The document provides textual analysis of several album covers and advertisements, discussing various visual elements and how they relate to the genre of music and themes of the albums. Key elements analyzed across the examples include use of color, imagery, composition, text formatting and placement, and how these adhere to conventions or suggest meanings like rebellious attitudes, mystery, or changing reputation. The analyses suggest the covers effectively represent the music and attract audiences through symbolic visual storytelling.

1. Textual analysis

2. The dark background accentuates the
band and makes them stand out on
the cover, and the shadowed eyes
creates interest and thus makes it
poignant, as the lack of identity given
by one’s eyes. Also because the
centre person is lying in a position
which suggested death with his eyes
closed, it has a melancholic feel,
which represents their glamourous
rock genre. Also because all of the
band members are in the foreground
it implies that they are equal
members. The contrast of light and
dark colours make it very striking and
dramatic, which would attract
customers.

3. The use of cartoon images instead of
the actual artists themselves and so
this is very unique in itself, as the
makes the reader question why the
artists would represent themselves like
that. This also could suggest that this is
mocking similarity of humans to
gorillas, as they drawn to look like they
would act and talk like a human;
playing on the fact that humans are
more closely related to gorillas than
most animals. The facial expressions
are made to look angered and dark,
which supports the title, Demon Days,
perhaps implying a apocalyptic parallel
where Gorillas have survived.

4. The acrylic nature of the background suggests a
psychedelic and picturesque mood. The uniform
of the band suggests a powerful militaristic
authority. There are also wax models, which also
contribute to the psychedelic. The flower bed
could be suggested as a renaissance of the
Beatles brand, and this telling of this new genre
of music. The title is a bass drum, which instantly
implies the rock genre because of the standard
rock 4/4 beat. The flower garden which
represents the band itself suggests a new image
which the band has tried to evolve to, and also
could suggest that the old Beatles music and style
has been replaced by a new different style, which
may help to attract a new audience who weren’t
previously targeted. It could also be interpreted
to mean that it is an album celebrating the band,
which may be seen as justified because of their
previous success, or may be seen as arrogance;
two contrasting interpretations.

5. The white title against the black background creates stark
contrast, making it stand out, and also implies that they are
special band, and it is rare, which is supported by the
“Unreleased” strapline, persuading the reader to believe that
this particular album or recording is unique and not to be
missed out on. The fact that the main singer is topless, implies
an energetic performance and adheres to the conventions of
the Rock music genre. Each member of the band is male, and so
they are represented as manic and almost primitive, adhering
to the energetic nature of the performers.
The title is very concise
and unpretentious, and
simply tells the audience
what the album consists
of, instead of offering a
metaphorical
interpretation or
outlook, which also
contributes to the Rock
genre. There is a
medium shot of the
band, which also acts as
an establishing shot
contributing to the
genre of Rock and the
light in the background
creates a faint outline of
the drummer and the
guitarist on the left, but
focuses on the main
frontman and guitarist,
suggesting that they are
the most important
people in the band.

6. The whole advert adheres and represents the
rebellious attitude which is commonly found in Rock
music, and the teenage revolution culture is present
in the graffiti picture of two teens in the middle. This
theme of revolution and perhaps political and social
change is supported and shown through the use of
the album title “21st Century Breakdown” and this
could be seen as controversial, which would attract
the young teenage stereotype. The colours of red
and yellow are bright and distinctive, and could
symbolise danger and hostility, which both adhere to
the rebellious attitude. The title is styled in a way to
appear like it has recently been painted, which
relates to the background wall image, and it could
mean that it was done quickly and perhaps against
the rules of society, which all tie in to the main
theme. The text at the bottom are all in the same
three colours to separate their significance, with the
release date in the brightest colour, followed by their
famous single and the other part.

7. The combination of four different shots of the
band creates an edgy and mysterious effect,
which could relate to the album title “only by the
night”. This theme of the unknown is present
within the shot of what seems to be an eagle,
which is supported by the feathers which
surround the band members, creating ambiguity.
It could imply that hunters become the hunted at
night, and people change and evolve throughout
life, which may be reflected in the stark
difference between day and night. Also the use of
green as the main colour could represent lust and
greed, which may be a reference to the primitive
nature of man; this would be seen to adhere to
the stereotype of man and eagle being natural
hunters. The words of the artist and the album
title are separated by underscores, which displays
it as almost robotic, which relates to the
unknown displayed in the image.

8. The black and white silhouette implies a and even
vintage style performance and event, which is
supported by the use of the old fashioned mic. The
album title combines in meaning with the artists’
purpose as it could suggest that the artist aims to
alter the reputation of “Strickland banks” which is
intriguing to the reader, and makes the reader
question not only why but for what significance.
The ratings are also used to display the album as
critically acclaimed, and puts faith in the audience
that they would enjoy this music, judging by the
positive reviews of the album already. The way in
which the Artist name is split up by the album title
creates not only individual significance to both the
name and the strapline-”the multi-platinum album”
but also ties together the artist and the success of
the album, as the are both in red. The contrast of
white text over black background is evident in its
effect; it cannot be interpreted in several different
ways-it evokes conciseness.