Coldplay
Coldplay have been classed as 'British Rock' band, however in recent years their tone has changed when it comes to reaching the charts. From 1996 to the present the band has had to keep up with the demands of the market in the music industry and try to accommodate their music with their tone, but in a way in which sells. The release of their album Parachutes, Coldplay hit their first top 40 in the UK with their lead single ''Shiver''. They then became under the category called 'Alternative' and won an award for best alternative music album at the Grammy Awards. Even though their music has taken a turn from what it was originally like, the band has met success and kept their fan base as they have kept up with the times, collaborating with other successful artists like Rihanna, Jay Z and most recently Beyonce.This was one of their most successful songs called The Scientist. In this video they use realistic clothing, for example what the main protagonist is wearing is a simple white shirt and black jeans, this could be used to keep it neutral and give a chance for the audience to have their own interpretations of whats occuring in the video. The locations that are used is an ordinary estate from the local looking shops and the graffitee which suggests it is filmed in a real life location, keeping the video reflective of society and relatable to the audience. However it is a walk through several scenes from a estate to a train track and evetually to a forest, it pieces the story together through a different kind of format. The video is shot backwards, however the singer is singing the lyrics while having his moves reversed, this is effective because it adds an insight into the story, by not only using the lyrics to communicate, but the actions of the music video. This leads me onto the lyrics, we can assume this is about a partnership/ relationship because of the lyric "It's such a shame for us to part" and "no one ever said it would be this hard", speaking of two people parting because of difficult circumstances. Another lyric is "Oh, take me back to the start", this is reinforced through the backward shooting of the music video telling the story from the ending to the beginning, it could also be linked back to the relationship idea in that he would like to go back to the start and do things differently. The ending reveales a car crash where he is driving and his assumed partner is also in the car, they have a car crash and she dies. A lyric that reinforces he is speaking about his partners death is "Tell me you love me, Come back and Haunt me, Oh and I rush to the start" This could be for him to get recognition that she forgives him as he may feel guilty for being the driver responsible for her death, which is why he ends the song of "I am going back to the start" as he wants a chance to redo his mistake. The genre of this music video would be alternative rock as Coldplay are a band they are usually best labelled this way. The band atmosphere allows a soft tone when he is telling the story, which moves to a louder tone at the end of the chorus when he mentions of going back to the start, it emphasis a big feeling this character in the video has.
Another hit from Coldplay, is Magic. This music video takes a different approach using an old style fashion to deliver the story, not using any actual words, but the actions and captions on the scene give the audience an idea of whats occurring in the scene. The story is based around a magician and her assistant, they a quite fond of each other and and you can tell this by the focus on their eyes when they look each other, there is a sense of chemistry there. However there is a darker side to this story her husband is a top magician and comes across as controlling and jealous of the relationship they have on stage, the captions show this by the top magician saying she will never be as good as him, the assistant also notices bruises on the woman, the audience can assume it is from her husband as how he has been portrayed throughout the music video. Locations in the video suggest it is a travelling circus or magic show, the tents with beds and dressing tables, this could suggest the magician and the assistant have been travelling together for a while and therefore their feelings have grown for each other. Coldplays theme throughout different music videos do consist of a 'love' theme or break up, this is commonly presented through an alternative rock genre. However this song in particular is more classified as 'pop rock' and R&B which is why Coldplays more recent content has been said to have differed from what they started with. The lyrics suggest love as well, replacing the word love and making reference to how it is like magic, with the husband/boyfriend in the way of the assistant it could suggest the magic is too strong and if two people have that between them, there is no way anyone can stop them from coming together. As we see in the end of the music video the assistant uses magic to make the man disappear to be united with the female magician that he has a connection with.
The most recent collaboration Coldplay has released is Hymn For The Weekend ft. Beyonce. This music video shows the culture of India, filmed in several different Indian cities, the costumes used are also a representation of the culture being colorful and full of life. The theme is colorful, bright and gives a feeling of how we should cherish the life we have and also to embrace different cultures around the world. Again this music video includes a theme of appreciating someone, the lyrics indicate this ''Life's a drink and your love's about to make the starts come out'' it can make the audience assume that there is an appreciation for your significant other, another lyric 'Got me feeling drunk and high' as if their love takes them to another place and this is something to celebrate. The genre of this music video I would suggest it pop rock / R&B with the appearance of Beyonce a known R&B artist, this has been a consistent genre throughout recent years for the band which could suggest they are keeping up with what sells and what is popular in the charts, however they still stick to the traditional theme of the band using instruments to promote that rock feel to their music.
Based on the evidence I have researched there is a common theme of love, appreciation and care in Coldplays music videos and lyrics. This would fit into the idea we have to create an appreciation for the world we live in and inform and educate the audience that we are destroying the very thing we should love and care for. We will get footage showing positives and negatives views of the world contrasting each other to make the audience think about current affairs that they should care about. Some footage we will have to download off of copyright free sights, for example footage of bombs and warfare, also poverty and aid that is trying to help that situation. After researching different Coldplay songs and music videos I believe we have chosen the right song to use for the story we want to portray. The lyrics (above) reinforces that it would fit with the theme of the world destruction and world appreciation, speaking of home and the world 'we' includes the audience into the song and engages them, also making them part of the problem and also the solution.
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