02 MUSIC: MOJO COVER 2017

'How representations on magazine covers reflect the social and cultural contexts in which they were produced'


MAIN POINTS:
1. 'definite cover'
2. 'world's largest UK Music magazine'
3. covers all sorts of music, very versatile


THE SEX PISTOLS:
Were a punk rock group of four, the band was already extremely controversial, having sworn on live TV, been fired from two record labels, and been banned from playing live in most parts of England. Due to the explicit words on their main album, charts refused to show their name, and instead left a blank space. The iconic acid yellow and fushia pink are used to be loud like their personalities and views - which they had no shame in voicing.

QUESTION 4.

1. Who were they? The Sex Pistols were a controversial punk rock group who notoriously rebelled against the society and middle class people.
2. Why did they shock the Establishment? They shocked the establishment as they said whatever they liked, frequently swearing on TV and not caring of anyone who would be offended by their rash attitudes and carelessness.
3. Look at the colours used (pink and yellow) and link the MOJO cover to the way that the Sex Pistols used it. Why do the Allman Brothers feature above the masthead? The acid yellow and fushia pink stand out and are bold and clash with all other colours bands used, the gnarly colour schemes would be noticeable and are symbolic, they speak of the ethos behind the Sex Pistols and their anti-establishment. The Allman Brothers are featured as the issue will include the 'Rise and Fall'

QUESTION 5.

   Who are the Allman Brothers and how do they come across on the cover above the masthead (title)?

ON the cover, 

MUSIC VIDEO CODES AND COVENTIONS

PREP MUSIC VIDEO CODES AND CONVENTIONS 
To prepare for the exam, we look at the media language of music videos, such as their codes and conventions below. For prep, copy the points in colour then add your own points in black.

1. Performance - the singer / band are seen to be singing and playing (including lip synching), to provide authenticity, so that followers believe in the talent and can see their star. Record labels sign stars and promote them  to ensure sales. Avril Lavigne sings throughout the video using a mike and draws a huge crowd of fans around her when she jumps onto a car roof in the street. She sings with great passion, energy and conviction, holding the mike close to her mouth. Close-ups show her every word (lip synching is a feature of music videos.) She performs for her fans and for her 'boyfriend' the sk8er boi who features in the narrative. Screens often feature in music video and the sk8er boi is videoing Avril Lavigne as he gazes adoringly up at her. She returns his gaze as she sings about 'we rock each other's world'. The performance element creates authenticity (fans have proof of her talent) because we see her sing.
2. Star - use of close-ups, sometimes direct eye contact with audience, to build relationship with audience. The star is shown with immense attitude with the use of close-ups which show her to be rash and confident with hints of aggression. She gets backed with the audience with her intense eye-contact, suggesting that she was right all along and is telling us the story. The direct eye-contact make the whole video more personal and give the watcher an insight to what she is like, creating a relationship with the singer and the audience. Avril is also shown snarling and scowling at the camera, she uses forceful actions to match the power of the audio. An impactful ending is paired with the closeup of Avril looking defiantly into the camera into the audiences to show, she has succeeded, she's won her man and also put on and completed the illegal concert.
3. The visuals (what the star and other characters are seen doing) illustrate, amplify or contradict the lyrics (the 'story in the words'). Illustration = the visuals play out the story more or less literally; amplify = the words in the lyrics are only the starting point and the story develops in other directions; contradiction / disjuncture = the visuals do not interpret the words of the lyrics and may even show something contradictory. The repetitive use of the star symbol representing her location and her gang's symbol familiarize the audience with the sign but slyly, as it is embedded to all of the actions, for example, doing day to day things, getting a coffee like the boy is shown to do; or more extreme like what the squad were doing to promote her concert- throwing the leaflets in the air. The visuals are also all focused on Avril and the wild life she and her friends live. When she announces that 'Five years from now, she sits at home, feeding the baby she's all alone'. She implys that this is a boring lifestyle and nothing compared to the wild life she lives. She thrusts a five at the camera, again being aggressive towards the girl that missed out on her sk8er boi.
4. The narrative usually features the performer in 'real life' situations but often with experimental types of film making such as hand-held, dramatic camera angles, symbolic codes and lighting. The hand held camera angles also personalize the song to the audience giving a taster to the life they would live if they were the girls and boys in the video. The narrative is stepped into massively after the 2nd chorus as she gloats about herself and her boyfriend. The joy they have together, she and her boyfriend are shown looking lovingly into each others eyes as he gazes into the camera then back into her eyes, matched with the lyrics of her love story.
5. The visuals are usually cut to the beat of the music; the editing is often fast-paced; there is often use of montage, ellipsis and intercutting, stylish effects The opening is cut precisely to the beat of the of the fast tempo music. As Levigne's 'gang' marks the name of the location of their impromptu concert around the city, a montage is inserted showing the characters - Avril and the 'Sk8er Boi', and how they went to school like usual, and what their life is like as their invented persona of a typical 'Sk8er Boi' . Avril punches the air towards the camera in time to the beat after the 2nd chorus and this adds again to the frantic scenes shown.
6. Refrain - repeated chorus, sometimes with variations. The visuals used, intensify the pace and add to the zealous atmosphere of the whole situation. All the chorus' have the gang and Avril together showing and gloating of the fun they have and life they live.

ANGLES IN SK8ER BOI

PREP MUSIC VIDEO CODES AND CONVENTIONS - Explain the use of camera angles in 'Sk8er Boi' - Avril Lavigne.

The use of camera angles are very wild and fast matching the fast tempo and high energy song. The video relates to the song as in the beginning there are skater boys and wild children raiding shops and spraying paint around the city.  The camera angles vairy from low to high shot, which shows despite her being the main character of the video, she is still with all her friends having a good time. When Avril is seen upon the taxi's in the city, with the mike in her hand the upwards low shot shows how she is the most important and has a high status to the rest.
 

EDITING IN CUFFS

PREP Analyse how editing is used in the extract from Cuffs to create meaning. Refer to at least two examples from the extract in your answer. (This means that a good candidate will write fully and freely, covering more than just 2 examples, as we practised in class).
Worth 5 marks: write half a side of A4 and post on your blog tonight. If you have DoE, take an extra 24 hours.

The editing in the scene where the officers are having a fight in the racist's thug house emphasizes how Jake feels and deals with the stressful situation. The video is blurred and slowed down so we as watchers can understand how he is feeling, caught up in the moment and very flourished with everything that is going on. The shot reverse shot also implys he has trouble focusing as his point of view is constantly being rushed around from person to person. The muffled screaming of the PC's asking for help of him adds to the whole frantic and terrifying scene. 

When the distraught mother is talking to DI Felix Kane, he refuses to meet her eye as he is embarrassed and unsure of what to do. The shot reverse shot of the two characters show the awkwardness and uncertainty of the DI, and the utter despair and worry of the mother who's child has been abducted.

Another example of meaningful editing would be when DI Kane is inspecting the footage that the father took of himself and his child and he finds a clue, the way in which he rewinds and repeats the footage creates a suspense that he would be caught. The last frame is held for a long time as he processes what he has seen, this shows to the audience that he has got the clue he needs to track down the abductor. It is followed by extreme closeup of a sheet of paper with few pens on top with a logo of the hotel they are in.

The shot reverse shot between DI Kane and Lauren's father shows the suspense between the two characters. The slow zoom into the hand grasping the ledge and the innocent frightened girl in the reflection of the window slowly enhances the anxious tone. The camera lingers on Kane as he has to think of what he may do and the knock on effect of what he may do may lead the man to jump and trigger him. He catches him as he is about to jump and the camera spends time on Lauren's father to show how he is surprised that he could've just ended his life.

MISE-EN-SCENE

Analyse how mise-en-scene is used in the extract from Cuffs to create meaning. Refer to at least two examples from the extract in your answer. (This means that a good candidate will write fully and freely, covering more than just 2 examples, as we practised in class).
Worth 5 marks: write half a side of A4 and post on your blog tonight.


When Jake and Ryan are in the drug addicts front room, the placement of the syringes, empty bottles and general state of the very crucial to the audience to create a sense of menace and seediness in the atmosphere and understanding to the audience. The empty bottles provide us with background knowledge of the man as an addict and alcoholic. Showing that the alcohol has not only made his home a mess but his life as well, the bottles are a metaphor for him as well.

Another example of mise-en-scene in Cuffs would be around 7minutes in when the male -who is later on an identified criminal- is looking at the young girl through the fence in a convict-like shot where he appears to be behind bars of a cell. The way in which this is paired with the police car driving by foreshadows the events that may occur in the near future. The gentleman casted looks normal and could easily be a father but he is messy, he's unshaven and has greasy hair; presenting him to be in a bad place, presenting himself on the inside on the outside which again gives the watcher detail, not too much though so we are engaged and want to continue watching to learn the story of the man.