Sixth Music Video Analysis

Linkin Park - Numb/Encore I choose to analyse Linkin Parks video numb/encore because it shows a smaller audience than the other videos that are analysed. Again the video is a live performance based video which reflects the type of music video I intend to create. Also the fact that the video is live, performance based made from real footage it creates an authentic feel for the audience due to the realism of the video. This can link to a reason why people would watch the video again.

The video focuses on a niche audience during the live performance as the audience at the gig is small in numbers. This is different from the other live performance based video's as the audience usually seen in their video's is large in numbers. This subverts the idea of, 'look how many people like us, we must be good', which in essence is a message that both the Mcfly and 30 Seconds to Mars, video's are subtly saying to the audience.

However the idea that Linkin Park and extremely well known band that they decided that using a massive audience isn't necessary and therefore concentrate on a small group of fans, as if saying 'these are true fans, become like these'.Therefore the video style for a bands music video can change depending on their popularity as different elements will work better due to the size of the audience.

The video is a one night performance that shows the bands collaboration with the rapper Jay-Z and shows what the band were doing before the gig throughout the video. The amount of footage that shows the band outside of the gig is about the same amount as showing them at the gig itself, this is unusual for a live performance based video as a large majority of the video is the bands performance itself.

The footage from outside the gig shows the 'light' moments of the band, showing them enjoying themselves and being average people. This is done so that the audience can feel the enjoyment that the band are having through the various shots and footage which then leads to repeatability as the audience would watch the video again due to their enjoyment.

By presenting the band as average people it lets the audience feel closer to the band and their music and therefore would watch the video again due to this 'connection'.

Due to the fact that the rock band, Linkin Park, are collaborating with rapper, Jay-Z, the genre of the music video instantly changes. The music is a mix of rock and rap which is unusual in various ways as two contrasting music genres are being played side by side. This instantly makes the video more interesting as the unusual mix of these two music genres work perfectly well together and therefore would let the audience watch the video again and again.

Due to the fact that the rock music genre is fused with the rap the pace of the video is much slower, again an unusual element of a live performance based video as the clips are usually fast and sudden.

The audience are again brought to feel more apart of the music video and the band due to the various shots of the audience themselves at the gig. The shots cleverly shows a diverse audience, through different genders, race and the way that the audience are dressed.

Fifth Music Video Analysis

30 Seconds to Mars - Closer to The Edge

I have chosen to analyse this video because it is also a performance based video, however it is different from Mcfly's video due to its filming and editing style and techniques, which slightly subverts the conventions of a stereotypical live, performance based video.

Throughout the video the audience notice's that the video is a lot more stylised for a live performance based music video, the key word being live. To begin with there are a lot of editing transitions used throughout the video, for example the use of fades which is unusual for a performance based video due to the amount of times that the fade transition is used.

In addition the fact that fades for this type of video are unusual makes it more interesting and can link with the idea of repeatability as the audience would want to watch the video again due to its unique use of editing.

Other forms of transitions that are used is the various times that text is used to overlap the video. This text is used for various reasons, one of these reasons is to promote the band which is also done through many ways. One way that the text enables this is the way that they state the amount of countries and cities that this single band went through, showing that they are 'amazing' to do so many gigs by themselves.

Another way that the text promote the band is the way they advertise the members of the band. placing montage of shots of the a band member at a time, linked with freeze frames of them as children and text that states their names.

There is also text used within the video that presents the band on a more personal level to the audience. An example of this is the text, 'This kid is amazing. And yes he is standing on the crowd'. This shows the band members own personal views which emphasises their passion for this video and for all their fans who have and are supporting.

Footage of the band that shows them not performing is another way that the video promotes the band on a personal level as the audience witnesses what they do in their time in between gigs. There is also footage of the band from all over the world which again links with promoting them as it shows that they are capable of performing with such energy across the world.

Showing footage from across the world is another way of the video attempting to make the audience feel involved in the video as the video targets as many places from across the world that they went to, attempting to not let anyone feel left out. Also the fact that the footage is made up from gigs across the world is different as most live performance based video's are made form a single night of footage.

Furthermore the text is also used to allow the audience to feel involved and a part of the video. An example of this is the text that says 'the believers' when the camera was focused on the audience, along with, 'and all 1363930 of you', when the video was being introduced. This is a way that the video attempts to make the audience feel involved within the video.

The clips of people who aren't apart of the band is another way that the video allows the audience to feel involved as these are everyday people speaking their own views. Also this is unusual for any music video which makes it interesting and again could be a reason for repeatability as the audience would want to watch the video again due to its unique attributes along with how they are brought to feel a part of the video.

The video follows many conventions of a typical rock music video such as the shaky camera used throughout, which is especially effective when the music becomes more 'upbeat', such as when the camera was focusing on the drums and drummer. This makes the video appear more interesting and therefore again offers repeatability as they would want to watch the video again.

All the footage within the video is captured from a variety of different angles, such as the various long shots, pans, whip pans and ariel shots, along with many more, that are used to film the audience and band as they perform. These shots show the audience screaming and jumping, mosh pits that have been formed, Jared climbing the stage and people in general just going 'crazy'. These shots show the gigs to be fun and energetic and can lead to repeatability as the audience would watch the video again due to the 'fun' feeling they obtain from the video. Also this promotes the band as it makes the audience want to go to one of the bands gigs.

The fact that the video is based mainly around live performance is makes the video style, 'authentic' and could be another reason why people would watch the video again due to isn't realism.

The realism and authenticity of the video would allows people to understand the experience that can come from going to one a '30 Seconds to Mars' gigs and will also lead to them not only watching it again, but wanting to go to one of their gigs.

Another aspect of the video that is interesting is the fact that the camera is focused mainly on Jared, the singer, throughout the video. This establishes that it is his band and his importance while at the same time could be a way of the promoting the band through Jared Leto. The video makes Jared 'appeal' to the audience through all the different shots they use, such as the close ups of his face, so that audience such as females would be more interested into watching the video again, which would therefore promote the song and the band.

Ideas Gained From Video

• Ensure the camera shots used as interesting as possible, keep attention and repeatability.
• Use elements that make the video unique.

Fourth Music Video Analysis

Mcfly - Umbrella http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_boH9xWnusI

This video was chosen because it is a live, performance based, illustration video and is the style of video that i have chosen to do.

Analysis

The music video is very fast paced which is shown through the quick cuts and the short capture length of the each clip. Also the pace of the video relates with the music being played, the faster the music plays the faster the shots and the shorter the length of these shots, while vice versa for when the music slows down.

All these shots are done in various interesting ways, from shaky camera (used throughout and also gets more unsteady the more upbeat the music becomes).

The various shots used consists from high angled shots of the crowd, to low angled shots of the band members which could be done as a way to show that the band are the important thing within this video. This can also be seen as a point of view shot of the audience looking up to the band, which can lead to the idea that the directors may want the audience to feel as if they are actually in that audience with them.

This links with the idea of repeatability as the audience would watch it again to either reminiscence, using the video to re-experience the day, if they were there. Or allow others who weren't there to feel as if they were there. This could be seen as a marketing technique as by allowing audience who weren't at the gig to feel that they want to go then they would pay to go to the next event. This is furthermore emphasised by the use of the variety of different shots which enable the audience to see everything that was happening and therefore feel more a part of it.

There are also a lot of close ups throughout the video which have multiple affects. One of these is through the close ups of the instruments that are used, which introduces and emphasise to the audience what genre music they are listening to, in this case rock. Also the close up of the band members is a way to present and advertise the band to both the old and new fans as it lets them see who they are.

Furthermore this links with the idea of repeatability as the audience would watch this video again because of the band members themselves. The audience may think of the band as 'fit' and would watch the video again because of them due to the appeal.

This also links with another idea of repeatability as by the camera and the various shots used to show the band members and audience allows the viewers of the video to witness how they are enjoying themselves. The close ups of both the band members and audience faces emphasises how much they are enjoying themselves, which then leads to the viewers 'feeling' the atmosphere, again can be a way of marketing as it leaves people wanting to go a gain the full experience of the gig. The fact that the video is authentic and real can lead to the emphasis on the viewers 'will' to want to go and see the band live themselves.

Another way that the video is shown to be fun for the viewers is the use of various 'sweeping shots' of the audience which shows how active they are, along with showing various facial expressions at a time. This can also link with the pans and track shots of both the band members and audience as again this shows the viewer how energetic and active they are, for example when Dougie is running around with the camera, emphasising the idea of how much fun they are having.

In addition the video uses unusual shots from what are normally seen through a music video, an example of this is the extreme close up of the vocalists face from the camera on the mic. A shot from the mic itself is unusual for a music video and therefore the use of these unusual shots makes the video more interesting and therefore leads again to the idea of repeatability as the audience would want to watch it again.

Furthermore throughout the video there are shots of both male and females in the audience, this is a way to present the band as being liked by both genders. This could encourage more people from both genders to like the band as their view of the band may change, such as thinking that only girls like them which would deter both males and certain females from liking the band.

Another, not usually seen ,attribute about the video that can lead to people wanting to watch the it again is that the song is already famous at this current time and already at number one, which would lead to people already knowing the song and therefore are drawn to the video to see a different version of a good song. Also the way that this music video switches the genre of the music allows them to target not only people who know Rihanna's version of the song but also the audience who like rock genre music.

Ideas Gained From Video

• Use fast paced shots to relate with the music
• Use unusual shots to make it more interesting
• Use as many different types of shots to allow the video to flow better
• Handheld/Shaky camera for realism and authenticity
• Allow it to appeal to both genders

Genre In Ancillary Task

How have you considered genre in creating your media text?

While creating my media text I researched into other media texts that linked with the same genre that i was intending to make, this being rock genre music. This enabled me to ensure that the product that i was making linked with the conventions of a typical rock genre digipak and magazine advert. The 'We Are The Ocean' album cover is an example of me researching into the rock genre media texts before creating my actual product, ensuring the knowledge used of the conventions of rock music.

What signifiers pinpoint the genre?

Example of signifiers in my digipak is the use of images such as the crows in the background of the front cover. Crows signify 'darkness' which shows the music genre as rock as this is the conventions of the music genre, being dark.

What kind of media producer would produce your kind of media text?

Hassle records and Roadrunner records are institutions that would produce my type of media text as this is the genre of music that both companies specialize in.

Does your media text show fluidity of genre or is it similar to older media texts of the same genre? If it is different, how?

My media text doesn't show fluidity of genre as album covers from 40 years ago resemble current album covers of the same rock genre such as 'Queen's' album cover 'News of the World'. These album covers use a surreal approach in order to portray the music genre just like the album cover that I analysed for 'We Are The Ocean'.

The only difference that can relate with genre in both album covers and magazine adverts is the way that the band members themselves are shown. For example the Queen album 'The Works' shows the band members of Queen dressed in an iconographic way that portrayed rock/metal music genre back in the 70s. But in these recent times people dress like that wont appeal much to the younger audience of rock music, only the older audience who knew about these bands from their time period.

Original Photos

This is the photo of the crow that was used in the background of the digipak front cover.

This photo is the photo used for the background throughout the digipaks and magazine adverts.

These are my original photos that were used in the production of the digipak and magazine advertisement. All these photos were taken on a white surface which made things easier when it came to the editing stage.

Magazine advert

This is my final magazine advert which shows the band members more clearly, establishing their identity thus allowing the audience to know them. I related the magazine advert with the album cover itself, keeping the house style the same as this is something many magazines such as Kerrang! do when they are advertising or reviewing an album.

Digipak

This is the final product for my digipak which i based around the two music albums that I analysed. I drew the creative, surreal look from both 'You Me At Six's' and 'We Are The Ocean's' album cover as they were both inspirational and creative. I placed the crows in the background as a way to signify that the music has a darker side to it due to crows being associated with 'darkness'/'evil'. This is similar to 'We Are The Oceans' album cover through the way it uses the night sky to portray the music's 'darker' side.

Second Magazine Advert Experiment

This is another experiment that i did to ensure that my final product looked suitable for not only being a magazine advert but also convey the music genre appropriately.

Magazine Advert Experiment

This is an experiment for my magazine advert which I based around the advertisement in one of Kerrang!'s magazines but after a survey I decided that this wasn't suitable.

Digipak Audience Feedback

This is the result of an audience questionnaire/feedback to see whether the audience understood the genre of the music I was trying to portray to them. After reading what each person placed and the reason to why they said this I decided that the digipak fufilled its purpose and therefore didn't need any further editing.

Album Cover Research

I did a survey to see what other people thought of the album covers that i analysed to use to base my own album cover from. I did this to show what views people who do and dont listen to indie/rock to see what genre they would believe the album covers to be.

Questionnaire

These are questionnaires that I did during the final stages of my ancillary task. I used these questionnaires to ensure that the what I wanted to conveyed was actually being shown, such as the genre.

Original Album Cover Idea

This is my original idea for my album cover but i decided to change it because the lighting and colours in the background were too light to represent the music genre in the way I intended to.