It's probably because I'm a teenage girl and I've probably just fallen hook line and sinker for a pretty blonde haired boy in skinny jeans playing the guitar, but that's irrelevant.
The song it's self has a good feeling about it, like you could sing along and act all confident to it.
Both the song and the music video are sort of silly, not bad silly, more like funny "don't take us seriously" silly. There is also something a little naughty about it, like you were to sing along to it in public you might get some awkward glances.
The video starts with the camera focused on the mic in the foreground , the Band are out of focus in the background.
The band approach the camera with the lead singer heading for the mic.
This is the bands Debut single for many countries around the world so for many people this shot is the first time they would've seen the band.
It seems a little odd that the first shot of the music video for their first single is blurry.
I would say this shot sets the scene, you can easily see that the band is made up of teenage boys and you can see the set.
From the instruments and their attire you could probably tell what kind of music they make too.
This shot tell you a lot about the band without actually hearing the song or seeing their faces.
As the song starts the audience is shown close ups of all the band members, the first shot as I said left the audience in the dark as to what the band looks and sounds like so now they are making up for by showing lots of close ups.
The video then starts cutting away to different people doing fairly mundane things, there is:
- A man working in a kitchen making food, he looks fed up whilst he dollops a blob of sauce on a plate of chips.
- 2 middle aged women (one blonde and one browny-blonde) shopping in a super market and 2 people working in said supermarket, they also look bored and uninterested.
- A traffic police man handing out a ticket to a man in a car.
- 4 burly men working out in a prison yard.
It's like the people are losing their inhibitions and are beginning to care a little less about their surroundings are start to enjoy themselves.
The video then cuts of a class room, everyone looks really miserable, everyone is uninterested.
There is a boy with a beard looking around (do high school student's have beards? )
There is a girl playing with chewing gum, there's a girl who looks really annoyed paying with her hair even the teacher looks really sluggish.
The video cuts to a diner, on one table a large woman eats alone whilst a man with frizzy ginger hair sits alone at another table.
The school students start swaying and bobbing their heads, the couple start tapping their feet and smile at each other.
One of the school girls starts unbuttoning her blouse and the couple at the diner strip to their underwear and dance together.
The band is being showered with discarded clothing as people in the buildings strip and throw their clothes out their windows and into the alley below.
The lyrics also mention underwear.
"You look so perfect standing there
In my American Apparel underwear"
I cringe a little every time I mention the word "naughty" but this is the part of the song (and the video) which is naughty, he's talking about a girl wearing his underwear, he isn't talking about seeing her in her own underwear but she is wearing his.
It's silly, it's endearing (sort of), it's romantic (again, sort of), it's a racy and it's a little bit weird, and so is the video.
People wear clothes for protection, primarily to protect from the cold and the heat etc. To wear less clothes (especially underwear or nothing) requires a certain level of confidence, without clothes we are venerable so to choose to go without clothes means that these people are feeling confident and happy.
The lyrics suggest trust, she trusted the boy to see her like his and he appreciates and respects her.
The whole class is now down to their pants, knickers and bra's, the teacher reacts in shock which is a reasonable reaction because like I said to remove your clothing requires a certain level of confidence which is why people don't strip in public.
I'm not sure why the teacher doesn't strip to be honest because there are plenty of older people in the video stripping but I guess a teacher stripping with his high school students isn't appropriate.
The couple in the diner share an embrace, they then dance with 2 other women in their underwear.
The traffic cop strips too but he leaves his police utility belt which I think is kind of funny.
The prisoners rip their T-Shirts to reveal their muscular forms.
I would say the couple strip to show confidence in approaching each other to start a romantic relationship, the policeman is bored of his job (perhaps he feels he has more potential than being a traffic cop or maybe he's fed up all the people breaking the law), by stripping he is relaxing and enjoy himself and I think the prisoners are stripping because they are feeling down about being in prison.
Stripping and dancing could show they are optimistic and can still enjoy them selves.
There is a shot of a man and woman looking at each other over the fruit and vegetable aisle at the supermarket, there is also a brief shot of an elderly woman.
They want the audience to acknowledge the elderly woman's presence but without taking the focus from the couple.
The couple starts unbuttoning their shirts whilst jigging to the music, the man pulls a.... lustful face.
The attention is brought back to the band momentarily then back to the couple who are now discarding there clothes.
The elderly woman is also seen throwing her shirt.
I think the only reason they cut to the band was because it would be boring watching them undoing button and pulling their arms out of their sleeves.
The trio is then seen dancing in their underwear whilst confetti rains down on them. (I'm not sure where the confetti came from but confetti is usually used in celebrations so it would imply that they are celebrating. If stripping down to your undies signifies confidence and happiness then that could be a reason to celebrate.)
The video then takes the viewer back to the band where the people on the balconies are stripping and dropping their clothes on the band below, there is a slight continuity error (it's really minute and the only reason I've noticed it is because I've been watching it intently multiple times.)
A girl takes off a white top and throws it off the balcony but in the next shot it's a pair of black trousers that fall.
They could arguably belong to the boy standing next to the girl on the balcony, but the boy is still wearing his trousers.
He does take off a jacket in the same shit she removes her top but he isn't seen throwing over the balcony and the piece of clothing is clearly trousers.
The boy who is working in the kitchen is now dancing in his underwear properly.
We are then shown the man, woman and elderly woman trio, then the trio at the tills , then the people in the diner all dancing in their pants.
We are then shown the band and then the blonde middle aged woman who is dancing... Provocatively.
In the frozen food aisle, we are shown the elderly woman and couple trio again and the policeman.
I would like to note the energy of the song fits the dancing of the people and the band really well , the song picks up pace quiet quickly and then loses it again so new people have to be introduced each time the song slows down.
More people are shown dancing in underwear in the next aisle, I think the stripping is meant to be "infectious", if the stripping really is meant to symbolise confidence and happiness then that would imply that the happiness and confidence of others makes you feel more confident and happy.
I think that's true, if someone is happy and is nice to you or makes your day better by just being there and being cheerful that will brighten your day.
Also I think seeing someone else being confident encourages you to be more confident.
We are then see the school students throwing their school work whilst their teachers shout at them.
Again it looks like they are celebrating but what for?
I never understood why do school students in films throw their school work in the air when they are excited or leaving?
Maybe I'm a kill joy but don't you need to keep some of that school work. You know for exams, next year or future reference?
Maybe I'm boring, has anyone actually thrown school work in the air? please let me know, I want to know if this is an actual real life thing.
Anyway, we are then shown people we haven't seen yet like two topless middle aged men in a court room and and elderly woman in her underwear dancing next to a much younger full clothed man.
Why is he fully clothed and why is he looking at the elderly woman?
That bit is a little bit weird, it looks like a sexual situation but not a serious one because he is laughing and not reacting in any other way.
Maybe she's just trying to make him laugh or maybe she just feel body confident or something?
I don't know.
There is a shot of the prisoners in their boxers jumping up and down and a dwarf at a mechanics in his boxers standing over a car.
I don't know why they included a dwarf either, there isn't any context to relate to but I guess the impression is that he is also feeling confident and happy.
The video ends with the band standing in a line, they shrug their shoulders at each other and start undoing their flies, the screen breaks into static a few times as they begin to pull down their jeans but the video cuts out before any skin can be seen.
The message of the song doesn't really fit the message of the video, The song seems to be about about a boy falling in love with a girl and wanting to runaway with her and the video seems to be about making your self happy and feeling confident with yourself.
The video has some romantic hints with the couple in the diner and the couple in the supermarket and the song has a of theme trust I.E the girl and boy trusting each other (by seeing each other naked.) which I guess could relate back to the confidence theme. I guess.
I really liked this song and this band, not sure if I liked the video as much but I'm looking forward to hearing more from them.
P.S if you interpreted this video differently please let me know I would love to hear it, also I'm curious.
Has anyone ever thrown their school work in the air like in the movie's?
Was it a good idea or was it a stupid idea and your teacher made you pick it back up or you lost something you needed, let me know in the comments.
