Black Kids - ‘Look At Me (When I Rock Wichoo)'
Technical Analysis
Look At Me is unlike the majority of 21st century music videos in that it relies more heavily on editing effects and techniques than regular video footage. The song is alternative and that clearly reflects the Black Kids' personality and ideology, something they decided to transfer in to this video.
The video amalgamates animation, cartoon sketches, green screen and regular visuals which makes it a refreshingly unique video in comparison to most others. Predominantly the 5 members of the band frequent throughout and appear in human form but in the shape of cardboard cutouts. They are then transported through a number of different graphical universes whilst the song elapses, miming the lyrics at regular intervals. The backgrounds and green screen shots boast a variety of bold, bright colours and in keeping with this theme the band members are dressed in wacky costumes; one is in astronaut attire whilst another is in a furry animal costume (above). They are equipped with animated accessories such as helmets, sunglasses and capes to give the impression they are exploring a world that is far from like the one we live in as humans.
To accentuate this they display a wealth of recognisable pieces of equipment (musical instruments) and animals floating in outer space (above). This is designed specifically as a way of initiating shared understanding between the band and their audience - imagination is necessary in making this video relatable. The range of colours used entice the audience in to the video and allow them to draw their own conclusions from what they see. There is one shot that pans away from the footage and shows the inside of a spaceship looking out over a planet, inviting the audience to construe whether it is earth or an unknown universe (below). If they suspect it to be a new planet then they will vicariously explore it through the band. This deliberate technique implies that there are a number of different connotations to the shot but not one particular denotation.
The inclusion of such images is done in post-production via computer software and that emphasises just how 'edited' the video is. To fully capture the abnormality of the environment the band are investigating there are a number of establishing shots and long shots so the audience acquire a greater perspective of what's going on. There are sequences of close-ups and mid-shots but generally they only occur when the focus is on one of the band members singing the song (below). This means that when it does happen it has a greater impact.
The lyrics 'Look at me when I rock with you' in the opening 70 seconds of the song is accompanied by a clip of the guy in the animal costume admiring a number of different instruments that are floating around him (below). Whilst there is no real structure to the video they do attempt to parallel elements of it with the lyrics in the song. This brings a sense of identity to the non-story they are trying to tell because there is a clear link between the visuals the audience sees and the non-diegetic sound they can hear.
Once the audience develop a greater knowledge of the concept of the song they are fed little teasers in regards to the characters of the members of the band. One of the female members appears under attack from animated laser shots and manages to create a shield to deflect it away from herself. With the audience knowing to expect the unexpected, this segment of the video could even suggest that they are living in a computer game. This belief makes sense when you combine the attributes of the editing; colours, animation, characters, cartoon... etc. If this was to be the actual theme of the video then it could be considered a hybrid, remixing conventional music videos and pre-produced clips. Daft Punk may be the template of this idea as the music videos that accompany their songs on the album Discovery combine to create the film Interstella 555. This unprecedented trait could become an renowned part of the Black Kid's technical make-up.
The unusual aura that surround every production the Black Kids create and their personality themselves ensure the audience are never able to predict what will happen next. This feeds in to the desires they have from anything that Black Kids produce and it ever got to a point where this no longer happened the purpose of the band would extinguish. This video from 2009 displays a number of editing and camera techniques that vary from other releases at the time, making it memorable to whoever watches it. The band have delivered a video that cannot be defined or likened to any others and that is something that many artists aim to achieve unsuccessfully.
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