Album Covers I Like

Album cover design is a very cool facet of what graphic designers can do, and I wanted to share a few album cover designs that I really like and analyze just why I like them.  I'd love to hear your favorites, too, so if you have any, let me know at the end of the post!

First off is the cover for I Will Go by Starfield.  It's not their newest album, but I really like the design of it.  I think I like this design better than the new one, The Saving One, but really, both designs are very well done.  Here's a look at the album cover:

The photography is the first thing that I really like.  The black and white conversion is excellent (and good black and white conversions can be quite hard!).  The lighting and composition are both great - notice how the lead band member is in the front, and is placed 1/3 of the way through the cover design.

The photo makes up most of the design, but the little that is left to for text is also wonderfully executed.  I love the placement of the text on the building, and the way it is equidistant from the top of the building and the side of the CD is great.  The font and color choices add to the effect - I like the combination of a serif font with a sans serif font.  Another great thing about the CD is the clear distinction between what the band name is and what the album title is, which is a crucial thing to make clear.

Another design I really like is the cover for This is Our God by Hillsong.  The huge letters are great and really catch the eye!

And red and turquoise are incorporated in the design, which is always a plus for me.

But as for other things I like with the design, I really love the Hillsong logo in the upper left corner.  It looks like a signature, almost as though Hillsong has "signed" the album cover.  I love the way the signature makes the CD seem important, as well as funky and a little retro.

All the layers and overlays are wonderful, as well.  The way they give depth to the cover, as well as bring in lots of colors and textures adds so much to the design.

The main stand-out quality of this cover, though, is just one word: detail.  The designer really paid attention to every last detail, and made each detail important while not making the overall design seem busy or overwhelming.  Notice things like the jumping band member silhouettes near the bottom and the image of a cross in the middle of the "O" in "Our."  Also, just the sheer detail and precision of each layered element is impressive.

For the final CD design, I want to show you an older CD of Matt Redman's that I think has excellent design.  It's called Blessed Be Your Name.

I think that putting the title on a sign like that was such and ingenious idea.  The photo is very well done to begin with (colors, composition, etc.), but adding the text on the sign really makes the design shine (ooh, I just rhymed!).  The thing that I love about the way the sign and text work is the light.  Do you notice how the sign is darker around the edges and lit up in the middle, almost as if there are light bulbs shining through?  Maybe there were actual light bulbs, or maybe it was a design effect - I'm not sure.  But either way, it's great.  It makes the sign stick out more.

I also really like the overall desaturated, retro feeling of the design.

What do you think of these CD designs?  I'd love to know, and you can also feel free to share designs that you like.