Ancillary TaskEmily Hopwood

Analysis of Digipaks and Album Posters I have chosen to analyse digipacks from the ‘Alternative Rock’ genre. This is so that I can follow the conventions of existing

music of the same genre I am creating a music video for. I have chosen all of these bands as there are clear similarities that can easily show me the modern conventions of an alternative rock band. I have also used the posters that are

advertising the tours as all of the bands released a tour of their new album and so have incorporated the album into the posters in some way. One of the bands I am analysing is the band whose song I will be using for my final music video

piece, it was therefore beneficial to look into the way that the band represents itself, this gave me a clear indication into how I should represent the music for them. The bands that I used are Catfish and the Bottlemen, The 1975 and Bring me the Horizon. I also analysed a female artist within the same genre so that I could show the comparisons between bands

and single female artists, for this I used Lana Del Rey.

The 1975-“The 1975”

Imagery- On the cover of the album, it features the ‘iconic’ band logo. This is a very simple album cover that shows that the band did not need to feature themselves for fans to know about them. Their main aim with the band is to make their name known, this could be a way of doing that. The rectangle and the logo are now synonymous with the band. The contradiction of a neon sign being made to look dull could represent their music, it is sometimes recognised that their melodies upbeat yet the lyrics hold a deeper more sadistic meaning. The lack of image of the band could be seen as mysterious and a way of having the music without the need of a major persona. The back of the album has the same rectangle and then simply the song list and then the record company label and barcode. Again, this is a very simple back cover that doesn’t give much away about the band itself. This is the same as the CD itself as it is plain black again just has the logo. The image behind where the CD is held is of the frontman for the band Matt Healy, again completing the rectangle that the band is known for. However, this is still not showing his face and therefore not giving the band an identifiable entity.

Font- The serif font used is called ‘Sur’. It is a sophisticated font that the 1975 use for merchandise and all things related to the band. As the name consists of mainly numbers, using a less complex font is not an issue as it is easily readable and recognisable. The font used on the back of the album is a regular sans serif font that clearly shows all of the song titles. Colours- The colours used are black and white. In one of the band’s music videos, they joke that it ‘looks too pop’ as it is in colour. This shows that they may not have used colour due to how they wanted to represent their music at the time. The lead singer shown is also in all black, using black paint. The matte black CD with just the glossy logo also conveys that they themselves believe that their ‘sound’ is not pop music and therefore should not be portrayed in this way.

The 1975 SynergyThis poster shows how the album cover influenced the tour and the tour promotion. The same synonymous rectangle

has been used with the same ‘The 1975’ style of writing, this time, the dates of their tour have been added inside of the rectangle, this could suggest that the tour is important to

them and thus their fans are also a part of them. This is the same as the old website that they used. This again was

heavily black and white and has their ‘logo’. As they were not a well-known brand the website featured as a blog where

pictures and news was shared about the band. The image of the band live also shows how they use the rectangle on tour.

The 1975-“I Like it When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful

Yet So Unaware Of It”Imagery- This, like the first album, features the simple layout of a cover page showing just the logo and the rectangle. However this time it is not in grayscale, it has remained neon. Again, the band’s new image still features the same thing, just renovated and ‘happier’ perhaps showing the way that their music has also evolved. On the back of this album, there shows just the album title, there is no song list which again shows the enigmatic side of the band. The whole publicity stunt for the album was the mysterious neon signs in various places around the world. Apart from the change in colour, the themes and imagery are the same as the last. This time, the image behind the where the CD is held is another neon sign that simply just has the brand name written on it. Font- Again, this font is the same as the last and provides the same meanings, the fact that they have used the same rectangle and logo on the cover shows that they have a distinct brand logo, theme and image.

Colour- This colouring is the opposite to the first 1975 album. Before the release of this album, the band deleted all forms of social media that they had, took down their website and didn’t explain to fans what this was for. All of these things, the website and social media pages were black and white. When they came back, everything was in colour- to symbolise the new album and new sound. The CD itself is plain white and has the same matte and glossy finishes as the previous one. The neon signs being in pink links to all of their stage designs, websites and advertisements. This synergy is explained more later in the presentation. The use of mainly white and pink as opposed to white and black shows that the band are at a happier place and shows their personal development. The band explained that this album is a type of ‘answer’ to the first album, this is why the same image is used and the same formats and designs. The settings of the neon signs also holds significance to the band, allowing the fans of the band to understand them on a personal level without having the direct gaze that other artists use on the covers of albums.

I like it when you sleep for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it SynergyThis re-invention of the band shows that they have taken this

to all extremes and all platforms that they represent themselves on. The bottom left poster shows the tour poster,

featuring the album again, like previous tour posters analysed. This time, however, the dates have been shown underneath, perhaps to show the album and make that the clear focus of the poster. The website’s main page shows

the latest youtube music video that they released and shows the new image as they have changed the layout and the

main colour is now pink, linking to the album and the neon signs used. The picture of the band performing live shows

how they now use the rectangles on tour.

Catfish and the Bottlemen-“The Ride”

Imagery- This again, like the first album analysed shows the brand name and ‘logo’. This crocodile image has become synonymous with the brand as it was printed in various places around the UK and elsewhere. The image was posted in various places without any information about what it was, this raised brand awareness. This same picture is used on the CD itself without the need for the brand name.

This album has a plain background with the song titles and record label with the barcode, again a simple yet effective cover and back. These song titles are also printed on the label side of the cd case. This format follows the same format as their previous album ‘the balcony’ showing that the band is simply following on from the album without renovating it entirely.Font- The font used is a simply sans-serif font called underground demi. There are many forms of this font and it is very different to the original title logo that the band had, it is a lot more sophisticated and relevant to the band’s image as a whole. This font is replicated and used for all of the song titles, again affirming that this is ‘their’ font that represents them.

Colour- There isn’t a lot of colour with the album, it is strictly black and white. This again could be to show that the band is of a particular genre and they want to emphasise this. It could also be that this is simply how the band wishes to portray themselves. The dark colour could be a representation of the theme of music and the overall feeling. This follows and identifies the clear conventions of the genre.This album like the others does not feature the band themselves and doesn’t explain much as ‘the ride’ and a crocodile do not correlate and these both do not link to the song titles or lyrics. This could mean that the audience doesn’t connect with the band as much as a close-up shot of an artist may connect with the band. However, the mystery may also make the ‘alternative rock’ band fans more enticed as bands in the genre usually implement an element of mystery to promote the album before anything is really said about it or it has been announced by the band or record label themselves.

The Ride SynergyThis poster is an advert for the tour that was announced

just after the album, this shows clearly that it is surrounding the album as they have used the same ‘logo’

(the crocodile). On the poster, there is more of an emphasis on the band name as opposed to on the album where the image was the main focus. The black and white allows all things to be interlinked easily. This is shown on the website also, where everything is black and white, the website's main page has links to the old and new album- this again shows that the band have a distinct theme and layout that they stick too. The image shows the crocodile

is used as a backdrop for the band when they perform live on tour.

Bring me the Horizon-“That’s The Spirit”

Imagery- This album, like the others is plain and even more simple. The cover shows just the name of the album instead of the band name. This could connote that the band does not need to have their name on the cover for fans to know who they are, which could come across as conceited. The title of the album is presented to be the most important factor of the whole album. The title is in grey and therefore blends in even more with the background.

The song titles on the back though are clear and can be easily read, this is the same as the record label and the barcode, which is irregularly placed at the top of the back cover. The CD did not come in a plastic case but instead a card one, this is to show the band’s environmental awareness.Font- The simple and clear sans-serif font shows the sophistication of the band and unlike previous albums that they have had with very colourful and busy album covers. This was a way of the band reinventing itself. Colours- As previously stated, the cover is plain matte black and white. This is a large contrast to the inside of the album, where there is bright bold colours mixed colours. This is on the lyric book, CD itself and inside of the card CD case.

The colour could also represent the mood set by the title. The frontman of the band described the album as ‘a way of celebrating depression, and a way of making light of it.’ This therefore could be a visual representation of how people feel. On the outside it’s simple and unnoticeable and on the inside there's too much going on and it’s overwhelming.

The promotion for the CD consisted of the umbrella symbol shown in the bottom picture. The umbrella was printed in various places around the world much like the crocodile, again with no real explanation as to what it was or meant. Only after the bands themselves revealed the umbrella was it made evident that this symbolised a new album.

That’s the Spirit Synergy

Bring me the horizon have used the album to influence the tour dates and the website, showing effective

synergy. The poster features the umbrella that was used to advertise the album, the image of the band live also shows that this is used on stage. The enigmatic tour

announcement is shown in the heading on the poster, causing excitement amongst fans. The website features the title of the album and the artwork used on the inside rather than displaying the band name as a main focus.

The poster also features the album title and the name of the band is again not as evident. This is due to the use of the umbrella and its link to the band after the promotion

for the album.

Lana Del Rey-“HONEYMOON”

I have decided to analyse a female of the same genre so that I can show the differences between male bands and single female artists even though they are considered to have the same genre. Imagery- The cover features a medium shot of the artist that only shows her from her arms and up. She is looking away from the camera and looks as though she is ‘gazing’ or

daydreaming. Lana Del Rey would be easily recognisable to the audience and even if they were not, they would not be able to miss the ‘Lana Del Rey’ written in the same way it always has been. The image itself has been made to look as though it is set in the 60s or 70s, this is where Lana takes her music and fashion influences from, so it is synonymous with her persona and relates to previous albums she has had. The back of the album has the same setting and again the artist isn't making eye contact with the camera and thus, the audience. Lana Del Rey also uses american history influences in her music and this americanism is shown on the CD itself as it shows the USA flag. The flag, however, is not flying. This could symbolise the hot weather and therefore the luxurious lifestyle that she leads or evoke deeper sadder meanings despite the bright colours. Although this goes against the common conventions of the genre, this shows that the music still isn't intense, just like the other digipacks analysed.

Font- The font used for ‘Lana Del Rey’ is a font named steelfish. This font is used for Lana Del Rey on all formats and is synonymous with her and her ‘brand’. The font used for ‘honeymoon’ is called joanna solotype. This has heavy 1920s influences, which again affirms Lana Del Rey’s style.Colours- The colours used are different to those in the previous slides, this shows bright and bold colours that contrast the albums of the same genre. The cover image shows a shaddowed corner, putting more emphasis on Lana Del Rey as she is in the sunlight. The main colour themes are red, white and blue. Again, showing her americanism and devotion to her country. Costume/Hair/Makeup- As Lana Del Rey is far away, her makeup is hard to analyse, however, you can still tell that there is minimal makeup used to affirm her ‘typical wholesome american woman’ image. Her hair, accessories and modest clothing gives the same effect.

HONEYMOON Synergy

The lana del rey poster advertises her album as she did not release a tour with the album. The poster features the

same image as on the album and the only extra information other than the name and the album title is the

date of the release for the album. The website also features the ‘Lana Del Rey’ title in the same font and

colour and the main adverts are for the album and newest video release for lana del rey, this is important as she is

known for her visual representation of her music, often by creating short films.