Setting/Location:
We have planned to set our video in a forest with the countryside being the main theme. This represents the band, Mumford and Sons as quite traditional and not like many popular artists who feature in the charts. This will appeal to an audience who like this 'indie' style and want to be different from the stereotypical image of themselves. It also goes well with the genre, indie folk, with the rural setting giving the video a feeling that immerses you into the story of the song. The setting of the forest also compliments the story of the song and its title, 'Awake My Soul'. The 'wildness' of the video and location conveys the feeling of an awakening experience and shows that the characters involved are very much alive and connected with their surroundings.
Props:
The only props we plan to use in the video is guitars. These will be used by the characters who play the role of the band. This will appeal to fans who visually like to see musicians play their instruments as it gives more authenticity. It also shows their talent in an industry that many see as manufactured.
Colour:
We see this as one of the main aspects of our video as the colour changes to fit with the narrative. We want to have the forest shots in a hazy tint with the main female character having a glowing white oura around her to represent the theme of purity and beauty. The contrast from her to the surroundings will show her power within the video and exagerate why the male characters try to get to her.
Costume:
The male characters in the video will wear clothes that fit in well with the genre and theme of the video. The clothing will be a relaxed indie style with all band members wearing similar items. This would also appeal to the target audience with fans relating to the unique style of the band and wanting to mimic their idols. The music is indie folk and because of the positive vibes we will avoid using dark coloured clothing.
The single female character plays a key role in the video and her significance is shown with the white dress that will be really striking against the dark atmosphere we are looking to create in the video. This fits in with the narrative of the song as the female character plays the role of the soul awakener and this is represented in her light clothing which attracts the male characters.
Monday, 13 December 2010
Thursday, 25 November 2010
Digipack
A digipack is a type of CD packaging that is similar to a conventional DVD case. However, it can be the usual CD case shape and made out of a heavier card material. Digipack's can open up and have 3 inside panels if there are multiple CDs, which is common, or just open like a book would do.
The style and graphics of the digipack will always try to represent what the artist is like or what genre of music the record is. I will show this with my analysis of two official digipacks later in the blog. The style of the digipack is vital as it will be the first thing people see on the shelves and it must appeal to the target audience of the band.
The digipack I will analyse is of the rock band, Linkin Park's, "Meteora".
The digipack uses an 'urban' theme and we see this with the image on the front cover of the graffiti artist and the inside of the packaging that features several images showing graffiti on big concrete buildings in an urban theme. The colour schemes throughout are also very mellow and dark which may represent the narratives and moods of the songs featured on the album. Graffiti could also represent rebelling which may be a theme conveyed in the tracks and this is linked by the packaging, the first aspect the audience will connect with. The font in which the band's name is written is the same everywhere it is shown on the digipack which makes it easily identifiable and also adds professionalism with the font, colour scheme and images making it very aesthetically pleasing. The digipack also supplies special content with an inside booklet and also added media content which is listed on the back cover which gives it a unique selling point over the standard album.
The second digipack I will analyse is "The First Days of Spring", by Noah and The Whale.
The style and graphics of the digipack will always try to represent what the artist is like or what genre of music the record is. I will show this with my analysis of two official digipacks later in the blog. The style of the digipack is vital as it will be the first thing people see on the shelves and it must appeal to the target audience of the band.
The digipack I will analyse is of the rock band, Linkin Park's, "Meteora".
The digipack uses an 'urban' theme and we see this with the image on the front cover of the graffiti artist and the inside of the packaging that features several images showing graffiti on big concrete buildings in an urban theme. The colour schemes throughout are also very mellow and dark which may represent the narratives and moods of the songs featured on the album. Graffiti could also represent rebelling which may be a theme conveyed in the tracks and this is linked by the packaging, the first aspect the audience will connect with. The font in which the band's name is written is the same everywhere it is shown on the digipack which makes it easily identifiable and also adds professionalism with the font, colour scheme and images making it very aesthetically pleasing. The digipack also supplies special content with an inside booklet and also added media content which is listed on the back cover which gives it a unique selling point over the standard album.
The second digipack I will analyse is "The First Days of Spring", by Noah and The Whale.
The band are a very similar style to Mumford in terms of their look and music. The digipack uses a vintage style with the colour scheme of pale colours. The front cover shows the band in an outdoor setting with the sky filling the majority of the cover. From the plants around the characters we can gather they are in a field and the mellow atmosphere this creates compliments the band and their music well. Another aspect that adds to the vintage theme is the font used on the digipack, front and back cover. It is simple and traditional which is why it helps put this style across. The back cover uses another image with the 4 band members again in a countryside setting to continue the style of the front. The picture has been edited to give it a paler tint which again applies to the vintage theme the digipack carries.
Thursday, 11 November 2010
Initial Ideas
Narrative:
The band members will be lonely in a dark forest, cold bitter air surrounds them. Then there is a glimpse of beauty, a woman, dressed in white. The band is full of lust and yearning, there fuelled intent in meeting this girl seems to fulfil them, they walk through this dark wood, searching into the depths of it to find her. To fill in the music video, we’ll have to have shots of us ‘playing’ the instruments, whilst cutting through shots, of this ‘desire‘ for this woman, and also playing the instruments. This in total should help lead to quite an ambiguous setting, whilst making it look authentic and real with the introduction of us playing the instruments , when the beat of the music picks up (towards the end of the song) the band members will be starting to run through the forest so they can meet this thing of beaty , when the beat them drops the band are stood around in a group surrouding the woman , the final shot wil then be the four band members walking away into the mist.
Setting:
Countryside locations, fields, dark forest, wintery weather (due to filming in January), added dark effects to contradict woman in white which exagerrates her impact and meaning within the video.
Clothing:
Indie folk attire. loose fitting, very casual.
A similar video to the one we look to create is 'Oympic Airways' by Foals. They used a dark forest and countryside themes with footage of the band playing.
Here is some images that helped us with our ideas:
I also went through a mindmap to explore the possibilities we had with our video:
The band members will be lonely in a dark forest, cold bitter air surrounds them. Then there is a glimpse of beauty, a woman, dressed in white. The band is full of lust and yearning, there fuelled intent in meeting this girl seems to fulfil them, they walk through this dark wood, searching into the depths of it to find her. To fill in the music video, we’ll have to have shots of us ‘playing’ the instruments, whilst cutting through shots, of this ‘desire‘ for this woman, and also playing the instruments. This in total should help lead to quite an ambiguous setting, whilst making it look authentic and real with the introduction of us playing the instruments , when the beat of the music picks up (towards the end of the song) the band members will be starting to run through the forest so they can meet this thing of beaty , when the beat them drops the band are stood around in a group surrouding the woman , the final shot wil then be the four band members walking away into the mist.
Setting:
Countryside locations, fields, dark forest, wintery weather (due to filming in January), added dark effects to contradict woman in white which exagerrates her impact and meaning within the video.
Clothing:
Indie folk attire. loose fitting, very casual.
A similar video to the one we look to create is 'Oympic Airways' by Foals. They used a dark forest and countryside themes with footage of the band playing.
Here is some images that helped us with our ideas:
I also went through a mindmap to explore the possibilities we had with our video:
Pitch
Here is the link to the presentation which we used for our pitch:
https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0ByoIaJx-w8iQNjA5MmNkNmItZjhmNy00ZDNmLTkwM2EtNzA5ODkwMGQ3ODVk&hl=en_GB
Within the powerpoint we provided information around the band and gave examples of their work. This would give the audience who dont know Mumford a better idea and show them what the band are like
This is our pitch video:
https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0ByoIaJx-w8iQOWI4OGI3MGUtNzNlNC00OWE2LWIzMDYtOWJkNmE0MTZiMjZh&hl=en_GB
https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0ByoIaJx-w8iQNjA5MmNkNmItZjhmNy00ZDNmLTkwM2EtNzA5ODkwMGQ3ODVk&hl=en_GB
Within the powerpoint we provided information around the band and gave examples of their work. This would give the audience who dont know Mumford a better idea and show them what the band are like
This is our pitch video:
https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0ByoIaJx-w8iQOWI4OGI3MGUtNzNlNC00OWE2LWIzMDYtOWJkNmE0MTZiMjZh&hl=en_GB
Friday, 8 October 2010
Video Analysis
In this post I will be analysing music videos from Mumford and other similar bands that fall into their genre/market.
Mumford & Sons - Winter Winds - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KCg_QEHtkY
The opening of the video is themed around the 'folk' style of Mumford. We see this with the rural settings of the forest and fields the band walkthrough in the video. The clothing of the band also coincides with this point as they all wear very relaxed items which look quite dated. This goes along with the traditions of 'folk' that are viewed stereotypically such as the 'farmer-like' clothing and instruments; as seen in one of the opening shots as lead man, Marcus Mumford walks through a field with his guitar wearing a wastecoat and a loose fitted shirt. There is a variation of footage in the video with intertwining clips showing the band in a different light. There are perfomance shots showing the band play live at a show and also clips of the band joking and playing about in different places. This is aswell as the story element of the video with them walking down country rounds and fields. When the band perform in the video it creates a very meaningful, powerful yet joyous atmosphere with their liveliness on stage. Their facial expressions as they sing on the road scenes also shows this and their unity is displayed with them side by side singing together. This combination of clips help the audience feel more connected to the band as they see them in different situations (on stage, on their own) and this can make feel more inclined to like the band for not just the music they make, but for their personalities aswell.
The Maccabees - No Kind Words - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhmKNBBp3OU&feature=channel
This band are similar to Mumford with their music being mellow and in the indie genre. The story of the song seems to be based around the conflict of two friends as the video depicts two men supposedly arguing across from each other. Their mind games and feelings toward each others words are shown with the effect graphics that have been added. These display the feelings of each person as one says what he thinks and the other blocks this out and comes back with his own tirade. They use these graphics in a reference to classic video games as words ping pong from each person and they try and get through to each other in a 'space invaders' battle.
Mumford & Sons - Winter Winds - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KCg_QEHtkY
The opening of the video is themed around the 'folk' style of Mumford. We see this with the rural settings of the forest and fields the band walkthrough in the video. The clothing of the band also coincides with this point as they all wear very relaxed items which look quite dated. This goes along with the traditions of 'folk' that are viewed stereotypically such as the 'farmer-like' clothing and instruments; as seen in one of the opening shots as lead man, Marcus Mumford walks through a field with his guitar wearing a wastecoat and a loose fitted shirt. There is a variation of footage in the video with intertwining clips showing the band in a different light. There are perfomance shots showing the band play live at a show and also clips of the band joking and playing about in different places. This is aswell as the story element of the video with them walking down country rounds and fields. When the band perform in the video it creates a very meaningful, powerful yet joyous atmosphere with their liveliness on stage. Their facial expressions as they sing on the road scenes also shows this and their unity is displayed with them side by side singing together. This combination of clips help the audience feel more connected to the band as they see them in different situations (on stage, on their own) and this can make feel more inclined to like the band for not just the music they make, but for their personalities aswell.
The Maccabees - No Kind Words - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhmKNBBp3OU&feature=channel
This band are similar to Mumford with their music being mellow and in the indie genre. The story of the song seems to be based around the conflict of two friends as the video depicts two men supposedly arguing across from each other. Their mind games and feelings toward each others words are shown with the effect graphics that have been added. These display the feelings of each person as one says what he thinks and the other blocks this out and comes back with his own tirade. They use these graphics in a reference to classic video games as words ping pong from each person and they try and get through to each other in a 'space invaders' battle.
Thursday, 30 September 2010
Target Audience
Mumford and Sons are a relatively new band on the mainstream music scene but there rise to fame has been immense. This summer they have performed on the main stages of many of the biggest UK festivals such as Reading & Leeds, Glastonbury, Bestival and T In The Park. Their popularity is shown with the 463,755 fans they have on their official facebook page.
To get a better idea of their fanbase, I looked further into the facebook fan page and the people who are on it. Doing this will allow me to spot trends between different fans and their interests.
Beth James - London - 17 - The Wanted, Kings of Leon, Mcfly
Paul Brazell - South Carolina, USA - 19 - Coldplay, Brandon Flowers, The Fray
Chloe Solomon - Bristol - 16 - Passion Pit, Darwin Deez, Klaxons
Neyland Mason - Tazewell, Tennessee, - 18 - Red Hot Chili Peppers, Blink 182, MGMT
Christ Frost - Nottingham - 28 - Stereophonics, The Libertines, John Lennon
From this small sample of data it is clear that their fanbase is fairly young. From the bands they like we can see that there is a massive trend with indie and rock bands/artists, although the bands all come into separate sub genres within this. The Folk music Mumford produce is new to the mainstream scene and this may be why many rock fans are liking the new alternative that has come into the market.
One magazine they have featured on the cover of is 'NME Magazine'.
NME is an indie rock magazine and we can gather alot of information about potential Mumford fans from the NME readership demographic. I did some research on nrs.co.uk to find out about this. The estimated readership is 325,000 in the UK. Most of those readers come from the ABC1 band, 218,000, showing most of readers are of the upper class.This could in relation to the Mumford band members who have all come from very priviliged backgrounds. Almost 3/4 of the readers are also male which shows that they may be the main audience of the band.
To get a better idea of their fanbase, I looked further into the facebook fan page and the people who are on it. Doing this will allow me to spot trends between different fans and their interests.
Beth James - London - 17 - The Wanted, Kings of Leon, Mcfly
Paul Brazell - South Carolina, USA - 19 - Coldplay, Brandon Flowers, The Fray
Chloe Solomon - Bristol - 16 - Passion Pit, Darwin Deez, Klaxons
Neyland Mason - Tazewell, Tennessee, - 18 - Red Hot Chili Peppers, Blink 182, MGMT
Christ Frost - Nottingham - 28 - Stereophonics, The Libertines, John Lennon
From this small sample of data it is clear that their fanbase is fairly young. From the bands they like we can see that there is a massive trend with indie and rock bands/artists, although the bands all come into separate sub genres within this. The Folk music Mumford produce is new to the mainstream scene and this may be why many rock fans are liking the new alternative that has come into the market.
One magazine they have featured on the cover of is 'NME Magazine'.
NME is an indie rock magazine and we can gather alot of information about potential Mumford fans from the NME readership demographic. I did some research on nrs.co.uk to find out about this. The estimated readership is 325,000 in the UK. Most of those readers come from the ABC1 band, 218,000, showing most of readers are of the upper class.This could in relation to the Mumford band members who have all come from very priviliged backgrounds. Almost 3/4 of the readers are also male which shows that they may be the main audience of the band.
Thursday, 23 September 2010
Copyright Permission
Copyright is there to stop people using someone elses work and making money from it. In relation to the music industry, this could be a song name, video, or song lyrics by a band. The label this band is signed to will make sure their work is copyrighted so only they can use the material and make money from it.
Song Choice
The song we have decided to produce a video for is 'Awake My Soul' by 'Mumford & Sons'. We had already thought about what kind of video we wanted to create and we needed a song to fit the mood. We liked the mellow vibe from 'Awake My Soul' and with there being no current video for it, it seemed like the perfect choice.
Song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2RKb3VNAOo
Lyrics:
How fickle my heart
and how woozy my eyes
I struggle to find
any truth in your lies
And now my heart stumbles
on things I don't know
This weakness I feel
I must finally show
Lend me your hand
and we'll conquer them all
But lend me your heart
and I'll just let you fall
Lend me your eyes
I can change what you see
But your soul you must keep,
totally free
Har har, har har, har har, har har
In these bodies we will live,
in these bodies we will die
Where you invest your love,
you invest your life
In these bodies we will live,
in these bodies we will die
Where you invest your love,
you invest your life
Awake my soul, awake my soul
Awake my soul
You were made to meet your maker
Awake my soul, awake my soul
Awake my soul
You were made to meet your maker
You were made to meet your maker
Song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2RKb3VNAOo
Lyrics:
How fickle my heart
and how woozy my eyes
I struggle to find
any truth in your lies
And now my heart stumbles
on things I don't know
This weakness I feel
I must finally show
Lend me your hand
and we'll conquer them all
But lend me your heart
and I'll just let you fall
Lend me your eyes
I can change what you see
But your soul you must keep,
totally free
Har har, har har, har har, har har
In these bodies we will live,
in these bodies we will die
Where you invest your love,
you invest your life
In these bodies we will live,
in these bodies we will die
Where you invest your love,
you invest your life
Awake my soul, awake my soul
Awake my soul
You were made to meet your maker
Awake my soul, awake my soul
Awake my soul
You were made to meet your maker
You were made to meet your maker
Friday, 3 September 2010
Music videos explored...
The 4 music videos analysed will be from different genres to show how each varying genre/band link the music to the story within the video. The genres I have chosen are Punk, Alternative Rock, Pop and Hip-Hop.
Linkin Park - What I've Done - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sgycukafqQ&ob=av2n
From the name of the track we can gather that the songs meaning is about the actions of the band, the audience, or general society - this can be interpreted by the person listening/viewing.
The opening moments of the video set the theme of the video and instantly links the track name/lyrics with the goings on in the video. In these opening scenes there are many clips of things seen as wrong in the world. Example of these clips are war, rare animals, natural disasters, global warming, poverty and racism. These clips appear throughout the video and the narrative that the human race is destroying and ruining our earth is clear. Linkin Park have a relatively young fan base so the message within the video could be aimed at the younger generations who can help the 'future' of earth as it is something the band clearly feel strongly about. It represents the human race negatively with no footage showing the good things being done and only disorder and inequality.
Kanye West - Through The Wire - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvb-1wjAtk4
From the name of the track we can gather that the songs meaning is about the actions of the band, the audience, or general society - this can be interpreted by the person listening/viewing.
The opening moments of the video set the theme of the video and instantly links the track name/lyrics with the goings on in the video. In these opening scenes there are many clips of things seen as wrong in the world. Example of these clips are war, rare animals, natural disasters, global warming, poverty and racism. These clips appear throughout the video and the narrative that the human race is destroying and ruining our earth is clear. Linkin Park have a relatively young fan base so the message within the video could be aimed at the younger generations who can help the 'future' of earth as it is something the band clearly feel strongly about. It represents the human race negatively with no footage showing the good things being done and only disorder and inequality.
Kanye West - Through The Wire - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvb-1wjAtk4
The song is of the Hip-Hop genre and is about a near fatal crash that Kanye West was involved in. He required surgery to wire his jaw shut and recorded this song just days later. The video takes the audience through the story and shows clips of West in hospital and news pieces about the accident. It is presented with each clip being shown on a polaroid clipped onto a pinboard to show how the story has been put together and that West has been on a 'journey' with his ordeal. The audience would be any of his fans in this early point in his career and the video features a lot of personal footage to help these fans relate to Kanye and know him better. The video represents Kanye as a strong person and a fighter to have been carried on rapping through the accident. This may be an attempt to get sympathy from fans as it shows his love for what he does despite what he has been through.
Gallows - In The Belly Of A Shark -http://www.youtube.com/watchv=6hvF3mDOmSo&feature=channel
This song is from the Punk genre and is relatively unnoticed in comparison to mainstream genres such as Pop. Gallows are a down to earth band and most of their music has strong meanings be it personal or on a wide-scale, for example, against the government. Their personality shows in this video in the way it is made and how they act in it. The graphic used to accompany the moving pictures is that of a traditional reel of film which is visible at various moment. There are also blemishes throughout with replicates cheap film and this shows the audience that the video isnt a high budget one like you'll see in the charts. Their performance is very aggressive and the whole band are always moving, 'thrashing' their guitars and jumping about. The lead singer stares into the camera at times and is really powerful with his strong vocals. The audience for this video would be quite small as the genre hasnt got much of a following if you take into account all music fans.
Gallows - In The Belly Of A Shark -http://www.youtube.com/watchv=6hvF3mDOmSo&feature=channel
This song is from the Punk genre and is relatively unnoticed in comparison to mainstream genres such as Pop. Gallows are a down to earth band and most of their music has strong meanings be it personal or on a wide-scale, for example, against the government. Their personality shows in this video in the way it is made and how they act in it. The graphic used to accompany the moving pictures is that of a traditional reel of film which is visible at various moment. There are also blemishes throughout with replicates cheap film and this shows the audience that the video isnt a high budget one like you'll see in the charts. Their performance is very aggressive and the whole band are always moving, 'thrashing' their guitars and jumping about. The lead singer stares into the camera at times and is really powerful with his strong vocals. The audience for this video would be quite small as the genre hasnt got much of a following if you take into account all music fans.
Katy Perry - California Gurls - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwE-SLnLkqY
This song is mainstream pop and has been very successful in the charts of late. It is a very 'girly' video with bright colours and theme of 'candy' running throughout the video as Katy walks through a fantasy world filled with sweets. It is all very feminine
and the obvious audience would be girls. It represents Katy as very fun and puts across the stereotype that girls love these colours and all the candy coming to life etc.
Introduction
The coursework this year involves working in a group to produce a music video using any given track of our choice. The video will be made to go with the chosen song's mood and style like it is done by professionals working in this part of the industry. However, the group will have freedom to do what they like and decisions will be explained in this blog with detailed reasoning.
This blog is a follow on from the AS blog I created (sdcmediaasmattjones.blogspot.com) and will feature all aspects in the process of creating our music video.
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