Research into Digipaks

By Will Smith

Bastille - DigipakThe main image shows the lead singer Dan running

away along the road, the image has a rebellious

feel to it matching the song title 'bad blood'. The

lighting in the image is car lights focusing on him

running. This image has a cinematic feel to it, the

way the lighting is shows a dark mood towards it

which reflects the mood of the music on the

album. As it is Indie/alternative genre band the

unique and different photo reflects this genre.

The lighting and colours are very subtle and

surreal, as the image has been manipulated and

edited. It is very shadowy and dark. As the image

has been manipulated it seems to have a sepia

effect, giving a yellow/orange colour.

The text around the cover has a cinematic element

to it Because of the way it says 'Presents Bastille'

and then the CD name 'Bad Blood' as if it is a film

being presented, then the way the text is laid out

at the bottom showing the Record labels etc like

the credits at bottom of a DVD cover of a film.

Some of the elements that I would take forward from

this Digipak would be the surreal image which

creates questions and mystery and the simplistic

yet effective editing used.

The 1975 - DigipakThe illuminated square is the most eye catching part of the

cover, along with the illuminated logo of the band name. The square is an iconic image of the band as it is used in the sets of their performances as well as being featured in some of their music videos. The all black cover represents

the style of the band as well as working well with the bright white to make it standout and although is very

simple, sums up the bands image.

The inside of the album folds out to reveal two landscape, similar images of the band in black and white. Black and white being the constant colour scheme of both the band their album, it reflects their cool, laidback personas as

they are not in the business to be famous. Fans will again recognise the black and white theme as this is in many of their music videos. The band are wearing laidback, dark

clothing which many people would wear day today as well as many indie bands who wear plain, casual clothing.

Again like the cover, the font style is simple, yet more modern to reflect their music which has a modern influence. The

block capitals and two lines, are something which is iconic to the fans as the band use this style on all their social

media, such as twitter. The black and white again is used to maintain the simple theme of the cover. Like all album

back covers, they have a clear track listing, and production details which are in a small print at the bottom

as many fans will not be interested in this aspect.

Although black has connotations of heavy metal, Goth music, they surprise the audience with a pop element to their

music. Like many indie bands they do not feature themselves on the cover as they find their music is more

important than them being recognised.

Arctic Monkeys

The front cover is in black and white like the rest of the album

showing the continuity throughout. The black and white creates

simplicity but doesn’t overwhelm the audience when they look at

it, much like the arctic monkey music, it is simple yet effective

and doesn’t try to show off. The close up of the man on the front

is not any member of the band, and like many of the artists I have

looked at, shows that the band is not worried about being famous

and they are making music for the love of it. The man looks quite

content with himself and the action of smoking is made quite

apparent. This action is seen as very rebellious and is aimed at

the teenage audience who find this interesting and cool. There is a

contrast between the smoking and the man’s crisp white shirt as

you’d expect him to be dressed quite scruffily however he is not.

All attention is on the man as the background is blank with a few

lines and the artists’ name is quite small in the corner. Another

contrast as the font is quite youthful, not particularly suiting the

image.

The theme of smoking runs through the digipak to the CD itself which

highlights their passion for rebelliousness. Although smoking is

looked down on in society particularly with a band who influence

a lot of young people, this highlights the bands raw, carefree

attitude as they are not worried about whether some audiences

dislike this. I think that the close ups of the many cigarettes

creates a grungy almost dirty image, representing the band and

their style.

The back cover has the same man and setting as the front, however

he is covering his face and there is even more emphasis on the

cigarette. He could be covering his face due to laughing or

perhaps embarrassment but it is not made obvious. This

movement which as been caught on camera appears to be

spontaneous as does the expression in the front cover photo,

therefore highlighting the laidback nature of the band and what

they do. The use of the cigarette also shows the realistic nature of

life, as many people do smoke and Arctic Monkeys do not shy

away from this, their photos are real and so is their music.

EvaluationFrom this task I have gathered an understanding of

what Alternative/indie Digipaks should look like

because they have a common themes within them.

Just a few themes are - a colour scheme, colour

scheme needs to be darker colours to fit with my

genre, the artist should have multiple pictures and

maybe an element of surrealism. I think I will take

most of my inspiration from Bastille because they

have the theme of surrealism which I think is a

massive part of the alternative genre. Also for the

CD itself I want to take inspiration from The Arctic

Monkeys as it is very simplistic yet really effective

because it shows the theme of rebellion.