MUSIC VIDEO ANALYSIS: LINKIN PARK - NEW DIVIDE

NEW DIVIDE• By Linkin Park

• Received rave reviews from professional critics

• One of the most critically acclaimed songs by Linkin Park

• From Transformers Revenge of the Fallen– relate the two and shots from transformers are included. Made for Transformers as a single and serves as the films theme.

• Worked with Hans Zimmer, famous film composer who made themes for films including The Dark Knight films, Inception and Interstellar.

• Directed by Joe Hahn, the bands DJ.

• Reached number 1 in the UK and US Rock Songs Chart

• 2 Platinum Certifications in the US

ANDREW GOODWIN6 Key Features of a music video:

1. Rock Genre – Expect band playing instruments, energetic, aggressive and attention to the lead singer.

2. There is a very vague connection to the lyrics “the distance in your eyes, across this new divide”. At this point in the music video the actress playing Mikaela Banes (one of the leading characters in Transformers) appears distant from Chester Bennington (the lead singer in Linkin Park) and he reaches his hand out to her. However most other shots are of the band performing.

3. The guitar creates a dangerous and exiting atmosphere which is reflected through the smoke, fire and sudden movements of the band in the music video.

4. There are multiple close ups of all the band and in particular the lead singer.5. There is a lot of attention drawn to the female and her body and she is seen mostly posing.6. There is a strong reference to the transformers films and clips of the Revenge of the Fallen

are shown in the music video.

ANDREW GOODWIN

There is a clear use of thought beats were the music matches the pace of the music video. An example of this is the editing; the cuts between shots have been placed in the beats of the drums and guitar cords. There is also a heavy use of shaky cam which has been used to emphasise the climax of the song and keep the visuals in line with the music. This allows the viewer to “see” the song. Another example of thought beats is the lip syncing which is performed by both the lead singer and the female character. This is yet another way of linking the audio and video in the music video.

In the performance and narrative the lead singer is trying to reach the female character but achieving this is never shown thus conforming to Goodwin’s theory of a music videos coherent repeatability which is created by only showing a partial story and not a complete one.

The artists are represented as still full of energy despite their age. This lets the audience and their fans know that the band will continue to be a heavier alternative rock band unlike others which often move into slower music as the band becomes older.

MISE-EN-SCENELocation: On the set of Transformers. Acts as advertisement.

Lighting: Bright lights and lens flares to create a dramatic effect which attracts the audiences’ attention.

Props: Instruments. Conforms to the typical rock music video.

Costumes: Dark smart/casual clothe. Usual clothes for Linkin Park

Colours: Bright fiery blues and reds to draw in the viewer.

Performance: Band perform with instruments. Common music video for a rock song.

A hot girl which is often seen in Linkin Park music videos to appeal to the male teenage audience.

Editing: Fire effects, thermal lens. Attracts the audiences’ attention.

Cinematography: Close ups to identify members of the band. Medium shot to see bands actions and movement to the song.

Sound: Just playing the song without any sound effects. Fans often prefer this as it doesn’t ruin the song in an attempt to improve the music video.