Slipknot - Spit It Out (1999) (Video Analysis)

Genre: Slipknot are a nu-metal band. The video is mainly performance and has intertextual references to the film 'The Shining' (1980). Live performance is a conventional feature of rock/metal videos.

Narrative: The narrative of the clip follows a shortened down version of the story-line of 'The Shining'. The band members dress as certain characters from the film e.g the twins.

Representation: People associate this genre of music with being scary and this stereotype is carried out throughout the clip as it uses many aspects of a horror film. The band are known for their trademark masks which are shown throughout the video.

Visual codes: The video is set in a house much like that of the film 'The Shining', there are also segments of the video that are live performance from a stage show. The colours used are fairly dark with flashes of red. The red is used to connote danger. A shot composition that stands out to me is when the shots flicker in time with the music showing the band members in place of the twins.

Technical codes: Cut aways are used between the intertextual scenes from the shining and the live performances. There are lots of close ups to show each of the band members and their various mask as this is slipknots signature look. The cuts are very fast paced which fits with the speed of the music.

Audience: The target audience for this video would be metal fans or people who are interested in horror films. The video is themed around a horror film and this entices people to watch it.

Institution: The record company 'Roadrunner Records' would want to show numerous close ups to make the audience aware of the performance aesthetics of Slipknot. Slipknot's mask have been the focus of their image since the very beginning, they have always had variations of each members signature mask at every stage of their career.

Specific Knowledge of Music Videos

Rock and indie music videos tend to have a much more prominent story line to that of other genres. The video is solely based around the narrative with clips of performance.



Pop videos tend to follow the theme of being romantic and based around fairy tale like love stories. They are also often fairly cheesey.

Nightclub setting is stereotypical for this genre. The video also includes girls dancing and the use of male gaze.



Live performances are stereotypical to rock/metal genres. They show the band and their instruments and also include clips of the fans. This is because the atmosphere of these kind of shows is very specific to the genre.



Rap artists commonly use isolated buildings, cities and street in their videos. All of these settings are shown within this video.

Knowledge of Music Videos

This mindmap shows my knowledge of music videos before starting the research tasks.

Name and Candidate Number

Abigail Tredget
7528