Toro y Moi is an American recording artist known for chillwave music. His 2010 debut album Causer of This uses layered, transparent images of beaches and oceans on the digipak design to reflect the calm, atmospheric style of chillwave. The front cover features overlapping ocean images with a green tint, while the back cover has a darker ocean photo and minimal text listing the tracks. Though simple, the design draws on conventions of the chillwave genre to represent Toro y Moi's downtempo music and target an audience that may appreciate atmospheric indie styles.

1. DIGIPAK ANALYSIS –
TORO Y MOI
Jason Sulit
Artist: Toro y Moi
Album: Causer of This
Genre: Chillwave, indie pop, synthpop, R&B
Released: 4 January 2010

2. The record
label’s logo,
website, and
text is written
in pink which
is the only
colour outside
the colour
scheme of this
digipak. The
reason for this
is to show the
significance of
the record
label and there
high
contribution to
The image
that is
present on
the front
cover of this
digipak is a
picture of a
sea side/
beach. On
top of this
picture is
layered
overlapping
images of the
ocean, there
is also a
vague figure
present
which could
be the artist
or a
representativ
e of the artist
which is
common in
the chillwave
genre.
With the chillwave genre it is a
very common convention for the
imagery to be a scenery
(especially beaches) as
chillwave is usually played in
beaches at summertime. This
album captures the teal coloured
ocean by applying a greeny filter
With most chillwave artist it a
common convention to have a
layered image with high
transparency, this is especially
common with chillwave music
videos; dissolve transitions are
common as they reflect the “chill”
and relaxing atmosphere of the
music. The layered images of the
beach creates the calm and relaxing
atmosphere suggesting music on
this album is also downtempo
The typography use
is very simple, the
white text contrast
the image. The text
is underlined and
are both the artist’s
and album’s name is
written in the same
font, which suggest
that the main selling
point of this album is
the artwork.
The CD does not have a
particularly complex design,
the CD consists of the tracking
list, the record label, barcode,
copyright description, and an
overline and underline which
separates the name of the
album and artist. The reason
there may not be a artwork on
the CD is so that it does not
over complicate or defer
attention to the context on the
CD.
The content
on the back
cover is very
limited, it
consists of
the barcode,
record label
logo and
website, and
track list
The back cover, uses the
same joint up writing used
on the CD for the tracklist,
the reason for this is so that
the texts can be
differentiated and so that it
can draw attention to the
viewer as the songs on this
album is the main product
that is being sold.
What is unusual about this design is
that it is quite dark as most chillwave
artist reflect the imagery of summer
time. However since this album was
released in January 4th 2010 which is
the coldest month in Columbia, South
Carolina (Toro Y Moi’s hometown)
this could the reflect his decision to
make the album cover to have this
dark filter
The image
used for the
back cover is
a picture of
the ocean,
the image
carries the
theme from
the front
cover. This
image is
filtered in a
darker tone.

3. Overview
Toro y Moi is an American recording artist and producer. His music has taken many forms since he began recording however he is
oftem identified with the rise of chillwave movement. I have been analysing Toro y Moi’s Causer of This which is his full length debut
album and was released in January 2010, this album experimented with sampling and production techniques.
Representation
As chillwave artist’s do not typically feature themselves in media content they will tend to feature artworks that reflect the artist’s type
of music. For example, Toro y Moi uses a layered images with transparency to reflect the calm and “chill” atmosphere of his music.
The picture of the scenery is also a beach, which could suggest that this type of music is generally played in the beach which is
typical for location for chillwave music to be played. As Toro y Moi did not feature himself in his debut album it could also suggest that
he is more interested with his music than drawing attention to his appearance which suggests he is a serious with his music.
Audience
The audience of Toro y Moi could be both male and female audience, the reason I say this is because this genre does not prioritise a
gender, you either like the music or you don’t. Generally I would say that this music would suit late teens and adults, the reason I say
this is because the younger demographic may not appreciate this type of atmospheric music and it is also not your mainstream type
of genre. Late teens and adults may enjoy this as the genre combines the 2000s trends towards the 80s retro music and in indie
music. Generally people who listen to this type of music are students as it is a way of relaxing and is also commonly listened to when
doing schoolwork or in the beach. It is also common for the audience to listen to this music to enhance there drug use.
Conclusion
The main reason that I have analysed this is so that I can gain more knowledge of the codes and conventions of chillwave digipak
designs. It also gives me an idea of how a chillwave debut album can potentially deliver there content to there audience.
Front Cover
The front cover uses a sea side image and also comprises images of the ocean and beach in a layered transparent effetct. The
typography used is both the same for the artist’s and the album’s name. The teal green filter is used to complement the colour of the
ocean . The design of the front cover reflects the “chill” music of this genre
Back Cover
The back cover uses a picture of the ocean and is filtered in a darker tone, the main purpose of the back cover is to hold the track list.
The reason the back cover may be quite limited in content is due to the fact this is his debut album and has less information to deliver
to his audience.
CD Design
The CD is simple in design however there is more content on the CD than there is on the back cover.