Murder Curious, a punk / grunge / rock band from Minnesota’s Twin Cities, was looking to put together a political music video for their song “Thoughts and Prayers,” but they needed something quick and low-budget that they could finish before the election. Lead singer Treble came to me for consultation, and as always, I was ecstatic to help them bring it all together.
Step 1: Ideation
When creating a music video, you have to decide what kind of music video you want. Is it going to tell a cinematic story, or is it just going to feature the band? Will there be on-screen graphics and lyrics, or just a bunch of footage cut together? Will it be animated or live action? Will the cameras move, or will they be stationary? Will the edits be fast-paced, or are the edits going to be minimal? There are so many things to consider, but so many musicians (myself included) stop the ideation process at “I want a music video.” So how do we find the answers when we don’t even know the questions?
In my opinion, limits inspire creativity.
I like to start with a list of what’s available, then use those things to create something unique. Murder Curious had a DSLR camera, some GoPros, a willing camera operator, a jam space, and a tight deadline. Their equipment list showed they could get good quality footage of the band playing in their own jam space, but the tight deadline meant a cinematic narrative and on-screen graphics were out of the picture. The featured song is fast-paced, which inspires fast editing…which means multiple angles are required.
Step 2: Filming
Treble and I had a nice conversation about video coverage. I helped him understand that a high-quality music video requires the band to play through the song several times; that even though they might get sick of repeating the same song over and over, they have to act as if they’ve only played it once. Why so many times? Because on the first take, the camera might be pointed at the drummer’s face, but on the second take, the camera might be pointed at the drummer’s hands. Each time they play the song, the camera should focus on something specific for the entire song. This maximizes coverage, and gives the editor multiple options to create something magical (we’ll get to that soon).
If the band had the budget for multiple cameras and multiple camera operators, the filming process would have been drastically different. Oddly enough, the editing process would have been identical. Either way, it’s important to note that most of Billboard’s Top 100 musicians are also actors. They have consistency. They can play the same song with the same smile, over and over and over and over…
If you want that level of quality, you’ve got to commit to the same level of consistency, and Murder Curious did just that.
Step 3: Editing
Of course, it all starts with syncing multiple video clips to the same stereo audio file, but programs like Final Cut Pro X make that process extremely simple. And anyone can simply change from one angle to another. The real magic happens when you’ve got a drummer in the editor’s chair, and that’s why I pride myself in my music video work.
“Thoughts and Prayers” starts abruptly, and the punk rock tempo brings a high energy that needed to be reflected in the edit. If I chose to show any angle for too long, the energy wouldn’t match. When sifting through their footage, I felt the best starting point was a close-up on the kick drum where their band name and logo are proudly displayed. From there, I chopped quickly between each member’s performance, taking care not to leave anything on screen for more than a couple beats of music. Later in the song, there is a low-tempo bluesy breakdown, which means longer cuts make more sense. All edits are based on the beat.
But it’s not just as simple as randomly selecting angles, either. I listen for moments in the song like drum fills or walking bass lines, and make a point to highlight them in the video. If I show a close-up of the drummer’s big moment, the next edit should be either the drummer’s facial expression or a different instrument. And in the interest of equity, I keep track of how often each member has been on screen, and some edits are based on “we’ve seen this guy too many times this verse, and it’s time for someone else to get some spotlight.” There is absolutely an art to this process that goes deeper than I can get into with one little blog post.
Unfortunately, humans aren’t perfect. Even after multiple times through the song, there are bound to be mistakes. When the drummer in the video plays a fill that doesn’t match the fill in the song, I do my best to cover it up by cutting away to someone or something else. The problem with a tight space like the one where Murder Curious plays is that sometimes the drummer is in every clip, even when he’s not the focus! But because I’m a multi-instrumentalist, I can spot those mistakes and cover them up as if they never happened at all.
Step 4: The Final Product
Treble requested “black and white,” but I decided to add a little extra film grain and a slight brownish tint. I added some extreme contrast to blow out the whites and darken the blacks. We both agreed that it matched the grungy feel of their music, and for probably the first time in my editing career, there were no revisions requested!
Whether or not you enjoy this style of music, I hope you can recognize the difference between an editor who assembles a couple videos in the right order, and an audience engagement specialist who can take a simple, low-budget project and make it magical.