Student Album cover and Magazine advert analysis for A-Level media

1. Student Album Cover and Magazine Advert Analysis
I am going to analysis 2 student album covers to see if they have met or challenged to
conventions of the genre of rock that I mentioned in my previous presentation.
Student album cover 1 - Bad

2. Font and style
The font used is not very stereotypicalfor a rock band, it is very plain and
doesn't portray the connotation of rock (I checked the band and their genre is
rock). The album title's swirly fontis more suitable for a pop album. The font
colour somewhatfollows the conventions becauseit uses black. However, the
album title is in maroon font, which doesn'treally portray the genreor style of
music. Both titles are not very big and therefore would be hard to see on a
shelf, this doesn't make it very attractive thereforeit doesn't create an iconic
logo. There is consistency which doesn'tconfusethe audience. The use of two
of the actors is good becauseit is showing and keeping a theme. The font used
in the magazineadvert is the same as in the digipak, this cements the brand
identity between the two product. The font,however, isn'tvery stereotypically
of the genre. Itis very clear and easy to see which allows it to be easily spotted
by the audience. There is no difference in font between the artist name and
the album title, which can lead to confusion over which is which
Image
The image used is not really relevant to the genre. The picture of the anime girl
doesn't not bring around connotation of rock and there is no useof
instruments and the picture doesn't really suit the lyrics. There is no picture of
the band which fails to make it noticeable. Overallthe image doesn't really link
in with the genre but they have kept it consistent throughout. The image in the
magazine used is the same image used in the digipak, even thou it sticks with
the brand identify, it still doesn't connote the genre to the audience, it's too
happy and isn't really relevant to the genre
Camera
The photo in the centre of the album cover structurehas used a mid-shotand
does show the actors, this follow the conventions however it doesn'treally
follow the genre very well. The main image isn't a photograph so I can't
comment on it. The main image on the magazine advertisn't a photo so I can't
comment on it
Framing and Layout

3. The album is framed really well, the back and front covers arenot cluttered,
the information's is clearly laid out and visible. There is a lot of blank space on
the frontcover that could of been used a bit more but overall its very
professionaldonein terms of photoshop-ing. Theframing of the information
in the magazineadvert is done very professionally, noneof the text is cramped
together and the information is equally spaced. There is the 'need-to-know'
basic information on the magazine advertwhich allows it not to looked
cluttered and confuseto audience. The album title is centrally framed as to
stand out. The framing is probably the best part of this magazine advert.
Iconography
There is no real iconography used in this album cover, the main image is pretty
boring and not relevant to the genre, I'mguessing the picture is more about
showing off the drawer's skillrather than actually make something that is
appropriateto the genre. There is no really iconography used on the magazine
advert, the picture used is one again, not trying to promotethe artist, but
more show off the drawers skill.
Costume
In the image on the back, the 2 actors arevery casual clothed. This connotes
there laid back attitude with is a common stereotypeof rock. The actors are
wearing jeans and a top which fits in with certain conventions. This is the area
wherethe album excess in its place in the rock genre. The magazine adverthas
no really actors on it so I can't comment on the costumeaspects.
Colours
The colours used in this album sortof follows the conventions. The use of grey
scale suits because it connote a memory, mostrock songs areabout an event
in the past. The red colour in the album name can also connote the outrageous
aspects of rock, even though the fontused is very girly. The colours are
consistentwhich is a good aspect. The colours used in the magazine advertare
consistentwith what is in the digipak, this can link the two texts together in
the audience's eyes. The colours sortof follow the conventions of rock but not
to a great and noticeable detail which lets it down when establishing the genre
to the audience.

4. Audience
The font used and the image doesn'treally fit in with the genre and also
doesn't fit with the target audience. The image of the girl is more targeted
towards a younger TA and the girly font isn't very suitable neither. Once again,
like the digipak, the magazine advertwould seem to be aimed at girls under 15
due to the anime-like drawing. This does not appeal to their chosen audience
of both genders over 15.
Composition
The continuous use of the theme of music and using the treble clef as the
surrounding of the track list and the title follows the conventions of the rock
genre album covers, the useof an instrument theme presents the audience
with the instruments as the main focus. Thefront and rear cover are joined by
the headphonecable brings you nicely to the back of the album. Also the
headphones connote the theme and also allows the actually music to be the
main focus. The composition of the magazineadvert is not that great, the main
focus is the picture in the middle, this picture doesn't not promote the artist
which should be a main thing. The album title ad artists name is sortof
overlooked becauseof the sizeof the picture. This would not instantly draw
the audience to the name of the band.
Conclusion
Overall, I think this is a very bad album cover, it doesn't follow a lot of the
conventions and I think its prime goal is to show of the drawer's work. The
image, font style and colour doesn't not fit in with the genre. They haveclearly
taken no time to think about these aspects and how it fits in with the genre.
The magazine advert, like the digipak, doesn'tin my opinion target their
audience very well. Some basic conventions havebeen overlooked and it's at
the costof promoting the artist

5. Student album cover and magazine advert 2 - Good
Font and Style

6. The font used in this album cover is very big and bold, it connotes a brash
expression in the music, which is common in Madness songs. Thefont colour is
dark which follows the conventions of rock album cover. The font is used
throughoutand the same colour is used as well and is a perfect match for the
genre and speaks volumes aboutthe music in the album to the audience giving
it a positive re-enforcement. The magazine advertuses the samebig, bold font
as in the digipak. This create a brand identity and presents the genre of the
music straight to the audience.
Image
The front image is of the band. The picture uses a mid shotto clearly view all
the band members. There facial expressions areneutral, this connotes there
almost un-emotional like appearance, this allows the audience to separate
them fromnormalpeople becausethey are seen to haveno emotions which
puts them across as being highly regarded. The main band member is also used
on the lyrical page. This focus on the band members and not irrelevant art
work really follows the conventions, it allows the band members to be the
main focus which is very stereotypically of the rock genre. The music and the
band isn't the most important part. The magazine advert uses the same image
as the digipak, follow the conventions of image in rock magazineadverts really
makes it stand out from the rest and shows theaudience that this is a advert
for a rock song, and that it is a very profession piece
Framing and Layout
The album is framed really well as well, the main picture is centrally framed
and the text is clearly presented around it. The border on the back cover is not
offsetand is very effective as a border to the text. The copy right information
and the barcode is a bit squashed together becauseof the border which kind
of gives it an amateur feel. The image in the advert is very well spaced so
people can clearly see it. The border sticks with the brand identity and keeps it
memorable. The studio logo and websiteis very small and not clear to people
passing and doesn't not do a very good job of promoting the record label.
Camera

7. The picture used has been taken very centrally, this focus the attention of the
audience primarily on the people on the cover and establishes them as they
are also the band members in the music video. The magazine advertuses the
same picture as the digipak, the photo is centrally framed. This keeps the
actors as the primary focus to the audience.
Iconography
Madness are always remembered for wearing suits and smart clothing. This
album covertsticks with the iconography of there original albums. This very
iconic dress and style adds definition to the cover and also makes it stand out
and recognisableto the audience. This is a great example of following the
conventions of iconography which makes this album so good and
professionally done. The brand identity that the magazineadvert follows really
makes it appealing, the use of the band and there suits really make the advert
memorable and follows someof the conventions of Madness as well.
Costume
The costumes used in this album cover are outstanding, they not only follow
the conventions of costume in rock album covers, butalso stick to the typical
dress for the official band. This styleof clothing is present of the lyrical page as-
well. This group have clearly done the research into the band and the genre.
Colours
There colours used in the cover is mainly black, the is continued throughout
the wholealbum. Madness is famed for being a rebellious band, there lyrics
can connote there rebelliously feelings. The use of black in the album cover re-
enforces that connotations of rebelliousness and portrays thegenre very
appropriately. The magazine advertuses a colour schemeof black and white.
The black, like in the digipak, re-enforces the connotations of rebelliousness
and portrays thegenre suitably.
Audience
Unlike the firstalbum cover, this one really suits the audience it is intended
for. The image of the band is very appealing to the TA becausethey will
recognisewho the band is, the lack of silly drawings is very refreshing and

8. allows a retro feel to be added which complements the cover very nicely. The
continued use of the retro theme in the magazine advertreally makes it
appealing to their target audience, the advertportrays the digipak as a serious
album which is what their target audience want
Composition
The way the album is structured is pretty amazing, it is clear that there are
separate areas but the art does bring them all together. The border around the
track list complements the border around the front. Consistency is key in a roc
album cover, this cover is perfectly consistent, the colours and fontmatch very
well. The position of key elements such as the barcode and the copyrightinfo
has been professionaldoneso it is clearly and uncluttered for the audience.
The magazine advertcontinues to use the border as a main structureand
houses all the information and picture, this works really well and makes the
album uncluttered and structured.
Conclusion
Overall, this album cover is one of the best I have seen. it is very clear that the
designers havelooked around at other rock covers and also researched into
the official band and there covers. Itfollows nearly all the conventions
perfectly which makes it a memorable cover which its own little quirks with the
creativity. This magazine advertis also one of the best I have seen, it meets
conventions of rock magazineadverts and also sticks with the brand identity of
the digipak in a solid way.