Coursework - Textual Analysis of CD Covers

CD Cover

Kodaline ~ In A Perfect World:

• Lots of blue - a calm colour
• The image has been taken in an isolated place, there is no one there except the 4 people that we can see.
• Quite a grainy image, not very clear. 
• The image relates quite well to the title, as it shows the sea and mountains etc. This is quite a good representation of the world and for some people this may be seen as perfect.
• The camera shot is an extreme long shot as it shows all of the surroundings and we cannot see the facial expressions. 
• The lighting is natural and quite high key
• The back is a complete contrast to what we see on the front, although it shows a similar scene, it is in the dark and only has a few splashes of pink in the sky.
• The fonts used are simple and easy to read.
• The four people on the front cover are quite obviously having fun and this could suggest that the music that has been created through for men just having fun.

David Bowie ~ The Next Day

• Complete album cover is black and white. This gives mixed messages as white normally has positive connotations whereas black gives negative connotations. 
• You cannot see David Bowies face on the cover as it is covered by a white square with the album title written in it. This leaves the audience questioning what his facial expression is and why it is covered up.
• This album makes an intertextual reference to one of Bowie's previous albums 'Heroes'. As you can see in the top right corner 'Heroes' has got a line through to show that it is not the 'Heroes' album.
• The name of the album also relates to the image as it is 'The Next Day' which implies time has moved on and is passing, so the use of an old image shows that time has passed since then and things are not the same.
• The camera shot is close up so you would be able to see his facial expressions if the white square was not there. 
• It is hard to tell what the lighting is as it is in black and white but I would assume that the lighting is low key.
• The back of the cover is also the 'Heroes' album covered over with a white square and new song titles etc. 
• The fonts used are easy to read and are the same on both the front and back

Two Door Cinema Club ~ Tourist History.

• The front of the album cover is quite dark and the only bright colours are in the cats eyes. The green is a connotation of envy but could also be seen as quite soothing, and the darkness represents mystery. 
• The image does not massively professional as it looks like something an average person could take. It is not really in a professional scene, it looks like it has been taken in a kitchen.
• The font is the typical font that we relate with Two Door Cinema Club as it is used on all of their merchandise and albums. 
• The way that the eyes are inside the 'OO' makes them the focus point of the whole album cover. 
• The album name is really quite small and the band name is a lot bigger, which could suggest that people will recognise the album from its image rather than the name. For example if someone saw it from far away they would notice the image before they notice the album name. 
• The camera shot is a close up but the cats face is mainly covered up by the text.
• The lighting is low key and it looks like the image has only been lit up by the flash of the camera.
• The back of the album is plain and again their signature font is used. The blue of the font represents calmness and the white of the background represents positivity and simplicity.