Music Videos - Predictable

Music videos function much the same way that cover art does, it promotes the artist and expresses the themes and sound of the music, the only difference is the performative nature of moving image. So I looked through different music videos to find a good example of imagery fitting to the sound and I came across 'Predictable' by the punk band Good Charlotte. The song is not very heavy, it actually has quite pretty guitar melodies and what sounds like violins. It is very typical of a punk rock band in terms of instruments however and the layers of guitars and the drums intensify near the end. The song as a whole (including lyrics) is rather emotional and dark which is expressed very well in the video. It starts off with the protagonist exiting a large house on a hill and walking onto a street. The opening scene was drawn by the bands guitarist Billy Martin, inspired by Tim Burton's film Edward Scissor Hands - a dark, warped, twisted world juxtaposed with perfect ideals - which coincides with the songs theme.

From the start of the video you know the protagonist (the singer) is a dark, emotional person as he leaves a big house all alone on a big hill. He is a loner who wears black clothing and keeps his arms crossed over his chest, it could mean he is in mourning of someone or something. Having his arms crossed is a sign that he wants to keep to himself, he is guarded. The first line of the song is "Something isn't right" which I think talks about the world the singer is in in general. He is walking through a street of perfect, neat, cared-for houses and sees people that "aren't right", they aren't "normal". They wear black clothes, have black eyes, have tattoos and solemn, almost angry expressions and even though they are obviously "not right" they are looking at the singer as if he is "not right".
Cross cut with the singer/protagonist walking down the street is the band performing the song in a dark, warped (very Tim Burton) room with buckets all over the floor to catch rain drops so you know it is run down, worn. The lighting has a blue tinge, like thunder lighting up the room through the windows. This gives a cold, stormy feel, like a metaphor for his inner turmoil.

The aesthetics in this video definately conform to the theme of the song and sound of the music but do they sell the band? Sell the music? I think what they have done is very smart because not only do these aesthetics appeal to kindred spirits - people who suffer dark emotions, who have had heartbreak, feel cold and broken etc - but it also grabs the attention of all Tim Burton fans, which is a big crowd.

Link to video: http://youtu.be/js8pCCxcVuc