Arctic Monkeys- 'One For The Road'- Video Deconstruction

Arctic Monkeys

Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in 2002 in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. The band consists of Alex Turner (lead vocals, lead & rhythm guitar), Matt Helders (drums, vocals), Jamie Cook (lead and rhythm guitar) and Nick O'Malley (bass, backing vocals). Former band member Andy Nicholson (bass guitar, backing vocals) left the band in 2006 shortly after their debut album was released.



'Domino'- Record Label

Domino Recording Company, generally known as Domino, is a British independent record label based in London. There is also a wing of the label based in Brooklyn, New York that handles releases in the United States as well as a German division called Domino Deutschland and a French division called Domino France. In addition, Stephan Pastel presides over the subsidiary label Geographic Music, which releases more unusual British and World Music. In 2011, the company announced that it was beginning a book publishing division, The Domino Press.


'One For The Road' - Music Video from YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qN7gSMPQFss



'One For The Road' - Lyrics 

One for the road, ooh ooh
One for the road, ooh ooh

From the bottom of your heart
The relegation zone
I saw this coming from the start
The shake, rattle and roll
The cracks in blackout blinds
Cast patterns on the ceiling but you're feeling fine
I thought it was dark outside
I thought it was dark outside

So we all go back to yours and you sit and talk to me on the floor
There's no need to show me round baby, I feel like I've been in here before
I've been wondering whether later when you tell everybody to go,
Will you pour me one for the road?

I knew this would be on the cards
I knew you wouldn't fold
I saw this coming from the start
The shake, rattle and roll

One for the road, ooh ooh

So we all go back to yours and you sit and talk to me on the floor
There's no need to show me round baby, I feel like I've been in here before
I've been wondering whether later when you tell everybody to go,
Will you pour me one for the road?

The mixture hits you hard
Don't get that sinking feeling, don't fall apart
Some out of tune guitar
Soundtrack to disaster

Ooh ooh, one for the road
Ooh ooh, one for the road
Ooh ooh, one for the road
Ooh ooh, one for the road

So we all go back to yours and you sit and talk to me on the floor
There's no need to show me round baby, I feel like I've been in here before
I've been wondering whether later when you tell everybody to go,
Will you pour me one for the road?

Synopsis


The video opens with someone from the band driving a tractor along a dirty path before he uniting with the rest of the band to play a very stylish set in the dust surrounded by sulky models and pyrotechnics. The whole of the music video is shot in black and white. The band performs in the dusty field, and the main singer, 'Alex Turner' sings throughout.



Timeline - Deconstruction of the Music Video 'One For The Road'

The shot above is a mid-shot. The way this is edited is by the camera slowly zooming out which then cuts to the next shot. This is an establishing shot as we see a girl standing in front of a tractor wearing a leather jacket with writing on the back saying 'One For The Road', which is in fact the name of the song. The fact the video has a black and white filter throughout the music video creates mystery, possibly creating intrigue for the audience to watch more of the music video.

This is a wide shot of a tractor in a field. This image shows a band member sitting on a tractor driving it through a field on a  dirty track.

There is a series of 4 quick cuts to medium close ups of each band member. The final member to be shown is 'Alex Turner' as he is the main singer of the band he is of importance, as he is also kept last to be shown as he is the main person from the band people are looking forward to seeing in the music video as he is also the face of the band.

The wide shot shows the instrumental of the Arctic Monkeys in their music video; this is the climax of the music video. As we see the entire band playing their instruments. Alex Turner is at the front of the band, the way he is positioned within the camera frame is important as he is showing of his talents and his significance in the band as he is the main singer. We then see fireworks later on in this shot, making the music video more interesting. This is the last shot which is shown in the music video, leaving it fresh in the audiences minds as well as making it clear to the audience they are a band which perform live.

Mise en scene- Setting





From the image it is made evident that this is establishing the setting of the music video.


Key shots, Camera movements and Editing


Key Shot

The image above is a key shot in the music video for 'One For The Road', establishing where the music video is going to be set, what the theme is going to be as well as having the name of the song written on the back of a woman's  jacket.

Camera Movement

The image above shows how the camera moves and pans across each band member. This is done effectively to ensure that the audience is aware of who Arctic Monkeys comprises of.

Editing

The editing in the image above is very well done. The Special FX are very visible to the audience to exaggerate the fact that Arctic Monkeys are a band which perform live and are also very rebellious/edgy due to their genre being Indie/Alternative.

Focus Group

 This is what my focus group had to say after watching the music video of 'One For The Road'.


"I really enjoyed watching the music video 'One For The Road' as I thought that the music video was well thought out, especially considering the lyrics of the song. As 'One For The Road' is sung, the tractor which is being driven across a track road is visually shown. I think this is very effective."


"I liked this video as I love seeing a live performance of a band in their music video."



 "I like the way the lyrics match with what is being shown visually in the music video."


Lessons to be Learnt

Lessons to be learnt from this music video are:

- The lyrics generally match what is happening in the music video.

-  The setting should be established from the very beginning of the music video.

- In alternative/rock/indie genres, the band usually performs in the video, whether it is live in one of their concerts or like like in this Arctic Monkeys music video, they perform in the middle of a empty field.