Lyrical Interpretation

I want my music video to have a narrative and for the audience to understand my concept or interpretation. I believe the only way this can be achieved is to look at the lyrics and try and break down what the artist is trying to say. Here I have looked and analysed a few verses and the main chorus of my song.

First Verse:

Well I tried,
And you said
All there is to say,
Well I tried
It’s just so hard to get out

Comment: This I feel is the main protagonist/singer conveying that they have tried hard to sort a very difficult situation out. The "you" shows that it is maybe a conversation or certainly that the words are being said to someone.

Chorus:

You turn it around and I wanna come back,
We’ve been here before down the very same track,
And I’ve tried too hard to take it back
Take it back

I’m feeling tired and I wanna cut loose,
A night on the streets leaves me nothing to lose
I’ll do all I can to take it back,
Take it back
Take it back

Comment: This suggests that the problem has been a constant problem and strain on the relationship between the two people. The second half suggests that the protagonist is tired and maybe giving up on themselves

Second Verse:

And I’ve heard you say,
That the road is long and winding
The terrain is soo demanding but I,
Refuse to go along
And watch the wheels turn to stone,
Leave me alone,
Never step out from my standing
And object myself demanding to change,
OH to change,
And in the small print I’m finding
That there’s no need in hiding,
With an overwhelming feeling
That where I am residing
AND RIGHT
Will I never learn?
Why’m I stuck in a....
Why’m in stuck in,
Find it hard to let go

Comment: It appears that the protagonist is fairly sure this time that he will overcome the problem and wont give in no matter how hard it will be. This is the feeling i get in conjunction with the ever increasing tempo and tone to the music - sounds like a rebuilding period after the initial downbeat tempo, almost stopping completely - like a crescendo.

Words to "Take It Back" plus how music changes pace

This is the basic lyrics, with little notes to show where the musical tempo slows, quickens and even stops in stages. Key:
Anything outside brackets is main singer lyrics
Anything inside is the back-in singers lyrics


OH Hey
Badababado
Hey
Badababado ----------- Guitar/drums Begins in slow tempo
Hey (You say)
Badababado (Everything)
Hey (I don’t wanna hear)
Badababado (Cos everything)
Hey (You say)
Badababado (Everything) ------------ Tempo begins to increase
Hey (I don’t wanna hear)
Badababada (Cos everything)
Badababada (Everything)
Badababada (Everything)

Well I tried, (Everything) ------------- Increased tempo of guitar/drums
And you said (I don’t wanna know)
All there is to say,
Well I tried (Everything)
It’s just so hard to get out (I don’t wanna know)

You turn it around and I wanna come back,
We’ve been here before down the very same track,
And I’ve tried too hard to take it back
Take it back (Take it back)

Oh hey ----------- Returns to original slowish tempo
Badababado
Hey
Badababado
Hey (Quiet down)
Badababada (I’m not listening)
Badababada (To you, to you)

Well I tried, (Quiet down) ------------- Increased tempo of guitar/drums
And you said (I don’t wanna know)
All there is to say, (To you, to you)
Well I tried (Quiet down)
Its just soo hard to get out (To you, to you)

You turn it around and I wanna come back,
We’ve been here before down the very same track,
And I find it hard to take it back,
Take it back. (Take it back)
I’m feeling tired and I wanna cut loose,
A night on the streets leaves me nothing to lose
I’ll do all I can to take it back,
Take it back (Take it back)
Take it back (Take it back) ----------- music completely dies (just a few guitar chords)

They say (Everything x10) Repeated many times and throughout following verse
And I’ve heard you say, ------------ Kicks back in now to upbeat temp Drums/Guitar
That the road is long and winding
The terrain is soo demanding but I,
Refuse to go along
And watch the wheels turn to stone,
Leave me alone,
Never step out from my standing
And object myself demanding to change,
OH to change,
And in the small print I’m finding
That there’s no need in hiding,
With an overwhelming feeling
That where I am residing (End of “They say” section)
AND RIGHT (OH) -------------- Music cuts again, tempo drop (Few guitar chords)
Will I never learn?
Why’m I stuck in a....
Why’m in stuck in,
Find it hard to let go (Take it back)

You turn it around and I wanna come back, ------- Everything cuts back in at fast tempo
We’ve been here before down the very same track,
And I’ve tried too hard to take it back
Take it back (Take It back)
I’m feeling tired and I wanna cut loose,
A night on the streets leaves me nothing to lose
I’ll do all I can to take it back,
Take it back (Take It back)
Take it back (Take it back)

Contact with the band

Its a little difficult to see what it says so I have copy and pasted the text to show you clearer:

Hello LesOeufs,
My name is Mark Farrelly. I have been searching for a band and song to represent for my media A level coursework. Having looked all over the internet, I feel that your band is the perfect suit to the type of band i want to represent.
I would like your permission to use the song "Take It Back"
Just to let you know, if you allow me to use the song, I will be creating a music video, Digipak and magazine advert for the song and band.
Let me know as soon as possible so that I can start my project, I will be sure to give you the blog address so that you can see what I have created for yourselves.
Thanks,
Mark Farrelly

Unfortunately I did not recieve an email back so i presume the band no longer uses this email address and I was unable to find another. I also sent them the message on their facebook and myspace accounts but with no reply.

How I want the band to be portayed

I want the Band to be relevant and modern. The Indie music is currently very popular with the youth of today and this is why I am aiming to create a video that targets themes very music related to this age group. This is why the band i create must be dressed modern also. I have taken inspiration from:

- The Kooks
- Arctic Monkeys
- The Libertines

These are all bands that I would say are exactly like Lesoeufs. I really believe that the song and the video will be very relatable to someone of a teenage age. It also really helps that I am 17 and able to think of what I would really like and expect to see from an Indie band. With all this in mind, I will begin to create a storyboard and pictures for location, mise-en-scene, costumes and props. After this I will be ready to film as I feel confident I have the foundations for an effective music video.

To relate to my target audience I need to think about what would relate to me and my peers. I think that at my age the only issues with life are exams, money, relationships, fashion and possibly alcohol as we are beginning to experience all of these things. If i can portray as much of these issues as possible, then I believe I will be able to identify with the target market far better. The band needs to be seen as "cool" and their fashion style must also match that of their fans/be a little more extreme than that.

Target Audience 16-21

Take it back and the band i have chosen lend themselves to a younger audience in my opinion. The Indie sound is currently popular within 16-21 year olds as it embodies rebeliion and freedom. These people are younger, freer and more inclined to express themselves without caring as much. The Indie culture shows uniquness and differentiation of which the current student clothing style lends itself to also. On top of this, this genre of music is sunonimous with festivals. festival goers, as a generalisation - tend to be in this sort of age range.

My Age market is 16-21. With this in mind i can now cast people around this age, have a narrtive based on issues relating to this age group (not really relevant to display about marriage or divorce for example) and if i choose performance, perform to an audience of this age group. This is something i'm excited about because I could either be stereotypical of the youth in England or I could attempt to set a message in my video.

Take It Back - My song choice

This is my Song that i have chosen from the band Lesoeufs. I uploaded this audio by merging an image of the group with the audio on Windows Movie Maker, then uploading to YouTube, which allowed me to upload the audio straight onto my blog (by embedding) as it is a movie file. This was a difficult process to work out how to do it but, in the end I got there.





I choose this song because having gone through all of the bands songs i felt it was the most catchy. Also, whilst listening ideas seemed to be coming to me quite easily for style of music video which is encouraging. On top of this, the transition from fast paced guitar and drumming to a huge low in tempo will allow me to show off my skills in the editing department, by varying the pace of the editing and the general atmosphere to the video, to fit the music.

My Chosen Band

Having established that i would be choosing an Indie band, i set about finding an unsigned one, as instructed. I started my search on google and typed in "Unsigned artists UK."

The first web page that came up was http://www.wavcloud.com/ so i selected this and pressed on the Indie genre chart. This is where the best unsigned Indie style songs and artists are. I was on this that i came across a band that featured a few songs in the top 50. They are Lesoeufs. http://wavcloud.com/lesoeufs/




After enjoying the song "Take it back" i decided to do some extended Internet research into the group. Lesoeufs are an Indie band with 4 band members from Brighton, England. Their name is french for Eggs, which is the band name for comedy reasons, however i think it sounds unique They have a number of songs on Wavcloud, Facebook, Myspace, Amazon and Itunes. They also have three EPs called "How is sort of why" "Jabberwocky" and "100,000 lemmings can't be wrong".
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/lesoeufsmusic
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_srch_drd_B001BAF3XM/189-6277030-9468214?ie=UTF8&search-type=ss&index=digital-music&field-keywords=Les%20Oeufs
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/lesoeufsmusic
Itunes: http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewArtist?id=256910346&ign-mpt=uo%3D6

The band also featured on a YouTube channel named Sceneagers who feature a "Band of the Week. On week 34 it was the turn of Lesoeufs.