Little Lion Man Analysis

The flickering light bulbs lighting the dark scene, allow for just a moment the idea of a dark video, however just as fitting as the upbeat style of song, the light suddenly fills the room as the introductory music begins.
The opening shot that slowly zooms out, welcomes us to the main scene, a rugged stage, bare of any technologies, seemingly quite small as though it is made for more humble, and less common bands.
Matching with the guitar strumming we then see a close up view of the guitar being played, this along with the warm light being emitted allows us to realise the genre of the video, indie and performance based. This shot then moves to the silhouetted view of the guitarist, keeping the male anonymous allows the audience to appreciate the music rather than being distracted by details.
This is then seemingly contradicted by the sudden view of the cellist stood under the bright light in a suit matching the same colour palette of the mise-en-scene, this allows the deep wood of the cello to be recognised, again referring to the fact the music and performance is the domineering point of this video.
These shots are followed by similar shots until the other instruments are introduced into the song with a thud which is matched with a low shot of a male stamping his foot, an action that breaks up the subtle, soft former shots of the band, thus emphasising the sound and grabbing the audiences full attention.
The next important shot shows a pan of the band, again subtly hiding their identities by viewing them from behind, we can see that they are all smartly dressed but again it is noticeable that their clothes fade into the mise en scene, allowing the glow of the many light bulbs to dominate the shot, this gives a very crisp bright effect that seems to work very well against the hard, rustic look of the room in which they are performing. It is also a noticeable point that they do not have an audience, as though they are practicing, or playing music out of pleasure.
Again, the loud thuds of the song are matched with instruments and movements, this keeps the audience interested and matches the fast tempo of the song, allowing the visuals to be exciting through the performance rather than through narrative or special effects.
As the vocals begin the anonymity of the band is wiped away with a wide shot of the band on stage, and the lead singer ( ) lip syncing to the words. Although they are still dressed in the unobvious colours, the four lights, lit behind them allow of the band to stand out, as though resembling each member.
The following shots match those mentioned at the beginning of the song, keeping the identity of the band questionable, whilst highlighting the use of instruments. I find this idea to keep the excitement within the song, rather than within the look of the video very clever, as the music is very unusual and capturing which leaves little need for an extravagant video and I feel the director is confident in this fact. The easy-to-watch video really allows the audience to appreciate the skill in the music.
Following the chorus, the video seems to introduce us more to the band allowing us to recognise the faces with close ups of each member, rather than focusing solely on their instrument. These close ups allow emotions to be recognised, and there is a clear look of angst on Marcus Mumford's face. This helps to make the song more passionate, and the meaning more literal.
The post-chorus verse also uses the lighting more effecively with the flare lighting the artists' faces allowing their expressions to be more visible, this is also a great visual technique that makes the entire video aesthetically pleasing.
With this verse, it is noticeable that as the tempo is more intense, the beat matching increases. The fast editing gives pace to the video and keeps the audiences attention. I find this is a really good convention to use as the video is essentially very plain - the band are stood on a stage in an empty hall performing. Without such editing it could be perceived as boring.
Where the instrumental begins, the camera shots become very subtly out of focus, this is representative of the fact there are no vocals, and it is entirely instruments. I find this makes you focus on the music more and just shows how important the use of instruments is to the band. In my personal opinion the lack of narrative would normally prevent me from watching a certain video multiple times, but with Little Lion Man, the clear passion for music and the way it is conveyed keeps my attention.
The tracking shot used in the instrumental (which seems a little like an establishing shot - could represent the introduction to the softer music) give a 'thoughtful' atmosphere which mirrors the atmosphere of the music Like the music, the shot is relatively slow paced which contrasts with the song prior to this.
As the tempo begins to accelerate again there is a shot of Marcus Mumford at a back view. In front of him the lights of the hall are flickering exactly on the beat. This kind of beat matching subconsciously makes the audience focus in on the music more - which is what the band and director will want to achieve.
Although narrative isn't incorporated into the video, the performance is shown in a linear style. This is noticeable as at the beginning of the song they look better groomed, whereas at the end they look asthough they've been sweating, and a little 'worse-for-wear' this again reinforces the passion they have for the music.