Postmodernism

Genre: Rick Altman

Audience: Stuart Hall

Encoding and Decoding

"The function of criticism should be to show how it is what is is, even that it is what it is, rather than to show what it means."

Stuart Hall is a cultural theorist and professor of sociology. He said there are 3 ways we read a media text (how the audience respond) These 3 are:

Dominant reading

The reader fully accepts the preferred reading. The audience read the media the way that the producer intended them to.

Negotiated reading

The reader partially believes the code. However they sometimes modify it in a way which reflects their position, experiences and interests.

Oppositional reading

The reader's social position places them in an oppositional relation to the code. They reject the media.

Media Power

Media power is how media creates dominant ideologies. These include things like the role of women, asylum and immigration, welfare system, monarchy etc. Mass media creates and defines issues of public concern and interest through audience positioning. A key word is polysemy. (poly meaning multiple). This word means that a text has multiple meaning and how people interpret and decode readings in different contexts and cultures.

Encoding - is the process in which a text is produced and is then made into a particular format

Decoding - is how the message is received and how it is interpreted.

Relating to music video

Whenever a music video is produced and made, it automatically falls under the process of encoding because it had already been put into a format that is ready to be received by an audience.

Decoding in music video will be the audience receiving and evaluating the music video. The audiences will interpret the encoded message in different ways, some will receive it as intended and some will interpret a different meaning to the way the producers intended the meaning to be. This can be perceived as a problem however as the product can be perceived in the wrong way and the true meaning of the video can be lost. This can cause issues when it comes to reviewing the videos success.

Urban Tribe 3: Hipster

The last urban tribe I'm going to describe and analyse is hipsters.

Hipsters are one of the newer urban tribes that have come to light. They will usually listen to anything or listen to new music. They're similar to nerds and gamers. Hipsters tend to change of trends. They change their habits because the purpose of being hipster is to catch up with the latest music and fashion. Hipsters will also listen to very old bands such as The Beatles, Guns N Roses and The Rolling Stones:

On the uktribes.com website hipsters can be defined as:

"constantly experimenting with cultural touch points, hipsters are all about irreverent fashion and flashing their style online"

Hipsters are people who enjoy clothing, music, food and activities outside of the social mainstream to shop and wear clothes from American Apparel, H & M, ASOS and Urban Outfitters. They also wear skinny jeans a lot and sunglasses. Accessories such as piercings, vintage dresses, converse and layering are also elements.



Hipsters listen to newly emerging, independent music. Indie music is a big part of what being a hipster is all about. There are lists of independent artists in the music scene especially  in the areas of nu-rave, minimalist techno, nerdcore, garage rock, classic rock and punk rock.



Because most hipster music videos are based on the music, there aren't large amounts of evidence to suggest they're hipster other than clothing. An example of a hipster artist/music video is Bastille's 'Pompeii':

Elements of this music video which suggest they're hipster are:

• clothing
• hairstyle
• style of music

Two more examples include:

The 1975 - The City

Mumford & Sons - I Will Wait

Summary
To summarise, urban tribes can be very difference when it comes to music videos. They each have very different ways of representation and opinions. Music videos say a lot about urban tribes, however they all have one thing in common. Expression. Even if they are very different ways of expressions, urban tribes music videos all get their point across and express what that urban tribe is typically about.

Urban Tribe 2: Scene

The next urban tribe I'm going to analyse is 'Scene Kids';

Scene kids are typically the urban tribe that listen to metal and rock. Scene kids are often mistaken to be emos but aren't. They have multicoloured hair - usually contrasting colours e.g. black and pink. They usually also do this with make-up. Stripy, plaid, patterned, band shirts, skinny jeans and accessories including sunglasses, hats and jewellery. According to uktribes.com scene kids are described as:

"scene kids are ruling the school with their looks and attitude - they live for social networking and aren't short on opinions"

Scene kids tend to stick to metal/rock and don't really stray from their path. Music they listen to can include Asking Alexandria, A Day to Remember and Sleeping with Sirens.

An example of a music video a scene kid would watch is Asking Alexandria's 'The Final Episode';

Elements of this music video that can be identified as scene or the conventions of a rock music video are:

• dark lighting
• long hair
• instruments
• screaming
• black/leather costume
• live performance

Long hair

long hair is a trait of rock music videos. Scene kids seem to fall at the knees for guys with long hair, which seems to attract that type of audience. Long hair on a guy isn't a usual thing you'd see every day (although nowadays they're around more but when this music video was released long hair wasn't very popular), so long hair attracts the scene kid audience to the music video.

Instruments

Scene kids love guys who play instruments. Along with scene kids watching channels like Scuzz and Kerrang! they are attracted to this type of music video. The playing of instruments are usually a convention of the rock genre, hence attracting a possibly wider audience to the band than they initially anticipated. Guitars/instruments are symbolic of alternative genres of music, which obviously won't really appeal to an audience of classical music or urban jazz. This allows the producers to target the correct audience and not give a misleading effect of what the band is about.

Dark lighting/grey scale

Dark lighting is another element of a rock music video. Scene kids contrast their hair and clothing with black so dim lighting and lack of colours obviously seem to attract them. Someone who likes pop music with lots of parties and bright colours won't be interested in this sort of music video - again, attracting an audience that will like and watch the music video multiple times.

Live performance

although this isn't a live performance in a sense of being in front of a crowd, it gives the effects to the audience that you are the crowd of the music video, allowing you to connect with the music and the band. Live performances along with the presence of instruments show that this is an alternative music video which won't be liked by every person that listens to it. The instant reaction of maybe a chav or a hipster would be to turn it off but if scene kids look at it then it will make them want to turn their attention to it.

Black/leather clothing

This blends well with the grey scale of the music video, giving the effect of the band blending into the background which is ironic because they're not the usual type of band that would fit in with a lot of people. Scene kids like to stand out from everyone and have an opinion so the irony of the music video that the band don't fit in will attract the audience of the scene kids because then they will relate to the music video and will continue to not want to fit in with the crowd.

Screaming

Screaming is a typical part of a rock music video and this also attracts the audience of the scene kids because you can hardly miss it. A lot of the time there is screaming with Asking Alexandria which a lot of people don't always understand. This is a typical element of this genre of music. Scene kids usually either don't care or listen to so much 'screamo' they learn to understand it. (Trust me, it' like learning a whole new language. Here are the lyrics (with the screaming parts in bold);

Oh my God.

Oh my God.

If only he knew,

If only he knew,

If only he knew about the world without the bullsh*t and the lies,

We could've saved him.

They could've saved me.

But instead I'm here drowning in my own f*cking mind,

And I'll be damned if you're the death of me.

Blood and ink stain the walls.

Silently with bloodied knuckles, I carry on

Hoping it's not too wrong.

You said the nights were far too long.

'Honey, it's just the start of it.'

Oh my God.

If only he knew.

Oh my God.

If only he knew.

If only he knew!

If only he knew.

Just stand up and scream.

The tainted clock is counting down.

(Faster and fast!)

You gave in to me.

Would you say the nights are far too long now?

(Faster, and faster and fast!)

(My God!)

Oh my God!

Oh my f*cking God!

The tears that stain my cheek make me look weak!

I wear them proudly!

I wear them proud!

Just stand up and scream.

The tainted clock is counting down.

(Faster and fast!)

You gave in to me.

Would you say the nights are far too long now?

(Faster, and faster and fast!)

[x2:]

Your knife,

My back!

My gun,

Your head!

You need a doctor baby,

You scared?

You need a doctor baby,

You scared?

You need a doctor baby,

You scared?

You need a doctor baby,

You scared?

You scared,

You scared?

Yeah!

You need a doctor baby,

You scared?

You need a doctor baby,

You scared?

You need a doctor baby!

You need a doctor baby!

You scared?

Scene music tend to be a lot angrier than most music, hence the screaming. This, however, is a way they describe and express themselves. A lot of the scene kid urban tribe is about expression - this definition of expression is demonstrated through music and physical appearance.

Voyeurism isn't usually an element of the scene kid music video tribe however in some music videos there are aspects of voyeurism, especially if the lead singer is a female. An example of this is 'Miss Nothing' by the Pretty Reckless:

Urban Tribe 1: Chavs

The first urban tribe I'm going to analyse is 'chavs'.

Chavs tend to listen to a lot of pop/rap/hip-hop. They also tend to dress a lot like the artists including clothing like baggy trousers, snapbacks, lots of jewellery and shades.

Chavs tend to also listen to a lot of mainstream music like Rihanna, Drake and Professor Green which means that this particular urban tribe are more accepted than say emos or punks. According to uktribes.com, chavs are typically described as;

"the most famous UK tribe by a mile, the chavs may be vilified by others - but nowadays they are making big cultural waves in fashion and music"

Chavs wear sports wear (trackies), chunky flat soled trainers, hoodies, jackets and caps. Chavs have quite a heavy dress sense. Chavs are laid back, sarcastic and speak slang. Their hair is usually short, left natural and wavy or tied back. They tend to have more acquaintances than friends and hang in a large cloud.

an example of a chav type music video would be Rita Ora's 'How We Do (Party)':

Conventions

Party
House parties or club raves are usually a convention of the pop music genre, especially if the song revolves around parties hence the word 'party' being in the title. As mentioned earlier, chavs tend to hang around in large groups and this is also an element of a chav type music video. Parties also attract the correct type of audience and as chavs are attracted to large groups, this type of music video will also attract their attention. The bright colours of the music video and the costume of the characters will also catch the eye of the audience as well, as chavs tend to like bright coloured videos.

Designer clothing
Chavs like designer clothes so the appearance of designer clothes like this shot of a Boy London jumper. This continues to attract the audience and also gives the clothing line promotion because if chavs associate with clothing lines like this and they're shown on a music video then chavs are more likely to buy clothing from that website.

Voyeurism
Voyeurism of women is a common convention of a pop/chav music video. Voyeurism is a way of sexualising women, which is very popular in the modern and chav world. This high angle shot of Rita shows her leaning down towards the camera. The high angle shot allows the audience to look further down her shirt, furthermore sexualising the women. Although it isn't much like the music videos like Miley Cyrus' Wrecking Ball or Robin Thicke's Blurred Lines, it still demonstrates that voyeurism is present in the most subtle of ways. This form of voyeurism allows the audience to let their imagination control them.

Strange clothing
Strange outfits and clothing can be elements of any type of genre music video but recently, since the uprising of Lady Gaga's strange and wonderful outfits she wears in music videos, the use of strange clothing has increased in the popular culture. Outfits like the character is wearing in the left side of this mid shot shows that he stands out from the shot and the audience are automatically attracted to this person.

Swearing
Even though mainstream music is shown on TV almost constantly and nearly all day, this doesn't stop artists from swearing on their track. Most of the time this is blanked out from the music video, so the word (or words) aren't said before watershed. Swearing is a usual element of a chav type music video because chavs themselves use slang and swearing can sometimes be considered as a form of slang. Here in this music video in the bridge before the chorus, Rita sings 'party and bullshit' and repeats it often, however doesn't swear for the remainder of the music video.

Jewellery
Jewellery is a representation of wealth, which is a primary focus in the urban tribe of 'chavs'. They're always fighting over who has more money or the most expensive clothes, so the shots of jewellery show the wealth. 

The songs listened to by chavs tend to be mostly about drugs, sex, money and partying. Here are the lyrics with the party related themes in bold;

And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit...
And party, and party

I stumbled up to the window
Opened the curtains to blinding light
Make-up all over the pillow
What went on? What went on?
What went on last night?
You look so sweet while you're dreaming (yeah)
Holding your bottle of Tanqueray (yeah)
It isn't even the weekend
Baby, that's how I know you're the one for me

I wanna party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party, and party

'Cause when the sun sets baby
On the avenue
I get that drunk sex feeling
Yeah, when I'm with you
So put your arms around me, baby
We're tearing up the town
'Cause that's just how we do

We got that sweet, hot loving
Dancing in the dark
Out in the streets we're running
Shut down every bar
So put your arms around me, baby
We're tearing up the town
'Cause that's just how we do
How we do, that's just how we do
How we do, that's just how we do

Hangover, I think I'm broken
You said the fix is a shot of Jack
I said, "Man, what are you smoking?"
But alright, pour a glass, and we'll throw 'em back

I wanna party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party, and party

'Cause when the sun sets baby
On the avenue
I get that drunk sex feeling
Yeah when I'm with you
So put your arms around me baby
We're tearing up the town
'Cause that's just how we do

We got that sweet, hot loving
Dancing in the dark
Out in the streets we're running
Shut down every bar
So put your arms around me, baby
We're tearing up the town
'Cause that's just how we do

How we do, that's just how we do (x5)

I wanna party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit...
And party, and party (x2)

'Cause when the sun sets baby
On the avenue
I get that drunk sex feeling
Yeah when I'm with you
So put your arms around me baby
We're tearing up the town
'Cause that's just how we do

We got that sweet hot loving
Dancing in the darkOut in the streets we're running
Shut down every bar
So put your arms around me baby
We're tearing up the town
'Cause that's just how we do

And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party and bullshit
And party and party
How we do, that's just how we do
How we do, that's just how we do
How we do, that's just how we do
How we do, that's just how we do

Another example of a chav type music video is Lady Sovereign's 'Random';

This is a really strong example of a chav music video. Even though Lady Sovereign in a female she isn't necessarily used as a reason to use voyeurism. She is a typical female chav (sometimes called a chavetic). In this music video there are elements that are very similar to Rita Ora which includes:

• bright colours
• jewellery
• designer clothing

other elements include

• baggy clothes
• women dressing like men
• braided hair

Lastly, another example of a chav type music video is Flo Rida and 'Low';

This is one of the first chav music videos and includes some description of a chav in the lyrics;

Shawty had them apple bottom jeans (jeans)
Boots with the fur (with the fur)
The whole club was looking at her
She hit the floor (she hit the floor)
Next thing you know
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low
Them baggy sweat pants
And the Reebok's with the straps (with the straps)
She turned around and gave that big booty a smack (hey)
She hit the floor (she hit the floor)
Next thing you know
Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low, low

This music video is from the movie Step Up 2 which is a chav orientated movie. This is an older music video which acts a little like a template for future artists. This music video sexualise women highly although for most of the music video the artists are focussed on. Elements of this music video that are chav-like include;

• bling
• shades
• clubs/parties
• voyeurism
• clothing

Urban Tribes: Michel Maffesoli

Michel Maffesoli is a French sociologist. He used the term 'urban tribe' as a way to describe a group of individuals. It gained widespread after the publication of his book le temps des tribus: le declin de l'individualisme dans les societies postmodernes' (The Time of Tribes: the Decline of Individualism in Postmodern Societies). According to Maffesoli, urban tribes are micro groups of people who share common interests in urban areas. The members of these groups tend to have similar world views, dress styles and behavioural patterns. Maffesoli claims that punks are a typical example of an urban tribe.

For our task, we were asked to categorise ourselves into an urban tribe from the Channel 4 website uktribes.com

Unfortunately I can't place myself in an urban tribe, purely because I don't like to label myself and also I'm a mix of most of those urban tribes. However, for this task I'm going to talk about a tribe that I know a lot about but not necessarily in - emos.

How do they consume music video?

Due to the fact that rock and metal isn't often shown on mainstream TV, emos tend to have to consume music videos off their own back. This can include using the internet for their own use. YouTube is obviously one of the most used ways of consuming a specific genre. However recently there had been a development on the production of alternative music to allow urban tribes such as emos to find an easier way to consume music or music videos. This includes things such as the appearance of Kerrang! TV and more recently - Scuzz. Kerrang! Radio is also a way of consuming music. These developments allow urban tribes to access their type of media easily.

When can they consume music video?

Because emos have to go out of their own way to consume music videos, they can choose to consume it whenever they choose to. More recently though mainstream channels have been showing a wider variety of music and have also been dedicating time slots for alternative music. Also, these mainstream channels' websites have been putting up information and charts about alternative music.

What videos do they consume?

The music videos usually consumed by the 'emo' urban tribe are mostly ones that have things in common such as the typical conventions of alternative music videos .e. live music, instruments, dark clothing and bright hair colours. Other elements include songs that have meaning, hence 'emo' being emotional and songs that have violence and blood. Music videos emos watch are two extremes like the examples I just used. Why do emos watch these music videos? They can relate to these types of music videos. Emo's are emotional people so they're hardly going to be able to relate to dance music videos about drugs, sex and money. They can also understand these types of music videos and in a way they represent what their type of urban tribe is all about which is also what applies to other tribes.

Knives and Pens - Black Veil Brides

Knives and Pens by Black Veil Brides is an example of being able to relate to the story. Along with looking like an emo, lead singer Andy Biersack is one of the main artists that is labelled an emo. The storyline is about a boy who is bullied for being an emo. This enables the correct tribe audience to connect and relate to the character.

At the beginning of the video there is a narrative from what is believed to be from the documentary Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills. It was taken from the recording of one of the West Memphis Three trials. This attracts the correct target audience to the music video. The speech is as follows:

Prosecutor - "In looking at young people involved in the occult, do you see any particular type of dress?"

Witness - "I have personally observed people wearing black fingernails, having their hair painted black, wearing black t-shirts... Sometimes they will tattoo themselves."

The music video is a scenario similar to Andy's years in school and is about being bullied. This allows any audience to relate to bullying but the way the Knives and Pens music video goes about displaying and explaining it is the way emos would deal with bullying.

The music video usually relates to the lyrics, like Goodwin's Theory proves. In this case the song is talking about bullying and fighting against bullying. The lyrics are as follows;

Alone at last we can sin and fight.
And I've lost all faith in this blurring light,
(Stay right here we can change our plight.
Storming through this despite what's right.)

One final fight for this tonight.
Whoa-oh-oh
With knives and pens we made our plight.

Lay your heart down, the end's in sight.
Conscience begs for you to do what's right.
(Everyday it's still the same dull knife,
Stab right through and justify your pride.)

One final fight for this tonight.
Whoa-oh-oh
With knives and pens we made our plight.
Whoa-oh-oh

Well I can't go on without your love that you lost, you never held on.
(We tried our best. Turn out the light. Turn out the light!)

One final fight for this tonight.
Whoa-oh-oh
With knives and pens we made our plight.
Whoa-oh-oh

Well I can't go on without your love that you lost, you never held on.
(We tried our best. Turn out the light. Turn out the light!)

Lead singer Andy said that the meaning of the song title is about a choice: Knives - destruction (self-harming) and pens - creation (making something of your life). As you can tell, emo music is very meaningful to people of that specific tribe defines them. This music video is just one of the many music videos that allow the tribe emo to relate to.