Music Video Timeline 1

By Emma Jane Laffoley

Music video 1 – I Wont Give In – Asking Alexandria

• The music video for Asking Alexandria’s ‘I Wont Give In’ is mainly a performance based piece, however it still has a lot of meaning behind it.

• The song that this music video was created for ( I Wont Give In) is about Danny Worsnop (the ex lead singer of the band) leaving and the band is trying to tell their fans that they’re not going to quit making music just because Danny left the band. Asking Alexandria now has a new lead singer (Denis Stoff) and this music video is illustrating how they’re still having fun and making music without Danny’s presence, this is why the music video includes an abundance of shots showing the band on tour, not just them performing but also them having fun away from the stage.

The first part of this music video is just text on screen instead of any camera shots. The text reads; Family isn’t always blood. This is because Asking Alexandria’s fan base is referred to as the ‘AA Family’ and they are trying to illustrate in this video that the family bond hasn’t been

broken just because Danny left the band.

The next line of texts reads; family is what you make it. This is because they’re trying to say that family doesn’t have to just be blood related, it can also come in different forms. There is also a blurred image in that background which is the cover art for the song which reads; ‘this

family is forever’. The text animation is a simple wipe.

The next line of text reads; ‘family is never giving up’. This relates to the song as the whole meaning behind ‘I Wont Give In’ is to show the fans that they’re not giving up on the band or their followers.

The final line of text reads; ‘family is never turning your back on the ones you love’. This relates to Danny as the song is also aimed at Danny because he turned his back on the band by unexpectedly leaving to join another band named We Are Harlot.

The blurred out background then comes into focus to reveal text that reads; ‘family is forever’. The image used is also the cover art for the song and it’s a fake news article about the band with inter textual references such as; ‘Not The Ukrainian Average’ which is a play on words as one of

their songs is titled ‘ Not The American Average’ and Denis (the lead singer) is Ukrainian.

It then cuts to the bands logo. There is a zoom effect on this clip.

After the logo has been shown, there is a dip to black transition which reveals James (the drummer) using a wide which also shows the crowd. The band is about to perform the

song live in the clip, however the music is non-diegetic as the actual track has been edited in instead of the live version.

Then it cuts to a mid shot pan of Denis walking behind the stage to meet with the other band members.

There is then a wide shot to reveal an abundance of people who have come to watch the band perform live, even after Danny had left the band. This shows that their fan base (also

known as the AA family) still supports them and therefore this fits well with the song as it’s about not giving up on the fans or the band itself.

Then there is a mid shot of Ben Bruce (the lead guitarist) singing the lyrics to the song and getting the crowd to join in. This shot has been used to show one of the band

members so that the audience will enjoy the music video. Ben and Denis are the two most favourable band members and therefore having shots of mostly these two band members in the video will make the piece more appealing to their fan base. Also rock

music videos conventionally have an abundance of shots showing the artist/band members.

It then cuts to a low angle pan of the crowd. This is to make the fan base feel as if they’re a part of the AA family and to show that they appreciate them. It’s also conventional for

rock music videos to feature their fans in their music video, especially if the music video is performance based like this one is.

Then there is a mid shot behind the drum kit which shows the band performing from their perspective instead of the fans perspective. This is also conventional for a rock music

video as they tend to feature the band performing the song as well as music instruments.

There’s another mid shot of one of the band members (specifically James) which shows him singing along to the lyrics of the song. This is conventional

for a rock music video, specifically performance based music videos.

There is then a mid shot of the whole band joining together before they go on stage. This is to show that they’re still united like a family would be. There is also a rainbow distortion

effect on the clip which I find aesthetically pleasing and is something that I’d like to include in my own music video.

It then cuts to a shot of Denis and Ben giving each other a fist bump behind the stage. This is to show their fans the bond that Ben and Denis have and it also shows that they’re

still happy and that Ben is moving on with his life even though Danny abandoned him.

Then they’re a close up shot of both Denis and Cameron, once again messing around behind set. This music video consists of the band performing the song live and an abundance of shots showing the band away from the stage. This fits perfectly with the song as it shows

that the bond between the band members is still there, despite Danny leaving.

A low angle shot has been used to show Cameron playing the bass guitar during the performance. This is once again conventional for a rock music video as its performance

based and therefore would include an abundance of shots showing the band playing live.

A mid shot – long shot is then used to show Denis singing on stage. This shot has been used for two reasons, firstly because it’s a performance based music video and Denis is the lead singer but also because he’s one of the most favourable band members to the fan base and therefore the music video would appeal to the fans more if there were an abundance of shots with Denis featured.

A fast paced tracking shot has been used to show the fans lining up for a signing session. This is to once again fit with the theme of the song which is about how the band is still

going to carry on despite Danny’s departure, this why the video is mainly about the fans.

A wide shot has been used to show the whole band at the signing table. This shot would appeal to the target audience as it has all of the members featured and the fans are obsessed with them, specifically Ben and Denis. A distortion effect has also been used on this clip which I really like as it gives the music video an edgy feel which goes hand in hand with the music.

A mid shot has been used to show Ben Bruce messing around behind the stage. A Monster can has also been featured which is a stereotypical prop as rock musicians are known for

drinking energy drinks and alcohol. The music video features many clips of the band messing around as well as performing to show their fans the ‘family bond’ in which they have.

Another wide shot has been used to show the crowd at one of their gigs where they’re performing the song that the music video is for. This is because this music video is

mainly performance based and therefore it’s going to include shots of from the gig.

A low angle has once again been used to show Ben Bruce playing the guitar. This is conventional for a rock music video, especially

performance based ones.

A wide shot has been used to show the band performing the song whilst the huge crowd of fans are in shot. This fits perfectly with the meaning of the song which is that they’re still going strong as a band for their fans.

Another wide shot has been used to show the band performing, the camera is specifically showing Ben as he’s at the front of the stage. This once again relates to

the target audience as Ben and Denis are the fans most favourable members.

A mid shot has been used to show Sam downing a bottle of beer. Alcohol is a conventional prop featured in rock music videos as rock genre musicians stereotypically are known for being alcoholics. Also Asking Alexandria have

always featured drinking in their music videos, which isn’t the best thing considering their target audience age range starts from as young as 13 so I will be considering my target audience when it comes to creating my own

music video.

This mid shot long shot shows the band having fun together outside of the gig. This once again relates to the theme of the music video which is about how the band are a family and how they’re still going strong even though Danny left the band. Also it would appeal to the

target audience as they love the band members.

A mid shot long shot has been used to show Denis and Sam performing on stage. This is once again conventional for a rock genre music video as the video is mainly performance based. The shot would also appeal to the target audience as they are obsessed with the

band members due to their looks and talent.

A close up shot has been used to show Denis the lead singer of the band. This is conventional for rock music videos as they tend to feature close ups of the lead singer. Also it appeals to the target audience as they obsess over Denis and Ben.

Conclusion• To conclude I really like this music video as it was a performance

based video but it still had meaning behind it and the video wasn’t just the band playing the song for the whole duration of the video, it also included clips of the band having fun outside of the gig itself. I also really liked the editing techniques used such as the fast paced editing and the rainbow distortion effect used on some of the clips in the video. I included this effect in my ‘techniques I like’ task as I want to use this kind of effect in my A2 production.

• Even though I really liked this music video, I still want to create a video that has meaning to it, however I may still include performance clips but I don’t want it to be the main focus of my video as I think it’s too conventional and extremely difficult to do.