After sending out an appeal for local bands/musicians through Snapchat, a friend contacted me recommending a local Leeds-based indie band called 'Tranqua Lite" so we emailed the group asking if they would be interested in collaborating. We researched them and discovered that the band have a relatively small following and are building up towards releasing their first recorded song, 'Tempered Tides', which is being released on October 20th making them highly likely to be interested in having a music video produced for them. They have played some high-profile events such as Leeds Pride 2017 and have recorded a song so appear to be serious about the band and its music.
We contacted the band through Facebook and are currently in the process of sorting details with them in terms of the song and their involvement. Due to their being little resources of the band performing online, we can't currently identify the exact style of their music, although their listed influences are Biffy Clyro, Elbow and Kasabian (a band which I had fortunately already researched). They also are fans of Pulp and Arctic Monkeys, with which we have already looked into. Guitarist Toby Womack has been quick to respond to messages and is currently in the process of sending an early demo of the song so we can hear it and begin to brainstorm ideas.
From the informations sent to us from Womack, the song lyrics contain references to the current situation of British homelessness. After further questioning he also expressed interest in a video that crosses between a studio-style performance section featuring the band and a narrative.
Currently, we are still in negotiations with Howl as they have told us that they may be able to reform for a video but we are currently prioritising Tranqua Lite as they are more likely to suit the needs of the course we're doing. Whilst the research we have already done is still applicable to Tranqua Lite, we now need to hear the demo and plan a meeting with the band to confirm details.
After contacting the band Howl for the first time since before Summer I have now come to the discovery that the band is longer together, after 7 years. After further emails I found out the group had separated amiably but were now pursuing other music ventures, having originally being trained in jazz. Drummer Lewis Dutton-Taylor, for example, is now a performer for local jazz and afrobeat bands in the area. This is obviously a huge setback for our group as we needed to quickly find a new music artist, preferably within the indie rock genre we had already researched.
Although we are aware of some friends that play instruments, they don't write original music and we were keen to find a band with a professionally recorded song so that our music video will be as high quality as possible.
As our band is relatively new, it would be beneficial to look at similar, more established bands to understand the target audience they are trying to attract. Therefore we have done some research to find similar groups whose audiences we could study. Pulp formed in 1978 in Sheffield and work in the 'indie rock' genre of music, making it a good band to compare to 'Howl'.
Their general audience are 40-54 year old males of social grade ABC1. However, the male/female split is very fine with their audience being made up of 50.7% men and 49.3% women. This means the gender of the audience can't really be specified.
The age of the audience surprised me as I thought 'Howl's' target audience would be much younger as I usually associate 'indie rock' with young people. However, as this is a 70's band so their fans would have been teenagers when the band formed and have stuck with them through to modern day, causing a general audience age now of 40-54 year olds. This means Howl's target audience are likely to be teenagers. This links to the decision to have their music feature on the Fifa 17 soundtrack which was a designed to appeal to teens.
Their audience age could also be explained by how the indie rock genre was popular in the 80's and has become more popular again now, causing a reflux in the genre. Therefore, a lot of bands with a similar style to howl were formed in the late 70's, 80's and 90's. Due to the age of the audience, their general hobbies include quizzes, scrabble and sudoko showing a general tendency towards problem solving, suggesting that an interesting, more intellectually engaging music video would be more appealing to this particular group of people. They are also football fans and enjoy 'fantasy football' showing that they are inclined towards sport, a theme which could also be incorporated into the music video.
This is a really interesting video of theirs that kind of breaks genre conventions by using a more 'arty' style rather than just performing the song in a live setting. The rotating camera is really memorable and eye catching, making the video stand out rather than just blending into all the other indie rock music videos that exist. It also manages to incorporate a bit of a narrative too, whilst having the lead singer lip synching sections of the song therefore also complying with the genre conventions to a certain extent. I think we should look at this as an influence, perhaps not taking solid ideas from the video as I don't believe it's right for our band, but definitely looking at themes and techniques - artistic elements and the combination of narrative and performance - when coming up with our own ideas.
Kasabian feature many similarities to Howl in their musical style as an alternative rock band so are a useful reference point in terms of interpreting Howl's music. They're a British indie rock band from Leicester that formed in 1997. Amongst their successes they have released 6 albums, headlined the Glastonbury Festival in 2014 and won the Brit Award for Best British Group. They are popular currently amongst young people so their fans can be thought of as a potential target audience for our video.
According to YouGov, Kasabian appeal to lower class people, are marginally more popular amongst women and left-wing, young people. They have been on the music scene since 2004 and so are relatively current (they released an album in 2017). As a result of this, they have lots of older fans in the 40+ age range but also some younger 18-25 year olds as the genre of indie rock had slipped out of fashion in the 2000s but has had a recent resurgence in popularity.
(Data from YouGov.co.uk)
Here is an example of a recent music video by Kasabian (September 2017)
Ill Ray (The King) - Kasabian
The video can be seen to significantly highlight Kasabian as a British band from Leicester as there are many references to this town and elements of British culture. The video is inspired by the discovery of King Richard III's body underneath a Tesco car park in Leicester and creates a quirky narrative around this where a woman resurrects Richard III and takes him around modern day Leicester. As well as an homage to Leicester through depiction of landmarks like Abbey Park, the video can be seen to appeal to both young and old fans of Kasabian. The video casts Lena Headey and Michael Socha who are known from Game of Thrones and This Is England respectively, both of which are shows currently very popular amongst young people. The older audiences are also catered to through the quirky humour of seeing Richard III interacting with a modern day Britain. The band also don't appear in the video, which isn't uncommon in indie rock videos.
Days Are Forgotten - Kasabian
This is an earlier song from the band, released in summer 2011. The video again links the band to the indie rock genre due to the inclusion of band performance and commonly-used black and white filter. The performance setup is enhanced by animated white lines that add an artistic and creative aesthetic to an otherwise standard concept. The video here has an almost universal appeal due to its simplicity, again allowing it to be accessible to both younger and older fans of the band.
To help us decide what the Howl target audience should be we have researched similar indie bands and what their target audience is. I researched Arctic Monkeys and used YouGov to find out their target audience. For Arctic Monkeys I discovered that their most popular generation is the younger generation from 18 year olds to 25 year olds. However, the next main target audience is 40-50 year olds. This shows that indie rock has gone through fazes. It was popular back in the 70s when the older target audience were teenagers and it has reawaken and has become popular again as my generation are teenagers. The gender of their target audience is mixed. The survey shows that 50.7% of the Arctic Monkeys fans are female with 49.3% of the target audience being male. This is a very even split therefore their music videos have to appeal to both male and female audiences.
This video for Arabella appeals for both female and male viewers. The video uses voyeristic images therefore using the idea of male gaze. This therefore makes the video appealing for the male audience members. Female audience members will be attracted by the images of the band themselves and especially the star image of Alex Turner. Female fans are also more likely to enjoy and appreciate an emotional narrative which can be seen in this video. The black and white filter also gives the video an older feel to it therefore it is very similar the the original indie rock songs for the 70s and 80s. This similarity will make it popular with the older generation.
My main music video project this year will be for a song for local British band 'Howl' (formerly known as NGOD). They are a Leeds-based indie rock band comprised of 4 members:
Samuel Augustine - Vocals/Guitar
Alex Dutton-Taylor - Drums/Backing Vocals
Lewis Dutton-Taylor - Bass/Backing Vocals
Joe Barnes - Guitar
Billy Fielding - Piano
After early successes with debut track 'Are You Satisfied' they released other separate singles all of whcih received airplay on BBC radio, in segments highlighting new artists. They have 3 singles released on Spotify/iTunes: 'Can You Hear Me?', 'Blue' and 'Lost' which are their best-known. In 2017, FIFA17 acquired their song 'Blue' for its official soundtrack, which has helped the band secure a music label and receive greater recognition.
Over the previous few years the band have appeared at many music festivals in the UK and abroad in France and the Netherlands at events including 'Y-Not Festival' and 'Transmusicales'.
In February 2017, the newly rebranded Howl supported the Kaiserchiefs on their UK arena tour to positive reviews. Music blogger AngelaSmith described their performance supporting the Kaiserchiefs UK Tour as a '1990's indie/grunge combo with a modern twist in both looks and sound.' and that their debut track left the audience 'wanting more'.
In interviews, the band describe their Bradford and Leeds roots as influencing their music and taking inspiration from their parents' favourite artists which include The Beatles, Bob Dylan and The Pixies. An interview with Counterfeit Magazine discussed their modern influences which extend to Moby, The Clash and Kanye West. LiveAtLeeds compared their music to bands Kasabian, Foal and The Stone Roses.
At the moment, Howl already have 2 music videos for their songs 'Blue' and 'Lost', which both have been produced by amateur filmmakers.
This first video, for recent single 'Lost', features the band filmed in a green screen studio setting with a background that appears to be GoPro footage mirrored vertically that has been sped up. With frantic editing, appearance of graphics including words and symbols. There is also a vintage aesthetic which matches the publicity photos for the band, which are frequently shot on Polaroids. This leads me to believe the band like an old-fashioned, particularly 90's, style.
Samuel Bayer is a prolific American music video director who is responsible for a large number of famous works such as videos for Green Day, Nirvana, Aerosmith, Maroon 5 and My Chemical Romance. His style is typically bleak and grungy, with dark narratives and sorrowful mood and atmosphere. His clients are amongst the biggest names in alternative rock and pop and as a result usually has access to a large budget. He has won 6 VMA's including the top prize 'Video of the Year' for Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day. I conducted some research into some of his videos, as inspiration for my own music video.
Case Study 1: 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' - Nirvana
This is an example of a rock video with a grungy tone and atmosphere. The extras act like a rioting crowd, thrashing in a rebellious manner to the hard rock music. It matches Nirvana's rebellious aesthetic and target audience of young people also through the concept: The setting appears to be a grungy version of a high school basketball court with frequent references to youth culture including cheerleaders, for example. There is a bleak smoky aesthetic with low lighting giving the whole video an ominous vibe we could expect from Bayer's works. The video itself is a performance video that focuses heavily on the three band members, most prominently frontman Kurt Cobain, who is an iconic figure the studio would want to emphasise.
Case Study 2: 'American Idiot' - Green Day
The also-grungy video of Green Day's American Idiot is notable for its frantic editing and relentless energy that matches the punk-rock band's sound perfectly. Bayer employs strobe lighting, a dark green colour scheme and a vat of green liquid that drenches the band members. It's also a performance video featuring high energy performances by the band and includes lots of symbolism and iconography the audience can link to Green Day. The presence of a large American flag as well as the band emblem and references to 2000s media ties in with the brand identity of Green Day and the satirical 'American Idiot' album. It's another typical example of Bayer's work due to its rough aesthetic, including the artist costumes, presence of musical equipment and grungy warehouse-like setting.
Case Study 3: 'Payphone' - Maroon 5
Whilst this song could be considered a pop song, the rock side of the rock-pop band Maroon 5 is clearly used here by Bayer, who has made an unconventionally bleak and gritty video in response to a song that could have easily been interpreted as upbeat and fun. The narrative shows a man escaping an armed robbery who then accidentally gets targeted by armed police, with lots of deaths implied and gun injuries seen. It's a big-budget action-movie style video that suits the commercially successful band. The tone as usual with Bayer is bleak and includes a gritty desert setting, grungy costumes and a dark narrative.
The singer Beyonce appears in the video the whole time, a characteristic of pop videos.
The video features heavy use of choreography and invents some signature dance moves that may make the audience recognise the song and find it more appealing/memorable in a crowded pop music market.
The dancers wear heels and provocative costumes and are made up glamorously, making them more commercially appealing figures.
A clear colour palette is a key pop genre convention, here being completely black and white.
The idea of fame is a key pop genre characteristic, represented here by the performance-on-a-stage aspect to the video setup.
2. Relationships Between Lyrics and Video - 'The A Team' - Ed Sheeran
The video literally interprets the lyrics which are about a young homeless woman, struggling to get by.
There is a hand-held camera style reflecting the gritty world depicted in the lyrics.
The prostitution and use of drugs described in the lyrics are depicted here.
The final lyrics 'Angels die' s as the woman overdoses.
On the lyrics 'Angels to fly', the camera shows Angel tube station, referencing Sheeran's lyrics.
3. Relationship Between the Music and the Lyrics - 'Cold' - Stormzy
The video cuts in time with the beat throughout, including jump cuts. This reflects the highly anticipatedbeat-focused song.
There are clouds of smoke that activate on certain beats of the music including the repeating refrain (and song title) "Cold".
When a new beat is introduced early in the song, a setup of children playing football is introduced at the same time, echoing the progression of the music with the progression of the video.
The intro is quiet, so the video uses dim lighting and slow motion.
At the end, Stormzy walks away from the camera to signify the end of the song.
The high energy music is represented through energetic tracking camera movements that swing from side to side around Stormzy.
4. Studio Influence - 'Look What You Made Me Do' - Taylor Swift
The video has a very big budget.
There is frequent promotion for Taylor Swift's upcoming album 'Reputation', as the word appears as a recurring theme in the video.
Taylor Swift appears prominently in the video and is depicted as a somewhat legendary figure, indulging in fame, luxury and represented as a powerful, tough figure.
There are many different setups and outfits Taylor Swift wears, showing studio influence of wanting the video to be iconic and memorable.
Taylor Swift occassionally wears provocative outfits, trying to depict her as a desirable sex symbol.
There are references to pop culture that young people will respond to, such as Taylor Swift's previous personas and gossip with Kim Kardashian and Katy Perry, showing the marketing towards young people and attempts to create a controversial, viral video.
5. Iconography - 'West Coast' - Lana Del Rey
Lana Del Rey's signature Old Hollywood influences -
1950s theme to fairground and clothing
Vintage car
Black and white
Crossfades
Oversaturated colour
A James Dean-type archetype on the beach
Palm trees
Cigarettes
Glamorous dresses and suits
Added grain to the camera
Cat-eye makeup, a signature look of the artist.
Relationships with older men is a common theme in the artist's music and this is represented in the video.
6. The Notion of Looking - 'John Wayne' - Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga wears many sexual/revealing costumes in this video which show lots of her legs, midriff and cleavage.
There's a voyeuristic element to the video as Lady Gaga is depicted with various men as if in a relationship.
Lady Gaga acts sexually in the car setup, sprawling across the driver's lap and tearing off her jacket. In another scene she tears a man's shirt with her teeth and in another swings her jacket over her head. All of this adds to the voyeurism of the video.
There's suggestive choreography employed in the video.
Alcohol plays a big part in the video so there is an indulgent, lavish world represented in this video.
7. Intertextual References - 'You're In Love with a Psycho' - Kasabian
This video is a parody of iconic 1975 movie 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest', with figures representing the characters Randall McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) and Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher) in the film.
The film is also quoted ('Medication Time')
The room at the beginning of the video is very visually similar to the main ward where most of the movie takes place, down to details like men playing chess and a glass window with a Nurse's Station.
The plot of One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest is referenced too, with the men breaking out and rebelling against the nurses.
Popular comedian Noel Fielding appears in the video, making the satirical nature of the video clear and also referencing British pop culture.
The video is predominantly a performance video but is also a concept video. The entirety of the video is Adele lip-syncing to the song however several takes have been layered over each other to create an interesting visual result. Only one set up is used in the video.
STAR TREATMENT / STUDIO INFLUENCE
The focus of the music video is entirely on Adele as she's the only subject that appears on camera, the background is completely black and no other people or things are shown. The framing of Adele is predominantly central and ranges from extreme long shot to close up.
Adele isn't a conventional pop star in the sense that she isn't marketed for sex appeal but more for her vocal talent, likeable music and sassy East-End personality. This marketing can be seen to be at play here as Adele wears a conservative dress and the video is minimalistic, placing emphasis on the song much more. Adele is also performing in a confident but casual manner and some subtle choreographed movements such as a gesture of her 'brushing something off' which suggests her streetwise personality has been represented.
CAMERA SHOTS
All the shots used to make the video are either static from a tripod or have used a camera dolly to create smooth and fluid shots, making the resulting video cleaner and each layer easier to see.
The shots are all long takes of Adele lip syncing that overlap and fade in and end of simply cutting. The resulting overlapped imagery is what creates the video's uniqueness. As a result it is hard to follow individual shots however it can be seen that there isn't a master shot the video is layered around that plays throughout and instead shots fade in and out where effective. It can be seen that to film this video, Adele must have been required to lip sync the song across many takes whilst the camera team caught many different angles and camera movements of her performance.
The opening shot is used on its own as the camera tracks forward from a long shot of Adele to a medium close up shot of her before a second shot fades in. This slowly introduces the audience to the concept so they are aware firstly and fore-mostly that they are seeing Adele and there are going to be composited shots. It gives the opening a cleanness and clarity that is echoed at the ending when lots of shots fade out and leaves a medium close up that tracks backwards to leave a long shot that is identically framed to the very first on-screen image. This means the video has a cyclical structure that ends where it began.
The video plays with differences and similarity in the composited shots and is seemingly very complex and calculated in its execution. A large bulk of the video plays with differences in the shot angles, layering over a close up, medium shot, long shot and extreme long shot so there are many different proximities at play. This makes all the shots easy to see individually of each other and also be aesthetically pleasing and harmonious.
On the other hand there are points where multiple shots framed the same way are overlayed so it's hard to make out where each shot ends and begins. The shifting between these two states creates interesting visual effects and makes the video engrossing and extremely watchable.
MISE-EN-SCENE
While the video is minimal for mise-en-scene in terms of physical objects and settings that appear on screen, there are projected visuals through Adele's performance and the way the shots interact with each other.
The overlayed shots sometimes result in shots seemingly interacting with each other. The most notable moment this can be seen is when there's a close up of Adele dominating the frame and then a similarly framed shot behind it with a lower opacity features Adele lifting her arms up to touch her face, creating an illusion where this appears to be part of the prominent shot. There are also sequences where it appears as though Adele has many arms due to the differences in the composited layers.
The lighting shifts in time with the music to emphasise the sections of the song. The start of the video uses a single overhead spot which leaves a reflection of Adele on the floor. During the second verse all but one of the shots switch to to darker lighting lit by a blue gel so that one of the shots looks more prominent in the frame.
The lighting simultaneously switches to bright red and gold for the second chorus which gives the chorus vibrancy and energy, distinguishing it from the first chorus and giving the feeling that the video is building. This is a way of reflecting the upbeat tone of the song.
At the final chorus, the red, white and blue lighting all interweave and overlap before the ending returns to the simple lighting from the opening.
STRUCTURE
The song starts quietly then builds to an upbeat chorus and continues to build throughout before abruptly ending. The music video directly echoes this by starting simply then getting increasingly complex before returning to the simple shot seen at the beginning. Ways in which the video increases in complexity includes use of coloured lighting, shifts in shot opacity, higher numbers of shots playing simultaneously and more dynamic movements from Adele, such as twirling with her dress. The ending fades out all the shots to leave just one shot remaining.
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LYRICS AND VISUALS
The message of the song is about brushing off a former lover and being confident to move on. It's a defiant message and this is reflective in Adele's performance style which significant features high levels of sass in facial expressions and gestures. The video is also empowering and triumphant, frequently using dynamic visual choices and warm colours.
The song lyrics are addressed to a single person in particular and this is reflected through the mode of address in the video. Adele lip-syncs directly to camera, making eye contact, which makes the whole video feel like a personal message Adele is delivering as the connection between singer and audience becomes stronger as a result. This is also a common feature of the pop music genre which allows the viewer to clearly see the performer.
The words 'let go' are usually accompanied by a wave goodbye motion or brush off motion, which becomes a motif in the video.
The video is an abstract mixture of naturalisticnarrative and surrealisticperformance video. The loose narrative shows Jeff Buckley cycling to a diner and getting his bike stolen... by people dressed as monkeys. It gets more bizarre when there are suddenly some shots of people in Victorian dress with sacks over their faces on a brightly decorated stage. There's then shots of Buckley performing the song with a band on stage before returning to the narrative, where Buckley tears his suit off while running down a street. The narrative breaks the fourth wall and is seemingly designed to look like a grungy documentary of Buckley's life.
STAR TREATMENT/STUDIO INFLUENCE
Jeff Buckley is front and centre in this video, the camera often fixed on his face in close ups and extreme close ups. The narrative features him as a central character and in the performance sequence he is also clearly visible and focused on throughout, central in the frame.
Buckley's raw grunge persona is represented clearly in the video. The style of the video mimics a home-movie at times and is styled to look gritty and downbeat. His tormented performance style is also represented in the performance sequences where his eye line is down at the ground and face displays angst and pain. He appears shirtless at the end of the video, which may indicate studio influence trying to sell him as a desirable figure or sex symbol.
CAMERA WORK
The video uses a narrow aspect ratio which makes the video look like a low budget home movie.
Most of the video is shot with handheld cameras, making the video seem documentary-like and laid-back. There are out-of-focus shots, shots where the camera has been left on a table but is still running, shots that suddenly zoom in or out and tracking shots that highlight less interesting subjects like darkness, walls and random background people or things. This whole mixture of shot types contributes to giving the impression that the camera crew who filmed the video shot what was around them at the time, as in a documentary, so the final footage is less precise and calculated but is also more authentic and grounded.
The one sequence using a camera mounted on a tripod is the abstract 'party' section with performers wearing sacks over their heads dancing and playing instruments on a stage. The shot is stationary and tightly framed around the four performers. By keeping this shot still, it differentiates it from the shaky camera work of the narrative parts of the video. It also allows the visuals to be seen more clearly as its darkly lit and has lots of effects used on it.
When the apes steal Buckley's bike, a shot of a cameraman dropping his camera down on the counter is followed by a shot that suddenly drops and is left on a stationary canted angle that shows the action outside the diner from a partially obscured view. This creates the illusion that the cameraman has dropped the camera whilst it was still rolling and the resulting footage is 'found footage' that happened to be recorded. It adds to the documentary-world of the video.
The final shot, which is interrupted, tracks backwards with Buckley as he runs down the street in slow motion. At one point he stops moving, allowing the camera to continue tracking backwards so he gets further and further away in distance and is left standing in the centre of an extreme long shot on a large mostly empty street where he dramatically kicks off his shoe. This final shot displays the messages of Buckley's angsty music due to the imagery of isolation involved.
MISE-EN-SCENE
Buckley lip-syncs to the song in the narrative when riding his bike in a long uninterrupted shot tracking with him. He stares off-camera, seemingly into the distance, so the resulting effect is that he's singing a song in his head within the context of the narrative.
Interestingly, the scene in the diner shows cameramen lining up a shot of an actor, his camera equipment and technical crew visible. This breaks the fourth wall and makes the audience aware they're watching a music video. It also has the effect of making the video look like a documentary and seem authentic, which matches Buckley's down-to-earth, raw sound and aesthetic.
For most of the video, Buckley wears a grey suit and tie which seems odd considering his style is informal and grungy. At the end, however, there is an extended sequence depicting Buckley tearing off the suit a layer at a time whilst running down a street, in slow motion. This crosscuts with the performance segment, wherein he is wearing a casual shirt buttoned down. The connotations of this is that his true persona is when he is performing on stage in casual clothing and by tearing the suit off at the end, he is rejecting the more formal, conservative image of himself. It's another example of politicised visuals that link to the grunge genre.
The people shown on-screen often wear grungy clothing like vests and black shirts which adds to the feeling of a gritty, unglamorous world.
EDITING
The shots of the performers on stage with sacks on their heads is layered with effects to make it seem more surreal. The shots are reversed so the many balloons and confetti items included float upwards and the performers move in an abnormal way. One clip also changes speed midway through, switching from a sped up clip to a slowed down one. This is the direct opposite of the grounded footage in the rest of the video, which is edited minimally to appear everyday and standard.
The footage of Buckley in the diner and on the streets has a green filter layered over it, a common trend for 1990's music videos that were trying to make footage appear more edgy and gritty. This adds to the grungy feeling.
The shots revealing cameramen stood filming the actors are always followed directly by a POV shot showing what the camera is picking up. Often this POV shot is out of focus so as to appear more plausible and authentic. The effect of cutting from one of these shots to the other bridges them so the audience can directly see that the cameramen shown on-screen are the people filming the music video.
The last shot is followed by an effect of a film reel burning up, selling the home movie effect one last time.
INTERTEXTUALITY
The inclusion of a group of people dressed as apes is likely an allusion to the iconic opening sequence from Stanley Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey' which has been parodied and replicated in media since its 1968 release. In the film they represent the dawn of humanity and are a study on progress and modern society so have deep philosophical connotations. Their presence in this video is likely intended to provoke thought about how modern society can be compared to our prehistoric ancestors.
