Qualitative Audience Research Preparation

For our qualitative research, we will ask our potential target audience questions in an interview format, filmed on a Digital SLR Camera. Here are the questions:

1.   What do you do in your free time? (E.g. on a weekend)

2.   What do you spend your money on in your free time?

3.   If you were given £50, what would you spend your money on?

4.   How do you obtain your music? (be specific)

5.   a) What’s your favourite music video?

      b) Can you explain why?

6.   a) What attracts you to music videos?

      b) Can you explain why?

7.   Do you feel a narrative in any music video is important?

8.   What are your thoughts on the genre of dance music?

9.   If you were to make a music video for a dance music genre, can you give me three things you’d include?

10. Do you think a digi-pack (album artwork) imagery should relate to the music video?

Quantative Audience Research

For our quantative audience research, we produced a survey on SurveyMonkey, and used social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to promote our survey and gain as many responses as possible. Here is a link to the survey: http://surveymonkey.com/s/8YFMTDQ

Digipak Research

A digipak is kind of case for a CD or CDs. The casing is in a book-style card or paperback, six-faced package, with two 'spines', as like those that would be found on a hardback book.

The digipak for Avicii's 'True' album features a cover with his silhouette and the name of the album superimposed over this image. The front and back of the digipak are all in a black and white colour scheme, like the album advert cover.The album is Avicii's debut album and it was released on his own label PRMD and perhaps this demonstrates the paintbrush-like style of the font on the cover, showing that he has complete creative control over his album and it's promotion. The logo for PRMD is shown in the bottom right corner of the contrasting white banner along the bottom of the cover. On the back of the album is a chronological tracklist. Along the bottom of the back of the album there is a banner with credits to companies such as the record label and also a barcode.

Calvin Harris' '18 Months' album is an example of a simple digipak at its best. The front cover is a long shot of Calvin Harris sat on a kerb in a street in some sunny and urban area of America, a similar location to where a lot of the singles off the album were filmed. The bold, contrasting font superimposed upon the image tells us the artist and album name. The text is arguably the focal point of the image and this emphasis is an added promotion of the album and accompanying project. On the reverse of the album is a similar image to one on the front, just with a slight alteration. This shot is also further zoomed out than the cover. The tracklist is in the top right of the image and in a the same white font, sticking to the house style of the album. Below the tracklist are the logos of the various companies involved in the production and promotion of the album. Below that are further credits and a barcode, as seen on Avicii's 'True'.

Sub Focus' 'Torus' has a similarly simplistic feel along with the two previously analyzed albums. The cover has the artist name in trademark font, in a white colour that contrasts the background, and the album name underneath in a slightly different but equally sharp font, and also in white colour. The centrepiece to the album cover is the elliptic shape, which is known as a torus, hence the presence of it on the album cover and the name of the album. The Torus logo has been a key part of Sub Focus' live shows, used as part of the stage and the light show. The background to album is an establishing shot of some canyons, and the location hints at the locations used during the video for 'Tidal Waves', a single taken from said album. The back of the album sees the same font as used for the title on the front used for the tracklist, which is central to the back of the album digipak. The barcode this time is found in the top right, but once again, credits and logos of recording companies are found underneath the tracklist.

Video Analysis: Sub Focus - Endorphins

This is the video for the single from 'Torus' which I plan to use for my music video, 'Endorphins (ft. Alex Clare)'. This song is a lot more electro than the other two I have looked at, as it utilises the synth much more prominently.

The lyrics talking about "holding on for some kind of miracle" and this is representative of the search for change and rebellion against authority. To a certain extent we see this in the other two videos as they head away from the 'safe' ideals of the city. The miracle seems to be that authority allows music, and it at the end of the video, one of the riot officers taps his foot, to suggest he is enjoying the music, and the miracle has occurred. This relates to the idea of equilibrium, disequilibrium and a new equilibrium. The contrasts of restraint and freedom are extremely interesting. The lyrics also talk about "every step" which is perhaps why there are many shots of people running and low angle shots of feet.

At the beginning we see once again beat-matched cutting, a convention of the genre. The use of guns and flares are phallic symbols that are used a lot in dance music videos, with the fire jugglers in the 'I Could Be The One' video I earlier analyzed a good example of this. There is also an example of intertextuality with the close up of the Mercedes car wheel at the beginning. The dancing is a prominent feature in this video, as has been noted in all the videos I have looked at.

Video Analysis: Sub Focus - Tidal Waves

This is the video for another single taken from 'Torus', 'Tidal Wave (ft. Alpines)'. Once again this song is drum and bass to core with a strong seasoning of electro.

The lyrics talk about "the impact when we collide", which accompany the waves crashing together in the video. This idea is further enhanced by the special effects of mirroring the waves to signify two halves coming together, the idea it seems the lyrics are trying to promote. The ink on the woman's hands sees her drawing almost waves with a clever superimposition over the sunset. This is again related to the lyrics.

Rarely for a Sub Focus video, he actually appears in the video and this is a conventions spoken about by Andrew Goodwin. Once again the woman in the video is satisfying the Male Gaze and demonstrating the importance of looking.

As I touched upon in my analysis of 'Turn It Around', the use of nature is key. In this video, the whole concept is based around the actions of the water and waves, the light from the sun creating brightness and shadows in the sunset and the wind adding drama and artistry to the close ups of Sub Focus and Alpines.

At the very beginning of the video, there is fast-cutting, matched to the beat. This is a convention of dance music videos and very prominent throughout the genre.

There is also the interesting reference to the 'Torus' symbol/logo in the video, which is an impressive use of superimposition and perhaps an example of intertextuality.

This is a still taken from the opening scenes which was the source of inspiration behind the cutout photo shot used in the digipak.

Video Analysis: Sub Focus - Turn It Around

This is the video for one of the singles off 'Torus', 'Turn It Around (ft. Kele Okereke)'. This particular song is more drum and bass orientated, with electro synths creating this unique Sub Focus sound.

The lyrics talk about turning it around, regarding perhaps a relationship or a metaphor for perhaps life itself, and this is demonstrated by the journey of the video. It seems as though the lead role is unhappy with her life in this busy, urban place and she wants to find happiness. In the end she seemingly does turn it around as she screams and lets her emotions out by the waterfall.

The scene when she enters the club is a convention of dance music video, as mentioned by Andrew Goodwin, as it is a genre stereotype to show dancing and partying in a dance music video. The particular scene is representative of Sub Focus' live shows where the lighting is a key part of the whole production. There is also reference to Goodwin's ideas of looking, with the objectification of the women dancing in this scene satisfying Laura Mulvey's Male Gaze theory.

The appearance of cats is also a common theme in modern dance music videos as animals and animalistic features, such as the masks used in Martin Garrix's 'Animals' video, have become a popular feature in dance music videos.

The use of the unknown, the natural world, is also an interesting idea that has been adapted in to many dance music videos. In my genre research I noted the common use of fire, a natural substance, and in this video we see an emphasis on the nature of the forest the lead role travels to and the water, in which the audience may become fascinated by, due to the many close ups of the waterfall.

In the woman's hand there is also a bracelet with the 'Torus' logo on it, a reference to the album and Sub Focus' live shows.

Sub Focus - The Artist

Sub Focus, real name Nick Douwma, is a versatile DJ/producer who has encompassed the development of dance music and its various sub-genres since the turn of the millenium. In 2003, he was was signed to legendary drum and bass artist Andy C's RAM Records, alongisde artists such as Chase & Status. After building a strong reputation in the drum and bass scene, being brought in for remixes for artists such as The Prodigy, Douwma was ready to release an album. His eponymous album, released in 2009, saw a development from the original drum and bass field, including dubstep, breakbeat and electro sounds. The album reached 51 on the UK Album Chart, which is impressive going for a dance artist. The following year, Sub Focus was a support act for Pendulum on their farewell UK tour. After a period of remixing and producing,notably the hit single 'Kickstarts' by Example, he came back to release his second studio album, 'Torus', which features the track 'Endorphins' which we will be using for our video. The album has a very impressive roll of features, including Alex Clare, Kele Okereke, MNEK, TC and Foxes. The album saw five singles hit the UK Top 40 Singles Chart, whilst the album itself climbed to 11 in UK Album Chart, topping the Dance Album Chart. On the artist's website, there is an interactive game to find 'Toruses' around the world, an example of advertising and promotion. On the website, the latest releases from Sub Focus and remixes of his tracks can be streamed, whilst tour dates and bookings can also be easily accessed.

Magazine Advert Research

The advert for Calvin Harris' 18 Months album was identical to the album cover. This simplicity and consistency was perhaps thanks to the the fact that Harris is one of the world's biggest and best known DJs and so promotion for his album was able to be slightly more subtle, making a statement that people will remember because it is Calvin Harris. The advert has, in a bold font that contrasts the background, the name of the artist, Calvin Harris, and the name of the album, 18 Months. It is a very simple concept, as often seen in dance music, such as in dance music videos where the name of the artist and song is often superimposed over the beginning of the video. The advert is lacking in a release date, but it may have been circulated after the release of the album, or as aforementioned, the size of the artist means that people would easily be able to find out if they were suitably intrigued by the advert. Therefore I think it is a very effective advert, one that leaves the audience with a clear image of what the album will look like on the shelf and therefore encouraged to get it and find out more about the album, the artist and the sound it promotes.

This album advert from Chase and Status' 'No More Idols' album is a more detailed example of a successful album advert. It sticks to the house style of the 'No More Idols' album, which features a black white bulldog's face, representative of British culture, as Chase and Status are London-based conglomerate, with a bold yellow text superimposed on to the image. The font and colour scheme for the album and poster follow a house style. On the poster, the latest single is mentioned, 'Time (ft Delilah)' which helps the audience recognise the sound and identify the artist. The imperative 'ORDER NOW' is a solid persuasive technique, and also promotes the newer idea of pre-ordering an album, as it is due to be released on the 31.01.2011, as we are also clearly told by the poster. We can the album will be available from vendors such as HMV and iTunes. At the bottom of the poster is the website for Chase and Status, so the audience can find out more about the album and the artist should they be so provoked by the advert.

This advert is for Avicii's 'True' album. Unfortunately it is in a foreign language, but the concept remains the same. It tells us his 'debut' album is out now, the use of such a buzzword creates an added sense of anticipation for the audience. The advert shows the album cover in the centre and the advert is designed around the album cover, sticking to a house style and also operating a high level of convergence. Like the Chase and Status advert, we are told two of the singles that can be found on the album, 'Wake Me Up' and 'You Make Me' being two big chart hits that preceded the release of the album. In the corner we can see the logo for Avicii's record label 'PRMD'.

Initial Ideas

This presentation, documents my group's initial ideas, collated in to a Microsoft PowerPoint, uploaded to SlideShare.