Analysis of ‘Dawes – Stories Don’t End – In The Studio –

The Recording Process’https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynlZrrqG7YY

This video is from a series of clips about the new Dawes record, and it sticks to a slight theme as it opens with an instrumental part of the track ‘Most

People’ from the album. The first few shots are of their analogue recording set-up, the shots are fairly short but work to establish the subject of the video early on. A representation of the band is also given very quickly as

caring a lot about how their recorded music actually sounds. Taylor, leader singer and guitarist of the band, explains that they “did their first two records on analogue”, helping viewers who might not be aware of what the machine

is – this acts as a kind of narration. When Taylor speaks the song dims slightly but continues playing in the background.

Taylor goes on to say that they’ve used more of a

mixture of both analogue and digital in the new

record. This is reflective of developments in

technology, and the progression of the band

themselves. There is a high angle shot looking quite

closely at the mixing deck, which pans upwards to

reveal the band with Taylor playing guitar.

Whilst Taylor continues to speak and the song plays quietly in the background there are a couple of shots of the place/time in which Taylor is speaking, firstly a close-up of Taylor

himself, and then a long shot showing the whole band. The place in which they are sitting is well lit and is aesthetically pleasing, and looks like a comfortable place to record in. Taylor talks about “taking advantage of the qualities of analogue that are

important to us” – reinforcing that they really care about the way in which their music is recorded so that is sounds the best it possibly can. This shot is followed by another

close-up of the mixing deck.

There are next two shots of each member of the band with

their respective instruments recording in the studio. A

variety of camera shots are used, many of them (for

instance a couple of over the shoulder shots) giving the

feeling of the audience being a fly on the wall in the recording

process. The fact that each member of the band is shown and the screen-time is spread

evenly between them shows the audience that the roles within the band are equal and though Taylor could be considered as

lead the shots aren’t all of him.

Taylor starts to talk about their producer for this record, and there is a shot of them both having a conversation. Rather than looking set-up, the shot is over Taylor’s shoulder and again gives a fly-on-the-wall effect. There is then footage of Taylor speaking, first shown in the shot of the whole band,

then in a two shot with the drummer Griffin (also his brother), and then a close-up of

Taylor himself. Using three separate shots keeps the clip flowing as using just one shot

of Taylor may have made it slightly uninteresting. As with previously, the

impression is given that Dawes care a lot about how the record sounds.

After Taylor first introduces the idea of their producer Jacquire there is a short section of him

speaking. Firstly, he is shown in a mid shot, sitting next to the mixing desk which is relevant

to the work that he does. There is a notification of his name and that he is the producer, helping to keep the viewers up to date with who is talking. The font used for this is the same as the Dawes

logo - sticking to a theme is good for the aesthetics of the video. Whilst Jacquire still speaks,

he is shown working in the studio through a shot at

the level of the mixing desk (again there is a fly-on-the-

wall effect) and then through another shot of

him with the whole band. As Jacquire finishes speaking in this section the shot returns to the mid-shot of him. A cross dissolve is used

to transition to the next shot - a clear indicator that there is a change of scene/topic about to happen. The

thing Jacquire says represents Dawes in quite a positive light and reinforces that they’re very true to their music as he says that in recording, if something didn’t sound right, they wouldn’t just edit it to sound right, they would go out and record it again, which

shows once more their dedication to the sound of the record as they understand that it is their record and

want it to be the best that it can be.

There is around 10 seconds of the track ‘Just My Luck’, which

started quietly in the background whilst Jacquire was talking, with a montage of clips of the band performing in the studio. The clips continue but

the song dims slightly and Taylor starts to speak again. To transition between the first few shots cross dissolves are used and these give the impression

of passing time - giving a positive representation of the band as working hard on the

record. The first few shots that use cross dissolves are from one panning shot across the room, the cross dissolves just speed

this up - the band are all shown in this shot, it’s a collaborative effort. The shots are a mixture of ones quite far from the band, once more giving the fly on the

way feeling, and some more close, showing them playing the

guitar/piano etc.

Taylor begins talking - about

similar things to Jacquire - but there

are still shots of the band recording in the studio. The song also carries

on in the background.

There is a shot from behind Wylie, of him playing bass,

and this pans around to show Griffin playing the

drums. The documentary seems to show that they’re

all hard at work simultaneously.

There are a few more shots of the band recording, and

then Taylor is shown talking.

The shots of Taylor speaking last for around 20 seconds and change quite regularly between the three (a close of up Taylor, a long shot of all four members of the band and a two-shot of Taylor and Griffin.) The fact that the editing for this sequence is quite fast paced keeps the clip flowing and holds the viewers interest. Taylor talks

about how by recording using analogue there’s less of a chance to edit and “fix”, so they’re “forced to really make a performance out of a take”. This gives a positive

representation of the band as they put the effort into recording, rather than relying on the editing process to make them sound good, and Taylor himself says that it

makes them more determined.

Once Taylor finishes speaking there is another section with Jacquire speaking, this starts with the

shot of him as he speaks which establishes that it is him talking. He mentions some of the things he

loves about analogue which he seems quite passionate about, which is great for fans to hear!

To break the footage up there are some shots of the band performing once more. There is

then one of the whole band and Jacquire in the studio - (clearly enjoying recording!) - followed by the shot of Jacquire again to close the clip.

The shot of the whole band is once again recorded out of the way and doesn’t give the impression of it being set-up. A different song (‘From A Right Angle’) starts quietly when the last shot of Jacquire is used, and gets louder

when he finishes speaking.