Research into record labels - Miss Georgiou

Records Labels come under two main identifiers in the music industry:

1) Major Record Labels, These are large companies within the industry that own smaller record labels. The Music world is overrun by these three major record labels which includes the following.

The major labels that operate in the UK at this given time are, Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group.

Universal Music Group own artists such as Bastille, Elbow, Ellie Goulding, Elton John , Emeli Sande, Fall Out Boy, Fat Boy Slim, Florence + The Machine, Iggy Azalea, Imagine Dragons, Jake Bugg, Kaiser Chiefs, Kate Perry, Ne-Yo, One Republic, Sam Smith, Taylor Swift, 50 Cent.
They also own small record labels such as Interscope Records, Island Records, Def Jam Recordings, Polydor Records and Capitol Records. This Major Record label co-developed Vevo, which is a website alike YouTube which streams music videos only. Videos are free to watch but there are adverts so the company can make a further profit.

Sony Music Entertainment own artists such as Miley Cyrus, Faith, Williams, Daft Punk, Olly Murs, Tine Tempah, 1D. They own smaller record labels such as Columbia Records, Ultra recordings and Epic Records. Sony is a wide platform company as they cover areas such as television, film, mobile phones and games consoles.

Warner Music Group own artists such as James Blunt, Ramones, Paolo Nutini, B.o.B, David Guetta, Coldplay, Fleetwood Mac, Ed Sheeren. They own smaller labels such as Alantic Records, Warner Bros. Records, Rhino Entertainment and Elektra Records. This Major Label is owned by Time Warner, which is the largest media conglomerate which all owns Warners Bros, which have created a wide array of blockbusters at the box office.

2) Independents, Music labels that operate one or a few music labels, this labels can be as successful as Major ones but the main difference is that they operate from a smaller company base. It can be said that they offer more fresh and realistic music which can be said is lost through manufactured mainstream music which is auto-tuned etc, and has the main objective of maximizing profits.

In the UK there are many independent record labels which include ones such as;

Fatcat Records, which are based in Brighton. Founded in 1997 by David Cawley and Alexander Knight.  This label represents genres such as electronica, post rock, indie, downtempo, minimal techno and punk pop and pop. Artists signed to this label include Mum, Animal Collective (Psychedelic Rock, who I have analysed in a previous blog.), Frightened Rabbit and Vashti Bunyan.

Jeepster Records, this is a London based independent record label, founded in 1995 which genres include British Indie and Alternative Bands it two most creditable artists are Belle and Sebastian and also Snow Patrol. It was founded by Mark Jones and Stefani D'Andrea as they both had interest in indie music. In 2002 the label found itself in financial trouble due to production costs and the artists poor promoting.

In my opinion I think that by having 4 companies that dominate the music industry has both positive and negative connotations. The positives being that having 4 labels means that there will be a clearly extremely high standards and will be able to bring artists into music scene quickly and as efficiently as possible and make them appeal to fans due to heavy promotion and heavy pumped advertising resources due to increased funds created by less competition. On the other hand there are many negatives, by having a small number of record labels it only allows popular genres to be catered for and takes away all competition of other genres due to lack promotion nor popular interest by audiences. Also it means that the 4 companies control the music market regulating the price of music for audience due to lack of competition and there objectives to make as much profit as possible.

By doing this is does not allow young new talent to be given a chance as only a few select will be scouted and promoted by the labels, and without this due to finical issues it makes it hard for artists not to be signed to one of these labels in order to make them successful, which is the same for generally unpopular genres.

I do believe that Major record labels without much consideration are more successful than small independent ones. This is due to the fact they have the power to gain access to the best artists around and are able to successfully advertise and promote them to audiences. Which is extreme hard for small labels as they cannot compete. This doesn't gives independent record labels much choice in the artist they sign as they have to be whiling and committed to the label, and not wanting to sign to a bigger label that could in turn offer them more success and a more clear cut route to fame.

These record labels all own theses artists due to the fact that the labels are well known and these artists want to be as successful as possible. If they sign to a major record label they have a better chance of becoming a huge hit. This is due to the fact that major record labels have large funds that they are prepared to invest in young music stars, even if they are not 'the next thing' that will be popular with audiences. This shows directly in relation to the artist how much control the labels have as they dominate the market they are in and divert young potential artists from signing from minor labels as they feel that they will not have as much success, hence why some independence struggle as they have a small fund and have to scout artists more cautiously as they cannot afford to risk money in artists that will not succeed.

On the other hand Independent record labels do offer the music industry a wider arrange of artists and genres that are more realistic and not moulded by the record labels in order to fit a character that needs to be maintained and always in the media for positive or negative reasons. Therefore their artists are more lifelike as they may be comparable to most of their audiences in beliefs or financial status etc. These labels are also more likely to sign never seen before artists that are young, underdeveloped and maybe consider a wide difference from the norm which provides audience a differentiation in the music that they listen too. Independents also work more closely with their artists and spend more time recording, increasing the overall quality of the final produce which it can be said is lost with majors as they pump out music to increase sales.

But on some occasions these labels do make a break through such as XL recordings who signed Adele who now is a massive success. The only downside is the fact when artists breakthrough they tend to join bigger labels, as did Adele when she joined Columbia Records which could offer create publicity and help due to their bigger financial background. Some artist go straight to major record labels that have scouted them straight away. And due the success that they crave, they will sign to these record labels without a second thought. Madonna a young talent whom now is one of the most successful artists of all time, selling over 160 million records which is rising on a daily basis. She was signed by a child label of Warner Bros records, which signing unarguable paid off.

Digipak Pak Analysis - Miss Miller

There are two main ways in which CD's can be packaged. This is either in a Digipack or a CD plastic case. A Digipack is used for special editions of singles or albums mainly and consists of a gatefold which is usually somewhat of a book style made out of paperboard or cardboard on the outer binding, with one or more plastic trays for the CD. This type of packaging grew increasing popular among both record labels and recording artist in the early 2000's.  

Digipaks compare to CD cases have rather more positives than negatives compared to that of a Jewel CD Case. Digipaks contain higher quality images and they usually have more meaning to them creating a stronger bond with the audience. They also contain a letter or note from the artist to the fans which is give the impression that it is personalized to that individual. Sometimes they do contain bonus tracks, that is not available on the standard CD edition of the album or single. It has 6 sides which allows space for visible artwork, information or promotions which will benefit both the record label and artist, as they will attract audience to buy the products, as it is more collectible, and information is easily accessible, which gives a greater appeal and making it long lasting. On a negative note they are very easily ripped when they are removed or put back into a CD rack which means buyers may not want to look or use at much as otherwise they may damage the product. 

For our chosen artist we will be creating a 6 sided digipack which will include relevant images and information about the artist and the music that they produce. I will be analysing for this post Tame Impala's digipak from their Lonerism album that our chosen song is from. We managed to found a 6 sided one as well with the following images of it and the CD itself below.  

Representation of the artist, The digipak does not give much away about the band in general we only see one picture of the one of the band members which covers 2 sides of the album. He is seen playing a guitar laying on the floor with various cables and audio equipment around the room. It can be said that the artist is seen as one that is quite relaxed and stress free which can be seen by his emotions and body language, as he is smiling and in a relaxing position on the floor looking up as if he is staring at the sky or the audience themselves possible creating a connection and making the digipak feel more personal for them. He also has no shoes on which again reflects the theme of being calm and careless, even stress free. 

Connotations of the digipak, there are numerous connotations within this digipak, around what themes that it promotes. One connotation can be seen on the front cover of a it, as the audience we see a still image of  an area that is unknown but is well looked after and historic, we also see an amount of people doing things such as walking and sitting alike average people. But this is seen through a metal gate that is locked and as seen in the picture to tall to climb and get to where the people are. This is meant to represent a visual image of modern society being cut off by uncontrollable forces that are beyond the reaches of the normal person. Hence the name of the album 'Lonerism' being alone and separated. Another connotation that can be picked up in the theme of symmetry which can be seen on the CD, Back cover and one of the inside covers.  This could represent the themes of perfection, which may be a contradiction of the front cover which is the complete opposite or even the fact that the barrier of the gate has been lifted and promoting freedom and expression.

Colours, there are not are a wide array of colours and filters on the covers of the digipak the main one which is used on one of the covers is an Orange Filter this makes the picture seem different from others that are similar. This may represent the genre that the band is from, this colour expresses the bands main ideas which their music promotes this is to enhance the effects of drugs on the body which may explain the difference which will represent the two states of usage of drugs the taking and side effects i.e. hallucinations etc.  These colours are typical of the Psychedelic Rock genre and attract the audience as they are visually appealing, which in turn may create an incentive for the audience to buy the product. The bright colours contrast with the dark immediately grabbing attention, and enjoying.  

Design/layout, This digipak has a pretty clear layout as each cover has a specific purpose, 

The cover is used to promote the Band and the Title of the Album, while the rest of the covers show the following Artwork, Artist in Setting, Song Titles and Lyrics. The minimalistic approach used is to only give the information that the audience require and no more otherwise the covers will be full of information that is unnecessary.

Choice of images as said prior the images chosen have been clearly and have a direct purpose for the benefit of the audience. As said the front cover is used to have an inferred meaning of the bands album title Lonerism, while another is used to displace one of the members of the band created an added bonus for the audience to see exclusive photos of them, while the rest is filler images and artwork that relate to the front cover which include perfect symmetry.  They maybe be plain and simple due to the fact that the band does not want the audiences to be disengaged from the main message from them that will be within the songs of the album because at the end of the day this is the main purpose for them to actually buy the product, hence why it is so plain.

Typography, there are two types of font used on the album. The first can be seen on the front cover and the cover that displays the song titles. This text is Black and Bold so it stands out to the audience on a light orange background. This is used so it can be easily read with no confusion, it also it very plain but this due to the fact that the front cover has serious connotations and if this is not reflecting in text it may lose its meaning and may not be taken seriously be the audience, and messages that the band promotes will be lost. The same font and style is used on the song titles this is due to the fact that the album is trying to remain constant and not varied but also so that the titles and clear and can be easily read. On another cover we see the same font repeated in a different colour to represent lyrics of the songs on the album this is simple for the fact that otherwise they will not be seen on the dark background and also because they are smaller and harder to read.  

Style of language is an area that has not been clearly considered on this digipak as it has a simple outline of language being Band name, title, song titles and lyrics. It is text that is expected to be seen, this maybe unappealing to some audiences as they may feel that the personal touch from the band has been lost as there is not personal message that they can relate to and further their bond with their idols which is clearly true otherwise they would not have spent the time or money to get the special edition of Tame Impalas Album. 

The research that I have done into the digipak of the Album that we will be re-creating has helped be understand how they work and what is to be included within them, while also what Tame Impalas one looks like and gained a few ideas that we can incorporate into  the newly modelled one include with our own ideas that we have thought about while analysing this one. Also from seeing other digipaks that I own myself I will be able to obtain ideas that may be less conventional from the genre as that is what we are collectively aiming for as a group. This one is quite conventional to the genre but compared to that of the videos  we have seen its actually quite wide of the mark. I also under the content that most defiantly needs to go into the it which includes, Band Name, Title, Title of Songs, Lyrics, Band pictures, artwork and others. 

Lyric Analysis - Miss Georgiou

"Feels like we only go backwards"

What are the hidden meanings in the song?

 

There are many difference hidden meanings within the song that can be seen by the audience. They mainly focus around the scenario of a break up between the singer and another entity. In which we see the person in a constant battle physically and mentally with his partner and whether they should get back together. This can be seen by such lyrics as "Every part of me says go ahead, I've got my hopes up again ,oh no, not again". He then sees his thoughts as stupid as he see that's she has given up on him "Maybe your feeling don't show", hence the common motif "Feels like we only go backwards".  

 

 

"I know that you think you've set sail when you call my name". This may refer to previous arguments that the couple have encountered. And when she calls/shouts his name, he sees this as a call sign and that there is no life left in the relationship and that it is coming to an end referring to the sailing part of the quote empathising going away/moving on.  

 

"The seed of this indecision isn't me, oh no". this quote indirectly is stating in another way that the root of the break up is not the artist himself but the other half of the relationship who is causing the doubt between them. Seed meaning the start looking from the perspective of plants. This quote is rather conversational like and seems like the artist is blame shifting and saying it is solely down to her.  

 

"When I realize I'm just hopin onto the hope that, maybe your feelings don't show". Once again this quote is showing that the artist is having

second thoughts and that he doesn't want to be with her but only if she is has genuine feelings for him which needs to be shown and clearly apparent to him. He doesn't want to break up with her but he feels it needs to take place.

 

How have your group annotated the lyrics?

 

We have annotated the lyrics according to what we feel stood out from the lyrics, this then accounted to create ideas for our group. The lyrics that we highlighted became the lyrics that we most focused on. We wrote a brief outline of what we felt the lyrics meant and ideas could be brief used or focused on when we come to creating a planned out narrative and storyboards. We also considered what possible camera angles that we could use as seen below we have considered at the end rewinding all of the footage that we have put together as it reflects the lyrics 'going backwards'. We also started to brainstorm ideas of locations that we could use this can be seen on the top right of the picture where we have briefly listed some locations we feel are suitable in relation to the lyrics of the song.

Finally we have outlined the main themes of the song which are going forward and moving on and also going backwards hence the lyrics constantly plugged to the audience throughout the song.  

How will your annotation assist you with planning the micro elements, style, target audience and convention of your chosen song?

 

These annotations will place a vital role in the pre-production stages of our as already we have identified key micro elements that we would like to include such as particular camera angles and when we would like the audience to feel the effects of not only lyrics but visuals as well. Also from these annotations we can start to narrow down what conventions and other elements such as camera angles and editing techniques we want to use that will appeal to our target audience that we want to please the most, but almost other element that may make our work branch out to wider audiences due to us making our video more mainstream and less conventional to the genre itself (not all elements) for the benefit of the artist and record labels in revenue generated.


We as a group feel that the narrative should as a result of the lyrics focus around the idea of a relationship between two characters one being female and the other a male which will take the lead role. We want to have strong themes that will keep the audience engaged and keep the narrative compelling such as drug usage for the themes of the genre and somehow link with the theme of suicide due to depression due to the downward spiral of the relationship and drugs which will be clearly displayed and how they effect his behaviour and discussion making. In linking with this we also plan to used editing techniques such as colour tints to reinforce the idea of drug usage.

The relationship we feel should follow the idea of a break up due to an affair or the male character sleeping around which is more common for the age of the characters that we plan to use, also this will be for engaging for our target audience as this is something they should be able to relate to due it being a common theme among young adults. I feel also that our video will be highly repayable due to the location that we plan to use, as we plan to film in London in recognisable locations such as Liverpool street station, Canary Wharf and using the tube that links them all together alike.


 

SCREENSHOT OF OUR ANNOTATIONS 

 

Magazine Advert Analysis - Miss Miller

There are many purposes of a magazine adverts of artists but primarily the main idea behind these advertisements is to promote the artist and introduce them both to new and old audiences, despite whether they are the target audiences of the artist or wider audiences being introduced to the artist for the first time. These adverts aid the artist in the form of sales as they tempt audiences to buy their new album as they are being reminded of the artist themselves and the product that they represent. The purpose behind this is to increase the amount of revenue they claim due to the amount of sales received. The advert also shows what the product looks like, which is key for the reason that it plants the image of the album in the minds of the target audience, so when they go to buy the product or see it in a store or online it is distinctively recognisable by the audience and comes of ease to find and then consequently purchase.

First Advert Analysis - Tame Impala

Second Advert Analysis - Artist of the same Genre.

This is an advert from Pink Floyd advertising their first  LPI in a magazine. Pink Floyd are presented as a band that are very conventional to the psychedelic rock genre this can be seen clearly by the whole band not being clearly represented in the scene. The image of the band seems to have been broken up into various sections alike a kaleidoscope effect on the image. As from my research into the genre this is a clear motif that I have seen that has been constantly repeated throughout. This effect breaks up the image and keeps the audience interested as it is rather abnormal as the bands faces are split into two, and blurred with the occasional full face being seen at the top of the image.

There are various connotation's of the artist that can be clearly seen in the advert. Firstly the band have been clearly represent the genre through the effects used on the image this promotes the main ideas of the genre with its pleasure enhancing effects being under the influence of narcotics. This is due to the image not being clear with its kaleidoscope affect as already mentioned and the font choice of the bands name being quite wavy like further backing the idea of the genre and the values it represents. This in turn may attract a certain target audience already even before they have heard of the band as they may straight away understand the message that they are trying to convey, this showing the bands commitment to branch out to a target audience and wider audiences at the same time.

The layout of the advert is quite straightforward, it clearly states at the top of the advert that the album or LPI is 'available now', it then follows with a clear shot of what the cover of the product looks like, so the viewing audience will known what the products look like. The bottom of the advert follows the generic conventions of an advert crediting the title of the LPI and the record label in varying fonts from that of the bands name.

On the magazine advert that I  have found Pink Floyd has not been represented in colour at all, to overcome this so I can actually analysis this section I have found a colour shot of the album itself as this is what the advert is trying to portray. The colours used are quite mild in respect and I would not say that they are exactly conventional to the genre, in context it can be said that the outfits wore by the band are rather mainstream and maybe not due to the genre of the music. The album was released in 1967 and the outfits wore by the band members is representative of the time and not particularly the genre itself. This can be said for the band names colour, it is particularly plain and does not stand out, it can be said that it may be down to the dark colours used by the bands clothes. If it was more conventional to the genre it may be for example a bold colour such as yellow etc.  

The Typography of the advert is a significant figure as it takes up most of the space on the advert. There are two main types of font used the first being the wavy like font that is most conventional to the genre it is used for both the 'available now' and 'Pink Floyd'. While the rest of the advert is in a thin, bold font which is used to the represent the more important text such as the album title and the record label name.

The style of the language is nothing particularly special as it is just plain advertising of the product at hand. There is no personal message from the band it just advertises there first album 'their First LPI and attracts audiences to buy with the 'available now' message.
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Tame Impalas magazine advert is one that is completely different from that of Pink Floyds as it is completely modern due to the fact of the time differences in the two bands. This magazine advert takes a completely different stance from that of the other as it is rather subversive of the genre as I will explain. The advert focuses around a park or a similar setting in which many people can be seen, it is rather unconventional due to the fact it is rather just a normal photograph that has not been altered to then create or give it drug connotations alike others. It also conforms to a subversive text as we see a big and bold text font rather than colorful, engaging text that rather is just purely there to convey information than to visually simulate the audience.

The layout has a rather strict agenda as it is a picture will as the necessary information such as the band name and album title etc., all centred in a tight circle to keep it in place and attract the audience. The layout is rather plain to get the information that is only required from the record labels to audiences to increase there profits as they see this as a major requirement. This is a big contrast of that from Pink Floyd which make focus is of the band rather than the information.

The colour used in the video is as mentioned subverts the genre as it is plain and simple which rather reflects mainstream genre rather than the one at question. There is a dark red borderline which surrounds the image giving the idea of being trapped or guarded which is some what can be seen in the photograph with the metal bars in the POV shot. This plain colour is also used to represent the colours Black and Green for the text on the white circle, which is visible due to the colour background to make it stand out to audiences from the image beneath.

As already mentioned the text used is rather bold and not conventional to the genre as we see a generalised use of capital letters which make the words on the advert stand out further. This has been done to grab the attention of the audience as it is big in size and advertises the key information as quickly and as effectively as possible which include the band name their album and the fact that it is our now.

The style of the language due to the use of typography is rather monotone as we see just necessary information be displayed to the audience. None of the language is emotive and therefore goes out to try and grab the attention of audiences. Due to this it comes of as if it is only trying to advertise the produce to its target audience rather then a wider fanbase. In addition if the record label whom produced this was to add some brighter colours within and also put some emphasis on the language it would probably be more attractive for people to look and an then as a result research and buy the product.

This research will highly assist me when it comes to creating our magazine advert for Tame Impalas album which features the song that we will be using. This research has given me an insight into what needs to be included within a magazine advert such as Close Ups of the artist, fonts and what they represent, album titles, backgrounds the reflect the genre, how the artist is going to be present, how the advert can breach out to wider audiences to increase sales and many more characteristics that need to be highly though through by I and my group.

Also from this research I have gain a few ideas that may be used or considered at least when it comes to creating our advert these include a similar font to that of Pink Floyds bands title and also I like the way that the magazine advert keeps to the point of the message that it is trying to convey. I think this a similar approach that we will be sticking to when it comes to creating out magazine advert as it stops it from becoming confusing to the audience and then we will achieve what our aims are when promoting the band and album. In addition I will be taking on some of the errors I feel that are included in Tame Impalas advert and trying to make font and colour schemes more excitable for audiences.

Planning Lighting and Colour - Miss Georgiou

A wide variety of lighting styles and colours are also a key element that need to be considered when planning as we need to and must to have some conventions of the genre included within our production. Lighting Styles need to be considered when we are planning/filming and if we need to take any lighting equipment with us or if we are just leaving footage down to natural light of the setting itself. On the other hand we will have to add colour tints to the footage after it has been filmed in the editing stages of production.
The psychedelic rock genre has various conventions that include bright colours and a vast array of colour tints we must find a way to incorporate these into our music video even if they are not widely used as we want to please both the genres audience and wider audiences who will be introduced or in strong dislike of the content available to them at this given time, if we want our music video to be popular and enjoyable for both audiences.

Lighting

Low Key Lighting, will be in main use throughout the video as we are filming in a setting at times where there will no daylight visible hardly. The light that will be seen is of a natural source from the night sky with some man made light in the form of light from lampposts on the street and maybe other sources that do not provide a great deal of light. This is not strictly conventional to the genre as music videos usually under this genre use quite bright locations but it can be seen in some as gives the audience the undertone message of the side effects of what the genre is promoting. But we will not be using this lighting in the particular way, or not intend to whatsoever it is purely in use so that the narrative makes sense as it is all set in the evening which we have considered and will begin to produce.

High Key Lighting, this will be used on the other hand in locations which are indoors, as brighter lights are used throughout these particular settings these will include Liverpool Street Station, Stratford City Centre and the House of the setting. This type of lighting is more commonly seen in music videos under the genre as it is more appealing and attracts the audiences attention. In some music videos HKL it can be said is to bright and may be too strong for audiences eyes. This is why we are only using the lighting that is available to us in the setting this is as we do not feel it is necessary for them to be any brighter and therefore using extra resources that are not needed such as floodlights. Therefore our method is slightly unconventional and will not promote the same ideas as other music videos but this in order to expand our audience and make the video more mainstream. I also feel that this lighting may help the editing stages of the process be more effect as we plan to use light to reflect the drug connotations by using flashing effects to given the impress/empathy that the artist is under the influence of narcotics. I feel that this will have a more profound affect on setting with more light such as buildings which will take up quite a sizeable proportion of the screen therefore having the more promenade effect on the audience.

The usage of lighting does not particular help to represent our artist in anyway but is purely unintentional as we are keeping to a narrative based video that will involve both tones of light regardless due to the settings we have planned to use. It may show the artist as a person whom likes the nightlife both indoors and outdoors but this is due to the content of our video and for no particular reasoning.


Colour Tints
Dark, Green, Red, Blue, Purple,

Theses colours that we have decided to use are our conventional element from the genre as we did not want to be completely unconventional and miss out on the main messages of it. These colours will be used to replicate or enhance the promotion of drugs, as is the genre designed to but they will not be as extreme as other music videos, they will be undertone but clear seen by the audience, this is as we do not want to make the video just appeal to the genres target audience but people outside of it. Of course we don't want the video to be completely mainstream as then it will not appeal to the demographic that the song was made to please therefore we will lose a sizable proportion of the audience.  This use of colour will help to represent our artist as one which conforms to the genre, as has a connection with the audience as the theme of drugs which is being represented, may appeal to a segment of the audience at least while the others may find the colours used as abnormal but interesting as it is not commonly seen in mainstream genres.

I think the usage of colour tints will be used after the main character has taken drugs so therefore colour tints will take place at the main city locations and may be used within the flashing of bright lights also to enhance there effects on the audience.

In relation to lyrics both of the main uses of light and colour will mainly take place after the drug scene as it will reflect what is going on in the scene and the narrative prominently to the audience, it will take place in the section of the lyrics where he is blaming her for the break up where the lyrics say "The seed of all this indecision isn't me, oh no, Cause I decided long ago, But that's the way it seems to go when trying, So hard to get something real, It feels" this can relate to the idea that drugs help the mind to make decisions either for the worse or bad and this itself reflects the stance that she has rejected him and in fact pushed him away.

Our target audience will be a mixture of both genre fans and wider/newer audiences as we are trying to appeal to both of them. We have taken into consideration the lighting and colours we are going to use in order to be conventional and unconventional but also our they are going to make our artist be seen by the audience. Different lighting in different scenes will represent various emotions of the artist which will be picked up by the audience with the purpose to build a strong bond between the two. But the colours used will be for the benefit of the audience entirely to be conventional and promote the effects of drugs which is the underline theme of the genre and our music video which will be directly expressed in one of the scenes.
 

Planning Artist Image - Miss Georgiou

Artists representation within a music video is a rather essential element that needs to be catered for. Without the artist having some form of construct the audience with have a hard time understanding what the artist is trying to get across or what type of artist they are/what values they promote. This is why there needs to be vast efforts in planning of the artist image and how they are going to relate to the audience.

Jazz
Coat/Jacket, Jeans, Trainers
No Make Up

This approach that we are taking is rather unconventional to the genre, as we would usually see artists under this genre wearing clothes that would not normally be wore in such circumstances such as I seen Clown Outfits, or other sorts along the same line. In addition conventional artists also wear a tremendous amount of make up which is either black or white or a multiple array of bold and bright colours.
The image that we are taking is rather more mainstream,  we have decided to do this for several reasons. Mainly due to the fact  we want our artist to be highly relatable for mainstream audiences that might be new to this genre  of music. By having the artist looking like themselves it with achieve a stable relationship between artist and audience.
I do think this image will help to represent our artist as the audience will rather see him as a normal person with an average non- extravagant lifestyle which maybe alike theirs this could be reflected in the narrative but primarily this will be seen through the choice of costume and there body language within the video. As already said the costume worn will reflect a common outfit of all young adults - adults as listed above which will make it more suggestive for the audience to consider the artist alike them.

I feel that Jazz will mainly wear the same clothing throughout as the narrative takes place over one day in the evening so therefore it is not necessary for a clothes change. There might be a consideration for some clothes alteration i.e unzipped ,zipped to reflect change. A possible consideration might be the idea of the use of flashbacks which would see a change in outfits.

Robyn
Jumper, Jeans/Leggings, Indoor Shoes or None.
Standard Make Up,

The second character is the 'Artists Girlfriend' in the narrative once again this character will be unconventional to the genre which can be seen clearly by the her attire, as she is wearing rather cozy and relaxing clothing that is in contrast with what is going on in the scene. This character represents one which is in a relationship and has settled down and committed to it as it empathizes 'comfort' and 'stability'. This is reflected in the video as we will see flashback of the couple at hand which the audience will relate to in the mentioned ways. It isn't conventional due to the fact that it is not wacky and does not stand out to the audience and is rather what is expect of our target audience to be like. I feel this character will help to represent our artist in the way that she completes the couple figure that we want to use throughout the video and bring the artist almost 'back down to earth' and makes him more realistic to the audience as he is in a relationship experiencing the common normalities of one such as, fighting, breaking up (negatives) and the strong bond, intimacy (positives).


Robyn is only going to be seen in scenes at the start of the music video at this given time so only one clothes set is needed at this given time. As previously mentioned the idea of using flashbacks is an idea so a change of clothes may be necessary for this to be picked up apron by audiences.

The main representation that we are trying to portray is a young couple on love with similar interest in a believable relationship. This will be done by the way in which their "chemistry" or bond is presented due to the acting ability body language, and facial expressions. This also can be portrayed in there clothes as they will have similar label (mainstream) and fashionable clothes that may make them seem like a couple.

In Summary it is rather clear that we want our characters in our music video to be considered more mainstream that rather defining the conventions of the genre our song is from. We have carefully considered this as for our music video to be more mainstream we need the character within it to be more lifelike and similar to our target audience that we are trying to attract rather than just a rather strict and slim audience as suggested by our questionnaire in my previous blog. By doing this it makes the characters themselves very similar to the general target audience we are trying to acquire for our final product.  Besides the narrative itself this is the only other element that needs to be unconventional as will be seen in my planning of lighting and colour blog,

Planning Cinematography - Miss Georgiou

Why is cinematography essential within a music video?

Cinematography is an essential element within a music video as it keeps the audience engaged in what is happening in the music video itself. If the music video was one continuous shot throughout it would be extremely boring for the audience, whereas if a large collection of different camera angles were used ranging from the standard shots such as Mid-shots and Close Ups being largely used throughout and more entertaining shots from Extreme Close Ups and Establishing Shots to engage them further. By using a wide array of shots it may make the audience want to view the video again to see if they have missed any elements due to the rapid speed of shots. It will also be more memorable and stand out for them if this is achieved. Another reasons why cinematography is highly important is due to the fact that it may make the narrative more understand by having more camera angles as then the shots are sticking to the point instead of being continuous and linking setting together without actually showing how the artist/character had got there.

Handheld Reverse Close-Up - This Camera Angle isn't widely used across the genre but in a way it can relate to Psychedelic Rock. As this genre does have a general focus on drugs and to enhance there effects, this shot can be used as it can relate to drugs or drink as it is positioned on the actor/actress and follows their movements. When they are acting to be under this manor then this is when the shot is most effective as it will be moving constantly rather than just minimal compared to that of just a walking version of this shot. This camera shot will help us represent our artist as it will have a constant focus on them rather than location such as other shots that we are going to use. Also the audience will feeling a connected relationship to the artist as this is going to be one of the closest shots to the artist face as we intend.

In addition this will help to represent the ideas of the usage of drugs that we want to heavily reinforce to our audience as it helps to follow the movement of the body completely and immediately gets the effect across quickly and coherently. Lyrics that we could possible use "But it seems the way to go when trying, so hard to get something real".  In my eyes it reflect the use of drugs as the only way that the artist  can get as close to getting something real as he's tried so hard he needs a release to get away from his troubles, the theme of escapism.

Ark Shot - Once again this shot is not used widely across the genre but is can relate to its conventions. This shot has various connotations that can be seen across the genre. This shot involves the camera at use going around the body or head of the person in focus. This shot will enable the artist to build a brief but extended relationship with the artist as this is going to be one of the longest shots that we use in our music video and will directly involve the artist (Jazz) himself. The audience will focus on his face mainly trying to figure out his facial expressions and what it is he is seeing/ experiencing and possible relate if they figure out what it is. It could involve a link to drugs or even the suicide scene to have a more promenade effect but only if focused on the character.
Lyrics that can be used are ones that have already been mentioned as these are the only once with suicidal links or drugs.

Tracking Shot, In our research into the genre this is one of the shots that I have seen so I would say it is rather conventional to the genre our video is going to represent. In our video this shot is going to be seen when we will be following our artist with the camera directly across the road when he is at a distance going into the station. The shot represents the artist as being ideal and distant from the audience. This has been done on purpose as the narrative that we are following the artist is meant to be contemplating his thoughts over the break up he has had with his girlfriend in a long term relationship.
Lyrics that we would use in the context of this shot would be "It feels like we are going backwards" and similar lyrics as it goes against what is going on screen as he will be walking forwards and away rather than backwards, in addition it could also represent the idea that he is ready to move away from her and contemplate his thoughts.

Panning Shot, Yet again I have seen the use of this type of shot used to establish the setting that the music video has been using in our research so therefore it can be deemed as conventional to the genre. This shot will not in turn represent the artist directly but it will rather focus on setting the location of our starting scene. It made make the audience feel that the artist is rather similar to them as we have used this shot in a rather relatable location, make the artist seem down to earth with a normal and extravagant location which in some cases is lost when in other mainstream genres such as pop and R&B where artists tend to promote the theme of wealth and richness, which may be relatable for some audiences but not the majority.

I do not feel that it would be suitable for any lyrics to be used with this shot as this is going to happen at the start of the music video when no singing takes place to establish the setting.

High Angle, I have not seen this shot be widely used across the genre but it is an addition we as a group feel is needed due to the idea we have of using a time lapse within our music video. This shot will feature the artist (Jazz) standing in a location set of Liverpool Street station where thousands of people will be walking pass him while he is stood still. We will be filming for around ten minutes before in the editing stage we will condense this to a few seconds. This may confuse the audience but we are using this to make the artist seem like he is losing track of time due to the fact that he has a lot of thoughts on his mind at this given time which we want to be apparent to the audience.

Lyrics that we could possible use to represent the idea of losing track of time are "Cause I decided long ago" due to its time reference or "So hard to get something real" maybe he can't form a relationship due to his lack of commitment due to his personal life or that he doesn't have the time to form a full time relationship hence why he is sleeping around etc.




In summary the shots that we plan to use within our music video have been carefully selected so that our target audience can build a strong relationship with our artist. Each shot has a specific way it makes the audience feel as already explained. These shots should work as intended and at the end of the video make the audience feel as they have a strong understanding/ bond with the artist before this is taken away when our artist is going to indirectly commit suicide and take away this strong bond with the audience.

Planning Setting and Iconography - Miss Georgiou

Locations and Iconography are extremely important elements within a music video as they keep the audience interested in the scene and also make it relatable for them as well in some circumstances. In other extraordinary locations it may appeal further to them making them want to have the artists lifestyle, therefore watching the video multiple times as this is what interests them.

The locations that we are using for our music video have been picked for various reasons that include the artist, song, audience and conventions to the genre.

Locations used and reasoning will be as follows:

Canary Wharf, Liverpool Street, Docklands, Stratford City Centre, London City Airport

These are the main locations that will feature in the music video. This are the most prominent locations in London that we recognisable by our audiences, this is due to the fact we want to make our video relatable for the audience, we feel as a group this is one of the faults of the genre itself and that videos primarily tend to have very basic narratives and setting that the audience cannot understand nor relate to. We wanted to do this as it increase the strength of the relationship between artist and audience. It therefore feels like a video has not just be produced for the sake of it and not for the benefits of the audience which we want to reverse. We want the audience to feel involved and liking the artist not just for there music but the quality of the video that they produce. The song has various connotations that we feel can relate to the settings that we have chosen, this will be explained in the next section of the post. These locations are clearly not conventional to the genre as they are not random and have been carefully selected by us to get the message of the artist across clearly.

These locations will form a basic around the main body if lyrics as these will feature in the part where the actor is contemplating his thoughts about the relationship.

House,

We feel setting the start of the video in this setting is a strong point for both audience and artist. This is most defiantly the most relatable location for the audience as they will be able to relate to there own home. The house that we are using is standard so it will relatable for the vast majority of our audience, which is not the case for other music video as they sometimes lose connections with audiences due to the use of massive houses to empathise wealth, whereas we are keeping it rather strictly relatable. This setting is going to be used to set the scene for the music video and will take up the narrative start that we have opted for and the start of the song itself.

Ultimately this is the location we will be using to start of the scene at the moment this is scene can either be used to set up the narrative with dialogue or with the first paragraph of the lyrics which could potentially do the same job without detail.

" It feels like I only go backwards baby, Every part of me says go ahead, I got my hopes up again, oh no, not again, Feels like we only go backwards darling."

Train Station,

This is one of the locations we will be briefly using throughout the music video. We feel that this is needed to make the narrative of our music video make sense to the audience. This will be used to bring settings together as otherwise the audience may not understand the where or what the artist is doing.

At the station we can use lyrics such as "Every part of me says go ahead" as we see the actor contemplating suicide which is one of the themes that we want include within the video also as an addition "the seed of all this indecision isn't me" where he's blaming all of his errors on her and the ultimate reason why he wants to end his life.


Actions will be at each location is as follows:

Canary Wharf,(Escalator, Bridge)/Docklands

Liverpool Street,(Time Lapse, him thinking he has seen his ex. )

Stratford City Centre,(Images of Indoor Skaters)

House,(Argument, Walking out)

Train Station, (Panning Shot off of Train)

London City Airport(Time-Lapse)

I wouldn't say that our choices of setting completely reflect the codes and conventions of our genre, but this is due to the fact that our group has made the choice to try and break out to a wider audience by making the music video highly relatable for the audience by using recognisable locations as seen around London. To over come this we still want to reflect theses themes within a video to give a 50/50 ratio so that it will appeal to both sections of the audience. Therefore when filming we will try to use locations that we feel can reflect the expect items of the genre such as the usage of drugs through flashing lights etc. that can be made more prominent when editing takes place.

3)Limitations

Health and Safety risks when filming and to crew are as follows:

Tripping Hazards, these are hazards on the floor that we need to look out for. To overcome this as a group we need to scan the local area for any potential lethal to our own personal safety before we deem the setting to be adequate for filming, otherwise we will have to move to another location in the setting will we deem safe to complete the set tasks we have given ourselves.

Lifting Hazards, this will probably not occur while filming as the equipment we are using is not that heavy and can be carried by any member of the group. But if we are lifting external source that we feel need to be moved because they are block a shot that we want to achieve then we will have to consider the weight of the object and how collectively as a group we are going to move the object at question. If the object is light enough we will simply move it, but if we need to move a heavy object I suggest that we simply try to push it before we attempt to lift it. If it is determined that it is too heavy and cannot be moved we will simply leave it as we do not want to inflict injury on any member of the group.

Camera Risks, this is one of the basic needs of our group to perform before any filming does take place on site. This are simple checks such as we need to see that the camera is probably fitted on the tripod and if the tripod sits completely flat on the surface that we are filming on. In addition we need to see if the surface is suitable, as if it is wet it can be hazard to the camera and ourselves as both may slip.

Water, this is the most harmful health and safety risk that we may come across in the filming process. Water is a harmful substance and may lead to the highest of outcomes being death or damage of equipment which may beyond recovery. So I suggest that we identify any lethal amounts of water before we start filming. If these sources are prone to falling in with them being deep enough for a member of the group to actually drown or cause lethal harm, or if the camera/tripod has any potential to fall in we will move away from the location to a suitable distance or find a new location.

Time Pressure, Finally we as a group need to think about time considerably. We need to feel that there is no time limit (within reason) this will in turn avoid rushing and take out an errors within our work and reduce the risk of injure due to not concentrating.

5)Weather

This is an extremely important factor that we need to highly considered before we start to film this being for two reasons. Firstly if the weather is not suitable for filming in certain locations that are outdoors, for example heavy rain and strong winds we will not be able to film due to the fact that this could be harmful to both the equipment that we have been given to film i.e. Camera and Tripod and ourselves. If the wind is strong enough it is possible for large objects such as trees to become lethal hazards. So before we start filming we collectively as a group need to make a major decision if we feel it is both suitable and safe to film in outdoor locations. If this does occur then we will make the decision to film only indoor scenes as they will not be impacted by weather and therefore as a result we will not be wasting filming time which is rather limited.

Iconography

There are three main uses of Iconography we can see that are plausible within our music video these are a mobile phone, ticket/oyster card and pill/tablet (for reference to drugs)

Mobile Phone, this will be used throughout for the artist to see texts and the time. This will be shown on screen to the audience. We have decided to use this for the reason that we feel that it can be incorporated into the narrative that we have a clear understanding of what it is going to be like. We could reference this to the break up of the artist themselves talking to his ex and him keeping track of time to refer to it being lost as we will make it apparent as if it is going quicker than thought as he is constantly thinking about her and time is going fast as he is keeping busy.

 

Secondly we plan to incorporate the use of a ticket or oyster card into the video. We feel this necessary as we are using London as our overall setting, therefore it is clear that a transport system will be needed with the tube system being the most prominent of all ways into and around the capital. This is the way people pay to use the system all of the time so we feel it is needed as it is highly relatable to our audience and because it will link our first setting to the second as it gives the audience the idea of traveling.

Finally the last use of Iconography in our video will be the reference to drugs which is needed as we want to use some of the conventions of the genre, with this being quite high in priority as this is want the genre is focused around. We are going to get the artist to pull this out of his pocket and then place in his mouth. After this we are going to use editing techniques to directly the audience to think that the artist is under the influence of drugs with colour tints and kaleidoscope effects.

Research into chosen Artist - Miss Georgiou

We as a group decided that our artist was going to be Tame Impala and there song "Feels like were only going backwards". The reason we chose this artist was due to the fact we feel we could go more and be more creative with our final video through the conventions of the music genre which involve editing and coming up with a reflective narrative of the genre.

Tame Impala are a psychedelic rock band from Perth, Australia and are owned by record label Modular Recordings. The band started off in 2010 with the release of their debut album called Innerspeaker and then their second in 2012 with Lonerism. The start of the band is in Perth. With their lead singer being in a number of bands before hand. Tame Impala first emerged as a band in Kevin Parkers home as a recording project in which they uploaded tracks to MySpace. These videos brought interest from numerous record labels, with them eventually signing to Modular Records, then transferring their music to a live stage in a series of local gigs.

Tame Impala sooner released their self-titled EP in 2008. They attained a number 1 position on the Austrailan Independent record label with three songs from the album. "Desire Be, Desire Go", "Half Full Glass of Wine and "Skeleton Tiger".

Tame Impala has won the following awards:

Favourite Newcomer, Most Popular single, Most Popular Act, Most Popular Live Act, Best Rock Act, Best Guitarist at the WAMI Awards

Best Group, Album of the Year, Best Rock Album for the ARIA Awards

At the J Awards they won Australian album of the year in both 2010 and 2012.

Also at the Grammy awards in 2014 they were nominated for the Best Alternative Music Album.

Additionally at the EG Music Awards in 2012 "Elephant" won Best Song.

Mind Mischief 

Dyers Theory isn't strongly used in this music video as we do not see the band themselves at all in the video. We therefore only see a narrative and concept based video as there are no performance elements throughout. But nonetheless they can still be presented through the narrative due to themselves being absent. The narrative focuses around the idea of a lonely teen finding comfort and rather bizarrely a relationship with one of his teachers, it rather reflects the themes of a drug related manor, which links to the conventions of the genre. In the context of the band it could present the fact that they are promoting the usage of drugs which is a common theme among other genres such as Rap and Hip-Hop as they can be clear seen smoking in the car and why consequently the animation effects are used to represent the change of body and mind. The band also presents itself as being slightly abnormal as we see the intercourse reference being over exaggerate and high graphical nature which may also being them over implying the link between drugs and sex.

Goodwin' Theory is less prominent in this music video than compared to that of elephant, this is mainly due to the fact that the band does not feature within the video. The video is strictly narrative/concept as due to the band not being in the video there is no performance element. There is certainly a link between music and visuals as the tempo is a line with the shots used.

There is  a direct link between music and lyrics as we see camera shots change alternatively on deeper beats, this can be clearly seen by the audience. Additionally there is a direct link between lyrics and visuals this can be seen by lyrics such as "Its all gonna change" as we see the two main characters take off each others clothes. The lyrics are from the perspective of the boy as we see his opinion of the relationship with his school teacher. There is a rather strong use of the sexualisation of the female body in the video where as explained the main characters are in the car, this gets more extreme as we see the video becoming animated and explicit cartoon imagery is seen.  

The artist isn't represented at all in this music video as they are not seen throughout at all. Therefore it can be said that the artist is making themselves more distant from their audience is may have negative effects as audience may feel uninterested as they may purely watch Tame Impala music videos so they can see the band. But as already mentioned there is links that can be made due to the values that they present due to the connotations of the genre that they are identified by.

In my opinion I would say the primary target audience for this video is rather older than elephant due to the graphical content of the video so it is not suitable for younger audiences. Due to this I would place the video at an age range of 18-30  years of age. This is due to the fact that 18 is a suitable age for to be viewing such images and while any older than 30's as they may not enjoy the content of the video as the narrative is rather strange and unappealing. 

The music video has a rather conventional style to the genre it is placed in but may be considered rather strange by mainstream audiences. The narrative is unclear at first but then becomes more apparent when the student enters the car of the teacher. This may be considered a imaginative narrative as it is very unrealistic, and will probably never happen in real life due to law and social believes. The narrative also follows a indirect reference drugs, as we see both characters smoking drugs and then hallucinate which is represented by real life becoming a cartoon world in which, previous scenes are empathized and become even stranger to audiences. Colour is widely used throughout as we see the cartoon takes place, these colours are there to reinforce the usage of drugs and its effects on the user as they are rather abnormal and not used in everyday instances.

Mise en Scene is used in a variety of ways throughout the video. The setting of the music video is rather relatable for the vast majority of the audience as it is set in a school location. Most of the audience will be just out of school or will have children that have been in school for a few years. Due to the music video mainly being narrative based there is a clear use of body language and facial expression mainly when the characters are looking at each other through the class room and hall way and additionally the car. When we see the male character get into the car it is clear that he is worried about what is going to happen, while the female is quite relaxed and confident in the situation. Due to the video being set within a school setting the  costumes used are in relation to the setting as the male is in common school uniform while the teacher is dressed in formal wear.

When lighting comes into concern we see a wide usage of low key lighting throughout without any change maybe due to the narrative and its contractions from the perspective of the male character reflecting his confusion and emotional confidence up till the part of the narrative where this indefinitely changes.

The most common shots used in this music video are long shot, close up, extreme close up, panning shot, two shot, zooming in and zooming out. 

As commonly used throughout all media entities both long shots and close ups are used to create emotional tendencies for the audiences to create links with thru character by bonding with the individual and there place in the narrative, this is strongly reinforced by the use of extreme close ups also.

Elephant 

In elephant the artist appears to the audience at the same time both extraordinary and ordinary, as we see them in a conventional setting placing their instruments like a conventional band under the rock genre. It stands out to audiences as we see the use of a kaleidoscope with an array of bright contrasting images that make it conventional to the Psychedelic Rock genre. The music video leaves the audience feeling satisfied as they can see the band but also see a conventional video that would have been made by the band but also the genre itself.

Elephant conforms to most of Goodwin's theory. For example the video shows genre characteristics that are conventional as we see the profound use of Rock Instruments are used, also the editing is similar to other videos under this genre. There is a distinct relationship  between music and visuals but not lyrics and visuals as they meaning of them is rather unclear. As commonly seen there are various close ups of the band throughout due to demands of the record label. Due to editing techniques there is footage that looks like screens with screens as the colours appear to be coming towards the audience, giving the feeling of going forward. It would also seem as if the video is primarily performance/concept based as we see no narrative and lyrics are open to the audiences interpretation. The band is represented as a stereotypical Rock band as we see the expected instruments of this genre. Obvious this section of Rock is expressed through the various transitions and editing techniques.

I would say the target audience for this video is from around 16-30 as the material within the video is appropriate for this particular age range compared to that of Mind Mischief which has a considerably higher starting age for obvious reasoning. In addition the idea of rock and its themes of rebellion and drugs would be a common theme among young adults hence why the starting target audience is rather low.

The style follows the standard presumptions of a video from the Psychedelic Genre with no clear or non-existent narrative with unclear lyrics to accompany it, so it is therefore open to the audiences own thoughts and interpretations.

When Mise-en-Scene is concerned, this video isn't set in a particular extravagant location known commonly by the audience, my nearest guess would be on stage or in a recording studio. Various Iconography is used as we see the band playing instruments all the way throughout. All the way throughout we see a consistent use of Low Key lighting which is in contrast to the bright bold colours used when the video was edited in transitions etc. There is no clear facial expressions or body language which reflect specific emotions that can be related to the audience. But it can be said that the bands members looking like they are enjoying themselves, again this can be related to the themes of the genre. Members and their instruments are always at the centre of the frame to grab the audiences attention between each camera angle alteration.

The most common camera angles used constantly throughout the video are as follows: Mid Shot, Panning, Extreme Close up, Close up, Zooming In and Out, and Long Shot.
The Mid shots are used rather to present the general band itself while Close ups and long shots are to create the link between the audience and the band. Finally the use of zooming in and out reflect the idea of narcotic usage and its side effects on the body.

This research in my chosen artist that we will be using for our final music video, will play a vital role in the planning stages of our music video. This due to the fact that I have gained an understanding of the artists main conventions, rather than just the genre itself. This will make it easier for us to think of what conventions we need to include in relation to the band but also what narrative type of narrative we need to follow again in links with the lyrics of "Feels like we only go backwards".

Also by researching the artist further and some of the music videos they have produce, I have taken away some ideas that can be replicated with the music video that we will produce, these include:

- the usage of colour tints or alike
-kaleidoscope effects
-relationship narrative
-Drug themes such as there usage by characters.