Year 12 Media Digipack analysis

1. Album Cover/Advert Analysis
Dead Kennedys Advert
The advertisement has a vintage look and feel,
alongwith the sepia colour tone, making it
appear as an old newspaper articlegivingthe
advert implied formality and sincerity. This
serious presentation is obviously used in an
ironic sensewhen consideringthe largetagline
“kill the poor” which mocks the political
landscapeof the time- 1980.Additionally,in
linewith the rest of the bands artwork, the
advert also mocks prudent political/social
figures of the time by including
images/references to them- for example the
band’s name. This political irony is very typical
of the punk-rock genre as many other bands
also ‘fight’againstthe prevailingcurrents of society.
The advert utilises thez-pattern to some effect, placingthe three men’s heads on the upper line,alongwith
the bands logo, and then diagonally down to the ‘speech-bubble’ and finally to the small printatthe bottom of
the image. This technique also enforces the punchlineof the image as you only read the text after recognising
the faces of the three men.
Dead Kennedys Album Cover
The albumcover also uses currentpolitical issues/events to
imply the bands anti-establishmentpunk-esque style. For
example the burningmonk implies thatthe group do not
endorse or condone their own government and its political
agenda, justas hích Quang Duc would protest againstthe
Vietnamese religious inequality. However, as a famous image it
would not only be used for one album, Rage Against the
Machinewould also useitfor their similarly named albumin
1992.Once again this highlights thehighly political natureof
punk which is still evidentin bands today.
The images high contrastcolour scheme epitomises the
unusual,chaotic styleof the Punk-Rock genre. Additionally use
of the opposite, block colours:orangeand blue, add to the
unorthodox visuals.

2. Album Cover Analysis
Idles Brutalism Advert
The advertisement uses the albumcover as the main
focal point,possibly becausethey lack a largebudget
but also to apply some synergy between the album
releaseand the tour/promotion technique. The
dingy, greyish brown colour implies thedarker more
serious natureof the music.Along with the simple,
white brickwork background which draws focus to
the albumcover.
The black and reddish font not only contrasts with
the background but also adds an element of colour
to a very black and white advert. Additionally the
colour connotes much of the anger at the heart of
the band and genre.
Idles Album Cover
The lack of colour makes the red, albumtitle stand out
againstthe largely monochrome image. The use of a
photo within the frame adds an extra layer of depth-
additionally theimage is of the lead singer’s mother,
which links to one of the song titles:‘Mother’. This
unusual element of realismrefers to the punk genre
which focuses on real events to send a political
message.