Music Video Research

Track

The track I've chosen to use for my music video is "Coming Home" by Busted. The track was released by the band in 2016 as their first official new single since they broke up in 2005.

Lyrics

Coming Home - Busted

Been searching high and low
So many answers I don't know
I wonder who I'm gonna be
When it's time to go
Does it matter?

Trading my coat for a cheap guitar
To play a show in a shitty bar
Ended up in a hospital
With no-one at all

I'm coming home

Went past the Taj Mahal
It's so fuckin' beautiful
But I miss my family
There's nothing else to see

I'm coming home
I'm coming home
I'm coming home
I'm coming home

I wanna be in your
Loving arms
I wanna be in your
Loving arms
I wanna be in your
Loving arms
I wanna be in your
Loving arms

I'm coming home
(I miss my family) I'm coming home
(There's nothing else to see) I'm coming home
(I've been searching high and low) I'm coming home
(Now I'm coming home)

Analysis

Song

"Coming Home" is a 2016 Synthpop track that served as a tribute to the fans from the band as they geared up for their reformation tour "Pigs Can Fly" and 3rd studio album "Night Driver". The track also served as an icebreaker to old fans and the world with the band's change in genre from their '02-'05 Pop-Rock sound to their new Synthpop/New Wave sound. The song lasts 3 minutes and 14 seconds.

Straight off at the start of the song we hear the roar of the synthesizer, the first sign that this is not the same type of music we are used to from them. Though the familiar sound of the old pop/rock guitars strumming quickly kicks in. This is then followed by each member singing a verse with all 3 of them on the chorus, a similar formula to what they used to use. For the most part the song is quite evenly paced Each verse of the song is around 20 seconds long with 2 instrumentals around 12 seconds long at the start and in the middle. As well as these there are 2 other instrumentals later in the song, one around 20 seconds and a 35 second instrumental after verse 5 to finish the song.

The first verse:

Been searching high and low,
So many answers I don't know.
I wonder who I'm gonna be,
When its time to go?
Does it matter?

To me these lyrics symbolize being lost and trying to find your way back, as well as trying to discover who you are. To the band, I think this verse is about them each trying to find themselves during and after their first run at Busted.

The second verse:

Trading my coat for a cheap guitar,
To play a show in a shitty bar
Ended up in a hospital,
With no one at all.

To the band, I think these lyrics are based on the aftermath of their split up and of how they each tried to find themselves in other projects (James with his band 'Son of Dork' and his solo 'Futureboy' act, Charlie with band 'Fightstar' and his solo career and Matt with his short lived solo career as well as musical theater and T.V/live presenting.) The second part of the verse symbolizes how none of their other efforts were effective and were all short lived.

The third verse:

Went past the Taj Mahal,
Its so fucking beautiful.
But I miss my family 
There's nothing else to see.

This verse tells us that even though they explored far and wide and enjoyed every moment of it, they missed each other and the place they truly belonged (Busted) and without them there is nothing else.

Artist Image/Representation

Image

 When busted was around from 2002-2005 their signature image was very teenage pop-punk, open shirts over t-shirts, jeans, trainers, ripped clothing, chains (on trousers), long dyed hair, with a lot of hair product. The main reason this was their style is that their producers had the final say on their image and the chosen image was thought to help make them more successful as it was modern and alternative.

Since their return in 2016 their chosen genre is not the only thing that has changed, their image has too. As they've grown up to adults and left pop-rock / pop-punk behind its now more likely to spot the trio in leather jackets, shirts, bomber jackets and even suits.

Music Videos

Busted's 2002-05 style of music video would generally be a narrative video spliced with an "as live" performance. The narrative of the video would include all 3 and in some way showcase their friendship, fantasies or them just having fun. Some examples of this are: 

Year 3000 - a song about Bourne's love of Back to the Future which feature the trio travelling to the aforementioned year in a "flux capacitor" ending with them crashing and performing at their future selves concert.

What I Go To School For - a song based off of Willis' crush on his dance teacher which showed a narrative of the boys lusting after their teacher and playing out each of their fantasies with her spliced with as live footage of them performing in front of their fellow classmates (predominantly girls).

Crashed The Wedding - featured the guys playing almost the whole cast of the video from the wedding band (made up of them impersonating Michael Jackson, Adam Ant & Boy George), themselves (crashing the wedding), the Groom, Bride's father (and possibly the bride) and a whole host of the other wedding guests. (This video was also shot to look like one continuous shot)

Air Hostess - has the band sneaking on to, and then messing about on a plane in order to impress a good looking air hostess. whilst also performing on the plane as well as in its hanger. (The plane in question was the Concorde)

Busted's 3AM differs from the rest as it the video is made up of "In-Concert" footage of the band performing the song on tour spliced with behind the scenes footage from the tour.

Since their 2016 return the music videos they have released so far differ to the old Busted formula, mainly being a mix of in-concert and behind-the-scenes footage rather than a narrative/as-live mix.
Meet You There (the first music video from the band in 11 years) was recorded as an acoustic performance in Abbey Road Studios.
Coming Home was originally realised with a solely narrative video designed to advertise their "Pigs Can Fly" reunion tour. This was also one of the very few (maybe first ever) Busted music video to not feature the band.
Coming Home's music video was later re-released with a similar style video to 3AM, with "In-Concert" footage spliced with behind-the-scenes footage from the Pigs Can Fly tour.
One of a Kind consists as mainly of in-concert footage however instead of behind-the-scenes footage we see short slow mo sequences of the guys against a purple background.
On What Your On would be the only new music video so far to have something that resembles a narrative. In the video we see Busted playing as-live in a small LA nightclub whilst a girl dances around them/through the streets of LA.
Night Driver consist completely of the band playing the song in concert.
Finally Easy & Those days are gone are live studio performances at Pool Studios.