Insane -Music Video Techniques/ Media Language Analysis

Flume - Insane music video analysis 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZedxWUoT-nE

Lyrics

You don't have to be afraid

You don't even have to be brave

Living in a gilded cage

The only risk is that you'll go

Go, Go Insane

Go, oh oh, oh oh, oh oh

Oh, go, go, insane

Go, oh oh, oh oh, oh oh

Go Go insane

And go

Go insane

And go

Go insane

And go, go, go, go insane

And go

Your mind is on track

For games we play these days

With every path we take

You know you're safe, safe, safe

The only risk is that you'll go insane

The only risk is that you'll go insane

In this music video there isn’t much lyrics used. There is also no singer in the music video, which is preforming the lyrics, this is a convention of a conceptual music video. However half way through the music video one of the characters in the video whispers the words to the other character as part of the song. This shows that they are important and maybe a key concept for the video.

Music

The  music video is a hybrid of indie-electronic-pop. The music has a strong beat which in many places the editing compliments. The vocals are ethereal, this is reflected in the dreamlike use of lighting and special effect images which have been created. The electric style of the music also works well with the computerized images. 

At the beginning of the video the producer uses an establishing shot. The use of this allows the viewer to instantly know where the next scene will be set and the overall idea of the music video. As in or this music video the establishing shot shows an over view of the city. This is a very common shot used as an establishing shot. At the centre of the screen we can see a light shinny straight up to the sky. This may signify the main location of the video will be taking place around that area and this is an important feature within the view as it has been shown right at start of the music video.

The second shot we are introduced to the main character as it instantly transfers form the establishing shot to the close up shot of the main characters eyes. Through this we are just seeing something from her perspective yet with the rest of her being excluded from the shot creates a sense of mystery around the character. It also allows us to really focus on the mise-en-scene which is the make-up. Through this we are able to see her expression, which maybe sad and upset due to the dark colour make-up, maybe empathises the feeling of sadness. I will analyse this into further detail in the mise-ene-scene section.  

After a few seconds into the video there’s a low angle shot of her looking at the light in her hand. This keeps the source of light a mystery but allows us to see her face which again creates that sense of being distanced from any sense of narrative that could be created and focuses us on the main character, the emotion and the atmosphere. Another really effective feature that this shot creates is that it shows the character and the light as being something powerful and dominant. This is because we are looking up at her, making her look bigger. In addition, her looking down at light as being in her hands conveys that she has control over it and again has connotations of her being powerful.  

Another low angle shot is used when she is ridding the motor cycle. This again shows her dominance. 

This is another close-up which emphasis the speed further. As we can see the water splashes due to the amount of speed.

Editing 

The editing in this music video reflects the pace of the music. Parts of the graphics remind me of video games, which gives it a fantastical and surreal vibe. The straight lines, the visual effects and the shot which is blurred out on the sides and then leads you in towards the centre of the bike creates a powerful effect of the speed. During the slower sections of music over cranking is used and the shots are longer. However as the pace quickens so does the editing and shorter the shot duration becomes. This creates climactic sections of film that build with the music until there is a drop and in contrast to the fast paced edits there are longer shot durations. At 3:15 they alternate from a close up shot of here eye’s to a flash of light with some kind of symbol in the centre and this occurs on each beat towards the end of the video. There is also a montage of images which compliments the fluctuating nature of the music until the last longer duration shot of the empty bike is shown as the music fades.

Throughout the end of the video there is quick jump cuts have been used to emphasis the high speed of the sound, as well as to make the clip more interesting and interactive for the audience. In addition, from that the cuts allowed to capture the spirit of indie-pop music which is full of dynamic and vibrant sounds. The interference of extreme close-ups one after another empathizes this really well. 

Another editing technique used is a fade out. Towards the end of the music video a close-up shot I used on her eyes again with visual effects as a frame around her. The fade effect occurs a couple of times when she closes her eyes it fades out to her opening her eyes, and this is repeated a few times. The use of this technique indicates the pressure of speed and that she may be feeling dizzy and isn’t able to open her eyes as she squeeze when closing them. This representation is approved right at the end of the video because she falls of the motorbike as seen in the screen shot above. 

Sound

Parallel sound is used accurately with the speed of the video frame, meaning it reflects the mood of the song. This is very important within music videos as it makes it more engaging for the audience, meaning they will carry on watching the video clip. In addition, it is important for the parallel sound to be accurate to the genre of music you are trying to promote. In this case, it is indie-electronic-pop which is dynamic and energetic sound. This is strongly shown through the cuts, visual effects and close-ups of the character. 

Genre conventions and mise-en-scene

The genre of this music video is indie-electronic-pop. Indie music has many sub genres so it is harder to pinpoint conventions. However, it is known for darker imagery and props which is reflected in this video as it set at night and the necklace is a key prop.

Pop music is often shown in bright lights and colours. The imagery may not be that bold but they have used a certain purple and violet colour palette that is very distinctive as well as bright light showing strongly against the dark background. The music videos for electronic music are often based around the beat of the song and this is a definite genre signifier in this video. Also during the slow paced section of song there are often long shots created in slow motion. When the music speeds up shorter shots are shown in quite succession which gives the video momentum. 

Through a close up shot make-up is used on the characters eyes and black nail polish. Her make-up is quite dramatic and very Gothic with dark make-up around her eyes and the precise trails of black going down her cheeks, like the trail of tears.  In a different shot we see the other character also has this down her cheeks making it appear as though it is a symbol of a group. This is shown through the entire video. 

As for the costume the character is wearing all black and leather bike jacket with studs, gloves and boots giving her a rough appearance that compliments the kind of electronic music. This goes very well with her make-up as well as the theme and colours of the entire music video. There is also a necklace which is the main prop which the character wear’s, this is repeatedly shown which adds to this sense. Also the male character shown walking down the street wears similar clothing to the girl, however, without the make-up which conveys that he is not part of the group she is but yet it still links to them. These types of clothing aren’t very characteristic for the indie-electronic-pop music genre. This is because pop is known for brighter clothing. This goes slightly against the conventions but not completely as it quite relates to indie and electronic.

In the video there is no objectification used as the women in the video is very pretty however she is not presented as a sexual object. Her clothes are net revealing but they are slightly tight which maybe suggestive. She is very feminine and the close-ups of her face convey this despite the excessive make-up. A theory which could relate is Laura Mulvey’s ‘Male Gaze’ were at the start of the video the camera goes over her as she rides the bike.

 As for the location the music video is mainly located on a motorway. We can distinguish that from the background and shots within the video. Besides, from that the music video is mainly focused on close-up shots of the artist and props. This shows that the importance of the setting depends on what impact you want to achieve upon your audience. Also I believe that the genre of music plays a big role in terms of this element, as well as the paste of the song, the narrative or the concept. There is a story within this video however it is not obvious what it is about and the lyrics give little away. The strange lights at the start and the way that part way through a person just appears and at the end the girl just disappears suggest that the characters are otherworldly.

Again as I have mentioned above this is a conceptual video as there is no clear narrative/performance. Lots of special FX are used which is convention of this genre of music video and it appears that the concept of the video is linked to the lyrics yet this is very open to interpretation.