The document analyzes the album covers of three different albums:
1) Mumford and Sons' "Sign No More" uses a simple design that matches the band's folk music style. The cover features the band members in a shop window to portray them as being "on display".
2) The 1975's self-titled album has a minimalist black and white design with the band name in neon lights, conveying an urban artistic influence.
3) Lana Del Rey's "Born to Die" shows a close-up of her face, allowing the focus to be on her vintage style and beauty. It uses a softening filter and nature backdrop to reflect her music.
3. FRONT COVER
The whole album follows a simplistic, non
complicated design to coincide with the
music they produce. The image used on
the main cover is of a row of terrace
houses and the focus on one in particular
which is split into an upstairs house/flat
and a shop downstairs. Within the large
shop window the band are seen posing
with their instrument in their hand or by
their feet. This concept represents them as
being a display for the public to view, and
perhaps even passers by wanting to be
them or have what they have. All 4
members of the band are wearing quite
quirky and traditional clothing which helps
the audience to establish the genre of
indie/folk.
4. INSIDE PANELS
The digipak is made up of 6 panels, with the CD positioned on the inside
right and a sleeve on the left. Within the sleeve is the lyric booklet insert –
not a necessity in digipaks but something many consumers will enjoy
looking through. The cover of the sleeve is a very simplistic cream colour
with 3 lines of very small text in the centre. The colours of the CD itself are
inverted to the rest of the digipak, the background colour is a deep black
whilst the writing is white. As well as wanting to create a contrast between
the text, CD and rest of the digipak, the black and white colour scheme also
suggests a simplistic, realistic vibe to the music. Furthermore showing the
audience that ‘what they see is what they get’ and there are no hidden
colours to put on show, it’s really them. The inside panels are consistent
with the aesthetic of the front and back panels. The centre one also features
the white building seen on the front, however here all the band members are
present in a window each to show their individuality. Their casual body
language connotes a relaxed atmosphere which reflects the indie style of
their music. This also causes them to appear more present to the consumer.
5. BACK COVER
The composition of the picture used on the back
cover fits well with the indie style which has been
maintained through as it is slightly tilted and cuts off
the top. The colour is again very understated creating
a sense of continuity throughout the digipak. There is
a barcode on the back which is vital to any CD. This is
also the case for the record label and copyright
information. However, this takes a very small section
of the digipak so it doesn’t draw much attention and
the consumer doesn’t think to focus on it. The layout
of the track listing is unconventional of most CD’s.
Here they are listed one after the other without being
in a format of one above the other as a list with a
track number. The first song listed is the same as the
albums title which gives it prevalence over the other
songs and it is likely this is the most important track
to the band.
7. FRONT COVER
The front cover of the album features the text – ‘THE
1975’ – which is the name of the band and the
album name. The colour scheme is black and white
and the design is minimalistic. This makes the bands
image seem unique and stylish. The studio setting of
the photo and the neon sign style of the title has
connotation of the urban city and the artistic
influence. The photo is centred and edited well,
giving the photo a sleek and professional finish.
I believe this is conventional of an indie group as it
is stylish and muted; it’s not bright and distracting,
as we would expect from more of a Pop styled
album. The members of the band are commonly
seen dressed in black which matches the colour
scheme of this digipak.
8. THE CD
The CD of the digipak has the same
front and titling of the album cover
which maintains the brand identity. The
design of the CD is once again
extremely minimalistic; this is
unconventional as normally CD’s have
more text on them than this one. I
believe the artist has chosen this
specifically to keep up the style of the
identity not being cluttered or busy. It
makes the bands image very stylish and
mysterious.
9. BACK COVER
The back image is almost parallel to the
front cover; only the text has changed to
label the titles of the songs on the album.
This is conventional as almost all album
covers have this feature, and audiences like
it as it makes it easy to navigate which song
they want to listen to easier. Therefore
making the product more convenient for its
audience and means they’re wasting less
time unnecessarily. As usual the style and
mise-en-scene of the digipak is very
consistent, which is a very important factor
to consider when making my own brand.
11. FRONT COVER
The front cover displays a simple medium close up of Lana’s face and outfit. By using this
medium close up it frames the audience to Lana’s beauty and voyeuristic feature. This is a
common feature within the indie genre to allow record labels to create a representation of the
Artist. The simplicity of the design allows us as the audience to focus on Lana’s vintage style seen
within her outfit, hair and make up. Lana’s wavy hair, nude lipstick and slight pout is a common
feature seen with her albums, posters and adverts. It has allowed her to create a visual style
which is a high demand seen within the record label and allows her target audience to recognise
her for her stylish vintage image. Her target audience will define Lana for her beauty and
sophisticated look.
Lana is pictured outside which is a typical feature seen within the indie genre. It displays her as
exploring the world and to encounter on experiences to help her write songs. A filter has been
used to soften the image which reflects a link between the artist and her music. The colour
scheme of the front cover displays fresh and youthful colours resembling her young target
audience.
A simple styled font has been used to display the artists title. This style is commonly seen
throughout Lana’s albums, and advert which allows her to create a visual style and for her title to
be easily recognised within her target audience. The simplicity of the styled font related the
simplicity of Lana’s music.
12. FRONT COVER
MEDIUM CLOSE UP
SHOT
WAVY HAIR NUDE
LIPSTICK
& SLIGHT POUT
PHOTO TAKEN
OUTSIDE TO FIT THE
INDIE GENRE
FRESH AND
YOUTHFUL COLOUR
SCHEME
SIMPLE LIGHT PINK FONT USED
THROUGHOUT OTHER ALBUMS -
SYNERGY
SIMPLICITY OF THE ALBUM
COVER REPRESENTING THE
SIMILICITY OF HER MUSIC
13. BACK COVER
On the back of the digital it displays
redundant elements such as the track
listing. The same simple styled font has
been used for the track listening which
again creates a visual style. Similar to the
front the simplicity of the styled text
connotes the simplicity of the album.
Redundant element such as the barcode,
copyright issues and record label can be
seen at the bottom of the album.
An unusual feature seen within the back
cover is the change of the colour scheme.
The front cover displayed fresh and
young colours whereas the back displays
dominant