Individual Research- Inspirational Media

Music Videos

Route 94- My love



It is the simplicity of this music video that appeals to me. The video itself is clear cut, with an obvious storyline that is clearly conveyed to the audience; if you take out the fact that they use thermal imaging in the video, it is essentially your typical teen house party. This is something that I would definitely consider when conceptualising my music video and mainly rely mainly on post production.


Green Day- Boulevard of Broken Dreams



Again, a very simple idea turned into a meaningful video, with the large majority of the work done in camera and post production. I love the vintage feel they give the video by having the flickering screen, very similar to that seen in movies filmed on tape, if not a bit magnified. This video finds that perfect balance between narrative and performance, something which I would want to emulate in my video.


Nickelback- How You Remind Me


The style of this video really stands out to me, especially due to the use of grading in the narrative. Changing from blue, cold grading (1:10), to being all warm and soft when the lead sees this girl (1:15) and then back to the cold, harshness as the girl disappears (1:25). This makes the emotions of the lead at this point obvious and ties in perfectly with the song at that moment, by visually signifying a change in the tempo of the track. I think that if I were to include a narrative in my video (which is quite likely), then it would need to fit quite well with the song and convey the meaning behind the track.

Websites

Paramore

 

Their website is visually pleasing, you can tell that a lot of work went into the aesthetics of the site, as well as ensuring that this page is synergistic with all social media platforms that the band use, making Paramore's whole identity accessible on this one platform. The site is very easy to navigate, with clearly marked and simple headings that show exactly what the content is about. The band's website has multiple purposes, it acts as an information hub for all the latest gig dates, a merchandise store and a media hub that keeps the fans up to date with new releases, photos and videos.

Arctic Monkeys

 

In fitting with the motif the band has for most of their artwork, their website makes full use of contrasting black and white. The homepage is very simple, but still offers a range of different options for users; it is reserved for only the latest news (meaning fans don't have to trawl through pages to find out what's going on with the band).

NickleBack

 

This website doesn't have much in terms of content, it does the basics of what a band's website is supposed to do; inform of gig dates, link to merchandising and show latest news. One feature which I quite like about the website, is that it has a "fan club" section which offers exclusive content and merchandise only for those in the fan club. In all honesty, while the website fits into the band's identity, I do not find it very visually pleasing or entertaining.

We Are The In Crowd

This is a very good example of how I would want my artist's website to look like. It incorporates all of the band's social media platforms on one page, meaning that when any news, photos or videos are shared on one of these platforms, it is instantly spread for all fans to see. Even though the colours used in the theme of the website are very simplistic, the site is still visually pleasing and interesting to look at. In my opinion the section announcing all the tour dates is much too small  and inconspicuous; I would want this section to be much more prominent on the site, so that it is obvious to fans.

Album Covers

Pink "Funhouse" Album Cover

This album cover fits very much with the whole motif that pink has created for herself and can be seen through all of her album artwork. All of her albums have herself as the main figure on the cover; she makes sure that her albums are instantly identifiable as hers and that there is never any doubt about that.

Arctic Monkeys "AM" Album Cover

Tonight Alive "What Are You So  Scared Of" Album Cover

Tonight Alive "What Are You So
 Scared Of" Album Cover

Maybe not by the same means, but I would want my artist's album art to be distinctive and clearly linked to our artist.







Again using similar colours to those used on their website, working synergetically with the website and other band merchandise in order to create strong band identity. When people see this combination of colours in this way, they automatically link it to Arctic Monkeys even though it doesn't have an image of the artist (as is the case in the large majority of their album work). Making the band's identity both recognisable and distinctive.

This is something that I would want to do with my artist's album work, so that it stands out amongst the thousands of other new releases into the market.








This is one of the band's first albums, which explains why it differs slightly from the look that the band now have. Who the album is for is made obvious by both the name of the band sprawled across the corner, but also by the cartoon image of the lead singer.

I quite like the use of cartoon image, however I am slightly sceptical about suggesting this effect.

Evenescence "Fallen" Album Cover

Evenescence's album is quite dark and pale, which fits in great with the band's identity. They advertise themselves as a more alternative rock band, whose songs tend to have quite a dark subject matter. The font used in the title of the album is quite calligraphic and is a motif used in all artwork they have, tying in to the band's identity very well.