What Makes a Good Website?

In order to gain a selection of answers from people who have looked at artists' websites before, I posted a question on YahooAnswers to get my desired response.

My question 'What makes a good website for an artist or band?'. I posted the question as 'open' meaning that anybody could see and answer it. This would give me a wider range of answers.


Waiting 3 days after posting the question, I then gathered the responses I received and made note of the most popular suggestions. These were: 

• an interesting but brief band biography 
• members of the band and what they play
• access to play music on the site
• neat presentation
• dates showing the band/artists' next shows or tours
• a link to the artists' store
• a contact page. where members of the industry or fans can contact the artist
• easy to navigate
• consistent colour scheme 
• links to Youtube, Facebook, Twitter etc

Now that I have what the general public consider to be features which make a successful band or artist website, I can ensure that when I come to design and assemble my own website for my band I can refer back to this list and include as many as I can.  

Primary Research Results

Questionnaire Results
The video below shows the footage of just one of the classes we filmed as they listened to our chosen song. They then filled out the questionnaire we gave them and gave us their ideas.





The questions on the questionnaire we asked were:

-Age?
-Gender?
-What did you think of the song?
-Would you choose to listen to this song?
-What were your first thoughts that came to mind associated with the song? (locations, themes, events, type of people...)
-What is your preferred genre?

52% of candidates were female
48% of candidates were male


We then split our candidates into separate age categories so our date could be grouped into similar thoughts and ideas.

12-25: 42 people - 20 male, 22 female
25-45: 40 people - 21 male, 19 female
45-60: 39 people - 17 males, 22 female


When we asked the question, 'Would you listen to this song out of choice?', this is the date we received:

The pie charts above show that the main audience for this song are 12-25 year olds with males showing 91% of candidates choosing to listen to the song out of choice, and 75% of females choosing to listen to the song out of choice. We did not find this a surprise as the song is quite contempory and the indie/rock genre has increased in popularity massively over recent years.

As well as this, the majority of 25-45 year olds also said they would choose to listen to the song out of their own choice, although the majority of this group admitted to enjoying the genre, it was not as much as the younger age group. We believe that this older age group still have a substantial interest in this style of music as the band have been around for around 15 years meaning that the this segment of the market have been subjected to the music from when they too, were younger.


We then asked the question, 'What are the thoughts that come into your mind associated with the song?' the results below were:

We took all of these ideas on board, and incorporated the more popular ideas, and cross examined them with the age groups who enjoyed the song, so that the finished video could reflect what they wanted to see. As these were the people who would in effect, watch our video if it was released into the industry.


When we asked the question, 'What is your favourite type of music?' the pie chart, below, shows the results we got from our questionnaire:

Clearly from these results the indie genre dominates the chart, with pop and R 'n' B also holding large stakes in the market. Due to these results, we decided to base our video around common elements found in indie videos, which fitted well with the genre and style of the song.

Primary Market Research

We wish to get a first hand view of what different age groups thought of the song, this was to determine our main target audience. We also want to try and establish what associations our target audience have with our chosen song. 

One way we will collect the questionnaire date will be through focus groups with various age groups at our school. This means that the age groups will already be clustered together, making information more valid and easier to collect. By having the candidates sat down with time to spare in a classroom, it means we can dig deeper into their reactions and expand on what they write on the forms provided. 

We intend to use quota sampling of the age groups: between 12 and 60 this was to try to find out exactly what each sub group think of the song and what images or themes come to mind when listening to it. This will then allow us to spot any trends with certain age groups and also within our target audience. 

Snow Patrol Album Covers

After deciding upon a song by Snow Patrol and looking at the bands history and success, we thought it would be a good and helpful idea to examine their website and range of album covers. This would give us an idea of and make us aware of any trends that occur throughout their albums, website or even promotion posters. 

After focusing on each album cover separately, we found that abstract imagery was a common trend which shines through on each example. The album covers do not seem to show much similarity in specific images or themes, meaning each one is unique and random. This could be an advantage when we come to decide upon ideas for our album cover. I will do further research into Digi-Packs and how they formed and the different styles of manufacture to gain a better understanding of their purpose and design.

Snow Patrol

Snow Patrol

Snow Patrol are an indie (also known as ‘alternate rock’) band from Bangor, Northern Ireland. The band was formed at the University of Dundee in 1994 and is now based in Glasgow. Five members make up the band; Gary Lightbody – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, Nathan Connolly – lead guitar, backing vocals, Paul Wilson – bass guitar, backing vocals, Jonny Quinn – drums, percussion, Tom Simpson – keyboards, samples


Starting Off…
The band released their first three records with the independent labels Electric Honey and Jeepster. After the release of the EP single ‘Starfighter Pilot’, and the studio albums ‘Songs for Polarbears’ and ‘When It's All Over We Still Have to Clear Up’, no hype or attention was paid to the band. So in 2002 the band signed on to the major record label Polydor Records in 2002 and since have blossomed and have been acknowledged for their brilliant music.

Success
Snow Patrol rose to national fame with their major label debut, ‘Final Straw’, in 2003, which sold over 3 million copies world-wide. Their next studio album, ‘Eyes Open’, (2006) and its hit single "Chasing Cars", propelled the band to greater international fame selling over 6 million copies world-wide. In 2008, ‘A Hundred Million Suns’ was released and soon after in 2009 their first compilation album, ‘Up to Now’. Throughout Snow Patrol’s complete body of work from singles, albums, music videos and live performances, the band has not only made millions but has been nominated for 27 awards and won 10 including Best Irish Band and Best Album (Final Straw). 

Indie Artists/ Bands

.Kings of Leon - Snow Patrol - Keane - The Script - Jamie T - Oasis - Arctic Monkeys - MUSE -The Killers - The Ordinary Boys - Kaiser Chiefs - The Rapture - Stereophonics - Biffy Clyro. 

"Indie rock is a genre of rock, and a means of producing that music, that originated in the United Kingdom and the U.S in the 1980's. It is rooted in earlier genres such as alternative, post punk, and new wave." - sourced from Wikipedia

Indie artists are usually presented as scruffy, usually male and are often shown playing there instruments as the music itself provides a more genuine style of music in comparison to the electro/pop genre where mainly synthesisers are used to give artificial sounds.

The word 'Indie' is an abbreviation from the the phrase 'Individual record label'. this simply means any record label that is not owned by the few large labels and instead remain 'independant'.

Our Song: Lyric Analysis

You Could Be Happy Lyrics
You could be happy and I won't know
But you weren't happy the day I watched you go
And all the things that I wished I had not said
Are played in loops 'till it's madness in my head

Is it too late to remind you how we were
But not our last days of silence, screaming, blur
Most of what I remember makes me sure
I should have stopped you from walking out the door



You could be happy, I hope you are
You made me happier than I'd been by far
Somehow everything I own smells of you
And for the tiniest moment it's all not true

Do the things that you always wanted to
Without me there to hold you back, don't think, just do
More than anything I want to see you, girl
Take a glorious bite out of the whole world.


Meanings, Connotations & Feelings Created
Just reading the lyrics, without listening to the music to accompany them, the initial vibe of the words chosen is very sad and thoughtful. The choice of words and construction of the sentences creates a very gloomy and a definite feeling of the singer being heart-broken about a failed relationship. Although the lyrics reflect upset emotions about a break up, they do not suggest anger resentment towards his 'ex' partner. 
After choosing this song for our music video, I thought it was important to gather general information on what the song meant to people and what emotions, thoughts, images it brought to mind. I asked my class mates, family, friends and also posted a question on Yahoo Answers. 

Feedback

"The singer is thinking about their relationship and how most of it was good, but he also knows that it could have been better. He knows that she wasn't happy but he wishes he could have stopped her. He misses her but wants her to be happy. He wants her to go on with her life and all the things she couldn't do before while in the relationship....I love the last line of the song "Take a glorious bite out of the whole world"" - a member of my media group


"It's like he’s looking back on the relationship and saying she can now go and do the things shes always wanted to without him there to hold him back." - classmate

"My favorite track on the album. The message is easy enough: let go of the person who wants to be happy without you, but never let go of the happy memories. What's exceptional is the way it achieves this message, its pairing of lyrics and music." - Yahoo Answers


"The lyrics are simple and bitter/sweet. They are sung with a tiredness and loneliness that is very appropriate. The music is simple too, but almost cute and child-like. Absolute sweetness and absolute caring with undertones of sadness, truth." - Yahoo Answers


".. he realises that it's too late to mend their relationship but he still has an ounce of disbelief.. he's giving her closure, getting it for himself.. saying i loved you, i love you and i want you to be happy in doing all you ever dreamt but never imagined you could with me by your side.." - family member


"maybe it is about him actually killing - he wishes so much that he hadn't, Or maybe he or she just died. And he feels like there was nothing he could have done. As days go on he realises what they had was amazing and he realises how much he loved her or him. But it also kinda sounds like he died.Or.....killed himself to get out of the way. He wanted the best for her. But saw that killing himself was the only way to achieve this." - classmate


"The beginning of the song has a childish lullaby sound to it, and it reminds me of how when a relationship is over, after all the crying and blaming, sadness, and anger you're left feeling little and wanting someone to hug you and tell you it's okay; you find comfort in the things that remind you of the past." - family member


"As for the lyrics themselves, they just blew me away because of how much they reminded me of the end of my own relationship. "And all the things that I wish I had not said / Are played on lips 'til it's madness in my head", the person is thinking of all of his or her mistakes, the would haves and should haves of the end." - Yahoo Answers


How We Will Use It
Now that I have a range of answers from several sources, my group and I can now sit down and gather the thoughts or images that most commonly came to mind to people. We are able to take some of these suggestions and interpret them into our visual imagery to include in, not only our music video but our other media products such as CD cover, website, poster etc.

Contacting Record Label - Permission Request

I sent an email to Polydor Records under the Universal Corporation to request permission to use the Snow Patrol song - 'You Could Be Happy'. The email reads:
" Dear Sir/ Madam,

                           I am a year 13 student currently attending Walton High School in Stafford and I am studying Media Studies. As part of my coursework project, I am required to design and create a music video to accompany an existing song. The project is purely for educational purposes and will be completely non-profitable. 

I am writing to you to ask permission to use the Snow Patrol song - 'You Could Be Happy' for my coursework task. Your co-operation would be much appreciated, I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours faithfully,
Maizy Parkes (aged 17) "

Songs We Considered

When it came to choosing the song that we would use for our music video we quickly decided that a song from the Indie genre would suit us best. Myself and my group members listen the that style of music so firstly we made a list of the band that we enjoy to listen to. The songs that we came up with (below) all include instrument playing, rather than the use of synthesisers (an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies and can also imitate other instruments). This is helpful as it would enable us to show the band 'playing' the music to create an entertaining visual for the audience.

1) Vampire weekend - A-punk

2) The Kooks - Matchbox

3) The Hoosiers - Choices 

4) Kid British - Elizebeth

5) Razorlight - Somewhere Else       

6) Razorlight - America         

7) Snow Patrol - Run       

    8) Snow Patrol - You Could Be Happy         

After listening to each song and brain storming on possible ideas and themes, we finally decided upon Snow Patrol - 'You Could Be Happy'.

The interesting thing about this song it that it does not have a music video available which allows for a 100% un influenced production when it comes to making ideas our own. Having no image association link with our song is a big advantage to us because there will be no 'comparison' of our video to an existing music video.   

Analysis of Performance, Narrative & Concept Videos

Performance Video Analysis
This video by Green Day called 'American Idiot' is made up almost completely of shots showing the band performing the song, or Billie Joe lip syncing to the song along with playing the guitar. However, they have made the video interesting and not just used a standard performance by making each band member perform the song at a different speed, such as Billie Joe performing the song sped up whilst Tre Cool is playing the drums at normal speed, etc. This alternates between band members throughout the video and gives the video an individual, creative edge. There is also a theme of the colour green throughout the video, supposedly to go along with the bands name "Green Day". As this is a theme throughout the video it gets stuck in the viewers mind and reminds them of the bands name. There is also an American flag behind the band members as they are performing the song, this is used in an ironic way as the song is about not wanting to be an American idiot. The flag is also green which goes along with the theme of green in the video but also contrasts with the usual red white and blue, making it seem like it is decaying which could also go along with the lyrics which promote a bad view of what America has become. Being a highly political song, Green Day have chosen to use rapid fast paced shots to show their individuality and this promotes anarchy, this is also shown when they smash their instruments at the end of the video which shows their sense of rebellion, which contrasts with the view of what America is today.




Narrative Video Analysis
Chase and Status’ music video, 'Let You Go', shows a television programme based around the very famous Jeremy Kyle’s chat show. This shows the presenter behind the scenes committing most of the offenses the public go on the show to resolve with their family and friends. The genre of music (drum and bass/dance) matches this hard hitting video: one of Goodwin’s forms and conventions. Another one is that the music follows the pace and editing is synced with the audio. This particular video has a narrative which the viewer can follow and in some cases relate with. The song follows this narrative throughout. The director uses a lot of close ups of the actor to show the facial expression and emotions. Nearly almost the shots are dark and dreary which allow the viewer the recognise the mood and atmosphere of the song and video. The storyline behind the narrative used in some ways can reflect the genre of music in more than one way. E.g. the drug taking and alcohol drinking, clubbing and having sex are all part of the dance/dnb/techno scene. This can also represent the band as chase and status are both DJs and I think would be looking for a hard hitting video to match their music which hopefully people will find serious. 




Concept Video Analysis
This video by OK GO called 'Here We Go Again' shows the band performing a dance routine on 6 treadmills, a very original and abstract idea that has never been done before for a music video. It would have had to be shot in one take for continuity, which would have put pressure on the band members to not make any mistakes. The routine is flawless in the video, apart from at about 1 minute in where the man on the front left treadmill starts to fall off, but it is barely noticeable as he recovers well. Another point in the video that could have been as mistake is the very beginning where the man is trying to turn on the CD player and it wont work, however this could have been a deliberate mistake to add humour to the video. The routine is in time with the music and the band tend to do tricks in their routine at key points during the song, making the routine more catchy and eye grabbing, making viewers want to keep watching. This concept was a very simple, yet effective video and soon became a viral hit, giving the band much promotion and success