Bastille- Website Research

Link: http://www.bastillebastille.com/

Bastille are a band which make music that is considered to be part of the electropop genre, as well as indie rock. They are signed onto the record label Virgin and have produced two studio albums: Bad Blood (2013) and Wild World (2016).
Their music has a dark undertone to it, also shown in the lyrics, which can be reflected through their music videos and brand image, including website.

On the home page we can immediately see this image with the promotion of a new single produced by the band, with the background photo holding multiple connotations of violence and crime. The photo features the lead singer of the band with blood on his face and clothes and his hands behind his back with handcuffs falling from them, as well as a police officer with a gun and vehicles in the background. The title "World Gone Mad" is the name of a song that they have created for the soundtrack of a film names Bright which stars Will Smith. We learn this from the links associated with the song at the bottom of the photo. The links are all for different platforms where the song can be listened to or bought, promoting it in a variety of ways. The example I have shown below is the Spotify link:

Other features that we can see on this homepage are the social media links in the top right corner of the page, a common feature to be seen on an artist's website. The links lead to a variety of platforms, including the most common ones such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram. In the top right corner is also the link to Bastille's Spotify page so that listeners can follow them and listen to their music on this platform. The link to another streaming site, Apple Music is also put as a button below this.
At the bottom of the page are links to the legal information such as the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, as well as naming their record label, Virgin EMI at the bottom. The Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy link leads to a page for Universal Music, which owns the smaller label Virgin, and lists all the appropriate information in sections:

At the bottom is also the contact option for fans of the artist, through the platform of Facebook Messenger, which is shown in a button linking to the corresponding website. This is not an option given instead of the sign up option, as this is still given as a button on the banner at the bottom of the page.
If we click on the arrow on the picture it slides across to transition to another promotion of the last album that they released, Wild World. The links here are different as physical copies can be bought, so the links include those to the HMV website, amazon, and their official store where it can be bought in a box set.

Next we move onto the banner that links to different sites or other parts of the website. The first is "Live", which when selected brings up a black background and a box of text with all of the tour dates. These can be scrolled through and also have the link to an external website where the tickets can be bought. There is also the option of "Going", which when clicked on links to the website for Bands in Town, where fans can sign up and receive notifications on future tour dates and can say that they are going to this concert. This feature is expected on a musician's website, even if there isn't an upcoming tour the link is usually still their for when they do release tour dates alongside a new album or just for attending festivals, which is what Bastille appear to be doing here:

The next link in the banner is "Videos" which when selected leads to a banner of thumbnails at the bottom of the page with arrows which you can scroll through. However there is nothing featured at the top of this page, so what I would say as criticism is that a piece of text or a photo would be good to fill up this space. The videos at the bottom are a variety, from music videos to live performances, all presented by vevo. When clicked on the video appears as a pop up rather then directing people to a separate site such as YouTube. From there they still have the choice to scroll via arrows to other videos.

The next link, "Music" has a similar outcome to the video link, as a banner appears at the bottom with covers of albums and singles which people can scroll through, and there isn't anything again at the top of the page. When clicked on a pop up linked with Spotify appears with the track list and an option to play the song, as well as a link to the iTunes store if the audience would rather buy the album than stream it. The option is also available at the bottom of the page to view specific music they have released, such as an EP or Single.

This next link is a common feature on websites in which fans can receive updates on their favourite celebrity or any events that they may be interested in. The "Sign Up" option on this site is a pop up with logos of a variety of social media accounts that an individual can sign up with, from their email to Instagram. At the bottom the Universal logo is featured along with links to legal information again like the privacy policy. From this the audience can receive updates about upcoming music and tours and can feel a part of this community that is the fanbase of Bastille.

The last to links in the banner direct the consumer to a separate site where they can purchase items associated with the band. The link "Store" leads to a separate website in which all of the products sold are the albums, either in a pack, as a CD or even vinyl. At the top is a banner with links to the home page and to music, as well as a brief description about what singles are in each album, with its purpose being to persuade the audience to want to buy them.

The last link, "Merch", leads to another website that is also a store, however it doesn't sell their music but other products such as key-rings, items of clothing, bags and much more that all feature the band's logo or the name of an album. So when bought this benefits both the audience and the band as the audience is satisfied and happy they have merchandise, which when worn or used can promote the band.

The background on this page is their album cover, which links to how most of the merchandise is promoting the new album. There are also links and filters in the top left corner, narrowing the items down to products such as "Books", "T-shirts" and much more.

Overall I feel that although the website clearly matches the conventions of one promoting an artist, it doesn't match the genre of electropop in terms of colour and content. Despite being part of this genre, the band has a lot of dark tones to their music, which is shown throughout their lyrics and music videos, which can also be shown in the website to keep their brand image continuous and recognisable. I like this website and the dark underlying messages, as it reflects my song choice, as when you research further into it you can find out it's about mental health, and my artist's brand image is about erasing negative stigmas around controversial issues. So I thought that using this website I can see how an electropop band emphasised their dark meanings within their song, which is an idea for me when I make my website.

The target audience for Bastille would, like Eden, be teenagers or young adults specifically for their primary audience, as their secondary audience can be individuals that are 30+. These demographic is appropriate as younger individuals might be too young to understand or listen to the dark underlying meanings of the song, as well as it being inappropriate.