A promo pack is an assortment of a band/artist's songs spread across a few CDs which are made for the purpose of sending them to record labels in hopes that they will sign them. A good promo pack includes artwork relating to the theme or moral of the song. This is important with a promo pack and a digipack (used by established artists) as it sets the mood and feel of the entire set of CDs. It can also represent something to do with the artist themselves or their genre. It is popular for a digipack cover of a single to refer or relate directly to the corresponding video as it makes it easy for the consumer to recognise and thereby purchase.
This is an example of a digipack found on the internet. The band's name is in large print and is sprawled across the cover. This is as the CD it contains is a greatest hits compilation. As such, the digipack is not required to include a title. This thereby makes it easier to recognise that this is the works of the band "Tokio Hotel" as their name can be displayed in a larger font. This is a popular sales ploy for greatest hits CDs (which are often sold in digipacks for the reasons listed above). There is a symbol in the bottom right corner of the cover which, through research, i believe to be the band's logo. Located on the opposing corner seems to be their record company's logo and above this is a list of their "hit singles". This would be used in order to remind any listeners of the songs that the band had won them over with and that they have enjoyed, but also to entice any who know a few of the songs into purchasing the digipack in order to hear more. Going back to the title, the font style is worn and rough, which implies that the genre of the music is rock-orientated through it's rebellious nature. The paint splodges back this implication by adding to the sense of attitude and lack of discipline. 
I designed this cover after i first came up with the name for my digipack albumn "Spotlight". I then created the image around the name. I did this by thinking of what came to mind when i said the word spotlight. A solo singer imediately jumped out and i went from there. I thought it might be quite powerful to have just the singer on the front cover with a microphone in order to have the effect of a spotlight implied by the image. As for the back, when i was drawing the microphone lead i realised the potential for an intuitive link between front and back cover (which i personally enjoy seeing on albumn cases).
This design, as it may appear obvious, was not so successful in the transition between thought process to paper. However I thought it was a good thing to include because of this as even though i didn't manage to draw it out efficiantly, this was the design i chose to use. I kept the name of the albumn and its message of solitude, i kept the use of a bed and i kept a means of connecting the back and front covers. In doing so i like to think that i learnt from each design and was able to make progress with my ideas.
Digipaks are usually made from paperboard or card stock and are in a booklet style with plastic trays designed to hold disks on the inside. They are typically used to package DVDs and CDs. Digipacks were among the first alternatives to "jewel cases" and were used widely in the industry, with a high level of popularity in the 00s. Today they are mainly used as packaging for special edition CDs and DVD boxsets. One of the most recent albums having a digipak-only release in the US is Teenage Dream by Katy Perry. It is seen as a luxury choice, but is also prone to show signs of wear and tear sooner than it's alternatives.
This is an example of a digipack found on the internet. The band's name is in large print and is sprawled across the cover. This is as the CD it contains is a greatest hits compilation. As such, the digipack is not required to include a title. This thereby makes it easier to recognise that this is the works of the band "Tokio Hotel" as their name can be displayed in a larger font. This is a popular sales ploy for greatest hits CDs (which are often sold in digipacks for the reasons listed above). There is a symbol in the bottom right corner of the cover which, through research, i believe to be the band's logo. Located on the opposing corner seems to be their record company's logo and above this is a list of their "hit singles". This would be used in order to remind any listeners of the songs that the band had won them over with and that they have enjoyed, but also to entice any who know a few of the songs into purchasing the digipack in order to hear more. Going back to the title, the font style is worn and rough, which implies that the genre of the music is rock-orientated through it's rebellious nature. The paint splodges back this implication by adding to the sense of attitude and lack of discipline. 
I chose this digipack cover as my second subject for analysis because it is that of the artist that i will be creating my own one for. The aesthetic quality that is most apparent on this cover is the fact that it is in black and white. Wether photographed this way or edited at a later stage this feature gives the cover a classical feel that is reminisent of old hollywood movies. If this is the intention then it ties in with the themes of fame in her CD titles (including this one). The way that the letter T is presented as a cross in the title hints towards a possible religious reference in her songs. The fact that she is crying(or has been crying) in this image gives me the impression that the album contains songs that express heartfelt emotions. What appears to be running mascara could also be blood, which presents the same kind of connotations. Although blood would lead me to believe in the passionate expression of emtions moreso as it carries the implied assosiations of passion and love.
This was my first initial concept art for the cover of the digipack. The model would be laid on her back on a bed with a vacant expression on her face as if to show that she is unmoved by the hands on her body. As implied by the title, the hands belong to males. The high heel on the other page has connotations of a night on the town and the fact that it has been left on its own shows not only solitude (if we are to assume that "the shoe is her") but that someone has removed it in a hurry or lost it (could be linked to sex).
I designed this cover after i first came up with the name for my digipack albumn "Spotlight". I then created the image around the name. I did this by thinking of what came to mind when i said the word spotlight. A solo singer imediately jumped out and i went from there. I thought it might be quite powerful to have just the singer on the front cover with a microphone in order to have the effect of a spotlight implied by the image. As for the back, when i was drawing the microphone lead i realised the potential for an intuitive link between front and back cover (which i personally enjoy seeing on albumn cases). 
This design, as it may appear obvious, was not so successful in the transition between thought process to paper. However I thought it was a good thing to include because of this as even though i didn't manage to draw it out efficiantly, this was the design i chose to use. I kept the name of the albumn and its message of solitude, i kept the use of a bed and i kept a means of connecting the back and front covers. In doing so i like to think that i learnt from each design and was able to make progress with my ideas. My finished digipack can be found at the web address: https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B5nD0aagNZIuYzc1N2ZjOWMtMGJjMy00NTZiLWE1YWEtZjFjYjllZDcxZjA0&hl=en
...and also at: https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B5nD0aagNZIuZmZmMmYxOTctNTgzNy00OTRmLWJlZTUtNDE3MGNlZGQ1YTk2&hl=en
I am pleased with the digipack i have created as it conveys the theme of the album that it has been created for. The image is one of a girl (posing as the lead singer) laying on her back on a bed with her hands lying loosely either side of her head. I chose to have the mise en scene in the picture set up in this way as i felt that it carried connotations of peace and quiet thought, which works well when it is juxtuposed with the loud pink coloured glamorous font i chose for the cover. this is also why i decided to take the photo in black and white. The image is spread across the front and back cover of the digipack for aesthetic reasons only, during enitial planning it striked me as an idea that would make the digipack appear interesting.
