Album cover - The Best of Blur

For the front cover of my digipak, one idea I was considering is a style very similar to the one shown here on Blur’s album ‘The Best of Blur’.

It features the four band members’ faces on a very minimalist, basic design in each coloured quarter of the face of the front panel. This basic design is one that I find to be, eye-catching, quirky and bold, much like the genre of ska itself. For my own digipak cover, I was toying with the idea of having a similar format to this, using the faces of our own actors as the band members.

The bold, block colours used create a sense of fun and playfulness, which I think is the kind of image a band like Blur are trying to put across about themselves. The colours play an effective role in bringing about a vibrant contrast across the image as opposed to more faded shades that would give a hazy effect, not at all what Blur’s Britpop/rock genre is trying to present. It’s very similar to some forms of pop art, such as this one pictured below, which also is heavily based around very block colours and ease of expression through bold lines and colour whilst focussing on contemporary themes. For my own design I have contemplated using block colours such as these ones as they are in-fitting with the quirky youth side of the ska genre and bring about connotations of fun and enjoyment such to metaphorically present the carefree nature of teenage ska fans. However, if I am to follow this idea for my digipak, I would most likely go down the root of a more two-tone ska black and white chequered colour effect that is so iconic of the genre, seeing as our band are most in-fitting with the two-tone sub genre.

The faces on the album cover are illustrated as opposed to photographs. This too is something I would consider when producing my own. Although I would be initially starting with photographs of the actors’ faces, I will be editing them a considerable amount with various effects to transform the photos into a cartoon-esque image such as the ones on this Blur album. Rather than the bland image effect using just photographs in this case would give, the use of cartoon illustrations also adds a quirky, fun element to the images that is in-keeping with the genre. This is something I shall consider with my own production.