It has always been argued that nature, nurture, or both affect human development. In Flobots’ “Handlebars”, the lead singer answers the question of whether nature, nurture, or both affect human development by showing two best friends who went their separate paths and turned into two completely different people. The music video and song shows and tells the experiences that shaped both friends and ultimately caused the demise of one, if not, both of them. However, within this song and video the power of the government, namely the American government and politics is criticized; also power plays a big role in what occurs within the video. In Flobots’ “Handlebars,” the use of illustrative lyrics, reflective instrumentals; and detailed images helps show how your surroundings and your choices could effect human development.
Flobots is an American rock/ hip-hop band that was created by Jamie Laurie in 2000 in Denver, Colorado. Before the group was really known worldwide they had already produced “Handlebars”; they became very successful in 2007 after their major label debut Fight with Tools (2007), which had the song “Handlebars” which was originally produced in 2005. Flobots is a group that really combines to different genres to make a more influential tone. They combine alternative rock with hip-hop to create songs that make the listeners think in ways they have not thought in before. This is really exhibited in their song “Handlebars”. The lead singer said he created the song based off of being able to learn how to ride a bicycle without using the handlebars; he felt so accomplished, but at the same time sad because he realized while he was doing this America was in a war and was bombing countries killing people (MTV). This shines th...
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...t of people around you. The images are really helped clarify what the singer really wants to talk about. Without the images in the video some many things could have been interpreted from the song itself. Before I watched the video I just thought the author was talking about war, and specially the wars America was fighting at the time of the song’s release. The music in combination with the instrumentals and video create a piece of art that enlightens the soul.
Works Cited
Flobots. "Handlebars." YouTube. Web. 28 Mar. 2014.
"How the Bush Administration Sold the Iraq War." Msnbc.com. NBC News Digital, 14 Oct. 2013. Web. 25 Apr. 2014.
Montgomery, James. "Flobots Fight To Make The World, And Your Cubicle, A Better Place." New Music Videos, Reality TV Shows, Celebrity News, Pop Culture. MTV, 15 May 2008. Web. 28 Mar. 2014.
Moss, Olly. Behance. Web. 28 Mar. 2014.
The artist creates motion by the use of colors and everything else appearing calm. At first glance you just notice an explosion of multiple bright colors, but once you look deeper you notice the bigger picture. This image was created just months after the 9/11 attack on America. This image represents hope, renewal, and promise. This picture showed that America is still strong and standing and will move on with and have hope.
September 11, 2001 marked a tragic day in the history of the United States; a terrorist attack had left the country shaken. It did not take long to determine those who were behind the attack and a call for retribution swept through the nation. Citizens in a wave of patriotism signed up for military service and the United States found resounding international support for their efforts in the war on terror. Little opposition was raised at the removal of the Taliban regime and there was much support for bringing Osama Bin Laden and the leaders of al-Qaeda to justice. Approval abroad diminished approximately a year and a half later when Afghanistan became a stepping stone to the administration’s larger ambition, the invasion of Iraq. The administration would invent several stories and in some cases remain silent of the truth where would prove positive for the Iraqi invasion. It seems they were willing to say anything to promote the largely unpopular and unnecessary war they were resolved on engaging in.
In Justin Pearson's memoir, From the Graveyard of the arousal Industry, he recounts the events that occured from his early years of adolesence to the latter years of his adulthood telling the story of his unforgiving and candid life. Set in the late 1970s "Punk" rock era, From the Graveyard of the Arousal Industry offers a valuable perspective about the role culture takes in our lives, how we interact with it and how it differs from ideology.
I see the form of Pathos in the album cover because at this time there was the Cold War going on, and we had just gotten out of southeast asia, so there was lots of patriotism that was being portrayed here. The way the thumb is pointed up seems that America is on the climb, and that everyone in America should feel that sense of, “America is a great country, and I am proud to live here.” Also, in the music video for this song, the “American Dream” seems to be portrayed very well because it shows, I can get a great new car and I can get a pretty girl to love me. Also you just seem to feel the patriotism from the video from how happy everyone seems and all the scenes happening, there are people dancing, and celebrating birthdays and playing lots of
Although the song was written in response to Billie Joe Armstrong’s father’s death, the music video preached a different message. It became a “Sympathy for the Soldiers” campaign. The video follows a young man and girl in love. At the beginning, they sit in a field where the boy promises the girl that he will never leave her. Their relationship evolves and the video shows the young couple getting married, still very much in love with each other. However, the boy sees very little future at home and decides to enlist. He deceives his bride and joins the marines. His wife finds out and confronts him, hysterical, where he admits that he did enlist and defends his decision shouting, “I did this for us! I did this for us! This was supposed to make it easier! I thought you’d be proud of me!” However, the girl sees it as him breaking his promise to never leave her. Subsequently, he is shipped off the Iraq and after that, the music video continues, flashing back between the young man as a soldier and his wife waiting for him to return home. The boy and his unit stand before two children and their mother. The unit walks through a destroyed town where they undergo fire, a bomb being fired at the soldiers. Gunfire is exchanged with more bombs going off, and soldiers drag other wounded soldiers to cover. The video ends with a final close-up shot of the young man, under fire and terrified, clutching his gun and then flashes to his wife, at home, waiting for her husband. It presumed that he never returns home to his wife. The message of the video was so serious that it “commits the cardinal sin of interrupting the song midway through for more dialogue”. The question to enlist was a common conflict amongst many of Green Day’s college fans at that time and Green Day really hit home with that message. However, the video itself “hedges its bets politically; saying nothing explicitly for or against the
Spingola, Deanna “Bush’s War of Terror, Cover Up” Oct. 11 2005 Web. Oct. 29 2013
The whole music video is in remembrance of the little girl Aiyana Jones and to show its audience the injustice it served in America (Alexis 5). The music video does not focus on the lyrics, but focuses on a whole different story. Although the music video is about the war between the government and drugs, the lyrics and the music video share a mutual message and that is to seek peace not only in the community, but also in our minds. Today, there have been issues on police brutality and unlawful arrests. This music video really illustrated different point of views of different people such as the victim and the policemen. Although the music video displayed a different message, the lyrics also provided a great message to people especially young women. Both music video and lyrics
There is one universal language: the language of music. Music has a special quality and ability to bridge both social and cultural divides. A proposed theory by Dr. Gray, Founder and Director of National Musical Arts’ BioMusic Program; describes music has been around longer than human-beings have. Music is the one thing human beings from various backgrounds can relate to. Every living creature would agree. Music is heard everywhere not just among humans, but in nature as well, through the twitting of birds, winds blowing, the soft sound of raindrops against a windowpane, the ocean waves moving back and forth and the hum of the ocean rushing in a sea shell. There is no escaping it; music lives in and surrounds us steadily. While there are countless songs which confer social or cultural consciousness, this paper will analyze and address the dynamics of M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes”, video. Stylistically, the paper will examine the artist point of view, the unique use of lyrical analysis and sound description in relation to its historical, social, political and/or cultural context. This essay will also trace the lyrical analysis and sound description of song and discuss how the elements (visually, sonically, and lyrically) interplay with the theme of immigration and/or violence.
As I look at this picture I feel bad for the hard times that these people had to endure. It makes me upset with the way this country treated African Americans They are fighting for something they believe in and will stop at nothing to earn what they deserve. It shows the powerful message of the movement, which was to gain equal rights and prove that they are equal citizens. The message is to show how these people fought for their cause. The photo does show that they were willing to fight for their rights by capturing the people’s pain in their faces. The photo shows the determination and drive to gain equal rights. I see people running away from water being shot at by hoses to stop the protest for these rights. The water represents the sacrifice for the pain they must endure in order to get what they want.
Alternative rock music of the nineties successfully captured the distress of a young generation afflicted by multiple struggles. First and foremost, this music genre accurately voiced the concerns of those who could not imagine a thriving future as prosperous members of society, and for whom the American dream was nothing but a distant notion. For instance, in his song “Loser”, Beck Hansen skillfully described the apathy that overtakes an individual’s being when he is faced with life´s unavoidable grim prospects. Similarly, this kind of music resonated with all those individuals who were struggling to feel comfortable in their own skin. To illustrate, in one of its most popular songs, “Creep”, the alternative rock band Radiohead managed to convey the excruciating angst experienced ...
It expresses what Michael Jackson had envisioned for his future as a black person. He wanted to see technological advancements and a future where black people don’t have to answer to the pressures around them. The electronic beats and noises create a futuristic sound that combines with the breaking glass and the alarm signifying that they will not tolerate what is going on around them anymore. With them screaming throughout the video, it shows how vulnerable they are but at the same time how brave they are for fighting and showing how fed up they are with
I think that the writers of this song were very perceptive in predicting the changes that music videos would bring. Even though this song has an upbeat tempo, I feel a sadness that "we can't rewind we've gone too far." We hear the message that things will change, for better or worse, we can never go back. I think that this is applicable for life as well--changes will happen, and we must change too or be left
Mazzetti, Mark, Julian E. Barnes, Edward T. Pound, David E. Kaplan, and Linda Robinson. "Inside the Iraq Prison Scandal. (cover story)" EbscoHost. N.p., 24 Oct. 2004. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.
The video is a true visual reputation of the song showing Soupy struggle and guilt of Soupy trying to save his friend through facial expression and through the lyrics matching the tone of the video like “ staring at a hole in your chest that's been dug there for decades, american broken promises, caught between the lies you've been fed and a war with your bloodstream, I should have been there when you needed a friend,I was off on my own again, selfish and stupid” or "...I know I failed you... I want those
I love how Coldplay decided to make their album cover look like a battle they were trying to fight. The women on top holding the French Flag looks like it demonstrates victory, which in Coldplay’s position, accomplishment for creating a new album. I feel like the album is a good example that demonstrates what they were going through since they were “fighting” to create an amazing album for fans since before Via La Vida, Coldplay hadn’t created an album with new released songs in almost 3 year. The scrip of “ Viva La Vida” stands out to viewers since its scripted in Bold & White reflecting on the background of the war scene.