Pumped Up Kicks - Analysing music promo

            

Foster the people 'Pumped up Kicks' - Category-PERFORMANCE

American indie-pop band 'Foster the people' were founded in 2009 and signed with record label 'Columbia Records' & 'Startime International'. The band have since released three albums, 'Torches' - 2011, 'Supermodel'- 2014 and 'Foster the people' - 2011. The band originated in Los Angles, and became a great success after their release of their song 'Pumped up kicks' in 2010. The song remained in 3rd position on the Billboard hot 100 in the United states for multiple weeks. Their music is described as 'dance-infused'- according to Wikipedia:- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foster_the_People. They continue to play a significant role within sustaining the Indie pop genre.

Song Lyrics:

Robert's got a quick hand.
He'll look around the room,
he wont tell you his plan.
He's got a rolled cigarette
hanging out his mouth.

He's a cowboy kid.
Yeah! He found a six-shooter gun
in his dad's closet, with the box of fun things.
I don't even know what,
but he's coming for you. Yeah, He's coming for you!

All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, faster than my bullet.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, outrun my gun.


All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, faster than my bullet.
Daddy works a long day.
He be coming home late, and he's coming home late.
And he's bringing me a surprise.
'cause dinner's in the kitchen and it's packed in ice

I've waited for a long time.
Yeah the sleight of my hand is now a quick-pull trigger.
I reason with my cigarette,
Then say, "Your hair's on fire, you must have lost your wits, yeah?"

All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, faster than my bullet.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, faster than my bullet.


(Run, Run, Run, Run. Run, Run.
R-Run, Run, Run.
R-Run.
R-Run, Run, Run.
R-Run.
Run, Run.
Run, Run.
Run, Run, Run.)


All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, faster than my bullet.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, faster than my bullet.
All the other kids with  pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, outrun my gun.


All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, faster than my bullet.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,
You better run, better run, faster than my bullet.

Song lyric analysis:

Through careful analysis of the song lyrics and carrying out lots of research online I have managed to gather a rough understanding of the meaning behind the lyrics...

I think this song is about a young child at school (perhaps at an American High school) planning on carrying out a killing spree on his class mates. 'Robert's got a quick hand. He'll look around the room, he wont tell you his plan'. (First verse) - this verse is talking about the boys hesitation towards his mind-blowing plan, as he lingers around debating whether he should go through with the killings or not. The mention of Robert being a 'Cowboy kid' is purposeful for creating imagery of the child acting powerful and feeling almost heroic, the kid is therefore enjoying his time before murdering as he awaits with his six-shooter gun. The chorus sings 'All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,You better run, better run, outrun my gun.All the other kids with the pumped up kicks,You better run, better run, faster than my bullet'. The chorus is saying how Robert aims to shoot all the "cool kids" with the "pumped up kicks"- (meaning stylish trainers). The boy is laughing at the fact that the boys won't be able to run faster than his bullets with their trendy new shoes.

So from analysing the meaning behind the songs lyrics, there is a high chance that Robert is under the influence of either drugs or is suffering from a mental illness. The fact that the child has the need to specifically kill kids with trendy sneakers (presumably due to jealousy) suggests that Robert is badly affected mentally as jealousy is capable of leading him to extreme hatred towards innocent people. The continuous repetition of verses possibly resembles that Robert is hearing negative hallucinations in his mind, telling him to commit these dreadful crimes.

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Mise en scene:

Location: The first few seconds of the music promo display a boy cliff jumping into the ocean from quite a height. The event does not seem organised or hazard-free, it seems like a rebellious event which teenagers have chosen to partake in for the thrill. The next scene is filmed in what looks like a basement or even a dark unlit indoor carpark. No synthetic lighting is present which hints at the idea that filming took place in the late hours of the day. The only source of brightness are the staged flashing luminous lights which are creating a party atmosphere for their pop-indie genre. There are clips of young teenagers dancing to their music in front of the stage, this shows that they're in a venue which can contain a group of perhaps 'fans'?

At 00.19 an outline of a door can be visualised, with the scene of perhaps a cafe beyond. Natural light floods the room and reflects onto members of the audience. The doors of the venue may have been opened to a larger space to provide room for the capacity of people, or even to provide ventilation.

 At 00.24 there is a scene of a guy walking on a rooftop in daylight, there are tall flats in the background and a wide spread advertisement which maybe implies that the band members were performing in a venue located in an industrial estate/city.

 Soon after at 00.32 there is a vintage styled footage of one of the band members driving their tour bus along the motorway. Travelling after their performance suggests that they may be heading to their next concert. The director has continued to incorporate snippets of the band hanging out on various rooftops. This is where they are away from fans and the heat of the moment, it is a place where they can be private yet free in-between performances. The promo starts to change scene at a quick pace to perhaps entice the viewers and to create a build up towards the chorus. The different locations include sidewalks, recording studios, different venues and towns.

At around 02.39 the video converts into black and white and all of a sudden the band members are roaming around free at the beach, the freedom which they're exerting depicts a sense of danger which they're oblivious to as they surf on waves at great speed. Relating back to the lyrics, the group are seem to be the "cool kids" immune to the potential dangers of the speed and the surf. The video proceeds for another 2 minutes or so, reinforcing the fact they they're free by continuously repeating scenes of happiness and their touring success.

Costume and Makeup:

 The band members are dressed in very simplistic clothing, for example skinny dark coloured jeans and either plan or faded band t-shirts. The cool yet plain styling assists in providing no distraction from their enthusiastic faces during their performances, and close-ups of their instruments. 

GIPHY: Example of the clothing/makeup

Colour and lighting:

 Overall there is low-key lighting which is caused by an overlaying colour adjustment in post-production. The majority of the scenes are dark as the band are performing in either a studio or a darkened basement. It is obvious that the Director wished to maintain a darkened effect as the entire scene filmed at the beach is converted to black and white, apart from the surfboard which is left as red. Perhaps the blackened effect is purposeful to resemble the dark hidden meaning behind the song lyrics. Luminous stage lights are visible during some of the performance scenes, this is perfect for depicting a party atmosphere.

GIPHY: Example of camera work

Camera work:

 The majority of the clips switch to one another at a very fast pace, a variety of different shots are used to display different instruments, peoples reactions and to establish the setting/location of the scene. The music video moves at a quick pace to resemble the hectic lives of the band members as they travel from one destination to the next performing. At 00.12 a close-up shot of hands playing the keyboard is shown, the shot is blurred to depict the fast motion of the beat. Multiple un-sharpened shots are included, this has been done to almost partner the quirky instrumental which is quite difficult to interpret the instruments used. All shots are landscape and therefore do not require a border to outline the frame. Clips of the band members performing and walking tend to be low-to-high shots. This empowers the members and clearly highlights their success and they're seen to be the main focal point of the promo. The shots are rather unsteady throughout, and seem as if they have been filmed without a tripod and instead free-hand. This effect can often make the audience feel dizzy as our eyes are unable to rest on a clear shot for an average period of time. Camera angles are at a slight tilt, this may have been done to mirror the care-free vibe of the song. The most frequently used shot is the 'medium-close-up', this camera technique is used to display the movements and gestures of others.