Vid EG 4 The White Stripes- Seven Nation Army

Act: The White Stripes

Track: Seven Nation Army

Year: 2003

Director: Alex & Martin

Genre: Rock/ Garage Rock

Album: Elephant

Main Audience: Males 15-25+ (secondary audience could be gothic females as their genre of music is quite dark, and both the military lyrics and the tune of the song reinforce this idea, as it is a song that represents political protest.)

Lyrics

Relationship between visuals + Lyrics:

In this music video there isn't a direct connection, however the singer emphasizes certain words by performing the actions which would represent them. An example would be that when he says "I'm gonna fight 'em off", he gestures his hands outwards as if he were implying that he has got the power to overtake anyone, because the position that he is presented in  connotes confidence, power. Furthermore, as he is positioned in the center of the shot frame, it suggests that he is the main focus of the song further reinforcing the idea of power. 

Genre Characteristics:

The lyrics of this song address different political views, however in an aggressive and unsophisticated way because there are words such as " hounds of hell"  giving off a negative vibe to the lyrics since the word 'hell' is known to be a negative location. However in this context the artist is referring to that not only does everyone here in the living world hear about each other, but also the afterlife does alwell, reinforcing the idea on how easily rumors/ secretes spread globally causing conflicts between politics, as this is a song going against the politicians (seen as a song of protest) which is a typical convention for this genre of music as this is how the artists send across their message to the audience on how they are unsatisfied with the way in which the world is being run.

 Performance, Narrative and/ or Concept:

The main performance in this song is the lip singing from the lead singer and the guitarists whom is the instrument that we hear of the most in the song. The concept of the song is that the artists are in a way doing a tribute to an organization called 'The salvation Army' which is where they got the idea for the name of the song, because it is an organization of protesting for those in need, and the band itself is portraying this through their music. The idea that it sounds like an army marching, relates to the name itself of the song 'Seven nation army' and the people who are part of 'The salvation Army' organization as they are; soldiers, officers and adherents.

Performance Style:
The performance is typical of a rock band genre, as we are shown with the guitar player, the lead singer lipsynching and the drummer whom are the typical musicians found in a rock band.

 Looking/ Mode of Address: 

There is some mode of address shown from the lead singer when singing, especially to reinforce the most powerful words within the lyrics such as 'Fight em' off' because he is putting the message across to the audience that he is protesting for those whom are seen as vulnerable through this song. Referring back to the organization 'The Salvation Army' as the band is speaking on their behalf.

Pace + Any Variation of Pace:

The pace of the song is quite slow, mirroring the idea of an army marching since it is a song addressed to this idea of war and protest. Furthermore, it links back to the name of the song since it's called 'Seven nation army', meaning that they are putting across the idea of a war not only through the lyrics but also through the music and pace of the sound making it seem as though an army is coming, because when you listen to it, its sounds as though an army were marching towards you.

Shot Variety + No. Of Set Ups:

There are no distinct sequences of filming. The director has done a continuous shot through a Kaleidoscopic tunnel of red, black and white either creating a triangle shape or a spiral shape. Seeing as they are mainly stripes, it could be seen as representing the symbol for the band as they are called 'The White Stripes', however the other idea that is suggested through the use of this Kaleidoscopic tunnel is the idea of inception as the same images are shown throughout to reinforce the message of rebellion/ protest to the audience  because the image that stands out the most whenever it appears are the skeleton soldiers who represent the sound of the marching soldiers. Furthermore, the  reason to why the band would have used a Kaleidoscopic tunnel for their music video is because when you watch the music video, it puts you into a trance as it's like watching an optical illusion, used to get the audience engulfed within the song in order to really understand the message of the song through the use of visual and lyrics.