Basic Design

Spatiality

Symbols

People

Happening in the Background

Language

Fonts

Aesthetic Decision

Mood

Relationship between pictorial elements and wriiten material

Analysing a magazine advertisement for a band [Marina &The Diamonds]

CD COVER [LEFT]
MAGAZINE ADVERTISEMENT [LEFT]

SYNERGY AND INTERTEXTUALITY:
The same imagery etc is used for the digipak as in the advertisement. This is to create an identity for the band. It also ensure that the consumer knows what to look for in, say, HMV, when they want to purchase the product.












ANALYSIS

Basic Design
Triangular composition
No symmetry and no appararent reason for this

Spatiality
Filled spaced with graphic and copy elements
No use of white space, thus a messy, unclean look is given

Symbols
Open mouth = sexuality, sexual connotations
Jewel coloured vintage fabric = reflects the bands' name "Diamonds" and the albums' name "Jewels".

People
Facial expression = sexy (open mouth)
Position = laying down (implies sex)
Age = 20s (target audience)
Hair colour and style = brown (sultry) = loose (carefree)
Other people? = No, she is the only one (Implies she is main singer)

Happening in the Background
Head is superimposd onto vintage fabric
Sharp back and foreground
Vintage fabric = links to today's youth and their obsession with vintage objects.


Language
Simple Information
Short and Snappy
Different size fonts
- What it includes, when it is released, name of debut album and its release, how to purchase, formats available, quotes of reviews, website of band.

Fonts
Handwriting = carefree; implies lyrical notes; old fashiones which reflects 'The Family Jewels'
Sans-serif = Other side of youth (use of technology) (moderninity); smart and legible for information to be comprehendable.

Aesthetic Decision
Copy is arranged to follow the slope of Marina's photograph. The copy above her slants and the copy below her is horizontal - fitting around her face and body which lays central and horizontal in the composition.

Relationship between pictorial elements and wriiten material
The Family Jewels = Links into the colour scheme.

Attitudes
Economical and Social attitudes are perhaps portrayed.
Economical ===> An image of weath (The family Jewels and imagery of vintage fabric and old handwriting all evoke the idea of inheritance from a written will).
Social ====> An image of sex via her position and open mouth [and sex sells!]. The Family Jewels is also the youth's expression for testicles.

__________________________________________________________________

How will I take this into account when I design my advert and digipak?

I will:
* Ask the audience about whether they like it when there is synergy in the designs
* Ask the audience about whether they like the jewely colours
* Ask the audience about whether they like that you can see the 'face' of the band.
* Ask the audience about whether they like complex (Marina & The Diamonds') or simple (Field Music's) designs.
* Take all the aspects that I have analysed into consideration when I design mine.

Researching Features of a Music Magazine Advert

Our second ancillary task is to design a magazine advert for our band, and thus their digipak.
I have begun to research into some bands' magazine adverts and have picked out features that they include in order to publicise their digipak.


These are all possible information that can be included in magazine adverts for music:-


Name of Band/Artist
Merchandise that is available
Release Date
Content of product
Bonus material
Title of the album
Title of hit singles
A website link
Reviews
Record Label
Outlets where it can be purchased
Tour dates
In what formats it is available


I think I should pick a few of these - but not all, otherwise it would result in an information overload.

Target Audiences

1. Do you think that a Text creates and audience, or vice versa?

• Audiences shapes the outcome of the text
• Text has to exist first
• The relationship is not direct, it is complicated, as the audienc'es preferences vary.

2. We watched, on Youtube "A Short History of Marketing"

• It showed that brand loyalties used to exist.
• But then, the number of companies escalated.
• For example, there are now lots of ways to access music, instead of just one.
• Many different music distributers exist today, and some offer more narrow genres (e.g. just RnB).
• You can buy CDs, download, go clubbing, music channels, word of mouth, adverts, myspace, youtube, radio, shops.

3. Where would we reach our audience? We'd broadcast our music video on the music channels: Mtv2 and Q. And on radio channels: Radio 1 and XFM.

4. Does music create an identity?

I researched whether music tastes say something about your personality.....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7598549.stm

INDIE

Low self-esteem, creative, not hard working, not gentle

Whereas,
SOUL
High self-esteem, creative, outgoing, gentle, at ease

5. Are we secondary or tertiary users?

• We are secondary users when we choose to play the music - when we play music on our iPOD.
• We are tertiary users when we walk into a shop, and the music playing in the background is not chosen by us.
• We are, however, given the choice to be secondary users in some cases. For example, in some shops, jukeboxes are available. They are intended to entertain the boyfriend when the girlfriend is taking forever in teh changing rooms. But the main preferred reading is to keep the people in the shop, to heighten the chance of them buying something, too.