Milky Chance- Stolen Dance Music Video Analysis

"It's less of a story than a feeling. The feeling in the song refers to a certain moment I wanted to hold on to. It's the sentiment you experience when you miss somebody you really like and just can't spend time with that person. You're sad the other person isn't there, but you're also happy for the beautiful moments you've spent together." - Clemens Rehbein


Milky Chance is an alternative pop/folk/rock duo from Kassel, Germany. Stolen Dance is a ‘folkronica’, incorporating elements of both folk music and electronica; the song features both acoustic instruments and computer generated sound.

While the video is narrative-based, there is very few links to the lyrics. However metaphors, such as “coldest winter for me”, are visually expressed. For example, while this lyric is being sung we see a high angle shot of leafless trees. While the setting is bright, it is clearly winter and the sky is fairly grey. This visually suits the song, as both are calm and relaxed.

Furthermore, the lyrics describe being “stoned in paradise”. This is reflected in the beautiful setting, which is quite idyllic. The editing links to this lyric also, with the split screen and use of reverse. These give the video a quirky feel and echo the theme of being high. Furthermore the idiosyncrasy of the video reflects Milky Chance’s image of being an alternative band.

The video is cleverly cut to the beat, emphasising the hand claps in the song. For example at the start the windscreen wipers seem to swipe in time to them. Furthermore, flickers in the screen also keep in time to the beat created by these claps.

Here, the video has been edited so that after spinning clockwise slightly, the wind turbines reverse for a second before continuing normally. Not only does this make the turbines seemingly ‘dance’ to the beat, but as the camera is panning, the image is distorted and the trees almost look as though they are moving.  

 

A handheld camera has been used at many points in the video. This gives the illusion of a viewpoint, and so the viewer feels as though they are there. This creates immediacy between the viewer and the band.  Additionally, the slight jerkiness of the camera gives a carefree, unprofessional feel. This helps Milky Chance to come across as ‘normal’, identifiable people.

Like most narrative-based music videos, Stolen Dance features Clemens performing the song live. This suggests he is very talented, as opposed to using technology such as auto tune.

In some parts the video has been edited to look as though it has been shot by an old camera. This is quite stylish and fits with the band’s image as it gives the video a raw feel. Furthermore, while the video doesn’t have any obvious intertextual references, these features reflect old fashioned films, giving an interesting look.

 

The video is quite similar to Milky Chance's video Down By The River, as both are very quirky and unusual. This promotes their brand by giving them a laidback, alternative image, which reflects their style of music.