Album Cover Review: Album Art Lives On

 

Some say that album art is outdated, a thing of the past. While people once waited in line to buy CDs, we can now download music much more easily from the comfort of our own computers. However, I challenge that notion. I argue that album cover art is alive and well. It is moving with the times, evolving. Now, successful artists view visuals as a way to brand themselves.

When you purchase music online, your decisions are even more rapid than in the store. Usually, you know what you are looking for, and if you are on the hunt for new music, your click-through rate is very speedy. The copious and overwhelming amount of well-produced music that is available makes it impossible to peruse everything that’s out there, so artists need a way to get your attention. Brilliant album artwork is a great way to do this.

According to an anonymous local musician, “Choosing a concept [for your album art] is a balance between making a connection visually with the music and adding another layer of meaning to the music… Really good album art leads to a relationship between two different concepts.”

An album cover can say a lot and create a strong visual brand identity for an artist. Here are some great examples of this.

 

Vintage – Recently, I’ve seen a lot of artists using vintage photographs as album artwork. It’s visually appealing and lends itself to really rich story telling.

Kendrick Lamar Good Kid, m.A.A.d City Taylor Swift 1989 Sufjan Stevens Carrie & Lowell

Kendrick Lamar – Good Kid, m.A.A.d City
Top Dawg Entertainment
2012
Taylor Swift – 1989
Big Machine Records
2014
Sufjan Stevens – Carrie & Lowell
Asthmatic Kitty Records
2015

 

Simple – Minimalism is definitely trendy. It can be humorous, down-to-earth or force you to look long and hard at the text and consider it deeply.

Death Cab for Cutie The Photo Album Lorde Pure Heroine The Black Keys Brothers

Death Cab for Cutie – The Photo Album
Barsuk Records
2001
Lorde – Pure Heroine
Universal Music, New Zealand
2013
The Black Keys – Brothers
Nonesuch Records Inc.
2010

 

Dense – Talk about attention to detail. These grab your attention and keep you looking.

Bon Iver Bon Iver, Bon Iver Fleet Foxes Sun Giant Dave Matthews Band Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King

Bon Iver – Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Jagjaguwar
2011
Fleet Foxes – Sun Giant
Sub Pop
2008
Dave Matthews Band – Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King
RCA
2009

 

Painterly – Aesthetically pleasing and a bit whimsical. 

Radiohead A Moon Shaped Pool Grouplove Never Trust a Happy Song Iron & Wine Our Endless Numbered Days

Radiohead – A Moon Shaped Pool
XL Recordings
2016
Grouplove – Never Trust a Happy Song
Canvasback, Atlantic Records
2011
Iron & Wine – Our Endless Numbered Days
Sub Pop
2004

 

Collage – This is an intricate and interesting way to make an impact.

Young the Giant Young the Giant The Wombats Glitterbug Hozier Hozier

Young the Giant – Young the Giant
Roadrunner Records
2010
The Wombats – Glitterbug
14th Floor Records, Warner Bros. Records
2015
Hozier – Hozier
Rubyworks, Island Records, Columbia Records
2014

 

References:

Why Cover Art is More Important than Ever

24 Minimalist Album Covers

10 Tips for Designing Album Art in the Digital Age

Discogs.com

 

Images from artists’ websites:

Sufjan Stevens

Taylor Swift

Kendrick Lamar

Death Cab For Cutie

Lorde

The Black Keys

Bon Iver

Fleet Foxes

Dave Matthews Band

Radiohead

GROUPLOVE

Iron & Wine

Young the Giant

The Wombats

Hozier