Research - What I Have Taken from Digipak Research

Minimalism and Symbolism

A particular theme I would take from my digipak research would be minimalism; I was drawn to this idea due to the symbolism of The Stone Roses and the nature of project, in that it acts as an anniversary/revival album and will thus be widely recognized by the loyal, cult fans. It is clear from my research that the bands, particularly Alt-J and Arctic Monkeys, used symbolism to essentially brand their band to allow the audience to associate a symbol with their product, Triangle for Alt-J - Soundwave/White-Black Contrast for Arctic Monkeys. In my branding and digipak I will definitely utilize the symbolism of the Lemon associated with The Stone Roses as it is clear that this is a symbol that is widely recognized by fans and associated with the band. Furthermore, my interest in minimalism has lasted much longer than the media project and is evident in a previous blog post and pintrest folders. This theme will continue on the reverse side of the cover, however I intend to adhere to the stereotypical conventions of rock/indie album covers and make the track listing of the album the central focus point, yet still applying the minimalistic theme. I still intend to use a similar design to the one I created in a previous blog post, yet I would like to remove the band and album name and instead opt for a common trope found in minimalistic-designed albums with a sticker on the digipak with this information that one can peel off to maintain the conceptual design. As far as typography is concerned I still intend to use the classic font used by The Stone Roses on their singles covers found on my mock-up, therefore appealing to the 90s audience of the band. Additionally, on the inside cover of the digipak I have considered implementing the expressionist theme found in Stone Roses material with the Jackson Pollock/John Squire artwork and perhaps on the CD as well. I was also inspired with The Kooks' use of the CD hole on the title of the band, I could very much seeing this being a possibility on the CD design and the use of a lemon rather than an 'O' to further imply the symbolism of the band.
In terms of the advertisement material we produce alongside the digipak, I intend to use the lemon symbol to allow the audience to associate the symbol with the band or, if they are very aware of the lemon's meaning, to acknowledge the band's return and their new material. This was a marketing technique utilized in the band's most recent, and current tour. The band simply produced posters that only included a lemon around key areas such as Manchester, London and even on massive screens on Wembley stadium. This marketing instantly created mass-media buzz and was associated with The Stone Roses without fail, thus suggesting the symbol's power.