1. Digipak.
A Digi-pak style of packaging is often used for CD singles or special
editions of CD albums. It is typically made from cardboard with an
internal plastic holder for one or more discs. The front of the digipack
will most likely have some aspect of what the artist represents. It will
also embody a theme or a message of the artists image. The digipak
will relate to the album or single, the imagery used will be linked to
the lyrics and visuals in the track. Although CD’s are in their decline
true fans will buy the digipack as a sign of loyalty to the artist. I this
slide show I’m going to look analyse a variety of different digipaks in
my genre to get inspiration for when I create my digipack. I’m going to
look at how they are styled and laid out to attract the audience and
also inform them about the band and what's in the album/single.
2. The common layout of a Digipak.
Here is an example of what digipaks look like:
3. Marilyn Manson “Born Villain”
The first digipak I am going to look at is from the album of Born Villain by Marilyn Manson, this album is in the
industrial rock genre and you can clearly see this from the digipak which is key as the audience needs to clearly
spot the genre when in the shops.
The first part of the digipak I will look at
is the front cover, the font is sharp with a
strong white to match this. The cover
looks quite gothic and futuristic and the
image is a close up of the star of course,
you can immediately tell this is an
industrial rock cover with the black and
white colours and gothic style.
The back cover has the initials of the star in
a unique image which looks like a blade of
some sort which matches the genre. All of
his tracks in his album are listed bedside the
image going downwards which is unique and
matches the style of the genre. The small
print at the back mentions that this album
is under exclusive license to Cooking Vinyl
Ltd which is the independent record label
that Manson is signed for.
The actual disc shows the same image
as on the back cover which is a symbol
which perhaps represents something
about the artist, or maybe it is
something featured in the tracks and
therefore is placed on the album
covers.
The tray card lists all of the
information about the album
such as the writers and
managers etc., it is very clear
about this and list who wrote
each track ect. Legal
information is also on here
such as copyright ownership
ect. The writing is laid out in
a circle and looks unusual like
the track perhaps.
Overall this digipak is very simplistic however
shows what the artist is about and clearly
shows the genre. The font is quote futuristic
maybe as there is a hint of techno is the
tracks. The digipak conveys an image about
the artist showing an extreme close up of
him and showing the symbol representing
something about the track or the artist.
They label all the personal and recording
information also.
4. Ramstien “Rosenrot”
The next digipak I am going to look at is by Ram stein and the album is called ‘Rosenrot’, this digipak is different to the
previous one I analysed and features just one image spread across the whole album which must represent something
important i.e. : about the lyrics, the videos or the band itself. The whole cover features a crashed boat in the Antarctic
and must represent something special about the album if it the image on the cover. The front cover features the boat and
the rest of the cover is the surrounding of the Antarctic. This is also a very simple digipak with just one image spread
across the all of the panels, This image is obviously a focus point of the album and links to the lyrics. here it is:
The text on this album
is also a strong crisp
white and has a bold
futuristic font.
The back cover
features all the
tracks and the times
and also has
information about
piracy ect at the
bottom, the universal
trademark logo is also
visible and included at
the bottom to show
that rights belong to
them.
Inside this CD there is also a booklet that has been made showing all the band
members and what it looks like to be background information about the album
and what is means (from what I can tell because its in German)
Overall this digipak is also simple and
unusual for the genre. The colours are still
dark and ghostly which still fits the genre
however its not a stereotypical
representation of the genre. The layout
however certainly stands out and is very
bold.
Information about copyright
is listed on the back panel
with a logo from the FBI.
These white strips are featured
on some of Ramsteins other
album covers and represent
something about the band.
5. Nine inch Nails “With Teeth”
This is the Digipak to Nine Inch Nails album
“With Teeth” released in 2006. This album is
very simple like the Marilyn Manson cover. The
front cover features the Nine Inch Nails logo
‘NIN’ in the centre so the audience can identify
it quickly when looking for it. The colour scheme
is very simple with a mix of black, grey, and
blue. The outside panels feature just the NIN
logo and a simple colour scheme. The
blurred/scratched effect is used of the panels as
this is what some of the videos feature and this
is the image the band gives off. On the front
cover there is a parental advisory stamp noting
that there is explicit content in the album, this
clearly outlines the demographic they are going
for. The back panel like Ramstein album cover
has an FBI warning note on the back panel about
piracy which is a big issue in the industry as
they can be easily copied. For this album the
tracks included are featured in the inside of the
digipak, also on this panel are the producers ect.
Again it is a white simple and bold capital font.
Furthermore one of the panels of course
features the lead singer, this time it is a mid
close shot of the singer in a black leather jacket.
However half of his face is blurred/scratched out
and this follows onto the disc panel making the
disc looked scratched. This Is a very cool feature
and because some of the videos feature these
effects it is used on the digital. This could also
have a deeper meaning about the band and the
associates to the lyrics.
Overall this digipak is very simple however effective. This is a digipak I think I
could create and it also shows the genre clearly with the dark colours and
effects.
6. Death Stars “The Perfect Cult”
The front cover of this digipak is very striking compared to
the other covers we have looked at. The main colour is grey
and black and is meant to imitate a statue of a bird. The
text at the Top looks futuristic and looks war type font. It is
very bold and worn down and looks like chalk. The bottom
font which is the album title is in lower case and looks more
creepy kind of like horror font. The symbol in the middle
obviously represents something about the band or the lyrics in
the album. The artists themselves are not on the digipak like
the ramstein cover and promotes more of the lyrics and album
more than the band. I really like the cover for this album
because it is unique and very striking and is not the typical
album cover like the nine inch nails cover. The symbol on the
front also matches the record label nuclear blast which is cool
as the front symbol is about war and nukes link into that.
The back cover is like the image on the front however smaller
to fit the tracks featured in the album around it. The two
images on the front and back link with the tracks accordingly as
the front images links with tracks like ‘asphalt wings’ and the
back image links with tracks like ‘ghost reviver’ and ‘bodies’.
The track ‘explode’ also links with the record label. The whole
image of the band links with the record company which is
something they perhaps planned. The record labels logo has been
placed around the digipak, there is a notice at the bottom
which states ‘all rights reserved’. The stone type theme
continues along to the back however darkens a bit more. I
would have to say this is my favourite digipak so far in terms
of the design. I also like the way the tracks have been laid out
at the back with big and small fonts circled around the skulls
giving a ghostly/spiritual feel. Overall I really liked this digipak
however it fits the record label more than the genre I would
say.
7. Conventions of a Digipak.
The conventions of Digipak’s in my genre are:
Dark, simple colours that spread across the
whole digipack on all sides.
Pictures of the artists on the cover or inside
to sell the band.
Record label on the back of the digipak or on
the spine.
Warning of piracy ect.
Producers/writers ect listed.
Images linked to the lyrics of the tracks.
Overall the digipak’s need to show the genre
and link to the lyrics in the track or music
videos. They need to be simple and effective.
