The Client & Their Needs

General Information


Name: Jonny Pain
Members: Connor Moor - Vocals/Guitar
Tom Fricker - Guitar/Vocals
Rob Qureshi - Bass/Vocals
Larry Turner - Drums
Genre: Post-Hardcore, Rock & Metal
About: "Taking a love of Post-Hardcore, Rock, Metal and all alternative styles, with brutal pig squeals, catchy riffs and epic chorus lines.Born out of an old project taking the songs and adding to them with a fresh perspective, new musicians and new songs." - Taken from their Facebook page, Jonny Pain

Image Source: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jonny-Pain/175601632525413


Inspirations: Iron Maiden, Deaf Havana, Foo Fighters, Bon Jovi and Metallica.



Post-Hardcore

I want to know what post-hardcore is exactly and I found a really interesting paragraph that briefly summarises this genre. Because I can’t think of how else to describe it I’m going to just copy & paste it here.

“In the early-to-mid '80s, several bands in the United States came to life that were inspired by the do-it-yourself ethics and the cathartic, guitar-heavy material characterized by the hardcore punk bands that predated them. These newer bands, termed post-hardcore, often found complex and dynamic ways of blowing off steam that generally went outside the strict hardcore realm of "loud fast rules." These bands often used more than three chords and they also creatively built and released tension rather than airing their dirty laundry in short, sharp, frenetic bursts. Additionally, many of these bands' vocalists were just as likely to deliver their lyrics with a whispered croon as they were a maniacal yelp. Another important influence on many of these bands was U.K. post-punk from the late '70s and early '80s; Gang of Four, Public Image Limited, Joy Division, and Wire played a significant role in many of the bands' musical growth. Some post-hardcore bands, like Fugazi and Quicksand, had roots in the beginnings of hardcore punk and were able to broaden their sound as they became more skilled musicians. Younger bands flowered into post-hardcore after cutting their teeth in high school punk bands. Chicago and Washington, D.C. were particularly fertile areas for this style, which has extended into the late 2000s.” (http://www.allmusic.com/style/post-hardcore-ma0000012125).

From this I have learnt that:

• These bands want to vent out their frustrations and “blow off steam”
• They have guitar-heavy material
• They are influenced by post-punk bands such as Joy Division, Gang of Four and Wire
• Some bands have roots in the beginnings of hardcore punk

Their Wants & Needs

When I met up with Jonny Pain for the first time I jotted down their wants and needs, but waited until I had received another email before I collected everything to make a mind map. This is a quick summary of what what they were looking for:

CD Cover & Label
They want a kind of freaky, eerie atmosphere with something like a bass drum included in it. They really like the Iron Maiden CD Covers - Brave New World in particular - but maybe not with so many skeletons.
So this means that I would need to research on CD Covers that are particularly grungey and also look at Iron Maiden ones in particular. Jonny Pain has also mentioned that they were influenced by Metallica, Deaf Havana, Foo Fighters, and Bon Jovi so I would need to have a look at these bands as well.
I think that by listening to Jonny Pain's music would help me a lot with inspiration as it would give me a "feel" for the band.

Image source: http://www.ironmaidenwallpaper.com/albumcovers.html

Logo
They didn't really specifically say what they wanted in their logo so I would need to further discuss this with them, however they did mention having a bass drum with J.P or J.Pain over it.

Business Card
Similar to what I said above, Jonny Pain hasn't provided with information about the business card so I assume they would like it to reflect their album cover design. I would need to discuss this with them a bit more.

Conclusion: Now that I know roughly what my client is looking for I could go ahead and do some research, noting down ideas at the same time. I'm hoping that I would do enough research to get inspiration but only research what is relevant. Don't want to get sidetracked!