Research Into Chosen Music Genre

Our chosen music genre is indie/alternative pop, we chose this as we thought as a group we could put together an original piece that not only fitted well with the music video conventions. This genre is also less mainstream then other more pop based genres we could have chosen, which made our idea original with our blend of indie, yet would still appeal to a wide audience because of its pop conventions. Another positive point about choosing this genre is that artists within this field produce less known videos therefore our target audience will not have expectations when listening to our song.

The two artists we chose from our chosen genre of music are Ellie Goulding and Florence And The Machine. Both artists have made it big in mainstream pop all over the world, as well as having an Indie edge and style similar which is conventional for more edgy alternative artists.

Florence and the machines video 'KISS WITH A FIST' was one of her debut tracks that propelled Florence to the top of the UK charts in mid 2008. The jump cuts within this video, make the video fast paced and enjoyable. This is typical of a indie pop video as the artist appears enthusiastic and iconic. A mid shot is used in this way to highlight the artists clothing which is unusual and loud with flower prints and funky tights This clothing appeals to the audience as they view the artist as quirky and an individual

The handheld camera shot also makes the video appear low budget which is typical of indie artists. This gives the video a simplistic feel, and appeals to the audience as the artist is the main feature of the video. The audience can relate more to the artist which makes her more successful as people can get hooked by the video and like the song more. This is stereo typical for indie pop videos, as the narrative is a mere 10% where as the audience singing and performance make up 90% of the music video.  Conventions of pop videos are also a feature as the high key lighting makes the video bright and airy in order to show the interesting iconography such as the heart shape flowers which the artist carries with her. This motif is a running feature throughout the video, and allows the video to flow better. Visual relates to the lyrics also in this video, with the artist singing about the bed being on fire whilst on screen colorful paper imitates fire. This is conventional of indie pop showing that dramatic events are made lighthearted and fun by special effects and colourful iconography.

The target audience for this video is typically a younger audience aged around 13-30. This videos pop genre with an indie edge appears edgy and cool with elements of pop making the song more widely accepted and successful for a global audience. The artist is represented as quirky and cool which is typical for an indie pop star, her fun and edgy nature inspires an audience to dress in a more funky way particular the younger end of the target market which are more impressionable. This music video also fits in with key features from Goodwin's theory. As previously mentioned the visual/lyrics are matched throughout the video when Florence talks about violence she is holding a truncheon as if ready to attack. And genre characteristics are also matched with quirky iconography typical of indie music videos, and the artist featured in a blank white room which is typical of pop videos.

The second video I looked at was an early video from fellow indie pop star Ellie Goulding. The chosen video was 'GUNS AND HORSES' which has a variety of characteristics and conventions of both indie and pop music videos. The camera styles features a lot of jump cuts which show the fast paced nature of the audience this appeals to the audience as they are kept interested by the video and the quick paced nature of whats going on. The video also is conventional of an indie track as the narrative is kept at 10% whereas the performance takes up 90% of the video. The fade cut at the start of the video displays the typically alternative setting, which is a forest. This advertises the audience and gives her a quirky edge and shows that she is extraordinary as if inside a dream whilst she is singing.

The visuals relate to the lyrics as when the artist sings about 'guns and horses' soldier ladies come alove and begin dancing. This positioning of the dancers is typical of a pop video also as they are on stage dancing to the music. The colour filters are also another editing style which conveys the genre of the track. This is important as the blue light creates a cool and mystical atmosphere which fits in with the narrative yet the high key lighting on the artist also shows her to be the centre of the music video which makes the audience view her as the main part of the video thus selling the artist and making the song a success. The mid shot really focuses on the artist and allows the audience to see her clothing which is a paid shirt again typical for an indie artist yet fashionable therefore would be liked by her target audience.

The target audience for this video again is for a younger 13-30 year olds. The style of the video is abstract and an interpretation of what the artist is singing about. This is typical for a quirky pop song as interpretations give the song more meaning and attract a wider audience. Representations of the artist show her to be quirky edgy and cool, her hand gestures throughout the song show that she gets into what shes singing, conveying her passion which draws in the audience. Conventions of Goodwin's theory are of course followed throughout this video with the lyrics and visuals relating when Ellie sings about guns and horses and soldiers appear, and also the voyeuristic nature of the female dancers wearing minimal clothing and dancing. This is typical of pop genre music videos and women are used to promote the song and create a sexy provocative video which draws in a wider audience particularly a male audience who would want to view the women dancing who are attractive and desirable.

The research conducted on the Indie pop music genre has assisted me greatly with planning my own music video as the variety of female artists similar to our chosen artist follow the conventions of Goodwin's Theory and typically perform more, rather than having a mainly narrative based music video. To create a successful music video within this genre my research has givenme strong ideas about basing the video within a setting such as a forest which is conventional of indie music, yet also making the artist a key character in the performance and the delivery of the song.