2. POP
POp music is designed to appeal to a mass audience.
Pop songs last between 2-5 minutes and consist of
melodic and catchy sounds, constructed in a
traditional verse/chorus structure. The genre tends
to deal with ‘safe’ subject matters: like love and
heartbreak.
3. However...
Pop music, simply means popular music and has varied traits and can incorporate
many genres; Elvis, The Beatles, Eminem, Kiss, Nirvana, Stevie Wonder, Roy
Orbison, Frank Sinatra, David Bowie and Lady Gaga, could all have been
described as Pop at one point. So, if you want to identify genre traits, you must
look at sub genres...
4. Pop Sub-Genres
Britpop
Originating from Britain,
with bands such as; Oasis,
Blur and Pulp, Britpop
typically has more mature
lyrics and deals with
heavier subject matters,
while packaging itself with
the typical easy listening of
pop. The bands usually
dress casually, void of
glam. It tackles the troubles
of life in Britain, such as;
poverty, class differences
and depression.
J-Pop/K-Pop
Japan and South Korea
is home to a type of pop
that relies on bright
colours, young attractive
women - put together as
a group by music
executives - and catchy
songs. It appeals to the
lowest-common-
denominator and,
generally, consists of
shallow lyrics. The songs
are always upbeat and
always optimistic.
Modern Western Pop
Modern popular artists are typically
bound to one of the three labels by a
360 degree contract, they are
encouraged to play it ‘safe’, lyrically
and musically by replicating what has
already been proven to sell. Musicians
like Taylor Swift sing about teenage
love and other female artists sing
about female empowerment.
Meanwhile, boy bands like One
Direction must look handsome and
female artists are encouraged to
appear sexually appealing.
6. Covers and websites
The cover represents the themeofclass,often tackledinBritpop, half
the familyareblack& white;while the others areincolour, highlighting
adifference inclass.
The pop-art inspiredappearance
catchestheeye. In pop, it’sa
competition for salessothe cover
needstostandoutthemoston
the shelfto compete. Popular
musicisdesignedtoreach the
mostamountofpeople, sothe
cover steersawayfrom offensive
imagery.
Thewebsite forblur isslickandwell designed.In thebackground avideoplaysshowing thebandon
tour, with their musicplayingover thetop,which canbeeasilypausedifthe user desires.Inthe
centre anews bulletinsharesthe latestinformation on the band,while abovethat,the sectionsof the
siteareclearly defined.Inthe top leftcorner, symbolsoftheband’ssocialmediaprofilesarepresent
andin the top right asearchbar liesfor swiftnavigation.The home pageholdsalotof information,but
the minimalistdesignmakesiteasilydigestible.
7. ROCK
Originating in the 50s with
Rock’n’Roll, the genre
primarily focuses on electric
guitars, but has become
heavily diversified - with
many sub-genres and many
offshoot genres, with their
own genres, such as; Punk
and Heavy Metal.
8. Rock’n’roll
Steeped in 50’s
Americana, musicians
dressed in suits and kept
neat and tidy hair
cuts;such as the
pompadour. Musicians like
Elvis and Bill Haley
influenced the look of
Rock’n’Roll. Rock’n’Roll
revival bands like The
Tom Cats and
Showaddywaddy took
influence from the look,
but added bright colours
and flare.
BritishInvasion
Influenced by Rock’n’roll bands,
The Beatles opened the gates to
America for British bands. Their
long hair sparked controversy,
but The Rollings Stones, the
kinks and the Who, would
introduce the stereotypical Rock
style; with messy hair and
clothes, and a debauched
lifestyle. Their music and dance
moves were highly sexualized and
their guitars became phallic
symbols of sexual liberation.
9. Glam Rock
Flamboyant dress, extravagant
hair and heavy make-up; the
uniform glam rock. Arising in
the 70’s with Marc Bolan and
David Bowie, these artists are
known for their androgynous
look, which is has become a
stereotype of the genre. The
performance and it’s
appearance became just as
important as the music.
Alternative Rock
An attempt to strip down rock back down to basics; make it
solely about music rather than the fashion and style. Alt-rock
emerged from the underground, partly as a counter culture to
glam and mainstream music. The musicians dressed
casually in everyday cloths. Bands like the Pixies pioneered
the genre while artists like Radiohead and Nirvana developed
it.
Prog Rock
Prog rock is known for its wild stage
production, with bands such as genesis and
Yes, the performers incorporate fantasy
dress into their style
11. Websites and Covers
The cover for Nirvana's debut
album “Bleach” is shot in
negative and shows the band
‘Rocking out’, it sells the rock
star lifestyle, playing hard and
fast. THis lifestyle is often what
the covers of rock cD’s try to
embody - as it’s what the
consumer expects. This can also
be seen in ‘London Calling’ by the
class; which itself harkens back
to Elvis and the early days of
Rock’n’roll.
The Rolling stones’ websit is designed in
with the colour scheme red, the bands
colour. Red is both an aggressive and
sexual colour; which are the two
foundations of RoCk. The website also
takes advantage of modern technology by
providing an App to download, allowing
fans to keep up-to-date easily and
efficiently.
12. HEAVY METAL
An offshoot from Rock, it diversified
into it’s own genre, with it’s heavier
sound.
13. Imagery
Since the genre's inception, going back to
Black Sabbath, the genre has had prominent
themes of war, death, the occult and satan.
Performers keep long hair and dress in dark
colours, sometimes utilizing makeup or masks
to enhance their satanic look.
14. Thrash Metal
Thrash metal is a sub-genre
known for its incredibly fast
pace,with bands such as: Slayer,
Anthrax, Metallica and
Megadeath. The genre deals with
themes of death. The musicians
dress casually and often grow
long hair, like in other subgenres
of metal.
Death/Black Metal
Two similar sub-genres,
black metal stereotypically
deals with the occult and
satan; while Death metal,
lyrically explores death
and gore. Black metal
musicians tend to dress in
makeup and occult
fashion, while death metal
artists dress more
casually. Vader is an
influential Death metal
band, Venom is a famous
Black Metal group.
Stoner metal
A lot slower in pace
than other genres of
metal, it holds a
grovier beat. Other
similar, slow yet
heavy genres include
Doom and Sludge
metal. Bands in this
genre:The Melvins,
Electric Wizard and
Black Sabbath.
15. Gothic Metal
Gothic metal focuses on
creating a dark, or macabre
atmosphere in it’s music.
The musicians tend to dress
in black, victorian inspired
outfits and wear dark
makeup, hence the
association with the Goth
scene. Bands include:
Within Temptation,
Nightwish, Cradle of Filth
and Paradise Lost.
Power Metal
This genre is defined by its
clean clean, more
traditional, vocal delivery;
while it deals with subjects
such as war - like other
metal sub-genres - many
bands chose to sing about
fantasy and Tolkien inspired
worlds: Pirate metal is an
off-shoot of this. Many
artists dress in medieval
attire to match the
fantastical elements of the
genre. Bands include:
Primal Fear, Alestorm,
Sabaton and Kamelot.
Nu-metal
Nu-metal fuses metal with
other genres, such as
funk and hip-hop,
musicians in this genre
appear visually different
from other metal bands,
many looking more like
eminem than Motorhead.
Examples include: Korn,
Slipknot, Linkin Park,
Disturbed, Papa Roach,
Rage Against the
Machine and Hollywood
Undead.
16. Music videos - Heavy Metal
‘Neversaymyname’byVader usesintertextuality
toreferencethedeathofChrist,thisplaysintothe
genretropeof critiquingreligion-it’scommonfor
deathmetalmusicvideostoincludereligious
iconographylikethis.
‘EnterSandman’byMetallicausesflashesthat
matchthepaceofthemusictolayer
performanceandnarrativebasedfootage
seamlessly.Theeffectcreatesanightmarish
atmosphere.
17. Covers and websites
The cover for Megadeth's‘Peacesells…but who’s buying?”
showsaaUN devastatedbywar, insometwistedpieceof
irony. Itisacriticismofwar - acommon themeinmetal.The
colour schemeisadeepred, anaggressivecolour representing
violence. Inadditionthe cover shows theband'smascot,thisis
prevalent featurefor the cover designsof manymetalbands,
asseenwith Iron MaidenandMotorhead. Inaccompanimentwith thevarious,welllaidout,socialmediatabs,thesitealso
hastheoptiontocreate anaccountwiththesite.Thisallowsfanstokeepupto
datewiththelatestnewsandoffersavailable.
