CD cover analysis

Lillix

The style of the band is quite unique and old fashioned which makes a statement about them. They do not want to be mainstream and would rather focus on their music and their fans. The shadow over their faces is a constant theme throughout the music video, which illustrates the lyrics and the meaning of the song as it is about hiding behind a farce and pretending to be someone you’re not.

The looks on their faces at the same time is provocative suggesting that they are popular with the male audience as well because of their looks. They have changed their appearance because now they are more iconographic of the pop genre through the glamorous, girly clothes they wear where as before they wore down to earth, plain clothes that was more iconographic of the rock genre. Their make up is quite subtle and old fashioned where as before it was more smouldering and heavy, iconographic of the rock genre.

The title of the band is big and goes across the screen, drawing attention to it so that the audience can identify the band. It is black and bold also for this purpose. The title is repeated twice to stand out but also to make it look quite rough and edgy.The colour of the CD cover informs us that the target audience of the band are girls. The cover is quite girly but at the same time is sophisticated in the graphics that are used. The way that the cutting out of the heads is quite jagged and rough implies that the band too is like that. They are not your usual girly pop band.

The body language on their faces is quite firm suggesting that they are independent. Their eye contact invites the audience to connect with them, allowing fandom to take place. The rough, rustic look of the cover implies that they are not the usual girl, pop band but have more of an edge. The black line of spots over the cover makes it look more rustic and unique and makes the cover stand out more.



Pussycat Dolls

The girls are all lined up together to present to the audience the band. They are smiling which invites the audience to have contact with them, as well as the way that they have eye contact with the camera. The way they are smiling is friendly and represents them as happy, bubbly people. The use of eye contact allows fandom to happen. The CD cover is posed and by having them standing to side and turning their heads, it is trying to show their innocent side. However, the way that the two girls to the left hand side are posed suggests they are being provocative and a little bit teasing towards the males. The Pussycat Dolls are notorious for their sex appeal and this comes across on their CD cover.

The clothes they are wearing represent the Pussycat Dolls as unique. They are not the stereotypical clothes for the R ‘n’ B or pop genre as they are not glamorous. Instead they are unique in the way they are unusual. The colours of the clothes compliment each other and each Pussycat Doll has a different style. Some of the girls have unique hairstyles that also give the impression that they want to be different and not the stereotypical girl band. They give the sense they want to be a girl band for older teenage girls yet still appeal to the younger ones.

The girls are dressed quite provocatively which appeals to the male audience although primarily the target audience is young, teenage females. This is shown through the girlyness of the CD cover; the clothes, the smiles, the colours.The title is almost in rainbow colours which represents the different personalities and identities of the band, how each Pussycat Doll is different. The title is placed at the top so that it catches their target audience’s attention. The PCD at the end is their logo and so it is big so that that the audience can identify it.

The background of the CD cover is black which gives it a sophisticated feel rather than a teenage girl feel. There is not a lot of pink or purple that would appeal to younger girls. The black with the light in the back is like a stage and it is as though they are presenting themselves on stage to the audience.The girls of the Pussycat Dolls give the sense they are close in the way that they are all lines up with one another. And although it is obvious they have been placed on top of each other, two are almost hugging each other, giving this sense.



The Kooks

The black and white theme of this CD cover is plain and simple yet sophisticated. It is a convention of the indie genre as the majority of CD covers are simple and do not have a lot of graphics. This is also true of the music videos that they produce.The images of the band playing their instruments suggest that the band is very much about their music rather than fame. This is also true about their music videos as from them we get the sense that they are focussed on their music.The use of acoustic guitars gives them a unique feel as the stereotypes of bands these days are that they use electric guitars. It suggests that they enjoy playing their music and have a softer side rather than a heavy side to music.

The way that the band seem to be equal, by the positioning of them on the front cover, suggests that they are all equally important in their music. The cover is also male orientated and has male connotations through the use of black and white and instruments, not normally associated with females.The clothes they are wearing are down to earth and are representing themselves as unique yet normal. The look they have is unique in the way that they have big, curly hair rather than a fashionable, clean cut haircut.

The way that the title is positioned on the front cover catches their target audience’s, males in their late teens, attention. The positioning also is like the title is going in and then coming out of something, which is the name of the album. The colour red is used to make it stand out to the audience.The white background of the cover gives it a clean, simple look which is what the indie genre tries to create. CD covers for the indie genre are either simple or unique and abstract. The way that the band are looking down at their instruments also imply to the audience that they are focussed on their music and spend their spare time practicing and ‘jamming’.