Genre :
The Ordinary Boys are an indie rock band, and this is evident through their poster. The indie style of the band is suggested by the low-fi feel of the photograph that they have used. In terms of mise-en-scene, the picture of the band has been taken with the backdrop of a plain wall and a door, and the floor looks dirty and old. This is a deliberate decision by the band, as even though they would have had a professional photo-shoot for this picture (evident by the use of three point lighting, with a dominant light coming from to the right of the photographer and a fill light from the left of the photographer), this is the background they chose. This maintains the band identity that they are still small and indie, and choose to not have an expensive or elaborate background for their poster.
Media Language & Representation :
In terms of the visual techniques used, there are evidently few in comparison to similar poster campaigns. The lack of obvious photographic techniques such as the rule of thirds or special textures is possibly due to the maintaining of the indie band who are not concerned with their image, as mentioned above. However, there had clearly been substancial planning for this poster. The colour is dominantly white and pale, and each of the band members has been dressed to fit in with a central image. Furthermore, the waist-belt worn by the lead singer (the fact that he is the lead singer is made obvious to the audience by the fact that he has taken a step forward from the other band members) matches the colour of the text, a dark red, which would be a deliberate decision made for a sense for continuity through the poster and through the whole advertising campaign.
The band have used these techniques to create a meaning that is relevant to the band. The media theorist Richard Dyer states that in order to sell an artist brand to a potential audience, then a semi-mythological set of meanings must be created around them, they must be ordinary and extraordinary, so that the audience aims to complete the brand image. The use of simplistic photography, and the positions that the band members are standing in suggests that they are ordinary. This is very relevant to the overall band meta-narrative, as they very promote themselves as being down to earth, and went as far to name themselves 'The Ordinary Boys'. However, this is used in conjuncture with the idea that they are also extraordinary.
In this poster, the idea that they are extra-ordinary is suggested through the use of linguistic devices, namely the font in this print media text. The bright red neon style font used connotes a sense of importance about the band, the colour red creating a sense of urgency. The theorist Rowland Barthes talks about the various semiotic codes used by bands to create an image, and the text here draws on the cultural code, where potential audience members are familiar with the expression 'name in bright lights', which in itself has implications of fame and sense of being extra-ordinary. The use of the red neon lights in this poster therefore suggest that the band are important and successful, although this is juxtaposed with the simple and basic poster, which in turns creates the sense that the band are both ordinary and extra-ordinary. However, there is also an ironic sense to the use of neon lights. In popular culture, neon is often associated with cheap locations, like back-alley bars, so there is also sense of postmodernism, where the band are parodying their own success.
This notion goes further, with the title of the band being 'lonely at the top'. This implies that the band are at the top, which most likely is in reference to their music career, either at the top of their game or at the top of the album or single charts. However, the band have used emotive language, such as the adjective 'lonely', which gives the impression that although the band are successful, they are still human and down to earth.
Institution & Audience :
This poster appeared in a copy of NME in 2006, and the image used is the poster that was used for the whole advertising campaign, although the text underneath which gives details about the single and the forthcoming album and where it can be purchased are only relevant to that copy of NME. The readers of NME are likely to be interested by this genre of music, and the text follows the natural reading line working from the band members, through the track title and down to the details of the track and album.
No comments:
Post a Comment