Working Example

Results show most people want to be entertained and see the latest trends. 

To fulfill these viewing needs I will look at recent popular music videos and identify what is conventional and what are the new innovative things to be featured. I have discovered various things which give a video and edge to make it more desirable to those who like the latest trends. These things are:

Nicky Rothen from Flesh Roxon

• Distorted camera shots/ angles i.e. fish eye effects and movement shots following and instrument as it's being played. These are interesting shots are they are different and distorting angles keeping the viewer intrigued and creating a 'weird' effect. A good example of unusual/ distorted camera angles is in the video 'God Sent Me To Hell' by Flesh Roxon where we see the singer falling and the camera follows him as his face hits the dirt.

• A lot of Psychobilly music videos feature people (either the audience at a gig or the band members themselves) drinking, since this is a common feature it would be good to include in a

  

  Black & red double bass
  of The Marksmen

  music video since it gives the atmosphere of a live performance to people who have not seen the band or artist before, this is essentially what the audience want to do i.e. go and see the band. Throught this ideology it gives a little flavour of what it is like. A second thing that is often featured in these music videos and is quite popular recently is showing members of an audience enjoying the band as part of a live performance, it was usual for a music video to be solely narrative yet the popularity of performance videos has brought along this. The audience are either dancing or interacting with the band members. Finally another feature as part of the Rockabilly/ Pychobilly culture it heavily shows people with tattoos, this is common among the fans of these kinds of artists. When it comes to shots of the bands the main instrument which is focused on is the double bass which is the piece that sets this genre of music apart and makes it unique, it is the symbolism of most bands for the genre and different artists have different coloured/ styled basses, additionally this is one of the most powerful (in terms of sound) instruments which the band play.

Example of low key lighting in the music video 'Godless
Girls Fun' - The Hellfreaks

• Low key lighting is another feature in most videos since it gives an artistic effect and again gives it a more real feel to the video if it is of a live performance. It also links in with Psychobilly's horror themes i.e. it being dark, and nighttime. This is generally combined with flickering lights as well or some form of flashes in transitions between shots as shown in the video 'Godless Girls Fun' by The Hellfreaks.

• The style of special effects are something which always changes in popularity for the music

  

  TV transition style which has recently brought back.

  videos, for example most used to feature focuses and blurred out shots to make the shot seem hazy. However since the Graveyard Johnnys released their video Dead Transmission it is cutting edge to have TV styled transitions and effects making it seem like you are watching an old fashioned programme. It's like a sense of nostalgia going back to how thing would have looked back in the 1950's with some shots being in grayscale or pure contrasting black and white. This is new and cutting edge since the style of the retro revival became popular recently in the last couple of years. Other special effects include slow motion shots (primarily of the drummer in a band) which outlines the skill and puts emphasis on the performance. 

• Some aspects of these music videos apply to Mulvey's Male Gaze theory i.e. these videos

  

  Glamorization of drink and sexualaisation of women are a
  common feature in Psychobilly videos. This screenshot is
  taken from 'Won't Back Out' by The Graveyard Johnnys.

  often feature women who are sexualised and glamorised being represented as objects (these are generally not members of the band but extras in a video, this convention is often more common in all male bands as they do not have the attraction). They are used to bring in and attract the male audience.

• Finally one more common feature in Psychobilly music videos which is relatively new and follows trends is the location of filming in a small confined space or somewhere which is crowded, it gives of a certain lively atmosphere as well as making the band seem more independent i.e. a small store room, prisons cell, recording studios, they are not on a big stage or at a large festival. This is appealing as it is different to most performance videos which have their artists on stages or in wide open spaces.

Screenshot of Relentless from their music
video 'Haunted By The Devil'

Relentless ,being a relatively new band, they have successfully incorporated most of the new trends and conventions of Psychobilly music videos i.e. the small spaces, fish eye, fast editing closely featuring the instruments. They also follow a relatively new trend to the Psychobilly scene regards music videos which is featuring other bands in the form of t shirts. For example in this video we see the double bass player is wearing a 'Living End' top. This never used to be a feature as bands tended to be focused around themselves and not promote others however this has changed in recent years and many artists are seen wearing clothes advertising other bands, this is especially common now in those who are signed to a record label as it does promotion for other bands they are signed with.