Artist and Record Label Analysis

Artist Analysis - 'The Heydaze':

The Heydaze are a four piece band (made up of members Jesse Fink, Andrew Spelman, Alexander Glantz, and Tyler Matte) formed in 2013; with their alternative musical influences stemmed from bands such as Tame Impala and Oasis. The self-described 'purveyors of windows down/stereo up jams' released their first major single 'Hurt Like Hell' in 2016 with record label Island/Universal (which is their first single to make it onto music streaming platform Spotify), after gaining eminence on social media platforms such as YouTube and Soundcloud with their infectious singles. Their eponymous debut album was released in 2015.

The band's Spotify page has 127,000 monthly listeners and their new single 'New Religion' has been streamed over 800,000 times.

Source used for information, retrieved August 10th, 2017: http://www.allmusic.com/artist/the-heydaze-mn0003426837

Record Label Analysis - Island/Universal Records:

"Island Records is a British record label that operates as a division of Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica in 1959. Blackwell sold the label to PolyGram in 1989. Both Island and another label recently acquired by PolyGram, A&M Records, were both at the time the largest independent record labels in history, with Island, in particular, having exerted a major influence on the progressive UK music scene in the early 1970s."

Information retrieved August 10th, 2017 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_Records

• Island Records is one of the biggest record labels in the world, with the likes of Shawn Mendes and many international superstars signed. 

• The record label has a multitude of noted 'indie' artists signed including, Catfish and the Bottlemen, Mumford and Sons, Sigrid, Bombay Bicycle Club and Hozier. Needless to say, 'The Heydaze' deserve their chance to rank among these top artists, and likely with the prominence of indie music increasing with interest from the adolescent target audience (which can be evidenced through the popularity of indie festivals this summer, such as 'Community Festival') their audience will continue to grow. 

• Owner, Chris Blackwell has maintained the view that when it came to marketing records, what went on the sleeve was a key factor in the Island game plan. As he put it: "If you felt that the artwork was intriguing, then there must be something going on inside." Therefore, I believe that the record label would have a likely preference for an artist with a unique visual appeal, that juxtaposes the 'stereotypical'; (for example generic album covers and artist personas/sounds that many artists bands have, in this era of music.) favouring an artist that has a unique selling point. As deciphered through my digipak deconstructions, many indie bands are representative of this unique notion, and therefore I am influencing my own digipak around this philosophy.