Album posters analysis

Coldplay- Parachutes

-Close up of a red tinted flower in front of sun, connotes warmth. Dennotes danger of global warming, portraying the artists as caring about world issues to make the audience trusting in them and buy their album. Also Signifies to audience that the album will make the audience feel united together in combatting these problems, referring to the theme of environmentalism running through the album.

-Caption “featuring yellow”, song title linked to the murky colour yellow used in the background. Connotes hope against the odds and optimism, appealing to aspirers as the album prompts them that they can overcome obstacles to achieve their goals.

-Colours black and white used for the title “Parachutes”(white)  and the artist “coldplay” (black). Black connotes themes of death and fear of the unknown, whilst white connotes purity and hope. This contrast of colours denotes the binary opposites (strousse) of light and darkness, referring to the struggle of bad against good in the world. This again refers to the album’s theme of environmentalism by encouraging unity to overcome the problems of the world, appealing to young adults who want to make a difference to help the world.

Arcade Fire- The Suburbs

-Motif of green, connotes renewal and nature, signifies that the album is pure and the artist’s raw talent. Markets the album  to the audience as portraying the artists as naturally talented appeals to aspirers as they may look up to the artists as idols and inspirational figures.

-prop of empty car and setting of neglected house with palm trees drooping down connotes abandonment, relating to title “the suburbs” as the album/song title is illustrated by the run-down setting and it denotes the recognition of disruption in Todorov’s narrative theory. This markets the album to the audience as they can relate to it if they’ve gone through a lonely time in their life.

-"The brand new album" makes the album seem exclusive and modern, appealing to young people who want to keep up to date with social trends.

Arctic Monkeys- AM

- A close up shot of an abstract image featuring wavy lines connotes the themes of examination and insight-fullness from this specific type of shot. The image itself denotes frequencies, linking to the band's music and the fact that these frequencies very in size and wavelength signifies the rawness of their music and that they're pushing their music to new level. This creates a new level of expectation for the artist as their fans are drawn to the album to see how they have reinvented their music.

-A bland colour scheme is used for the album consisting of merely black and white. This adds a sense of nostalgia to the album as the use of monochrome denotes black and white TV, signifying the band are trying to give their music a new direction by inserting their own influences of music while they were growing up in to the album. This helps to market the album to a new, older audience (aswell as their fans) through the apparent retro ties to older artists in the Indie genre.

-Minimal information is used on the poster of the album title, artist and  release date to create an enigma (Barthes). This increases the album's sales as it encourages people to buy the album in order to find out more about it, including the music and the band.

                                             A-ha -East of the Sun, West of the Moon

-Close ups of  the artist directly addressing the audience, engages them and markets the album to a female audience by connoting seduction and flirtation. 

-Mise en scene costume of leather jackets, connotes trendiness and coolness of the band. Makes album appeal to the youth as portraying the artists as modern provides social interaction (blumler and Katz, uses and gratifications theory) for the audience as they can talk about the band with their friends because they fit in with social trends and appear upbeat.

-The names of artists "morten", "pal" and "mags" is personal and connotes ordinariness. Allows the audience to get to know the artist and develop a parasocial relationship with the artist, marketing album as this close relationship encourages fans to support the artists as they can relate to them and want them to succeed.

-Black and white used with black font on white background connote hope and pessimism. This relates to album's title "East of the Sun, West of the Moon" as the sun and the moon signify the binary opposites (strousse) of light and dark, linking to the connotations of black being death and pessimism, whilst the connotations of white are hope and purity. This helps market the album as it portrays the artist's music as being versatile; catering for various tastes to attract a larger audience. It also signifies Todorov's attempt to repair disruption in his narrative theory by denoting the struggle of good fighting evil, marketing the album to aspirers (Psychographics) as it shows that they can overcome their problems.
   
                                                          Milo Greene- Milo Greene

-Black connotes mystery, denoting the bands new songs and musical direction. This sells the album as this enigma engages people who want to learn more about the band and their new music.

-A messy font and colour splashes denote a child's painting, connoting immaturity and fun. This appeals to youth and people wanting to relive their childhood.

-Various colours are used, denoting a paint pallet to connote creativity and freedom. Appeals to aspirers as inspires them to follow their dreams and unfulfilled wishes from childhood.

-White rectangle, connotes in-completion and blankness. Signifies that the album will help to gratify and entertain (blumler and Katz, uses and gratifications theory) the audience.

-Website address, markets album by giving fans the link to order the album from and any affiliated merchandise.