What is wrong with those Japanese CD designers?
 

In this few years, you can see that more and more artists CD design getting sketchy , or we could say ugly. Some of them just sketchily were done like you can do it in 5 minutes. It tends to be the trends in the Japanese music market. What's going wrong? Is that one of marketing to push the old artists out?

A good music is not only the spirit from the song only, so does the packaging. If the package is sketchy, people physically are not interested. That is the basic idea, but seem music industry in Japan not really care about it now.

^can you gives some example??

i'll say koda's new cover is totally gorgeous! but BoA's alittle bit... yeah

Yeah, BoA's covers have been pretty crappy.

But American CD covers, in my opinion, have been a lot worse for a much longer time.

But for example, Look at how nasty the photobook-cover of "DOLCE" by Ami Suzuki is.

But ART wise ...

"STEP you / is this LOVE?" has to be one of THE most unprofessional looking covers i have seen in a LONG time.

They've always been pretty bad. Depends a lot on the photographer and a decision to put text on the cover or not.

Text is usually a baaad idea imo.

I guess it depends. For example I think Otsuka Ai's CD covers tend to correspond to the quality of the songs on, but Koda Kumi's better CD covers tend to result in worse music on the CD IMO. I think Namie's CD covers tend to be pretty bland overall (I mean they're nice, but not special), and Ayu's covers are a hit and miss (there are a few covers that I really like, but feel meh about the songs, but there are a few covers that I don't like, but really love the songs)

you cant say it that way...it really depends on the artist, the phtograph, the idea behind it and of course on the fan...some like one covers that other don´t like...

meh, supposingly you buy the cd for the music. but as technologies advancing, all photographers do is photoshop them xDD

Yeah, I know what you mean X__x; Like, sometimes it's not even that the picture they used is ugly, it's the text. *twitch* For example, look at the cover for Dareka no Negai ga Kanau Koro by Hikki. HUGE *YELLOW* text on Hikki's face?! I mean, wtf were they thinking? O__o;; How could anyone POSSIBLY think that looks good?

they should hire 'Leslie Kee' to shot them ^^
actually I like simplicity
and Leslie always amaze me LOL
imagine just a B/W shot but so special ^^

omg i know what you talking!! its like you're having egg yolk in your face

and the cover of wait and see is awful too

I thought GUILTY was a lot worse..

sometimes it's hard to strike a balance with a good album/single cover & balance that out with the content of the album/single

it's not easy to do that I suppose

GUILTY was =S
Secret was really good
and so was Mirrorcle World <3

I like the covers for GUILTY , I don't really like the CD only ver of the pic

Secret's really pretty .

I find Mirrorcle World OK only . I was expecting something of a more dark concept because of the way Mirrorcle World sounds , oh well

oh yea, i meant GUILTY's CD cover
dvd cover was quite gud
i mean the CD + DVD lols
coz i got it xD
me first Ayu cd hehe
bought it way way way back before i even was a fan of hers xD
oh i've nvr thought that darker concept idea
quite interesting though xD

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...5296CDOnly.jpg

If you think this cover is a well-designed, I will keep my mouth closed.
There are getting more covers like this in recent years.
another example.
AAA best album "limited edition"

Actually I usually think most artist covers are usualçly crappy, worldwide, not just Japan wise.

Only artists I can remember of with most of their covers being really creative and attention grabbing have so far only been two:

-The Beatles

-ayumi hamasaki

:no

That look a lot like this powerpoint presentation thing I've done in 8th grade. I would also like to add in BoA's DVD.

I dunno, Koda Kumi's cover looks nice, but imo they're not that creative (well, hands cover were pretty creative).

-.-

Wow that looks so bad.

Ugh, I know. If it's not bad design, it's vile fonts. BoA's latest covers are perfect examples. Seriously! Are these the best fonts you can find... there must be like 53402302 to choose from *dies*

There are many bad designers in Japanese, but I don't mean that good designers are all gone, for example, B'z CD covers are always good.
What I mean is that those bad designers are getting over more than those good designers in the market. I don't understand how these bad designers get hired.

the bad designers are probably cheaper.. :P

It's definitely the text that drives me nuts on CD's. Either have a great sense of font choice or don't bother putting anything at all! D:

well I don't think we should blame designers BUT PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY PAY AND CHOOSE THAT CHEAP CRAPY WORK !

I mean if people want/agree with crappy things, why designer would do better things is they got paid for ish...
For me the concept of a cover come from two ways :
- you want something specificly so you tell designers/photographers
- you're confident in your designer/photographer choice (but it only works with great people as Leslie Kee or David Lachapelle)

if you don't want to concept your cd or if you don't want to pay for a good guy... then u got crap
SO U CAN'T BLAME DESIGNERS BUT PEOPLE WHO CHOOSE CRAP THINGS

ummm....errr.....
i actually dun mind that xD
it'd look pretty cool if it had the same foil cover thingo as the ayumix 6's hehe
but like...depends if it even reflects on any of the songs on that album/single

LOL it does look rather well designed and creative think about it xD no one else did a album cover only has silver and white ;) but it looks like something i can do on photoshop in 30seconds xDD

all covers are half-a$$ed or terribly done nowadays except Rurutia's. they're so creatively done.

So consumers should choose design over quality? I shouldn't purchase a piece of music that I like because of a less than stellar Cover? I don't agree. This applies to other things such as crappy Movie Video Games which continue to be made under par b/c children keep eating them up, but in this case, I say it doesn't apply.

^No kidding. That comes back to the whole "don't judge a book by its cover". Sometimes I dl something because I really like the cover (and mostly because I just want it in my library, HA) but if I'm loyal to an artist's releases it really doesn't matter to me.

If I dun like the cover I don't buy it.

I prefer ayumi's I am, Rainbow era cover such as dearest, M, endless sorrow, daybreak, voyage cover!! i dont really like her secret or guilty (cd only) cover. Looks so simple..............

KAT-TUN's most recent covers (LIPS and Don't U Ever Stop) reeeeally sucked also. But I guess they know that Johnny fan girls are willing to buy the single anyways.

i think the designers had a revelation..everyone would still buy even if the cover sucks because the fans support the artists~, so they just think "i don't have to give my all, just some" but now since mirrorcle world and MOON, i'm hoping to see more better covers..maybe the designers had another relevation " we're going to get fired if we keep making these artists drop sale, so we're working our butt off for better ideas"~