digipak analysis

Arctic Monkeys Digipak

This is the Digipak for the Arctic Monkeys first album entitled 'whatever people say I am, that's what I'm not'. The album was released in 2006 and sold over 360,000 copies in the first week.  The Arctic Monkeys are an indie band from the Sheffield's suburbs and had a large following before they got signed and started releasing their singles into the charts.

To stay loyal to their existing fans they have used pictures of Sheffield throughout the digipak to represent where they come from and to make their fans feel like they're the same as them. the artwork used on the CD is evidence that they are an indie band, as it gives them a rock n roll image which suggests they are common like everyone else and aren't glamorous and rich like mainstream bands.

The digipak includes a title page with 'Whatever People Say I Am That's What I'm Not' typed on it, a back page including all their acknowledgements and the back cover including another tracklist. This is the only writing included throughout the whole digipak, as 90% of it is just images. This could be further evidence that they are an indie band, as they are only bothered about the music and don't want to try sell themselves to their fans with stories etc. Furthermore there are no pictures of the band throughout suggesting they aren't bothered about individual fame and only want the fans to appreciate their music and not them which is very indie.

The images used inside the digipak include their target audience of young northern people. There is a man in a white shirt used several times in the digipak and is also featured on the front and back cover. He is seen holding a cigarette on a few of these pictures. Cigarettes are a recurring theme throughout the digipak, probably because their target audience can relate to them. The people shown in the pictures look miserable suggesting a gritty lifestyle living in a run down area where music is there only escape.