Textual Analysis of Little Things - One Direction

'Little Things' by One Direction is a mellow, romantic ballad which reached number 2 in the charts, after falling behind Gangnam Style. Originally written by Ed Sheeran, it is an cross between pop and indie, holding conventional features of both:

• There is a high performance element
• Lots of close ups of artists
• Repetitive guitar riff
• Puts you in a good mood
• Steady tempo

The music video is shot entirely in black and white, which gives the video a raw, simplistic vibe. It focuses is shot in a recording studio and shows the boys in an extremely stripped back light. It includes many close up shots shots of them looking directly into the camera, so as to appeal to their audience - as if they are singing it directly to the person watching. It also shows some wide/mid shots of them messing around with each other and being 'normal' - again so as to widen their appeal, for they are just like the, 'boys next door'. It has a real personal touch and you feel like you get to know each band member better as the video goes on. This combination of shots keeps the viewer captivated by the boys and thus makes them want to watch more and/or buy the song. It works well because existing fans see the boys as they know them and can recognise their personalities, and new fans get a glimpse of the boy's characters and can make a decision based upon this. 

As a heavily performance based video, the lyrics relate to the visuals in the fact that they are being sung. However there are some smaller references to the lyrics within the visuals too, for example, with the lyric, "You can't go to bed without a cup of tea"- there are several mugs of (what I'm assuming is tea!) placed around the studio. Another reference is made to the first line, "your hand fits in mine like it's made just for me" during the opening shots, where there are a range of shots focusing on the boys' hands, itching their face, pushing a slider on the music deck, plucking the guitar strings etc.

The song as a whole relates to the visuals, as the concept of noticing the little things about someone is the simple thought behind it, and the fact that it is all shot in black and white adds to this rather minimalistic representation of the band members. Another major reference is made to guitars, with all of the boys having shots of them playing/holding a guitar at some point. This matches the main guitar riff/chords that are consistent throughout the whole song, and further emphasises the acoustic, natural tone of the video. 

Arguably the most powerful and significant entity within the music video is the star image motifs used. The band are represented as being normal teenage boys, and perfect boyfriend material for the intended audience. Each have their own individual style/look outside of the music world, but this is transferred through the costuming etc so they appear to be in their natural environment. It is arguable that this sense of normality is what is convincing for the audience, as it actually seems like a possibility to marry one of them as opposed to the likes of Robbie Williams or Justin Timberlake who sometimes appear unreachable/fantasy. This particular video is very different from their other music videos purely due to it's relaxed, mellow tone; usually One Direction create energetic, pop tracks such as, 'What Makes You Beautiful', 'Live While We're Young' or , 'Kiss You', so it is refreshing to see a nonchalant side to the band.

There is absolutely no reference to the notion of looking, in fact it is quite the opposite! You get the impression from the video that these are the kind of boys that would look after and appreciate you rather than use you for pure sexual attraction of any kind.

The music video is largely performance based, however there are some narrative elements within the lyrics, but they are not transferred directly into the visuals. 

Overall, I absolutely love this music video. I think it suits the song and the band perfectly - it is something I could put on repeat, watch all day and never get tired of. 

Textual Analysis of Stay The Night - Zedd featuring Hayley Williams

'Stay The Night' is a song by German/Russian electronic dance music producer Zedd, featuring vocals from Hayley Williams (of Paramore) . In terms of genre, it falls under Electro House Ballad with a mix of electric/clubby beats and pop style vocal. Due to it's crossover in genre, it was positively received by a mass audience as it appealed to more than one music type. 

It features an elaborate, contemporary dance between a man and a woman which represents them battling through their relationship, alongside a vibrant close-up performance by Hayley. I absolutely love the editing within this music video; the majority of the shots include some sort of overlay with another which ives it a very dreamy feel. There is a prominent concept of contrasts too, with the red and blue setups throughout, possibly representing different emotions or people etc. The video is extremely dynamic, with constant movement from either the camera itself or the subjects in focus. 

The links between the lyrics and the visuals are not particularly statement, but still exist nonetheless, but more so through concept rather than the narrative. For example, "you kill the lights" relates quite heavily to the dark backgrounds throughout the whole video which makes the subjects stand out even more, and also relates to the concept of night time. Following on from this, in both the pianist and Hayley's setup, there are tiny stars and moons which are out of focus most of the time, but which become more prominent through some pull focuses. A link which does occur between the lyrics and visuals is the element of staying the night, as we can assume from the gestures and setting that the man is trying to convince the woman to stay; red could represent anger and blue could represent sadness or regret. In a lot of the dance moves the man tries to grab or hug the woman who just turns/moves away. 

There are strong connections between the music and the visuals. For example, when we hear the piano playing in the background, a shot of a pianist comes up. Furthermore, the pace of the cuts really match the pace of the song; at the beginning they are more flowing and faded, but throughout the song they start to build up alongside the rhythm until the end where they are extremely quick and choppy, which mirrors the build up of electronic tempo within the song. 

There are several points in the song where clever editing is used, whereby Hayley's actions will link to the dancers, and flow in as one movement, for example at 1:35 where she rolls her head back and before you know it we're thrown back into the dancing scene. As a narrative, this could connote that the dancers represent the emotions in her head; the man is blue, which could represent safety and calmness whereas the woman's section  is red, representing anger and passion. Either way, it is extremely successful as it keeps the audience on their toes and engaged within the meaning of the song. Hayley is kept recognisable to the audience due to her statement ginger hair, bright red lipstick and bold black and white clothes. Although this is her first solo track, she has not made any dramatic changes to her image which shows how she has stayed herself throughout her musical career. 

There is not a theme which closely follows the notion of looking; the music video is more artistic and genuine, although I suppose arguably there is admiration and love between the two dancers, but it's more emotional than sexual. 

This music video clevely intwines narrative, concept and perforance elements together; all three elements complement and bounce off each other creating a dynamic and exciting visual to accompany the sound. Overall, I really love this music video and wouldn't do anything to change it. The overlay effect is definitely something to consider using in our music video as it keeps the visuals moving and adds lots of energy. 

Textual Analysis of No Interest - Nina Nesbitt



'No Interest' is an interesting indie track with hints of pop music embedded within by the emerging Singer/Song-writer Nina Nesbitt. It does follow follow some conventions of a typical music genre, which include:

• Hippie/chilled vibe
• Simple song concept
• Lively
• Artistic
• Covers topics such as love/everyday life issues - the problem/truth of being average

However it also invents new features which really make it stand out as a music video. One of these features is the 'selfie' style of the video. After looking into this, I discovered that it was achieved by attacthing a steadycam type device to Nina (the singer) and reversing the camera to face her. This means that the shot is still clear and holds depth/focus, yet she can capture all of the action around her through movement.

Following on from this, I think that the concept of movement is a key feature in this music video. Nina is always panning the camera to and from different angles or spinning around etc. I feel like this rather fast paced action links quite heavily to the location; London. London is encompassed by this racey, rushy atmosphere by which you are pretty much discouraged to stop in any way; whether this be working, walking, thinking and especially whilst commuting on the underground. Anyway, opinions aside, this location really links into the concept of the song which is why it works so well.

In terms of the links between the lyrics and the visuals, the conept links quite strongly, in that there are barely any other shots of the person/people she has no interest in - it is all focused on her and she does not wish to give her attention out. The chorus...

No interest in you, no interest at all
There's nothing to lose, 'cause there's nothing at all
No interest in you, no interest at all
Cause there's nothing to lose, there's nothing at all
Yeah I'm livid, yeah I'm livid, oh oh oh oh
Yeah I'm livid, yeah I'm livid, oh oh oh oh

...links heavily to a lot of her facial expressions, in that she looks rather unimpressed and isn't particularly interested/involved in her surroundings either. Lyrics such as, "sit on the bus and I get on the backseat, with a hoodie and a bottle of JD" are not portrayed in the narrative style they are sung, however they do still link to the culture of city life, teenagers and London. So the lyrics do link to the visuals to an extent in terms of concept, but they actually do not relate to the song in any form of narrative despite the lyrics telling a chronological story.

The whole video is based around a head/shoulders type close up of Nina, and due to the filming set up she adjusts the camera angles herself, meaning it largely varies and is constantly changing. In terms of her image, she has her key look which is bleached blond hair swept to the side, flicked eyeliner and bright lipstick. This is recognisable to both her regular viewers and people who haven't seen her material before. Being an independent artist, this sense of autonomy and liberty in her music video links to how the style of her music sounds, as she has the freedom to be original. Also, the selfie style of the framing links to the current trends on many social media platforms, showing that she is a very current artist.

In terms of the notion of looking, the focus is placed very much so on Nina herself as she is in the foreground of every shot. However I also find it quite interesting to peel away from this and look into the background to observe her surroundings and the people within it, which turn out to be a huge variety of people from all kinds of backgrounds. I wonder if they were trying to connotate not getting too lost in the rush and lust of the city or the people in it - it is concerned with developing yourself individually.

The video is largely performance based with the concept of no interest and movement portrayed throughout. There is a hint of a narrative; why is she walking around? Is she going/leaving somewhere? Is she on her own or with other people? However these questions are not answered through this particular music video and we are left to fill in the gaps ourselves.

I love how this music video was composed and I found the alternative framing really interesting. Personally I might have liked to find out a bit more about the narrative, however I think it works equally as well without so it is not a huge issue at all. This music video will hopefully help to promote Nina as an artist as her creativity and freedom with her songs and visuals will mean even more fresh, original content to emerge. 

Textual Analysis of Take a Walk - Passion Pits

Take A Walk by by Passion Pits describe themselves as an, 'indietronica' band, which is a combination of indie and electric genres. They have released two albums in several countries and are well known for their alternative style.

The video follows a clever concept where we follow the journey of a little blue ball, as it gets thrown and bounces to many different people and places. The video is filmed from the ball's point of view the whole time, with the exception of the beginning and end. This is done very effectively and it really feels as it you are bouncing around the streets.

The visuals link to the lyrics in the fact that the whole song is about taking a walk - perhaps to clear your head and get some perspective, and this is represented by the journey the ball takes. It goes to a huge range of places, including neighbourhood cul-de-sacs, huge cities and rivers. The fact it was flying through the air caused me to wonder if this represents that by taking a walk, they are suggesting you should try to see things from a different point of view? Or alternatively that sometiems you need to take yourself out of normal situations in order to solve something?

The reason I am saying this is because the artists seemed to take an honest approach when writing the lyrics, talking about real situations. It documents the struggles of two men during America’s two worst recessions. One sells flowers outside of Penn Station in order to save up enough money to get his wife and family across the Atlantic only to have them bail on him shortly after their arrival. The other over-borrows and makes bad investments that go bust landing him in a cowardly state of poverty. Both men take then walks. I wondered if Passion Pits were suggesting that no matter what goes wrong, if you take a walk it will either lead somewhere else or at least provide a change of scene. This narrative is sort of evident within the music video, for instance neighbourhood homes suggest family life, however it does not follow it concretely.

There is no reference to the notion of looking - in a sexual form anyway; there are lots of shots where people are looking at the ball, for example when it gets bowled to a baseball player, so the only reference is very innocent.

Overall I really like the way the action is passed on. It makes it interesting for the audience to see where the ball will end up and shows the range of different people and places in only a ball's throw distance. 

Textual Analysis of Counting Stars - One Republic

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One Republic's popular song, 'Couting Stars' has acoustic tones but builds up t amuch denser, powerful riff. It peaked at number 1 in the UK charts and follows conventions of pop and indie genres with some hints of rock:

• It has an unudual balance of concept, narrative and performance, with a separate narrative and a performance coming together at the end via the concept
• Gripping bassline
• Upbeat and catchy
• Wide range of shots, but several close ups of facial expressions

The music video holds an encapturing storyline, and shows 2 completely different situations eventually coming together at the end. One half is One Republic performing the song in a basement/warehouse in a casual style, like they're rehearsing, as they have no audience. The second half is of a group of people belonging to what appears to be a modern church, who are attending a session of worship. 

WIthin the video, there are many occasions within the visuals which subtly link to the lyrics. One that particularly stands out is, "But baby, I've been, I've been praying hard", for one half of the narrative is centered around the concept of prayer and worship. However it is not the singer of One Republic praying, therefore not a totally 100% link, but the idea is certainly embedded. Another lyric which possibly links to this idea is, "I don't think the world is sold, I'm just doing what we're told" because we are taught in life to follow certain rules, guidelines and/or expectations. One of these guidelines could be to follow a faith, practising prayer to hopefully lead to some form of enlightenment or paradise. However there are many conspiracy theories surrounding the success of the said guidelines, and the lyrics suggest that we are lead into a certain frame of mind by society, "I don't think the world is sold", but there is no use battling it and it is automatic to follow convention, "I'm just doing what we're told".

In terms of relation to the music, the visuals are reasonably in sync. For a start, there is a large performance element with the band performing in an abandoned warehouse, so the instruments are in time with their parts of the song. Alongside this, the pace of the visuals matches that of the steadily increasing pace of the song, which builds up substance and energy as the song progresses. So at the beginning of the video, the editing is quite mellow, with slow motion and panning shots employed, however towards the end of the song, sharp, choppy cuts are in place to build up to the 'finale' of the video.

Again, as the video is partly performance based, there are lots of shots including the band in quite a raw, almost rehearsal-like situation. In comparison to their previous music videos it is actually shares similar aspects, as they often have some sort of unusual performance aspect embedded within a narrative, such as in, 'Good Life'. In some ways, the band name links to the concept of the song, which in my eyes in about breaking conventions, "So no more counting dollars, we'll be counting stars" - it is an ambition to steer away from the material world which centers around money and possesions, and instead to go back to natural roots and apprieciate teh things in life which really matter. There is absolutely no reference to the notion of looking within this particuklar music video, as it would not fit the genre or the lyrics.

The music video is primarily split into two storylines, one being narrative/performance based and the other being narrative/concept based. However these intertwine at the end when the floor collapses; a very unexpected and clever twist. I thought it could also hold metaphoric meaning for the idea of prayer - from one outlook that the attempts and hard work will literally 'fall through' or alternatively, if you put enough work in, you can break the mould and be introduced to a whole different world/perspective.

Overall, I really like this music video and the song. It has an essence of revolution within it, portraying the idea of unexpectancy and that things are not as they seem. It is cleverly devised and of high quality, which thus contributed to the success of the song. 

Textual Analysis of Everything's Changed - Taylor Swift & Ed Sheeran

'Everything has changed' is a mellow country/pop/indie combination from a collaboration of Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran. The concept surrounds two young children who represent their older, singing counterparts (Ed and Taylor) and follows the development of their friendship.

There is a strong connection between the lyrics, music and the visuals in the fact that the narrative closely follows the concept of friendship and getting to know someone better. For example, the boy and girl are at the beginning of their friendship, and they are both starting a new day at school - there is lots of reference to new beginnings. Following this, there is a direct link to the boy's appearance; when Taylor sings, "And all I've seen since 18 hours ago is green eyes and freckles and your smile in the back of my mind making me feel like" whereby there is a side-on mid-shot of the young boy drinking from a flask, highlighting his freckles and green eyes, followed by a shot of the young girl smiling. From this, we can assume that the girl in character is singing or thinking about the boy, so the concept of love is also active.

This kind of link is made throughout the whole video, as we come to learn more about the characters, which follows the theme of the lyrics, "I just want to know you better". We come to gather that they are both typical to their gender stereotypes; the girl is very neat, tidy and precise whereas the boy is more abstract and wild. For example, whilst decorating cookies in their class, the girl arranges a very sophisticated and neat double layered biscuit, whilst the boy is showing just piling everything and anything on his. This could have subtle references to the kind of people they are now, which they are trying to put across in the video to show their personalities. In terms of their current star images, lots of very subtle references are made, for example, when the girl is pretending to give the boy a tattoo, the boy drawing in orange in his book (one of Ed Sheeran's trademarks - ginger hair/orange in general) and when they are both doing yoga instead of running aroud like the other children. I think the idea was to set them apart from the others to show that they have always been different, and that that's not necessarily a bad thing.

There is a very slight reference made to the notion of looking, but it is more an admiration/awe rather than sexual desire - when the boy is painting the girl whilst she dances. Little occurances like this are made throughout, again when the boy is reading to the girl and she is looking up at him, and again when he plays the guitar for her.

We do not see any shots of Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift until the end of the video where it is revealed that they are actually each child's parent. This is a twist to the audience, as prior to this it is hinted that the duo are playing the young Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift, but we discover that they are actually their children, and prehaps their relationship could mirror their parents one - they could bring them together. It leaves on a real cliffhanger, as it seems like the children have such a lovely relationship that perhaps their parents would get on really well too.

Overall, I really love how the concept and narrative work so well together in this video, and the cating was perfect - the roles of the children were really convincing and it suited the song and genre perfectly.

Textual Analysis of White Noise - Disclosure

'White Noise' was created by electronic music due, Disclosure who combined with AlunaGeorge, another electric music duo who provided the vocals. Consequently we end up with a deeply electronic soundtrack which uses a innovative and complicated, yet catchy rhythm and hook melody. The video is heavily concept based with narrative running alongside it. Like most dance videos it has a love story between 2 characters and includes lights and dancing, but not in the conventional club setting.

There are very few direct links between the lyrics and the visuals, aside from the lyric, "You got me washed out, washed out, colour drained" which a large majority of the concept of the song is based around. The setting is in very dull, deserted and decaying buildings which seemed to have suffered from intense urbanisation. However, the man seems to have made the most out of this and instead see's the abandonment as a form of escapeism and way to detach himself from the pressures of society, everyday life and work. In terms of narrative, we assume he is a security guard from the coat he is wearing and the fact that he has access to all of these deralict buildings which would usually be off limits. It is quite an unexpected storyline; I though he was going to unlock it and either find people in there, or that he was going to set up a party of his own and hold it as the video rolls into night.


There is a much stronger relationship between the music and the visuals. For example, when the first beat drops, the man starts dancing as if he were listening to the song, which is portrayed through the prop of headphones. When the beat slows down and the more mellow bassline is playing, the man goes back to his more everyday life, which shows him walking through various parts of town which furter establishes the desolate setting, for example, close up shots of people smoking, a dog barking aggressively behind a wire fence, graffiti etc. It seems to be as if when the music drops, he drops his ordinary life in order to be isolated within his dance.

All of the characters within the music video are actors rather than the actual musicans themselves. However there is an additional concept involved, which disclosure use within all of their content, including other music videos such as, "F For You", "Latch" and, "You an Me", which is that they somehow embed the disclosure logo - a white outline of a face - into the visuals. This is a combination of clever marketing and also adds to the narrative as it kind of represents a spark between two people, which would be appealing to the audience as it is what most people are looking for. There is hardly any reference to the notion of looking apart from the section towards the end of the narrative where the man is dancing for the woman and she is almost admiring him, despite her slight embarrasement.


Overall, the video is narrative and concept base, with no performance of any kind. This music video grew on me as at first, I found it a little repetitive and cliché however after analysing it further it makes sense. The representation is perfect for the setting whcih again contributes to the success of this music video.