analysis of Arctic Monkeys' digipack

1. Chloe Gilmour

2. Chloe Gilmour
Arctic Monkeys- WhateverPeopleSayIam, That’sWhat
I’mNot: The genre for thisalbumisrock/ indie rock.The
albumwasreleasedon23rd
January2006.
Character:There is a male representationthroughoutthe
digipack.The male onthe frontcover isusingdirectmode
of addressandhisface possessesasmuglook.Thismakes
it seemlike the manismockingthe audience andis
instantlydislikeable. Inadditiontothe insolentlookthat
he is givingthe audience he isalsoholdingacigarette. The
positionof hishandsaddsto the initial dislikeof the man.
Holdingtwofingersuptosomeone worksina similarway
to holdingupa middle fingertosomeone.It’spassive
aggressive body language;howeveritismostcommonly
usedina teasingwayinsome social situations.Itlinksto
the representationof rockfansinthe past beingrebellious
and defiant.However,the backcoverworksincontrast to
the front.It appears the man is crying. We begintofeel
pityfor the man eventhoughwe don’tknowwhathas
happenedtohim.The audience forthisalbumismales
around20-40. Because theyare middle age theycan
identifywiththe man.He iswearingawhite workshirt.
Many people ofteneventuallyfeelthe stressof working
life andbe overwhelmed.The audiencefeelsympathyfor
himbecause theyknowwhatitis like tobe inhis position.
Narrative events:There isnowayto knowforsure if the
frontcover andback cover take place overa small amount
of time oryears.The frontcoverthe man looksconfident
and care free.Itlinkstothe stereotype of teensbeing
rebelliousanddefiant.We thensee atremendousamount
of burntout cigarettesonthe CD coversuggestingthata
large amountof time haspassedbetweenthe frontand
back cover. If thisis the case itcouldshowthe transition
of cigarettesgoingfromanattemptto look‘cool’toit
becominganaddictionandthe man on the back is
regrettingit.Howeverif the narrative takesplace overa
short amountof time itcouldsuggestthat at firstinan
attemptto retainhismasculinityhe looksatthe camera
witha smug lookandas hisemotionsbegintocome out
he starts to become sad/depressed.There couldbe other
narrativesthough.Because there isnomiddle sectionto
the story narrative enigmaiscreated.
Iconography:The mainpiece of iconographyused
throughoutthe digipack isthe cigarette. The past
representationof peoplewholistentorockmusicoften
involvescigarettes.Forteenagersitisusedasan attempt
to lookcool and isoftenassociatedwithpeerpressure.
Smokinghassince become stigmatisedandisoften
frowneduponbyemployersandhealthinsurance
companies.People canbecome addictedtosmokingand
ruintheirbodiesandcan sometimes affecttheirmental
healthaswell asphysical.Peopleoftenuse itasa stress
relief whichcouldbe the case forthischaracter. He could
be tryingto calm himself downfromasituationthatis
happeningaroundhim.
Setting:The character seemstobe sat infront of curtains
suggestingthathe issat in a house andpossiblyattending
a house party.House partiesare oftenassociatedwith
teenagerandare stigmatisedbyadults.House partiesare
oftenstereotypedasanunsafe place filledwithunkempt
and drunkteens.Parentsoftenworryabout children
attendingthese partiedbecause of the negative
connotationsof it.It linksinwithcigaretteswhichare also
associatedwithpeerpressure.Itkeepswiththe theme of
the character and the associationswiththe genre of
music.
Technical codes:Onthe front coverthere isa
balance onthe image andit almosthassymmetry.
Howeveronthe back coverthere isno symmetry.
Thiscouldbe a literal representationof whathas
happenedtohim.The lowkeylightingused
throughoutthe digipakfitsinwiththe genre of
musicwhichoftenhasdark themesandisoften
stereotypedasbeingdark.Similarly,the blue filter
makesitseemlike aPolaroidimage oftenseenin
the past. It couldbe usedas pastiche towards
olderalbumswithinthe genre.Moreover,onthe
frontcover the character isusingdirectmode of
address.Itseemsas if the character ischallenging
the audience.Itworksto make himlooksmug,
‘cocky’and confident. Inaddition,the logois
placedinthe primaryoptical area therefore it
offersthe name of the band before anythingelse.
It isalso positionedtolooklike astamp,
referencingthe phrase ‘stampof approval’.The
otherareas are vacant besidesthe readinggravity
whichcontainsthe image of the character. In the
primaryoptical are the name of the band/the
band’slogoislocated.Thisisusedas a salestactic.
If people spotthe name of the band thenitwill be
recognisable,especiallysincethere isnoimage of
the band onthe covertherefore the audience
needsthe name toadd star quality.The other3
areas of the Guttenbergdesignprinciple are
consumedbythe image of the man. Thisman
createsa narrative forthe album.