Ghost Town

• reflects the problems people had, anger about unemployment, crime and poverty that was happening in Britain at the time,
• mix of white and black members encouraged message of cultural diversity and acceptance, unconventional, not a mainstream band which is why we have this combination of races and cultures within music with reggae ska mixed in with british punk rock.
• paul gilroy- mixture between two tone british and reggae ska music due to the bands already diverse nature, they show both aspects of afro carribean culture and british culture within their music, not fully identifying with each aspect but embracing both cultures,
• the culturally diverse group and style of music opposes the thatcher government and the issues of inequality in the UK at the time of the songs release with an increase in usage of stop and search especially with people of ethnic minorities, eg afro carribeans
• fast pace of the car looking as if it is going to crash could be an encoded message of how the UK government's decisions at the time would send the country into a crash or disaster, racial inequality etc
• paul gilroy- the music piece goes beyond ethnicity and nationality as the group grew up together, had the same struggles, working class political song, diff to lil nas x with old town road, less ethnicity and nationality with this song itself- 'gov putting youth on the shelf'= beyond ethnicity and nationality,
• silhouettes fighting- rep of riots in britain
• the empty streets create enigma for audiences and make the town seem desolate and sad
• the way they are crammed in the car together suggests that they are close friends- mixture of black and white elevates the theme of diversity
• serious facial expressions suggest the song is going to tackle some serious issues
• 'the overall sense i wanted to convey was impending doom'- jerry dammers- the independent july 2011
• many black and asian people felt the police were abusing the stop and search laws
• mainstream media eg newspapers and tv, placed the blame for crime, poverty and unemployment on immigrants
• the national front organisation encouraged the racism and xenophobia and as a result the racial divide in britain increased
• protests against the stop and search and the NF turned violent- represented in the music video with the silhouettes fighting
• video implies racial harmony instead of representing racial tension and division through the 'sing-song' 'nursery rhyme' esque style of lyrics and movement in the car scenes featuring the band
• the specials- mixture of white and black singers, unusual, hybrid genres of british punk and reggae ska, mixed with new wave music popular in the 80s
• the fast paced editing, canted angles hand held shots and crazed expressions make them seem wild and rebellious
• the scenes create a dangerous thrilling and potentially exciting tone for audiences who might identify with wanting to break the rules
• the 'dancing' in the car creates a dark comic vibe
• contrast of colour grading, cooler colours compared to a lot more warmer colours, so the warmer tones add to a sense of nostalgia when theyre singing about how Britain used to be
• continued use of shadows could act as a semantic code to suggest that Britain is a shadow of its former self
• the whilsting wind noise makes the town feel empty and abandoned but also might remind people of police sirens and add to the anti-establishment theme
• the music video continues to resonate with in a 2021 UK ravaged by austerity and black lives matter marches during the global COVID pandemic
• AG MV theory- links between music and visuals, links between lyrics and visuals, display of typical genre conventions, variety of intertextual references, notions of looking, voyeurism, demands of the record label, music videos are either concept-based, narrative-based or performance-based.
• 1962 vauxhall cresta- the car
• the futility of their journey is depicted through the ending scene of them throwing stones into the docklands/river thames
• cultural critic Dorian Lynskey- described it as 'a remarkable pop cultural moment' one that 'defined an era'
• hybrid genre of reggae and ska, double consciousness as described by Du Bois to suggest there exists an internal struggle to reconcile being both European and Black, results in the creation of something new
• pastiche- refers to in this case the blending together of conventiions of different genres to create something new eg reggae and ska music, britian fused together with the afro-carribean countries, resulting in a unique and powerful expression of social commentary
• musical pastiche- the song's music combined with the upbeat energy of ska with the raw, rebellious spirit of punk and the infectious rhythm of reggae. this creates a sound that is both catchy and unsettling, reflecting the contrasting moods of the time
• intertextual references- the music video, directed by Barney Bubbles, further employs pastiche through its visual style, the video uses intertextual references to British film genres like social realism and hammer horror, mirroring the anxieties and frustrations of the era
• features conventions (pastiche game ooo) of the hammer horror genre- eg dark, atmospheric lighting, unsettling imagery, and a sense of dread and unease