Adele’s song 'Rolling in the deep' and its video have, in the words of Edna Mode from The Incredibles, ‘completely consumed me, darling’. Granted, part of this fixation is due to the fact that I am in the midst of studying for finals- a time when motivation and drive would be helpful and I am feeling fairly depleted of both. But if the worst I can do while procrastinating is get hooked on a new song, I think I can live with that.
I’ve known and appreciated Adele’s music for a while now. I happened upon this song the other day and love it. The song itself is very powerful, and the video enhances it with some pretty amazing visuals that evoke some strong contrasts.
There is a lot of duality in the video, particularly around containment and explosion/release.
Starting with Adele, she sits mostly still and belts her heart and soul out. Then there is the graceful figure in the sand/dust- the emotional landscape of the song in physical form. Who hasn’t wanted to physically destroy something after a rough break up- creating a physical manifestation of a broken, angered heart.
The rhythmic shattering of plates and glasses to the beat and the whole thing taking place in a mansion. There are all of these dramatic things happening in a formerly lovely place.
The glasses- showing the beat (almost like a heart) and showing power in number and fragility. And just a really cool visual.
The paper town destroyed and released through fire, becoming something else.
I could very well be way over interpreting this video. But I got the impression that everything we see is quite deliberate and in my opinion creates a visual experience that fits the song perfectly.
PS- Morcheeba will be performing in Boston in February. With their original vocalist, Skye. Plan accordingly.
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