Research: SoundCloud (Group)

SoundCloud was originally founded in Stockholm, Sweden, but was established in Berlin in August 2007 by Swedish sound designer Ljung and Swedish artist Wahlforss. The founders initially aspired to allow musicians to share recordings with each other, but the concept later transformed into a full publishing tool that also allowed musicians to distribute their music tracks.

A few months after inception, SoundCloud began to challenge the dominance of Myspace as a platform for musicians to distribute their music by allowing recording artists to interact more nimbly with their fans.

In March 2013, Twitter announced SoundCloud as a third-party music partner, alongside iTunes, in developing the Twitter's first-ever integrated music app. However, the initiative never eventuated; SoundCloud's inability to load licensed music—due to the absence of arrangements with the major music labels—was cited as a major reason. By July 2013, SoundCloud's registered users had quadrupled in number from the beginning of the previous year, with a total of 40 million, and an additional 20 million listeners were using the service on a monthly basis.

Research of Music Video 5 - Biffy Clyro - Many of Horror (When We Collide): Shot types

This is a screen grab of Biffy Clyro - Many of Horror. This image is a close up and has the band member to the left of frame with no lighting on him. This is effective as he is seen as mysterious and it suits the genre of Indie  Rock. We can use this within our music video as our establishing shot as it builds tension within the video.

This is a close-up of the singer when he is singing into the camera, which doesn't break any conventions within the genre chosen. There is some studio lighting on the singer which is on his left side of his face which adds the ominous effect to the video. This can be used within our music video as it is very effect in giving an effect that can make a big impact on the video.


This is a close up shot of the band member singing into the camera. This is an effective shot type and style as it could as if the lyrics are being sung personally. Like the song is a personal account by the singer. This can be used within our music video as it a story from the singer's point of view.

Research: Synergy and Brand Identity

After some research, we have decided not to stay away from the colour red as that has been used through the chosen genre of Indie Rock. The use of the colour red is over-used and won't bring the attention we are looking for as it doesn't break conventions within the genre. My partner and I have decided to use Terracotta Orange, as it symbolises the gradual overcoming of anger and is quite a powerful colour. This image is great as we will be using Adobe Elements 11 and we can sample the colours within this image to find the shade we like to use the colour for our star image.

The possible locations to be used within our music video will be:

• A kitchen
• Shots within a drama hall with controlled lighting 

Research:Initial Ideas for our music video

Our initial music video idea was the idea that because the song has a miserable tone to it. We have come up with the idea of after each verse, there is a jump cut to the male star to be shown in a white shirt at the start on a stage with a spotlight on him so the background is black. As the song progresses, his shirt is darker and darker until at the end of the video his shirt is black. This is to symbolise that he is giving up on his girlfriend being miserable.

Research: Genre Characteristics

The characteristics within out chosen genre of Indie Rock are:



This is a screen grab from AWOLNATION - Sail. This shows the costumes used within the genre of Indie Rock. The lead singer is seen wearing a basic blue hoodie and jeans. This represents the genre as it is seen as casual and not caring for the need for appearance. This is easy for use to replicate as it won't be costly for us to pay for an exotic costume.

This is another characteristic of Indie Rock. Having the star image to wear make-up makes it seem more gothic theme to the song and could potentially attract a different audience. I don't think we would be using this kind makeup around the eyes, although we would be using some makeup so the model doesn't look pale when taking photos and on camera. The style of the band members hair is good as has that messy style which would attract a wider audience. We would be using a style like this within our music video.

Research: Models within our Music Video

Katie Rooker is going to be our female model within our music video. She is going to be playing the girlfriend in the situation, who the lyrics will be based off. Her costume will be made to look miserable and moody to fit the theme of the song which is titled 'Mardy Bum'.
Morgan will be our other model/actor within our music video. He will be our main character within the story. His costume will be start off as a white shirt to represent that he is happy within his relationship. During the video his shirt will gradually get darker and darker to show his relationship is getting old and stale.

Initial research Ideas - Indie Rock

My partner and I have decided on using Arctic Monkey's 'Mardy Bum' for our music video. The chosen genre is Indie Rock. This can open up a wide range of opportunities for music video ideas. The mise en scene for this genre would be a common scenery whilst using everyday type clothes for the costume. We chose Mardy Bum as it is a personal favourite of my partner as well as I have taken an interest on the song.

Potential change of artists

After we found out that using Elvis Presley would be next to impossible to use for our Media music video due to strict Copy Right issues. My partner and I decided to try and find another artist, who had a song that we both liked and that didn't have an Official Video for it. We both decided that Artic Monkeys 'Mardy Bum' was a good choice. We have emailed their Producers called Dominos, and we are currently waiting for a response.

Rough Cut Task (Group Post)

This was our first attempt at creating a music video for Don't Stop Believing by The Journey. We found that this task was very time consuming as we weren't able to finish it. This means we will need to come up in our free times to work on our project as it will be twice as time consuming as this was a rough cut.

Research of Music Video 4 - Catfish & The Bottlemen: Mise En Scene (Group)

This is one of the opening shots for the song Home Sick by Catfish and the Bottlemen. As the song starts off, a collage of images is shown to the rhythm of the beat of the bass guitar. The location of these shots is backstage of a concert they were doing. This could be available for me to get influenced by as it’s a big hall, which we could have access to. The costume in this image is very indie rock/rock as he is shown in a shaggy jumper and he also has long hair which represents the genre as he looks rebellious and intimidating. 

This image is in black and white which can represent the genre by looking as if its vintage or indie. The costume shown in this image would be targeted for ages 15-25 as the hair style is common for people within that age bracket, as well as the genre chosen, being indie rock.

This image also shows off the bands name, which is visible as it is center frame.

The mise en scene in this image has influenced our creativity by the location of the image, as its shown in a train station, which is a possible location for us to film at for our music video.

The focus on the street signs is very good as it represents the genre of indie rock being in a city and rough graffiti on the walls.

 This image has influenced our creativity by the location shown within. This is a possible location for our music video as we could use a drama hall with the spot lights on the center stage.

This image would be a tough to replicate as within the studio image, a crowd is shown which would be hard to attain for our music video. Although, the location would be difficult to replicate. The costume would be more obtainable as it is a simple jeans and shirt, which would represent the genre by having a rough, dangerous look about the band members.

 This location shot is very easily replicated as its a simple outside, location shot. This has influenced our creativity as the costume worn by these two band members is casual black attire that can be worn anywhere. This represents the genre as the one of the band members is shown smoking which gives of the impression he doesn't care and is rebellious. This represents the audience as most would probably smoke or know someone who does. Also the target audience of 16-21 of the target population as they'd be rebellious and more likely to smoke. This can apply to theorist, Winships as it's for 'Female Gaze'

This music video is performance based as it is filmed from one of their shows a a venue. 

This has influenced our creativity and planning:

• The use of multiple locations shots like shown in the video, as it would be more beneficial cost wise as well as more attainable for us to replicate.
• Another, being the wide range of costumes used as within the video, multiple costumes were worn by the band members and this can be easily replicated.
• The use of shot types and actions to represent the genre, for instance; close ups to show the roughness of the band members to appeal to the female audience as well the male audience to be envious of the band members.
• That most of the music video is performance based.

Music Channels (Group Post)

Goodwin

Andrew Goodwin writing in 'Dancing in the Distraction Factory' (Routledge 1992)

1. Music videos demonstrate genre characteristics (e.g. stage performance in metal video, dance routine for boy/girl band).

This can be shown in Snoop Dogg - Drop It Like It's Hot as it shows a dance routine for both males and females. This can cause a representation of the genre its in, the genre being R'n'B.



2, There is a relationship between lyrics and visuals.

This can be shown in Plain White T's - Hey There Delilah as the lyrics are a narrative for the visuals. The relationship between the lyrics can be seen within the video as he said 'What's it like in New York City?' which is accompanied by showing a girl, presumably Delilah, in New York City. Another example, is that the lyric said 'Don't you worry about the distance which cohered to the visuals of a girl waiting for a train.


3, There is a relationship between music and visuals (Either illustrative, amplifying, contradicting).

This can be represented in Michael Jackson's Billie Jean as the music goes with the visuals as when he takes a step the floor lights up with the beat of the song. This can create a rhythm throughout the song.






4, There is often inter-textual reference (To films, TV Programmes, Other music videos etc).

This can be seen within Geri's Halliwell - It's Raining Men as this is seen in Bridget Jones's Diary, 2001. The dancing within this song is heavily influenced by Flashdance, 1983, with the opening shot being the ending dance performed by Jennifer Lopes.




How this has influenced my creativity and planning:

• I like the use of the inter-textuality within Geri Halliwell's version of It's Raining Men, I will try to impliment a form of inter-textuality within our music video.
• The idea of making the choreography within the music video to match the beat of the song is a great idea as it creates a link.

The History of Music Video

History of music video from Harry Ford

Elvis Presley

This is the homepage of Elvis Presley. Within this first page, you can see clear tabs to other sections of the website like; About, Music, Shop, Fans, and News. Also on the main tabs, there will be a drop down list showing greater detail for a more specific search. The star image created on this homepage is an action shot of the artist which would apply to theorist Winship's as he is made to look attractive for the female audience. As well as being a male icon as he was seen as a sex symbol. Also, the crowd in the background shows how popular the artist was by the atmosphere created by the fans.

The synergy created throughout this website is great as the masthead colour scheme is the same of Elvis's shirt, being the deep blue. There is even synergy between the background and the colour of the text, as the pale magnolia skyline cohesions with the colour of the sub-content.

This is the Bio tab of the web page and it has great synergy. The first one being the connection between the house style of the website, the same layout is used throughout as well as the same font and colours. The colour of the font on this page is excellent as the image was shown is in black and what and this compliments the use of white font for the information and masthead.

This is the Music tab within the homepage. As the artist we've chosen is deceased there are no live shows, but there are still shows playing his music even after death which shows a massive cult following for the artist and his work. There are tours playing all around the country with VIP packages but they are all sold out on each venue which shows the dedicated fans throughout multiple generations.

 There are multiple cross-media promotions, as for example; on the homepage, there are three links to other sites for downloads and ticket bookings. There is also a tab which takes you to a separate website for Elvis merchandise. The shop sells a range of items from the branding of the star image from clothing to calendars.

The company that promotes Elvis's music is Elvis Presley Enterprises. It was created after his death by his father and family.
In 

In 1954, Elvis began his singing career with the legendary Sun Records label in Memphis. In late 1955, his recording contract was sold to RCA Victor. By 1956, he was an international sensation. With a sound and style that uniquely combined his diverse musical influences and blurred and challenged the social and racial barriers of the time, he ushered in a whole new era of American music and popular culture.

There are multiple links to social media for this artist, even though he died way before the use of social media. This creates shortcuts for his fans to stay updated on any upcoming event.

Elvis Aaron Presley was born 8th January 1935, in Missispi, USA. On January 27th, 1956, he had a breakthrough with RCA 'Heartbreak Hotel. Elvis starred in 33 successful films which caused a breakthrough for him as he was later a well know 'sex symbol' throughout the generations. He was nominated for 14 Grammy nominations which lead to winning three. Elvis is regarded as one of the most influential pop-culture figures from the twentieth century. On the 16th of August, 1977, Elvis passed away in his Memphis home in Graceland.

How this has influenced my planning and creativity;

• When I make my Digipak for our chosen artist, I will base my design on this as it is simple and elegant, as the idea of clear designed tabs helps to navigate with ease.
• The idea of having a shop within the web page had influenced my creativity as I will try to include one within our media product.

Elvis Presley - Can't help falling in love

Wise men say only fools rush in
But I can't help falling in love with you
Shall I stay
Would it be a sin
If I can't help falling in love with you

Like a river flows surely to the sea
Darling so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand, take my whole life too
For I can't help falling in love with you

Like a river flows surely to the sea
Darling so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand, take my whole life too
For I can't help falling in love with you
For I can't help falling in love with you

 Reasons, why this song was chosen for our final music video, was that this song is a personal favourite of both Charlie and I. The lyrics of this song can be made into many stories for us to work with as they produce a canvas for many ideas to create a meaningful story to suit them. The first idea for our video is a simple story showing the ever-growing love between a couple complimented with a narrative story using the emotive lyrics.