User talk:Petrichorblue

This is the user talk page for Petrichorblue (talk) 16:25, 9 February 2016 (UTC)

Wiki Exercise #1
Trench is a Vine account, in which the videos primarily depict the user performing music, both of his own composition and covers of other artists. The popularity of this account can largely be attributed to the fact that the user features his dog, Maple, in many of his vines.

Trench originally began with the single uniform style of framing all his vines as close ups of the instrument, usually a guitar, as he played, allowing viewers to observe the vibration of the strings up close. As well as guitar, Trench frequents instruments such as the harp, glockenspiel and mbira, and covers songs from famous artists such as the Beatles, Coldplay and Queen, as well as covering themes from popular games and films. In only very few vines – such as the account’s 600th – does Trench display his face at all. Instead, his dog slowly became the face of the channel. A beautiful border collie/golden retriever/sheltie mix, Maple began at first only appearing in the background of shots, but eventually becoming the main focus of the frame in many vines, and occasionally featuring as the performer herself. Some vines do not even show the instrument at all, and instead are composed of a series of serene slow-motion shots of Maple in a pleasant outdoor environment, accompanied by a piece of Trench’s own composition.

I first came across Trench on tumblr, when he came up on my dashboard, receiving glowing praise from many users commenting on his ability to evoke a sense of calm and tranquillity. It was one of the account’s most popular vines with over 17 million loops (as of 10/02/2016): ‘Colors Of The Wind from Pocahontas on a Harp w/ Maple 🐶 "Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon?"’. In the foreground, Trench plays an excerpt from the iconic Pocahontas song on the harp, the camera close enough to the instrument that the viewer must look between the strings to see Maple in the background sitting in the sun, turning her head as an insect flies past. To this day, though I appreciate Trench’s other work, this vine remains my favourite of his.

Trench and Maple have gained some modicum of internet fame, with several articles recommending the account, such as Buzzfeed’s ‘Maple Is The Best Dog On Vine And You Need To Follow Her Right Now’, in which they praise that “watching Maple is basically a form of therapy”. Their popularity reached such heights that Trench has created a separate account just for Maple herself.

Petrichorblue (talk) 01:29, 10 February 2016 (UTC)