BLUR – CO

UN

TRY HO

USE M

USIC

VIDEO

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS

Before the start of the music video we see the title of the song and the band: ‘Blur – Country House,’ this initially shows the audience what the music video is and is hence an introduction to this. A lot of music videos don’t do this hence this is not a common convention however this could be as the music video is older than others and is a convention that is not popular anymore. As the music starts there is an instant zoom which matches the pace of the instrumental of the song. The building itself gives it an urban image and hence refreshes in the audiences mind that this band in ways is laid back, the zoom is purposely done and we feel like we’re looking into what is happening. This references what Andrew Goodwin says about the notion that the audience are looking. We then cut to shot where one of the band members shuts the curtains of what we were once looking through. This could symbolise that we’re now a part of this and gives us a connection to the band as if it’s hidden. We then have two close-ups of band members reading, this is what Goodwin says that the music videos use to show who the music video is about. These shots themselves are quite quick and cuts back to the same shot from when we first entered. This shows the location and matches the steady pace of the music. We’re then faced with an aerial shot of a board game of ‘escape from the rat race.’ The ‘escape’ in this is interesting to note to the song as it is visually referencing the lyrics and song itself ‘escape from the country.’ After a few different shots of them starting to play the board game, we’re directed to the singer who put’s down a book that says ‘country house’ (it is clear to note that there are many references to the song itself before it has even truly begun) and sings ‘so the story begins.’ As he puts down the book it’s interesting as it gives an idea of storytelling and brings the audience nostalgia from books, board games as child. We then cut to a different location completely. The singer use direct address in this shot to interest the audience and from what we can see behind him it looks like the board game has come to life. It is clear as he is singing the lyrics reference what we begin to see visually this connects the relationship of them both as Andrew Goodwin said it amplifies what the song is about to the audience. ‘City dweller, successful fella’ once this is sung we’re immediately drawn to behind the singer of somebody who matches the common stereotypical rich man. He is wearing a suit, top hat and to top it off he is carrying a brief case. This is interesting and contrasts against the singer who is wearing casual and normal clothing. When we’re introduced to this character we don’t really see his face. This is interesting as although it seems he is the main concept of the song itself his identity is sealed intriguing us. When it sings ‘Thought to himself’ this shot is reflective as both the singer and character place their fingers up. This visually shows a connection between the two characters. There is then the mention of ‘money’ and this is when it all is thrown out of this briefcase. In this time lot’s of short and different cuts have been made. This has been used in a way that matches the pace of the song. Before the money is shown to use the singer is in central focus and the character has been more so out of focus. This could be seen as identity (from the uses and gratifications model) to the audience showing who this song is by and why they should be intrigued by it. We then begin to see things that are visually connected to the lyrics ‘rat race’ is symbolised with an image of rats in two different shots (keeping up with the pace of the song) it is interesting as the character is walking along a board game. This is interesting and ties in from what we have seen before, this makes us think and intrigue us to watch. In a way this could connote that this is all a game. It then cuts to an

MAIN FEATURES OF THE MUSIC VIDEO:

Interesting scene. It shows a couple of females who seem to be running in the real life board game in a frantic manner. This refers to the past lyrics of ‘race.’ However their scared feeling they show is quiet humorous to the audience this is as we’re unsure if they’re scared of the rats or the rich character, maybe both? As the various shots matching the pace of the music continue the singer is shown to us again giving the identity of what this is to the audience. In ways this brings us back to focus that we’re watching and are not a part of the video. The words ‘limit’ that the musician says are interesting as he refers to himself. This is placed in a warning sign, and the rich character seems to not see this a bumps into this. This could be connoting that as a rich character he has no limits because he is rich and as he is only just starting to see things that others clearly see. From this it is clear to note that we feel a narrative is building in this music video, which Goodwin says that many music videos feature. When the musician says ‘Caught up’ the females are caught under the board-games trap. This is humorous to the audience and is entertaining them to continue watching. At this point it is clear to note that the lighting of this real life board game scene are completely different from the lighting we saw at the beginning. At the beginning of the music video we saw quite dark, urban colours. However, now we’re seeing bright colours even though it could be seen to contrast the lyrics of words like ‘trapped’ this is interesting and makes us think more about what the song is saying as there is an ultimate contrast. However after this trap the lighting changes quite dramatically. It seems quite dark and scary however, the audience still see this as quiet humorous as of what we have seen from before. ‘It preys on him’ is sung and we see the rich character in the background, by doing so the music video is visually referencing him. It’s interesting as we get a shot of a seemingly scared character. This could be showing what the audiences emotion should perhaps be for the rich character. ‘He's getting thin’ is followed by a tracking shot of a Skelton covered in cobwebs. This could be referencing what may start to happen to the character, showing his destiny. Our shot is then changed matching the lyrics again (this is interesting and is a common convention that Goodwin outlined however these lyrical and visual connections are helping us create a story however, we’re still engaged with the music as the presence of the singer seems to still be lingering which isn’t common in all music videos.) ‘He lives in a house, a very big house.’ In the foreground of this shot we see the rich character walking along. This is interesting as it shows he is still a part of the ‘race’ mentioned from before, linking to the lyrics once again with the words house this is clear to us. As word house is emphasized in the lyrics it does the same in the video and there is an fast zoom onto it, this shows the importance to us as the audience. This is simply used but it makes us think back to what the singer is saying and places the idea that this is something we’re watching once again. As the shot changes to an opening of the door. This adds more of a narrative once again showing perhaps we get to see the lifestyle of this rich character. When the door opens there is a contrast in what we see visually and what the lyrics are suggesting. ‘In the country’ is what we see outside the location is very rural and what we stereotypically expect however there is a sudden contrast especially with colour. It feels like we have skipped time and we’re in a modern atmosphere. It places a flashing sign saying ‘Yes No Win Lose’ this is opposing ideas and could be mentioning of thoughts of the singer or perhaps even more so the rich character as it seems that this is supposed to be his house. It’s interesting as the video is keeping us engaged to the story as we’re unsure what will happen next. This being a great source of entertainment but also something we could follow even if we hadn’t been watching it from the beginning. There is then a huge zoom on the word ‘win.’ The audience are forced to see this and this could lead them to be confused yet engaged as to what this means. We’re then given a long shot of the other band members sat on a sofa, it is interesting to note that the colours scheme is quite light and bright. The various use of white, pink, yellow etc. There are also things like massive dice that we wouldn’t see in real life. This could be fixating on the idea that this is perhaps imaginary and that the

Musicians are in their own world. What is interesting is that this notion of looking that Goodwin emphasised is predominant in this part of the video as we see one of the band member watching something with what seems like a person running on a rat’s wheel. This linking back to lyrics of the song a ‘rat race’ what is interesting in this part of the video is we’re seeing the band members once again. But they’re not performing which Goodwin said was a typical part of the music video. This is interesting and is clear that Blur wants to go against the common conventions of a music video. However, it feels like they themselves are part of the narrative as while watching the television they’re eating something and references the lyrics of ‘Watching afternoon repeats and the food he eats.’ The singer is then brought to our attention again. This symbolises that they want people to know who the musicians are and further introduces to people newly watching the video who they are giving the audience identity of who this is by. A character in a doctor’s outfit then spills lot’s of pills on the person watching the television referencing the lyrics again ‘He takes all manner of pills and piles up analyst bills’ and to follow we see this doctor throwing bills. It’s interesting as the singer is telling this rich man’s story and everything he says is coming true. In ways this connotes the idea that the music is in control in this video. There is then somebody riding a pig. This is amusing to the audience but makes sense to the lyrics of ‘farm’ it’s interesting to note that while the video itself seems that it is placing various and weird concepts to the audience they link within the actual lyrics. This perhaps giving Blur an individual music style that links into their music. When singing about ‘rural charm’ it is interesting to note that the women we saw before are back onto our screens in more rural and country clothing. This appeals to the audience and could be seen as the male gaze as Goodwin discussed. We’re engaged as seeing a female intrigues the male gendered audience. Especially as other shots show these females cleavage and even one women putting her leg up. This attracts the audiences attention and it is clear that the singer is referring to women as the ‘charm.’ This could detract the females interested in Blur, but still we’re thoroughly engaged. After these scenes, we’re back the board game again. As the musician references ‘he’ we see the rich character walking once again. It’s clear that the whole video is referencing from the beginning as he is telling the story of this rich man. This allows the audience to get some placement once again who the narrative is about as previous clips may of given the audience some confusion. After some shots of females running up some hay – the idea of country and rural being a predominant feature in this music video. We see the singer in the foreground. It’s interesting as he is singing this but is not taking it seriously. This could be as he is singing about somebody he doesn’t care about. This carefree attitude is something the audience can probably connect with and are intrigued to watch more. The scene then changes to quite dark when the lyrics says: ‘in touch with his own mortality’, we see a clock and the rich character falling into a big book saying ‘mortality.’ When looking at this it seems quite humorous to us and we enjoy the scene however. Mortality’s definition is being subject to death. This clearly shows that he is falling into some form of bible perhaps and we’re coming to the end of this characters life. This contrast is interesting and shows that they want this music video to be upbeat and free caring to the audience. After falling into this a skeleton jumps out to the audience – this is used once again in a humorous manner. It’s interesting to note that although we have various different clips being shown to us there is no shaking movement of the camera. This allows us to see clearly. After the skeletons appear some cartoon like graves pop up and this interests the audience as it is mixing a light-hearted music video and death into one. This allowing us to have a mixture of emotions to the video. As the singer (who is in the foreground singing to us once again) mentions ‘He's reading Balzac, knocking back Prozac’ we see behind him somebody reading referencing to the lyrics. This is interesting as it is not the rich character but in fact a band member. This takes us back to reality remembering that this is a music video and gives identity of other members of the band and not just the singer. When a ‘helping

Is mentioned. A hand appears from the book. This within itself seems quiet conceptual and really interests us. This is as this is not something we typically see and gives the sense that this is quiet an abstract and also dream like. This connotes this idea of storytelling of this mans life, when given the pill by the hand the character uses direct address. This in ways could make the audience feel uncomfortable as they know the characters know that they’re watching. However, this could lead to the opposite and make the audience more intrigued as one of the band members has noticed them. The male gaze is used once again and a female in a nurses outfit appears. This interests the audience. However it feels that she is not a part of the story and she is infact enjoying them music as she is moving her head side to side. This adds to the light-heartedness of the video. Even though it has just mentioned death. The singer is then placed in our focal view again back at the board game. As he sings: ‘Oh it's the centuries remedy’ we see the rich character once again walking however he has finally fallen into the trap that we saw the women fall into earlier. In ways it is interesting as he walks into his own trap. In ways we feel that this rich man lacks intelligence and feels as if through the whole video has been walking to this trap. There is then a close up which is slowly zooming out of the singer. This is interesting to note Goodwin says this as the record label probably needs close up shots of the musicians purely because they’re the focus keeping the audience interested. Then we see a repeated clip once again of the women running. This adds a sense of speed to the music video and this element of time and scare is clear to us. As ‘new start’ is mentioned we see the dead rich man get up with what seems to be a ghost. This is something that is seen or cartoons and not reality meaning we’re referencing once again this idea of storytelling and dream telling in the video. Instantly we’re back to the clip of him walking to across the big house, before we even know what is happening there is a quick change of clip. Using the same shot so the actual viewpoint doesn’t change, the rich man is however right up against the camera. We finally see a close up and a visual shot of him hence the ‘new beginning’ feeling in the video. The character that once lacked emotion then skips to the house as the lyrics begin to talk about the ‘big house.’ All of sudden we feel that there has been lots of movement however the camera is stood still and it is only the character that has moved. The character seems to jump up in happiness and as he does this the editing cleverly zooms to the house as it has done in the music video before. However, this movement is making the audience feel more lively and there is an element of happiness in the video once again. There is a repetition of the same clip of seeing the ‘Yes No Win Lose’ this is interesting as now the audience are confused. Will the same thing happen again or is this a completely new start for the character? We’re then shown a clip of the band members in a bath tub, this is amusing to us and references this idea that we don’t know what will happen next in this video which references the bands visual style to us. However, as the singer talks about ‘rest’ it could be clear that this is what the chilling in bathtubs could be seen as. We also see females in the bath tubs referencing typically to he male audience once again as we know that stereotypically the audience will be interested in them hence using them to engage the audience more. We then are cut to a scene of an eye level shot of the rich character in a bathtub, we recognise him as he is wearing his top hat. This is referencing the lyrics of ‘He doesn't drink smoke laugh, takes herbal baths in the country.’ The clip then shows alcohol and cigarettes disappearing from the rich mans hands showing that he doesn’t have them. In ways this poofing effects of them disappearing adds a humorous atmosphere to the music video once again. We’re the zoomed out to a high angle shot of all the bath-tubs together. This is the first scene where it feels like the musician and all the characters are on the same level. We’re given a close-up shot of the musician once again to signify his importance. It then moves to women pouring hot water into the bathtubs. She is giving a seductive glance to the audience and this appeals to them making them want to continue watching. There are then various clips of these women pouring the water in the bath-tubs for the men.

This could quiet possibly annoy women watching the video as they know it is not their job to serve men. However as a rich man is constantly mentioned in this video it is clear to note that perhaps that is the reason they’re doing it. As we get to the bridge of the song, lot’s of fast editing begins to happen. This is used especially on the band to reinforce to the audience who this song is about. Lot’s of close-ups are used and this reinforces identity with the audience. We then get to see movement from the females in the bath-tubs. This once again interests the male audience as this is appealing to them. These females begin to move frantically and blowing the bubbles in the bath-tub. This is done in-between the shots of the band members. This is interesting as it starts to build the pace up for the song. It is then cut back to the ‘rat race’ when the instrumental part of the song is used. To match the music pace everything is sped up deliberately. The audience can tell that this is purposely sped up and gives the visual representation of looking. In this the females we saw are running around like we saw near the beginning of the music video. However, here we see they’re running from a doctor. This gives the audience some answer to their questions of before as to who these women were running away from. The speed is interesting and uses various shots but are all the same speed. This makes it feel unrealistic to us bringing back that feeling of dreams to the audience, referencing that perhaps this footage is from earlier in the video we see the rich character walking along. It is interesting to note that he doesn’t seem to notice these females showing that they’re of no importance to us. This is a really clever element as it feels we have gone back in time in the music video. We also see the band members in this chase also they’re riding what seems to be a milk van. This is interesting and amuses the audience but also shows the band members in our view point again. In this part we can clearly see everybody (apart from the rich character) chasing after the females, perhaps they’re supposed to connote the ‘rats’ to us. After a montage of chaos of everybody running around the game board (various close-ups of the women are shown like near their skirts. This is to emphasise men to watch the video, also there are shots of trying to get women into the trap.) It’s interesting as at this point the video has been at a pace that the audience can follow however in this part we’re left a little confused however this allows us to more so enjoy the tune of the music, bringing back this idea that we’re only watching a music video. It is also interesting that various props like the pop-up graves from before are clear to see. In ways this shows that this whole music video has been a game and nothing has been real. After this mad rush lyrics are sung again. However we see a much slower pace when they’re singing ‘Blow, blow me out I am so sad, I don't know why’ all the band members are placed at this point and are the only thing we can see. This is important as we finally see all the band members singing together and adds this idea of identity. There is a slow panning outwards at this point, and around them we see an interesting edit of themselves spinning around them. This reinforces an idea of perhaps themselves don’t know what is happening. By doing so this grasps the audiences attention as it is a different feel from what we saw just a moment ago. It then fades to a pan inwards to the main singer we have seen throughout the video with the same edit of him spiraling around him. This is interesting and gives a very abstract and unrealistic feel to the video. However, just as we’re making sense of this there is an interesting zoom. It is taken in a snapshot fashion and is purposely done and we can feel the rhythm come back into the song. It then quickly switches back to the close image of the rich character that we have seen before once again, this adds an idea of repetition to the music video. However this time, the rich character has some emotion on his face and he moves his head as to say he is letting us into his house. As he does this the camera zooms to the ‘house in the country’ which is being sung. This links and connects the audience to the lyrics. This time we actually see the rich character open the door. This is interesting and it feels we’re coming to the end of the music video. It then zooms to the ‘win’ that we have seen three times before, adding familiarity to the audience. There is defiantly this idea of repetition especially when singing ‘watching afternoon repeats’ we see the image of people watching the television and see the close up of the

singer zooming out again. At this point we have familiarity and it connects us. We then see a flash of things that have happened before however they’re shot at different angles. As we know what has already happened we’re quite alert and are more so enjoying the music. We then see a shot of the pig being moved this is interesting and amuses us this is visually presented before the song talks about a farm. This is interesting as we saw it visually before the lyrics. In ways it feels that this was done as at this point the audience knows what this is all about. We then see the various women once again and even the head bobbing from side to side is similar. When the singer sings ‘lives in a house’ we see the same shot of the rich character once again this repetition is interesting tying into the lyrics which are continuously repeating. We then have an aerial view which as it goes higher it goes in a clock wise rotation. This is interesting and at this point we see the rich character in different clothing laying on the floor without a care in the world. This is interesting, next to him we can clearly see the doctor from before walking past blowing a brass instrument like a trumpet. A match cut of this blowing trumpet is followed by a clip of what seems to be a marching band. It then cuts back to the aerial shot and we see a marching band pass the rich character. This is interesting and connotes the idea that the rich man can do this as it is his ‘house in the country’ Our camera then follows the marching band and we see the farm. The singer and band mates with the females are on the haystack and shows this idea that all this has been in one place: ‘the house in the country’ that the singer has been forever singing about. This idea of ‘rat race’ is continued though as the doctor is chasing after one of the female nurses. This amuses us as this video has been very light hearted throughout. We then move to an aerial shot and it is clear to see the playing board more clearly. However before the audience have chance to read it cuts back to various shots of the animals, musicians and the females. We then see the board spin very fast. This interesting us and really adds pace for the audience. By cutting from various shots it adds rhythm to the video but also keeps the audience entertained. In ways this spinning could reinforce a dice spinning as it is a board game. Close-ups of different actions are shown quite quickly to add amusement to the audience with various spins of the board. Repeating this spinning of the board is interesting and connotes that we’re coming to the end of the music video as we finally see that all this was in one place. In fact the rich characters house in the country was in fact the board game. As it does a finally spin we can see that the board game says ‘escape from the rat race.’ It then fades to the same shot at the beginning. This links us right back to the beginning of the song and it shows us that this whole time it was a game and was not real. As if it was a figment of our imagination. We’re then back to what feels like the start of the music video. One member of the band takes the dice, another one is reading the story that we were told about in the beginning. There is also an opening of curtains,. This is interesting as this could be what we saw at the beginning however just reversed. Our final shot is the outside of the high rise building. This adds this idea that we’re back to reality especially as it quickly zooms out and pans across to the world showing the opposite, that we’re not in the country and this is our reality.