5 Seconds Of Summer- Music Video Analysis

 

5 Seconds Of Summer (5SOS) are a four piece band from New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. 'Don't Stop' is the second single released by 5SOS and soon shot to the number 1 spot in the UK charts.

Before the official music video for 'Don't Stop' was released, a lyric video sporting the house style of the band was released on the 5th of May 2014. The official music video was released on the 19th may 2014, 2 weeks after the lyric video was released.

The official music video includes all four band members playing both themselves, and geeky yet quirky superheroes in a parody of what actual superheroes are stereotypically supposed to do.

-Calum Hood as 'Cal-Pal', an environmental activist saving the world one plastic bag at a time.

-Ashton Irwin as 'SmAsh', a super strong, hulk-like superhero who rescues kittens from trees.

-Luke Hemmings as 'Dr Fluke', a ninja like superhero who escorts old people across the street.

-Michael Clifford as 'Mike-Ro-Wave', who beats up all of the bad guys.

At the start of the music video, a parody of a disclaimer that is used for movie trailers is used which connotes that the video is going to have a strong yet clear story line to it. It also connotes that the band is playful and is also reflective of their genre 'pop-rock' signifying that they are neither too serious nor to immature. 5SOS's logo is used in the square in the information box towards the bottom of the image to make it clear to the audience who the band featured is.

Following the opening disclaimer, several jump cuts are used to flash back and forth showing a band member, then some text to kick-start the 'story'. The use of jump cuts also helps to distinguish that the music video will follow the 'action' genre and suggests a fast paced video.

Following these shots is an establishing shot of the boys on a rooftop not only to signify the location, but to also show the band to the audience. The mise-en-scene in this particular shot connotes that 5SOS are quite a grimy, and punky band which is again, reflective of the genre they are making their music in.

How Goodwin's conventions of a music video can be applied to 'Don't Stop':

1. 'Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics':
   In Don’t Stop, Goodwin’s convention is challenged as 5 Seconds of Summer are a boy band and there is no clear dance routine or stereotypical elements. However, there are some amplifying features that are stereotypically associated with rock bands such as 5SOS playing live on a dark building, wearing dark clothing and a low key lighting to create an authentic pop-rock band look. Also, as the video is based around a movie trailer, it follows the typical expectations of what must be included as we follow the lives of four very different superheroes. 
2. ‘There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals’:
   There are some examples of relationships between lyrics and visuals, but more of an illustrative technique has been used not to create meaning, but purely just to show what the word means. For example, the lyrics are “and when you push me off” and in the visual components an old lady is pushing ‘Dr Fluke’ away from her.
3. ‘There is a relationship between music and visuals’:
   The visuals in Don’t Stop contradict the music rather significantly as the song is about falling in love with a girl who doesn't reciprocate the feelings for the boy, yet the music video follows the lives of four superheroes so a contradicting approach is taken here. 
4. ‘The demands of the record label will include the need for lots of close ups of the artist and the artist may develop motifs which recur across their work’:
   Goodwin’s theory is supported by 5SOS’s video as there are a large amount of close ups of the artists and a clear, consistent style is maintained throughout the video.
5. ‘There is frequently reference to notion of looking and particularly voyeuristic treatment of the female body’:
   Don’t Stop highly contradicts this convention as there are no voyeuristic treatments of any female bodies and there are no notions of looking through things such as through TV screens.
6. ‘There is often intertextual reference’:
   Goodwin’s convention cannot be applied to Don’t Stop as there are no intertextual references to any website, band, TV show etc. However as 'Don't Stop' is based around a movie trailer, there is an ongoing motif present throughout the video beause the video has an authentic movie trailer feel to it.