Album Cover Sketches and Initial Ideas

After analysing a number of digipaks from a range of Pop Rock artists, I have started to create a sketches for the Front Cover of my six paneled digipak. These ideas have also been influenced by a range of sources, such as the genre of music which the band, 'The RockWeilers' play. Additionally, external influences such as other Pop Rock music artists have played a role in the design of my sketches.

My initial sketches have been shown below with annotations...

This sketch has been influenced by Avril Lavigne's album 'The best damn thing'. This is shown by the medium shot of the lead singer, which is similar to the cover of many of Lavigne's albums, However, I have developed this idea by adding graphic images into the background, which has been influenced by the Ed Hardy signature designs. Moreover, I have decided to superimpose the illustrations of piercings and dog colors to show that this accessories are part of her image, but beneath these accessories the lead singer is an average girl. This is a technique which would allow the lead singer to create a common ground for her predominantly female audience. Nevertheless, I believe that this cover will not emphasise the band name 'The Rockweilers', which is an important aspect in releasing a debut album, as the audience are likely to forget the name. Therefore, I feel that it is necessary to incorporate the idea of dogs into the sketch to prompt the audience in recognising the band name.

Unlike the previous sketch, this idea has been influenced by Lily Allens's album 'Alright, Still'. This is because she makes use of a graphic designs in the background, furthermore her album illustrates Allen's surroundings and environment, which influence her music. This is the reason for the use of buildings, and urban landscapes, as 'The Rockweilers' are a urban influenced band. Furthermore, the image of the hybrid, half rottweiler, half human emphasises the band name and also holds connotations of a rough, rebellious attitude. This is because the Rottweiler and (dogs in general) have vicious, wild traits, which I would like 'The Rockweilers' to embrace. Furthermore, The use of contrasting black and white images and bright backgrounds have been inspired by a number of pop rock album covers such as the 'Plain White T's' and 'Paramore'. This technique guarantees that the audience catches attention of the most important aspects of the cover. It is for this reason, that I believe that this album cover is most appropriate, however I will need to develop my ideas and use of colour and images in favour of the audience and their needs, therefore making the audience an 'active group'.