Album Cover

Here's our final digipack. I think the album cover, both the front and back, as well as the inside sleeve and CD back, all work well together. The design runs through the digipack and the style all relates well to the other proudcts we have made.

Album Cover Deconstruction

Kid Cudi - Man on the Moon: The End of Day

FRONT:

Main image is of the main artist, merged into a moon. It’s a striking image that really captures the audience’s attention – this is the function of the front cover, to get people to notice it and entice them into buying it. It's also used to be familiar to the audience and therefore instantly recognisable to the fans.
The image also relates to and anchors the title of the album – ‘Man on the Moon.’
It’s a close-up, profile of the main artist, and this dominates most of the album cover, along with the moon which covers the other half.
Key colours range from the orangey effect on the moon to the reds/purples/blues on Kid Cudi’s face.
Sense of dreaming, being somewhere beyond earth. Kid Cudi comments that “I’m always dreaming away, I’m always just in my own little realm and in my own little space, and that goes back to the man on the moon thing.”
Futuristic style font placed in the centre to stand out, along with the use of white to make it clear against the darker background. There is also a small space-like logo to fit in with the whole theme.
Has more of an arty feel compared to most albums that belong to the hip-hop genre. He’s been trying to create something new and that is reflected in the album cover. The genre of his music is described as Alternative Hip Hop, Trip-Hop (downtempo electronic music), with some alternative rock.
Concept album (unified by a theme) – space, sci-fi, movies
The album seems to appeal to a fairly mainstream audience; however the unique design of the cover which reflects his music in this album, may not appeal to all mainstream hip hop fans.
Parental Advisory - explicit content

BACK:

Movie-esque styled back cover. The tracks are sequenced into 5 Acts to give the listener a feeling of a story being told – implies that he’s going to take us on a journey with his music, rather than it being just a collection of songs. It will progress and therefore implies it’s a cohesive collection of songs, not just individual ones. Implies that the audiences should listen to the whole album right the way through just like a movie, in order to appreciate its creativity. – Kid Cudi commented, “We really made sure to give those people that vibe of a movie. I want people to feel like they’re in a movie theatre with their eyes closed.” “I wanted everything to be like a movie so the track listing I broke it down as if you were looking as the page of contents for my script. I made it so that you can follow along while you’re listening to the album. ‘Ok what’s coming up next,’ and then you can go to the booklet and read the lyrics and follow along.”
The summary at the top is like a synopsis of a movie – features film language such as ‘all star cast,’ ‘from the guys who brought…’ ‘the long awaited tale,’ etc.
Fonts – futuristic style which fits with the image on the back which is like an x-ray effect.
Colours of the font also stand out with the white font against the dark background and the colour orange to distinguish each ‘Act.’
First studio album
Universal Motown Records – his record label
Dream On/G.O.O.D Music production
Barcode
Website details - Kid Cudi’s official website, as well as his record labels.
Institutional information (pug) such as record label, producers etc. is small compared to the rest – doesn’t detract from the main focus.

INSIDE:

Poster, book of lyrics etc.

Album Cover Conventions

1. What are the typical features that an album cover has? Make a list of all the elements they have in common.
• Album title
• Artist name
• Cover art/clear striking image – distinct imagery (generally relates to artist iconography)
• Running colour scheme
• Track list on the back
• Pug – legal/institutional information
• Barcode
• Web address – for the Record Label, the Artist etc.
• Booklet with extras – song lyrics, photos, poster etc.

2. How would you categorise the covers in front of you? Are there any other ways of distinguishing between them other than generically?
• Genre
• Gender – male/female
• Group or solo artist
• Use of artwork?/artist image?/photography? Or a combination
• Target audience
• Different Record Labels
• Era

3. Album covers serve many different functions. What do you think these are (ie. what is their purpose?)
• Attract and catch the attention of the buyer and the target audience – stands out
• Creates a band image/identity that they are trying to sell - promotes them – it’s a marketing tool
• The style reflects the artist – recognisable to audience
• Displays the genre of music visually
• Gives a track listing with the track names, lengths etc.
• Informative eg. Legal stuff, institutional information - Record label etc.