These are a selection of CD covers that I liked. I liked the CD covers as i like most of the bands that are in there. I also decided to add the iconic Pink Floyd cover with the spectrum on it. most of the covers have quite a basic layout, yet are all eye catching in their own way. The Black Veil Brides one is eye catching because of the bright fire and the Band's dark unusual look that they have. The Pendulum one has an unusual underwater feel, and The Coldplay one has a colourful background with large basic text. I like the mix of colours in it as well. The Paramore one has a cartoon feel to it, using cartoon style text for their album name, RIOT, and the band members are black and white and cartooned.
Muse- The 2nd Law
This album cover is very basic, with a plain black background which takes up a fair proportion of the album cover. The text on the album is very small in the top left corner of the album cover. The band name is the most prominent of the text as it is in the boldest font and is positioned between 2 thick, white lines. the Album name starts off white then the size and boldness decreases on the way down, almost as though it is decreasing in importance. The central image is a very unusual looking brush like structure which is completely abstract to the music on the album. This could reflect that the bands music is unique.
Paramore- Riot!
The focal point of this album is the band members in the middle of the cover. The photo of them has been edited to be cartoonised in black and white to fit in with the house colours of black and orange. This shows that the main concept of this album is their music so the attention is on them. The RIOT! above is of a font that looks like it has been scribbled on with ball point pen. this gives an element of graffiti to the cover, as with the scribbled text that takes up the remaining cover of the album. this shows that the band could have a rebellious side as portrayed in the songs. The band details also stand out, such as the names of the band members and what they do, and the websites that they promote themselves on. they were probably relatively unknown at the time of release. there are a number of covers with a similar layout, including this one without the picture, which still has the same riot writing on it in the graffiti style font.
Here are a few ideas for magazine covers from a few bands I like and know of. In this section, I have learnt from looking at them to keep it simple and don't add too much to it. The magazine adverts are either used to advertise new albums or tours. Most of the designs used in this band only really contain one image taking up most of the page, with the details either at the bottom or down the side. They still fit in with the identity of the band, such as the muse one with all their instruments in them as a silhouette, or the Green Day one that has a graffiti style font which shows the rebellious side in some of their tracks. The Mylo Xyloto one by Coldplay and the You Me at Six one is the same as their album cover, just enlarged maybe with a few extra details on it. this shows that it is important to advertise your album.
Video Content
This video is based on a scrapbook, showing all of the bands memories. It shows memories such as live performances and behind the scenes videos of them having fun, laughing and play-fighting, showing their down to earth side in their success. The song could be about the progress to success, from performing at home when they were younger to performing live on stage in front of thousands of fans. This shows that they kept faith through their journey to success, and enjoyed this journey. It shows that they never gave up on their dream. One of the quotes on the scrapbook, 'Got nothing but time on our hands' shows that they got successful young and they have a lot of time to become bigger. They won't give up on the band. Camerawork/editing Editing:
Fast transitions from frame to frame in the sketchbook.
zooms in and out of different frames in the sketchbook.
words being formed on the sketchbook added in post production.
occasionally blurred transitions.
Going from normal to cartoon on some frames.
Animations on the sketchbook added in post production.
Camerawork:
Mid shot of the lead singer singing
long shot of the guitarist
cut in of the guitar
Mid shot tracking of the fans waiting to see them
High shot tracking of the fans
Cutaways of the subject in the scrapbook
Long two shot of the lead singer and the guitarist playing
Extreme close ups of the sketchbook.
Very wide shot of the car.
Long shots of the lead singer live in different outfits.
Mid shots of the men with the guitar.
High panning shot of the whole band.
Close up of the woman singing in the recording studio
Long shot of the different videos in the 'Scrapbook'
Close up of the drummer.
Extreme close up of the woman singing.
Zoom out of the band's whole scrapbook.
Costumes
The band members are wearing casual attire throughout the video. This is because the band is a rock band, where the outfits are usually casual. The hair, especially the Lead singers is choppy, and moves when the band rock out, showing that their music isn't as clean cut as the mainstream music. It is more original. The lead singers hair is bright orange, which could represent that the band stand out to their fans. she has a very choppy fringe, which most rock musicians have, so she fits with the genre. As it is behind the scenes, they are more likely to be wearing casual clothing as they are not on stage. In the video there is also a change in appearance of the lead singer, especially her hair, as it gets brighter as the band became more successful.
Props/Scenery Props
The main props in this video are the instruments that the band play on stage, the guitars, drums and microphones for the lead singer.
Other props include household furniture as shown in the home videos.
Scenery
The scrapbook in the video was computer generated. It is rough looking, with house colours of orange, red, black and white, which are colours associated with the band.
The font chosen is not clean, which is a reflection of the fact that rock music is not as clean cut as pop music. they play the music themselves, usually live in this video.
It is full of photos overlapping each other , as well as the lyrics of the song.
There is also the concert atmosphere that is shown, with the lead singer singing on stage with their name in the background. it is dimmed down, with coloured spotlights to show how far they have come.
There is also the recording studio, with plain beige painted walls and a black microphone, showing them recording the songs.
There is also the home shots, where there is the lead singer several years ago singing at home, the beginning of her journey. the home is slightly messy, with post on the TV stand and ornaments in the background.
Analysis Grid: Genre Characteristics
The design of the scrapbook itself supports the rock genre. Firstly, there are the colours of red, orange, black and white are colours associated with the band. The lead singer has famously bright orange hair so she stands out among fans and they know that she is in the room when she performs. Her fringe is choppy and her hair moves as she performs, typical for a rock singer/band. It has broken, rough looking writing and overlapping photos, which possibly shows that their music is not as clean cut and manufactured as mainstream music.
Secondly, there is the rock band feeling, because there is footage of the band in concert with their instruments, the drums, guitars and a vocalist.
The home footage shows the down to earth sides of rock bands, which most of them are, by wearing casual clothing. Relationship between Lyrics and Visuals?
There is some relationship with the lyrics and the visuals. The quotes on the scrapbook are lyrics of the song. Some of the lyrics come up on the scrapbook as they are being sung. Relationship between Music and Visuals?
In the concert scenes, the band appear to be playing the song as it is being sung. In the sketchbook scenes, fast cuts are being used to emphasize the fast pace of the song. Are there close ups of the artist and star image motifs?
There are a few close ups of the lead singer using the recording studio Is there reference to the Notion of looking?
No as they are all video clips of them doing things. Are there any inter-textual references?
Yes. The video goes through the memories of the band, showing how far they have progressed in their careers in the band. It shows they never gave up and reached their dreams, and still won't give up. The video also references how their music has changed some of their fans lives. there is a note from a fan thanking them for changing their lives. Is the video category illustration, disjuncture or amplification? How much of each?
It is all illustration, with some footage of the band playing the song. There is also displaying of the lyrics on the scrapbook, so it is a direct reference to the lyrics of the song.
Video Content/choreography
This music video is a narrative, with a few symbolic effects in there. The idea of this music video appears to be a symbolism of children who can forget about the real world because their childhood stories and movies that are based on fantasy. They are impressionable as they believe the fantasy stories. It starts with a girl wearing a fairy costume entering a fantasy castle, and as such 'escaping the real world'. In this castle, she comes across magical trees as well as characters from various books, such as the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland. She then approaches the castle where the main background colour changing to black, showing the dark side of childhood fantasy stories, that there are not all real, there is a dark side in the world. In the castle she is scared by a man with a sword, and as she is running away from the castle screaming, she gets tripped up by the thorns that were the trees she was walking through when she first entered the castle. She gets more and more scared by the characters, as the evil characters suddenly appear, such as clown lookalikes and puppets. The video parallel cuts to the lead singer, either on a tree swing or singing with a man digging a grave in the ground. At the end of the video whilst the girl is running away from the castle she falls into the grave, symbolizing the end of her childhood. The lead singer then picks up her baby doll, recognizes it then throws it in the grave.The child in the video could be a symbolism of the lead singer as a child.
Camerawork/editing
In the camerawork, in the first frame, there is an extreme long shot of a red sunset with black silhouettes of trees. This possibly symbolizes the end of something, in this instance, childhood. There are are long/ full length shots of the characters. There are also tracking shots of the girl walking into/through the fantasy castle, as well as mid shots of her when she is looking through the trees, and of the lead singer dancing. There are also close ups used in this video, of the girl being scared, and occasionally of the lead singer. During filming, the characters were likely to have been filmed using a green screen, as the scenery is unusual with a red sky, and reddish looking trees. The background was all added in post production.
There are also mirror effects in the castle on 2 occasions. One is where the young girl walks into the castle, where there are several reflections of her in the same frame, and secondly of the lead singer singing in a mirror, with the image repeated.
There is parallel editing between the adult lead singer and the young child, with quick cuts between these scenarios. When there is the same scenario in 2 consecutive frames, the cuts are slower.
There is a glowing effect on Costumes
The young girl is dressed in a white dress, with fairy wings and holding a baby doll. She has blonde hair. This shows that she is innocent and doesn't know of the bad things that childhood stories, and the media can do.
The lead singer has blonde hair in this too, probably a wig as she normally has orange hair. She is wearing the same outfit as the child, minus the fairy wings. This shows that the child is a symbolism of her when she was young.
The other costumes were of the fairy tale characters such as the Queen of Hearts, and Knight costumes.
The bad characters were the clown characters, with the dark scary make up and clown like outfits. The other bad character is a man dressed in white, with black trousers and a belt, threatening innocence. Props/scenery
Abstract yellow/red background with red, yellow and black leaved trees. There is a strong contrast between these two colours. This could show the contrast between the children interest in their fantasies, compared to the dark side and blindness of the child to the real world. There is also green shown in a few frames, which could symbolize life going on, that the child is growing up. In the fantasy world, there is a garden effect, representing that the child is beginning their life and the paradise of the stories is luring them in to fantasy beliefs, almost forgetting the real world due to their beliefs in fiction.
a recurring thing in the video is the falling of red rose petals from the sky, which could represent the child's love for fantasy stories that make their childhood.
The Castle, a stereotypical building in these stories, at first has the light shining into the castle, so it looks a pleasant place to be. It's like the girl feels like an angel in the castle, as she looks like one in the distance (2:10). There is then a long shot of the castle where the blue sky goes grey and lightning appears, showing the bad side of fantasy. The castle goes darker and more evil characters appear scaring the girl. There are then dark thorns that get tangled around the young girl, showing the evil side of the castle and that they get tangled in fantasy and its not all good. As she leaves the castle, the scenery goes back to how it was at the beginning, and she wants to get as far away as possible from that.
The props involved are the wings and baby doll that the child is carrying. These symbolize childhood and the fantasy involved in it. The best symbolism is when the adult throws the doll in the grave, to show that her childhood is over and she has moved on.
There are a lot of mirrors involved in the video. This shows that they are looking at themselves and may become scared that their obsession with fantasy has got too far, and they become scared of the bad characters, such as clowns and murderers. Nothing is as it seems. Analysis Grid: Genre Characteristics
The genre of this song is rock. The colours in the video, red, orange and black, are characteristics as they are stereotypical colours of a rock band. Relationship between Lyrics and Visuals?
The relationship shown between the lyrics and visuals is a narrative, progressive storytelling relationship. An example of this is the grave being dug, burying childhood fantasies as you grow up, 'bury(ing) the castle'. Secondly there is entering the fantasy land where the lyrics are 'forgotten the taste and smell of a world that was left behind', showing that the girl has entered fantasy world which is completely unrealistic in the real world. Finally, the girl was being frightened by the evil villain characters as the lyrics are 'because your real life is tragic'. This shows that possibly something is wrong with the young girls life that made her run away to fantasy, possibly the artist. Relationship between Music and Visuals?
Editorial. There are quick cuts between the parallel between childhood and adulthood, which goes with the fast beat of the song. Are there close ups of the artist and star image motifs?
Yes. There are close ups of the artists singing, as well as the child getting frightened by the evil characters. Is there reference to the Notion of looking?
Yes. The adult lead singer appears to be singing to the camera on a number of occasions. Are there any inter-textual references?
Yes. Symbolism is used a lot within the video. A number of these have been described in the earlier sections of the analysis.
Firstly, the young girl and the older girl are dressed the same as each other, in white, firstly to show the transformation between childhood and adulthood. They are both white, which could be a symbol of innocence.
Main background colour changing to black, around the castle showing the dark side of childhood fantasy stories, that there are not all real, there is a dark side in the world.
The child's wings and baby doll symbolize childhood. The adult throws the baby doll into the grave showing shes over childhood fantasy.
The girl falling into the grave symbolizes the end of childhood.
Lyrically, the 'Castle' means childhood fantasy.
Mirrors show that not all is as it seems.
The yellow/red/black/green background shows the contrast between the children interest in their fantasies, compared to the dark side and blindness of the child to the real world. There is also green shown in a few frames, which could symbolize life going on, that the child is growing up. In the fantasy world, there is a garden effect, representing that the child is beginning their life and the paradise of the stories is luring them in to fantasy beliefs, almost forgetting the real world due to their beliefs in fiction. Is the video category illustration, disjuncture or amplification? How much of each?
This video is an amplification. In the castle, the stories from childhood are amplified into real life, showing growing up, forming connotations with the lyrics.
Video Content and Choreography
The video is stripped back, simple and minimalist. There are no narratives in the video. It is a live performance, with just the band performing in the video. There is a white background, which means the attention is focussed fully on the band and not on a narrative. It was possibly filmed in a white set as the whole of the background was white.
The lead singer is placed at the front of the band, with the drummer at the back. The backing singers are placed around the drummer to form a square shape. This is more prominent in the spinning cuts. They have been choreographed to just play the song as a performance. Camera shots and angles
There are quick cuts between the shots in the band. The quick cuts emphasize the speed of the song and show some variation in an otherwise bland music video as it is so stripped back.
-focusing on the props
There are quick spinning cuts, either panning out focusing on different members of the band and their instruments, or spinning to different members of the band to show their input in the song and the instruments that they are playing.
There are a varied range of shots- several closeups of the band members, especially the lead singer to show that he is the most important member in the band.
there are also high shots looking down on the band members so you can see them playing their respective instruments to give a more realistic Artists Appearance- Costume, hair and makeup
All of the band members are wearing similar outfits, consisting of blue or black skinny jeans and a black jumper, hoodie or T shirt.
They all have choppy short black hair with a thick choppy fringe at the front, a stereotypical rock band hairstyle. Props
The only props that are in the video are the instruments of the band. They are the main focus of the music video. The instruments are microphones, electric guitars with amplifiers and drums. This is the usual composition of a rock band. Analysis Grid: Genre Characteristics
The first genre characteristic for a rock video is the showing of the typical rock band structure, with a drummer, a couple of guitarists and a vocalist. This is a typical showing of a rock band as they are perceived to play their own music.
Secondly, the artists image is also a characteristics. They are all wearing casual clothing and have the typical rock band hairstyle, with the choppy layered fringe that swishes around when they play the guitar. They are wearing black which is a stereotypical colour that is associated with rock bands and the genre. The cuts are also really quick and unusual to go with the speed of the song. Relationship between Lyrics and Visuals?
The only real relationship with the music and visuals is the fact that the lead singer is singing the lyrics, occasionally breaking the fourth wall by making eye contact with the camera. Relationship between Music and Visuals?
The relationship with the music and visuals is direct as the band appears to be playing the song as if it was a live performance. This seems as though the band themselves are responsible for the sound that is heard. There are also fast cuts that go with the basic beat of the music. Are there close ups of the artist and star image motifs?
Yes. Throughout the video there are close ups of the lead singer, the instruments and the band mates, the star images of the video itself. Is there reference to the Notion of looking?
Yes. Whilst singing, the lead singer makes repetitive eye contact with the camera whilst singing, showing that he means the lyrics. Are there any inter-textual references?
No as the video is a live performance of the song. Is the video category illustration, disjuncture or amplification? How much of each? Observations- This video is primarily an illustration. There is also an element of abstract in there because there is no direct connotations between the lyrics and the video. Example- The whole video is just a live performance of the song.
