Advanced Production

Analysis of CD covers (digipaks)

Digipak TaskProvide a detailed textual analysis of the following digipaks. You will need to consider the following:• The image• The background• Use of Colour• Layout• Use and position of text • Font selection and variety• Other information providedYou need to annotate each part of the digipak. Remember to link your ideas to the image of the artist, their genre of music and the target audience.

Fall Out Boy Front Cover

Fall Out Boy Back Cover

Fall Out Boy Disc

Front cover• The image portrayed on the front cover of the CD is a man in a bear costume giving a piggy back to an

actual bear who is roaring. This links to the image of the artists as the band are quite trendy and ‘hipster’ and the image on the front cover is different and somewhat considered ‘cool’ to young adults and teenagers. It links to the genre of the band as they fit into the genre of punk rock and this genre is demonstrated through the use of darkness as the image is far from bright and cheery. The image links to the target audience as their target audience consists of young adults from the ages of 15 – 25, and the image compliments it as it is an animation and not very mature as a picture. The background of the front cover links to the image of the artists as they are quite ‘punky’ and alternative have a dark image and the background of the front cover is quite dark and has a gradient effect which also links to the genre of music being punk rock as the dark atmosphere compliments the genre. The use of colour on the front cover is bright red and a very deep red which fits to the image and genre of the artist as they represent punk rock and the use of the red compliments it as it is the opposite to bright and cheerful and is more on the grim side. There is a contrast in the colours used (bright red, dark red, dark brown, bright yellow) The layout of the front cover is quite simple with the image in the centre and the titles and artists name on each side of the image, and this links with the image of the artist as they aren't really an ‘out there’ band as they look very simple rather than portraying a complex , loud image. The layout links to the genre of the band as it’s quite simple and more to do with the music rather than the image of the band. The layout would be attractive to their target audience as the album cover would stand out to them due to the contrast in colours and the image used as a whole. The use and position of text is straight forward and it’s easy to recognise who the artists are due to the text being clear and spaced out, so it is easy to read and this is an advantage as their target audience won’t have to spend time figuring out who the artist is and what the name of the album is. The font selection is clear and easy to read, the letters are mostly in capitals and the words are spaced out evenly to make it as clear as possible which is convenient for people looking at the album cover as they have made it as understandable as possible.

Back cover• The image on the back cover is very small and portrays two cartoon

skeleton pirates having a sword fight and this links to the image of the artist as its youthful and ‘edgy’ which conforms to what the artist’s portray. The background is very plain and this diverts the main focus of the back cover to the text and images used. The use of colour on the back cover is significant because a deep red is used but an ombre/gradient effect is used, going into a dark red towards the bottom of the back cover. The text is presented in a bright orange/yellow tone which contrasts with the red, making it stand out which is an advantage because it makes the text clear and easy to read. The layout of the back cover is presented with the text in the middle as the main focus and the label information/barcode/etc. at the bottom. All the text is in capital letters, which makes it clear and easy to read. It is also presented in an organised fashion with a vertical list of the song titles. The back cover links with the genre of the artist as it is looks youthful and well put together which also compliments the target audience too.

DiscThe disc portrays a very simple, plain yellow background which fits in with the colour scheme of the whole pack. The bright yellow shade stands out and has the title of the album and artist’s name on each other side of the hole in the disk, which is presented in an organised, easy to understand fashion. The text is portrayed in mostly capital letters which conforms with the theme of the rest of the pack. There is a blue print on the disk which provides information about the record label however it is difficult to identify and read, which brings the main focus to the rest of the disk.

Conventions

• Summarise the conventions of a CD cover i.e. typical features.

• Include the front covers• Back covers• Discs• Try to find typical features of the inlays (inside the

CD) and the spines• Do the conventions of CD covers vary according to

genre of music?

Conventions

• For the genre of punk rock/indie, a typical convention is for illustrations or images to be shown on the front cover, on some occasions the artist will be shown too. The back covers always consist of the track list in front of a coloured background and/or some sort of image shown too. The disc is typically very plain, and normally just shows the title of the album. The conventions of CD covers do occasionally fit in with the genre of music, but is more focused to fit the image of the artist/album.