Research Into Chosen Music Genre

Research Into Chosen Music Genre 

The music genre of the song we have chosen to create a music video to is acoustic, indie. The song we have chosen is 'Noserings and Shoestrings' by Nina Nesbitt. We chose this specific genre of music as we collectively as a group have an interest in Indie artists and therefore we thought we would be able to create a high quality music video to an Indie song, as we listen to them in our everyday lives. Artists that we tend to listen to within this genre include; Ellie Goulding, Ed Sheeran, The Kooks, Tom Odell, Two Door Cinema Club, Noah and the Whale, The Killers, Mumford and Sons, Kate Nash, Florence and the Machine, Arctic Monkeys, Laura Marling, The Wombats, Of Monsters and Men etc.

Ellie Goulding - Your Song

In the Ellie Goulding, Your Song music video she is seen wearing a beanie hat and army style boots. This is conventional to an indie genre music video as it is typically what an artist of this genre would wear. It therefore further highlights the songs genre to the audience and allows the audience to learn more regarding the personality of the artist. The main locations of the music video is a park. This location is somewhat conventional to an indie genre music video as it resembles the idea of an artist busking in public to present themselves to potential fans. The location also adds an element of realism to the music video as a park is a public location and the employment of it further portrays the narrative and meaning to the song.

The overall main editing style included in the music video is slow pace editing. This style of editing is conventional to an indie genre music video as the tempo of indie songs is generally quite slow, which is evident with this particular song. The editing style therefore directly matches the pace of the music video allowing the audience to understand the song and storyline in depth as it allows the visuals to flow from one to another. A performance element is evident in the music video which is typical of an Indie music video. Ellie Goulding is seen singing in the recording studio and also whilst a man is playing the piano. The employment of this performance element allows the audience to learn that Ellie is a talented performing and in turn means they are able to form a relationship with her through the song. The visuals of Ellie performing following conventions as Indie artist usually present themselves performing in their music videos to illustrate the type of performer they are and to introduce them to potential fans as they are moving up within the music industry. A visual effect is incorporated towards the end of the music video. The effect allows the visuals to evoke a vintage/old fashioned type appearance. The style presented with this effect is conventional to an indie music video as people who enjoy indie type music and indie artists generally have a particular interest in vintage things, such as clothes. Therefore including this effect further highlights how the music video and song are of an indie genre and therefore visually appeals to the target audience of indie music fans. The main camera shots employed in the music video are extreme/close-up shots of Ellie Goulding singing. The incorporation of these camera shots allows the audience to build a relationship with Ellie and learn more surrounding her performing talent. The viewers are also allowed to become more familiar with Ellie visually and therefore may entice them to listen to more of her songs. A further main editing style included in the music video is straight cuts. The straight cut transitions are included between most shots and allow the visuals to consistently flow between each other. The fact that the camera shots flow evenly throughout allows the audience to keep track of the narrative and in turn means that they are able to understand more surrounding the song and the overall narrative.

Mise-en-Scene is incorporated in the music video to illustrate to the audience the Indie genre of the music video and to also assist the viewers in understanding the narrative of the song. The locations of the music video change a number of times. The main locations incorporated are a park/forest, a train and what appears to be her house. The park/forest and train locations are public settings and therefore allows the music video to seem more realistic as it appears she is leading a normal life. It also helps the audience to relate to Ellie as an individual and learn more surrounding her. In addition to this the house location allows the audience to feel as though they have a personal insight into Ellies' life. It further allows the music video to seem more realistic and build a relationship with Ellie as they are invited into her life. Ellie is also seen wearing somewhat laid back clothing such as a beanie hat, army style boots and jumpers. This illustrates Ellie as a down to earth artist that viewers can easily relate to. It also means the audience learn more about her as an individual as they receive an insight into her personality. Throughout the music video Ellie is generally the main focus in most of the visuals. She is either positioned central or to the left or right to present the location. Having Ellie as the main focus of the music video highlights that she is of importance as she is the artist of the song. It also allows the audience to concentrate on her as an artist, especially when building a relationship with her as an individual and learning more about her as an artist. 

The target audience of Ellie Gouldings', Your Song music video is older teenagers/young adults who have an interest in Indie music. This is evident through the elements incorporated in the music video as they would appeal to this range of individuals. In the Your Song music video Ellie Goulding is represented as a down to earth artist. This is illustrated through the elements in the music video such as mise-en-scene, camera shots and editing styles. The clothing that Ellie is seen wearing is not extravagant and over the top illustrating how she is just like any everyday individual and is not affected even though she is in the music industry. The idea that she is down to earth is also presented through the fact the audience are welcomed into her life with the location of her home and witnessing her perform in the music video. Further allowing the audience to understand more about her as an artist.

The style of the Your Song music video is 90% performance and 10% narrative. The use of this style for the music video allows the audience to witness Ellie performing as this is what she is know for. They therefore build a relationship with Ellie as an artist through this element. The narrative part of the music video however, allows the audience to build a relationship with Ellie as an individual and therefore means they can understand more about her and the narrative of the music video. 

The Your Song music video follows a few elements of Goodwin's Theory. The music video demonstrates genre characteristics of an indie music video which is extremely evident through the mise-en-scene in the music video. The music video also follows the style of music video elements that is present in Goodwin's Theory. This is because the music video is primarily performance based, however with few elements of a narrative. 

Researching other artists who are of the indie genre will assist when planning my own music video as I would be more aware of conventions of an Indie music video. From the research I have conducted I have discovered elements that have given me ideas to include in my own music video. I would like to incorporate a number of extreme/close-up camera shots of my artist so that the audience are familiar with her and can begin to build a relationship with her. I would also like to have my artist wearing a beanie hat and maybe army style boots so that her clothing would also relate to the indie genre. Therefore my music video would be following various conventions of an Indie genre which would make it more successful.

One Night Only - Say You Don't Want It

There are a number of codes and conventions evident in One Night Only's 'Say You Don't Want It' music video which enforces the fact the song is of an indie genre. A number of camera shots have been edited with a somewhat 'retro' effect which is conventional to the indie genre ,as it highlights the songs genre to the audience on their first glance and therefore provides them with a deeper insight into the song. Throughout the music video a number of camera shots present the band performing which is conventional of an indie genre music video as it conveys to the audience the artists talents. Within these camera shots it also highlights how each band member is playing an instrument which further portrays how the band are collectively talented. In addition to this all the band members are seen wearing all black in the music video. This provides them with a somewhat edgy appearance, which is conventional of the indie genre, and in turn allows the bands music express their emotions to the audience. The music video as a whole is located outside in the natural surroundings. This is conventional to the indie genre as it links in with the idea of nature and simplicity which allows the audience to depict the songs meaning from the lyrics and their own interpretation. The natural environment also makes the music video more realistic which gives the audience an opportunity to relate to the band.

The band are seen performing on a rooftop in New York. The employment of the rooftop location adds an element of an urban feel to the music video. This relates to the idea of the band being of an Indie genre and therefore could be seen as conventional as it would appeal to audience members. Another location incorporated in the music video is the streets of New York itself. This location is mainly used when the narrative of the couple is being conveyed to the audience. The setting therefore directly relates to the narrative as it evokes the idea of love, as it is a romantic destination that is known for couples to visit. Throughout the music video the main singer in the band, George Craig, is mainly positioned in the centre of the camera shots. The positioning of George allows the audience to become aware that he is the leader within the group and they begin to learn more about him. Specific camera shots such as close up shots where he is positioned centrally allows the audience to witness him as an artist and build a relationship with him based on this. During the music video the band members are seen dressed in all black. The costumes allows the audience to further be informed of the genre of the music video as it evokes the idea of an indie, rock artist. The employment of the black coloured clothing therefore presents the band in a conventional way and would therefore appeal to the audience as it would be exactly what they would expect to see. On the other hand the girl in the music video is seen wearing a fur coat. This could be significant of the idea that she may be wealthy and therefore presents her as a complete opposite to the band members. In turn the narrative becomes more interesting and gripping to the audience as they witness the forming of a relationship they did not expect to happen.

Throughout the Say You Don't Want It music video some of the main camera shots employed include; close-up shots and mid shots. These two specific types of camera shots are incorporated to present the band members to the audience in a personal manner. The viewers get a closer look at the bands appearances and also a deeper insight into each of their personalities, meaning the audience can build a relationship with each member with ease. These two camera shots are also employed to present the relationship between the main band member (George Craig) and the girl in the music video. A number of close up/mid camera shots are included of the girls face to present to the audience who she is and that she is of significance to the music video and overall narrative. In addition to these camera shots, establishing and long shots are employed a number of times throughout the music video. These specific camera shots are incorporated to present to the audience the location and surroundings of each scene in the music video. A long shot is also employed to portray the narratives' relationship between George Craig and the girl from a far, almost illustrating the idea of looking into their relationship from another perspective, maybe the viewers.



The main editing styles apparent in the 'Say You Don't Want It' music video are the transitions between each camera shot. The most common transition within the music video is the straight cut which allows the music video to consistently flow which in turn means the audience are more likely to understand the narrative/concept of the music video. In addition to this there are two other forms of transitions between a number of the camera shots. These include flashes and blurs, which act as straight cuts. They either change the location in the music video or focus the audience attention on a particular element which in turn furthers their understand of the narrative/concept.

The target audience for the Say You Don't Want It music video is older teenagers, maybe even young adults. This is because this age group of people are generally particularly interested in the indie genre of music. Therefore the music video created would appeal to the target audience as it would include elements that would specifically entertain viewers of this age. The members of the band are also around this range of age and therefore provide the audience with figures to relate to.

Throughout the music video the band members are not represented to the audience on a high scale which allows their music to provide the representation which the audience can fully depict themselves. The black clothing the artists are seen wearing also masks their representation and almost provides the audience with a blank canvas on their first visuals of them, which allows the music videos narrative/concept to provide the audience with the representation. However throughout the music video the audience are provided with a more in depth representation of the lead singer, George Craig, who is central to the narrative.

The 'Say You Don't Want It' music video is primarily narrative based (80%) but features an element of performance (20%). For an indie music video this structure somewhat subverts what is considered conventional to the indie genre. This is because indie genre music videos are generally performance based so that they allow the audience to build a relationship with them as an artist and learn aspects regarding their personalities. Performance based music videos also allow the audience to understand the artists talents as they are usually seen playing a particular instrument that is conventional to the indie genre i.e. an acoustic guitar. Therefore because the ‘Say You Don’t Want It’ music video is primarily narrative based it means the audiences curiosity is sparked as to discovering more surrounding the bands personalities and talents.

The ‘Say You Don’t Want It’ music video only features a few aspects of Goodwin’s theory. The music video includes a high number of close up camera shots of the lead singers face. This is so that the audience are given the opportunity to build a relationship with the main member of the band. In addition to this the music video follows Goodwin’s theory as it is primarily narrative based and therefore leaves the audience curious as to who the band members really are as artists.

The research into my chosen music genre will assist me greatly when it comes to planning my own music video. This is because I have widened my knowledge with regards to components that need to be combined to create a successful music video. I have learnt about common codes and conventions of an indie music video and therefore am aware of what to include in my music video to make it successful and conventional to the indie genre. In addition to this, through my research I have learnt that a performance based music video is most common within the indie genre and therefore I can plan my music video based on this fact to further improve how conventional my final product will be to the indie genre.