Textual analyses
- 1. TEXTUAL ANALYSES Music video Georgia Wilson
- 2. MIND MAP -The main purpose of a music video is to promote the release of a new album. A music video will often represent a group or individual. For artists music videos establish the artist into the genre, it shows the audience what they’re about and what music messages they incorporate into their music. It increases the fan base of that artist. -To gain popularity some producers pair big artists with upcoming artists, which helps them gain their own fan base. This was done with Emeli Sande in Professor Green’s ‘Read All About It’, since the music video release she has re-released her own version of this song and her increase of popularity led her to perform at the closing ceremony of the Olympics.
- 3. MIND MAP Music videos can be promoting sales of not only albums but films too. http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=zk4qJ3bzt5U Will Smith made this video to promote his film ‘Men in Black’, this video was made for his large fan base that will then want to see the film. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4- 732dLRCw This video is promoting a band name Skindred, they have taken into consideration that the creativity of the video is a talking point. Also using attractive dancers for visual pleasure that draws in male attention, this is more commonly know as the Male Gaze Theory.
- 4. Phaeleh –Lament http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FuzHBSa_FDs Codes and Conventions The genre of this music video is Ambient/ downtempo. The video is slow paced and filmed in exotic places such as the dessert, this is because they are wide open spaces and they connote with peace and freedom. The women featured in the video are young and attractive, they draw in the male attention noted from The Male Gaze Theory – Laura Mulvey, the men want to be with the actors and the women want to be them. Maybe not just through looks, but in freedom, these actors appear to be living a care free life. The use of exotic animals in this video may draw in viewers as it makes the video more exciting. The colours used in the video are very earth based and they connote peace with mankind and nature. Although I believe black is used to show that there will always be a mysterious or down side.
- 5. Narrative As the music video progresses in a chronological order it is a linear narrative, although as there is no real comprehensive story it could also be viewed as non-linear. There are fiction and non-fiction elements to the video that make it somewhat relatable for instance the real meaning of wanting a peace between nature and mankind and also everyone longs for freedom. Yet, the fictional interaction between these exotic animals and attractive women in slow motion almost makes the video humorous as it isn’t believable.
- 6. Audience As I have spoken about before, the video has a sense of the Male Gaze Theory. Men will watch the video and want to be with the women actors where as the woman will want to be them. In other Phaeleh music videos I believe it is aimed at a younger audience, yet the actors in this music video seem to be around 25- 30. I still think that Phaeleh’s audience in general are free thinkers and carefree, those in the younger generation. But the content of this video suggests freedom and I believe it is sending that message to those who are older. The content of the video also suggests that the audience attracted will be those who want to help the earth and are very nature orientated. They will also want to bring peace to mankind.
- 7. Editing techniques The music video demonstrates a slow motion effect that is used continuously through the video. It adds to the atmosphere and the surreal ambience. There are many camera angles used throughout, such as the wide angles shot that establish the landscape, the close up of the actresses faces which put across the emotion within the scene and the many mid shots of animals, shot in HD. These elements make the audience not only appreciate the professionalism of the video but the emotion they are trying to display. There is also fading between shots, this compliments the slow tempo of the music video and is more dramatic, making the video more interesting.
- 8. Boards Of Canada – Everything You Do Is A Balloon http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQEmaj9C6ko Codes and conventions The genre of this music is Ambient/ Electronica. It’s this genre that suggests the video will be slow pace as ambient music is about the calming and intriguing effects of visual aids. The music video was originally a safety awareness video for bike riders, although there were elements added and removed for the video itself such as the narration as it is a music video and they added in animations to show the drop in the number of people, which is eerier than the original as it’s basically showing a count down to death. The last animation and the end of the video is a 1, representing the last child standing. The children wear monkey masks and tails to represent the misunderstanding of communication, in the way that if it were monkeys being told they would not fully understand just like these children didn’t. There is an antique grain added to the film that has been added to make the video look older, this effect goes strongly with ambient music because it adds to the hazy ambience that the music makes you feel.
- 9. Narrative This video shows a ‘situation’ to the audience. It is non-fictional obviously due to the content of the video. Although the video is very conceptual as it is about events that could happen. Visually the video is linear because the ‘events’ happen in chronological order, there is even a animated count down that allows the viewer to follow every step of the video. Yet, as the video is non-fictional and has been adapted to the music it had a non-linear element as it is a video about a concept: awareness. The original video tells the whole story of each child and what they did wrong to end up dead. The music video has made each clip more mysterious and quite sinister as you never find out what that child did wrong to die. And then the one child who lives eats the other children’s lunches, by not seeing the original video makes the music video very dark.
- 10. Audience The original video was made in 1963 and was aimed at children and parents, it was sending a message of safety awareness. The video was then constructed to fit Boards of Canada’s music in the 90’s, it brought in an audience as the video was considered vintage. Due to the content of the video it was seen as quite visually stimulating as the band were assumed to use psychedelic drugs, the way the video had been edited is considered to be weird, dark and exciting. The word ‘trippy’ has been used widely by people who have commented on Youtube , this refers to the psychedelic trips induced by drugs, a term used since the 60’s, when the original video came out. The expected audience to this music video are the creative and soulful people, maybe the young generation with minds of their own, this is evident as the music video has been adapted in such a way that it is matter of opinion of what the music video could mean. “The monkeys are the wild creative desires born into us all. Over time, they die out. From the cars, society's machines of system. From exhaustion; our natural state cannot keep up with the artificial speed of the life. The pothole, a man-made danger, built-in to society. It's a warning that the hustle and bustle of modern life is not at ease with our spirit and nature.” – comment on Youtube
- 11. Editing techniques As the music video is built by extracts from a safety awareness video made in 1963, there aren’t many editing techniques that are the work of those associated with Boards of Canada. The narrative of the original video has been moved, removed, switched and edited. So that the music video is more mysterious and would not make sense if it was not for the music itself. Also, the voice over to the original video has been removed. The fact that these editing techniques did not come from those who work with Boards of Canada shows that they already had a meaning that they thought would fit well with the visuals of the original video. However, they did add an animated countdown in between clips, they do look like very old drawing, using soft colours, that fit with the video well. I believe they added this countdown to make the video more intense and ‘creepy’.
- 12. Summary Looking at both videos I have learnt that I need to be careful with planning what I want to example within my own video. From these videos my partner and I have decided that we want to make a video that will not only be enjoyed by our target audience but by everyone, thus widening the ‘target pool’. I really like the old-time grain effect used on the Boards of Canada video and hope to be able to include it within my video.
- 13. TEXTUAL ANALYSIS Digipak Georgia Wilson
- 14. Boards of Canada – Music Has The Right To Children The genre of this album is electronic ambient. The digipak sticks to the normal conventions such as the album art on the front, a track list on the back and the track list printed on the hard disk as well. In a shop the first thing people will look for is the title so they are able to find out what the album is called and who it is by. The title is a simple text as it reflects the calmness of the artists personality. The track list on the back is so that people are aware of the song titles, it is also printed on the front of the hard disk as many people lose the cases and if that was the case then it is handy for them to have the track list on the front as they wouldn’t know which song was playing. The album art isn’t bold and in your face like many mainstream albums it is subtle and it stands out because it is different from all the other albums.
- 15. Lettering - The font is rounded and small which, like the imagery, also doesn’t stand out. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it’s good because it’s different and it shows that this band are more interested in their music than their image and as a music lover I respect that. And that is why Boards of Canada have earned so much respect from their fans. The modern text could represent the electronic sounds to their music. They also haven’t used capital letters to show that they are different and to add to the relaxing vibes from the artists.
- 16. Image There is an odd familiarity to the imagery Boards of Canada use. It is warm and calming, which is noticeable straight away. The blue/ green hues that are present are used in a very different way to what they usually are. Normally these colours connote coldness and sadness but the colours present here show calmness and clarity of thought, even though there is a haze to the image. The haze connotes memories and with the content of the image I would say it is a fond memory. The fact that they are faceless in the image suggests it is for the audience benefit. That they will be able to place themselves as the model in the image. This relates to personal identity of the Blumler and Katz’s theory of Uses and Gratifications. (1974).
- 17. Representation Boards of Canada are known for their thoughts and views on society. It is evident with their music. What they represent is what the new generation are missing. Appreciation for the way we live. They example all of our behaviour and how we worry for the little things in life. This is what Boards of Canada are trying to show. That society needs to relax. The imagery represents the ‘old days’ where things were simpler. They aren’t trying to show that their music is better than others of their genre or that they have more money, girls, tangible objects, their digipak shows that they are about their music, where as other genres are trying to shove what they have done society’s throat. The blurred out faces could represent the new generation that have lost their selves.
- 18. Audience - As mentioned before Boards of Canada make their music because that is what they love. It’s not for the money or popularity, it’s for their genuine love of music. The audience will be those who agree with their views and those already fans of the genre. There music is noticed by recommendation of those who listen to this genre of music. There isn’t much advertisement for Boards of Canada as they don’t try to persuade people into listening to their music. This is why they are respected as they respect the fact that not everyone will want or like to listen to their music. - Those who will buy their music is people who example the thoughts and views of Boards of Canada. They will be people who look to relax and will be calmed by the music.
- 19. Aphex Twin- Window licker The genre of the album is considered ‘electronic’ yet Aphex Twin are also considered ambient. The thing with Aphex Twin is that they love to confuse and shock the audience, which is how they gained their audience in the first place. It’s as if Aphex Twin are mocking the usual conventions of a digipak, they have taken a woman with an attractive body to put on the front linking to the Male Gaze Theory stated by Laura Mulvey, yet they have used Aphex Twin’s (Richard D. James) face, which has been superimposed onto the body. This is comical and shocking it grabs the attention of people who are just passing by. These comical and shocking elements are also evident on the back as it is plain white with a barcode . This shows that Aphex Twin is about having fun and confusing the audience. Which is why people like it.
- 20. Lettering - It is obvious that Aphex Twin doesn’t take himself to seriously. Which is what people enjoy about him and his music. The album is a single so there wouldn’t be much text anyway but I think the reason there is next to no text is because it is supposed to be confusing. - There is the small text of the title, it is a modern text and it does reflect the music. - There isn’t much to say about the lettering for obvious reasons but the simplicity of it all could be argued more effective. It’s shocking which makes it memorable.
- 21. Image The image straight away allows the audience to see the oddness and humour of Aphex Twin’s personality. And strangely it does example the music, it shows that it will be different. The reason for this picture I believe is to make the audience uncomfortable. Applying the Male Gaze Theory, Men will look straight at the woman’s body but will then realise Aphex Twin’s face which will be disturbing for them but after that the humour of the picture is what they will like about the image. I think it is women who will appreciate the humour of the image more as they may be envious of the body they certainly won’t be envious of the face. Overall, the image is so odd that people will want to know if the music reflects it, so it is in fact a selling point.
- 22. Representation - Aphex Twin challenges normal stereotypes by using himself on the front of his digipak, where as other artists from this genre will most likely use a piece of artwork. -He has used a woman on the front that has a lot of skin showing this is not commonly seen in electronic/ambient music, where it is regularly seen in hip/hop, pop and general mainstream music. -I think what he is trying to show is that not everything needs to be so serious. I think he does share a similar view to Boards of Canada.
- 23. Audience The people most likely to buy this album are those who enjoy a joke and don’t take themselves too seriously. ‘Life lovers’. They will be young as stereotypically this genre is seen as just ‘noise’ by those of an older generation. People who will buy the CD will be those who like Aphex Twin or are major fans of the genre, it is rare that people would buy a CD because they liked the image or the front or that the text looked interesting. With this genre making a digipak is just about what the artist likes, instead of trying to make people buy it.
- 25. Aphex Twin I would say that the poster somewhat portrays the genre of the music as it has visually conceptual elements to it that has been thought carefully by the producer but there is the unfamiliar elements in there to promote the artist. The blues and the star are there to connote peace which is usually in ambient music but the red hues and the very industrial looking background are there because they are different just like Aphex Twin. There seems to be a anti- establishment theme to this poster that I think many of the young audience will like.
- 26. There is a website on the poster that informs people that allows the audience to know that there is extra information available. The layout of the text makes it easy to read and makes sure the the audience will see everything on the page however, I find the background too distracting and think takes attention away from it.
- 27. Boards of Canada This poster is eye-catching not only because it’s bright and plain but because it will take a while for the audience to read the text. In fact some people won’t know what it says until they read the name underneath. I think this is clever because it grabs the attention of the audience and keeps them there for long thus making the poster memorable. This poster reflects the music very well because it challenges the audience just like their music does.
- 28. There is a ‘seeing double’ effect to the art work that may link with Boards of Canada’s positive views towards psychedelic drugs, they may have used this to symbolise the dreamy and odd sounds to their music. The pink and blue used may be to symbolise the audience and how it is not aimed at one sex. I think it symbolises their effort to connect everyone. Even though the artwork may be crazy I feel the poster is very simple and straight to the point which I like as it shows that they care more about their music than promoting it, they are in it for their enjoyment which I think is inspiring.