'Honey Sweet' is a single by the band Blossoms from their debut album, the track's music video released in February 2017, was directed by the band themselves as a tribute to their love for Netflix original series 'Stranger Things'. The music belongs to the 'pop' genre but is labeled by most journalists as somewhat 'indie' due to the consistent infusion of a classic 80's sound.
Saying this the music walks the line of indie/pop encouraging both pop and alternative fans. This is reflected in the music video through various characteristics :
- References to 80's pop culture
- Urban locations
- Retro style mise-en-scene
-Teen film style narrative
-Range of edits
- Atmospheric shots
In terms of a lyrical and visually connection this is lacking. The lyrical content addresses a relationship and miscommunications between a young couple. The relationship appears cyclical with a routine of sadness and joy until it reaches an ultimate end and someone moves.
"I've seen you two about
And talk about rebounding"
However, the music video does not take on the explicit lyrical meaning by reintroducing a storyline comparable to the films of John Hughes. A group of friends decided to hunt for an unknown place found by one of the boys much like 'The Goonies'.
The narrative then leads to the boys falling out possibly hinting at the deeper meaning of 'Honey Sweet' a quote from Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray'. The quotation "honey-sweet and honey-coloured blossoms of a laburnum" taken from chapter one connotes the doomed flowering of youth much like the struggles of the boys in the music video.
With fast paced edits and many mid/long shots throughout the music video it is evident the romantic mood of the lyrics is ignored. The use of the band's hometown Stockport introduces an interesting element to the video as mine-en-scene is emphasised for the audience.
With the narrative based upon the band's love for 'Stranger Things' the use of props like the bikes and sci-fi elements like a 'Back to the Future' DeLorean were highly effective.
The visuals contradict the lyrics for the single as there are no examples of couple or romance in the video. The wide variety of shots are used to explore the group of friend's and their hometown giving emphasis to their youthful spirits.
As the video is directed by the band themselves it is clear to see their aim was to sell their image as well as the single. As we get an insight into their film interests the audience can understand the band's 'star image' whilst not having revealed too much meaning the audience are still satisfied with their absence/presence balance as explained by Dyer's stardom theory. The band also include an 'easter egg' in their music video by utilising the date for a significant gig which had just been announced.
Moving on, the connections between the music and the visuals are much more evident than that of lyrical content and the music video. As the band explore the use of synth and classic guitar licks in their songs the 80's aesthetic of the music video is fitting and of interest to their target audience.
The editing is mostly driven by beat and increase in tempos, sound is also manipulated when the characters are conversing driving the narrative along whilst emphasising interesting solos in the single itself.The costumes, locations and style of the whole music video echoes the style of the song with every aspect of the music video screaming 80's. Everything from the edits of 80's cars driving around the run down town to the establishing shot of the house exterior leading into a sequence of the boy's vinyl collection and 80's football cards.
The editing introduces a slow motion sequence of the boys on bikes much like the scenes from 'Stranger Things' demonstrating a huge range of intertextuality throughout. Other music videos also influence the visuals with a shot of 'Stockport Lads Club' much like the shot of 'Salford Lads Club' made famous by The Smith's in their 'Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before' music video.
The music video fufills the Dyer theory of star image in the form of many close-ups and sequences of the band specifically the frontman. The record company and band have a clear objective regarding the marketing of the track and the music video.
Star image drives the promotion of the band and the single in the music video by introducing the band's interests and influences from the era of interest. As the band's sound introduces 80's pop and indie undertones the video successfully markets both the music and image of the band, giving fans an insight into the personalities of the band memebers.
The video is refreshing as it is not attempting to be original or protencious but highlights the style and image of the band. The video translates their 'star image' with suggestions of pop culture and alternative interests whilst standing out from past music videos from the band which focus on mystical , cinematic endevours.
Overall, the video introduces no signs of performance due to the importance of the narrative and intertextual elements. I believe the emphasis on the band's hometown and interest in the 80's era effectivley sells them as 'stars' whilst selling their music. The vertility of shots, editing and mostly mise-en-scene makes up for the lack of lyrical and visual connection as the focus is on the band's image and musical style.
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