DIGIPAK: panel 1 edit 1

Panel 1 edit 1 

I really like the main image on the front cover as it shows all of the band members in an interesting light. Its unconventional as the lead singer is not the main focus but I like that as the indie genre is known for breaking the normal conventions as stepping outside the box much like Blur and The Strokes (I have previously blogged on this). Therefore I will not change this image as I have already gained a lot of positive audience feedback on it. 

What I have done:

I have lowered the opacity of the text (I have previously blogged on the Captive city text) and the image. However again I have not followed normal conventions and have made the album title the largest text rather than the stereotypical convention of the Bands name, I felt like the captive city text worked better with the overall number of letters allowing me to use this text size and font and keep it over the same of 3 lines and that it was more striking. This is also the same for the magazine adverts. It also allows me to create a wider meaning as I wanted the digipak to reflect the album title 'Captive city' and by creating the text captive city out of an image of a city building (representing a city) the city would be trapped within the text much like the phrase 'captive city'. This theory has again been used in the magazine advert, this also creates a link between the magazine advert and digipak. 

I have then added an image of the bagman to again create a link between the music video and the digipak I have faded the opacity on this as well. 

I have also layered another photo of lights underneath the main image to create a faded and graded feel as I have slightly lowered the opacity of the top image so you can only just see the beams of the lights this carries on to panel 2 to create a layered effect, I feel like this adds to the grungy indie feel of the font cover. 

Next: I will centre the image of the bagman behind the text.

Image that is layered underneath 

DIGIPAK: Song titles/track list

Song titles
As Sly antics only have 5 songs, as you can see on their Soundcloud list below, I had to add a few extra tracks as 5 songs would not fit the normal convention of around 12 tracks.
Track convention
I researched how many tracks would usually be on an album, this varies but only using example from the indie/rock genre I have concluded upon 10 tracks. Even though usually these bands would have 12 tracks as this is Sly antics first album I feel like 10 is more suited as the band is new and the examples I have picked are from a bands 4th or 5th album not their first like Sly antics. These examples are the Arctic Monkeys who have 12 and The Kooks who have 11 tracks. I also looked at online forums to see what other peoples opinions were on the amount of tracks on an album. Most people said around 10 a few said between 8 and 14 so I feel that 10 tracks is a good mid point. 

Online forum

Arctic monkeys 12 track list

The Kooks 11 track list

Extra song names

I have chosen to add 5 extra tracks and name them after titles inspired by songs of the same indie/rock genre. These are inspired by Discharge songs such as 'Hear nothing,see nothing, say nothing', 'Does the system work' and 'Religion instigates' I felt like these new song titles fit the same pattern as Sly Antics original tracks as they are grungy and dark.                                                                  

Track font and colour

To carry on Sly antics signature style of using pink and grey together I made the text pink and grey to fit with their style. Even though the colour pink may not be fitting with the indie/rock genre it fits with the bands already existing online presence as seen in my past posts on their website. Also I used a grungy type font to again fit with the bands pre existing image and I also felt as if this worked well with the aesthetics of the Digipak. Again for the numbers I used a hand writing font to make it look scruffy and worn to fit with the signature rough look associated with the genre. I have also made all the text bar the a's capitals to add something extra to the track list it makes it unique and different to fit with the indie genre. 

                          

Sly Antics 10 track list on the Digipak

IDEAS: digipak panels

Digi pack ideas 
Through past research into digipak conventions we have the choice between 4, 6 or 8 panel digipaks. We are thinking of either a 6 or 8 panel as we feel 

that this would help show the full range of
material that we have. With this we are also 
wanting to include a lyric booklet as this fits 
with what we discovered from our research. 

Genre Conventions - Indie Music Videos

Genre Conventions - Indie Music Videos

GENRE CONVENTIONS
After looking through general conventions of music videos we have decided to go for an indie music video. So, with that we're now narrowing our search by looking at typical conventions of an indie music video.

PERFORMANCE
Its very typical of an indie band/artist to have a live performance as their video, they normally will have varied shots between the artist and the audience reacting to them. They do this as its more important to them as artists to focus on their music and talents rather than drawing attention away from this. For example Foo Fighters' video for their song "All My Life" (Grohl, 2009) was almost completely a performance video with just a few opening establishing shots. (They also seem to use a fisheye lens in some parts of this.)

NARRATIVE
However it has become increasingly more popular to do narrative styles of videos in between the performance, this is because it gives the music video more meaning and helps their audience relate to the song. Usually the narrative links to the lyrics within the song but would also leave room for imagination as this makes the video stand out more. Narrative has become this popular because it holds the audiences attention and also leaves room for an auteurs mark. For example, the list of the Best Top 20 Narrative Videos consist of mainly indie music artists.

BUDGET
As indie bands its a general convention that their music won't be high budget because, as their title depicts, they're Indie. Many examples can be seen, a small band from the Leeds area, Sly Antics, shot their first video on an iPhone! Even seemingly expensive looking/ professional music videos like Pixies - Silver Snail or Mumford and Sons - Believe can still be relatively cheap but still look sharp because of the cinematography of the video. 
There are obviously exceptions to this,  counter typical examples would be anything with animation in as that tends to be a lot more expensive. Arctic Monkeys - Do I Wanna Know? (Wilson, 2013) Is a completely animated video made by the company Blinkink this would have been pretty expensive.


SETTING
Following on from budget slightly, the setting of these music videos tends to be cities, parks, tunnels and studios etc. This is because they generally have lower budgets and also it needs to be somewhere that will be accessible and able to create mystery. Again the settings are simple as the indie/rock genre like to keep the attention on the music and the performance rather than the background to it. For example, World Pleasure by Peace is a simple studio video with some interesting lighting and takes throughout. 

MISE-EN-SCENE
Mies-en-scene is a big convention of any music video because it has so many aspects underneath its umbrella title like costume, makeup, props and setting.
COSTUME:
Costume plays a huge role in music videos, its there to create verisimilitude for a music video, to show the different identities within a band, it represents an artists image and brand and also there to show individuality in who they are. Daft Punk are an electronic music duo band who use their costume to create their identity as a band, the narrative enigma of not knowing what they look like created their image. 




PROPS:
Props are an important factor in a music video as they also provide verisimilitude, if the video is a live performance or a reenactment of a live performance you would expect to see instruments that the band play. Similarly if it was a narrative video about people in love you might expect to see flowers as that is a signifier of love.




CAMERA
Different camera angles and shots are used in music videos to show different things, for example a close up would used to highlight the performers and introduce them as well as using close ups on the instruments to highlight their talent. It can also help to pick out facial expressions from the artists to show their passion and emotion. This can be good for advertising the singers band and brand.


Crane shots are sometimes used when filming live performances to get a good view of the audience in full. These types of shots allow different and interesting angles too. Other types of shots that are used are ones like long/wide shots, this is because they can be used as establishing shots to set up the beginning of a narrative.

EDITING
Editing is an important convention as it helps make the video interesting, special effects can be used like lighting techniques, as I mentioned above about World Pleasure. Another editing technique is fast/slow paced editing, this is where the shots are synched to the music  and cut to the beat. Effects are usually added over the top of a video to make them seem old and worn. The black and white effect is a popular one as it give the video a classical and sad feel to it. 


SOUND
In live music videos sound has to be enhanced and the audience has to be made quieter so that it doesn't interfere with the sound quality of the song. Also, when doing a narrative video diegetic music may be added to keep with the story of the video. These can be added at the beginning before the vocals begin and at the end after, and in the middle if needed. Sometimes sounds overlap, an example of this would be if the vocals are still playing but the audience can here someone crying too. The volume of the sounds can be adjusted too to create more emotions and feelings. 

Indie Conventions Vodcast 2

NEW Indie Conventions Vodcast

TBC...


TBC...

Indie Music Video Conventions Vodcast 1

Indie Music Video Conventions Vodcast

Indie Genre Conventions

This my seconds vodcast on conventions, this one is about specifically the indie genre of music videos instead of the wider one which was about music videos in general.

In this one I cover:

• Narrative
• Performance
• Costume
• Budget
• Animation
• Setting
• Props