Idles are a British punk rock band formed in Bristol. They are signed to Partisan records, an independent record label. The majority of their songs are about issues important to them such as immigration and their songs are very powerful at getting their messages across.
The band probably target a more mature audience due to the nature of their music and themes within the songs but also 20 year olds would probably enjoy listening to the band if they take the preferred reading of their songs which Stuart Hall suggests that people fully understand and accept the encoders message. The band also are represented as being entertaining especially in interviews and live shows which may appeal to people.
music video
'Danny Nedelko' is not very conventional of a punk rock music video. Some of their previous videos have scenes of ornaments being smashed on the floor which would be a lot more stereotypical however this video contrasts that and focuses on community and belonging as the lyrics would also suggest "He's made of you, he's made of me. Unity". For the most part immigrants are portrayed negatively in the media and focus on the bad things such as them taking over jobs in the UK and terrorists attacks etc. Gerbner's cultivation model says that repeated representations have an effect on the audience over time so due to the repetition of those negative stereotypes more people may believe it. idles instead portrays them as ordinary people in this and have a much more positive representation, the video is even in black and white which could be Idles way of saying people need to focus less on the colour of people's skin and just embrace each other instead.
The video doesn't follow a strict narrative and instead just contains Danny Nedelko, who moved from Ukraine to the UK when he was younger and a close friend of Idles, with people from the public making an 'ok' gesture focusing on Idles' message on pro-immigration. It's an uplifting video featuring many different people, from children to older people who for the majority of the video seem very happy suggested by smiling faces with teeth on show and eyes half closed reinforcing the message that community is important to everyone. The people in the video are mostly represented as loving and caring as there are scenes of people hugging and having their arms round each other. There's also scenes of people dancing in the streets which creates a carefree feeling and encourages the audience to enjoy the video.
magazine
Crack is a monthly independent magazine for contemporary music and culture. The front cover is very simplistic like the rest of their covers as it puts an emphasis on the band. The size of the word 'crack' is a lot bigger in comparison to 'idles' which is at the bottom of the cover perhaps suggesting that the magazine itself is more important and promoting themselves rather than the band.
The magazine doesn't feature any headlines or stories that may feature throughout but as there's a focus on Idles, this suggests they will be the main focus. The band doesn't look like they're being told how to pose and instead the picture seems more authentic with one of the men sitting on top of another representing the band as quite carefree. Another member of the band is pointing at the man on the floor and smiling which makes the front cover seem quite silly and represents the band as fun. On the other hand lead singer, Joe Talbot is stood at the top and has his hands closed in a punching gesture. This magazine is still letting them be true to themselves and their punk genre as Talbot seems quite angry which is sometimes associated with the genre.
The double page spread is again quite simplistic with a massive focus on Idles as they have an image that takes up half the double page spread. Magazine's tend to have a focus on an artist/band so this is quite stereotypical. The headline "Brutal, honest truth" shows both sides of idles. It makes it seem like they're very straight to the point and seem quite down to earth as they are talking about quite personal topics throughout the interview.
The interview features both the lead singer Joe Talbot and lead guitarist Mark Bowen. Having 2 members of the band included in the interview feels more original of the magazine because typically the lead singer is the only one that gets interviewed. The reader gets more of an insight into the band because the two members have different things to say.
The magazine makes sure to talk about the things fans would expect to hear such as tour and upcoming albums and songs which makes the magazine feel quite stereotypical. They talk about deeper and more personal topics too which gives more meaning to the interview as it reveals more about them. In the image they all look serious, their eyes are glaring into the camera and their mouths are closed with no real emotion on their face, this could perhaps foreshadow what will be talked about in the interview because there are more serious topics discussed such as death.
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