R+P Post 15: My Record Label

We decided to call our record label 'Detrimental Records' for a couple of reasons. First of all, we felt that 'Detrimental Records' was a name that would be easy to remember due to the nature of the word 'detriment' implying negative connotations. We also used this name as there is a belief by some that EDM is not real music as it's made using computers rather than real instruments, therefore, we've played on this belief for irony labeling our music as detrimental. Finally, we've added the 'records' into our name as it labels our company as a record label and is also done by most other record labels e.g. Spinnin' Records, Columbia Records, Decca Records.

R+P Post 14: My Target Audience

Our group decided that it would be a good idea to keep our Target Audience as wide as possible. Having said this, with our Artist being in the EDM genre, there are certain audiences that our artist would obviously appeal to more and we have kept this in mind when making key decisions such as costume and personality etc.

Primary Audience

• Our main focus will be fans of EDM, this audience isn't gender specific and just simply involves anyone who likes the kind of music, this tends to feature younger people, around 15-30 but once again, this is not always the case.

Secondary Audience

An example of the sheer size at Tomorrowland 2015

• Our secondary audience will be festival-goers and people who go clubbing. EDM plays a big role at festivals with whole festivals such as Tomorrowland devoted to EDM. Therefore, our artist could appeal to people and develop a following with appearances at festivals. This is similar at clubs with special appearances by DJs or artists going down really well.

Tertiary Audience

Calvin Harris' featured songs

• Our Tertiary audience will be fans of other singers who are featured on our album. Because our artist tends to collaborate on his songs frequently, it's a good way of enticing fans of other singers or DJs to listen to our song and then go onto listen to the album if they like the song, similar to the way Calvin Harris features a huge number of big singers on his albums. 

R+P Post 13: Influences from art, fashion and culture

A wide range of our inspiration came from other music videos but there were certainly some aspects that came from art, fashion and culture.

300

I like the greenscreen effect that was used in the movie, 300. The film was heavily stylised which looked particularly eye-catching and provided a great overall style to the film.



Minimalism

Minimalism is 'a movement in sculpture and painting which arose in the 1950s, characterized by the use of simple, massive forms.' It is certainly a concept that we are interested in as it looks really effective with a major focus pulling in the audiences eye.

I also like the look of minimalist fashion as it is quite plain but once again looks effective as long as striking colours or opposite colours are used.

R+P Post 12: Artists/bands that have influenced my ideas

Our artist has been heavily influenced by real life examples of similar artists. Looking into both DJs and singers has been very helpful at gathering a range of references that we can use to make our artist more realistic.

Calvin Harris

Appearance/Costume

The appearance of Calvin Harris has heavily influenced my thinking for the costume. I've found both artist mannerisms and costume similarities that I like and plan to use for our artist. Calvin Harris tends to mainly use plain clothes which I like. He also has quite a chilled, laid-back personality which is something else that I like.

Oliver Heldens

I like the personality of house artist, Oliver Heldens also. His cheeky personality means he's really well liked and he also tends to dance to his music on stage which is also another reason to like the artist.

R+P Post 11: Artist websites that have inspired and influenced my ideas

Homepage

Calvin Harris

Homepage with nav bar out

The first website I researched was Calvin Harris' website (calvinharris.co.uk). As soon as you got onto the homepage, the first thing you could see was a brand new video at the centre of your screen. I feel this already offers interactive content as the first thing you do. The interactivity continues with the navigation bar. You have to click it to go in and out which not only looks sleek but also offers something to do.

His video page

His video page once again featured a huge video portal where you could watch his newest music videos. The style of the page was very much in keeping with the rest of the website which had a very sleek style to it yet still functional and informative. With a wide range of content too, his website is one of the better websites for artists that I've seen.


Disclosure
Disclosure's website (www.disclosureofficial.com) also had some great examples on it of what we could do. I liked the fact that they had an entry page prior to entering the main website as it gave an insight of what was on it.

Disclosure's entry page

Disclosure's gallery was also quite nice as it featured their Instagram feed showing synergy, something we aim to achieve. The way the photos are laid out also looks visually appealing like small polaroids.


Finally, I really liked Disclosure's store, it featured a range of branded merchandise along with standard and limited edition albums. I like how they have albums as the first items for sale as this is more likely to be seen first. This is something we will try and do on our website.

R+P Post 10: Album covers that have inspired and influenced my ideas

After looking at some album covers, I collated a range of EDM albums together into a album cover collage. 

Album Cover Collage

The album covers don't seem to differ a whole load with 2 main concepts:

1. A focal picture of the artist (either cartoon or real)
2. A concept piece e.g. Calvin Harris' album which doesn't feature the artist 

The artist name is on the front on the majority of the albums and for all of the ones that don't feature a name, it is both not their debut album and also features a  recognisable photo of the artist.

Major Lazer's album

The colour schemes tend be simpistic with a focus on just a few colours and in some instances just a block colour background. 

The font for the artist name is usually the most striking font and the album title almost always uses a different font. This creates a clear difference between who the artist is and what the album is called. There is usually little text on the front cover leaving the the focal image to bring in the attention of the consumer.

Martin Garrix's album

Animals by Martin Garrix

This album follows almost all of the conventions I've found in EDM album covers. It features a large focal image of the DJ which catches the eye immediately. The text is all located at the top leaving the focal image largely undisturbed. The 2 fonts for the artist and album title are different but both bold and likely to draw the consumer's eye after they see the photo of Martin Garrix.

Calvin Harris' album

Motion by Calvin Harris

This album also follows most conventions. It is a conceptual album cover with a focal image of a drop of water. To make up for the lack of image of the artist, Calvin Harris' name is underlined in the centre of the album cover drawing the eye of the consumer to this. The title of the album is featured in the same font as the artist's name which is rare but this may be explained by the fact that it isn't underlined therefore leaving no doubt where the artist name ends and the album name begins.

R+P Post 9: Music Video that have inspired and influenced my ideas

Billy Elliot

• This music video is a great example of character progression, the 2 boys who start of as really timid and scared end the video as having accepted and found their true selves as connoted by the white light emitted from their hands.
• Possible intertextuality with typical Northern town setting similar to Billy Elliot and the same concept of hiding passions due to backwards attitudes
• Slow-paced edit at the start but faster towards the end highlighting the climax of the video and progress of the characters
  
  

  

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A good example of Goodwin's theory as the lyrics talk about a girl but the visuals show boys. This is amplification as it adds a new layer to the song i.e. the lyrics are about a girl because they boys feel they have to hide their sexuality. 

The music video is a narrative but the lead singer, Matt Healy, appears in the video anchoring the song to the band. There are a number of beauty shots also, a concept appearing in almost all music videos. 

On a stylistic point, the music video is in black and white, this is certainly something we may consider if our song is of a genre that fits in with this style. The use of slow motion is also quite eye-catching, I feel this is something I'd like to put into our music video.