Classifications
One of the reasons I decided to start this blog was because I was dismayed by the complete dearth of academic and intellectual discussion of music videos. In the same way that graphic art is both commercial art and fine art, meant to both sell a product and be a form of expression, so it goes with music videos. While the majority of music videos (arguably) only serve the purpose of selling the band, selling the album, there are plenty of other music videos out there that function like fine art. They are a way of relaying the director’s or musician’s (or both’s) message. Music video is (also arguably) the last bastion of commercially viable short-form story telling.
That said, in order to begin discussing music videos academically, we must first define the certain characteristics that set music videos apart from one another. What I want to explore today are the different ways music videos tell their stories. There are three major catagories that exist: performance videos, narrative videos and abstract. I’ll use my favorite band of all time, Radiohead, to give an example of each of these styles.
Performance:
The basic idea behind a performance video is that it is a music video showing the band performing that particular song. Although I already discussed performance videos in my first post, Radiohead’s take on the performance video shows the band’s ingenuity and wit. Rather than having a set of static camera set-ups recording their performance, the band took it upon themselves to hook up cameras to helmets to get a personalized, and at times disorienting, concert. Few music videos nowadays are strictly performance; more often, you’ll have a performance inter-cut with a narrative storyline or abstract images.
Narrative:
This moving music video was made by Radiohead in conjunction with MTV and is an excellent example of a narrative video. Narrative videos aim to tell a story, linear or not, through the course of the song. They have a clear beginning, middle and end, although the ways of telling the story are as varied as the approaches you see on the big screen. I chose this particular clip because it demonstrates the power of the narrative video. Music is so inherently tied in with emotions that pairing a poignant song with an equally touching story can have amazing results. The video for “All I Need” was released on May 1, 2008, International Labour Day, as part of MTV’s EXIT campaign to bring attention to human trafficking and has been an invaluable source of publicity for the campaign.
Abstract:
Abstract video is the anti-narrative video, and due to the sort of all-encompassing-ness of the abstract label, somewhat difficult to define. According to Dictionary.com, abstract is “of or pertaining to the formal aspect of art, emphasizing lines, colors, generalized or geometrical forms, etc., esp. with reference to their relationship to one another.” In fine art, abstract pieces are non-representational, in video abstract pieces are non-narrative.
Combination videos
Often music videos contain a combination of these styles. Although abstract and narrative can’t intermingle (by definition they kind of cancel one another out), performance videos can easily be hybridized:
Performance + Narrative
This music video is one of my favorite clips of all time. The narrative is incredibly compelling, with one of the most satisfying endings I’ve ever seen. The performance is equally fascinating; it’s hard to take your eyes off of Thom Yorke’s impassioned act. The editor did a fine job of cutting between the story and the concert, composing it in such a way that the audience’s anticipation is slowly built up without stumbling. What’s even more clever about the video is that it seems to make the performance part of the narrative. It’s the sort of video that captures you, entertains you, and leaves you pondering afterwards.
Performance + Abstract
“No Surprises” is a video that’s beautiful in its simplicity. Throughout this brief, threadbare video all the audience is allowed to see is Thom Yorke’s uniquely expressive face attempting to sing as he is slowly engulfed by water then gratefully freed. Meanwhile inverted lyrics and flashing lights dance on the glass surface, contorting the appearance of his face (notice that one bright light that completely covers his right eye?).
While I believe these videos are fairly straightforward representations of each of these categories, it is often difficult to determine how to classify a given video. However, it’s the conversation and debate that results from this difficulty that make music videos such a worthy subject of academic consideration, methinks.
I hope you enjoyed all this Radiohead goodness. To anyone out there who wants to see some fine, fine music video-making, I highly recommend you check out every single music video Radiohead has ever released. Some very popular videos that I was not able to include in this post but that are must-sees are “Paranoid Android” (ground-breaking animated clip), “Karma Police” (another beautifully simple narrative), and “House of Cards” (for which Radiohead developed their own new electron-capture technology).
Keep your eyes peeled, y’all, and let me know if I missed/misrepresented anything. Seriously, I love me some feedback!
Hearts,
Sprinks
