Real Media Artefact

Kaiser Chiefs - Never Miss A Beat

The Kaiser Chiefs song, ‘Never Miss a Best’ set in a Council estate displays teenage revolt and youth rebellion which links in with the idea of the song, and how kids are always on the mark, and ‘Never miss a beat’. It shows young kids in different gangs but is soften by the use of masks and face paints that make it unrealistic as one gang wears animal masks, another has black and white face paint and another wear what appears to be cardboard tubs on their heads. It makes it seem quite comical but threatening at the same time as the audience cannot see the children’s faces so they are dehumanised and have no facial recognition, making them all look roughly the same apart from their builds and clothing. The continual shots of the different gangs running from one place to another makes the song seem chaotic and fast pace again linking in with the song and the idea of youth rebellion. Also to make it softer and not a video on actual youths fighting and attacking each other, the audience never sees the gangs clash or fight, even at the end when they come together they join together and merge into a large dance group rather than resorting to violence. This may be because the director wanted to twist the audiences idea of the youth of today from rebellious outlaws to actually the fact that their just kids, and they aren’t actually doing anything wrong.

Although the video is predominantly narrative based, there are performance sections as well when the band are playing in the small room they are in while the youths revolt outside. So this shows a storyline that the band are involved in as they are kept inside for fear of venturing outside due to the youths but also the fact that they are also performing, promotes the band as the audience can see them playing and shows the bands identity. The storyline keeps the video interesting as it is unusual instead of just having a performance based video of the band. It also makes the band memorable as their video involves an unusually concept about youths and children. Also having the lead singer as a news reporter on a small TV screen again generates interest as Ricky Wilson is acting within the music video as well as also being himself and singing with the rest of the band. It also makes the music video a little comical and quirky introducing the band members into acting roles. One of the band members plays a housewife looking disgustedly out of a council flat window, another plays a police officer chased by one of the gangs, another acts as a man fishing who is caught in another gangs rampage and the last member of the band is a jogger again being chased by a mob. Not only is it comical to see the band members dressed up, but it also incorporates them more into the storyline of the music video rather than keeping the narrative and performance separate to one another.

From a filming and editing point of view, the video contains a lot of short takes and jump cuts to keep the tempo quick and speedy, making the action seem energetic and in turn the song exciting. Most of the gangs and mobs are filmed in slow motion a lot of the time, to possibly create suspense and create an intimidating view on them as they are supposed to seem threatening. The slow motion shot of them running also fulfils this and makes it seem like high action and scary as the audience don’t altogether understand what is happening. A point of view shot is used in the way of a security camera and again re-instates the sense of intimidation and confusion making the gangs again seem threatening. The camera also zooms in and out on certain subjects to normally give the audience the full picture of what is happening, for example when the shopkeeper turns his open sign round to closed the camera goes from a close-up to a long shot to show the gang running past his shot and adding to the storyline of how the gangs are feared, hence the shopkeeper closing. The whole video has a slight yellowish tinge to it which makes it seem a little retro and dated even though it perhaps isn’t. Tracking is also used to look arounf the council estate at the gangs rampage and movements. The song matches the visuals in some places which again attaches the song to the video making more of a narrative based video than anything else. It also promotes the song as the audience can see visuals of what the lyrics are representing and the meaning behind them. The dance routine at the end matches with the music being played over the top and again is interesting to watch rather than just watching the band perform.

I think this video promotes the song well as it has an interesting storyline that matches the lyrics and the songs idea of youth rebellion and gangs and mobs. The visuals are creative and the idea of having mobs of children hidden behind masks and face paints is quite original. The idea of setting the video in East London in Council flats again mixes well with the bands image and completes the audiences expectations from a Indie/Alternative video as it is quite rural, loud and energetic.