Current Research Around Our Place

(If you usually get this via email, click here to see the embedded videos on this post: http://beccajones.blogspot.com/2011/02/current-research-around-our-place.html)

New videos.

That's what's up around here. We need new videos.

The biggest chunks of Tim's income in the last long while have always come as a result of his work online. So we need more videos. We emptied the garage and remodeled it into a movie studio (on a budget of $25 no less--Tim is a make-it-work GENIUS.)

But there is no value in making more of the same, and there is no value in making a video that won't "go anywhere" (ie not get further work, not get passed on, etc.)

The world of online videos is driven by trends that change really really fast.

We got introduced with this:



Corey used Tim's song and performance (with moosebutter), 4 boxes style.

Tim did his own 4 Boxes video:



It spawned "parody" ads overseas:



And a whole genre of kazoo videos (when Tim made his vid, there were maybe 3 other kazoo videos online, and none multitracked):


Notice what happened, though, over time?  No longer just 4 boxes. The whole concept developed, grew, changed, until 4 Boxes is, well, passe.

So now we're seeing the trend going here, being used by groups:



There's this:

And here, being used by solo artists still, but with enhancements:


And here, which is drifting even further from the 4 Boxes idea:


And this--it's all the same guy, but no boxes:


So that's one approach to a solo performer doing all the parts. You have multi-tracked songs, either performed live or performed lip-synced, showing each part in a box.

But there are other solo performers, like Tim, who do ALL the parts live. And they are interested in showing that in their videos--that they can perform all the parts by themselves live.

So we've been looking at videos from other performers who do the whole shebang live:

That 1 Guy, who does everything himself live using that cool, funky electronic instrument he invented:


BeardyMan, who is one of the early live loopers and who takes the more common DJ approach to looping:


I love how BeardyMan shows visually the movement of the loops in his song, and also how he uses hats to indicate when he's laying down different parts. Also love the view of his equipment on the table that anchors the video at the bottom there.

There is also DubFX's "Rude Boy":


I like that you can see just what he's doing there, what he has in his "rig".

So there you have it--the research we've been doing into solo a cappella artists and live loopers (and other solo artists) and how they show what they're doing.

Of course, the videos have been embedded in a larger, ongoing discussion here at home.

Tim doesn't want to just do what's been done. Especially not quite as good as has been done before. He needs to add to the evolution in order for it to be worthwhile, so we're talking, looking, dreaming, imagining....hopefully soon we'll be creating. (It has to warm up first--our garage is not heated.).

Hopefully soon we'll have videos to show you.

Meanwhile, a video of a live performance by Tim of his original song "Heartbreaks", taken by a fan.