Analysis of a Muse Digi Pack

This is the Muse greatest hits digipak: as you can see the design of the digipak is based around a cartoon abstract design with a variety of lines and circles and although this design does not seem like it suits the genre of music, the colours that are used do fit in with the genre of music as they are all dark and there are then bursts of colours that are dotted around the cover. This again reinforces my idea of some areas standing out. The images that are on the digipak cover are: a woman that is white with some elements of red and pink, white lines, a red picture of palm trees and then there is the band’s name and logo dotted around and this is in white.
As you can see in the picture above there are some parts of the inside of the digipak showing and the design of the inside looks like it follows the design on the exterior of the digipak and this is shown by the lines continuing from where they end on the exterior of the digipak. The CD that is in the digipak is also following the colours and some aspects of the design as the CD is black with the band name on and there are red and white circles on the disk near the middle.

Here is a list of all of the conventions that the digipak follows: the name of the band is shown on the front cover, list of the songs and other extras are listed on the back of the digipak, there is a brief and basic description of the band inside the digipak, there are reviews of that album inside the digipak, the design suits the genre of music, the colour scheme suites both the band’s name and the genre of music, the font of the text suites the rock genre, the company that has made the digipak have their logo and name on the digipak and the digipak has a simple design.

After looking at this digipak I have decided that it would be best if I take some of what I think are the best ideas for making a digipak from the this pre-existing digipak and then use some of the elements for when I and making our Digipak draft and final version.

Music Magazine Analysis.

Front Page :

This magazine again has all the main and real conventions. It has a Mast Head, Main Image, Sell Lines, Strap Line and Smaller Images.

The mast head “KERRANG” is made to look like it has been broken and this shows to the audience that it is an active Genre. If the mast head was all together it would show that it is normal, even thought it is not. A lot of the band and solo artists jump around and shout. The cracks in the mast head may also suggest that a band has been jumping and hit it with an instrument which have made it crack, this looks good.

Kerrang are a well known magazine this is why their mast head can be slightly covered the same as “Q”. These magazines are in the same target audience and price. They also have some similarities and two big differences which are, the colours used and the Genre of music that is mainly shown to the audience.

The main image on this magazine shows that the band member from Green Day works hard on his music as he looks tired and has his Guitar with him in the image. The colours on this magazine also show that the magazine is not all dark and dull. The colours that are usually used are Black and Red. This issue shows there is a lighter side as it has a light blue/grey as the background.

The magazine has many sell lines and these all show what is in the magazine and what the buyers can read about. This magazine also has two small images as an EAR. The EAR on this magazine is showing the pull out from page 8. The strap line also explains this. The barcode and issue number are also on the front page this is so that when it is picked up off the shelf it is easy to see the price.

There are a few sell lines on this magazine and this is to attract the audiences attention. All the sell lines are written in the same text style, this is for consistency. Each sell line has its own font colour and they all have a different coloured square behind the text, this helps them stand out. At the bottom of the front cover it has another sell line and so this one stands out it has the word “PLUS!” this is in a different font, different colour and different background colour.

Contents Page:

This is the contents page of a 'Kerrang' magazine. The colour scheme runs straight through the magazine and they keep the same font which develops brand identity.

The right column contains listings of what is inside, to give the reader an insight int what they are potentially buying. This successfully attracts the target audience as it is easy to comprehend and the bright yellow and black colours contrast, stand out from the white background on the page, furthermore drawing attention to the magazine.

There are eight pictures positioned tightly together in thirds rule of all the main items that consist in the magazine. A collection of the images on the page use direct mode of address, this grabs the reader’s attention, by the use of the gaze connecting with one another.

All of the pictures used are of musicians or linked to music which enhances the genre of the magazine, also the style of the individuals in the images are identical to the type of music that this magazine caters for - rock. The editors section at the top right hand corner also uses a direct mode of address and 'talks' personally to the reader. It welcomes them into the magazine, leaving a positive attitude for the potential buyer and for what is to come in the rest of the publication.

Double Page Spread:

One page is dedicated to an image of either a band/ solo artist or picture from a video clip. The other page contains all text. This is information about the image and why it is on there. The text is all in one continuous style and colour. Some parts have headings to let you know what that paragraph is about. This way the audience and buyers can select which part of the article they want to read if they want to read this article. The main part of this article is also made to stand out, this is done by increasing the size of font and also inputting red speach marks behind the text.

This double page spread also has an EAR, this is to show another clip or main character from the video or band. The image shows that they are not scared and that they want people to know them. This is shown as they are pointing and looking directally into the camera.

Other images on this double page spread are smaller then the main one this is so they dont take all the attention away from the main one. They are also on the page to show other great scenes in the video.

Analysis of Blink 182's DigiPack

This is Blink 182's digipack for their album "Take off your Pants and Jacket." This is their 4th studio album and featured in a DigiPack style. The title of this album was decided when Blink's guitar tech told his friend to take off his pants and jacket before entering the house because he was soaking wet.

The front cover of the digipack has a very basic design of a black background with three different coloured circles to link with their logo. Then have then replicated these three circles on the side of the page with three different drawings in them. There is a stenciled Aeroplane, this is showing the "Take off" from the title of the album, there is then a pair of Trousers in the other circle this is the "pants" in the title and the final circle has a jacket inside it, This replicates the "Jacket" within the title.

The band sold these CD's individually with the different pictures and colours as the disk design. They also sold them as a Digipack, as seen above. I think this was a great selling point because the different CD's became a collectable item for everyone. This was very sucessful as everyone wanted to own each disk even though each disk had the same content. This would also promote the buying of CD's as people would want them for the design and not be able to illegally download them because it was the album art that was wanted. This would show peoples love for the band also. The didgipack and the individual CD's became the collectors item costing- Digipack £10.79, Individual CD £3.99.

Genre of Music

For my media project I am doing a Paramore song, Misguided Ghosts. I need to know the conventions of the genre I have chosen. This table explains some information about my band.

Come From - Tennessee, USA
Genre - Pop Punk, Alternate Rock and Emo
Active Since - 2004 - Present
Record Label - Fuled by Ramen
Website - www.paramore.net
Other Artist on this Record - Panic at the Disco, Gym Class Heroes, Travie McCoy and more

The established genre of Paramore would be Alternate Rock and Pop Punk. The conventions of Alternate Rock say what they are in the name really; they are alternately different to the normal conventions.

Most pop punk videos contain the normal features of a rock video with a little twist. For example rock bands have their members playing their instruments in the dark with the odd strobe light across the band; this contrasts with alternate rock because they would have the back ground bright and the band members doing some abstract things to attract attention.

The bands within this genre all show their lead singer through the same thing. They all have their lead singer standing out by wearing bright clothing, and having bright surroundings. Some also make their lead singers wear unusual clothing. This is a small representation of society, because there are some people that like to wear bright clothing just to stand out from the rest, it is also showing that everyone has an individual dress sense.

Most videos within this Alternate Rock or Pop Punk genre have a tale of love embedded in them. They start all dull and then the main singer appears who has bright coloured clothing, or hair or an unusual outfit. This shows that she is standing out from whatever is happening within the video. Paramore’s videos are all aiming to attract the teenagers who are different from others and like to stand out, with bright clothing, bright hair and other unusual things. This is a good band because they represent the audience. The audience, mainly teens, are aged 16 – 19 and want to stand out. The videos show this and represent a small minority of the society back to us this is why I think that the audience for my video would be a minute audience.

Looking at a video by panic at the disco “nine in the afternoon” and it shows what I have been explaining above with Paramore. The video is dull however some main areas of the footage stand out in red, blue, green and yellow. This is showing that each member of the band has their own personality and this is shown by the colours.

Both videos cut on the beat of the music which is a convention of most music videos not just this genre.

Nine in the Afternoon - Panic at the Disco.

I have just looked at a video by panic at the disco “nine in the afternoon”. This also shows what I have been explaining above with Paramore. This video shows many different shots which all give us a different viwe on the video. There are a montage of midhots at the start of the video this will attract the viewer attention and maybe see what all these images mean. Establishing shot shows the singer getting out of bed, this also repeats when the other band members get up. There is then a following shot this shows them walking out of their room in pajamas and then a match on action shot is shown of them walking out of the house however they are dressed at this point. When they go out into the street to parade and sing they all have moustaches and the women also have them. This shows that they all link together, possibly keeping them linked. There are mid shots of the dacing in the street and of all the other action happening. There is an establishing sahot to show the new scene, work made entirley from sweets. This idea was used by this band in 2008 and was then copied and used as part of Katy Perrys misic video 'California Gurls' in 2010.

This video has sections that are dull or plain black and white. The only colours that are seen by the viewers are red, blue, green and yellow. This is so that things become noticed and stand out so people know who the band are and can tel then from every one else in the video. They follow the tradition of cut on the beat becauser they like to keep the audiance interested in the video. It keeps the audiance engaged and interegued into watching more. The lead singer also looks at the camera to keep the attention of the audiance, it looks like he was saying look at me you want what i have this is what you need to do. There is also alot of lip sync through this video. If the singer was singing while doing his actions wewould not hear what hewas singing becuase of the amount of movement and jumping about.

When they wake up it is showing they are normal people because they have what we have in a room other than a large alarm clock. They are showing that they lead a normal life until the go out onto the street when they get chased by crowds of women fans. These are dressed in a victorian clothing this is showing that they come from some where different, or they are poorer than the band. There is a match on action shot when they come out of their houses. They are in their room in pajamas and then walking onto street dressed.This is when the celeb life becomes clear and this is what they have to put up with.

The colours that are kept clear show the attitude of the band because these are bright colours and stand out from the rest of the scenery. Makes them look happy, cherpy and shows they are enjoying them selves. Within this video there is no lyrical interpretation so we have a video which is amusing but has nothing to do with waking up late other than the clocks being at 9 o'clock. Each clip, bit of footage, lasts 3 seconds at the most, this means there is going to be a lot of cuts through out the video. There is alot animal representation but no lyrics state any thing about animals. This shows some representation to the rock band 'The Bunny The Bear' they play all their instruments wearing a mask of a bunny and a bear. Floor shots so singer gets on floor to keep eyecontact with the audience. Showing he will do anything for people who like him or his audiance. Keeping contact with audience all way through by lloking into the camera lens alot.

Made to look like a parade. Some referencing to black parade but more colourful and enerjetic. They all clap and party at the end to show that they have finished the video. It shows the end and that they have done what they wanted to. Confetti also marks end of video but looks like a celebration. They all leave scene or play air instruments because the real things has finished and they want to continue.

Analysis of Travie McCoy music Video

The start of the music video is an establishing shot this is to show that the main person is ariving and this builds up tension with the viewers as they want to know where they are going. A mid shot is then shown as convention says. We go from establishing to mid in for close up and the reverse. When people are getting out of the car at the start the shots are very rapid this is to show the beat of the song and show the many different people who are in the video. The beat of this song is quite fast and to show this the footage is edited at a fast pace. There are fast actions for when the camera shows a single shot. There are people skating around the room and jumping on the bed to show fast beat and a party is occuring. There is alot of black, white and grey withing this video this is so that the singer Travie McCoy will stand out with his blue and yellow vest. It is important that the singer will stand out, so we can recognise them in future. This video inspires me because it has the technique of keeping some areas in the natural state and colour. It also keeps the surrounding areas dull, this also shows the artist standing out.

This video is set to be a steryotypical party. This is shown through the flashing lights which appear behind travie but do not distort his figure as he is the lead singer. Travie keeps looking at the camera to keep in touch witht the audiance, he wants them to buy his CD or download it. Many of the back up dancers are wearing sun glasses this is a connotation of cool. They want to sell thier lifestyle to you. It shows if you go to big parties and wear glases you are cool. When lyrics are slow one piece of action is shown like someone skating around the room on a board. This is to keep the audiance up with the pace. There is alot of lyrical interpretation to the lyrics through out the video. This is when they are 'Stayinh up late' 'Not Sleeping' 'Got their friends and the night'.

When establishing shots are shown the back up dancers and people within the shot are not shown as clear, their faces are blured. In the same shot they keep the lead singers face normal and do not edit him in any way because he is important. When the video had been edited it was but on the beat or to the words. This was to keep the audiance occupied and interested within the video. There was some midshots in the video because they wanted to include others with Travie, this was to reinforce the party feeling. When the footage of the party is shown it looks like it is an hand held camera this could be seen as though they are having fun and want to remember the party. There are some single shots of people at the party having fun, this shows that it is a fun lifestyle and there is still space for others to join. Travie salutes at the end of the song this is to thank the audiance and to invite you to watch another video.

Analysis of Lyrics

This is just a simple analysis of my Lyrics. Each few lines or section of the song conotate something different to me. I have written in ballpoint pen what I think it means to me.

My Audiance

I am aiming my product at a mass audience; however this is down to the genre of the song. My song is Misguided Ghosts by Paramore and its genre is alternate rock and pop punk. The genre shows that my audience is alternate to others; the people I am aiming at are young and love to be different. The audience is most likely to be those who are individual, like things that many people would not like. My audience is possibly going to be those whom like sitting alone and concentrating on what they are doing, or those who like to stand out with bright coloured hair and clothing or just unusual clothing.

The demographic view of my music video would be people in class E. This means my audience are most likely to have been to college or done a form of higher education after school. Some may also be in school and still studying and aspiring to be something big and famous within our culture and society. Some may also be unemployed or only doing causal part time work but once when they was in school wanted to be big and famous. My audience may also look at the band and see because Hayley Williams, lead singer, is bright and individual she has become what she is today. She is alternate to society and the viewers may take her attitude towards life because she is bubbly and very influential.

The psychographic view of my audience would be those who are a reformer or an explorer.

A reformer is someone who seeks enlightenment, an insight, freedom of rules and personal growth within life. They want to make their own road and follow it. It is someone who has a good social awareness and has good judgement of things around them so they know what they need to do and where they need to go. They are not greedy however they have a good taste; they will have a good understanding of life and society. They know what is going on in the world. Many members of my audience, I suspect, are in or will attend higher education.
An explorer is someone who values difference and adventure, they like to live their life but know that there are many restrictions. They like new brands and are more than willing to try. This description sounds to me like a student.

History of the Music Video.

The first ever music video was created by The Beatles in 1965. It was to their single “A Hard Day’s Night” They created this video because they were unable to get to all the studios for the music channels that where promoting them. This also helped them become famous worldwide. The Beatles began doing this more and more for every single they created this helped them reach the level of fame they did before they left the music industry. This may be contradicted by some as there are a small amount of people that think Edward B. Marks and Joseph W. Stern created the first music video in 1894. This was their track “Little Lost Child”, they were on stage singing the track while a few inches away on a plain coloured wall there was a projection of images designed to be a lyrical illustration.

The technology of today became true and noticed in 1975 when Queen released Bohemian Rhapsody. This I would say was the very 1st music video filmed in the same format as todays musical videos. This video also contains performance, narrative and it uses cuts on the beat.

Music videos became more prominent in the 1980's before this we used to call them an "illustrated song" or a "filmed insert". A music video was 1st known as a short film with imagery, song and dance, very much like Bohemian Rhapsody. They were created for promotional purpose for the band and to show an artistic side to music. They were also to promote a new single, the band made 1 video for one programme and used this world wide this would save errors from the band and be available if they couldn't make the broadcast.

Music videos have developed over the years and become more technical. There are a range of styles, these styles are often found in films. They are then developed into music videos. Some of these styles are animation, live action (performance) and abstract. A number of songs from current times do not use images to interpret the song’s lyrics. This makes the song less literal.

Music videos can be made by ametures and uploaded to the well-known music site, YouTube. These videos are called 'bootlegged videos' or 'fan made'. The first Fan made video was Star Treck in 1975. This was created by Kandy Fong. Videos like this will be made with cheap home editing software. This would be something like Windows Movie Maker. They would normally consist of images or just fancy lyrics or footage of the artist(s) of the T.V.

I have analysed some songs of different genres over many different years. The earliest song I have looked at was;

David Bowie, Space Oddity of 1972.

I found that this video uses some of the conventions and cuts to the beat, this would be discussed under Editing, close ups and establishing shots. This video also includes a lot of performance and some futuristic elements. The futuristic elements would be looked at through Mise-en-scene; there is also an oscillator across the screen to show that it is different and from the future. The last thing I found about this video was that it had no continuity editing. This is now known as something that has to be done like a convention.

I have looked at Abba, “Take a Chance on Me” 1977.

This video has a lot of performance which around this time was all the artist could do as technology was not developed to the standard of today. This video was cheap; they only used the four band members and two chairs in a white room. However they used a lot of jump cuts and made some of the clips either replay or jump. This was a good effect.

Queen, Goodbye, 1975.

This music video cost £5000 to make. The band / producers of this music video used dry ice and some lights to make it look like Queen where performing on a stage. There was lots of performance included in the video and low angles to connote the importance of the band.

Wham, Club Tropicana, 1982.

This music video contains all performance however is created like a short film made with the same conventions.

Peter Gabriel, Sledgehammer, 1986.

This music video was created at approximately the same time as Morph. It was inspired by this as the video uses clay motion for the majority of the middle section. Stop motion is featured in the first and last few sequences. This video interprets the lyrics through the Mise-en-scene or performance. This means that when the lyrics say “you’re like a steam train” an image of a steam train will be illustrated within the animation.

Beautiful South, Song for Whoever, Early 90’s.

This song contains some performance and some narrative. This however is separate from the lyrics; it has no relevance to anything. It uses intertextual referencing as when people are auditioning within the narrative they use a male model wearing a black jacket and denim look trousers, this refers to George Michael. It then shows that he is not good enough as the band shake their head at him however they love it when some blancmange auditions. They also use some connotations within this video this is when they use black glasses on all band members to show they are cool, the best.

REM, Losing my Religion, early 90’s.

This music video has a lot going on within the performance and narrative. The Mise-en-scene is mocking some religions by acting out some of the paintings within a religion. There are a few shots where some people are silhouetted within a red background and they seem to be working on something. This is then shown to us at the end when the men are revealed along with the angel wings they have built. This could also be seen as a connoting that religion is man-made. Within the narrative it shows the main singer having a religious crisis, he is looking around and many things are happening within the narrative. In the room where the video starts or where the singer is placed it shows only one window. This could be for the singer to see his god up in the sky and there is only one small window because there is only him and one god. There is also visual symbolism within this music video.

Radio Head, Street Spirit, mid/ late 90’s.

This music video has no lyrical representation or link at all. It is made in black and white and contains all performance. The music video within itself is abstract this is because it contains normal motion action, then slow motion action and also some rewound material. This makes us, the viewer; think why has the producer done this? And want to watch it more to try and understand.

Madonna, Vogue, mid/ late 90’s.

This music video follows some of the normal conventions of close ups on the artist and editing / straight cuts on the beat. Madonna shows herself to be very much like Marilyn Monroe. This video was shot in black and white to add some age and appeal to it.

Weazer, Buddy holly, 1994.

This music video has an extended narrative and this is because of the nature of the music video. It is set in the 1950’s and has the narrative of a T.V programme, Happy Days. This has the extended narrative of introducing the band / artist and having a conversation about the food at the end.

Fat Boy Slim, Weapon of Choice, early 2000’s

This music video has no lip sync nor any lyrical link in the narrative; it just has the song being played over a performance. The narrative contains a famous actor, Christopher Walken. This made the video become well known and loved. This music video also differs from others because it starts with Christopher Walken sat in an armchair in the lobby of the hotel where the video is being shot and finishes in the same position.

This shows the development of music videos. At first in the 1800’s it was a projection of images, this developed into the band being recorded in a room or on a stage, this was the start of the 1900’s. In the 1980’s music videos similar to those of today’s were being created. This has developed more and more however; today’s technology has changed so much the standard of a music video has increased. Music videos can also be shown on any website now. A song could be released and all you need is one person to hear it and the whole world knows about it, this is because of sites such as YouTube. A music sharing site which any one can upload a music video to and then be called a “Fan Made” video. This all became highly recognised in early 2001-2003

The song I have chosen.

I have chosen this song because it is calm and there is a narrative within the lyrics. I think this would be easy to dictate into lyrical interpretation.

Media Language (LIIAR)

Language: Language in the media industry is specific terminology used to describe something within the media object. This for example could be the mast head on a magazine cover or the shot used to film a clip. Conventions are also used to describe some shots or genres.

Institution: The institutions in media are organisations, company's that produce the media products. For example, Magazines; Heat, OK, Kerrang; Web Pages and T.V; BBC and ITV. With the brief i have chosen I will be looking at T.V because i will have to choose a suitable channel my music video will be shown on and also a magazine that it would go in.

Ideology: Ideology is a set if ideas that constitutes one's goals, expectations and actions. An ideology can be thought of as a comprehensive vision, as a way of looking at things, as in common sense or a set of ideas proposed by the dominate class of a society presented to all members of this society.

Audience: Consumers of media -"Buyer". The audience of a media text varies from each media product. The artist or designer of the media text aims for an audience, this is then researched by questioners or polls. The institution could also choose to design something for the audience and audience of their choice. The audience of my music video would be those who are in to Indie Pop music. This would probably be the age group of 13-26.

Representation: Representation refers to the construction in any medium of aspects of reality such as people places objects cultural identities and other concepts. These representations may be in speech, writing as well as still or moving pictures. All media text have a representation of something, you've just got to look.

The Breif

My breif is;

I have chosen the first brief option. This is to create a promotion package for the release of an album, to include a music promo video, together with;

• a cover for its release as part of a digipack.




• a magazine advertisement for the digipack.