Alternative Metal Moodboard

Above is a moodboard containing elements which influence the alternative metal genre. This items on this moodboard were influenced by the questions asked on http://www.findyourtribe.co.uk/. Such questions involve:
"What are your favourite magazines?"

 "What are your favourite radio stations?"

 The reason why the 'Download Festival' logo is on the moodboard is becuase alternative metal music is frequently played at Download due to it being a metal music festival.

Download Marketing

The festival ‘Download’ is held in Donington Park, UK from the 14^th-16^th of June every year. Download festival market themselves using various methods. The first is using social networking sites such as Facebook, Tumblr and Twitter. The official Facebook fan page is posted below. A large portion of the population use social networking sites so it is an effective way to create hype. According to http://royal.pingdom.com/2010/02/16/study-ages-of-social-network-users/, the main age demographic is between 35-44 years old. This makes sense because this demographic are young enough to still be interested in festivals however they will have enough disposable income to afford going to a festival. Either this or they will be old enough to have children and can buy them tickets.

Another technique used is the use of flyers. These are usually used to display the line-up i.e. the bands which are playing at the festival. The norm at festivals is that bigger acts ‘headline’ and smaller less known bands play the tents and smaller stages. Below is the flyer displaying all the acts for Download 2009. Flyers such as this are handed out at gigs with simiar music to Download festival. This way the festival is hitting its target audience thus creating the oppurtunity for mre people to go ergo making more profit.

Thirdly a lot of merchandise is sold also creating hype about the festival. Such merchandise includes t-shirts, posters and wristbands.  This is to create hype but also to create income. Another reason why these t-shirts sell is because if someone goes to a festival and has the time of their life then the are going to want something like a t-shirt etc to remember it by.

 

A common feature at festival is the wristbands given to signify that you are there legitimately and have paid your ticket fee instead of somehow sneaking in. This also gives people a sense of pride and community. Several festivals use this method including Download, Latitude, Playfest, Reading, Leeds, Glade and Isle of Wight. Below is the wristband given out at Download festival 2012.

Gallows - 'Misery'

Below is the link to a music video by a British hardcore rock band called Gallows. The song is titled Misery'.



The video opens to see a holy incense burner commonly used by priests etc. A similar one is seen below:

The audience will automatically link this object with religion yet when the carrier of this incense burner is revealed it is a complete contrast to what the audience would have predicted. This young man bares similarity (in terms of costume and appearance combined with similar location) to the character 'Shaun Field' from Shane Meadows 'This is England'.

There are frequent use of racist symbolism within this video which isn't very surprising considering that the genre of hardcore rock used to be an incredibly racist genre. Hardcore rock descends from the larger genre of 'metal'. Within metal there are many subgenres such as 'black-metal', 'thrash-metal' and 'death-,metal'. A very small genre with small amounts of publicity is NSBM. This stands for "National Socialist Black Metal". This is 'black-metal' that promotes national socialist (Nazi) beliefs usually through their lyrics and imagery.This video also uses Goodwin's theory of voyeurism (the notion of being watched). This is portrayed brilliantly by the Union Jack being flown down the dank and dingy city streets. Also notice the enigmatic figure to the right of the frame watching this flag waver. This connotes the idea of being watched. It could be argued that someone watching someone fly the British flag represents how Britain has once again descended into the idea of 'Big Brother' due to the vast amounts of money the government seem to spend on surveillance. The reason they tell us is it's for our protection however some people argue there could be a darker side to it all. 

This video is edited into black and white. The reason why is because it is paying tribute to the older film-makers. The greats such as Alfred Hitchcock, director of 'Psycho' etc. The album from which this song is taken is also called 'Grey Britain' which, obviously is a play on word on 'Great Britain' but also has a statement about the zeitgeist of contemporary Britain. We are in an economical descent etc.

This video also has strong statements about the police force. A colloquial name for the police is 'The Pigs'. So baring that in mind they use these characters in the video. 

The lead singer of Gallows is Frank Carter. Frank Carter is the epitome of a hardcore singer. He is an angry young man with multiple tattoos. Frank Carter used to be a tattoo artist before becoming a professional musician and has designed and drawn most of his own tattoo's. Each tattoo represents a story of his life.

The Origins of the 'Metal' Genre

The music genre of 'metal' actually originated in the factories of industrial cities such as Birmingham, UK. The distinct sound of the metal genre was inspired by the heavy 'crunching' and 'whirring' of factory machinery. It is also common that these bands were formed by young, angry men who worked difficult, long and tiring hours. The reason why Metal is such an angry genre is because during the 1930's the majority of factories closed due to The Great Depression. This meant that unemployment within the UK rose from approximately 1 million to 2.5 million. In the Northen region of the UK unemployment reached staggering hieghts of 70%. The men who worked in these factories felt disenfranchised and useless since the role of a man in those times was to be the 'bread-winner' i.e. to put food on the table and supply for their families.

Another instance of mass redundancy that caused uproar in the UK is when Magaret Thatcher closed 25 mines by 1985. In 1992 there was 97 mines that had been closed down. This resulted in the loss of 20,000 jobs. It destroyed communities because there were entire towns built on mining.
This all relates to Abraham Maslowes 'Hierarchy of needs' (pictured below). The basic idea behind this is that a human being needs each layer to survive and live a sane normal life. Without one of these one simply cannot live.

In the second layer (red layer) one of the categories is 'employment'. By taking away this you are practically taking away someones identity. The reaction to this from the young men was anger. This is why Metal is such an angry genre. As well as this it is also a rather sexist and racist genre. Notice that there are very few female metal bands. This is because the origin of metal was formed by young men and this tradition has continued to contemporary metal music.
The reason why Metal is a racist genre is because from the origins of slavery and immigration, jobs were being taken from others who were British origin. Again the reaction to this was hatred and anger thus this is the content of a lot of Metal songs.

A film produced in 1960 and directed by Karel Reisz was 'Saturday Night and Sunday Morning' starring Albert Finney. A link is posted below to the YouTube clip. This is the typical view of a middle class factory working young man. He is what is known modernly as a 'blue collar worker'.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJAeb0wiQjA



At 1:22 the voiceover states the phrase "Dont let the bastards grind you down". This saying was very common to hear during the Second World War especially when General "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell used it as his motto. It could be argued that whoever invented this phrase was using play on words due to the 'bastard file' which is a type of file used since the 17th century.

I take English Literature and Language and have to study a book written by Margaret Atwood named 'The Handmaids Tale'. This same quote is used in 'The Handmaids Tale' but it is given its Latin translation. This being 'Nolite te bastardes carborundorum'.

A film which focuses on the white collar, middle class demographic is Anton Corbijn's 'Control'. It was released in 2007. There is one iconic image from this film posted below.

Clever Editing

I have found a music video which peaks my interest in terms of editing. It is called 'High Grade' by dun/reggae band Gentleman's Dub Club. The style of music is 'dub-reggae' where a reggae beat is used but can be combined with synthesisers however in this case it uses a live band thus making it possible to include virtuosic solos from the front line instruments such as trumpet and saxophone. The link to the YouTube video is posted below:



This video is extremely clever because it keeps the music/ lyrics synchronised with the action on screen. A good example of this method is seen at 1:16. It is an establishing shot of the audience singing along to the lyrics which are being heard in the song.

The other clever technique used is breaking up the screen into multiple segments to show different action. This is used frequently throughout the song.

The final and possibly most frequently used editing technique is the use of cross fades. Within this video these happen almost constantly. It could be argued that the possible reason for this is to create a dream/ illusion like effect. This combined with a 'psychedelic' light show makes a very interesting video (see second picture down below). The music video contains no storyline or structure of a story at all. It is just footage from multiple concerts where they have played the same song.

USA Lyrics

Below are the lyrics to 'USA' by The Ugrade.

USA

With the people so nice
Security gives me a fright
They striped me down to my skin
America please let me in
I tell ya!

My name is Jevain
They say that ain’t no common name
They told me get lost
They say you folk are all the same


I'm tired an lonesome try to rest my head
I switch on the radio coz the TV's dead
They say happiness is at a new grand high
When way over there ten thousand people have died!
Oh what have you leaders what have you to say?
Mr USA!

Well the senate they lie 
Make their choices with fries
Fight through rock and through oil
Yet spreading death on the soil

The land of opportunity 
Where every man is rich
They'll slaughter all your earnings
Then they'll tell ya life’s a bitch 


I'm tired an lonesome try to rest my head
I switch on the radio coz the TV's dead
They say happiness is at a new grand high
When ten thousand people have died 
Oh what have you leaders what have you to say?
Mr USA!

Change Of Plans

There has been a change of plans in terms of my media video. I am no longer doing 'Bones' by Lewis Watson. I am now joining my classmates to do 'USA' by a local band called 'The Upgrade'.

Africa Shox Analysis

'Africa Shox' by Leftfield has a controversial music video with multiple, hidden messages. These concealed images and messages range from political statements to modern society.

Below is a link to a YouTube video of Africa Shox.



The opening shot is a low angle pan of a skyscraper. This shot is designed to make the building look dark, daunting and intimidating.  

This shot is followed by a police car with its headlights flashing one after the other and lights flashing on the top. This shot is to show the authority that the law has over society but could also show connotations to the rave/trance scene.

Between 0:11 and 0:24 there is a series of fast paced transitions. However whilst the shots are changing it constantly looks run down as if the concrete jungle itself is decaying. Notice also how there are only shots of the publics' feet and legs, all in black but nobodies faces. This means that the scene is sucked of colour and gives off an incredibly monotone vibe. The people in the video have a lack of identity. The video also relates to the rhythm of the music, for example: at 0:33 there is a snare drum synthesiser and as this plays the light on the left of the picture seen below flashes.

When the protagonist of the video is revealed to the audience he is seen, in a low angle shot, crawling up a dirty wall. This frames him as animalistic and savage which contrasts to the order and uncomfortably clinical, cleanliness of the city. The use of unsteady/handheld shots gives the illusion of disorientation together with his cloudy eyes. This allows the audience to make their own presumptions about this protagonist and why he is in this state. Drug abuse? Homelessness? Ravishing hunger?

From 0:57 - 1:41 there is a montage of fast cuts and un-steady shots creating a hectic atmosphere. Although there are standard bright city lights edited into this montage and this is to disorientate the audience even further. 

At 1:42 the protagonist reaches out with a facial expression of desperation to a stranger who simply turns a blind eye and goes back to reading his newspaper. This may be designed to make the audience emotive towards the main character and feel such feelings as: pity or empathy. A man whose face is not really in shot (again giving no hint of individual identity) walks past as if our protagonist is not even there, knocking his arm off, it falling to the ground and then smashing like pottery. 

At 1:51 a group of pigeons fly away due to the shattering of his arm. It could be argued that these represent fear and shock of the general public who simply are not  showing it externally.  

As the video continues, he deteriorates more and more. This could represent society and humanity itself: the audience sees the general public in this video as solitude and isolated even though they are in large groups like herds of animals. It is like humanity itself is falling to pieces just like the protagonist. The art of conversation has been lost between humans due to modern technology combined with such revelations as social networking sites.

At 3:12 the audience can see three young men 'street dancing/ break dancing'. The location they're in is key: an unpleasant looking car park. It is like many locations commonly featured in thriller films: dark, unpleasant, intimidating etc. An example of similarity (in location terms) to a thriller film is in Quentin Tarantino's 'Jackie Brown'. (Top picture is from the music video of Africa Shox - Leftfield. Bottom picture is from Quentin Tarantino's 'Jackie Brown'.) 

The three street dancers are really the first people whose faces are in the shot for an extended period of time. This helps to give them identity unlike any of the other characters the audience has seen so far. The audience are able to make they're own presumptions about these men. Also notice that this is the first time that our crumbling protagonist seems calm and curious towards these men.

It could be argued that the reason the director included a section where there was dancing is to give the video a performance element instead of a single storyline all the way through. Another reason it could be thought why the director and editor included this is because they do a dance move called the 'robot'. The 'robot' is when a dancer moves in a sudden, jerky manner to make him/herself look mechanical and rigid. Our protagonist does not seem quite human so he may be able to relate to these people thus the reason he has such an indifferent expression at 3:19 (seen below).

Our protagonists hopes are not kept for long however after one of the dancers shatters his right leg.

To make matters worse he looses his footing and falls thus smashing his other arm (seen below).

So our protagonist is now left with no arms and his left leg. At this point the audience is exposed to another character who is incredibly important due to his costume and his dialogue. He is seen in the picture below.

He is dressed in such a way that he looks like a traditional 'witchdoctor' native to such countries as Africa. This relates with our protagonist to show that he's not alone in this frightening, modern world. Although this 'witchdoctor' has a twist to his costume which are the sunglasses. These show that he is integrated into the modern system of society.

Also do notice that its a low angle shot that he is being filmed with. This is used to show his power and authority whereas our protagonist is shot in a high angle shot showing his weakness and disability in this case due to the fact that he's only got one functioning limb.

The dialogue that the witchdoctor has is the five words of:

"Do you need a hand?"

This is obviously the use of play on words because our protagonist has no hands left. The audience assumes however that the witchdoctor helps him up because the following shot is our protagonist hopping out into the middle of the street where he is hit by a taxi and finally destroyed totally.



Throughout the entire video it could be argued that the protagonist represents the slaves and the slave trade when they first arrived in Virginia, America in 1619. The reason for this thought is because no-one wants to help him and have no respect just like the slaves. Also (with exclusions of the witchdoctor) he is the only black person within the video that the audience is revealed to.

This video definitely takes place in America although in which city it is hard to guess but there are a few cultural signifiers leaning the opinion towards New York, USA. One of these is the bright yellow taxi cab which are famous for New York being their home.