Design for Design’s Sake

Finally copped an official copy of Don Ho’s Vi Do La Em last weekend. Yes, I actually purchased a legit album, surprising isn’t it? Even though his packaging idea—wrapping the sleeve around the outside cover—is different, it is so damn cumbersome, and will get dirty mighty fast as well. Design wise, he needs some courses on typography. The type choice for the title “Vi Do La Em” is horrendous, and it doesn’t go with a contemporary feel he has going on. He also needs to uncomplicate his design. On the back cover, the decorative ornament doesn’t enhance the layout. Does he need to list Don Ho sings every song? A “featuring Thanh Ha” is all that needed for “Hat Cho Doi.” Why does he put the lyrics of “Vi Do La Em” in all caps and big above the black box while the contact information is so small that is hardly readable? On the credits page, why does he needs the dash in between words? It’s good that he designs his own album, but he is designing for design’s sake instead of communicating the information. One more thing, go light on the Photoshop touch-up, will ya?