Final song choice

Our final song choice is Use somebody - kings of leon (pixie lott cover). The picture shows the lyrics to the songs and different ideas that we had for our video. We decided that our video would be both narrative and performance based. The annotation around the edge shows different images or shots that we could use in the video to show a link between the song and the video that we will create.

Choosing our artist

The first artist that we chose was a female artist who wrote her own songs and played guitar, which is what we was looking for. We asked her for a sample of the music the she produced, and she came back to us with a few of her songs on a CD. We listened to what she had given us and came to the conclusion that we like her voice and music, but we couldn’t really hear what she was singing. We then asked her to record some songs of our choice that we felt could be used for our final video. We asked her to record the guitar and the singing separately. The sings that we asked for were:

- Kate Nash – Foundations
- Katy Perry – Thinking of you
- The script – Breakeven
- Kings of Leon – Use somebody (But in the style of the Pixie Lott version)

She sent us a CD back with some songs on it, but only one of the songs that we asked her to do. Also she took our advice of recording the singing and guitar separately, and we could hear her voice a lot more clearly. After a lot of listening, we came to the decision that we liked the song use somebody but felt that her voice didn’t match the song and what we wanted.

We already had someone in mind to play the singer in the video, who already had some singing experience. We then gave her the option of singing this song for us instead of miming over the other girl’s voice in the video. We thought that this would look more natural for her, as the voice of our first artist didn’t suit the actresses look. She said that would be fine, so now the actress in our video is also going to be covering the song.

As our new singer does not play a guitar, but our previous one did, we had to find someone who would play the guitar and cover this song for us. We found one quite easily and now have both a guitarist and a singer for our final video.

Change in groups

At the start of this project our group had four members. We started generating ideas on what genre of music we wanted, the sort of song we wanted etc. We came up with the acoustic genre and started to do some research on it and each created a mood board. We then had to choose an artist and a song and this is where complications started to arise. Some of us wanted to do one person and others wanted to do another artist. This lead to one person leaving the group and forming another group with other people in the class. The three of us that are now in the group decided on our artist and song and were ready to start planning for the video.

The decision that was made, I feel, was the right decision as arguments this early on in the project could cause greater difficulty the further we got into to project. If we couldn’t agree on choosing an artist’s then when it came to bigger decisions it could have caused even more friction which could have had an impact on our final video.

Music Video Analysis 2

Music video analysis
Caspa & Mr Hudson – Love never dies

At the start of the video we see a man, Mr Hudson, standing in the middle of a park. The camera pans from left to right around him while he is looking up at the sky. It then cuts to a close up of him but still panning, it cuts to the close up when he starts singing. It then fades out to a long shot but from behind, and again it is panning. This could be used to show the he is reminiscing on old times, also the fact that he is alone could represent that it is a personal memory. Also the lyrics ‘I still hear you, I still see you, When I close my eyes, I could still feel you’ could show he is remembering one particular person he used to know, or maybe love. It then fades to a shot of a group of teenagers walking through the same park he is standing in. He could be part of this group and remembering what it was like when he was younger. The boy at the front has a bandage on so he could be thinking about a certain incident. During the next 10 seconds it fades to different shots and angles of the group to help the audience realise that it is a memory. After a short while the camera starts to look up towards the sky and another image starts to fade in. It is a close up of kids playing football. The movement towards the sky could show a difference in time, or again another memory. At this point the music starts to build up from a serene piano to more a up beat synthesiser. This could signify a change in the story line and also the progression through the song. After a few seconds the singing starts again and the first lines are ‘we must have sat upon an old bench’ and the video shows a boy sitting on a bench drink a bottle of coke. This shows a direct link between the lyrics and the video. In the next line it makes a reference to ‘football’ and it cuts to the kids playing football, again showing a direct link between the lyrics and video. After a while a boy pulls up on a push bike and all the kids stop what they are doing and run over to him. This could show that they all look up to him or that he is part of there group. He then rides off and all the kids are cheering, but then they stop and looked shocked. It cuts to a shot of the boy and the bike on the floor and all of the other kids helping him up. All of them walk of into the distance as a big group. It then cuts to a shot of a teenage boy sitting on the bench drinking out of a can. Also it shows a group of teenagers playing football. This leads us to believe that it is the same group of people just a couple of years on. It also shows the two girls who are platting each other s hair, but now one of them is pregnant. It also shows the two kids who were playing tig around the tree, but they are now kissing. It then cuts to a shot of a man on a motorbike, the same boy that was on the push bike. The same thing happens to him as it did on the push bike. This shows that no matter how old you are people will still look out for you and help whatever happens. This refers to the title of the song ‘love never dies’ as the kids did exactly the same thing now as they did when they were younger. All the way through the video it cuts between this storyline and the artists riding push bike through a village. This could represent the movement from being young to becoming a teenager but how your instincts are still the same.

Music Video Analysis 1

Video Analysis
Mumford and Sons – Little lion man

The first thing we see at the start of the video is an empty stage with two light bulbs hanging down. The two light bulbs are flickering and then become bright, at the same time as this the music kicks in. This will grab the audience’s attention and let them know that it has started. They decided to have to light bulbs flickering at the start as old lights used to do that before they turned on. This could signify that the band have just arrived and are getting ready to play. When the lights are on we see the rest of their surroundings, which looks to be like and old western building dues to the wooden flooring and old style décor. This is used to help represent the bands genre, folk rock. It then cuts to an extreme close up of Marcus, guitarist, playing the guitar. It then show extreme close ups of all the other instruments, like the cello and banjo, and also other members of the band. We then see a long shot of the entire band together on the stage when Marcus starts singing. This lets the audience know who plays what instrument. After a few seconds it cuts back to extreme close ups of the band members and the instruments that they are playing. Then the chorus starts and we go back to the long shot of the band and all of them are singing. This shows that each of the whole of the band are involved in the chorus. During the chorus the tempo slows down and the camera slowly zooms in. This has been done to show that they are building up to something, it also create a little bit of tension and suspense. The tempo then speeds up quite a bit and the camera cuts become more sudden and more frequent than they were before. This adds to the fast tempo of the music as it doesn’t allow much time for the audience to focus on what is going on. This is repeated throughout most of the song.
This video is a performance video and shows the band standing on a stage. The difference between this video and other performance videos is that there is no audience. The building that they are in has been set up ready for a performance as it has lights shining on both the floor, where the audience would be and the band. This could connote that this is just a practice for when the audience actually get. The effect of having no audience makes it personal to the viewer who is watching, as though the band is playing for them. This engages the audience more than it would if there was an audience present.

Tour Poster Analysis 3

Tour Poster Analysis
Kasabian

The first thing that stands out on this poster is the stencil of the man in bright yellow down the right hand side of the poster. This image has been taken from one of the bands albums. It may remind the audience of some of the music that the band has created. The next thing you notice is the name of the band in a big white font on a black background which makes it stand out even more. The font that has been used is a font that is commonly used by the band on albums and other posters. This creates consistency throughout everything they create and makes them more recognisable to the audience. The name of the venue is at the top of this poster ‘lemon factory’ and is easily visible. This is so passers by can easily see where it is being held. The most important information has been made bigger and more noticeable, like the venue band and date, so that it is easily visible from a further distance. The rest of the information has been made smaller so that if someone is interested they have to go closer to the poster to see it. The designers of this poster have used ‘yellow, black and white’ as their main colours. This may be because the venue logo is this colour anyway due to the name, lemon factory. So they decided to keep the same colour scheme throughout to make it look professional and all in keeping with the same tone. The colour scheme also makes it stand out compared to other posters as they are bold sharp colours that will grab the audience’s attention.

Tour Poster Analysis 2

Tour poster analysis
Jason Mraz

The first thing that I noticed on the tour poster was the artists name in big bold white letters at the top of the page. This instantly grabs your attention as it is in white letters on a black background. Also as it is so big people will be able to read it from a distance ad instantly know who the poster is for. The designers have done this so people will first notice the poster and then if they want any information they will have to go closer. The other information is in a smaller font to make the audience read it, which is the purpose of the poster. In the bottom left had corner of the poster there is a picture of the artist mid-performance. This gives the audience an insight to what the poster is for; it also lets them know that the artist plays the guitar as he is holding one in the picture. The lights that are in the background are shining on the artist to highlight that he is the main focus of the poster so it draws people’s attention towards him. Also he is the performer that will be on the tour and the light shining on him is letting the audience know that. It could also be an insight as to what the audience can expect i.e. him under the spotlight on the stage playing the guitar and singing. The colour scheme of this poster is simple and plain but still grabs attention. Having the picture/background in greyscale makes everything on top if it stands out. The blue parts on the poster contain important information about the tour and as they are the only things in colour they will grab the audience’s attention. Also having a simplistic design can reflect on the performer’s genre of music, in this case acoustic.

CD Analysis 2

Jack Johnson – In Between Dreams

This CD cover has got a very bright yellow background so that it grabs the audience’s attention and will make it stand out from other, more dull CD covers. The yellow background could also be used to make the silhouette stand out more.
The name of the artist and the name of the album are shown in the top right of the cover, they are not very noticeable. This is so the audience know who the CD is by. The reason it is quite small is that the cover itself is quite iconic so people will easily remember it.
The scene on the front cover of this CD, a tree by the sea, depicts a peaceful and tranquil scene, which can also connote the style of music that this artist produces. The simplicity of the layout can also connote what the genre of music will be like, which is acoustic.
I feel that the tree can have many different representations, but mainly for different dreams as the album is called ‘In Between Dreams’. Firstly we can see a person picking something from the tree which could suggest that he is metaphorically picking a dream off the tree form other dreams, which could either be his or everyone else’s dreams. The other thing could be that the tree itself is his dream, and it is quite big so he has got big dreams and ambitions. However the tree is on a cliff and quite close to the edge which could suggest a hint of danger towards his dreams.

Tour Poster Analysis 1

Tour Poster Analysis
Arctic monkeys

The first thing that is noticed on this poster is the monkeys face in the middle, which relates directly to the bands name, arctic monkeys. Also the monkey being in white and blue can be connected to the bands name. White and blue can be related to ‘cold’ which again links directly to the bands name. The brown background contrasts with the monkey and writing, as they are in blue/white, which makes them stand out and makes them more noticeable to passers by. The colours that have been used are colours that are not commonly used as they are not bright bold colours which will immediately grab the audience’s attention. But the contrast between the colours is what makes it stand out and a good eye catching tour poster. The font that the artists name has been written in is quite a simple font but still very effective. It is in keeping with the style of the poster and is not an eye sore. Also it is simple enough to read from a distance so that a person automatically knows who the poster is for. The date of the tour is again easily visible so that people will be able to read easily from a distance. This tour poster is different to others that I have seen as it is like a cartoon. Being different from other tour posters will make this on stand out and more people will notice it.

CD Analysis 3

Maroon 5 – It Won’t Be Soon Before Long

The title of the album ‘It won’t be soon before long’ has a small relation to the album cover itself. As some of the artists are floating up towards the sky which could signify that they are dying and that they are going up towards heaven. It can show that people should live their lives while they can.
The man at the front is standing directly in front of the camera and looking directly at it, where as the rest of the band are not. This connotes that he is the lead of the band and has a higher status and more power to the rest of them.
The clothes that this band are wearing are quite stylish, modern and formal. This could represent what the band themselves are like, or could represent the type of music that they play, modern indie.
The name of the artist is clearly shown at the top of the cover so that people, who don’t know the band, will be able to see who the album is by. The name of the album is at the bottom of the cover, and is also easy to read. In both the artist name and album name, the double O’s are linked together which helps create consistency through the cover.
This CD cover isn’t very brightly coloured, but the contrast of the black walls and the big white ‘M’ makes it stand out. Also the ‘M’ on the wall is the logo of the band itself so it is easy to see who the band are without having to read the title.
The cover of the album shows all the band members and what instruments they play. This can help the audience determine what sort of music this band plays if they don’t already know.

CD Analysis 1

Jimi Hendrix – The ultimate experience

The name of the album and artist are in white to make them stand out from the background. The name of the artist is done like a signature to give it a sense of personal contact with the artist. The name of the album is in a normal font which is a complete contrast to the cover and the name of the artist which could show that it isn't as important as the others as they themselves stand out on their own.
This album looks like it has been done using photo editing software to change the original picture, by altering the saturation, hue, etc., to make it more colourful and to make it stand out a lot more. Also it represents the genre of music more than the original picture would have.
The name of this album, The Ultimate Experience, has been used as it is a compilation of all of the artist best songs. ‘Ultimate Experience’ suggests that listeners will get the best out of this album.
This CD cover, Jimi Hendrix, is very colourful and eye catching which will make it noticeable when on a shelf. The colours are quite unusual colours, like an hallucination, which makes it different to all other albums and makes it one of a kind. Also the colours represents the genre of music he plays, blues rock/psychedelic rock.
The picture on the front of the album is of the artist, Jimi Hendrix, so that people know what he looks like and to let people know that the music on this album is by him. It is in the centre of the cover and is the main focus point of the album which grabs people’s attention the most. Also the faded background makes it stand out even more.