Digipak CD

The Digipak here again follows the themes of the rest of the digipak by having the effect of the colour and the blur. The bands logo is included on the CD along with the three members of the band. The CD and the background template are the same, which again creates a sense of continuity. The photo is from the setting of the video and has the famous Brighton Pier in the background, which shows will evoke memories of the video as well as any personal memories if they have been to Brighton. We wanted to have picturesque backgrounds for our digipaks and that is one of the reasons we went to Brighton.

In the song it refers to the past being  better place we went to Brighton as it has picturesque landscapes and therefore shows the brilliance of the ''old days''.

Digipak Middle - Lyrics

The middle of the digipak contains the lyrics, as many albums not just of the indie rock genre do. The photo contains the blur effect again, which runs throughout the entire the digipak as well as the colouring of the photos. The writing of the lyrics of the is in the same font used throughout.

Album back cover

The back cover of my digipak follows the forms and conventions expected within this genre. The back cover contains the order of the songs of the album (all of which are by The Strokes), the record label, the band log, the rights and the bar code. The albums colour has been edited along with the blur effects to create the continuity with the rest of the digipak. The back cover is another pose and shows the band in a different location and offers a change from the front cover.





The band pose on both the back and front cover, much like Oasis' Definitely Maybe, which influenced me greatly on where to put the photos regarding the position on the digipak. The Oasis album has the band again at the same location of the front, doing a different pose with the band members positions mixed about with different people enjoying more/less focus. Our cover has the band members mixed up and different members have more focus.

Digipak front cover

The front cover of my digipak is colourful bright and stands out as well as being a reference to the 1979 film Quadrophenia, which our music video tries to recreate the themes set in the film. The intertextuality will flatter those who get the reference, as well as remind those of the themes set in the Quadrophenia film. The front cover is of the band posing down the famous alley way, used in the film and creates intimacy between the band and audience. The cover of the digipak carries over the theme of reminiscence set in the video by not only referencing a film made 36 years ago, that is itself nostalgic of events in 1964, but by the colours used. I effected the colours by altering the curves and focused on bringing the red and orange colours out of the picture to create the ''super 8'' look, which runs throughout the video. The font I have used in is imposing and fades away, matching the theme of the video. The blur also creates a theme of reflecting on time, which is again a theme developed in the video. In the cover we also use the bands logo again for reiteration of the bands name as well as promotion for the merchandise.


My digipak has taken influence from Oasis' Definitely Maybe cover, with the effect on the colours and brightness of the image. This cover is more natural than, as in mine the band are posing, however the colours and the togetherness of the band are reiterated in our video.

Influential Album Covers

My Generation (1965)- The Who
This album cover shows the whole band and establishes the themes set by the Who and their songs. The picture of the band gazing skywards has led to many other artists such as the Jam and the Undertones. The album also references the British invasion of the time, with John Entwistle, holding a Union Jack flag around his shoulder. By having all four members look in the same direction, the album cover depicts the band as being one, which is something that we will try to replicate in our album cover.

Influential Album Covers

Up the Bracket (2002)- The Libertines
The cover, which is an image taken from the riot in Argentina during their economic crisis between 1999-2002. The bands debut album cover shows their attitude and their rebellious attitude, distinguishing themselves from other bands. They also came onto the independent scene with a new style of music the picture of a riot represents a revolution in a new style of music and a transformation in the ''indie'' music scene. It is the shocking nature of the album cover that has made it an inspiration for my digipak.

Inflential Album Covers

 Nevermind (1992) - Nirvana
Another iconic album cover that has been parodied a numerous amount of times due to its controversial image. It is due to the contentious nature of the image, which has sparked much debate, that the album has become as famous and recognisable as it is today. Again similar to ''The Queen is Dead'' this album covers shocking and controversial image has inspired us to do something different with our digipak

Influential Album Covers

 The Queen is Dead (1986) - The Smiths
The Queen is dead reciprocates theme of the controversial album name with mystery in the cover and brings its target audience. The dark colours also represent The Smiths as they would often sing about more serious themes than other musicians of the time. The cover is taken directly from ''L'Insoumis'' which references 1960s movies as well shows their admiration for the cover star and genre of film. This album cover is shocking and sets the tone for the rest of the album, which has inspired us to make a digipak with related themes to the band image and the song it is selling.

Influential Album Covers

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972)- David Bowie
This album cover presents David Bowie as his alter ego Ziggy Stardust by the use of lighting. The lighting makes it seem as if Ziggy Stardust has been beamed down from another and fits the theme of the album title. The album also helps create the persona of Ziggy Stardust by making himself obscure which creates a mysterious element to his character. This album cover is again unique and has inspired us to create a digipak that is not normal and that follows the themes of the artist.

Influential Album Covers

Definitely Maybe (1994)- Oasis
The album cover of Oasis' debut album establishes the band and creates an intimate feel as it lets in the audience into one of the band members home, which re-enforces the image that Oasis were trying to create at the time of them being the same us and creates empathy between the audience and the band. There are also references to other bands and their interests such as football, which gives the audience a greater understanding of the band. The album background was rebuilt in 2014 in the 20th anniversary of the album, offering fans to put themselves on the album cover. The personal feel of this album cover has inspired us to create intimacy with out target audience as this album cover perfectly does.

Influential Album Covers

Abbey Road (1969)- The Beatles
The album cover of Abbey Road is seen as one of the most iconic album covers in music history due to its simplistic nature and the fact that it can be easily imitated (which it has many times by the Simpsons, the Muppet's and South Park as well as others.) and due to the fact that it created a conspiracy theory. The album is the swansong of the Beatles and the spot where it was taken has become a shrine to their fans.This album cover has inspired us to have a shot of the band all together in the same direction which creates a sense of togetherness.

Influential Album Covers

Sergeant Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967) - The Beatles
The Beatles Sergeant Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band has an iconic album cover and is largely recognised. The album cover depicts several dozen celebrities, including different political figures. This album cover reflects the change of style of the Beatles music and of their appearance. Through this album they separated themselves from being a pop band to establish themselves as an experimental band who were experimenting both with music and drugs. The album cover helped progress them to a psychedelic rock band. The iconic nature and its uniqueness of the album cover has inspired us to do something different with our digipak.

Conventions of Digipacks

Digipaks are a type of CD packaging, that were first owned by IMPAC Group, Inc. who were acquired by MeadWestvaco (MWV) in 2000 and then licensed to several manufacturers, leading to the increase in the product internationally.

The typical digipak will have these features:

• Digipak's will either open as a book would or open to the right and left, having three parts.
• They will include the CD itself and a small book, which usually includes additional artwork, as well as lyrics for the songs of the album.
• Unlike most CD's, digipak's are usually made of plastic and cardboard, which although is cheaper, will wear more than a traditional CD case.
• The digipak will include additional information about the artist, producers record company etc. giving fans a further understanding of the album.

The style of the digipak will reflect the style of the band therefore every aspect of the case is used carefully to create an image true to the artist.

Advantages of the digipak include:

• They create more design options, as there are more sides than the traditional CD cases and therefore allow for greater creativity for the artists.
• Digipaks could be more beneficial for the environment, if they are made from recycled material.
• They also cost less to make than CD cases.

Disadvantages of the digipak include:

• The digipak will eventually wear and are more likely to become damaged.
• They also offer less protection than the CD case for the CD and therefore the disk is more susceptible to becoming damaged or scratched.
• As the disks are not held in place, unlike the CD case, the disk could be more likely to fall out and again, become damaged.