analysis of kooks research

The album theme of the Kooks very first album 'Inside in Inside out' sticks to this recurring theme of black and white, which is rather fitting for the contents of the album, style of band, and refers to the Indie genre. The image is very studio in my opinion with just a simple white background, as if the Kooks are in for practise or recording, and represents the band with a message of who they are and what they stand for due to their instruments and how they position themselves. As a result this exaggerates the focus of the introduction of the entire band, being relatively new they need to appeal in the front cover to catch the viewers attention. The contrast in colour is a diverse contrast from the pure white background, as a result this makes the band members look bold. The image also suggests the ranks of the band. For example with Luke and his frontman at the front of the image this shows that they are vital for the band, particularly Luke, being the lead singer. His frontman also gets slightly more screen time within the music videos due to his position. In the middle is the other guitarist and at the very back is the drummer. Not that he gets lost in the background due to the dramatic contrast of black and white which also shows he may be the person that is most likely more in the background due to being a drummer but not forgotten. I love the way they've done the title in this album cover. With 'The Kooks' bold in black in between the title of the album 'Inside in, the Inside out' which is striking in red against the black and white image which is really dramatic.

The photograph used for their second album 'Konk' is a lot more serious and dramatic. I think this is because the Kooks are now aware of their popularity and success from their previous album. A spotlight of light comes from the Neon light of the album title 'Konk' is used to highlight the band members in the image. This technique makes sure that the band members are the focal point in the photo, as the rest of the album is framed in blackness. I really like the originality of incorporating the title of the album within the photographs, as usually it's just stamped on afterwards. The band as a whole look very together in this photograph, and the roles don't seem to matter as much. However i still think their is more focus on Luke and his frontman, as is the case in any band, because you can see more of their faces, especially Lukes. The clothes in the photograph represent the Indie genre and their characteristics. The leather jackets, shirts and the hat that the frontman commonly wears all represent their identity as individuals and as a group. The font of the band name 'The Kooks' is in a really simple, but bold manner. The use of capitals emphasise their name, and the colour white really helps it stand out against the pitch black surface of the photograph. I really like the effect of this simplistic technique. The fact that his album cover is more dramatic also instates the bands movement from the first album and the fact that this album has been focussed on a different meaning, than the first, and their may even be a slight difference in the music. This is because albums are never the same completely, as bands constantly have to keep developing to stay in the change of the music industry.

This is the album cover of the Kooks third album 'Junk of the Heart'. The cover is very different to the last two albums, and shows the bands development and already suggests the change of the band and the music inside. Bands always like the experiment with different styles and how they can make their music different. Luke himself describes the songs in this album as 'louder'.  This is always a risk as bands love them for their previous music, and the Kooks were already very distinct and different from the rest which made them so popular. The fact that the album cover is a lot more experimental, and the band have moved away from using themselves in the photo shows this development, and i also find it more alternative to coincide with the Indie genre. Another difference to the album cover is how colourful it actually is, and i love the way paint has been smeared over the photographs, i feel this really incorporates the meaning of the title 'Junk of the Heart'. Whats also important is the fact that the title doesn't appear on the front of the cover. This is because the band is so secure from their previous success that they don't really need to sell themselves on the front cover, or even include a title because their fans would already know. This is why they can be more original. The one thing that is kept the same is the font and style used for the band name 'The Kooks' exactly the same as it was in the last album. This provides some sort of structure, and resembles that the Kooks still have the same values as before. I also like how the white not only works brilliantly against a black background like in the last album, but also stands out and works just as good against lots of colour too.

From analysing these album covers it helps me to develop and incorporate the ideas of the Kooks into my front cover of my digi pack. I think i will definitely stick to the simplicity of the band name, and may not include a title to make it look cleaner, just as the Kooks have in their third album. I can choose to include band members, or have something that represents the image of the title, aslong as it's strong, bold and meaningful. And it could either be simple, like the shot in the first album, but strong because of the contrast of monotone colours, or a lot more edited such as that of the second album 'Konk'.