Music Video

Media A Level Music Video

Digi Pack

The Digi pack presents the band as being involved with their music displaying images of the lead singer singing and setting up his microphone. The expressions on the band members' faces show a contemporary mood of slight distance from the world, seemingly quirky and having their own agenda. The clothing the band members are wearing is down to earth and casual, these clothes are also worn in the video and on the poster creating a recurring sense of style. The small ghostly like cartoon on the guitarist's shirt and the lead singer's wrist bands demonstrate a kind of punk element. The set is unpretentious and straightforward, showing they are more passionate about their music than their public image.The faded, collaged images are creatively experimental, and the images of Camden, clocks, grafitti and the tube map are iconic symbols of London. This is another boost for the band as they are seen as part of London's culture and its well known music scene. The pictures of Camden project the band's youth as Camden is known for being a hot spot for experimental teenagers. The images on the Digi pack are darkly coloured giving the band this underground feel. This album cover has echoes of a young newly signed band, similar to 'The Beatles' when they first arrived on the music scene. The body language on the front of the CD cover suggests that they are determined and centred. The amps, microphones and drums which are shown in the images, make the band look hardworking and dedicated to the music they create. The font is varied and is strongly coloured which is modern eye-catching and constrasting because its unusual. The font has a rough feel as it looks as if it has been cut out of magazines and reassembled to make different worlds and styles. This is similar to the music video that has several different effects and images edited next to each other. Like the music too it's a mix of genres, like 80s pop, indie and rock.

Magazine Advertisement

My magazine advertisement has changed a lot compared to the draft I created, when I first began to plan how I wanted the advertisement to appear. Orginally, I wanted to use a shot which is featured at the end of the music video - this shot displayed the entire band, whilst they walked down the streets of London. However, I decided to change this image to a picture of the lead singer stood in front of a brick wall. Images of brick walls are featured in the music video, therefore using this image created brand idenity. The bricks also suggest that the singer is urban and streetwise. He looks, in this image,  confident and cool, he also looks isolated from the band suggesting that he is an outsider. The black and white effect added to the poster makes the lead singer appear sombre, melancholy and dark. The photograph is slightly out of focus which suggests it is from the past however the checkered shirt is a badge of indie fashion. This  modern dress and makes it clear he is from this time and place.

The font and style of writing I used for the poster is similar to the writing used on the Digi pack; I was aiming for something which suggested an alternative edge, for example the record company label has a retro feel and could be something that you could have seen in the '80s or '90s.  "Generation Records Presents" is outlined in purple and draws the eye in as it's the only colour used.  The text underneath is bolder,bigger and more modern which creates a statement and highlights the band's name suggesting they are a group to watch out for. The font is aggressive because of its size, therefore projecting teenage 'in yer face' anger. The darkness of the font echoes the mood of the band and their music.The name of the song is in smaller font above the band's name and is similarly reflected in white below. This upside down reflection has a disorientating effect, again lending a more modern edge to the band.
The aggressive type face and urban wall is balanced out with the ordinariness of the lead singer's appearance.

The poster features quotations from well known, reputable music magazines such as 'NME' and 'Kerrang'. Because of the music these magazines are associated with it lends the band authenticity, and the postitive reviews will help to increase sales and convince the public of their talent.

Mock up of Digi Pack and CD Cover

Here is my first draft of my digi pack. When developing and creating ideas for my digi pack, I looked at the photographs I took during the shoot , and decided I wanted to use a number of them for the digi pack. However the shot I wanted to use for the front of the digi pack is the last shot of the music video. I thought this was the perfect shot to use because the male singer looks confident and independent. By using the final shot of the music video it also creates brand idenity, linking the CD cover to the  music  video therefore making the artist more established in the public eye.

The shots I used on the rest of the digi pack are of the band behaving naturally instead of posed like most artists' digi packs. The reason I chose this type of look is because I want the band to appear laidback and carefree. The shots that I use on the digi pack will be edited so that the colour appears faded; an alternative idea to this is having all the shots in black and white. Both these effects will create a rough and edgy effect which is part of the band's image. The title of the band will be written in a dark yellow font similar to the font on the cover of Nirvanas' 'Lithium' album , this font will also be used on the magazine advert, and on the CD itself. I also liked the dark colours on the 'Lithium' album and that inspired me to use a dark yellow and black colour scheme. I really like the idea of collages , and thought this would be an interesting and unusual design choice. I decided I wanted to feature some collages of the band on the back of the digi pack , where the lyrics of the songs are written. For the digi pack most of the pictures I have chosen show the band as being united and together, however I still wanted to keep the concept of the lead singer as being more of an outsider then the rest of the band. Therefore some of the images show  the lead singer as being slightly distant from the other band mates; the cover of the CD shows the lead singer alone, hinting that he is more isolated. The CD itself is dark yellow with the same Nirvana-inspired font. The name of the band will go around the CD following its shape, getting smaller as it gets nearer to the centre of the CD. This look is abstract , slightly surreal and quirky. Most  of the pictures featured on the digi pack have the brick wall of the basement where the music video was shot in the background. The brick wall was important to show because it makes the band appear trapped and is  also slightly rough, urban and unpretentious, which matches the band's attitude.

Magazine Advertisement


The magazine advertisement has a thin black border around the edges to make it look official and neat. The font will be the same font on the digi pack, again creating brand identity. For the image on the magazine advertisement I wanted to use a shot that was not featured in the music video. The shot features the band and some groupies walking down the street in Gospel Oak with the lead singer Rowan slightly ahead of the group. The reason I chose this image is because the roads are clear, making the band appear more isolated; the expression on Rowans face is carefree and he looks effortlessly cool. His distance from the band make him appear strong and confident therefore making his music appear more interesting. The rest of the band and the groupies look youthful and happy , which sells the music more as it gives the viewer the impression that this is how they will feel when they listen to the music. Underneath the band's name are quotes from famous alternative rock magazines such as 'Kerrang' and 'NME' , saying about how they feel about the band's album. This makes the music much more desirable, as it  has been proved popular by well known media sources. Below the image is the title of the song in bold; this makes the song more recognisable, and also gives the viewer a sneak preview into what the song's meaning is. The houses in the background of the street where the band stands make the setting appear urban and make the band appear "street savvy" and slightly rebellious as they wander around in a gang through the streets of London. During the music video shoot I experimented with using a flare lighting effect in some shots and the result was brilliant: it added a very dramatic and experimental effect.  I wanted to add this lighting effect to the photograph to create a glamorous night time effect.

Nirvana "Lithium" album. 

Feedback from music video so far

On Wednesday the 7th of December I invited Gabriel a friend from school to view my music video so far. Over the the last few weeks the video has changed quite dramaticall, and on Monday and Tuesday I changed my introduction. My introduction was orignally shots of Camden, the lead singer , bridges and bottles of drink to introduce the world of the lead singer and also to create a grubby and shabby setting. On Monday I decided to use the shots of my lead singer walking across the cobbled stones, him posing by the wall and the bottles of drink and make this into one big shot of the three images using the cropping tool. I then used a shot of Camden and an empty bed in my introduction to create more of a narrative and suggest that Rowan wanted escapsim. I wanted Gabriel to view my video because I wanted to get an outsider's first thoughts and impression of my work. I asked Gabriel questions such as : What does the video signify to you?, What was your frist impression of the video? and What did you think of the use of effects? The answers and feedback I received from Gabriel now allows me to add more to my video and he also helped to give me an insight into how other people might view my music video.

Questions and Answers:

What was your first impression of the music video?

When I first viewed this video I thought of loneliness and depression. The video did not signify anger to me , I was mainly given the impression that it was about sadness.

What did you think of the use of effects?

I believe that the cutaway shots could definitely be longer and have more of a narrative. I liked the fading and the black and white was interesting, to me it suggested that the band was properly a past time to him or a distant memory.

Overall what does the music video signify to you?

It signifies someone very lonely who is not part of the crowd and does not have many friends or conform to soceity. The lead singer looks very soulful and reflective.

Do you think the music video fitted with the song?

Yes I did , the dark colours and gloomy effects really fitted the genre of music. The lead singer looked lost and almost trapped, which is reflected through the lyric as well.

Editing Friday the 25th

Editing Friday the 25th

This week I felt much more confident when editing. I had great footage from my shoot with Rowan in Camden. So I had more variety of shots to edit and play around with. After Jim Cole visited it was decided that I would focus on the lead singer more then the band. Therefore when choosing shots this week, I used shots of just Rowan and also chose shots of the two male band members. This week I played around and explored effects, using effects such as 'cold steel' and 'black and white'. This transported my average shots of buses, street lamps and trees into gothic and eerie shots. I also watched a series of youtube videos on final cut pro tutorials . After this I learnt how to stabalize my shots, crop my shots and create transitions. Using these new techniques my video began to look more interesting and visually pleasing to watch. I also managed to lip sync the first half of the video perfectly and I will be working on the second half during next week. When reviewing the video and my progress with my teacher, it was decided that my introduction was still too slow. So this week I will be focusing my attention  on creating quicker cutaway shots. Overall I feel very happy with my progress.

Analysis for Ancillary tasks

Noel Gallagher's "High Flying Birds" magazine advertisement

Genre:
When looking at Gallagher's magazine advertisement it is apparent that the genre is indie/ soft rock. Indie stands for independent music that is independent from the mainstream record labels and commercialism (Sony, Universal etc).  Some of the reasons why I believed the advert is of the indie genre is because it is not heavily stylised, uses dark colours and its construction to give the impression that he is going alone. There are no well known record labels such as EMI advertised on the advert. This suggests that he does not belong to the mainstream pop genre and instead is more alternative.

Representation:
Gallagher stands with his arms folded, and a serious look on his face which is partly shaded suggesting moodiness and mysteriousness. Gallagher's stance give the viewer the impression he is a strong, macho, aggressive and defensive male. This is a very stereotypicial and traditional way that he is represented. David Gauntlett, a Professor of media and communications at the University of Westminster, London and also media theorist believed that men are seen in the media as obsessed with "football, cars, drinking, music and the rock n roll lifestyle". Gauntlett studied men's magazines such as FHM, Loaded and Maxim. All of these magazines perceived men as being "macho,into sport, good at everything, skilled in all things and good in bed". The image of Gallagher fits very well into the way men are stereotyped in the media today. Gallagher's pose does indeed suggest the "Rock n Roll lifestyle" and "machoness and masculinity".  Audience identification with Gallagher is that he is wearing a suit which gives you the impression he is serious about his music and also gives him a sense of maturity and formality. Gallagher appears to be in his early to mid thirtes , his age has connotations such as wisdom , knowledge and experience therefore making his music more reliable and trustworthy. 

My video however goes against the male stereotype presented in Gallagher's advert and also in men's magazines. Rowan the lead singer of my video is presented as more soulful, lonely , sensitive and artistic. My video displays no football, fast cars or women but instead uses gloomy settings such as Camden. Despite my video not conforming to the stereotypical way men are seen, my video does subscribe to some aspects of the male stereotype such as the "rock n roll lifestyle".


Textual analysis

The colours of the advertisement are black and dark green. The black makes the advert appear gloomy,depressing and shadowy , it makes Gallagher appear as if he has a secret or has something to hide. The green can be linked to the supernatrual or space , the green isolates Gallagher from society. This is because Gallagher is keen to be seen as an individual and separated from his orignial band.  The camera angle used is a mid shot to show his arms which are crossed in a defensive gesture.  The mid shot allows the viewer to see Gallagher's body language and this is very important because it gives you the impression his music is moody and intense. The mid shot is also necessary to capture Gallagher's expression. The advert is shot at a low camera angle, the low angle gives Gallagher high status, control and suggests that the audience looks up to Gallagher and is below him. Shooting from a low angle also makes Gallagher look more intimidating and mighty.

At the top left hand side of the advert it reads "Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds" in block capitials. The capitals make the title stand out more noticably and loud. The writing however is quirky the "O" in Noel's name is written in a quirky and alternative looking font. The writing is not perfectly straight this is slightly child like and tones down the aggression of the advert, it also suggests that Gallagher is not perfect and does not like many other artists conform. At the bottom of the advert is written a list of quotes from magazines such as 'The Times'. The writing is written in times new roman font so that it appears official. The advert has singled at the best quotes from some of the most well known magazines such as 'The Telegraph', therefore the viewer is more likely to buy Gallagher's music or see him in concert because a trustworthy source believes his music is good.

Theodore Adorno believed in something called "false needs". "False needs" were created by the capitalist system to replace people's true needs, such as freedom and the full expression of human potential and genuine human creativity. In other words what Adorno is communicating is that shows such as the 'X Factor' , 'Eastenders' and 'Pop Idol' distract society away from questioning the Government and how soceity is ruled. Therefore a lot of the world has become politically empathic and instead makes art not just for expression anymore but instead money. Consequently, linking this back to the advert for Gallagher, the quotes from the magazines are not only used to show off his music but also to gain him more money by attracting more viewers. Fans are more likely going to be interested in seeing Gallagher perform if he has been recommended by very superior industries. When creating my music video advertisement I am going to subscribe to the "false needs" catergory by advertising quotes by magazines and the press. It will attract more viewers, giving my band more popularity. The magazine quotes can also be tied in with another one of Adorno's theories "Commodity fetishism". This means that social relations and cultural experiences are objectified in terms of money, and we are delighted by something because of its cost. So when looking at Gallagher's advert people will be delighted to see the quotations from impressive magazines because they are financially successful companies.






Gallagher's "High Flying Birds" single