Killswitch engage analysis Killswitch engage are a metal band in which have had two different styles throughout their career due to two different singers being involved. The font of the bands name on the front cover is done in a bold silver font and is rather large. Even though the background image is a lot bigger you are still drawn to their name because of its bright colour and the size of it. There is a style added to the font which gives almost a tribal feel to make it more interesting, they swirls and strands also help to frame it. The background image which stretches across the whole cover is of a skull, which has been done in a more darkened white, to almost the colour of bone. I’m not sure what relevance this has to the band, but I suppose it has something to do with their name ‘kill’switch. The idea of death implemented by the skull and the word kill from their name. Which is rather bizzare considering none of their songs do have relevance to death. On the rear page of this cover there is some white text held within what seems to be a mark left by a spray paint, which instantly helps you understand where the rest of the page is coming from. The dark background of grey/blue, it’s a wall that has been tagged with graffiti. This explains what the skull is doing in the background, it’s a tag which may be recognised as something in their past. Within the spray paint are a few words which tell you a bit about the band, which works well and allows new fans to get a bigger understanding of the artist. Columned down the left side of the back cover in white are the names of the songs on the DVD. These are in a white bold font which stands out on the blue/grey wall. The text also shares the same identity of their name on the front – bringing importance to all the text on the page. Again, we have a few images at the bottom of the page of all the band members, some taken live and some from their music videos. These almost help promote the band because there are pictures of them on stage touring – which shows successfulness.
Hammerfall cover analysis The font used for the title and for the track list is an old English type font which reflects the Arthurian style of the band. The capitals for the title have a 3D effect which makes it look like hammered metal – a reflection of the name of the band. The images of the members of the band are all strong, dark, sombre images in tune with the overall image the band portrays. The colours used again reflect the feel or mood of the band – dark and brooding using blacks greys and blues. The brightest colours are used on the gryphon or fantasy creature to make it stand out, but at the same time this image is not allowed to take over the picture being partly hidden by the text. The reason for there being a gryphon is because it flows with the genre which is power metal. As said before, power metal uses fantasy within its lyrics using heavy power chords to make the music more dramatic. The main image on the cover again reflects the Arthurian knights theme with the shield, and the name of the band with the crossed hammers instead of swords they also reflect the idea of an older ‘age’ (Arthurian) as the shield and hammers would have been forged, and this is what it looks like. The shield being slightly dimpled as to have been done by smiting hammers and chisels – this adds to the mise-en-scene of this cover, giving us a feel of something more medieval. All in all this is a pretty effective cover as well as it being really effective – having everything tie into the name of the band from images to the font. It has a really easy layout, having one large image on the front, name of the band and then the track list on the back and a few band images. This could help us for a frame to work around when creating ours.
Disturbed Cover Analysis Disturbed are a hard rock/metal band who uses clever metaphors for feelings throughout their songs. The font of this cover has an outline highlight which is brighter than the text itself; this forces the name of the band to stand out on the page. The text itself is in a rather sharp font, and has been used on other albums of theirs such as ’10,000 fists in the air’ – having a font that is consistent is a good idea because if people see that font they instantly think of the band. Below the font ‘Disturbed’ there is a large scale image of some kind of monster walking through flame. This has more meaning than the average consumer (who doesn’t listen to this sort of music) will understand. This is ‘The Guy’ – on the front image. He’s been used ever since they started out as their mascot and has been used in their music videos too. Because he is used in their music I believe he’s being used (or was thought up to) as a metaphor for what they sing about ‘pain and suffering’ (barbed wire wrapped around his head) and ‘breaking free, corruption’ (Chains around his waist and arms), this shows most in their video ‘The land of Confusion’. He’s almost like the symbol of the band. Although saying this they also have another symbol which is of four religion symbols entwined, showing the religions and beliefs of the band members. On the back page, the scene changes to a more darker background which looks to be like a slab of rock or maybe a torn page – which is tinted in a blue/grey colour. This works well with the rest of the cover because it helps divide it up. Their name is in the same font as used on the front as well as it being place on the page the same. There are also two images on the back page which are of the band members, which have the effect of being behind cracked glass. In these images they wear the dark colours to represent the genre and meaning of the band – this seems pretty common between bands and covers now. These images are also highlighted in a rough yellow square to make them stand out of the blue. There is a track list which scrolls down the back page. This is also a distorted font, with the same sharpness to it – consistent font. The font is written in a yellow, the same yellow used to highlight the images, the reason for doing this is because it helps to merge the back page together.
