Analysis of rock video 3

Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie

Locations

This music video only uses one location, which is a city building near the beach. The whole building is used in the sense that the band themselves are playing on the rooftop of the building, while fans and bystanders watch from the bottom of the building. Although it may be sometimes boring or bland to only use one location in a whole music video, it is used very effectively as a variety of shots are used to make the location used very interesting for the viewer.

Clothes

The band wear mainly black clothing in the video, which meets the stereotype of rock band members. However, one of the band members has dyed bright blue hair. This goes against the stereotype and contrasts the dark clothing of the rest of the band. This is very effective also, as it makes the blue hair stand out even more, making it even more prominent. The black clothing also makes the band seem very rebellious and outgoing, which is reinforced by the fact that the singer of the group is wearing a blazer but no shirt, this is very out of the ordinary and is a statement to society that this band isn't conformist like many other bands.

Props

The props used in the music video are very ordinary for a rock video, with the only props being guitar, drums and a microphone. Although this is very simplistic, it can be seen as effective as it means there is an emphasis on the music itself, with more time being spent showing off the instruments rather than other props, which is what the viewers want to see, the music.

Cinematography

Lots and lots of long shots are used in this music video, giving the feeling that these shots are filmed from a helicopter. The fact that it feels like its being filmed from a helicopter also hints that the band isn't allowed to be there on the rooftop, as these long shots give the feeling that its a news report on how they are not allowed to be there.

There are also shots of the fans at the bottom of the building, showing their reaction to the band on the roof. The reaction of the fans also reinforces the idea that the band is not allowed to be there as they are really surprised and shocked at them being there. These shots also show the mass support that the band is getting as there are many birds eye view shots showing the mass of people watching the band. Also, because it is by the sea there are many shots of the surrounding environment.

Lastly, there are also close ups of the band, showing them singing and playing their instruments, especially when these instruments or the vocals are very prominent of the song.

Concept/Narrative

The concept of this music video, like mentioned before, is that the band is not meant to be on the rooftop, with the long shots reinforcing this as it hints that the video is a news report. This concept is very simple as it is fairly easy to carry out, but also very effective as it is executed very well due to its simplicity, meaning the production of the video is very high.

Effects

A couple of focus pulls are used in the video, showing the switch of emphasis from the environment and the setting to the band members. It also shows the audience how close to the sea the band are.

Titles are used at the beginning of the video, not only do these tell the audience where and when the video was filmed. It also further again reinforces the idea this is a news report by the way it is informing the audience about the location, rather than just showing it, which is a staple of a news report. This whole idea of the video being filmed in a news report style also gives the band a very rebellious and outgoing representation as they are seen as doing wrong, by playing on the rooftop, which will attract the audience as people like to see people being different and rebellious towards society.

Continuity/Narrative

Montage editing is used in this music video, as the band is shown at different points of the day. This montage editing is used very effectively as it shows the progression throughout the day of how more and more people stop and watch the band while they play on the rooftop.