Sunday, 18 September 2011

Synopsis of our music video

What is the overall idea for your music video? (Genre Theory)

The band leader (protagonist) is madly in love with a female whom is stereotypically scantily clad.             Throughout the music video the band does rebellious things in order to attract the female’s attention, however it does not work. The Social Animal music video is characterized by the performance and narrative typologies according to Firth. Furthermore, we choose to use a light hearted story-line because from our research we found this is common in a punk rock music video.

What generic devices are you using? (Genre Theory)

In The Social Animal music video we are going to feature a live performance which is going to include live instrumentation such as guitar which is typical to the punk rock genre. By including instrumentation it meets the needs of our audience and fulfils their entertainment needs. In addition, we are going to include dark lightning in our music video because it connotes darkness a common association of this genre and we believe the audience will be able to relate to the use of this colour because it meets their expectations.

In our punk rock music video

How will you conform/challenge convention? (Genre Theory)

In The Social Animal music video we are going to conform to the gender stereotypes of the punk rock genre. The female is going to portrayed as scantily clad and the men are going to be messy and unkempt. This is to portray the men as rebellious and not caring what people think of them through their appearance, As opposed to a scantily clad female with appearance being everything.

What narrative devices (narrative theory) are you going to deploy in your music video?

We are going to deploy Propp’s narrative theory to the music video whilst also using Firth characterized typologies of performance and narrative.

Are you going to challenge/conform to narrative convention? (narrative theory)

We are going to conform to the narrative convention because we believe it fulfils the audience’s needs and expectations of a punk rock music video and differing too much from that might have a negative effect.

How are you going to appeal to audience? (Uses and Gratifications)

We are going to appeal to the audience by providing live instrumentation in our music video; from our research we found it is a common expectation of a punk rock audience. In addition we are following a boy like’s girl narrative framework and the audience will have possibly experienced this in the life, therefore by using a real problem we hope to show the audience The Social Animal can relate to them. In researching this genre collectively we found audiences like to relate to a punk rock band or artist.

How will you engage with the audience? (Uses and Gratifications)

We believe our song engages the audience because it discusses a experience that our audiences might be going through or will go through in the life.  In addition we are going to edit our music video to include straight cuts in order to create a high energy which is commonly founded in a punk rock music video. By providing high energy we hope it will fulfil the needs and expectations of our punk rock audience.

Could your music video be criticised in any way? (Uses and Gratifications)

Our music video could be criticised because we are going to encourage teenage rebellion.  This will be shown in the band’s actions in order to win over the female character (villain). However, rebellion is typical to this genre therefore it is expected to our audiences.

Song Choice, First Class Killer

I remember the words I was told as soon as I spoke of her
You better not she’s a first class killer She’ll take you down as I’m sure
My heart in chains (chains)
Just let the rain (just let the rain)
I couldn’t stop myself to say


Chorus
Well, Say oh, say ohoh
I love ya, I love ya
Say oh, say ohohoh
Lalalalala


Black hair and blue eyes beaming and you know ya kno-oh
I couldn’t stop myself to let go
Unlock these chains (chains)
Throw the key away (throw the key away)
You’ve got my heart yeah (yeah, yeah)


Chorus
Say oh, say ohoh
I love ya, I love ya
Say oh, say ohohoh
Lalalalala
X2

And all my chances (chances), I can’t seem to get with you
Crumble to pieces, I’ll never be with you

Black hair and blue eyes beaming and ya know (ya know)
I couldn’t stop myself let go

Say oh, say ohoh
I love ya, I love ya
Say oh, say ohohoh
Lalalalala

Say oh, say ohoh
I love ya, I love ya
Say oh, say ohohoh
I'll never get with you


The Social Animal, Band Profile

Band Members

Olli George - Drummer

Bill Jones - Bassist

Chris Stevens – Guitarist/Vocals

Rick Power- Vocals/Guitarist

About Band

The Social Animal is a punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, USA. The Social Animal started their career in Olli’s basement in 2009 as a threesome, and Rick was shortly introduced to the band and completed the line-up in 2010. Influenced by the likes of My Chemical Romance and The Ramones, The Social Animal has quickly built a repertoire as being talented songwriters and musicians. Unsigned.co.uk have commented ‘The Social Animal are a breath of fresh air and truly represents what is it to be a punk band, they have a bright future ahead of them and should keep on rocking!’

The Social Animal has gained a small fan base from performing in local music venues and self-promotion on sites such as Twitter and Facebook. The band finds it significant to thank their fans with writing good music and social interaction because they remember how it feels to idolise a band/artist growing up.  They also believe their fans keep them rocking because without them they would be nothing and will probably be in Olli’s basement annoying his mother with their late night jamming sessions.

For additional band information such please visit www.twitter.com/thesocialanimal or www.facebook.com/thesocialanimal

Sunday, 21 August 2011

A Guide to the Music Industry

Major Institutions:
There are four major music labels that dominate music; these are Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and EMI. Each consists of many smaller companies and labels in different regions and work with different genres of music.
Minor Institutions:
These are independent companies; they produce and distribute the music themselves. They have less money than major institutions so it is more difficult for them to distribute successfully. If they want to get more money to help with distribution costs, they can be bought by major institutions.
History of Warner Music Group
What companies does it own? Is this significant?
WMG works with companies such as Reprise Records, Roadrunner Records and Rhino Records. Each of these have artists signed to them whose music is of the same or similar genre to our genre. For example, Green Day, Slash and Mick Jagger. This shows that WMG offers a range of labels for a range of artists.
Does it have a production and distribution element?
Warner/Chappell Music is a global music publishing company, it’s a leader in the creation of advanced strategies for the marketing and promotion of songwriters and their music.
Alternative Distribution Alliance was created in 1993 and focuses on the independent music business. It gives them access to a flexible distribution system, and the effectiveness of a major label.
What artists are signed to them?
-          Green Day
-          The White Stripes
-          Paramore
-          Bruno Mars
-          Plan B
-          Michael Bublé
What do you notice about the genre of music?
They have a variety of genres including rock, rap, pop, jazz and R&B. Their variety shows they are able to distribute to a mass audience as well as a niche audience. It also shows that they are interested in all kinds of music and don’t focus all their attention and money on one genre, which means they are more well-known and successful.
Would they be a suitable organisation to work for this project?
Warner Music Group would be suitable as they have many artists signed to them who are in the same genre of music as what we are working in, such as Green Day, Kiss and The Doors. They are Well known and have many record labels working with them which helps to make distribution easier and more successful.