I am going to mainly look at the Indie and Pop genre of music, as I am interested in them for my music video. Some genres can integrate with each other like Pop and Indie music, which is why I will observe them and analyse their techniques for a music video. This will also help me determine which song I want to use and what is best to accomplish with my limited resources and availabilities.
Indie music
Indie music or independent music is produced independently from any major record labels or producers. Indie music can integrate with other genres such as Indie Pop and Indie Rock, which helps make it appeal to a wide variety of audiences other than being an alternative genre.
Lately, Indie music has become very popular amongst young adult audiences for its distinction from mainstream music, with usually subtler tones, mystical themes, symbolism and more use of narration in both lyrics and music videos. For bands and solo artists, performance music videos are used occasionally, however most are conceptual or non - narrative.
Artists:
- Artic Monkeys - Adele - Lorde
- The Lonely Island - Of Monsters and Men
- Passenger - Birdy
- Ellie Goulding - Gabrielle Aplin
Codes and Conventions:
Effects - Indie music is more natural in both song and visual image, so it doesn’t use a lot of special effects to enhance it’s look. This is mainly due to the fact a lot of Indie music videos are low on budget. However, if having a high enough budget, effects are used such as overlaying an animation or stylised effect to match the narrative or conceptual themes that the song is portraying. This gives it a unique image and filtering over the current scenes. The black and white effect is popular as well as a rustic atmosphere to the setting and song, notably with rock Indie.
Setting - To highlight the natural feel/tone of the music and visuals, a natural setting must compliment this. Some settings include a park, forest, city or studio which can be easily accessed and link to the audiences urban environment. These particular settings can also create opportunities for mystical themes or symbolism to be incorporated within the video too.
Mise en scene - One of the main features of the Indie genre is that it has a retro look, which can appeal to young adult audiences for the genre’s classic but unique style. The artists costume and make up can emphasise this, with a natural or hipster look and props are also used, especially with bands in using their instruments.
Camera - For Indie videos, close ups of the artists or a particular object is used to introduce the setting or artist and helps promote them. Close ups are key in highlighting the passion or emotions that the artist portrays through singing the song. Crane shots or pivoting are popular to capture the whole band and its performance from different perspectives. Establishing shots, mid length and long shots are great for showing the body language of the artist and emphasising the setting to show off the video’s creativity.
Editing - For most music videos, jump cuts are used as the song only lasts between 2-3 minuets long on average, so the different scenes need to be shown quickly in order to keep the pace of the music to flow with the actions on screen. Fast or slow cuts help message the mood of the song towards the audience and enhances the music’s pace.
Lighting - The lighting in Indie videos is more subtle and natural compared to the loud and bright pop videos. This is to match the natural flow of the music but at times artificial lighting can be used in studios. If the setting is outside or has a old fashioned look, the lighting is edited to match this so it can fit in with the songs themes and atmosphere.
Costume/make up/props - Many artists dress differently to mainstream trending fashions, to make them more identifiable with the genre and themselves as people. A lot of Indie rock bands/solo artists would wear dark coloured clothing to match the music's tough attitude or try different styles to make them stand out from generic fashion. For female Indie artists some may dress 'hipster' like, if involved in a Rock Indie band they will dress darkly coloured or natural, feminine styles.
Sound - For Indie music, the vocals of the artist is very important in emphasizing their natural singing voice. With a lot of indie songs, the non digetic or diegetic sounds of the instruments playing (live music), compliment the artists singing with usually a simple tune or up beat flowing soundtrack.
Pop music
Popular music identifies itself having a wide audience appeal, usually distributed to large audiences throughout the music industry. It mainly has artists or bands that appeal to a mass audience and usually has happy, bright and colourful themes, though mainly about relationships. Visually, it uses less narrative in order to focus more on the artist themselves rather than a storyline and at times can be seen as sexualised, particularly with girl artists to attract a male audience.
Artists:
- Olly Murs - Rhianna - Lorde
- Beyonce - Rita Ora - Adele
- Little Mix - Avicii
Codes and conventions:
Effects - Fade effects to transition the scenes, tinted colouring or brightening effects for it to look visually appealing and fits in with the upbeat and happy mood of the song. It could also use animation or stylised effects to interact or enhance with the artists performance. Or if the song is a little less happier for example, the narrative of breaking up with someone, the effects could use darker tones or colours.
Setting - Settings can be created with special effects or in studio conditions with green screen or performance stages. These settings are more expensive and more elaborate to attract young people and enhance the artist/band’s look for it to sell more. At times, natural settings are used such as a city or park too.
Mise en scene - The mise en scene is usually up beat to reflect the happy tune/sound of the song. This is mainly shown in videos where people/artists are partying, having fun, on a stage or just dancing. Some songs such as break up songs or sad songs can have a sadder tone to its mood and atmosphere. Commonly, artists are expressed in a very sexual and seductive way, trying to lure the audience in; very show like. However current artist choose to dress in provocative ways portraying a sexual atmosphere e.g Rhianna and Miley Cyrus.
Camera - For Pop videos, a lot of close ups of the artist/s is used to highlight their appearance and singing skills. There are also close ups of objects or the setting depending on the video’s theme. Mid shots and full body shots are used to highlight the body language and dancing (if there is any).
Sometimes for camera movement there is a lot of panning, tracking or tilting during the video to focus on the artist/s and the scene.
Editing - For most music videos, jump cuts are used as the song only lasts between 2-3 minuets long on average, so the different scenes need to be shown quickly in order to keep the pace of the music to flow with the actions on screen. Fast or slow cuts help message the mood of the song towards the audience and enhances the music’s pace. Sometimes the artist's voice can be tweaked slightly
Lighting - Pop videos are bright and colourful for most of the time, but this depends on the songs mise en scene and mood/tone of the song. Artificial lighting is used primarily in studios if the setting is artificial too, creating a brighter look to the video’s appeal.
Costume/make up/props - Pop artists are very fashionable, stylish and mainstream to what their young audience wears. Their make up matches what they wear and is professionally done to enhance their image. Some make ups can be extreme for the videos effect, for example Lady Gaga’s look is defiantly striking and different to most pop artists.
Sound - For sound, the vocals of the artist singing and the soundtrack that compliments the artists singing is mainly heard. Diegetic sound can be used depending on the scene and is only briefly used as the main focus is the song itself.
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