The two videos I am analysing are Arctic Monkey’s ‘When the sun goes down’ and Plan B’s ‘The recluse’. ‘When the sun goes down’ was directed by Paul Fraser in 2006, and ‘The recluse’ was directed by Daniel Wolfe in 2010. The genres of both videos differ; Arctic Monkeys is rock whereas Plan B is contemporary soul. Both have created narrative music videos for their singles; however Plan B’s is a combination of both narrative and performance.
In ‘When the sun goes down’, the emphasis is on the narrative of a young girl, only ever referred to as ‘that girl there’, as we watch her story of living life as a prostitute unfold. ‘The Recluse’ shows us a man named ‘Strickland Banks’ struggling to avoid media attention surrounding his newfound fame, and uses split scenes depicting his time spent in prison and flashbacks of his life beforehand. This character is played by Ben Drew, the front man of Plan B. In this video, Ben Drew performs as this character throughout the song, which contrasts to ‘When the sun goes down’ where we never see the band members themselves as the focus is solely on the narrative.
Camera shots in ‘When the sun goes down’ focus on the women and man and their relationship. Close-ups are used of both of these individuals throughout, which emphasize the varying emotions felt. One particular shot that stands out is an extreme close-up of ‘that girl there’ at 03.08. This shot is quite powerful as it makes us as viewers wonder as to what she is going through and how she is feeling by focusing in on her eyes, which are flickering down. In ‘The Recluse’, the shots of ‘Strickland Banks’ towards the end of the song of him in his cell stand out the most. Ten short shots, providing insights into his reflection of his life whilst in prison are staggered, making the use of split-scenes between this and his memory of an event before his time in prison. They seem to have been filmed using a hand-held camera, which make this specific point more realistic. The split scenes speed up the pace and create an effective build-up at this pivotal point in this character’s story.
The lyrics within both songs match with the visuals throughout. In ‘When the sun goes down’, the first lyric is ‘See that girl there’, and as this is sung we see ‘that girl’. Another line reads, ‘and she must be fucking freezing’ as this is sung we see the girl in a big, oversized jacket trying to keep warm throughout the night. The female, played by actress Vicky McClure, is stereotypically represented as the weak character, and the males are shown as the ones being in control. This is emphasized also by the fact no name is ever given to her; signifying her status. Plan B also directly relates lyrics to the visuals. With the line ‘No one is gonna make me leave this room’, we see Strickland Banks lying on a bed with curtains drawn, all by himself which shows how isolated he feels. Another line which matches the lyrics to the visuals is, ‘blessed not washing my skin or my hair’, and as this is rapped we see a dishevelled looking Strickland Banks with a dirty face and hair. The story conveyed in ‘The Recluse’, isn’t in chronological order because it’s showing us flashbacks of his life before prison, however the lyrics still relate to the visuals for the majority of the time. This is the same throughout Plan B’s other videos from this second album. Videos such as ‘Prayin’ and ‘Love goes Down’ both use flashbacks to narrate a different part of the story, piecing together the overall story of the album bit by bit. In my opinion, each video acts as a different chapter to the album and all interlink between themselves, and are consistent in the use of flashbacks and carry similar aspects of mise-en-scene.
Both videos use costumes, props and lighting to develop their character’s stories. In ‘When the sun goes down’ the young girl is dressed in a tracksuit, ‘hoodie’ and trainers signifying to us as viewers that she is perhaps homeless, which provides an explanation to why she is making a living as a prostitute. ‘Strickland Banks’ changes outfits throughout, which emphasises the ups and downs of this part of his life. Initially he is shown in prison wearing a simple grey top, which contrasts to the next scene that appears where he is wearing a suit and tie, reflecting his life before prison. Sometimes, he is shown wearing more casual clothes as he is in hiding due to allegations made against him, forcing him to become this ‘recluse’. This juxtaposition, emphasised through the use of costumes, is maintained throughout as we are constantly shown snippets of his life during and before prison.
The costumes also signify the era the narrative is set in; the 60’s. This iconography reflects Plan B’s image, as all of their videos from their second album named, ‘The Defamation of Strickland Banks’, are set in the 60’s. Since both genres of the videos differ, it’s clear to see the differences on how both videos have been produced and edited. In ‘When the sun goes down’, because it’s a rock video, the conventional elements associated with rock can be seen, such as dark colours with grey, depressing scenes. Whereas in ‘The Recluse’, there’s more emphasis on the band of guitarists, bass players, drums, violinists and cellos. compared to ‘When the sun goes down’. The majority of Arctic Monkey’s videos are a performance videos, like, ‘Crying Lightning’ and ‘Don’t sit down ‘cos I’ve moved your chair’, so ‘When the sun goes down’ differs to way in which Arctic Monkeys usually create their videos.
The music also relates with the visuals as well in ‘When the sun goes down’. When the drums begin to pick up the pace of the song, we see footage from inside the front of a car, fast-forwarded, as it drives through an urban area at night-time. This creates the notion of looking from the perspective of the person inside the car, and builds up anticipation and excitement as to what is to follow. It gives us an insight into the person in the car, which could be interpreted as either the female, however it is unlikely she would own a car, or it could be from the male’s perspective as he’s travelling round at night looking for ‘girls of the night’ (a line within the song). In ‘The Recluse’, there’s a small build-up before the song begins, but as the first line is sung and the drum, guitar and violins kick in the narrative starts simultaneously.
Arctic Monkeys have used intertextuality within their song. They have referenced to the song ‘Roxanne’ by The Police in the line, ‘and he told Roxanne to put on her red light’. Arctic Monkeys often use intertexual references in their song to other media; mostly songs or films. Plan B on the other hand don’t reference to other medias, however they often reference to their other songs within the lyrics. In ‘The Recluse’ though, they haven’t referenced to any of their other songs, which makes it different to every other song on this second album.I really like these two videos because the stories which unfold in both are interesting and both progress, which keeps you as a viewer engaged. I think both videos were made with the purpose to entertain, as well as to sell the song as they both emphasize the narrative within both sets of lyrics. The videos are almost used to advertise both songs and are additions to the lyrics; especially with ‘The Recluse’ as a snippet of Plan B’s upcoming album, ‘The Ballad of Belmarsh', is previewed at the beginning of the video, so as well as selling ‘The Recluse’, fans of Plan B will be provided with an insight into Plan B’s third album, which would generate talk and excitement.