Digi-pack analysis

What is a Digipak?

A digipak is a type of CD case using card stock or another heavy paper material. They open like a book and can have two, three or four faces within it. They usually contain exactly the same items and information as a normal CD case (it contains a booklet and the CD itself). The CD can be held within a normal plastic holder like a traditional CD case, or it can be kept inside a pocket. Digipak's normally contain more artwork, information and space. They are also a lot more compact than a traditional CD case.

Here are two examples of a Digipak:

They can be made in a variety of different ways, however the most simple is to:

1. Get a piece of card/paper that measures 57cm x 12.5cm.
2. The 57cm is for 4 panels of that are 14cm each in length and a spine
3. The two outside panels fold to the centre and are stuck down
4. Add a pocket or plastic panel for the CD
   

Features of a music video

Music videos fall under three categories; Concept, Narrative or Performance based.

Concept - This type of video includes a specific idea. It generally does not have a story and uses images and other techniques to create a unique and different video. The images may or may not relate to the lyrics of the song, but there should be no real plot within it.

Narrative - This is a music video with a story behind it. The story may follow the plot of the lyrics, or it may be a completely different plot. It generally does not include the artist, but there have been examples which have included the artist in the past.

Performance - This includes the artist/artists performing the song which is being played. This may include instruments or it may just have the band singing along with the song.

However, there are exceptions to these rules. For example, the music video for "Teenage Dirtbag" by Wheatus involves a storyline, but at the end of the video the band can be seen performing the song on stage during the story, so this mixes the performance based video with the narrative based video to create something different.

Another example is the video for "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley. The singer can be seen singing the said song, but it is all played out within a black and white conceptual way.

Band Branding

RADIOHEAD: W.A.S.T.E

There are many examples of branding of different bands. The branding usually trys to create a specific image for an artist/band. For example, a band may have it's own clothing range such as "w.a.s.t.e" for the band Radiohead. They have an online shop of many of their own clothes and other items such as posters/badges.

This is an example of the type of T shirts that are produced for the band . The text is an extract from a song off the album "In Rainbows". The letters are noticably made from all the colours of the rainbow, therefore relating back to the album title. The lyrics are sometimes quite dark and depressing, which is generally the same as the style of music that Radiohead makes, which therefore conforms to the image of the band.

This is an album cover that has been printed on a poster for the w.a.s.t.e range. Once again, the images relate to the image of the band. Some of the words are quite dark words such as "fear", "danger" and "collision". The image is also quite ominous and strange which relates to the style of the music once again.

The email I sent to "Accidental Hero"

Hello,
I found your page on www.unsigned.com and I absolutely love your music, especially the song "Elementality", it is a fantastic song. I am about to start my second year of Sixth Form, and I am taking an A level in Media. For our coursework we have to find an artist, make a music video for one of their songs, create a website for them and other products like that. I would be very grateful if you would allow me to use you in my coursework as I think you would be perfect for it. I would let you use all the products after I create them if you would like to, and I will let you know about how the coursework is coming along and let you know of my decisions etc.
Thanks again and I can't wait to hear from you!

Sam

The reply:

Hey Sam,
Thanks for your kind email. I would be honoured to be a part of your coursework!
Drop me a line whenever and I'll help as much as possible
Peace love and human kind
Ben

Research into Unsigned bands

I already had knowledge of a very good website called http://www.unsigned.com/

It allows unsigned and upcoming bands to upload songs and gather a fanbase as you can also sign up to become a fan. This means that potential record companies can easily see whether these bands or artists may have the potential to be successful.

I decided that I wanted to find an artist who was part of a specialized genre.

First of all I found a funk rock band called "Funky Session". Their music seemed to be of quite high quality sound, so I listed them as a possibility for my project. Here is their http://www.unsigned.com/ page

http://www.unsigned.com/funkysession

Next, I came across a Reggae band called Redemption. I liked these because they had a wide variety of songs and seemed to be quite well established. Their songs were also of very high quality so once again I added them to my possibility list. Here is their page on http://www.unsigned.com/

http://www.unsigned.com/redemption

The last artist I found was an acoustic solo artist called "Accidental Hero". His music automatically appealed to me because the Acoustic genre is one of my personal favourite. He did not have a website (except a myspace page) and he seemed to be the kind of artist I would like to promote. I especially like his song "Elementality" which had a very nice melody and guitar part which I thought would be very effective within a music video. I decided to email this artist and ask for their permission to use them within my coursework.Here is his http://www.unsigned.com/ page

http://www.unsigned.com/accidentalhero

"Niche"

A "Niche" product is something created with a small and specialized audience in mind.

An example of a "Niche" genre would be something such as Death Metal where the audience is very small.
Whereas a very popular genre such as Pop where the audience is huge and world wide would not be considered as "Niche".

CD cover analysis

This is the CD cover for the album 'o' by Damien Rice. Damien Rice is an acoustic artist who makes very calming, quiet and melodic songs. This style has been well represented by the front cover of the CD. The light cream colour of the background represents the calmness. It is also a colour that is usually used to represent acoustic music.

The simplicity of the cover also represents the music. The fact the whole title is uneven, small and without capital letters show's innocence and quirkiness. It also shows that this cover does not follow normal industry standards for CD covers (and therefore that he is not a normal artist). The small picture at the bottom also follows the idea of innocence. It is a child's drawing of two people with the words "you" and "me" above them. This drawing once again repsents the innocence, simplicity and calmness of the album.

This is the album cover for "Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace" by Foo Fighters. This is a hard rock album which is clearly shown by some of the elements of the CD cover. The solid structure of the writing shows that this is a much more powerful and loud album. The font of "Foo Fighters" is very bold which shows that the music is powerful and strong. The use of the image of a bomb is also very representative of the style of music. Bomb's are usually represented with war and violence, which can be connected with the Hard Rock genre as it is often a common theme. Bombs are also extremely loud, which may represent the loudness of the music. However, the fact that the bomb hasn't exploded yet, and seems as if it is falling from the sky may show that the music is almost like the bomb is going off and exploding when the music is played.

This is the album cover for "Demon Days" by Gorillaz. The whole marketing scheme behind Gorillaz is that they are a make believe band consisting of 4 cartoon characters; 2D, Murdoch, Russle and Noodle. This album is extremely effective because it is similar to a normal CD cover for the band where it shows all of the members on it, but obviously this includes drawings of the fictional characters instead. It is almost like a classic cover from older bands which may show that this music is going back to basics. The gorillaz mix many different styles of music together, so this is why the cover is very simplistic and uses a black background. The typography is also very small and simple which may show that this is raw, simple and interesting music.

This is the album cover for "The eminem show" by Eminem. This cover is extremely effective and relevant to the lyrical material as a lot of his music on this album shows his disgust and hatred for his popularity. This is shown by many things, such as the curtains that represent his performing. The curtains are red, which is a colour that connotes the idea of anger and hatred. Another example of this hate is the fact that he is sitting behind the curtains, and the spotlight is not on him which shows he wants to stay out of the spotlight. The name, "The eminem show" is used because the songs relate to his life and he is referring to his life as a show because he is constantly in the public's view.