The second music video I have decided to analyse is the video to is Avenged Sevenfold’s video to ‘Bat Country’. From the beginning of the video it is very clear to the viewer that there is an intertextual reference to the film ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’ as there is the singer, M. Shadows, and another band member in a large red car with leopard print interior. As M. Shadows drives the other band member is in the back seat with a fly swatter attempting to shoo away bats flying all around the car. This is a very memorable moment in the film as it is also near the beginning, as also is this in the music video. Further on in the video attractive women are seen dancing for the band members on tables. This forms part of the bands ‘Star Image’ as it shows they have the money to hire strippers and this is also a very ‘manly’ act to carry out. However the strippers are seen to have long lizard like tails and tongues, as seen directly in the film. During the first shot of the video the quote “He who makes a beast of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man.” Is seen, this coincidently is the first lyric of this song showing a link between visuals and lyrics. The chords of the lead guitar are heard during the beginning of the song, the strumming of these chords are in sync with the fast straight cutting between shots, this fast cutting is a typical feature of a ‘Metal’ genre video and also shows a clear link between visuals and music. A stage performance is also seen during the video, set in an iconic apartment seen in the referenced film, this is a typical format in a ‘Metal’ video. Close up’s are frequently seen throughout the video often zooming and reverse zooming to create a drug trip effect as this is a common theme in ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’. These close up’s used allow the viewer to achieve an intimate connection with the band as you would not often get that close to the band in a live performance.
Similarly to Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Avenged Sevenfold have created their own image and have eventually been moulded into a new and exciting band by both themselves and their record companies. Their first album was in a very Heavy Metal genre but they’ve slowly changed into a flamboyant Metal band as seen n the ‘Bat Country’ video.
In conclusion there are numerous different theories seen in Avenged Sevenfold’s video to ‘Bat Country’ which have made this video very exciting, interesting and very popular for fans and non-fans alike.
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