirky style to it and well known for shooting INDIE music videos. The video initiates with an underwater shot which works very well with the pace of the music. The close up of the lead singer shows he is in a club/bar with his two band mates, the focus pull blurs the primary coloured artifical lighting in the background however has great effect. From just a few seconds in we are able to grasp the narrative, the lyrics and visuals definitely help us with this. However, there are various close ups and medium close ups of the glass filled with alcohol and the singer drinking constantly. The narrative is very much about an average guy that has recently split from girlfriend and under the influence of alcohol to block his despair, lonliness and possible regret.

The lighting throughout is made up of ambient and occasional uses of artifical, reflecting from the outside street lamps, police vechiles and flashing signs in Camden. This is what we hope to do in our video as it gives a very surreal atmopshere which clearly portays to the audience. Their is also a performance in the video this entitles Danny walking down the street singing at the camera as well as the band members playing in a very dark room and close ups of the guitar and drums being played. It is very clever how the underwater scene is filmed, the editing reflects well with the pace of the music. Furthermore, it demonstates the delusional state of the male and the risk taking attempt he has undergone in order to see his Ex partner, we are introduced to this female with overlays of her underwater.

Mise-en-scene- The band members are wearing very dark clothing which is stereoptypical to their genre, this is leather jackets, skinny jeans and baggy tops. The location also corrolates greatly with the genre as mentioned before.

"They say a few drinks will help you to forget her".

"Cause' Im shouting your name all over town!"

This is a very iconic part in camden which is used greatly to demonstrate the despair of the male, it shows his alone and his physical state before he jumps off the bridge.

"Am I better off dead
Am I better off a quitter
They say I'm better off now
Than I ever was with her
As they take me to my local down the street
I'm smiling but I'm dying trying not to drag my feet

They say a few drinks will help you to forget her
But after one too many I know that I'm never
Only they can see where this is gonna end
But they all think I'm crazy but to me it's perfect sense

And my mates are all there trying to calm me down
'Cause I'm shouting your name all over town
I'm swearing if i go there now
I can change your mind turn it all around

And I know that I'm drunk but I'll say the words
And she'll listen this time even though their slurred
Dialed her number and confess to her
I'm still in love but all i heard was nothing

So I stumble there, along the railings and the fences
I know if I'm face to face that she'll come to her senses
Every drunk step i take leads me to her door
If she sees how much I'm hurting
She'll take me back for sure

And my mates are all there trying to calm me down
'Cause I'm shouting your name all over town
I'm swearing if i go there now
I can change your mind turn it all around

And I know that I'm drunk but I'll say the words
And she'll listen this time even though their slurred
Dialed her number and confess to her
I'm still in love but all i heard was nothing

She said nothing
Oh I wanted words but all I heard was nothing
Oh I got nothing
Nothing
I got nothing
Nothing
Oh I wanted words but all I heard was nothing

Oh sometimes love is intoxicating
Oh you're coming down your hands are shaking
When you realise there's no one waiting

Am I better off dead
Am I better off a quitter
They say I'm better off now
Than I ever was with her

And my mates are all there trying to calm me down
'Cause I'm shouting your name all over town
I'm swearing if i go there now
I can change your mind turn it all around

And I know that I'm drunk but I'll say the words
And she'll listen this time even though their slurred
Dialed her number and confess to her
I'm still in love but all i heard was nothing

She said nothing
Oh I wanted words but all I heard was nothing
Oh I got nothing
Nothing
I got nothing
Nothing
Oh I wanted words but all I heard was nothing
Oh I got nothing
I got nothing
I got nothing

Read more: http://artists.letssingit.com/the-script-lyrics-nothing-xgpg92d#ixzz1Z33GGPhG

This is a very important medium shot within the video as this is the first time we are introduced to the girl he is talking about, it pieces together the video which we will need to achieve in our music video.

Looking at this music video what have we gained?

When analysizing The scripts' new video I absolutely loved the location of it, set in Camden with low key lighting and busy traffic around them, I believe it really worked well with their genre and the narrative was clear, illustrated by the lyrics and visuals.

I would very much like to reenact the scene with him on the bridge as I think it really worked well seeing a long shot of the male protagonist.

The location is definitely the key in this video and as a group we shall discuss Camden as a potential filming place.

Analysis

Stan- Eminem ft Dido

The music video I shall analyse into depth will be "Stan" by Eminem ft Dido. I shall study the video focusing on how it is conventional and also how it is not. The music video starts off narrative base and movie like. There is strong sense of pathetic fallacy created whilst we are introduced to Stan.




The narrative is about an obsessed fan named Stan who is constantly writing to Eminem talking about how they are very much alike and his pregnant wife. However the frustration seems to increase as he does not get a reply from his favourite person and ends up with him committing suicide and taking his wife with him. In my opinion I believe that the narrative behind this is very unconventional because when thinking of a hip hop song the themes of harsh upbringing, city, girls, money and crime. However this video gives an insight into highlighting issues within society, though it is enforced in a more extreme way.

The genre of this music would fall under hip hop/rap

I would say that the rapping and overall beat is very conventional however the setting in a dark, bleak overshadowed house portrays a totally different image to what we believe. The rapping is very conversational which is expected from Eminem. Though it is more personal and deeper than previous songs. The video is unique as it has a film like approach with dialogue from the very beginning. It has caused high controversy due to its heavy themes of murder and violence.





USE OF CAMERA AND EDITING

The first shot is a zoom in that directs from outside the house to inside forming an aerial shot of a pregnant women sleeping. After various straight cuts we are then introduced to Stan shown through a medium shot- He seems to be dying his hair with bleach but quite vigorously. Many medium shots are used to show Stan's emotions. A negative and harsh relationship is portrayed via high angle shot of the girlfriend and Stanley. This is reflected the argument and aggressiveness within the sequence. To separate the scenes the pace of the editing quickens with fade outs to cut to different scenes.


LIGHTING USED

The lighting is still low key however it more dim- We are able to view the surroundings however with the artifical lighting above Stan's table. A tracking shot of a montage of images shows to us that Stan has an obbsession with his favourite singer due to the vast amounts of images collected and placed on the wall infront of his table. In the chorusm Stans aggression is portrayed via zoom in and tracking shots. We are able to piece the sequence together with cuts from the letter to the floor in order to tell it has been neglected an unread by Eminem. Within the scene, there are cuts to and from Stan to Eminem and key moments such as him meeting the star. As the pace quickens, Stan almost becomes more deluded and we are shown this through high angle shot where Stan looks out of control.

Lyrics and Visuals

The picture of Stan and Eminem shows great signifcance to the narrative as this is what drives Stan to suicide due to his girlfriend finding the picture and therefore the serio
usness of his Stans behaviour. It also creates great relationship between the lyrics and visuals. The lyrics claim "P.S. We should be together too" and it then cuts to a photograph where Stan has stuck slim over his girlfriend showing slim and stan together.

"i got a room full of poster and your pictures man"

"If you didn't wanna talk to me
outside your concert you didn't have to, but you coulda
signed an autograph for Matthew That's my little brother
man, he's only six years old"

"waited in the blistering cold for you"

LYRICS:

Dear Slim, I wrote but you still ain't callin
I left my cell, my pager, and my home phone at the bottom
I sent two letters back in autumn, you must not-a got 'em
There probably was a problem at the post office or somethin
Sometimes I scribble addresses too sloppy when I jot 'em
but anyways; fuck it, what's been up? Man how's your daughter?
My girlfriend's pregnant too, I'm bout to be a father
If I have a daughter, guess what I'ma call her?
I'ma name her Bonnie
I read about your Uncle Ronnie too I'm sorry
I had a friend kill himself over some bitch who didn't want him
I know you probably hear this everyday, but I'm your biggest fan
I even got the underground shit that you did with Skam
I got a room full of your posters and your pictures man
I like the shit you did with Rawkus too, that shit was fat
Anyways, I hope you get this man, hit me back,
just to chat, truly yours, your biggest fan
This is Stan

[Chorus: Dido]

[Eminem as 'Stan']
Dear Slim, you still ain't called or wrote, I hope you have a chance
I ain't mad - I just think it's FUCKED UP you don't answer fans
If you didn't wanna talk to me outside your concert
you didn't have to, but you coulda signed an autograph for Matthew
That's my little brother man, he's only six years old
We waited in the blistering cold for you,
four hours and you just said, "No."
That's pretty shitty man - you're like his fuckin idol
He wants to be just like you man, he likes you more than I do
I ain't that mad though, I just don't like bein lied to
Remember when we met in Denver - you said if I'd write you
you would write back - see I'm just like you in a way
I never knew my father neither;
he used to always cheat on my mom and beat her
I can relate to what you're saying in your songs
so when I have a shitty day, I drift away and put 'em on
cause I don't really got shit else so that shit helps when I'm depressed
I even got a tattoo of your name across the chest
Sometimes I even cut myself to see how much it bleeds
It's like adrenaline, the pain is such a sudden rush for me
See everything you say is real, and I respect you cause you tell it
My girlfriend's jealous cause I talk about you 24/7
But she don't know you like I know you Slim, no one does
She don't know what it was like for people like us growin up
You gotta call me man, I'll be the biggest fan you'll ever lose
Sincerely yours, Stan -- P.S.
We should be together too

[Chorus: Dido]

[Eminem as 'Stan']
Dear Mister-I'm-Too-Good-To-Call-Or-Write-My-Fans,
this'll be the last package I ever send your ass
It's been six months and still no word - I don't deserve it?
I know you got my last two letters;
I wrote the addresses on 'em perfect
So this is my cassette I'm sending you, I hope you hear it
I'm in the car right now, I'm doing 90 on the freeway
Hey Slim, I drank a fifth of vodka, you dare me to drive?
You know the song by Phil Collins, "In the Air of the Night"
about that guy who coulda saved that other guy from drowning
but didn't, then Phil saw it all, then at a a show he found him?
That's kinda how this is, you coulda rescued me from drowning
Now it's too late - I'm on a 1000 downers now, I'm drowsy
and all I wanted was a lousy letter or a call
I hope you know I ripped +ALL+ of your pictures off the wall
I love you Slim, we coulda been together, think about it
You ruined it now, I hope you can't sleep and you dream about it
And when you dream I hope you can't sleep and you SCREAM about it
I hope your conscience EATS AT YOU and you can't BREATHE without me
See Slim; [*screaming*] Shut up bitch! I'm tryin to talk!
Hey Slim, that's my girlfriend screamin in the trunk
but I didn't slit her throat, I just tied her up, see I ain't like you
cause if she suffocates she'll suffer more, and then she'll die too
Well, gotta go, I'm almost at the bridge now
Oh shit, I forgot, how'm I supposed to send this shit out?
[car tires squeal] [CRASH]
.. [brief silence] .. [LOUD splash]

[Chorus: Dido]

[Eminem]
Dear Stan, I meant to write you sooner but I just been busy
You said your girlfriend's pregnant now, how far along is she?
Look, I'm really flattered you would call your daughter that
and here's an autograph for your brother,
I wrote it on the Starter cap
I'm sorry I didn't see you at the show, I musta missed you
Don't think I did that shit intentionally just to diss you
But what's this shit you said about you like to cut your wrists too?
I say that shit just clownin dogg,
c'mon - how fucked up is you?
You got some issues Stan, I think you need some counseling
to help your ass from bouncing off the walls when you get down some
And what's this shit about us meant to be together?
That type of shit'll make me not want us to meet each other
I really think you and your girlfriend need each other
or maybe you just need to treat her better
I hope you get to read this letter, I just hope it reaches you in time
before you hurt yourself, I think that you'll be doin just fine
if you relax a little, I'm glad I inspire you but Stan
why are you so mad? Try to understand, that I do want you as a fan
I just don't want you to do some crazy shit
I seen this one shit on the news a couple weeks ago that made me sick
Some dude was drunk and drove his car over a bridge
and had his girlfriend in the trunk, and she was pregnant with his kid
and in the car they found a tape, but they didn't say who it was to
Come to think about, his name was.. it was you
Damn!

How does this link in with the future of our music video?

From this analysis, I was able to identify the different uses of conventions in a music video. I am not only educating myself on these aspects but I am also exploring into possible ideas. For example, I really like the connection between the lyrics and visuals I would like to demonstrate this in my video as I believe it brings a connection to the viewer and performance.


Lighting used is low key and I would like to achieve this look in our project. We intend on using very low key lighting to enhance the atmosphere and bring that overall atmosphere to the video.



Use of Camera- In this video in particular there is a lot of PAN shots, I absolutely love the scene with the montage of pictures on the wall showing the state of the character and would really like to use something like this in our video. This is a very effective shot with dim lighting which creates the fearful atmosphere.

Inspiration?

We have definitely gained inspiration from this video, we really liked the stalker theme and thought it was very well portrayed, it was as if the audience could really understand and connect with the main male protagonists mental state which we hope to achieve in our project.