Urban Hymns - Digipak
Front Panel
In many respects, the front panel of the album, Urban Hymns, is in complete contrast to the 'Bittersweet Symphony' music video: whereas the music video employs a grey urban setting, the album cover employs a bright rural setting; whereas the music video is quite 'stern' and conveys 'attitude', the album cover is very relaxed; whereas the music video largely focuses on one seemingly isolated figure, the album cover focuses on the entire band socialising.
It is likely that the record company wanted to project another side to the band; The Verve may write serious - at times depressing - music, but there is more to them than just that. The picture used for the album cover helps to reinforce the idea that The Verve are 'everymen'; they are regular people; they are a band that your average person can relate to. It could even be argued that their ordinariness is their unique selling point.
The scene captured in the picture is ostensibly an everyday scene: a group of friends 'hanging around' in a park. It is the opposite of a glitzy photo shoot: the setting is very low-key; the band are wearing very casual clothing as opposed to fancy outfits; and they are not posing in the traditional sense. Indeed, it has been shot in such a way as to give the impression that they are almost oblivious to the fact that they are being photographed - none of them are looking into the camera, and all bar one of them are looking at something out of frame.
It is, however, important to note that the album cover employs many traditional conventions. The band's logo and the name of the album are clearly visible and attract the eye; this is very important as the band's logo helps to reinforce brand recognition, and the album is the product that is being sold. The expanse of sky in the background of the picture has freed up the album designer to superimpose the band's logo and the album title in the top left corner of the picture without these details being obscured in any way.
As is customary in many album covers of rock bands, the entire band are featured on the front cover of the album. That being said, as previously mentioned, record labels often like the 'front man' or lead singer of the band to be the focal point. Once again, the band are sitting in close proximity to each other and are displaying relaxed body language, which helps to communicate that they have a close relationship; however, Richard Ashcroft is the most visible member of the band: he is at the forefront of the picture, almost in the centre of the frame; he is wearing noticeably lighter-coloured clothing than the rest of the band; and he is distinguished by the fact that, unlike the other band members, he is wearing a hat.
The scene captured in the picture is ostensibly an everyday scene: a group of friends 'hanging around' in a park. It is the opposite of a glitzy photo shoot: the setting is very low-key; the band are wearing very casual clothing as opposed to fancy outfits; and they are not posing in the traditional sense. Indeed, it has been shot in such a way as to give the impression that they are almost oblivious to the fact that they are being photographed - none of them are looking into the camera, and all bar one of them are looking at something out of frame.
It is, however, important to note that the album cover employs many traditional conventions. The band's logo and the name of the album are clearly visible and attract the eye; this is very important as the band's logo helps to reinforce brand recognition, and the album is the product that is being sold. The expanse of sky in the background of the picture has freed up the album designer to superimpose the band's logo and the album title in the top left corner of the picture without these details being obscured in any way.
As is customary in many album covers of rock bands, the entire band are featured on the front cover of the album. That being said, as previously mentioned, record labels often like the 'front man' or lead singer of the band to be the focal point. Once again, the band are sitting in close proximity to each other and are displaying relaxed body language, which helps to communicate that they have a close relationship; however, Richard Ashcroft is the most visible member of the band: he is at the forefront of the picture, almost in the centre of the frame; he is wearing noticeably lighter-coloured clothing than the rest of the band; and he is distinguished by the fact that, unlike the other band members, he is wearing a hat.
Inside Panel 1
The picture in the inside panel is very much a continuation of the picture from the front cover. There is something about this picture which gives us the impression that it was an accident - that the dog wandered into frame and 'photo-bombed' the picture. This image serves to reinforce the idea that The Verve are 'ordinary' people; their laughing faces are endearing and further emphasise their light-heartedness.
Inside Panel 2
Technically speaking, this is not the second inside panel but the C.D. itself; however, since the panel was plain black, I decided to analyse the image on the C.D.
This image is very different to the image on the front cover of the album; it is much more in-keeping with the video for 'Bittersweet Symphony' - indeed, Richard Ashcroft seems to be wearing the same leather jacket from the music video. This image appears to be taken from a more traditional photo shoot. Whereas the image on the front cover of the album is quite bright - connoting joviality - this image is in black and white, which comes across as both more stylish and a lot more serious.
Once again, the entire band feature in the picture but Richard Ashcroft is the focal point: he is at the forefront of the image, in the centre of the frame, and he dominates the photograph.
The C.D. itself has had a number of conventional features superimposed on to it. The band's logo and the title of the album take precedence . As is customary, the logo of the band's record label, Hut Records, has been included - as has the Compact Disk Digital Audio logo. The track listing has also been included - most likely to help the owner should they lose the album case. Copyright information is visible around the perimeter of the C.D.; the design of the legal information is unobtrusive, so it does not detract from the main image on the C.D.
Back Panel
The design for the back panel of the digipak is very minimalistic; it could be described as 'no nonsense'. The panel is largely black and white, with the exception of a picture that is not too disimilar to the image on the front panel. The back pannel includes all of the conventional features: the track list, the record labels' logos, and the barcode. It is worth noting that the back panel features the logos of two record companies: Hut Records and Virgin. The reason for this is that Hut records is a subsidiary of Virgin so both companies are recognised.
Side Panel
The side panel is typically minimalistic, consisting merely of the band's logo, the title of the album, and the record label's logo. It is important for the side panel not to be too 'busy' so that it does not obscure the key information.
Magazine Promotional Poster
Barring a few additions, the magazine promotional poster for the album,Urban Hymns, is the same as the front panel of the digipak. It is likely that this is for the purpose of brand recognition: if a person is familiar with the image on the front cover of the album, it will make it easier for them to locate it in a shop.
The additions include: the words 'The Album'; a list of the singles; the band's web address; and the record label's logo. The words 'The Album' are the most prominent - this is because the words are in capital letters, are in a bigger font, and are situated at the top of the text. The words serve the purpose of making it clear what is being advertised and making the album sound hotly anticipated. The reference to the singles is used to entice perspective customers by emphasising how many hit singles feature in the album. The web address directs the reader to a website they can go to find out more information about the album.
Focus Group
"The image used for the album cover and poster is endearing. The band members come across as likable guys. I like the fact that they look quite ordinary. It makes them seem unpretentious and relatable."
"Listening to 'Bittersweet Symphony' and watching the video for it, you might get the impression that The Verve are a mopey band. The picture on the album cover makes them seem a lot more light-hearted. It's nice because you get the impression that they don't take themselves too seriously. It's good for bands to be confident, but you don't want them to be egotistical - it's very off-putting."
"I'm not entirely sure what to make of the picture. It would be interesting to see how it would have turned out if they went for something that relates to the title a bit more. Something a bit more epic."
"I really like The Verve's logo. It's very simple, but it's stylish. When you think that it's almost 20 years old, it's dated really well."
"The promotional materials are quite understated. I think it's effective."
Lessons to be Learnt
- It is very important to include all of the conventions - e.g. the band's logo, the record label's logo, the barcode, etc.
- Brand recognition is very important. It is really important to use familiar themes, symbols, and images that connect your promotional materials. It might be worth using the same image for the album cover and the magazine poster.
- Simple, understated designs can be very effective.
- It is important to make the front man / lead singer the focal point of the band by positioning them at the forefront of any images and distinguishing them from the rest of the band in some way - this can be achieved by making them wear something that is noticeably different.
- It is very important to think about how you want the audience to perceive the band and considering the best ways of achieving this. Do you want them to be perceived as 'everymen' or do you want them to be seen as superstars? What can you do to achieve this?
- Black and white images tend to look classy but also serious - particularly when combined with stern faces.
- Brighter colours, laughing faces, and relaxed body language help to communicate joviality.
- It is worth thinking about how different aspects of the promotional materials can be used to communicate different aspects of your band members' personalities.
- If superimposing text or logos on to an image, it is important to think about the colours of the image and where the text / logo can be placed without being obscured by the colours of the image.
- The poster needs to include details which really promote the product - e.g. attention-grabbing captions.
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