Applying the Star Image to my Artist.

After reading through theories on the 'Star Image', I have begun thinking about how I could apply this theory to my main artist, Rickielee. After continuing with him from my AS media coursework, I decided that if I were to decided upon an iconic 'look' then it would most probably have to be relevant from the artists past career as a solo artist without the band. I thought that to do this, I would look at mainstream artists and their iconic styles and construction, as they are the artists that are the most successful and are most likely to have long term artistic careers.

Something I noticed alot when researching artist construction and artiist imagery is through the use of their hair, for example, 'Florence Welch' from 'Florence & the Machine' with her firey red locks and 'Jessie J' with her edgy black bob. This is a feature of artist imagery that I think would work extremely well with Rickie and his -could be iconic- quiffed up hair.

In order to do this, I believe that I should make his hair a feature of the Digipack artwork somehow, this is something that I need to look further into and how to market it to the right audience.

Creating a Star Image.

One theory on the 'Star Image' is by Andrew Goodwin which he calls 'Dancing in the distraction factory'
His theory is that the importance of creating a character and an identity of an artist allows them to gain fan loyalty and maintain a long career. He also believes that creating a character image adds visual recognition to an artist when lyrics in a song may lack depth, something a record company relies on in the industry in order to make profit. For example, Madonna and her 'cone bra' or Michael Jackson and his silver glove.
Another theorist is Richard Dyer and his theory entitled 'Stars'(originally about cinematic stars).
He believed that a star builds a relationship with an audience, and he spit this theory into four categories;

• Emotional Affinity - whereby 'an audience feels a loose attachment' which is the most common relationship among a star and their audience.


• 
  Self Identification - this is when an audience is empathetic to a star and puts themself in the same situation and persona.


• 
  Imitation - This is most common in young audiences where an audience views their 'star' and a role model and aspires to be like them.


• 
  Projection - This is the most obsessive relationship which is quite rare, whereby an audience member imitates a star to the extreme through their choice of clothing, the way they act etc.
  

8332958-Star-Image

Risk Asessment.

1. Falls of crew/equipment?
Answer: Yes
Severity: Medium/High
Likelihood: Low
Persons at risk: all actors and crew (4), all equipment
Precautions: Minimise risks by briefing band members on what they are required to do beforehand, make sure all wires from microphone, keyboard etc. are tidied away or in clear sight. Make sure that the camera is either on the tripod securely or around my neck with the support of a strap. When finished with the camera, make sure it is put back in its leather case to avoid drop damage or scratches.

2. Temporary Structures?
Answer: Yes (Garage/Factory)
Severity: Low
Likelihood: Low
Persons at risk: all actors and crew (4), all equipment
Precautions: Minimise risks by briefing band members on what they are required to do beforehand so the shots can be taken quickly and efficiently. Ensure structure is safe and secure along with any stacked boxes etc. being safe and sturdy.

3. Tripping Hazards?
Answer: Yes
Severity: Medium
Likelihood: Low
Persons at risk: all actors and crew (4), all equipment.
Precautions: Minimise risks by briefing band members on what they are required to do beforehand, make sure all wires from microphone, keyboard etc. are tidied away or in clear sight. Make sure that boxes stacked in the factory are secure and sturdy. Make sure footwear in the park location is not likely to be slippy or a trip hazard.

Vehicles?
Answer: No
Severity: Low
Likelihood: Low
Persons at risk: -
Precautions: No precautions to take.

Special Effects?
Answer: Yes (Cigarettes - smoke giving an effect)
Severity: Low/Medium
Likelihood: Low
Persons at risk: all actors (3)
Precautions: Minimise risks by briefing actors to be careful when handling the cigarettes in order not to burn themselves. Also, ensure actors are aware of objects around them and their costume and dress as this may cause a fire hazard (especially hairspray).

6. Weapons?
Answer: No
Severity: Low
Likelihood: Low
Persons at risk: -
Precautions: No precautions to take.

7. Burns from Lighting?
Answer: Yes
Severity: Medium/High
Likelihood: Low
Persons at risk: all actors and crew (4), all equipment
Precautions: Minimise risks by briefing band members of the heat from the lighting, especially in the studio and factory Locations. In the studio, we need to be careful that the lighting does not get too hot and overheat the camera.

Shooting Software.

To shoot the music video, I will be using my Olympus PEN E-PL1 with HD video as well as for the album artwork and promotional shoot.
When filming the video, I need to make sure that the memorycard in my camera will be large enough to hold all of the footage and the photos from the shoot. To avoid this possible downfall, I will take two, possibly three, memory cards with me on each of the shoots so that we will have enough storage if more shooting needs to be done e.g. multiple shots. This is also as looking throuh the footage on location and deleting will be time consuming, I also believe that you dont know what footage youve truly got and what is usable or not until you see it on the computer screen. Another issue with time consumtion is that in the studio location, I can only rent it out for two hours at a time, four hours being too much, we will need to be efficient and not waste time which will be aided from the scedule list and the order of one band member geting dressed whilst the other is being filmed etc.
I will need to ensure that the battery is funny charged etc. which is an obvious thing to do, and I will also need to book a tripod in advance from the college library and enquire of how long I can take it out for.
I will need to ensure that the camera is safe, so to avoid damage, I will bring my hard leather case for the camera which I will ensure is on the camera whenever I am not using it.

Styling.

Female Band Members - (Catherine and Joanne)

For the female band members, styling, in my eyes, should be inspired by the likes of Audrey Hepburn and of course Edie Sedgewick, who were both huge icons of the 60's era.

To begin, I think that the styling of the hair should be a 60's inspired up do, much like the one seen in the photo of Audrey here, as both girls have longer hair and if their hair is up, I believe that the theatrical make-up and huge earrings will be shown of more and have a bigger impact in the video, all the time thinking about the individual band member and styling them suited to their personal 'look'. The huge eyelashes on both of these icons is a must, as I feel this will add a huge amount of drama and a vintage aesthetic to the visuals. I think that Twiggy is another inspiration for this part of the styling with her huge eyelashes and pixie-like image.

For the styling of dress in the video, I have been thinking of how to distribute the outfits that I have already found between girls and each location.

For the studio shoot, I feel that 60's inspired party shift dresses and huge earrings will be most effective as they will be in a studio environment, so the background will be simple and so I want the costume to be bright and stand out. I also believe that at this point, the band performance is going to be filmed, along with the shoot for the album artwork, so the band needs to look good together. There is also no limit to the extravagance of the styling on this location as it is inside and the studio setting shows no restrictions for dress.

I also had the idea at this point to show one of the girls, I am thinking Joanne, to be wearing black tights and a striped t-shirt during the 'David Bailey inspired' shots of the photoshoot, where Rickie is imitating Andy Warhol and Joanne would be immitating Edie. Here is a photo I have for the inspiration behind this look.

r the 'Warhol's Factory' location, I was thinking that the girls should still ahve the updo's and Edie inspired makeup, however, their outfits would be more relaxed, perhaps with tights again and some sort of dress/top. I am yet to go to Goldrush and pick out clothes for the video so therefore, I am hoping to find something for them when we do that.

For the park w/ fountain location, I was very inspired by a previous clip montage I watched from the film 'Factory Girl' and embeded it in a previous post.

I was thinking that at this point in the video, the girls will both wear their shift dresses and tights underneath fur jackets, of which I am now in possesion of. I think that the obvious think to do when filming in an outdoor location is to dress appropriately, to make the styling more believable from a visual point of view.

Male Main Artist -(Rickie)

For Rickie, I had to take in mind the previous styling from the last magazine project as my artist has evolved, although still maintaining some of the edgy rockaholic style that was developed last time.

The Idea of styling also relates to the amplication video style with Rickie, as for part of the video, he imitates Andy and to a viewing audience, I need to make it clear of the link with Rickie and Andy as well as the switch between each persona in the video.

With Rickie's individual style, I think the 60's influence could still be present, with a possible vitage blazer from Goldrush and I'm thinking a black poloneck, which I have found to be a classic 60's styling for men with Chelsea boots and tailored trousers. I think that by swapping the trousers and boots for jeans and doc Martens will link well with Rickie's signature 'look' and fans can relate.

I have taken inspiration for the 'Andy Styling' for Rickie from photographs I have found from the factory shown below. What is apparent is Andy's own signature 'look' with a striped white t-shirt layered with a leather jacket and Ray-Ban style shades. I have everything sorted for this outfit already and I believe that it will represent Andy correctly as well as not clashing with the style of how Rickie dresses.

The classic combination of Warhol's leather and stripe reminded me of Elvis Presley's styling for the music video 'Jailhouse Rock'. From this image, of Elvis standing infront of a white studio screen, I can visualise the studio concept of my video and this image is something I am aiming to achive for in the final shoot.

For the inside 'Factory' location, the 'Andy look' will be continued, perhaps without the leather jacket to add interest to the overal visuals.

For the park location, I think that Rickie needs to match well with the styling of the girls, however his look being slightly more slicker and tailored. My tweed blazer we used in the shoot for my music magazine at AS proved well on camera and I think that this would be a good idea to use again perhaps, depending on what we find on our group trip to Goldrush.

Prop List.

Prop List

Analysing Lyrics and Shooting Ideas.

Here, I have printed off a copy of the lyrics of the song for the music video and annotated them.
After studying the lyrics and thinking of links and meanings they could have of Andy and Edie in the factory years and I think that my findings have been successful.
The song is ultimately about staying up all night partying at a first glance, but after reading between the lines, the lyrics have relation to Edie's 'party' lifestle and how Andy was trying to steer her away from the reputation.
At the beginning of the song, the lyrics seem to be written in the third person, 'we had fun', which could have relation to how Edie 'used to' be before she died. To me, this seems like the band is singing from the present day about her, which differes later in the song as the lyrics turn to the present day, 'and now words are to cheap'. I believe that this could have relevance to my music video of Rickie kind of becoming the part of Andy in the video, so therefore he is telling her directly, 'in the present day'.
By analysing these lyrics and linking them to my idea concept, I wanted to create 'Intertextuality' and give the song an additional meaning which by implying through lyrics and visuals, some audience members may understand this and gain a sense of fulfillment about this. I feel that it gives the song an additional layer and link with the visuals, as I don't want to just create a 60's style video alongside music.


Analysing Lyrics

Location #1 - The Factory.

I have taken pictures of my garage which will become 'Warhol's Factory' after I have cleared away all of the junk and let loose with the kitchen foil and fairy lights. I believe that this is a good location to film as we have access to it at anytime, it nis inside so we wont have to worry about the weather on this one and I can decorate it as I please.
I now need to sort out bits of 'factory furniture' and arrange them along with the silver walls and the lighting. With this location, I want it to be slightly darker, and lit by artificial lighting mostly which would give a contrasted effect against the other two locations, the well-lit studio and the outside park.
I plan to renovate this space as soon as I can, I also had the idea of putting a matress in the space like the one which wouldve been on the floor of Warhol's factory.

Additional Location Idea and hand-held camera.

I have been researching and watching countless video's on youtube of montages from the film 'Factory Girl' and footage and interviews from the factory.
I came across a video montage from the film and it shows a clip montage of an example of filming technique that I really like from the film, hand-held camera. This is something that I most definetly want to try and incorporate into my video and possibly try and add after effects of a grained and worn film reel on the editing software.

This clip montage also has inspired me by means of an additional location to the two I have already decided upon, a park location.
What comes to mind is a park in Leicester that is surrounded by buildings, almost like central park, where this clip is filmed, that houses a fountain in the centre. I think that if we styled everybody up and we all went to the park, we could achieve some really interesting hand-held home movie clips to put in the video, much like the films by Andy Warhol.
Having seen this, I also want to research and watch some of Warhol's in-factory films such as the famous short underground movie entitled 'sleep'.

Edie Sedgewick - A bio.

Once one of the most famous socialites in America and Warhol's superstar, Edie Sedgwick hid her deepest guilty pleasures behind a battered eyelash on her darkened eyes.
She was born Edith Minturn Sedgewick on April 20th 1943, the daughter of Alice and Francis in Santa Barbara, Calafornia.
Edie's father, Francis, whom she called 'Fuzzy', was a Santa Barbra rancher who prior to his marriage to Edie's Mother, had had three nervous breakdowns. Before the marriage, he suffered from a severe phase of manic-depressive psychosis. Doctors advised Francis and Alice to not have children, but instead they had a total of eight; Alice, Robert, Pamela, 'Minty', Johnathan, Katharine, 'Edie', and Susanna.
During the war, the family moved to Corral de Quati, in the Santa Ynez Valley, to a much larger ranch with the money inherited from Edie's maternal grandfather. Although losing a large sum of the fortune in the Wall Street Crash, Edie's mother inherited the rest of the money, summing up to several million dollars.
After discovering oil on the ranch in the early fifties, the family gathered another small fortune to their already wealthy inheritance and bought a new ranch, Rancho La Laguna de San Francisco.
Minty was Edie's older brother whom she was extremely close to. He was an alcoholic at age fifteen and due to the circumstances the Sedgewick children were put under by their parents, this was not unusual. He was forced into care by 'Fuzzy' at Silver Hill psychiatric hospital during the early sixties before hanging himself in 1964, after ringing Edie the night before explaining that she was' the only Sedgewick he could ever hope for'.
Edies other brother 'Bobby' also has psychiatric problems and was also sent to Silver Hill. He died in 1965 after riding his Harley Davidson into the side of a bus without a helmet, conspiracy has left us to believe this may have been by choice.
First instotutionalized into Silver Hill in the autumn on 1962, Edie was suffering from Anorexia. She was shipped between mental hospitals by 'Fuzzy' and fell pregnant whilst on a hospital pass, leading her to have an abortion.
In1963, she was released from hospital and moved to Cambridge, Massachusets, where she attended art school for a short time before moving to New York in 1964, at the age of 21.
In the January of '65, Edie met Andy Warhol at a party, held by Lester Perskey in his apartment. Soon after, she frequently began making visits to the Factory where Andy was mesmorised by her beauty and presence, leading him to put her into 'Vinyl' at the last minute and his film 'Horse' where she arrived at the Factory toward the end of the filming.
Despite Warhol's films not having commercial success, and rarely seen by people outside of the Factory circle, Sedgewick's fame grew and bled into the mainstream media, reporting on her appearances with Warhol and her appearances in his underground films, dubbing her his 'superstar'.
Edie's modelling career also took off at this point, developing of Edie's 'trademark look' of black leotards, mini dresses, hugely dark eyes and large chandelier earrings that would lay on her shoulders. After moving to New York, Edie began cuting her hair short and dying her naturally brunette hair blonde, after an unsuccessful attemp to spray her hair silver, which made rumours in the media of her being 'Warhol's twin'.
Edie met Bob Dylan and Bobby Neuwirth in December of 1964, approximately a moth before she met Andy. Dylan and Edie immediately had a connection although he was staying at the Chelsea Hotel with his future wife, Sara, and their three year old child from a previous marriage at the time. Whilst Sara took care of their child at the Hotel, Dylan and Edie would enjoy the nightlife of New York, Dylan was also having an affair with Joan Baez at this time which had begun before he met Edie whom he later broke up with. Edie and Dylan had a New York romance before Dylan married Sara in a secret ceremony in 1965, something that Edie apparently found out later in a argument with Andy at teh Gingerman Restaurant in February the of '66. Some of Dylan's later songs were roumered to be about Edie. And Andy.
By this time, Edie had become heavily addicted to drugs and alcohol after having a secret relationship with Dylan's best friend 'Bob Neuwirth'. She bacame dependant on Barbiturates althought there was no evidence that she was a heroin addict. The relationship was broken off in 1967 after it became too hard to cope with her drug abuse and erratic behaviour.
In April 1967, Edie bagan shooting the underground movie 'Ciao! Manhattan' which took five years to film due to Edie's drug abuse, arrests, and hospital adimissions. The tapes are living proof of Edie's last years and the lifestyle that she left behind. Whilst in Hospital she began a relationship with another patient, 'Michael Post'. They married in the July of '71 in Santa Brabra, Calafornia.
Edie died in the November of 1971, of a drug overdose.

Written by Matthew Needham

A Warholian Factory.

Here, I have created an Animoto presentation of compiled images of Andy Warhol's Factory, Edie, and the Factory people. I felt that by doing this, I could get a true feel for the energy of the factory and relate it into my video.

I wanted to collect images that wern't from google images or anywhere obvious, so I researched lost images of the Warholian Factory and I was excited with what I found. I feel that the second location for the video could possibly be some sort of recreation of the Factory, with the silver painted walls and open space with living room furniture. An idea comes to mind that we could use the old garage at the back of my house and cover the walls with foil and fairylights. With lighting and a few living room pieces of hang me down furniture, I think that this could prove quite rewarding visually. I need to now hunt for some sort of lighting equiptment, although I believe it could be industrial, and scavange any tin foil that me or my friends have in the kitchen.

Styling is something that comes to mind when I watch this video. I understand the basic 'look' of Edie and Warhol, but I feel that when styling the band, I need to relate it to their personal image also.

Goldrush.

Last Saturday, I went vintage shopping for myself when it occured to me, whilst there, that I was surrounded by vintage clothing that would look incredible in a music video.

I felt that it was needed to enquire about hiring or borrowing a few items for the music video. One out of the three shops, 'Goldrush' in Leicester, agreed to lend me as much clothing as I needed, when I needed, and they said that they would help me when it came to styling of the band etc.
Now I feel that I need to get all three band members together and we need to go and spend a day there styling and creating the image for the band.

Refined Idea.

After pitching my idea to the class and evaluating my feedback, I feel that my initial warholian inspired idea for the music video is something I will definetly continue with.
To refine my idea, I have decided to compose a list of my design decisions:

- The video will be filmed in two locations - Firstly, a studio location, with well-lit lighting, very inspired by the work of David Bailey. Secondly, a city location, Camden, London ideally, as I feel that the image and reputation of Camden will fit in well with the vintage influence to my video. I will need to remember to check the weather forecast when choosing a day for shooting so that the weather will not effect shooting, although, rain may be a nice backdrop for a music video.

- The video genre will be Amplification.

- The image

Factory Girl.

For the music video and image of the band and debut single as 'Rickie & the Islanders', a 1960's warholian image and vision comes to mind.
I have become very inspired by the 2006 film 'Factory Girl', about the life and death of American 'it girl' and muse of Andy Warhol, Edie Sedgewick. I feel that the image of Edie is something that could be transfered onto the image of 'Rickie & the Islanders', referring mostly to the two female band members with the huge eyes and demure excitement, captured in Edie's personality.
The shots used in the film are hand-held alot of the time, with soft focus, using close-ups of the actors' feet and face which I find very inspiring and a technique I may test out before filming the final music video.
The video above is a montage of clips from the film, including examples of hand-held camera techniques and unique camera angles.





I feel that the two close up shots of edie, edited side by side, are a clear representation of the type of character Edie is. The fact that she is applying make-up and smoking a cigarette at the same time is entriguing as I find the smoke gives a vintage and unique feel to the shot, which is something I think I should consider when shooting. Also, I like the fact that the two shots are filmed of edie's reflection in the mirror, I feel that it adds interest to an audiences point of view.
The fact that the editing is fairly fast between the shots here adds a pace to the clip and could imply the free-living lifestyle that Edie leads as she gets ready, without wasting much time, although she is calm which is shown through the smoking of a cigarette.

Evaluation of Pitch Feedback.

So I presented my pitch to the class and gained feedback from my presentation. I felt that the animoto video went down well from what I gathered from the class' reactions.

' Good idea Matt! We love that you're carrying on your AS just like ours! :D Is the song that was played the one you are using? '

One comment from a group in the class was very positive which is good, their comment also reassures my idea and makes me feel that this is a good direction to be heading in. From this comment, I do gather that I shouldve made it clear that the song that was playing would be the one I am using for the music video.
I feel that my pitch may not have been as direct of my location choices etc as some of the other pitches were, but I felt that by expressing my ideas through the imagery I incorporated in my pitch, my peers gathered a clear understanding a feel for my vision. I feel that this worked well.

Deadline Schedule.

G325 Advanced Portfolio Cw Schedule Sept - Dec11 Lutterworth College

Album Cover Artwork ideas #1

Artwork idea#1

View more presentations from Matthew Needham

I have been experimenting with photoshop for initial ideas for album artwork so I can get some ideas possibly before shooting etc.
I have taken an image of Rickie that I took on the shoot for 'Rebel' last year; a magazine 'for the fashion forward rockaholic'. I thought that his facial expression would look really effective if I edited it in Warhol's silk screen style. I believe that this would work well with my idea and vision for the band and the music video.
For this experimentation, I used one of the brush tools to draw over the outline of his face and add eyelashes, inspired by Edie Sedgewick. I feel that the androginy of the image is something that proves very interesting and I think I could also use this in my final digipack as it also has a comical aspect.
I searched for fonts on dafont.com, and came across this one called 'Revo'. I think that the font works extremely well with the band's name as it isnt too spaced out and almost looks like a band logo.
I also experimented with lighting, using the 'render' filters on photoshop, I think this adds a professional look to the overall Album artwork and is something I think would work on the final digipack.

Webpage.

Check out the Rickie & the Islanders new website here:

http://www.wix.com/rickieisland/island_official

R&TI on facebook.

I have now set up a facebook page for the band, so fans can update themselves on the band's whereabouts and show that they like the band.


http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rickie-the-Islanders/191692150903392?skip_nax_wizard=true#!/pages/Rickie-the-Islanders/191692150903392?sk=wall

Choosing a Genre.

When choosing a genre of music to explore with the band, the choice was pretty clear from the start. Rickie, as a solo artist, explored the genres of rock and alternative, and I felt that it felt right to continue in that direction of music, despite the change of image.
I feel that due to my initial ideas I have for the music video, the song that I choose will need to have a vintage flare and influence about it, to match up and work well with the visuals, as well as have a modern flare.

Band Name.

The starting point for my media this year was the idea that I would continue with my artist from last year, only I felt that I didn't want to drag out something that I feel I have got everything out of. So therefore, I feel that with the use of innovation, my artist could be re-born artistically.
My idea was clear, and then it was time to choose the name.
Over the summer, I contimplated and mix matched around with a few different band/artist names and decided to use wikipedia's 'random article' tool in order to gather inspiration for a new artist name.
A few came to mind:
- Rickie and the crisis
- The Rickie Project
- Rickie & the Islanders
- Rickie and the Islanders
- Bedchamber Crisis
- Rickielee & the Bedchamber Crisis
- etc.

The one that stood out and spoke to me the most was 'Rickie & the Islanders'. I feel that the ring that it has when you say it is something that is extremely important when choosing a name for a recording artist as it should be recognisable, memorable, and should roll off the tongue with ease.
I feel that instead of creating a whole new band, with new members etc. Rickie should remain the main artist although have back-up band members/backing vocals, without seeming too much like 'The Supremes' and more like 'Florence & the Machine'. I feel that two female backing members will work well as a contrast with Rickie as the main artist.

Band Profile.

Born in the winter of 92', Rickielee Drayford started out as just a rough-round kid from the East End. His Dad's Rockaholic influence took over at about age 10, and ever since, hes been adding to the collection of his vinyl records, before starting to write music for himself. With his Mum leaving at an early age, Rickielee grew up under the easy-going parenting of his ex-mod Dad, and it wasnt long before he picked up a guitar and started to play. His natural ability allowed him to become one with a guitar and start to strum together tunes through his early teens. Skipping forward a few years, in 2009, Rickielee was signed by Models 1 agency. Fresh-faced and quiffed, Rickie's modelling career seemed to be becoming a future for him, modelling the pages of i.D and Dazed&Confused. Still, the raging monster of Rock was drumming up inside him. Not long after, he found himself playing acoustically at bars in London's Soho before he was soon discovered by Michael Lane, music producer of the record label R.K records. Given 6 months to write an album, Rickielee came back to the producers with a 'new sound', described by Lane as 'a revelatory partership of acoustic and rock, this is a new era'. His debut album 'Factory Boy', was released in November 2010, 'Q' describing Drayford as 'number one newcomer of the year '10', a huge achievement as to the release date of his debut ablum. Now in 2011, Rickielee decided it was time for innovation; it was time to change his image in the music industry, so therefore, 'Rickielee Drayford' became 'Rickie & the Islanders'. The new 60's wave inspired rock music has sent his fans wild with excitement, as well as gaining a new fan base. His debut single with the band is entitled ' The End of the Night', and soon to have a video as rumoured due to the update on the bands twitter feed, 'A song needs visuals, they're coming guys and gals!'

Moodboard.

Audience Profile.

I have decided to target my music video towards both male and female audiences. The genre of music I have chosen is rock & alternative with a 60's vibe, therefore my video will also appeal to an audience who are also interested in this type of music.

Rob

For example, Rob is a 19 year old student, studying BA Honours Fashion at Central Saint Martins in Central London. He saunters round Camden market with his hands in his pockets, whistling his own rendition of the Smith's 'Panic'.
He wakes up on his friends 'rented-out' sofa, whacks on last nights socks and begins the new fashion-forward day ahead of the rest.Loafers on his feet, slouched in a grandad cardie and a customised band tee shirt he found in his dads old armoir, Rob walks into 'Vinyl & Junk' to pick up the latest issue of 'Q Magazine'.

Rob is a fashionable boy, a setter and not a follower. He is a lad who with no effort, seems to fling together a bundle of threads and rocking it out with his best foot on the job.

His mates say hes the class clown with a healthy rockaholic's appetite, listening to the likes of Kasabian and the Drums.

Olivia

An 17 year old sixth former who lives her life with the bands of tomorrow playing in the background. She rocks into school with her stuff thrown into a brown leather satchel she found in the back of a vintage store, wearing her Doc Marten's paired with a black satin dress.

Olivia's friends say 'shes got an ear for music ahead-of-its-time';'she's always reading 'NME' and 'Q' magazine'. When she's not at a festival or going to chill on the grass with her friends, guitar in hand, she watches Hitchcock horros and other black and white sci-fi movies.

25 Word Pitch.

Twitter Page.

I have decided to set up an official twitter account for the band 'Rickie & the Islanders'. I feel that by doing this, fans will be able to follow new band activity and tour dates etc.
The twitter page is featured below:
http://twitter.com/#!/ISLAND_OFFICIAL

David Bailey.

I have become very inspired by David Bailey's studio photography from the sixties and seventies. I feel that this imagery would work very well in a music video, having irrelevant, slow motion shots of male and female characters, possibly mid-shot shots as an initial idea that comes to mind.

Final Song Choice.

After sifting through many different song choices, each providing different creative pathways and areas of imagery I could explore in a video, I have chosen to use the song 'End of the Night' by The Smith Westerns.
I feel that the 60's retro influence that the band persues through their music would fit in well with the ideas I have for the music video.

End Of The Night by Smith Westerns

We had fun
We didn't know what time it was
Close your eyes, oh girl
Then I'll stay close

Don't know why
Sun's up in the sky
Close your eyes, oh girl
Then I'll stay close

Everybody wants to be a star on a saturday night
Come with me baby and your eyes shine the sunlight

Ooh, it's the end of the night, it's the end of the night
Are you gonna go home?
Ooh, it's the end of the night, it's the end of the night
Are you gonna go home?

Fell asleep
And now words are too cheap
Close your eyes, oh girl
Then I'll stay close

Don't you care?
You feel the sunlight warm your hair
Close your eyes, oh girl
Then I'll stay close

Everybody wants to be a star on the saturday night
Come with me baby and your eyes shine the sunlight

Ooh, it's the end of the night, it's the end of the night
Are you gonna go home?
Ooh, it's the end of the night, it's the end of the night
Are you gonna go home?

Analysing Music Videos 1.

When analysing music videos, there are many theorists that all have their own ideas about how they can be analysed. One theorist is Craig Davis, who's theory was that music videos can be sorted into three 'genre categories'; Illustration, Amplification, and Disjuncture.

The first video I have chosen to analyse is Lady Gaga's video for 'Yoü And I'. I have chosen the video to analyse as it is an example of amplification and disjuncture in a video.
The lyrics and song have a back story of a failed relationship with a man from Springfield, Nebraska in Midwestern America and therefore, the obvious amplification link to those in the known of this is the location of which the video was filmed, which in fact was the whole video. The clips of which Lady Gaga is dressed as a man could also amplify this and suggest that she is 'playing' the character of her lover.
During the video, the artist playes the piano, which is in direct link with the music, another link to amplification as well as the fact that in almost every location she is with a male, which could have direct link to the lyrics 'you and I'.
The disjuncture in this video is represented through unusual choice of wardrobe such as the electrical wires from her chin or around her eyes during the beginning of the video, as well as the 'mermaid' sequence, which has no link to the song lyrics or back story.
The video contains narrative and performance codes such as the featured artist being advertised throughout the video repeatedly as well as the narrative being 'suggestive' to maintain interest from an audience who otherwise would find the video boring after the first few times of watching it.
The narrative also links to the 'Musical Synaesthesia' which are the two elements of a song that determine the visuals and the concept. Gaga's 'grain of voice' in this video, coming from the theory by Roland Barthes, is strong and powerful which could relate to how she feels about the situation and the lyrics, linking to her ex lover. Ther dominant musical arrangement in the video is a heavy rock bass, primarily from the dominance of the electric guitar throughout and musical solos by ex-'Queen' guitarist Brian May.
The multiple shots of gaga dancing in the barn would link to the 'conventions of solo artist' in terms of video performance, whereby the repeated shots engages the reader. This is also apparent through eye contact during mid-shots and close-ups from the first clip sequence outside in the road.
Only 1 in 10 artists promoted by a major record company will actually make that company any substantial profit, Gaga being one of them at 'Interscope'. Therefore, the 'Star Image' is key in any music video that she makes. For example, in the 'Yoü And I' video, her long blue hair or her memaids tail.
Many whip pans, crans shots and fast dolly tracks are used throughout the video, for example during the sequence when Lady Gaga is dancing in the barn with blue hair or even at the beginning when an entire phrase 'It's been along time since you came around, been a long time but I'm back in town' is filmed during one panning crane shot, shown here.

Choosing a song.

When choosing a song for Rickie and the Islanders, I have been experimenting with using exising songs from previous eras. I felt that by doing this, the band would have a vintage appeal to a young audience as well as possibly appealing to an older audience.
I feel that by choosing songs by bands that have an easily recognised lead singer, the new image being portrayed of the existing artist fronting in a band would work well.
An initial idea I had was 'London's Calling' by 'The Clash'. The song immediately sparks ideas for a video in my head and therefore I felt that with this song, the idea of having a location shoot and a studio shoot would fit in well with my idea of having a filming location and a studio shoot.
Despite my ideas, the video for the origional song is very dated and unimaginative which could be a bonus for shooting a new video as I would not have to live up to a standard already set, nor go to alot of trouble to avoid copying existing material. However, I feel that this song may be slightly too obvious and well regognised, therefore hard to re-vamp and the genre of the song is more Ska music which is not the genre of band I had in mind.



Then two more song ideas came to mind, the first being 'Naturals not in it' by the english post-punk band 'Gang of Four', from the 1979 album 'Entertainment!'
I think that the bass to this song is something that could really channel and carry a good music video, however, I could not find an existing video to look at, which could leave me complete creative freedom with nothing to compare to. Even though the band is post-punk primarily, I feel that the overall sound of the song would not clash with the image of the band.



My third song choice, and one that I felt strongly about towards when starting my thinking period, is The Boomtown Rats, 'I don't like Mondays'.
I feel that this song would be very interesting to create new visuals for as the back-story for the song of 16 year old Brenda Ann Spencer who took her Dad's rifle to school and carried out a shooting spree, all because she didn't like Mondays. I feel that Amplification Music videos and songs that have meaning behind them are very interesting and I feel that this is something I would definetly want to consider when making my music video.
The only thing I would say about this song is that it is very stop-start, which could affect the pace of the music video and make the editing quite slow, which I believe will determine whether the video looks proffesional or not.



Another song that I have chosen to consider for my music video is 'Still New' by the Smith Westerns. I feel that this band are very much what I am searching for directionwise for my music video. I feel that the sound of the music reflects how I imagine Rickie's music to be previously, but with a new vintage flare.
I love how the band have a vintage sixties/seventies vibe about them, I think that this would work well with my initial idea as well as make the video and band current in today's market. I believe this is a good thing as if I were to use an existing song from a previous era and create a vintage inspired video alongside it, it would not appeal to a younger market.
I love this song, and I feel that the visuals could be beautifully psycadelic, although I have to think about the band aspect of the video, and I don't think that this is a song that could be easily lip syncd to. I also feel that the song I choose should have a more upbeat feel about it, still maintaining a rock aspect in the sound.






I began to listen to more of the Smith Western's album and I feel that this song, 'The End of the Night' would be a good contender for the final video.
When listening to this song, I feel that the rock aspect is there aswell as having a strong vintage flare about it. This song in particular makes me recognise the band's 60's psychadellic influence aswell as being a young and modern group.

Analysing Music Videos #2

Continuing with Craig Davis' theory on 'Genre Categories', this video for 'Country Girl' by 'Primal Scream' has a genre of Illustration and Amplification.
The Illustrative side to this video shows the visuals of a straightforward link to the lyrics of the song and a simple narrative of a 'country girl' drinking, driving and partying in a cowboy hat and underwear. This could also be described as music video 'denotation'.
The Amplification side to this video is the implied concept behind the video. The 'country girl' played by 'Helena Mattsson' was inspired by the character of 'Baby' played by 'Sheri Moon' from Rob Zombie's 'House of 1000 corpses/The Devil'd Rejects'.
There is also a direct link between the visuals of the 'Country girl' and the song when she is listening to the song in the truck she is driving and singing along to the lyrics. This is also apparent towards the end of the song where she is dancing at a rodeo to the song. The shots of the 'country girl' dancing are edited alongside clips of the lead singer dancing which maintains a link between the two 'characters' and scenes.
The narrative code to the video shows shots of the lead singer 'Bobby Gillespe' as well as the visuals of the 'country girl' that relate directly to the lyrics in order to market and advertise the band. 'Repeatablility' is key in the shots of the band in order to maintain a reference to the band singing the song which is also an example of 'conventions of the band performance'.

Initial Ideas.

When thinking about initial ideas about my music video this year, I began thinking that it would be a good idea to continue and modify the image of the same artist I used in my AS music magazine editorial. I feel that by doing this I will be able to innovate a new image of the artist and possibly commercialise him under a new 'band' name.
I have also had initial ideas about song choices for my band's music video. I feel that by using an older record, I can express a modern take on the song through the music video and image of the band.
I feel that the initial ideas for my music video are that it will be very art inspired and possibly a contrast of two locations, possibly a studio and an outdoor location.