The document provides details about researching and analyzing Digipak album covers from five folk rock bands: Cat Stevens, Laura Marling, Bon Iver, Mumford & Sons, and Simon & Garfunkel. It notes that Digipaks allow more creative design than jewel cases and are less likely to crack. Analysis is provided of design elements of the covers, including hand-drawn backgrounds, simple fonts, depictions of the artists, and inclusion of record label details.

1. Digipak Research
Folk Rock
Hanan Mohamed 5161

2. About our Digipak
 A Digipak is a book-style fold out paperboard or card outer binding used
to hold CDs on the inside, the first alternative to jewel case packaging.
It’s much less likely to crack then jewel cases and allows the
manufacturer more creativity with the graphics and overall design. The
panels can range from from 4, to 6, to 8 etc.
 For our chosen track we must create a Digipak to market the band – this
will be done using skills of editing, software e.g. Photoshop, photography
and design skills. In researching digipaks however it was difficult to find
recent examples as folk rock is a genre that was explored much more by
artists a couple of decades ago than the present day and full digipaks
are relatively new and more common in the more popular genres e.g.
pop, hip hop, RnB etc. Even though album covers front covers are easily
found, the inside and back covers are not always available. To the best
of my ability I have researched five different bands’ albums front and
back covers and analysed them in the following slides.
 The bands and artists I have used are: Cat Stevens, Laura Marling, Bon
Iver, Mumford & Sons, and Simon & Garfunkel.

7. The entire background of
The fontcolour used is
the album cover is not a
yellow like the shade of
photograph which is more
sunlight, and matches the
common but hand drawn
background This is in
which is unusual, and a
keeping with the the most
common feature of folk rock
dominant theme of folk rock
album art which is often
which is being in touch with
painted or drawn. This
nature. The actual font
indicates that the artist used
looks like cursive and joined
their natural talent for art
up it looks like it has been
instead of technology which
handwritten. This is
is in keeping with the folk
important to the folk genre
rock theme of staying in
which is about truth and
touch with nature, along with
freedom, so reminds the
the very simple setting of
listener that this music is
the artist lying on the grassy
what the artist has written
ground and nothing else.
himself and is not subject to
the producer of the record
label’s demands.
The artist has been depicted similar to his real life self. Here he has a large beard with an open necked shirt,
and appears to be sleeping. He fits quite neatly into the grass around him, and with his eyes closed looks very
at peace – this implies that nature is a part of him, and he is a peaceful person at heart. Not looking at the
camera or even out at all shows he is focused on his music, and is an introspective person. His long beard
although natural is almost a part of a costume or dress code as across artists in the folk rock genre most men
keep beards to emphasize their maturity and life experience, and the long beard has connotations of wisdom,
spirituality. This sells the artist as a wise, mature, peaceful man at one with nature and in the business for the
music and not the money.

8. The background matches the front cover as it is also hand
drawn with a grass ground background, the font type and
colour remain the same. Although curiously, the artist here is
completely absent – but his imprint is left behind on the grass
so when looking at the back the viewer stills thinks of the
artist, who has actually been made conspicuous by his
absence.
The record label’s logo, website and address are
present next to the barcode to sell the label
themselves and associate themselves with the artist
as well as give credit.

9. A photograph has been
used for the front cover
The fontcolour used is a which looks like a typical
simple black on white, which street, and the focus is on
is in keeping with the the shop on the middle
simplicity of the folk rock which looks like an old
genre. The font type is in charity shop, a boutique or a
capitals and a very simple shop that sells vintage
font, which looks quite clothing – not any shop that
classic looking. would be found on the high
street and does not need to
be flashy with lights and big
displays to advertise itself.