Is Album Artwork Important?

In this digital age, where everyone has access to Photoshop and stock photos, it seems the quality of album covers has gone down. Bands tend to throw quality to the wayside, instead preferring to make their own cheap covers. While this is expected for newer, struggling bands, it kills me a little inside when established bands decide to release a mediocre album cover.

Children are raised with the mantra of "don't judge a book by its cover," but as consumers, we are instantly drawn to pretty packaging. Nice packaging tells the consumer's subconscious that the contents will be just as pleasing, and encourage the individual to make a purchase. Because of this, it's important that bands realize when they are designing their packaging that they are not just creating an icon to symbolize their music on an iPod. Album artwork is marketing material, and it should be treated as such.

One of my favorite examples of artwork gone wrong is the cover of Cobra Starship's "Hot Mess."

Without knowing anything about the band, most consumers would be put off by this cover, mostly for the reasons that the band picked it. The girl is supposed to be a "hot mess," but to the average viewer, it comes across as sloppy and almost gross.

Conceptual album art is another way of encouraging purchases, but it is very often a hit or miss situation.

A few of my favorite covers:

This is two album covers. The one on the left is PlayRadioPlay!'s last album before a name change (and change in style) to Analog Rebellion, whose debut album is on the right. They were released at the same time.

courtesy of psfk.com

The original release of OK Go's "Of The Blue Colour of the Sky" had this abstract artwork as the booklet.

Although it shouldn't be left in the hands of just anyone, handmade album covers can be adorable, gorgeous, and altogether perfect for sale.

Album covers can often become very cliched, very fast, however. The one thing I always see, and can't stand, is the closeup on a woman's face. This usually happens with solo (female) artists, bands with a female singer, etc. Some examples:

The covers quickly begin to blend into each other, and just become background noise among other, more original covers.

As you can see from just the few examples here, album covers are more than just a place for bands to thank their moms and slap their name onto paper. As prime marketing space, covers have to be treated as the precious real estate they are - the first thing the customer sees. 

The Music Business Ruins Music.

The music business is primarily a business. As counterintuitive as it seems, music labels are more concerned with producing money than with producing quality music.

This drive to sell to the masses leads to a decline in quality. And even with quality bands, interaction with fans is lessened or even lost, because time spent with fans is time losing money. When this kind of distance between fans and musicians becomes the standard, fans lose part of the joy of music. In this sense, the music business is losing everything that it relies on - music.

Recently, a band that I discovered back before they were signed to a label was released from their contract after a few years with the company. Before they had signed with the label, they were heavily fan-oriented, giving away music for free, having barbecues after concerts, and hanging out with fans wherever they went. On the label, they were not allowed to give away music, and their heavy touring schedule forbade them from spending any time with fans, except for in harshly scheduled meet and greets. After some fighting, presumably about monetary issues, as well as their lack of control over their own future, they left the label.

In a few months, everything changed. A house tour with inexpensive tickets was scheduled, singles were released on vinyl, and pre-order packages came with hand-written letters and homemade presents. When a band decides to send me handmade presents for pre-ordering their album, it practically guarantees that I will be a fan, no matter how bad the album is.

Music labels need to realize that they need to adapt to audience's needs in order to survive. With music available freely online, the personal touch can be exactly the draw needed to bring customers back to buying from the artist. Beyond that, the majority of money made by bands is through touring and merchandise sales. When a fan is guaranteed to meet the band because of a small venue, he or she will be more willing to fork over more money for the show.

In the end, the music business will always be about money. But, CEOs must realize that with changing times comes a need for a change in the way bands are operated.

OK Go - White Knuckles

In case you've been living under a rock, here's the latest music video from my favorite band, OK Go:



The video is for their latest single, "White Knuckles," and proceeds from the sale of the video go to the ASPCA. After their recent break with Capitol Records, it's definitely interesting to see a band use their popularity to help animals. But, as animal lovers themselves, it's not surprising in the least. In fact, Damian's own dog makes a cameo in the video.

OK Go is also re-releasing their CD "Of the Blue Colour of the Sky," this time as as an "extra nice edition," complete with bonus tracks and access to a digital vault of songs that the band plans to frequently update.

It seems that fan-oriented bands are calling it quits with record labels far more often lately. Whether over creative differences, monetary disagreements, or even things as simple as youtube, there is nothing better than seeing a band able to do what they want, and when they want to. OK Go has proven that you can go from a major label to a self-funded band, and end up faring better than the businessmen.

You can purchase the video, the new edition of the CD, dog collars, autogaphed trash cans, paper airplanes, and more at the band's website, http://www.okgo.net/. You can also hear remixes of "White Knuckles" and buy tickets to their upcoming shows. They will be playing Terminal 9 in Brooklyn in a few days.

Seriously, just check them out. If you're not convinced, you must not feel emotion. They are an awesome creative team.

Pirating Music is Bad. (So Why Do We Do it Anyways?)

I recently recieved in the mail a clear yellow 7" vinyl of Hellogoodbye's single, "When We First Met." When I called up a friend, fully prepared to wax poetic about the beauty of my new posession, she told me I was ridiculous, and that I should have just pirated the song instead.

For those who don't know, pirating music is the act of illegally downloading a song from the internet for free. This is illegal. Programs like limewire have made this a very simple process, though, and many people pirate music regardless of the legality.

Personally, I've always treasured physical CDs and LPs, and I've never understood the craze of pirating music. If no one buys a musician's music, how will he make money to make more music? In theory, it's a lack of morals that keeps individuals pirating music, but I believe it is more to do with the apathetic nature of today's society.

Being raised in the world of instant-access everything, kids today want music when they want it. So instead of getting a ride to the local CD store, hunting the racks for a specific album, and then waiting in line to finally purchase it, people are more likely to use an application like iTunes or Rhapsody. So with music literally at people's fingertips, why do they still pirate it?

If there was a bin of free things dropped at everyone's front door, it's almost guaranteed that everyone would sneak those things back inside and happily keep them, even if they knew the things probably weren't for them. The same thing applies to music. If we can get it for free, and everyone else does it already, why shouldn't we get it?

 Due to these beliefs, however, bands are constantly forced to disband, unable to make enough money to release new music, dropped from labels, and pushed back into corporate 9-5 jobs. By pirating music, you destroy music. Can you live with that?

8 Underrated Movie Musicals (1945-present)

Although movie musicals may not be directly related to a music blog, they do have songs, and that justifies this post! I'm obsessed with movie musicals. As a child, I grew up watching them, and the habit never stopped. So, throughout the years, I've stumbled on a few great musicals that I personally think don't get the credit they deserve. Everyone knows about "The Sound of Music," "Grease," and Moulin Rouge." But what about the indie musicals that never quite found a following, or the older movies that have slipped through the cracks? In order to keep things from getting too out of hand, I'm only going to be listing movies from 1945 to the present. These are some of my favorites, in chronological order.

1. "State Fair" (1945)

photo courtesy of houseofmirthandmovies.com

Although this seems to be a relatively well-known movie, everyone I've ever talked to about it has always preferred the 1962 version with Ann-Margaret and Pamela Tiffin. As a remake of a 1933 movie with the same name, "State Fair" has been through a motley of reincarnations, along with different stage productions. I fell in love with this movie at the opening song, "It Might as Well Be Spring," and sat enraptured until the very end. Composed by Rodgers and Hammerstein, it's a happy movie that can entertain all ages.

2. "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court" (1949)

photo courtesy of britannica.com

Starring Bing Crosby and Rhonda Fleming, "A Connecticut Yankee..." is based off of Mark Twain's novel of the same name. Admittedly, I've never read the novel, but this movie has been one of my favorites for as long as I can remember, following a man going back in time to King Arthur's court, where he is labeled a monster, and almost burned at the stake. There aren't many songs, but the few that are in the movie are catchy and upbeat, like "Busy Doing Nothing," which is about exactly what the title implies.

3. "Funny Face" (1957)

photo courtesy of thesundaytimesmarket.com

Since no movie musical list can be complete without at least one Fred Astaire movie, I give you my favorite post-1945 number. Audrey Hepburn plays an intellectual bookshop worker whose store is taken over by Fred Astaire's character, a photographer, for a magazine shoot. While developing the film, Astaire notices her in the background, and hires her as a model, beginning a whirlwind romance in Paris. Audrey actually sings in this movie, unlike "My Fair Lady," and it only adds to the charm of her character.

4. "My Fair Lady" (1964)

photo courtesy of nighthawknews.wordpress.com

"My Fair Lady" is the film adaptation of the stage production, which starred Julie Andrews in place of Audrey Hepburn. It is based off of the play and movie adaptation of "Pygmalion." With Hepburn as a common flower girl, Eliza Doolittle, and Rex Harrison as Professor Higgins, a well-off speech professor, the movie revolves around their tumultuous relationship as Professor Higgins attempts to pass Eliza off as a duchess. This is my favorite movie of all time, and although it won eight academy awards, I feel it has been forgotten by my generation. With Marni Nixon dubbing Audrey's singing, this movie has one of the best soundtracks of any movie on this list, especially on "Show Me."

5. "Man of La Mancha" (1972)

photo courtesy of guardian.co.uk

I discovered "The Man of La Mancha" through my clarinet teacher, who told me that I would love it as much as I hated it. He was right. There are parts of this movie that are depressing, confusing, and slightly vulgar. But overall, it is the story of 2 men facing the greatest struggles they've ever faced. Although "Man of La Mancha" was a box-office failure, I believe it is a movie that must be seen.

6. "Grease 2" (1982)

photo courtesy of metro.co.uk

"Grease 2" is terrible. Honestly, it's one of the worst movies I've ever seen. That's what makes it so great. The sequel to "Grease," it stars Michelle Pfeiffer and Maxwell Caulfield in the campiest, strangest musical ever. She's a pink lady, he's a foreign exchange student, he falls in love, she's dating a greaser. He eventually woos her by learning to ride a motorcycle and driving her places while wearing a mask, so she never knows who he is. The songs are just as weird, with "Score Tonight," set in a bowling alley, and "Do It For Our Country," which takes place in a bomb shelter. The ridiculous soundtrack only adds to the movie's crazy factor, making this movie a must-see.

7. Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Cinderella" (1997 Made-for-TV)

photo courtesy of flixster.com

The all-star cast of this made-for-TV movie make this production extremely unique. With Brandy as Cinderella, Victor Garber and Whoopi Goldberg as the King and Queen, and Bernadette Peters as the evil stepmother, I have preferred this version to the Disney cartoon since I first saw it. With classic songs, adorable costumes and scenery, and an amazing cast, this movie is worth the search for a VHS of it.

8. "Les Chansons D'Amour" (2007)

photo courtesy of dansiella.wordpress.com

Entirely in French, "Les Chansons" is the story of a boy and two girls in a relationship. When one girl dies suddenly, the boy is left to piece his life back together into some form of normalcy in the arms of different people. The songs are haunting, and the first time I watched it, I was left crying, trying to figure out what had happened. It's truly a beautiful modern musical, with a story that just keeps breaking your heart.

Concert Recap - OK Go @ UCMusicFest, 9/11/10

As one of my favorite bands since 2006, OK Go has always seemed to avoid playing anywhere I could see them. On one tour, the closest they played was 2 states away, and on another, the venue was 18+.

Last May, they played at Bamboozle, a local music festival known for it's recent marketing to younger crowds. Tickets for 1 day are approximately $60, but for that you can see upwards of 100 bands. My mom and I paid for the tickets, and we drove for an hour and a half, arriving 2 hours early. I waited in front of the stage the entire time, dodging between people to finally get to the 2nd row by the time the 1/2 hour show started. Although it was an amazing show, the short set time, crowdsurfers, and killer heat all combined to make it an altogether annoying event.

If you will, jump forward with me 4 months. OK Go posts that they will be playing the Union County MusicFest, a free concert series and county fair located only an hour away. I was escstatic. So, my mom and I once again packed up and headed out, getting lost (as usual), but eventually finding our way to the park where the fair was held. After paying the $10 parking fee, we trudged up to the main stage, which was completely empty. I walked up to the barrier and claimed my spot, and began the 1 hour waiting game. By the time 7 p.m. rolled around, there was a huge crowd of people behind me, my mom was nowhere in sight, and the band was walking onstage.

The show was, once again, amazing. It was a 75 minute set, and because of the family atmosphere, there were no crowdsurfers or random drunk people freaking out over nothing. Damian, the lead singer, played "Last Leaf" off of their latest album, while in the middle of the crowd.

They also brought out handbells for an all-handbell rendition of "What To Do" from their first album.

The crowd was insane:

(I'm out of frame, 2 people to the left.)
photo courtesy of ok go.

When I left, I couldn't stop talking to my mom about how awesome the show was for basically only $5 each. The event is 2 days, and the headliner for the day we were there was Train. We got free stuff from all the sponsors' tables, and there was delicious vegetarian food for reasonable prices.

A few pictures:

Review - Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream"

While waiting in line to purchase the movie "The Band Wagon," starring Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse, a CD on sale caught my eye, if only for one reason.

It was cotton candy scented.

The CD in question was "Teenage Dream," by the now infamous Katy Perry, singer of quite a few popular ditties, such as: "California Gurls," "Hot 'n' Cold," "Ur So Gay," and "I Kissed a Girl." Proper spelling and dubious song titles aside, Katy has made a name for herself as a major player in the pop music scene. With "Teenage Dream," her sophomore album, Katy proves that she's not a one-hit wonder.

The album's cover is a painting of Katy lying in cotton candy, and the rest of the packaging seems to follow that theme, with photographs of her with candy crowns and cupcake-wrapper dresses. The lyrics booklet is indeed cotton candy scented, and the themed photos continue inside.

The music itself is a mix of guilty-pleasure pop and soul-searching ballads. With "Teenage Dream," the title track, Katy provides a pop song that you want to sing along to, even with lyrics like "We can dance until we die/You and I/We'll be young forever!" The follow-up song, "Last Friday Night" is a dance-y ode to getting drunk on Friday. "Firework" is the quintessential inspirational pop ballad, complete with cheesy lyrics and a building beat. "Circle the Drain" tries to be an angst-filled rock song, but the music doesn't stand up to the surprisingly powerful lyrics. "E.T." is about a new lover so strange that everyone thinks he's an alien. It's as terrible as it sounds. "Who Am I Living For?" has an interesting sound, similar to that of Kerli, but the song itself is nothing exciting. The next song, "Pearl," is one of my favorite songs on the album, a pop ballad that tells the story of a girl struggling to keep her head afloat in an overpowering relationship. "Not Like The Movies," the final track on the album, is possibly the best, driven by piano, that showcases the fact that Katy does indeed have an excellent voice and songwriting skills.

All in all, "Teenage Dream" is an excellent example of pop music. It has its high points along with its low, but overall it is just fun, upbeat music, and definitely worth the $10 price tag (even if just for the cotton candy scented booklet).