1.2 Comparison between Trouble (Coldplay) and Chasing Cars (Snow Patrol)

Coldplay and Snow Patrol are two very similar bands who class themselves under the genre of alternative soft rock. They both use mixtures of emotional and upbeat songs, however, the two songs that are involved in the videos are both a bit sad and slow but very successful.

The conventions from both videos are very different despite the two songs have a very similar genre and tone. Trouble uses a dark environment which focuses on gangsters and the bleakness of the situation. The conventions of this include the cars in the background, which are not expensive emphasising a poorer, rough life that the character (Chris Martin). The flashing lights used would be typically used in this kind of situation even though it does had an aesthetically pleasing affect for the audiences. The string that are tying his hands together are perhaps the most important convention as they show he is in 'trouble' and the camera focuses on it throughout the video. Chasing Cars has a simpler choice of conventions which include the rural environments that show the loneliness of the lead singer, Gary Lightbody. In a way, he is a convention himself as he his wearing no shoes and is dirty from laying in the same position for a long time, which hints that. The rocks around him also tell us that he is away from society. The rain highlights his suffering in the video but mostly uses brighter colours than Trouble because the song is more positive.

The visuals link with the lyrics in both videos but especially in the Coldplay video he sings about being 'caught in the middle'. The video is based around the idea that Chris Martin has been caught up in a corrupt organisation of some kind, to emphasise this they placed him in the middle of the large area in between the buildings and walls. The rope on his hands work as a metaphor of the 'web' which he sings about throughout the song. When he sings the word 'web' in some places the camera focuses on the bindings. In Chasing Cars, the video has a very unique pattern where after every line, the camera changes to focus on another position or feature of the lead singer. For example after “just forget the words” it then cuts to an extreme close up shot of his eye.

The visuals also link with the music the two videos. In Trouble, he tries to struggle out of the chair in the beat to the piano, which looks like he his dancing in a very upsetting way. When the music sounds like it is spiralling, it shows Chris Martin floating and spinning in his chair which adds a surreal affect matching the sound. Because this matches the music it does not look out of place. When he falls to the floor towards the end of the song the music suddenly tones down as he has given up to break free at this point. When the normal tempo restarts the video gains more colour which concludes the footage. In Chasing Cars, the music and lyrics link anyway, therefore the cuts change with the beat of the music as well as each line. However when the music speeds up and progresses, the rain increases which intensifies the emotion in the song.

The two videos both sell the artist in different ways, although they both focus on their vulnerability in the videos. Chris Martin and Gary Lightbody are both regarded as the most influential in their groups also being the lead singers. Both videos focus on them through the entire video using different shots as transitions. The types of shots makes the characters look calm and relaxed despite Chris Martin being tied up by gangsters. This achieves the audience to feel that they are full of wisdom. Audiences would buy the product from Coldplay because you feel sympathy for the character as well as the song being of a high quality, the video just gives extra emotion which associates with the band which could end up selling. Gary Lightbody is just laying in the environment which is a very mysterious way of portraying the artists. However this represents the band as calm so people who like to be relaxed would purchase albums and the single.

The intertextuality resources are very limited in the two videos. Obviously the bleak setting of Trouble has elements such as scenes from Reservoir Dogs and films with a similar genre. Essex Boys is another film that the video may have been inspirated by. The Snow Patrol video has a very original idea so lacks any intertextuality in a way.

The voyeurism is very effective in both videos. The Coldplay video uses flashing lights in the background and lights that seem to highlight the main character and work as conventions, however, this also works as a visual affect that adds an aesthetically pleasing element. The Snow Patrol video also lacks voyeurism but has uses a wide range of colours and the affects such as rain improve 'the art of looking'.