Conventions of a CD Case

To continue on from our research into digipaks, we looked at the typical conventions of a CD case so that we were able to familiarise ourselves with the key aspects of one in order to apply it to our own.

Front Cover: We noticed that many front covers generally have the artists name in a large font clearly displayed on the cover, this could be because the record label need to make it obvious who the artist is in order to attract their fans and/or potential buyers straight away. We also noted that most text fonts are very unique, this therefore makes it more personal and so much more recognisable to the public. Another factor that can have a huge impact on the quality/professionalism of the album is how well the artwork visually represents the genre of the music- for example, if an indie album were to have bubbly pop artwork it would not be taken seriously. Front covers almost always feature the artist's name in the top third of the cover to signify importance- as well as this, the artists name and album title are often in different fonts and sizes (album name typically smaller) to differentiate the two and show which has most power.

Back Cover: The back cover on the other hand features the track list predominantly of which the font is very clear for the viewers to read and also typically links to the front cover font, showing a strong sense of continuity. It also always features elements such as the label's name, catalog number, barcode, website URL, social media sites, production credits and producers name. This is all information that we feel is important to go on our own album as attention to detail is most effective to me.

Disc: The disc, realistically, is the most important feature of an album however, to me, not visually as it is inside and the album artwork on the front cover needs to jump out in order to be picked up off the shelf in the first place. The artists name is normally on the disc alongside the album title but not always. Sometimes there is no feature of any titles or artist name and just visual imagery that ties in conceptually with the album artwork so that there is, at least, a link. Some artists leave their disk blank to seem artistic, but not many.

Inside: The inserts in a CD case are normally thank you letters, lyrics or pictures of the artist on their album cover themed shoot. This needs to show a clear link to the rest of the album's artwork on both the front and back covers in order for it to seem continuous and as one.

Spine: The spine conventionally includes both the artists and album name alongside the record labels logo. This information is always kept to a minimum so that only the important details stand out to the viewer.

This research has been very beneficial to us when knowing what to include when designing our own digipak later in the process.