Coldplay CD Analysis

The stereotypical code and conventions of this CD are the main image, name of artist on the cover and down the side of the casing and the names of songs on the back.   

Coldplay’s album cover ‘Ghost stories’ contains a single image in the center of a blue night sky and ocean background. The lighting has been placed central around the image and it slowly dims out to the background in a circular spot light shape. The image is consistent as it is also used on their poster advertising their tour. By linking these two forms of media they have made it easily identifiable to the audience. The wings are centered and contain multiple images that are supposed to link to medieval times and the stories that were told. Some of the smaller images include a ladder and a circular maze; the small detail added to the main image makes it more intriguing to the audience and draws them in when the album cover is placed on a shelf. The fine detail of the wings is still very prominent on the image despite the fact they contain multiple small images, this emphasizes the album ‘Ghost Stories’ as the pale white wings link to death and the after life. The background is an ocean scene with a starry night sky.

For the back of the CD cover the background has continued and they have listed the song titles down the centre. The font is gold which helps it stand out from the dark blue background. As well as the colour of the font they have also wrote it in capitols by using a light colour against a dark background and putting it all in capitols they have made it more eye catching and easier to read. The font is also very simplistic which could represent the simple look of the band however their music is very up beat and ‘exciting’ and this is represented by the royal look of the gold colour font. The barcode has been placed in the right corner where it stereotypically is and the copyright and distribution information had been placed in small white text to the left.  They have also added the logo of Warner Music so buyers will be aware of which conglomerate they are signed to. It also has the logo of the subdivision of the record label Parlophone. By adding all this information the consumer will always be away of whom they are buying from.

Once again Coldplay have kept it simple by having the same font, background and copyright information on the disc. However they have not placed the image of the angel wings on the disc. They have also place a booklet inside with the lyrics to each song and images of the group.  This makes the album more appealing to the fans as they will feel they know the artists and their songs. They have also used similar images and drawing styles that are placed in the wings on the main image onto the first pages of the booklet, keeping it consistent and yet intriguing due to the intricate images.