Textual Analysis

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By Sophia Doughty. TEXTUAL ANALYSIS

Transcript of Textual Analysis

Page 1: Textual Analysis

By Sophia Doughty.

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS

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• To promote an artist’s song/album. By reaching out to certain audiences by including actors and conventions that appeal to the audience for example in Eminem’s video – ‘Love The Way You Lie’ famous actress Megan Fox features throughout as she may draw in certain audiences as people are interested in her films. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uelHwf8o7_U

• Allowing people to gain recognition of the artist.

• Representation of the target audience through the use of gender, ethnicity, age and social class in music videos enables viewers to become attracted to the video as in some ways the audience and band/actors may have something in common.

• Product placement in order to make a greater profit out of the video and giving different companies credit as well as aiming towards their target audience by researching what the viewers purchase or may be interested in purchasing. In All Time Low’s video for ‘I Feel Like Dancing’ the band focus on mocking typical conventions of music videos and cover what other artists do to draw in their audience.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTJkE8Ki3Gg

• Music videos also aim to pursue messages it may

not have anything to do with the song however producers

may have placed it in the video to get their political, social

and cultural views across.

• Some music videos also involve synergy by including clips from a certain film that the

• song may feature in, this enables the artist and the film to receive a greater audience. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNJqTVnZsCU

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF MUSIC VIDEOS.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWaFVvVoj4o

The Bucket – Kings of Leon was released in 2004 as an Indie Rock song and features on the album Aha Shake Heartbreak. By looking deeply into this video it will be clear to see what is a necessity in a music video of this genre.

As the genre of this song is indie rock, typical conventions are included in the video to portray the song’s strong message for example shots of the band playing and shots are various instruments associated with the genre. The song is based around certain members of the band dealing with fame at a young age as the band became very well known when members of the band were only 17 years of age.

VIDEO 1: THE BUCKET - KINGS OF LEON

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The video begins with a mid-shot of many record players and then transitions into a close-up shot of a video beginning to get projected on a screen informing the viewer that the song is about to start through the diegetic sound that had been added of the tape going round. The video then alternates between various close-up shots of the band throughout the video and showing shots displaying the setting of the video for example different parts of the room looking as though it is a recording studio. The video continues with various shots of the band playing. The video ends with a shot of a microphone standing on its own suggesting to the viewer that the song has finished. This video has a linear narrative as well as being a single strand video which focuses solely on the band performing.

The song is based around certain members of the band dealing fame at a young age and this is displayed in the video by fast paced shots and a lot of movement which has been edited to the beat to give the video a much stronger drive. There is use of lip syncing in this video which draws in the viewer as it looks as though the artist is singing to the audience. This non-fiction video involves several camera movements and shots such as tracking shots in order to display the whole band and extreme close ups which emphasizes emotion and certain objects and actions this causes the video to catch the viewer’s eye much more easily.

CAMERA WORK + EDITING.

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The costume that the band are wearing stays very closely to the rock genre and is conventional for the song as it may be what the target audience expects the band to wear. As well as this the clothes that the band are wearing may be the sort of style of clothing that the target audience may wear causing the audience to feel as though they have something in common with the band and making them feel relaxed when watching the video.

The video is set in a small studio type setting rather than a large and crowded setting, I feel that the reason for this decision of setting is so that the viewer feels at one with the band and it looks as though the band are playing only to them.

High key lighting is used throughout the video in order to give a positive bright look on the video as well as casting the viewer’s attention much more successfully.

MISE-EN-SCENE + LIGHTING.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wF1WzzrLmpk

"Say You Don't Want It" is a song by English indie rock band One Night Only released on the band’s second album. The single was released in august 2010 and was available as both a digital download and physical single.

The music video for this single was filmed in New York and directed by James Lees. The music video features Harry Potter actress Emma Watson which gave the single and music video a lot more publicity and drew in a much wider audience causing more people to purchase the song. This video has a linear narrative and involves a double strand storyline as it features both the artist performing and a storyline taking place as well.

VIDEO 2: ONE NIGHT ONLY – SAY YOU

DON’T WANT IT.

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The video begins with fast paced shots of different locations in New York, displaying close ups and mid-close-ups of various objects for example, shoes hanging from an electric cord as well as people walking and carrying out their everyday lives. The video then transitions into a close-up shot of the lead singer of the band beginning to sing the song on a roof of a building suggesting that they are looking out at people carrying out their everyday lives. The video then continues with fast paced transitions of shots of people carrying out their everyday lives. There is then a long shot of graffiti stating ‘I still love her’ this may be an introduction of a message that continues later on in the video. There are then some more shots of the city which continue to set the scene for the video. There is then some fast paced shots of the band playing and an extreme close-up on a band member playing a keyboard. There is then a long shot of Emma Watson which introduces the character to the video, following this there is then a tilt shot following the band members and displaying the idea of them coming down from the roof of the building where they were performing at first and finding them walking down a street. The video then returns to a similar long shot of Emma Watson looking as though she is looking out for someone. The video then returns to the band members walking in a different location and then this shot quickly transitions into mid-close-ups of the band performing on the roof of the building where they had been performing previously in the video. Following this, there is then a tracking shot of the band members walking down a street , one of the members disappears into a shop and then shortly comes back out. This shot quickly changes into an over-the-shoulder-shot of Emma Watson looking towards the band members. There is then a quick mid-close-up of the lead singer of the band and then on to Emma Watson in order to display their emotions towards seeing each other.

CAMERA WORK AND EDITING IN THE VIDEO.

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The lead singer then crosses the road to see Emma Watson however the facial expressions that Emma is portraying looks as though she does not wish to see him and tries to get away however, from this moment the lead singer of the band begins to follow Emma Watson. There is then a sharp cutaway from the main objects which displays more of the city. This is where the audience begins to believe that these two characters may have had a previous relationship and the lead singer still has feelings for her. As reluctant as Emma was at first to have dealings with the singer, she then begins to become a lot more comfortable with him and begins to follow him around as well. There is then another tilt shot suggesting that the sun has gone down as the couple are now wondering round the city at night. The couple then come across the singer’s band members and it seems as though Emma Watson feels uncomfortable as she is standing quite a distance away from the others although, she is then reassured by the singer as he calls her over and puts his arm round her as they walk away. The video concludes with various shots of the band playing and the couple walking around the city. As the couple go to kiss one another a car then pulls up into shot and a woman runs out and collects a dog that was. The video ends with a dog looking back at another dog sat on a pavement watching the dog in the car drive away.

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The mise-en-scene in the video very much sets the scene for the target audience as the video is set in a very working class area of New York. The costume in which the cast of the video are wearing is very much what the target audience would wear especially those that have a great interest in the Indie genre. The use of the youthful cast also reaches out a lot more successfully as I had found from the questionnaire I carried out that the majority of the indie rock genre is listened to by younger audiences between 16 and 25.

There is a mixture of both high and low key lighting in this video as the majority of the video is telling a love story of the singer and the female. When the band are performing in certain shots there is high key lighting being used although, when Emma Watson does not look impressed at seeing the singer, low key lighting is being used in order to change the atmosphere and create a visible mood in the video.

MISE-EN-SCENE & LIGHTING.

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By looking at these two music videos, I have discovered that I feel that a music video is a lot more successful when it includes both a storyline and various shots of the band performing and I will try to take this into consideration when planning the music video that I will be creating. I have also established that involving a cast that are of a similar age to the target audience and putting them into the role of living the kind of lifestyle the target audience may be living allows the audience to connect with the song much more. For example, in a similar sort of area that the audience may visit or live in as well as wearing a similar style of clothes that the target audience would wear.

From looking deeply into different music videos I also believe that fast paced shots work very well in the style of music video I will be creating as it will keep the viewers attention a lot more easily. I will try to interpret this into the music video I will be creating.

SUMMARY OF MUSIC VIDEOS

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Album covers are very significant to bands and artists as this is what makes their music recognizable and gives their band a particular image. Not only does it make the artist unique but allows the audience and listeners to know what they’re looking for on the shelf when purchasing the album. Inserts inside the album also contribute towards publicizing and promoting the music as there may be information on upcoming tours and singles the band will be releasing as well as the audience feeling at one with the artist as they gain an insight into the making of the album and the artist’s everyday life. The album artwork and image are created in order to reflect the genre of music and to draw in a specific audience.

Album advertisements cause people to gain knowledge of newly released album as well as persuading them to purchase the album. Many advertisements also involve a direction of where to purchase the album meaning that the credited store will gain more profit.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF ALBUM COVERS AND ADVERTISEMENTS.

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‘THE KOOKS – KONK’ ALBUM COVER.

The Kooks fall into the indie genre and most bands reflect the genre of music they produce through their album artwork and posters as when the CD is on shelves people who are fans of the specific genre are able to pick it up by basing the album cover on conventional features. The Kooks have been able to reflect their genre with this album cover through colour use, font type and image. The main aspect of this album cover is the image as this is quite spread out across the cover. As well as this the image on the cover sticks to the typical conventions of album covers as the album’s image on the front is of the band who are relatively mainstream following the likes of artists such as Rihanna as these type of artists regularly bring out albums and will also want their faces on the front of covers to bring in a larger audience as they’re featured on TV a lot as their music videos are shown on TV so people who don’t know the name of these artists can just find their face on album covers and purchase the album through TV recognition. The naturalistic style of the image also allows the album cover to be easy on the eye causing the consumer to feel more relaxed when observing at the album. The colours blue and black are featured on the cover, these colours can be associated with indie music due to the colours being connected with electricity and strobe lights, therefore The Kooks have used these colours on the front of their album in order to give their audience a greater idea of what their music’s. Although the colours are used to a great extent in order to maintain a sophisticated look.

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The band members featured on the cover of the album are styled in stereotypical indie rock clothing in order to attract the target audience to the album as researchers may have looked into what sort of clothing the audience wear and dressed the band the same in order to create a link between the artist and

consumer.

The lettering of the album is very clear, bold and

relatively informal as it is a sans serif block capital font.

The font used for the album name is also cleverly done

as it is made out of light as though it is a sign for a bar or

Nightclub although the typeface isn’t as in your face as it

could be due to the band members being featured on the

front cover.

This is a recognizable font type as their fans will be able to spot it on the shelf as they will be familiar with the font style being included on previous album covers and other aspects promoting the band with this house style on. The name of the album is also made from a sans serif font.

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The genre of this Coldplay album is indie and was released in 2011 named Mylo Xyloto. At first glance the first thing you notice about this album cover is the very colourful front to the album, which is included in order to catch the audiences eye when the target audience walk into a shop, Coldplay want their eyes to go straight to their album cover. This album cover involves no photos however maintains the indie look by including various other conventions to draw in the viewer. As well as this Coldplay may feel as though they do not need to include an image of themselves due to past success as a popular indie rock group, Coldplay have been very successful in the past with many album releases and none of their 4 albums include photos of them on however have all managed to reach number 1. Meaning that Coldplay would not need a visual indicator on their album cover to tell their audience who they are. The album cover doesn’t even include the band name, suggesting that the album may have had a lot of medias coverage and publicity so the target audience will understand who the artist of the album are. The album is advertised on TV, train station bill boards and as pop ups on the internet, therefore people are already aware of the album cover before its release. The album name ‘Mylo Xyloto’ has no meaning according to the band however I believe that this is an open interpretation technique that another band have used as album covers are mainly about opinion and being able to find a deeper meaning within.

‘COLDPLAY – MYLO XYLOTO’ ALBUM COVER.

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By looking at various album covers I would definitely like to interpret the style of Coldplay’s album cover in the digi-pak I will be creating due to the hand drawn style of the album cover. I also believe that the bright colours included on the front cover are very important in order to draw in the target audience. The font style is also incredibly important on album covers as people need to be able to read the text from a far as well as recognize the artist. I would very much like to interpret the futuristic look of the album covers by involving bight colours and futuristic, informal font.

SUMMARY OF ALBUM COVERS.

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‘ELLIE GOULDING – LIGHTS’MAGAZINE ADVERTISEMENT.

The image chosen to be on the advertisement is of Ellie Goulding who is a indie pop artist the reason in which they used an image of Ellie Goulding herself is to promote her album and make people familiar with her as well as a similar image features on the album cover. She has not been featured with a lot of makeup in order to display a natural look. The advertisement has been designed to look visually cluttered meaning that the page is busy as there is no free space on the advertisement even if a lot of the page is taken up by the gold glitter effect on the page which causes the viewer to look twice at the advertisement as the effect is not used very often. As well as this the advertisement links in very well with the album’s title as the album is called lights suggesting that the the glitter effect on the advertisement are representing lights. Goffman (1979) suggests that women have learned to see themselves as being ‘looked at’ meaning that in this advertisement Ellie Goulding has to represent herself the correct way in order to attract the target audience linking to this theory is the Male Gaze theory Mulvey (1975) this theory suggests that people look at advertisements different for example for pleasure as well as how men look at images of women and how women view women. People may look at this advertisement and look up to the artist as a role model as Ellie Goulding is looking very natural. The image to text ratio on this advertisement is very noticeable as the image takes up the majority of the page and there is very little text suggesting that the target audience are more likely to be persuaded by the image. However, the text that is included on the advertisement is relatively persuasive as it involves ratings and comments from well known music magazines such as The Fly.

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‘NOAH AND THE WHALE – THE FIRST DAYS OF SPRING’ MAGAZINE

ADVERTISEMENT.

This album advertisement is for Indie band Noah and The Whale who feature in the image on the advertisement. The colour blue is the main colour used in the advertisement to suggest a calm and relaxing look to the advert. The colour is also connoted with the flow of communication suggesting that the advertisement is trying to cause people to get talking about the album in order to persuade more people to purchase the album and widen the audience. The text on the advertisement is formal due to the serif style that has been used. The image on the advertisement involves high key lighting in order to portray a positive message. There is very little text on the advertisement as the main feature on the advert is the image. Although the text that is included on the advert is very persuasive and tells the reader exactly what they need to know. There is also a website address featured on the bottom of the advertisement suggesting that the reader should find out more about the album on the website and if the reader wishes to find out more they have a choice to do so.

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From looking at the advertisements I have discovered the successful conventions that cause people to purchase the album. For example, I believe that advertisements work best when there is an image of the artist so people can recognize the artist easily and fans of the artist will be drawn to the the advert. As well as this I have found that advertisements work best when there is minimal text so the main focus is on the image as people will be able to understand what the advertisement is for before reading the text.

SUMMARY OF MAGAZINE ADVERTISEMENTS.