CD Digipack Final Design

Here are my four panes that I have produced for the CD Digipack using Adobe Photoshop. In ascending order are the front cover, inside left, inside right and back cover.









When creating this piece of the coursework, I changed little from my initial ideas as these are them! One of the tweaks that I have made along the way has been the font for the front and back cover. I found this font on the website www.dafont.com and the typeface is called Birth of a Hero. I chose this font as it stood out on the website and i thought it would appeal to the genre. Furthermore, the font is open and quite fresh, but the distressed looks give it a grunge/rock look which targets the audience.

The other change i made along the way was the brightness and contrast of the pictures after i printed them out onto paper. To create the effect for the front cover, I used a rendering future on Photoshop called lighting effects. This has also been used on the inside right and back pictures to a lesser extent. The effect creates the halo style picture with the black background. I have used this on the other two pieces but have stretched the circle so it only covers the respective corners. With all the photos, I removed the colour as they all were colour photos taken on my 2.0 megapixel camera phone. I have then played around with the brightness and contrast to make the black and white colour more vivid.

The four CD designs have either iconic, indexical and symbolic connotations or denotations. The creations are iconic as they are photos, thus looking like the thing it refers to. Furthermore, the pictures have indexical connotations which connote a certain value. The front and back cover connote the boys in motion, with Jake Mardell flying through the air with his skateboard, i.e. in motion. The symbolic element of these images show the freedom and individualism that the target audience have at this age. The inside left picture in particular represents this.

I used the image of the skate park as it is a great iconic image for the band. The location was used for the video shoot and this helps to link the CD and video together nicely. Moreover, I think the picture is very strong and striking as it shows the unconventional side to the band due to the rural location and the emptiness of the skate park.

Hockey: Mind Chaos

I am reviewing the 2009 album produced by US pop band Hockey. Their album, named ‘Mind Chaos’ and can be linked with Blighters, the band that I am promoting for this course. The setup of the band and genre of the Portland, Oregon band is similar to that of Blighters, with a pop/indie genre of music, popular at the moment in the charts.

The cover of the album, matches the title of the album ‘Mind Chaos’ very well. The front cover is split up into for sections and each box has absolute chaos inside. Each of the boxes is made up of modern art drawings, using cut out pieces of paper to create the name. The four different pieces of art do not mean or reveal anything, equalling chaos, like the title.

I think this kind of artwork would appeal to the target audience of Hockey as it different from the norm and makes it stand out when in a shop against other CD’s. It is certainly a colourful and vibrant front cover. The target audience, females and males between the ages of 16-25 could relate to the artwork as it very youthful in is appearance. The back cover of the album uses this same kind of quirky artwork in its font and background design. Everything used in the artwork looks very unprofessional, with the corners of the CD being coloured in roughly and Blu tack used to stick the lettering for the title down. The lettering used for the CD song list is very irregular, with some smaller and some larger letters used.

I think this design for the CD connotes the fun that the band had producing this record. When this was produced, the band was still an unsigned band only know to a few hundred people. This is important as they could create whatever they wanted and make it as amateurish as they wanted. The fun that the design connotes also is shown through their music, which is very much up beat and something you could dance to.

Bloc Party: Intimacy

Above is third album produced by English band Bloc Party called ‘Intimacy’. The genre of this band is similar to that of Blighters, aimed at an age group of 16-25, with a predominately male target audience. The album, which was released in 2008, received good reviews in the media, with a 4 star rating on iTunes and .

The cover for this album displays the title of the album, ‘Intimacy’, perfectly in my opinion. The front artwork shows two mouths just about to kiss, showing the intimacy and affection between them. Not only does the artwork fit in with the title, the bands lyrics convey the intimacy of lead singer Kele Okereke’s, who wrote many of the tracks. The albums that they have produced are in stark contrast to their presence, which is shy and very withheld when being interviewed on camera. Many of the songs in the album are like diary notes, full of emotion, self loathing and very personal. Bloc Party push the boundaries of their genre and this album is the most adventurous yet. It combines both the genre of rock and electronic into a blend of music that is moody and dark yet can easily be used in a dance club.

The colours used on artwork of Intimacy convey the dark side to the bands image, as the saturation on faces is very pale, with the dark nothingness between them. However, the lips are so rich in colour and help to bring the two people together, as a couple. The back cover also shows how dark and depressing this album can be at times, with a just a black background with the album details on top.

The style of design used for the album is a plastic Super Jewel Box, which is now being used as a replacement for the original clear plastic case. The album artwork works well in the case, with a good feel and look to the album making it pleasing on the eye. Furthermore, this is the easiest way to produce and distribute CD albums, which would come into account when producing an album selling in the millions.

I think issues that ‘Intimacy’ deals with about emotions work well with the target audience, as they can relate to the bands lryics in real life experiences. The dark and moody side to this album is often how teenagers, especially males, are conveyed in the public eye. Furthermore, the self-loathing in which the lyrics include can often be linked to the target audience, with a lot of changes happening in life between the ages of 16-25.

CD design: What Format To Choose?

Here are the different designs that i have contemplated when designing my CD for Blighters. I have looked at a variety of design, both conventional and unconventional.

The Gatefold Card Case:


Here is the Arctic Monkeys 2007 album 'Favourite Worst Nightmare'. This design looks stylish, well made and i like how you open out the design to reveal the CD. Another advantage for this design is that more artwork can be shown in the design, showing images of the band or the house design. However, his design can be damaged easily due to the material used. I like this design and this is a main contender when making the final decision.

Molded Plastic CD Case:


This CD design is by Bloc Party for their 'Flux Remixes' CD single that was handed out with an issue of NME in 2007. I like how different this design is to all the other cases I have considered, making a simple thing interesting and cool. The downsides for this design is that it does not have much room for artwork to be displayed or a booklet to be included inside the design. Furthermore, this design would be difficult to use as the design is rare.

Super Jewel Plastic Case


Here is the standard CD case for a brand new CD single or album. This case, the Super Jewel Box, is the successor to the conventional clear plastic case that sold in the millions. I like look and feel of the design, but is too run of the mill for my liking as i want my design to stand out. I would prefer something that allows me to be more creative and i beleive that this does not allow that.

Plastic Jewel Case with Clear Plastic Sleeve:


This unconventional CD design is by Bloc Party, when releasing their second album, 'Weekend In The City'. This version of the album is a special edition which includes a DVD. Unlike the normal version of this album, the band name and album title is printed onto a clear plastic sleeve. Another difference for the edition is the red plastic jewel case, which makes in distinctive for other designs. I like this design as it is striking and different from most other designs. Also, the clear plastic clear could be used for many ideas to create the front or back covers.

Card Boxset Case:


This design was used for the 2008 album by Maximo Park called 'Quicken The Heart'. I really like this design for the CD/DVD version of the album as it looks very professional and a different design from the normal. Inside the card sleeve are two seperate card gatefold designs that include the CD or DVD and a booklet to go with it. Along with that is a booklet of pictures from the bands 'journey' when producing the album. As well as the look, I think the feel of the design is excellent and this is my favourite design from the ones I have reviewed.

Arctic Monkeys: 'Favourite Worst Nightmare'

Above is the Arctic Monkey’s second album, produced in 2007, which was titled ‘Favourite Worst Nightmare’. The format of the CD is a card gatefold style, with a booklet including pictures to compliment the artwork. I like this format for band as it looks and feel like a quality product and also allows more artwork to be shown inside.

The artwork used by the Sheffield 4 piece band shows a council estate with modernist artwork within the windows. This setting for the album is a common place to the band, which grew up in the poor suburbs of the ‘Steel City’. The name of the album, ‘Favourite Worst Nightmare’ also connotes the rough and tough lifestyle in this part of the country, meaning it can be a nightmare at times but always good fun.

The front cover of the album represents the changing image of the band. Their first album, ‘Whatever People Say I Am, That’s what I am not’ had an image of a working class man between the ages of 18-25 smoking a cigarette, a stereotypical image of a man living in a council estate. The second album follows on in this style with the image of a council flats. Also, the dark saturation of the album cover conveys the gloomy and dark nature of council house lifestyle. In contrast to this connotation, the bright and vivid colours of the modernist artwork in the windows show another side to their lifestyle. This represents the artist’s playful side in their music and lifestyle, which has developed as their music popularity has grown. An example of their slightly eccentric side was in 2007; when they played live on the Jonathon Ross show dressed up as clowns.



The band image and album appeals to the target audience as the audience can connect to the bands lifestyle before they hit stardom. Before they became a massive hit through Myspace, they were four normal teenagers from Sheffield and this is showed through their music and artwork. There artwork is different from the norm, which usually includes the band in the front cover. However, they still suit the genre of the band, a rock/british indie style.

Boo

Hi, i am ryan!!!!