(Goodwin) Music Video Analysis 1: Love Is On The Radio

(pictures numbered 1 - 8 from left to right)
The first still from the music video comes in within 12 seconds of the video. The lyrics at this point are "One, two, three, four" at this exact point the lyric is 'three' which is also clearly shown in the actual music video it self with Dougie holding up a sign. This visual makes clear reference to the lyrics.
The second still is from 1:00 into the video. This visual comes after the lyric 'My windows were misted' the shot shows Tom holding up his glasses to the camera leading to a slightly distorted image through his glasses. This plays well with the lyrics at this point in the song.
The third still seen here from the music video comes in at 1:51 shows Danny and his 'son' following similar movements of combing their hair. This visual comes into play under the lyric "we'll have a son". This sight is clearly choreographed for the purpose of the lyric with similar movements - which essentially does foreshadow a later moment in the  music video itself.
The fourth is slightly different as it does not specifically relate to the lyric it is paired with but is more of a continuation from the previous lyric, "we'll have a son and we'll give him a sister". This still accompanies the lyric "it lasts forever!". This could be seen as metaphorical of an ever lasting bond with Harry and his 'son' and also representing all 4 band members and their 'sons'.
The fifth still shows the younger versions of Mcfly with their 'sons' taking their places and instruments. There is no specific lyric coupled with this still as this shot is used more as a transition between two different lyrics. However, I have included this still because it is the result of the previous shots showing the McFly members and their 'sons'. The previous shots of the 'sons' has been referring to the future and this still shows the possible future.
The sixth still shows the shots going back to accompanying the lyrics. The still shows Tom in the background with 'mini Tom' making the 'L' shape with his hand to join the lyric "Love is on the radio"

The seventh still from this music video shows someone signing (sign language) the lyrics "play it till your speakers blow". This is a direct link from the lyrics to the visual aid. This certain still comes in at 3:26 although the use of sign language can be seen throughout the video.
The eighth still is the last image seen of the video. It pretty much sums up the entire song and lyrics showing colourful backgrounds and faces.

(Pictures 1-6 left to right)
The first still shows Danny holding a clapper to insinuate the start of the music video. The sound of the clap is also in sync with the sound of the first symbol crash. From here on the music continues with an upbeat tempo on the drums. 
The second shows a violinist with the same happy background as the rest of the video with the blue background. The violin is shown because a violin can be heard through some parts of the show.
The third still shows Danny again playing harmonica which adds to the general happy feel already in play by the violin and the blue background. The harmonica is shown in the video at a time when a harmonica can be heard in the background on the track.
The fourth still here shows the band members, however they are not playing their usual instruments. Tom and Harry have swapped instruments and places and Danny and Dougie have swapped instruments and places. This could have been done to show the members as having a good time with 'feel good' song.
The fifth shows the drummer, Harry. Here Harry is seen clapping along to the beat of the drums. This can be seen as amplifying the music as he is in fact the drummer in the band. The same happy, blue background can still be seen as Harry claps along to the music. The footwork during this section could be a representation of the time Harry won the TV show 'Strictly Come Dancing'.
The sixth still shows the band with the same blue background however this time they are seen smashing up their instruments among various other items. This image can be seen as contradicting the general feel good atmosphere of the rest of the video. These activities are usually associated with the 'rock life style'. Although McFly's previous songs and albums have been consistent of pop/rock their new songs seem to contain more elements of indie with a sprinkle of country at times therefore presenting a more mature genre of pop/rock than when they first started 11 years ago.

Record companies strive to make the most money out of the band or artist as possible even if it means giving some members more screen time than others. Luckily, this is not the case for McFly. As shown to the right, within the first 40 seconds of the video, all 4 members can be seen in solo shots, giving each member an equal amount of screen time. Even though Harry (drummer) has less of a close up, the reason for this could be to ensure the drum kit can be seen in the video. The story behind McFly and record lables is they were signed to Island records (a branch of Universal) but the band left Island in 2007 due to differences and made their own record label called 'Super Records'. They kept the same management as when they were with Island. Back to giving some members more screen time than others; when with Island, their videos had a similar deal, with giving each member a near equal amount of screen time. An example is this video.  
Back to 'Love Is On The Radio' there are not any voyeurism's seen in this video. The reason for this could be due to the nature of the song; the lyrics and music together represent a feel good song. In effect, any voyeurism's in this video would seem completely out of place. 
Throughout this video, there are references to other moments, these are known as inter-textual references. These can also to be further please viewers.
(pictured 1 - 8 left to right)
The first still shows Harry on his drums, however when taking a closer look at the drums, it's not his name or the bands name on the bass drum but rather a image/symbol of some sort. That image was the cover of their first album released through 'Super Records' called 'Radio:Active'. The same image can be seen in the background of another video for one of their songs called 'One For The Radio'. The word 'Radio' is in the title of all songs/albums containing this image. 
The second still I mentioned previously shows someone signing the lyrics to the song. Possibly to ensure the atmosphere and feel of the song are shown to as many people as possible.
The third and eighth still are similar with the band members swapping instruments and having a good time. As far as I know, this is the first time this has happened in a McFly music video. Especially in the eighth, Harry is seen singing even though it is Tom's voice which can be heard singing the lyrics, however Tom takes over and finishes the lyric.
The fourth still shows Harry holding up his hand pointing to his ring. At the time of the release Tom had been married for little over a year and Harry had been married for about a month. However, Danny is also married now.
The fifth still shows Tom cradling a baby, at the time of shooting the video, Tom would have known that his wife, Giovanna was pregnant with their first child. This motion could be a reference to this. The motion also fits in with the lyrics.
The sixth still shows Harry dancing with a Michael Jackson impersonator. This impersonator can be seen throughout the video attempting to dance with the rest of the band members; this then shows the impersonator and Harry dancing around together successfully. This is a clear reference to 2011 when Harry won Strictly Come Dancing.
The seventh still shows Dougie licking a sledge hammer which is a reenactment of Miley Cyrus in her video 'wrecking ball'. 

Evaluation of Preliminary Lip Sync Task

Here is the video we (Nicole, Rhianna and myself) created, shot and edited.
Prior to creating and shooting, we analysed methods and previous lip sync demonstration videos to see which methods ended with the best results. We found actually singing the song helped to make the video look more authentic in terms believing we were genuinely singing. Something else we noticed was if the person was not singing but simply mouthing the words it was obvious in all cases but was obvious when noticing larynx movement. 

Something which we discovered whilst editing was long shots may add an element to a music video, however, the same does not apply for a simple lip sync video. Mainly because the faces are too far away from the camera. Especially around about near 5 seconds, Rhianna and Nicole are visible but what they are saying is not. Also during the first 10 seconds, the lip sync can be seen slightly out of time, then catching up the track two seconds later. Although this was a minor glitch it is still clearly visible. For future lip sync videos and music video's, a mental note would be to make sure the music is turned up fairly loud when shooting the video to ensure correct timing. When editing the video, the sound is muted so the original would not be heard and it would be also be easier to edit, especially when matching the lip syncing to the track.

Another element I discovered was how easy it was to notice a slip up of lyrics on camera. The slip up of lyrics came from me, however I did not realise this until I came to edit the video together. This is at around 21 seconds into the video. Although I was unaware at the time, it is certainly clear in this video. When shooting future videos, I will try my best to ensure this mistake is not repeated. To also show clarity of lyrics, in future videos I know now to really form the shape of my lips when singing, similar to what would need to be done if this was live on stage.