Research and Planning- Deconstruction of a music video. Genre

I have started some research into music videos and i have done a deconstruction of the music video "Bat Country" by Avenged Sevenfold. I have chosen this music video because it is a great example of conventions in a rock/metal music video and because it has links to film aswell.

Song Research:- (sourced from wikipedia)

"Bat Country" is the title of a song by American metal band Avenged Sevenfold. The song was released in August 2005 as the second single from their third album, City of Evil. Avenged Sevenfold won 'Best New Artist' at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards for "Bat Country" and on October 1, 2009, the single was certified gold by the RIAA.

Here are the lyrics to the song so that you can get an understanding of the overall theme:

"He who makes a beast out of himself, gets rid of the pain of being a man"

Caught here in a fiery blaze, won't lose my will to stay.
I tried to drive all through the night,
the heat stroke ridden weather, the barren empty sights.
No oasis here to see, the sand is singing deathless words to me.

Can't you help me as I'm startin' to burn (all alone).
Too many doses and I'm starting to get an attraction.
My confidence is leaving me on my own (all alone).
No one can save me and you know I don't want the attention.

As I adjust to my new sights the rarely tired lights will take me to new heights.
My hand is on the trigger I'm ready to ignite.
Tomorrow might not make it but everything's all right.
Mental fiction, follow me; show me what it's like to be set free.

Can't you help me as I'm startin' to burn (all alone).
Too many doses and I'm starting to get an attraction.
My confidence is leaving me on my own (all alone).
No one can save me and you know I don't want the attention.

So sorry you're not here I've been sane too long my vision's so unclear.
Now take a trip with me but don't be surprised when things aren't what they seem.

Caught here in a fiery blaze, won't lose my will to stay.
These eyes won't see the same, after I flip today.

Sometimes I don't know why we'd rather live than die,
we look up towards the sky for answers to our lives.
We may get some solutions but most just pass us by,
don't want your absolution cause I can't make it right.
I'll make a beast out of myself, gets rid of all the pain of being a man.

Can't you help me as I'm startin' to burn (all alone).
Too many doses and I'm starting to get an attraction.
My confidence is leaving me on my own (all alone).
No one can save me and you know I don't want the attention.

So sorry you're not here I've been sane too long my vision's so unclear.
Now take a trip with me but don't be surprised when things aren't what they seem.
I've known it from the start all these good ideas will tear your brain apart.
Scared but you can follow me I'm too weird to live but much too rare to die.

Overall this video is a mixture between a narrative and performance clip. The video starts with words reading 'He who makes a beast of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man", that rev ups  on a blck screen in time with the diegetic sound of a car reving it's engine. The clip cut to a shot of yellow lines and the sound of car wheels screeches, then transforms into the scram of the lead vocalist. This is called a sound bridge. The clip cuts to a shot of the vocalist singing and there are quick cutts to show a red convertable driving uncontrollably through the barran desert of Las Vegas. The camera movements are quick and disorientating, giving an impression of being drunk or high on drugs. There is more quick cuts showing the bands members in  the car which then cuts to a wide shot of th band playing in a motel  room. The lighting is quite dark with a tinge of green to add a sickly, confused atmosphere. The footage is in high contrast. As the music is quite up tempo the cuts are quick to reflect this. Cuts are kept in time with the beat. Special effects are use to sho the overall theme of hallucinating and being on drugs, which are also mentioned in the lyrics. Some of the footage freezes in times with the drum beats, which then cuts to a new shot.

Band members in the background are spead up  to add a hyped effect. There are examples of the male gaze as there are women in revealing clothing dancing in the background. There is a contrast between the women in the motel and a woman depicyed dancing in the streets, as she is quite plump and very theatrical whereas the women in the motel are young, slim and wearing "sexy" clothing. This can be a surprise for the audience. When the music slows down, the footage is also slowed down and there is a lot of dissolve cuts which gives the effect of blurred vision and a confused state. There are some promotional aspects when there are shots show of the band's logo, that are interjected into scenes on props that are relevant to the theme of Las Vegas.

The overall theme of this video is of the pull to lose control in Las Vegas, ending with a shot of  a road sign reading "Drive Carefully, Come Back Soon'. This adds a comical element and contrasts with the clip of the band driving recklessly. This video has links that are based on the film "Fear and loathing in Las Vegas" such as the bats in the desert sky and a member of the band hitting them with a fly swatter, and the overall hullucinations.

Research and Planning- Codes and Conventions - Genre.

Genre plays a big role in creating a music video as the footage has to match the tempo, lyrics and overall style of the music (unless you are making a parody video). For example a piece of music that is linked to rock will most likely show live performances.  

       Here is a list of popular genres in music you can get:-

Pop: with artist such as The Beatles, Michael Jackson and Madonna.
Rock: with artist such as Queen, U2 and Paul McCartney.
Hard Rock: with artist such as AC/DC, Guns N’ Roses and Led Zeppelin.
Rhythm & Blues (R&B): with artist such as Mariah Carey, Rihanna and Black Eyed Peas.
Country: with artists such as Garth Brooks, Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers.
Rock & Roll: with artists such as Elvis Presley, David Bowie and The Rolling Stones.
Latin: with artists such as Julio Iglesias, Ricky Martin and Nelly Furtado.
Disco: with artist like Abba, Bee Gees and  The Jackson 5.
Pop Rock: with artists such as Elton John, Billy Joel and Fleetwood Mac.
Heavy Metal: with bands such as Metallica, Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden.
Dance: with artists such as Britney Spears, Lady Gaga and Janet Jackson.
Jazz: with artists like Nat King Cole, Ray Charles and Miles Davis.
Hip Hop: with artists like Eminem, Jay-Z and  Run-D.M.C.
Folk: with artists such as Bob Dylan, Alison Krauss and James Taylor.
Reggae: with artists like Bob Marley & the Wailers and Dennis Brown.
Grunge: with artists like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and Nirvana.

This is just a selected few and each genre can also have a collection of sub-genres.
After looking at a collection of genres i have put together a list of certain aspects and styles that are repeated in each video, depending on the genre.

Pop:-
Pop videos are usualy quite up beat and fast paced which can attract a young audience, and the videos aree most likely to be a preformance based clip, wth the singer/artist ad band lip syncing the song; there usually isn't any instrumenats featured as most pop artists don't play for their music. There is usually dance sequences that illustrate or match some ofthe lyrics. The overall mise-en-scene of th video would be bright,with the artist wearing mainstream clothing that would be changed several times through out the video. The use of camera pans and zooms with the movements of the artist and there is usually some close-ups ofthe artist to show their emotion. If the music is sadder in nature, the video reflects that but still has an element of brightness. Usually the artist would be wearing more tailored, suit like costumes.


RnB:-
RnB music videos usually have a light tone and is quite similar to pop music video conventions. Th video is usually narrative clip or a simple performance clip in settings like nightclubs, beaches or sububan streets. The costumes for women are usually revealing and the camera shows examples of the male gaze. Props can bbe used to show the 'wealth' of the artist, such as expensive jewellery and up market cars. The narrative of the video usually reflects the lyrics and will show thhe artist lip syncing throughout the video.

Indie:-
Usualy the narrative of a Indie music video is quite symbolic an arty and doesn't follow the lyrics literally. Indie music videoss have a massive variety of conventions, wit a mixture of narrative and performance clips, either showing the complete band or just the main vocalist. The colouring of the video can change depending on the lyrics and tempo of the song, so lighting can be bright, dark or even filmed in black and white. Editing can be fast paced but once again this depends on the music and special effects are sometimes used. For camera there cab be a variety of close-ups to show the main vocalist singing and the band performing, as wel as having wide shots to show the hole bad playing as one. For mise-en-scene the band usually wear casual clothing.


Rock/Metal:-
The overall feeling to a rock/metal music video is quite dark, with high contrast to give the video a very shadowy effect which gives the video a mysterious, egdy tone. The video's are almost always performance based with a variety of close-ups to show each member of the band playing and some wide shots to show them playing as a whole. Narrative clips are also used by are mostly pieced into an overall performance clip. The narrative is often dark and melancholy which matches the dark sound and meanin of the music. The band are usually dressesd in dark, theatrical clothing, with dark make-up and they have an overall dark demeanor, reflecting the style ofmusic. The editing is usually faced paced to match the loud, fast tempo of the song.

Research and Planning- The different styles of music video.

Performance Clip:-

If a music video clip contains mostly filmed performance then it is known as a performance clip. A performance clip is a video that shows the band in one or more settings. Common places to perform are the recording studio and the rehearsal room. But the performance can take place anywhere. Walking down the street is another performance cliché, which is common in rap videos.

The performance can be of three types: song performance, dance performance and instrumental performance. Almost every music video includes song performance. Some videos combine song and dance performances. Michael Jackson’s videos often contain dance performance. Instrumental performance is not so common, but it occurs occasionally. Concert performance on stage with audience is also very common and is known as the concert clip. This form of music video is probably the most used.

This music video "Going Under" by Evanescence is a great example of a preformance clip as it shows the band playing at a gig and also shows Amy Lee (the vocalist) preforming under water. Evanescence is a great band to look at for preformance clips as they have several music videos that are classed as prefomance clips such as "My Immortal","Bring Me To Life" and "What You Want".

Narrative Clip:-

If a music video clip is mostly represented as a short silent movie to a musical background, it is a narrative clip. A narrative clip contains a visual story that is easy to follow. A pure narrative clip contains no lip-synchronized singing. Bruce Springsteen’s I’m on fire is a pure narrative clip.

This music video "Ghost of You" by My Chemical Romance is a great example of a Narrative as it shows a plot or  story that is easy to follow. It also has inigma, like when one of the band members stays behind and looks back instantly making you think something is going to happen to him, this keeps the auience watching and wondering what is going on throught the clip. However this video isn't just a narrative clip and has soome aspects of  a performance clip in it as if has the band playing at the begining, this can be quite common in music videos where they combine the two different styles. Another example of a narrative clip by My Chemical Romance is "Na Na Na" and the clip has a sequel that follows on the narrative "Sing".

 

Portfolio work- Class work- Lyric Challenge.

In this lesson we were shown the lyrics of of the song 'Life is a Gun' by Jay Malinowski. However we were not shown the song and we had to think of an idea for a music video with just the lyrics. Here are the lyrics for the song:-

Deep in the past
We can trigger to the barrel blast
On the avenue
Where I would crash into you

What's done is done and life is a gun
Life is a gun on the run
Oh my dear, isn't life a gun
A story shotgun that came undone
We came undone

New York's cold
On the road we became old
Standing still
But I'm running against all my will

What's done is done and life is a gun
Life is a gun on the run
Oh my dear, isn't life a gun
A story shotgun that came undone
We came undone

The well won path
Was never something I would walk
So lay it down
Lay these guns in the ground

What's done is done and life is a gun
Life is a gun on the run
Oh my dear, isn't life a gun
A story shotgun that came undone

What's done is done and life is a gun
Life is a gun on the run
Oh my dear, isn't life a gun

After reading these lyrics I had some ideas that were very similar to the music video 'Empire' By the Kasabian and during our brainstorming we were also given the video 'This Momentary' by Delphic as is had certain elements that we had included in our idea.

Here is our groups idea :-

The whole video would be in black and white and there will be hints of blue and red. It is set in the abandoned streets of New York. It will be a tracking shot of adolescent (18-20) year old boys in cold war or Soviet uniform. The uniform will be the hints of colour. There is a hint that these people are ghosts from the past walking in modern Apocalypse streets.  Most of the video will be filmed in slow motions. 

After this we were then shown the official music video with music. This changed our ideas quite a bit and after watching it, we were told to change our ideas according to the music we have just heard.  Our group believed that we didn't need to make many changes except from not having the video in slow motion and whilst we follow the group with a tracking shot they begin to lead the audience into more normal, well kept streets of new york and colour begins to come back. We also thought on inserting shots of the men dropping their guns and uniform coats, almost like they are disposing of their war far. 

This exercise was really interesting and gave me an over view of how music and lyrics are important in creating a music video and that you can not or look either aspect. 

Portfolio work- Class work- Music Video Challenge.

Our challenge was to pitch an idea of a concept or storyboard for the song "That Kiss" by The Courteeners who are 'indie rock' band formed in Manchester, in 2006. The song was played to us and we were also given the lyrics. We had an hour to present our pitches and then in the next lesson we showed our idea and then viewed the official music video.

Here are the lyrics:-

The way that you looked at him, and then you looked at me.
You must think that I'm proper blind, proper blind not to see.

That i was just a stopgap sitting somewhere in-between his hand and his lap
Lemme tell you that i wasn't born yesterday my dear.

That kiss that lasted too long, we probably shouldn't have danced to that song
It was nothing, it was everything, its rally such a shame its hard to explain, to you.

He's back in town tonight, he's expecting you 'round a quarter to nine
but you wont be there, cuz he prefers the proverbials................of you.

If he only knew what you thought, the lust, the lack of trust, the temptation you thought
He's just a passing fashion and he's on his way out

That kiss that lasted too long, we probably shouldn't have danced to that song
It was nothing, it was everything, its really such a shame its so hard to explain, to you.

I know that i shouldn't but i enjoyed it
I know that i shouldn't but i enjoyed it
I know that i shouldn't but i enjoyed it

I know that i shouldn't but i enjoyed it
I know that i shouldn't but i enjoyed it
I know that i shouldn't but i enjoyed it

That kiss that lasted too long, we probably shouldn't have danced to that song
It was nothing, it was absolutely everything, its really such a shame its so hard to
explain, to you. 

Here is our groups idea:-

Fade in- to rain covered window. ( the whole image is in black and white). Camera focuses on rain on the window but in the background there is a blurred face.
Camera pans to the right to a door where a mans is walking out, he is lip syncing to the lyrics of the song. He is portrayed as a typical indie rocker with messy hair and is wearing a trench coat. It then cuts to the man walking down the rainy street, there is a street band playing in the background. There is an over the shoulder shot, the audience can see a woman walking down the street, umbrella up. Camera cuts to a close- up of the mans face, he his lip syncing but seems to be battling emotions. Then on the heavy drum beats slow motion flashbacks of a couple synced with the drum beat, there is a low saturation of colour in these shots.
The camera cuts back to the medium- long shot of the man in the street but instead of walking he is now running.
Cuts to a medium-long shot of the woman, you can see the man running in the background, it turns out that the woman is the girl from the flashbacks, she is also battling emotions.
There is a silent break in the music where there is a close up of the woman's shoulder and the camera focuses on the mans hand holding onto her shoulder.
End of silent break, woman turns around the couple hug, black and white colours fade and all colour comes back. Cuts to the couple walking hand in hand down the street and as the music comes to a close, we cut to a scene of the street band who are in fact The Courteeners.

This is the actual 'That Kiss' official music video. Whilst watching this we had to look out for any similarities between this video and our own ideas.

I have noticed that in both this video and our own that we have street, tracking shots of the singer, and that we have portrayed the stereotype of an indie person. However in this music video there is no appearance of the band and does not have a very happy love story.

Research and Planning- Music institutions. Kerrang!

Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music. The magazine is published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on 6 June 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper. Kerrang! Is devoted to the presence of British Heavy Metal and the rise of hard rock acts. In the early 2000s it became the best-selling British music newspaper.

Kerrang!'s website is dedicated to finding out more information for the magazine and also the latest information on the current bands and upcoming events. The website hosts Kerrang!'s online shop, podcasts, message board, TV and radio segments ensuring even more opportunities to sell merchandise and products of the bands featured in the magazine, radio or TV channel. In 2000, EMAP launched Kerrang! as a digital radio station, across the United Kingdom. The radio has a number of specialist programmes dedicated to the many subgenres of rock music. The radio output includes interviews with the most popular bands at the time. In 2001 EMAP also launched Kerrang! TV. As with the radio station, the television channel covers the more mainstream side of the rock music as well as classic rock bands like Aerosmith and AC/DC, and classic heavy metal bands such as Guns N' Roses and Metallica.

Band Avenged Sevenfold with the K! Reward.

Since 1993, the magazine has been holding an annual awards ceremony to mark the most successful bands voted by the readers of the magazine. The awards have become one of Britain's most recognised awards. The event is always presented by major music celebrities.

Now Kerrang! hold throughout January a tour of rock music concerts around the United Kingdom. The tour has featured bands such as Bullet for My Valentine, Good Charlotte, Sum 41, and much more.

Portfolio work- Class Work- Geri Halliwell -" It's Raining Men."

During class we have looked at Geri Halliwell’s re-adaptation of the song “It’s Raining Men” originally by the Weather Girl. After watching the clip we were given a sheet of questions and we answered them by looking at intertextuality and other media language.

What film does this song feature in? – Bridget Jones’s Diary.

Does that have any significance in term of the way Geri is represented in the video? -  Geri is represented as a totally different woman to Bridget Jones as Bridget Jones as portrayed as clumsy/shy/girly and curvy whereas Geri is portrayed as toned/strong/confident and tom-boy.

Before Geri became a solo artist, she was a member of The Spice Girls. This song was the first single from her second solo album. Consider the significance of this.-This shows her growth in in her confidence and gives her a high profile. This video is all about her.

Intertextuality-can you think of any films this video relates too?-The beginning of the video reflects some scenes from “Flash Dance” and when Geri falls over this could be linked to how Bridget Jones is always falling over in the movie. The costumes and audition theme also links to the film “Fame”.

Are there any contrasts in the video? – Ballet and boxing. (Feminine and masculine.)

Consider the mise-en-scene- Throughout the music video Geri is wearing very 70s styled clothing which can be linked back to the film “Fame”. Also one of her last costumes have the word ‘Famous’ written across her top, hinting to the film “Fame” and her profile growing in her career.

Diegetic and non-diegetic sound. - Music record and footsteps, judges and Geri’s dialogue- Diegetic. Audio of music-Non-diegetic.

Are there any really significant shots that are worth mentioning? (Think about the links between the visuals and the audio)- The camera reflects the lyrics to the song in some shots and the shot when Geri is stood in front of a green screen storm before the shot of her dancing in the rain. This is called word painting. There is also the scene when Geri is dancing in the rain and there is the classic wet T-shirt look which could link back to Geri’s past career as a page 3 model. Finally there is the shot of her training at home. Her dog is sat in the background, which links back to previous press coverage; the dog was placed there to make the video seem more realistic.

Who do you think is the audience of the video is? –I think that the audience for this video would be younger people of both gender, maybe middle aged audience as well as the song is a 80s classic.

Consider voyeurism- Throughout the video there is a lot of camera shots that are focusing on Geri’s toned and tanned body, and it brings to mind the Laura Mulvey’s theory of Male Gaze. It could also be linked to Geri’s career in The Spice Girl’s as she was known as the more average and less skinny one in the group.

The streets of London are made out to look like another city. How do we know this and why do you think the director has decided to do this?- In the video London has been made to look more like New York city by placing yellow taxi cabs in the street. The director has done this to portray fame (Hollywood) and the overall idea of following the American dream.


The video is also always looking at Geri's power and dominance. This begins when the camera cuts to a shot of the judges tapping there feet showing that the power in the room has shifted from them to Geri. Then whilst dancing Geri crawls across the judge table as kisses one of the male judges. This is also showing her power and how she is using her sexuality to gain control. The scene when Geri is practising ballet and her partner struggles to hold her up and then Geri walks out shows a power struggle between the two and that Geri gained more dominance as she was able to walk off. The low angle of the camera on the green screen storm scene also shows her dominance as she is high up than her audience and also makes her seem like she has power over the weather, (linking to the lyrics of Mother nature). Finally she blows a kiss at the camera in the closing scene, showing her overall cheekiness and control.

Research and Planning- Music video stations

Here is a list of some of the music stations from around the world:

• 4Music
• C4
• Kerrang! TV (rock)                     
• Scuzz                
• MTV                                        
• MTV2               
• NME TV
• VH1
• VIVA

                                                                                                               

                                              

                 

Research and Planning- 2005 to present day: Music videos on the internet.

In 2005 we saw the launch of YouTube, which made the viewing of online video much faster and easier; and other viewing stations like Google Videos, Yahoo! Video, Facebook and MySpace also came around and became easier and faster for audience to view music videos. These websites had an effect on the viewing of music videos; and artists began to see their rising success as a result of videos seen mostly or entirely online.

The 2008 video for Weezer's "Pork and Beans" was another revolutionary music video, by showing star appearances of at least 20 YouTube celebrities; the single became the most successful of Weezer's career, in chart performance. Other bands gained their fame from starting out on the internet such as the band “OK GO”.

In 2010, the move of videos on to the internet also saw rise of the official "lyric video". This is a video usually showing the lyrics to a song (with different ways in which the lyrics are displayed) along with the audio of the song and many fans are now making their own unofficial lyric videos, giving audience freedom on how they see their music artists work.

Research and Planning- The 1980s- Beginning of TV Music.

The British TV show “Top of the Pops” began playing music videos in the late 1970s. In 1975, the band Queen asked producer and director Bruce Gowers to make a promo video for their new single "Bohemian Rhapsody" to show it in “Top Of  The Pops”.

The long-running British Rock music show "The Old Grey Whistle Test" produced a number of pioneering videos made especially for the program throughout the 1970s and early 1980s. These included a video of Frank Zappa's "City of Tiny Lights" made using clay animation known as claymation. This technique was revolutionary and has been used again by modern day musicians. An example of this is the song "Pencil Full Of Lead" by Pablo Nutini.

Research and Planning- The 1960s to 1970s.

Throughout this era many well-known bands began to appear in feature films with musical sequences that they lip synced to.  Artists such as The Beatles stared in more than one feature their second one being named “ Help!” was their most well known and Bob Dylan with his song "Subterranean Homesick Blues" appeared in a documentary “Don’t look back”. The promotional clip for this song featured Bob Dylan stood in streets and alley ways holding cue cards with words from the lyrics of the song. This has been a great inspiration for many modern day videos where the same technique is still used.

Another form of music videos at the time was promotional clips with The Rolling Stones appeared in many as well as David Bowie. These clips are important landmarks in the development of the music video genre in the 1970s.

Research and Planning- The 1920s to 1950s.

In 1926 short music videos were typically six minutes in duration, and featured Art Deco-style animations and backgrounds combined with film of the performer singing.

Early 1930s cartoons featured popular musicians performing their hit songs on-camera in live-action segments during the cartoons. The early animated films by Walt Disney were based around music, such as Fantasia, which featured several interpretations of classical pieces.

Later, in the mid-1940s, musician Louis Jordan made short films for his songs, some of which were pieced together into a feature film Lookout Sister.  According to music historian Donald Clarke these films were the ‘ancestors’ of the music video. Another early form of music video was one-song films called "promotional clips" made in the 1940s for the Panoram visual jukebox. These were short films of musical selections, usually just a band on a movie-set bandstand, made for playing.

From the 1930s to the 1950s music films became very popular and there have been many modern day adaptations of the classic Hollywood musicals.

Research and Planning- The First Music Video.

In 1894, sheet music publishers Edward B. Marks and Joe Stern hired electrician George Thomas and various performers to promote sales of their song "The Little Lost Child". Using a lantern Thomas projected a series of still images on a screen simultaneous to live performances. This would become a popular form of entertainment known as the illustrated image, the first step toward music video.

Research and Planning- Definition of a Music Video.

A music video  is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic uses. Modern music videos are made and used as a marketing form to promote the sale of music recordings. Although the origins of music videos date back much further, they became popular in the 1980s, when MTV based their format around the medium.

Music videos use a wide range of film techniques, including animation, live action filming, documentaries and non-narrative approaches such as abstract film. Most music videos do not interpret images from the song's lyrics, making it less literal than expected by the audience. Other music videos are based on the narrative or story of the music lyrics and create a mood to match the action and music.