Target AudienceHannah Lenane

What genre does chosen song fall into? How you know?

• Our chosen song falls into the Indie/Alternative music genre. This can be concluded from many factors that the band possesses. Firstly, the band's style and image fits that of the Indie/Alternative scene: the band members are dressed in a way that matches the image of other renowned Indie/Alternative artists and fans of the genre also. For example, we can see immediate similarities between the ‘image’ of our chosen band, Pilots and mainstream bands such The Enemy and The Arctic Monkeys.

To the left is an image taken from a live Pilots show and to the right is a similar image taken from a live Arctic Monkeys show. Noticeable comparisons between the two guitarist’s image is their hair, stance and clothing. Longer, ‘bed head’ style hair is a key contribution to Indie/Alternative fashion as it gives off carless and rebellious connotations that coincide with the roots of the genre, whereby the entire basis of the genre was to go against the mainstream and rebel. Linking to this, we can see that both guitarists hold themselves in a loose,‘I don’t care’ stance. Finally the two men are dressed casually, both in jeans and simplistic tops. This style of clothing again links to the carefree image of Indie/Alternative artists and connects them more to the people and their audience as they seem to be more approachable, ‘normal people’ so to speak.

Above to the left is a promotional shot of Pilots and above to the right is a promotional shot of the well known band The Enemy. What is immediately akin between the two images is the look of the members photographed (their hair, clothing and attitude portrayed). The men in both have long hair, both scruffy ‘bed head’ style and sleek and straight. They are dressed in clean cut, tailored jackets and all are dark tones of grey or black. The men from both bands are also presented with a strong, pensive attitude. Their expressions are fixated and concentrated, yet serious. These factors once again connotate the rebellious image originally allocated to the Indie/Alternative genre, giving the men a ‘bad boy’ artistic image. There are also similarities between the composition of the photographs. In both the band are organised around the lead man of the group, i.e. the singer. The band members in both are on either side of this lead man, making him central to the image, informing us he is their leader and central to the band. The lighting in both is dark as are the costume colours.

• Another way in which we can understand Pilots to fit into the Indie/Alternative genre is through the formation of the band and their sound. The band, Pilots is formed up of guitar, bass, vocals, synth/keys and drums, all of which are played/performed by the 5 band members. This is a key characteristic of other bands from the genre, for example, although the band aren’t British and are instead from Tennessee, USA, they too are formed of guitar, drums, bass and vocals which are also performed and played by the 4 band members.

To the left, Pilots. To the right Kings of Leon. Notice similar band formation on stage, in instruments and performance.

• Finally, we can understand that our chosen band and their music falls into the Indie/Alternative music genre by comparing their music to that of a successful mainstream band of the genre.

http://www.thesixtyone.com/pilots#/s/Pf2KRypqZbl/ This is a link to our chosen band’s web page. As songs cannot be linked individually, select from the playlist to your right the song Cosmonauts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZyGWg0uqkw This second link is to the renown Indie/Alternative band, Kings of Leon’s song, Revelry.

• If you listen to each, you can hear vast similarities between the two sounds created from each band. Firstly in both songs an eerie, echoing riff is repeated throughout, creating a mournful, trance-like atmosphere to coincide with the lyrics of each song. Although Pilots use a synth riff and K.O.L a guitar riff, the sounds unmistakably mirror each other. The feel created by each record is one of bold, yet moody, Southern rock.Secondly the contribution of percussion. Each have a slow tempo that increases slightly when soft, rhythmic and erratic drumming is introduced. The tempo also rises and falls in each in correlation with the chorus, bridge and verses, often slowing at the start of each verse before rising at the chorus or bridge.Finally, although the voice’s of the singer’s differ drastically in style, accent and capability there is yet again likeness between the two. While lead singer, Anthony Caleb Followill of K.O.L, has a powerful throaty voice, that changes in tone equally as dramatically as the changes in tempo and echoes over the riffs and chords with undeniable passion, the style of lead singer, Josh Taylor of Pilots is less of a spectacle but equally as effective. His voice is of a deeper tone, with less variation in pitch, yet it rises powerfully above the echoing riffs as opposed to working with them.

Who typically buys this genre? How you know? What Age?

• The typical audience for Indie/Alternative music is both males and females between the ages of 14 and 25, mostly teenagers. I understand this audience to be most attracted to the genre as it influences them and inspires them within their daily lives. Firstly I have compared images taken from the Facebook accounts of aqquaintences and friends of mine (ages ranging from 17-21) to those of members from Indie/Alternative artists and we can see that the bands or singers have influenced their image and attitude.

Firstly, to our left we have a friend of mine, aged 17 who is a fan of the band Oasis. We can see here that he has taken fashion influences from the band itself. He wears a neck scarf casually in the same way as the front man of the band.

Next we have another friend of mine, aged 19, who enjoys listening to Indie, Alternative and Metal music. Once again there is a strong connection between his style and the style of the artists he listens to. Here I have compared his look to that of Indie singer, Jack Penate. We can see similarities in clothing choice –checkered shirts, large jackets- and the styling of hair- messy, long, with fringe.

Finally, I have compared a close friend, aged 21, who’s favorite artists include Indie artists such as Florence and the Machine, Kate Nash and Laura Marling, to one of the leading female artists of the Indie/Alternative genre, Kate Nash. Once again we can see strong fashion inspiration- similar hair styles (full fringe, tousled/curly long hair), makeup (eyeliner and lipstick) and feminine dresses in a bold statement colour and 50’s style.

In order to further clarify who the audience is that typically buys, enjoys and follows this genre and the age group into which they fall I created a simple questionnaire, that I handed out to 15 people between the ages of 14-25+

To the left is a blank copy of the questionnaire.

From my questionnaire I found that the typical audience for this genre does range from ages

• Here are the results of my questionnaire:

Age RangeAged 14-16

Aged 17-19

Aged 20-24

Aged 25+

Genre Preference IndieAlternativeRockMetalR&BBashmentDubstepClassicalOther

Enjoy Indie/Alternative

YesNoSome-times

Those that said they enjoy Indie music explained it was because of: the lyrics, the image and fashion, standard of live performance, suits changes in mood, catchy songs and good beats/rhythm.

GenderMaleFemale

What are the likes/dislikes of target audience? How are they reflected in other music videos

from chosen genre?• Judging from the results of my previous questionnaire I can

determine that the target audience like the Indie/Alternative genre because:

a) The lyrics appeal to themb) The image and fashion appeal to themc) Live performances from the genre are goodd) Songs from the genre suit all moodse) Easy listeningf) Catchy songsg) Good beat and rhythm

• We can see some of the things that audience members claim that attract them to Indie/Alt music reflected in video’s from the genre.

For example, many target audience members claimed that it was the strong influential presence of image and fashion that attracted them to Indie. Many Indie videos are either entirely performance or include some performance in conjunction with narrative or concept. This reflects the image-based nature of the genre and the importance of how others perceive the band or artists.

In each of the examples below, we can see successful artists (The Kooks, Kate Nash, The Killers, Florence and the Machine and The Metros) all

of which are dressed in quirky clothes that fit the style of the ‘Indie/Alternative’ genre. The artists, as you can see are the

focus of each scene. Audience’s will read this as the artist(‘s) are of great importance or significance and therefore look up to them and find them inspirational or influentialbecause of the importance

placed upon image.

• Although my results favored Indie/Alternative music, some answers highlighted what the audience found less appealing and did not like about the genre:

a) The themes and fashion aren’t interesting to some

b) Too slow paced at timesc) Sad and emotional songs and lyrics aren’t

appealing, not excitingd) Artists can seem pretentious and too image

orientated

• Despite being able to notice the factors that attract audiences to the genre reflected in other music video’s, we are also able to pull out visual representations of the target audience’s dislikes of the genre from other artists videos.

• Firstly, the same examples given to support the previous argument that performance image based videos act as an attraction for audiences, can be used to justify the claims from those who find it a repellent and understand the constant presentation of the artists in fashionable clothing and performing to be ‘showing off’.

• Secondly, target audience members also brought forward the point that slow and sad songs hold little interest for them as they cannot find interest in the music or the video. An example of a video and song that reflect this dislike audience members hold is Hey There Delilah, by The Plain White T’s. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbJtYqBYCV8&ob=av3e Although some audience members may enjoy the sorrowful lyrics and simple, slow, artistic performance/narrative video, others may not as very little in fact happens in the video, there are no fast cuts or increases in tempo, there is a repetition of footage already shown, the colours are dull and neither the video nor the song have an upbeat feel to them. Something that some audience members may favor over emotional, slow songs.

How do the song’s lyrics meet the needs and desires of your target audience?

Alarms-I long what summer bringsSunlight through open windowsHighlighting a lack of need for any kind of worry I watched the time expireRemove the carpet from my feetOn my living roomAnd with it all I want to keep the safety of my youthI don’t want to go When I hear that bellSignal fire in my headFrom out of this perfect slumber comes crystalline fearThe ring pulses in my earHot blood pumping through my brainFlash grenades remove my sensesI know I’m never going to hear the laughter from these streetsI don’t want to go

Lyrics are emotional and provide

opportunity for audience members to

relate their own hardships and feeling to

the music.

For example, the singer highlights his fear of

time passing before his eyes and growing up

when all he wants to do is ‘keep the safety of

[his] youth’

And evening’s on the windMorning content to close its eyesI catch a fleeting glance of someone I recogniseBut cannot apprehend the lies a decade in our eyesAn eminence of faithOf prospects unbeknown to me He lights a cigaretteThe glinting die is cast at noonA child is leftA man is held in one resounding need A signal fire in my head…A signal fire in my head…And with it all I want to keep the safety of my youthI don’t want to go

How would a concept/narrative/performance video

meet the needs of this audience?• Narrative- would work well with lyrics both in an illustrative or amplifying way (Goodwin) as

the artist is speaking of memories, longing for the past and his thoughts, all of which could be interpreted well and a story created from them. This is something the target audience would find appealing -if conjoined with moments of performance as it will meet their need of having an image based ‘idol’ to look up to and find inspiration from without becoming too image-orientated as the narrative will provide relief from this. This will also fulfill their need for lyrics they can relate to and derive meaning from as the lyrics will be represented visually, provoking more emotion from audience members. I do not think an entirely narrative video would meet the needs of our target audience as effectively as a performance narrative.

• Performance- in the same way as mentioned above, a video that is only performance from the artists would not meet the needs of our target audience as members would lose attraction and interest if the video is too image based and the band are presented as ‘showing off’

• Concept- finally, concept would only be successful if combined with one or all of the above as concept videos alone in general do not completely maintain audience interest and taking into consideration the needs our target audience outlined to us, would not appeal to our intended audience, as although the video would not be image orientated, there would also be nothing for audience members who look to the videos for fashion inspiration to find interest in.