MARK KAMARA - A2 MEDIA PORTFOLIO
‘Rather Be’ is a Dance track, released as a single prior to Clean Bandit’s release of their début album, ‘New Eyes’. ‘Rather Be’ was released in December 2013 [39]. Since then, the song has become an international hit, partly due to the music video becoming a viral hit on YouTube, with now over 248 million views. Additionally, ‘Rather Be’ won the Best Dance Record category at the 2015 Grammy’s in the US [40].
I will be analysing this music video, as it is my favourite song, and I have also closely analysed the video over the summer holidays, as I was working on re-creating the video, as part as a cover with my friends, to develop my music video production skills, in preparation for my advanced portfolio project. Additionally, the production value of this video was really cost-effective, as the band shot, and edited the video themselves, which is a factor that I and the rest of my group hope to recreate for our advanced portfolio music video. Furthermore, I will be analysing this music video, as the genre is Dance, which House falls into, and this is the desired genre of the song that my group and I will be using for our music video. Analysing this Dance track will help us, as I will be able to pick up on editing techniques, similar themes, and the Mise-en-scéne throughout the video, as well as the band’s style, and how they choose to market themselves. All of these elements together will assist with the planning of my group’s music video.
In short, the music video follows a Japanese fan of Clean Bandit, who becomes delirious, and experiences hallucinations of the band members, as well as the Clean Bandit Logo appearing unexpectedly in her daily life, as a chef [41]. Below this, I will explain the music video in great detail.
CLEAN BANDIT - RATHER BE: MUSIC VIDEO ANALYSIS
‘Rather Be’ starts off with an establishing shot, which tracks through a beautiful Koi Fish Pond, telling to the audience that the music video is set in Japan. This is then followed by a series of clips that show a young Japanese woman in her house, shown to undergo her daily routine, played by Haruka Abe herself [42], a fan of the band. Throughout this scene, various Easter Eggs are present, which contain the band’s logo, and even one of their earlier music videos, ‘Dust Clears’, which is shown on Haruka’s Dad’s television, in the living room. Later on in the music video Haruka is shown on a scooter, riding to a fish market, in which she sees another Clean Bandit Easter Egg, and when she looks back, it’s gone. Haruka then buys some fish, and is served by a cashier who instantly becomes Grace, the cellist in Clean Bandit, confusing Haruka.
She then rides to work singing the chorus of the song, where she is presented as a chef in a restaurant. Haruka is then shown serving a few Japanese men, who seem to be genuine members of the public; however they begin to dance to the chorus, confusing Haruka, as Jack and Luke, also members of the band, join in with the dance. After this, Haruka is awoken back in her bed, with a vision of spinning around with another girl, who is again shown to be Grace. Afterwards, a montage of the fish market is followed by a few shots showing Haruka’s Dad again, watching the weather on TV, with Jack as the weatherman. Again, there are some Easter Eggs present in the fish market. Neil, the fourth member of the band, is then shown to be playing a violin as he stands on a cargo-lift vehicle, which then crosses Haruka’s path, thus confusing her furthermore, as she sings the Pre-Chorus of the song.
Haruka is then shown riding home on her scooter, as the four members of Clean Bandit emerge from behind her, on their own scooters, who shortly disappear then after. Haruka then lies on her bed, and is urged to stand up, realising that she is no longer in her bedroom, as her bed is now in a concert hall, with Clean Bandit performing ‘Rather Be’, with Jess Glynne, the vocalist of the song. Instantly, the concert hall becomes packed full of fans, and Haruka is even more confused. This is followed by a few shots showing Clean Bandit performing, and then Haruka being crowd lifted around the concert hall, with a scared facial expression. She then runs out of the venue, followed by another Easter Egg of the band’s logo, as she comes out onto a busy high street in Tokyo. Haruka then crosses the street, and stops at a Japanese male, playing to ‘Rather Be’ on a keyboard on the edge of the sidewalk. Haruka then smiles at him, but quickly changes her expression to look terrified, as she sees the band’s logo in the guy’s eye, enticing her to run away.
The music video then shows three well-orchestrated wide shots of Haruka running, and as she crosses the screen from the left to right, the background, and time of day changes. Haruka then runs past Jack, who is drinking from a drink, at a Japanese stall shop. Haruka then runs onto a train station, gasping for air, as the train speeds past her, followed by a wide shot showing the train, with a few Clean Bandit logos superimposed on huge advert posters, as more Easter Eggs. Haruka is then on the train, as Grace and Neil, with six other civilians jump out of nowhere, dancing and singing to the Chorus of the song, consequently causing Haruka to faint, as she has been overwhelmed with the delusions throughout the video. The video is then followed by the Grace and Neil with the people who were dancing on the train, on a beach, doing the same dance that they created for the song.
Lastly, Haruka is shown in a hospital bed, with her Dad trying to calm her down, as she is viciously moving around, frightened from all the hallucinations, however still singing along to the chorus. And, to top it all off, Haruka’s Dad is then shown to peal of his skin, revealing Jack, for the final few seconds, as the Clean Bandit Logo zooms out into shot over him.
Throughout the video, a key theme of repetition, with the appearing and disappearing of the band members and logo is present. This creates a sense of delusion for both Haruka, the protagonist in the music video, and the audience watching it. Alongside this, a theme of working and escapism from work is also present, as shown with Haruka’s job as a Chef, all the people who work in the fish market, and the commuters on the train, who later conform to escapism
escapism by breaking out and dancing. This reinforces that the bands random ppearances is not something that happens every day, and that people are taking it as an opportunity to be free and escape from their usual daily routines.
Additionally, Clean Bandit have made themselves notorious for having the element of transport as a key feature in their music videos, which is present in ‘Rather Be’. The two main elements of transport in ‘Rather Be’ are the scooter that Haruka rides, and the entire band, in the scene when they appear from behind her, as well as the Japanese Yamanote Line Commuter Train [43], where Grace and Neil, two of the band members, are dancing with six other people, who appear to be commuters. This is effective, as this creative method of using transport, what is considered a major part in so many people’s lives, creates a sense of the band coming closer with the fans, as it portrays that they would still use public transport, such as lot of regular people, instead of using private cars or similar vehicles when moving place to place.
Although the music video has a very well developed narrative, it is not greatly related to the song lyrics, as Jess Glynne sings about being in love, whereas the music video is more about the love a fan has for the band, and her daily life in another part of the world. This being said, the ideas presented within the video do still have a link, as can be taken from the lyrics, ‘With every step we take, Kyoto to
The Bay’. The screenshot on the left shows the Koi Fish pond, which is shown
shown in the beginning of the video, and can be linked to being in Kyoto, whereas the screenshot on the right shows a bay in Tokyo, present later on in the video. This suggests that Haruka is making her journey around Japan in relation to the song lyrics.
Another line of lyrics that is related to the music video is, ‘Strolling so casually’, as this suggests that Haruka is, in this case not walking, but riding at a leisurely pace, which can be seen in the screenshot to the left. The fact that Haruka is riding at a slightly slower pace than expected, could suggest that she is attempting to absorb her surroundings, which does support the events occurring within the music video, as Haruka could be trying to clear her head from all of the random appearances of Clean Bandit she has just been experiencing in her recent life, throughout the course of the music video so far.
An effective use of Cinematography was the three wide shots used to show Haruka running through Tokyo, as the course of the day progresses from night, dawn and sunrise. This can be seen in the screenshot to the right, where I have collaged all three shots into one frame. These three shots are significant as they literally show Haruka running for a long period of time, suggesting that she has had too many hallucinations of Clean Bandit and their logo, to feel sane. This shot is also very effective as it shows Haruka’s tipping point, revealing to the audience that she is desperately trying to break out of these delusions. Additionally, these three shots are filmed beautifully, showing different parts of Japan, also supporting that Haruka has run for a long period of time.
Another use of effective Cinematography was the wide travelling wide shot used to show the entire band emerging from behind Haruka, also on scooters, as seen in the screenshot to the left. This is significant, as it fits within the theme of transport in the music video. Also, the fact that Clean Bandit are riding on scooters with Haruka could suggest that they have further indulged in her life, as it seems to be the norm for her, and by the band partaking in this mode of transport, a sense of the band stalking or knowing Haruka is created. Additionally, no other people can be seen in the shot, suggesting that Haruka is in her own world, disconnected from reality, where she is the only one present with the band, thus adding to the theme of delusions and hallucinations within the music video.
One effective use of Mise-en-scéne is Haruka’s desk, which has two Clean Bandit Easter Eggs, as shown in the screenshot to the right. This is effective as it introduces to the audience that Haruka is fan of Clean Bandit. Additionally, these logo appearances are a part of the Easter Eggs that appear throughout the video, however in this shot they are shown as something normal to Haruka, as she probably made them, being a fan of the band. It’s only later, when the logo continuously appears, that she begins to freak out.
Another use of effective Mise-en-scéne is Haruka’s Clean Bandit bed sheet, as seen in the screenshot to the left. Similarly to the previous Easter Egg mentioned, the bed sheets help establish to the audience that Haruka is a fan of Clean Bandit, however this prop is even more useful as it is used as a catalyst to transition from one scene to another. In the music video, Haruka lies on her bed, and sits up, to find herself in the middle of a concert hall with Clean Bandit performing. This was a very sleek way to cut between two different locations, and is done seamlessly, which may have not been the case, without the bed sheet being present in the music video.
An effective use of editing was the motion tracking and masking used to superimpose the Clean Bandit logo in the piece of meat, seen only after the worker chops it in half, as shown in the screenshot to the right. This is effective, as it is another Easter Egg which has been portrayed really well, possibly suggesting that Clean Bandit are becoming a part of Haruka’s life, or even the lives of people across Tokyo. Additionally, this use of editing is effective, as the band edited the music video themselves, and it shows that even with a little budget, creativity can still flourish.
Another effective use of editing was the green screen and marked mask used to show Haruka’s Dad peeling off his skin, to reveal Jack, from Clean Bandit, as shown in the screenshot to the left. This is really effective with the narrative as it suggests that no matter how much Haruka is hallucinating, even those closest to her, in this case her dad, may seem normal, but all along could have been Jack pretending to be him, or at least in Haruka’s head. Furthermore, Haruka is already in a state of denial with herself, feeling as if she is crazy, so having this shot to end the video, highlights the fact that there is no escape for her, and that Clean Bandit have become a dominant part of her life, creating a sense of the music video being a literal metaphor for this, as she is a fan of the band, and therefore, they will in one way or another be a part of her life.
Ultimately, this music video has helped me and my group towards our music video project, as it was the music video I recreated prior to this project, allowing me to develop my cinematography, editing and lighting techniques, the use of props for effect, and my directing skills, all in preparation for this project. Without doing this, I believe that I would not be as proficient as I am now, which may limit the production value of me and my group’s final piece. Additionally, both analysing and re-creating this music video has broadened my creativity, as I have learnt some techniques that I can edit with, and incorporate into the planning of me and my group’s music video, as well as being able to develop interesting narratives, filled with Enigma codes, which eventually all come together to reveal a bigger picture.
Lastly, analysing and re-creating ‘Rather Be’ has shown me that a video with a low budget production can still be better than most music videos that are shot at a high budget, in terms of narrative, originality, and creativity. Additionally, ‘Rather Be’ being a hit video on YouTube, goes to show that people are interested into these types of music videos, and will still watch them. As a result, I am confident that I will draw a lot of inspiration from Clean Bandit and ‘Rather Be’ for the music video that I and the rest of my group are working on. In addition, I feel that it is much more interesting for bands to create their own music videos, and this is an element that I would like to put forward in the planning of the music video I and my group are working on.