Written By: David Boyd, Soren Hansen, Jacob Scott Sinclair
Genre: Indie / Alternative
The music video 'Harlem' by New Politics shows a linear narrative where each event follows on from each other. The main band are seen in the video and the lead singer is also the main character.
The conventions used within the video include the use of the lead singer as the main character and towards the end a band performance is used as a finale sequence and ending for the video. The band are also seen in various shots of the video always included in the music video showing the audience who the band are. This is a typical convention of alternative music genre because it not only promotes the song but also the band as well when they're included in the video. It also good for the fan base who want to see the music video with their favourite band included within it. 'Harlem' could be an inter textual reference to the neighbourhood within New York City and the video is filmed in that area with occasional shots of the sign posting for Harlem. The main narrative of the video includes the lead singer and main character, with another band member watching and clapping along to a 'dance off' in the street where he then meets his 'love interest' and they explore the city. This is a typical, re-used narrative of a music video, in any genre.
The use of cinematography within the music video included middle and close up shots of the lead singing the words and to capture the reactions of the two in the video as different events unfold. It also shows track camera movement as the camera follows the pair around the city, sometimes in time with them; or other times as a long shot following. At the start of the video an establishing shot is used to show the skyline and tops of buildings of 'Harlem', setting the scene. The diegetic music has also started at this point, fading in. The use of editing can be seen through the fast pace shots once the dancing has started and also throughout the scenes where the pair are seen running around the city. Quick edits are displayed when there is a band performance, connoting an idea that the band always have fun when they perform because that's what they love doing.
The ideology behind the video narrative links into the name of the song 'Harlem' as well as including the lyrics of the song into shots in the video. For example, when the lyrics 'looking sad and miserable' the lead pulls a sad face. This shows that the ideology stays with the video, making it easy to follow the narrative along whilst listening to the song. The lyrics also show 'shake it like a bad girl in Harlem', which relates back to the possible love interest and the dancing shown at continuous intervals through out the video.
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