First off I’d like to apologise to Studio Parris Wakefield for taking my sweet time to get this post together. But at least I’ve timed this post with the day of it’s release.

If you have a Joy Division fan in your life then this release has been perfectly timed with Xmas gift time. Oh and the 20th Anniversary of Ian Curtis’ death.

The Deluxe edition (limited to 500 copies) is SOLD OUT but you can still order the standard edition which is limited to 5,000 copies.

There is some insight into the design process from SPW on their blog. Used here with permission.

We have been working on the design of the new Joy Division box set ‘+-’. Now we are able to share
with you the story behind the imagery.

In Peter Saville’s book ‘Estate 1-27′ Michael Bracewell describes Saville’s work with Factory Records and in particular Joy Division as the ‘…muniments of a crematorium in deep space.’ Thus inspiring Saville to look towards the infinite qualities of the universe to capture the essence of a collection of Joy Division singles.

Tasked with the brief of ‘deep space and nebulae’, Howard Wakefield researched through the collection of Nasa imagery at SpaceImages. While tempted with a nebula called Factory, its name was too good to be true, for it didn’t compare with the more expansive deep blue nebula of Hubble NGC 346 SMC. Peter Saville was keen to see how it could be transformed from being purely documentary, so suggested an inverted, monochrome version.

The Factory Nebula. This image was not used.

The actual NASA space image used aptly named Hubble NGC 346 SMC. Check out the official NASA press release of this image from 2005.

In addition to the compilations cover SPW were also tasked with recreating the covers of the 10 singles. But this was not as simple as it seems.

Of the 10 Joy Division singles, only 3 were ever released on 7 inch vinyl. There were 3 EPS, a flexi disc, a booklet, a 12 inch and even an LP. Compounding this, the artworks didn’t exist in a state that could be used anymore, so the only option was to scan the sleeves.

However, scanning was not possible as each sleeve would need to be cropped to allow for printer’s ‘bleed’, so Saville suggested a border. At which point Wakefield saw the potential of portraying the singles as, not only important musically, but important in the history of music design. The design was as influential as the music and they should be both represented as such. The design concept was agreed – they should be portrayed as pieces in a gallery.

The sleeves were photographed and presented as moments in music and design history, backed with caption-style text on the reverse, allowing the music and the original sleeves to be the stars…

Here are the 10 covers. I think the photography presentation of them actually makes them look better.

SPW also blogged about the origin of the + – (or Plus Minus if you are trying to Google it) which in itself reveals an interesting story about Teenbeat and their lawsuit/PR stunt against the record label.

Where did the title + – come from? What was the influence? In 1988, Factory Records released the Joy Division single ‘Atmosphere’ from the compilation ‘Substance’ – the inner sleeve showed a detail of ‘Plus en Min’ by Jan van Munster.

Naturally, in 2010, during the discussions over titling the forthcoming Joy Division compilation, we were drawn to the 1988 release as inspiration. Calling it ‘Substance’ was too close a title to the original release, however, titling it ‘+ -’ was an acknowledgement to the 1988 release as the newly remastered track list was the same.

As part of the Deluxe box set, Peter Saville was asked to create a piece for inclusion. Originally there was a notion that a new ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’ metal plate be created, but the cost was too prohibitive. However a perspex interpretation of the + – was more appropriate as the glow edge referenced the + – image from 1988.

To replicate the orange glow, a choice of two colours were available – Lava Orange or Mars Red. For cost and timing issues, Mars Red was selected.

Regarding the recent Pitchfork story about Teenbeat (the label) and +- (the band) who are suing for trademark infringement and plagiarism. We find this very strange, as the band admit to being influenced by Joy Division. Yet they are comparing their artwork (2002 album +-) which clearly appears to be influenced by the 1988 Joy Division imagery. Is this a stunt? Enough said.

Sadly this is the + – cover is only available when you buy the deluxe edition.

And this is the cover from + – from Teen Beat records.

So Lava Orange is more expensive than Mars Red? Budget is something I think Jan van Munster has never had to worry about. His work is amazing while his website sucks. The + – motive is spread across a lot of his work. I really like the “Brainwave” series with the wobbly neon lights. This could have almost been a cover itself.

And lastly SPW also designed a poster for an event at Rough Trade this week. More info here.

Here is a promo video from Rhino on the compilation.

The entire package itself is an impressive piece although the standard of compilation packs/limited edition runs these days is very high. I’m reminded of the Pet Shop Boys “Yes” packaging. At least this one is only $100 and not $450!

Take a look at SPW’s other musical design work and take in just how influential they have been. It also doesn’t hurt that Peter Saville is so closely connected to them also.

The image of a fist is a universal sign of aggression, power and defiance yet there was a significant lack of albums featuring fists. I thought we’d be trawling through hundreds but it seems we have just the few seen below.

It’s no mistake that most of the bands are metal and only one has any sense of humour. For a band or album with fist in the name it must be hard for the designer to resist such a powerful image.

A big shout out to GuitarNoize for helping chase down the albums via Twitter.

So I present to you all the fist albums we could find. Which is the perfect compliment to our album covers with butts cover compilation.

I’ll start with one of the worst covers and the one that comes up the most on Google Image search for fist album. (Side Note: Make sure to turn ON safe searching whenever searching for “fist” on Google images. Argh I can’t unsee some of that stuff!)

MSTRKRFT: Fist of God
Designer: Unknown (Lucky bastard as this is an uninspired turd!)

A better cover would have been this promo image of them with masks on.

The masks hide the fact they look like douchebags without them (learn from Daft Punk guys). Well the guy on the right looks like Chick Liddell.

Moderat: Moderat
This was the only album to have some sense of humour (and a female) with the fist imagery. Moderat’s self titled album is one I’m going to track down next week for a proper listen.

It reminded me of a SFW version of Coop’s art. But upon research (source) it looks to be inspired by a R. Crumb piece from 1990 from his Bring Me Your Love illustrations booklet. Buy it here on Amazon or check this Flickr set. Which makes sense as R. Crumb had a sick sense of humour.

The first single off the album Rusty Nail also features a fist and this time on solid red. This is quiet nice also.

The actual song is oddly familiar and a great track.

Interesting when you take the women out of the picture and my mind turns to this war poster, rather than an image of a women hitting herself in the face.

Alice Cooper: Raise your Fist and Yell
Jim Warren the artist on this piece seems to have moved on from the horror work for more dolphins & horses meet Dali inspired work.

Rage Against The Machine: Battle of Los Angeles

According to Wikipedia “The album cover art was an original artwork by the LA Street Phantom aka Joey Krebs aka Joel Jaramillo, a well-known Los Angeles artist who has exhibited at numerous galleries in Los Angeles, New York City and throughout the United States. Despite claims to the contrary, the image was not inspired by images from the 1992 street riots of LA or from images of Munich, but by the band’s own music and words, and represents one in a series of images of the artist’s work, which can also be seen on various street murals in Los Angeles”

You can see his work on this classic film clip also

After reading The Street Phantom’s artistic statement you have to feel for the guy who didn’t market himself as well as Banksy. I mean he didn’t even get mentioned in Exit Through the Gift Store and doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page on himself. That doesn’t stop him from throwing down a challenge to Shepard Fairey though. Boom! Street Cred = True. Mo Money = False :(

Wait did I say Street Cred? I’d like to retract that statement after seeing the photo below :) Sorry Joey

Metallica: St Anger

Now this is what you call a fist! Pushead did the art who is normally recognised by his skull work. he doesn’t seem to have an official site but you can say hi on his Facebook page. I still love the scene in Some Kind of Monster when Lars is trying to push the name of the album as Frantic and the other guys had to convince him of St. Anger.

The back cover is more of the usual Pushead style.

The cover was originally planned to have 3 alternative color variations but due to cost this was scrapped. Their website has the post from 2003! Congrats for keeping the site live for 7+ years! The other color variations look weak to me but some collectors out there have the limited edition lithograph prints of them. And some even crazier collector has all the foreign variations of the covers! Insane

Mr Flash: Disco Dynamite

This is one of my fav Fist albums with the artwork by the eclectic So Me French design group who look after all of Ed Banger’s artwork. Mr Flash was the first artist signed to Ed Banger Records which is something I’ll be sure to drop into conversation just to sound like I know WTF is going on in the world of music.

here’s Mr Flash posing for the cover

And I know I’ve said it before but the French are seriously punching above their weight (no pun intended) when it comes to new music. They are seriously pushing it.

Warning: If you only watch one Mr Flash film clip then please do yourself a NSFW favour and check this one out below! And if you think that is in poor taste do not watch this one by the same director Cédric BLAISBOIS.

Motorhead: Iron Fist

The first photo cover so far with what looks to be an actual fist prop. The photographer of the cover Allan Ballard photographed a lot of Motorhead’s stuff but this is the ony URL I can find of an Alan Ballard. I hope it’s not the same person. I found this alternative cover which shows where the prop was used. Very Spinal Tap! I wonder if that fist is in a Hard Rock Cafe somewhere?

Anthrax: Fistful of Metal

“Fuck yeah! that is exactly what I had in my head” is what was spoken when Anthrax saw the artwork for their debut album. Kent Joshpe not only did the artwork but the bands logo too which is still in use. What is Josh doing now? He’s the CD of an advertising agency! I doubt he has done any other logos recently that will last over 20 years and be tattooed on thousands of people.

Pantera: Vulgar Display Of Power

We covered this album long ago. Still one of my favs for both the music and the statement is makes as a cover. Has anyone got this issue of Revolver where they explain the story behind the photo?

it also gives me another opportunity to post this video…

Rainbow: Rising

Wait it’s a hard metal band called Rainbow? C’mon. Artwork by Ken Kelly who did the epic Love Gun for Kiss.

Chemical Bros: Push the Button

We covered this album and all it’s singles in great detail previously.

KATASTROFIST: Katastrofist

This cover actually came about after the band/designers posted options up on their site and asked for freed back. The end result is better than the options but still very cheesy. I would have preferred just the photo they used as reference below. Now that is a fist!

Here’s a few others I didn’t find anything worth posting about but wanted to include them in the “Fist Album” collection.

Super 400: Sweet Fist:

Snowgoons: A Fist in the Thought

Lime Spiders: Beethovens Fist

Update:
A big thanks to Ira and Holger for suggesting a bunch more that we missed.Including ones already covered on this site. Doh!

Yeah Yeah Yeahs: It’s Blitz!

Already featured here.

Fist: Back with a Vengeance

This just needs a Kapow! sound FX bubble. Cover art by Sid King.

Black Flag: Damaged

Ed Colver pre-smashed the mirror with a hammer before putting fake blood. You bunch of pussies!

Rancid: Let’s Go

Riverboat Gamblers: To the Confusion of our Enemies

Fist: Thunder in Rock

Does anyone have a 500px or wider version of this cover? Also why didn’t they just change their name. Redoing each cover to say MYO FIST for Europe is just dumb.

Fist: Hot Spikes

Now we’re talking. Like the cover of a Fighting Fantasy cover for the new book “Metal Fists of Fury” with artwork by Istvan Resz. I love that it has finger nails!

Take It Back!: Rumors Of Revolt

Rise Against: This Is Noise

Anti-Nowhere League: Streets of London

This is a single but we’ll include it. Also it’s just the bands logo on a wall but it’s a pretty bad ass logo. Again while corporate brands refresh their brands all the time bands seem to stick with the same one forever.

Have we missed an important fist album? Comment below and we’ll add it to the list.

We’re a little late with posting this one but Ty Lettau) has created a series of minimalist album covers. Why? No reason it’s just what designers do. The set has been pretty successful for Ty on Flickr. You might think Ty is an unemployed designer with nothing better to do? But he’s actually the designer manager at Adobe! So obviously he’s a designer that never sleeps!

What I think appeals about these series is the fact they become a puzzle. Without looking at the title you try and guess the cover. With album covers being some of the most iconic design of our time it’s not wonder designers are fascinated by them. No other piece of design lasts this long or is as instantly recognisable as an album cover. Movie posters come close but only few films can say they have iconic posters.

Below are all the covers Ty produced. I didn’t upload the Coldplay ones as they were basically the same as the originals.

View the post on the original The Black Crowes Amorica cover here.

View the post on the original Metallica The Black Album cover here.

View the post on the original Nirvana Nevermind cover here.

This set is very different from the previous set (the Modernist series) we posted back in 2009. There you can see the video game covers, movie poster and much more. Olly Moss has a lot to answer for as there is no shortage of these “minimal” or “retro” design series and they show no signs of slowing down.

Note: I’ll also post up the sushi and lego cover remakes after I collect all the images out there. Does anyone know any other “album cover remakes” I should cover?

Israeli-born illustrator Emek is one of the talents keeping poster art alive. Described by Henry Rollins as the “thinking man’s poster artist”, Emek continues many of the traditions of 1960′s psychedelia. His work is always hand drawn and heavily layered, mashing the political and personal; the organic and technical.

Yet despite his prolific collaborations with some of music’s biggest names, there’s one artist he was born to work with. “Working with Erykah,” he says “always brings out the best in me… I’ve worked with hundreds of bands, and I have to say that she is pretty unique. What kind of musician would fly an artist halfway across the country just to discuss the ideas of the album cover in person? And then cook them a wonderful vegan meal and play charades with her kids? Erykah, thats who.”

Emek first worked with Badu on 2008′s critically acclaimed New Amerykah Part One (4^th World War). Note: read the Sleevage post for that album here. On that cover, Emek focused on the “politics and social conditions in the world today, things that were weighing on her mind.” It was a dark but dynamic image, with Badu sporting knuckle dusters, her trademark afro entangled with the corrupted baubles of contemporary urban life.

When Emek listened to New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh), he discovered a new groove-based sound that was “more personal”. The resulting cover art retains the political symbolism – keen eyes will notice new references to foreclosed homes and the Tea Party  movement – but this time they’ve receded to the background. We get the feeling that a confident and all-conquering Badu has transcended them.

“You built a wall 20 feet tall / But if I get off my knees / I might recall I’m 20 feet tall”, she sings. Emek states that this lyric “was an inspiration to draw her to be a large face. She is 20 feet tall”. Her armour represents the way she is protected from the “harsh realities of life”, while the “color purple of the tree and the sky represent the 7th chakra”.

In many ways, both Badu and Emek are throwbacks. Badu made her name as a pioneer of neo-soul, and her early output triggered countless Billie Holiday comparisons. While never allowing her sound to stagnate, she’s consistently skated the fine line between batshit-crazy and inspired. Witness the video clip for her 2010 single Window Seat, which sees her stripping naked at the site where President Kennedy was assassinated, before pretending to be shot.

An artist as brave as Badu no doubt needs the armour Emek has painted her. Just as he needs musicians of her calibre to inspire his work. “Both Erykah and I were raised without a TV in our house, we grew up on record cover art”, he says. Let’s hope there are kids out there today being inspired by Badu and Emek.

Pip Brown, the New Zealand-born multi-instrumentalist better known as Ladyhawke, has overcome a fair bit of misfortune in her young life. At the age of ten she was diagnosed with a disease called erysipeloid, which is common in seagulls but hadn’t been seen in humans in 20 years. If that’s not bad enough, she’s allergic to all forms of antibiotics and penicillin, which complicated her treatment so much that she ended up in a coma.

After coming close to death, she recovered only to discover in the coming years that she had Asberger’s syndrome, a form of autism that makes social interaction difficult. So how did a sickly, socially awkward New Zealand teen go onto become on of the most exciting musical artists we have today? Well a formidable talent, drive and sense of adventure have come in handy.

Brown was only a teenager in New Zealand when she formed the band Two Lane Blacktop with some friends. They went on to play at legendary New York club CBCG. Then on an impulse, Brown moved to Melbourne where she formed the band Teenager with Nick Littlemore (Empire of the Sun).

But it was her decision to leave Teenager and focus on her solo project, Ladyhawke, that shot her to prominence. Ladyhawke is named after the 1985 cult film, in which a radiant Michelle Pfeiffer played the cursed title character.

Bird references seem fitting, given that Brown was nearly killed by a seagull’s disease and that her whole life since represents a phoenix-like resurrection. She says the name represents the way she sees herself – as “a pop superwoman creating radio-friendly songs with a single bound”. Either which way, it’s a killer name.

Rightly or wrongly, Ladyhawke’s 1980’s influenced dance music has seen her grouped with other contemporary singers such as La Roux, Little Gaga, Sia and Little Boots. All have distinctive looks, visual style and more than a taste of androgyny.

Which brings us to Ladyhawke’s cover art. The illustrated watercolour and ink drawings that feature on her records and in her music videos have helped define her brand.  They’re by 31-year old Melbourne artist Sarah Larnach, who is not only Brown’s collaborator but also her best friend.

Larnach first saw Brown at a Melbourne party in 2004, where she immediately noticed her “mopey posture, unlike anything I’d seen on a girl.” Speaking to The Independent in an article about their friendship, Larnach recalled: “She seemed really cool and I immediately wanted her to be my friend, but I didn’t want to freak her out, so I didn’t even talk to her.”

They lived close together and soon became friends. “I had a large of group of friends, but never a best friend, so it was great meeting Sarah,” says Brown. “Straight off the bat I found her hilarious. Sense of humour is key for me – if I find someone completely unwitty, I can’t even bluff getting along with them. She is sharp and intelligent and I enjoy every second of conversations with her.”

Larnach was a slack student at art school and lacked confidence in her work. Brown observes: “She is the biggest procrastinator in the world, but I always thought she was an incredible artist – she has a brilliant imagination. When she first plucked up the courage to show me some of her art I was so impressed. I ended up posing for her for heaps of paintings, so I became a bit like a muse, though I wouldn’t quite call myself that.”

It’s a fair description however, as the collaboration between the two has created a career for Larnach. “As soon as I met Pip I knew she was going to be really significant, not just in my life, but in general, and I knew I’d do anything to help her. Maybe I’ve helped her a bit, but she has helped me a great deal.”

Agnes Montgomery is a Philadelphia-based artist that works in collage. Her work has been been getting heaps of attention since she was tapped by Animal Collective member Panda Bear (aka Noah Lennox) to create the cover art for his highly-acclaimed solo release Person Pitch (2007).

“Noah is a good friend of mine”, Montgomery told us, “I showed him my collages back in 2003 and he liked them a lot.”

It’s easy to see what appealed to him. Montgomery creates her collages on a miniscule scale, using small scissors, found paper and a magnifying lamp. She then enlarges them and prints them on large canvases. The result is a striking and warm juxtaposition of images that is at once nostalgic and contemporary. Children make regular appearances, reinforcing the feeling of whimsy and innocent wonder.

Lennox recognised its potential as cover art: “Noah asked me if I’d like to make some collages for his next solo record and we talked and thought about it for a long time before it really started to happen.” While there may have been a lengthy germinating process, Lennox prefers to work very quickly. In contrast to Montgomery’s process, he likes to “spit it out real fast”.

“I get impatient writing songs, I can’t spend more than a couple of hours before I get frustrated” he is quoted as saying. “My favorite songs are the ones where I worked really really fast on, when it comes all out in like two hours or something.”

You would expect the end result to be shallow or sloppy, however the output belies Lennox’s professed impatience. His songs, as chief-supporter Pitchfork describe them, “consist of intricately constructed, heavily layered and highly repetitive loops on top of which Lennox sings oddly familiar and touching melodies.”

The music “sounds like what it is: one guy alone in his bedroom trolling though music history, picking and choosing bits to make something deeply personal and all his own”.

The parallels with Montgomery’s process was not lost on Lennox. “He liked the idea of collage cut paper for the album art since he was also working in a style of collage musically, cutting up samples” she says.

“The songs of Person Pitch inspired the collages. I listened to the songs over and over again during the course of a year to fully immerse myself into them and to try my best to make a visual match.”

“We corresponded mostly by email since he was living abroad in Portugal at the time. Noah didn’t give too much input as to what he was hoping for. He gave me a lot of freedom and space to just see what could happen. He already had a pretty good sense of my style and he thought it could work well with the songs.”

“Noah sent me one song at a time and I made a collage to match its song so they could be released as singles first.”

For the Person Pitch cover, Montgomery worked with both Lennox and designer Rob Carmicheal. “Visually the packaging being symmetrical was important to Noah. He had the idea of the layout and how he wanted the thank you’s and inspiration to be centered with 2 collages on either side of the flip fold out insert.”

“The album is kind of symmetrical in terms of how long the songs are, and I wanted the album art to reflect that” says Lennox. “I knew I wanted to do a lot of personal thank yous and I knew I wanted to have the artwork from all the singles on there in a symmetrical fashion. So I needed another text panel, and I also thought that since I was sampling so many different people I thought it was appropriate to give thanks to other musicians.”

This eclectic and much-discussed list of musicians included Cat Stevens, Daft Punk, Black Dice, Pink Floyd, The Beach Boys, Vashti Bunyan, Ariel Pink, Aphex Twins, The Beatles, Michael Jackson, Jay-Z, Talk Talk, Kylie Minogue, Ennio Morricone, Metallica, Wu-Tang Clan, Nina Simone, The Strokes, Dr Dre, Notorious B.I.G., Nirvana, Echo & the Bunnymen, Enya, George Michael, Gratefull Dead, Maria Callas, Phil Collins and New Order. Whew!

On the cover of Person Pitch, a children’s pool party has been crashed by the inhabitants of a petting zoo. The result is squishy, psychedelic and oddly comforting, much like the music within. You could argue that these disparate party goers are an analogy for the album’s varied influences. Whatever the meaning, it’s a memorable image that acts as the perfect visual foil for Panda Bear’s beautiful music.

There’s a difference between batshit crazy and eccentric. It’s a fine line but Badu manages to stay firmly on the right side of it. By every measure, 2008′s New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) should have been a total disaster.

There’s the unwieldy title, the status as a ‘concept album’, the big messy themes of urban violence, poverty and race relations. One couldn’t help but anticipate an incoherent throwback to a bygone era where hip hop actually took these issues on with honesty and passion.

The cover art certainly evokes that period, with its retro aesthetic. And it cleverly makes the most of Badu’s trademark afro to illustrate just how much the soul diva has on her mind. The Egyptian ankh, which represents life itself, sits at the centre. Around it we see a plethora of instantly recognisable symbols: pumped fists, satellite dishes, televisions, dollar signs and factories share space with malnourished babies, bees, flowers and peace signs.

The knuckle-dusters at the forefront spell out more than the album’s name – they represent her intentions. “To my folks on the picket line, don’t stop till you change they mind” is just an indicative sample of the fighting words found throughout.

It’s a really cool cover that manages to take on big issues in a striking and cohesive fashion. Much like the music itself, which defied perceptions to become a major critical and modest commercial success. New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) represents a career high for the talented musician and image maker.

At the same time the album hit stores, the video for debut single Honey was released. It sees her fittingly paying tribute to some of the greatest covers ever made. Check the full video out here

A paranormally gifted woman stands in front of a barren, twisted and wintry landscape, her face expressionless and intentions unclear. The mysterious cover of Fever Ray’s self-titled debut album invokes a pitch-black, pagan sensibility.

For its designer Martin Ander, the job came at a perfect time. “I had just started to draw by hand again after years of computer dependence when Karin asked me to do the album art for her solo project Fever Ray” he explains. “That was just what I needed to get me started with ink and paper again.”

Fever Ray is the alter-ego of Swedish musician Karen Dreijer Andersson, who is better known as half of brother-sister duo The Knife. When she briefed designer Ander on the cover art, she “gave me a mind map containing old photographs of seanses, haunted houses and people covered with ectoplasm” he recalls, with the instruction that “this is the emotion I want to project”.

Drawing holds a special significance for Ander, the son of the famous Swedish illustrator and political cartoonist Jan-Erik Ander. “I kind of grew up with it”, he says.

But while his father carries on the tradition of political satire, Ander took his approach and inspiration from a more contemporary genre.

“I want people to try to understand and look for clues. That’s something I got from being a longtime fan of skateboard art, where the graphic on the board plays a big part in building the myth behind the rider or company, or in this case Fever Ray.”

It’s an interesting observation on the parallels between cover art and skateboard art. And while the ghost of Charles Burns’ work can be made out in the high-contrast and macabre aesthetic, Anders names influences closer to home. “I’m a big fan of Swedish horror artist Hans Arnold, who is mostly famous for an ABBA album cover and his book illustrations.”

His original brief for Fever Ray included an album cover, some merchandise and two 12” singles, however this body of work has already expanded. “I wanted the images to link together, like a story. The motifs are mostly a result of coincidence, but there is a cohesion. All the images refer to each other, the lyrics, videos and Fever Rays private self. I like the idea that the cover is more than just an image.”

The approach is at the same time vivid and ambiguous, a tension that’s consistent with Fever Ray’s music. She builds creepy soundscapes that are the perfect haunted house for her modulated, androgynised vocals and oblique lyrics.

“I prefer lyrics that are like that”, she said in one interview, “I like to keep it as minimal as possible… It’s very important to keep the magic and the feeling of something you can draw yourself. You don’t want to be too literal.”

As representatives of the almost-supernatural wave of creative talent coming out of Sweden at the moment, Ander and Fever Ray remind us what dark arts both music and design can be.

Note: This article appeared first in Monster Children Magazine

From now on, every issue we’ll be contributing a new article for the “Behind The Cover” section. It’s an excellent publication, so be sure to pick a copy.

But in the last few years I’ve been rediscovering the music of my teenage years and also how kickass the album covers were. It took me a while to whittle down my list to my favourite top 10. I’m sure I’ll come across a few later and wish I included them, but for now this is my definitive list in no particular order.

Warlock – Triumph & Agony
- Awesome painted cover: check.
- Chrome logo: check.
- Foxy blonde woman in leather being fondled by a demon: check.

Vinyl was king in the 80′s and hard core audiophile metal fans still prefer this format. The beauty of the large dimensions of vinyl covers is you can appreciate the detail and work put into painted artworks like this cover. This would look great on the side of a panel van.

Motorhead – The Bomber
This cover appeals to the plane spotter in me. Apparently there was a slight uproar that an English band would choose a German bomber, a Heinkel 111, over the English Lancaster bomber. Lead singer & bassists defended this decision: “Sure, it’s a filthy memory – but the fact is the bad guys make the best shit.” The scale of the band member to the aircraft is all wrong but I think it adds a comical air to the setting.

The Cult – Electric
The photo of the band is the only weak part of this cover and feels like a last minute add in. Sorry Ian Astbury, I’m sure that is your best raccoon hat.

But metal bands have the best logos, and creative use of typography and i think this cover is a great example of that. Metal band logo designs always seem to embody the nature of the group it is representing.

Def Leppard – Hysteria
This cover design is actually pretty cheesy and a good indicator of late 80′s graphix and that’s why i like it. The album is called ‘Hysteria’ so lets have a badly painted morphing of faces screaming. Overlay it on the plans to the Death Star from Star Wars IV and have a paint splattered album title, job done.

Judas Priest – British Steel
I’ve never understood the appeal of ‘The Priest’ but I’ve wanted to like them based on my fondness for some of their covers, which include Screaming for Vengeance & Turbo Lover. British Steel is my favourite.
This cover couldn’t be any more metal. A leather studded arm firmly gripping an oversized razor blade, all set on a “how more black could this be? and the answer is none – none more black” background. And their logo is just kick ass.

Kiss – Rock and Roll Over
I remember flicking through my friend’s extensive Kiss album collection for the first time and coming across this cover. It stood out in stark contrast to the direction of their other covers, and even other fellow metal groups cover designs at the time (1976). It feels like more of a designed cover then some artistic piece with it’s symmetry and very poppy japanese influence.

Poison – Open Up and Say.. ahh!
For me, this is the quintessential 80′s Hair Metal album cover. Day-glow colours, a Gene Simmons inspired tongue, big hair and a ridiculously unsubtle and misogynistic album title.

Aerosmith – Permanent Vacation

I love this for the great Sailor Jerry Tattoo inspired illustrations and the way they are placed in a repetitive wallpaper pattern. The red illustrations on black also balance really well with the yellow Aerosmith logo.

Iron Maiden – Somewhere in Time
It would be sacrilegious to not have a Maiden cover in this list. They’ve had some great covers but I guess this one stands out for me due to the fact it reminds me of Blade Runner. It came out around the time I started getting interested in metal, making this the first Maiden cover I came across. It also features one of my favourite incarnations of Eddie.

Van Halen – Fair Warning
This cover

I’ve loved Van Halen from the day I first listened to Van Halen 1. They’ve had a few interesting album covers after their first two releases, with Fair Warning being the standout for me. This cover is a little disturbing, which is fitting for what was hailed as Van Halen’s darkest album. But it wasn’t until I researched this cover that I discovered the complete painting “The Maze” created by the Canadian artist William Kurelek. The painting is a depiction of the artist’s  tortured youth and makes for a very bold and interesting choice for a so-called “hair band”. Then again, as fans of the band already know know, they were always so much more than that.

Yes, it’s a jpeg successfully masquerading as a gif.

Merriweather Post Pavilion is the 8th studio album by Animal Collective and is already being acclaimed as one of the best albums of the year.

The much-anticipated and now celebrated album boast trippy cover art inspired by the work of Japanese psychologist Akiyoshi Kitaoka.

Kitaoke started working on rats and then monkeys to earn his PHD in animal psychology, before moving on in the nineties to study “visual perception and visual illusions of geometrical shape, brightness, color, in motion illusions and other visual phenomena like Gestalt completion and perceptual transparency, based on a modern conception of Gestalt Psychology.”

As a result, he’s created heaps of incredible visual illusions.

Writing in Pop Dose, Taylor Long observes that the “optical illusion cover for Animal Collective’s latest and eighth release, Merriweather Post Pavilion, is more than something fun to look at while under the influence of the sort of drugs you might like to be on while listening to it. Curves of bright green ovals on a purple background, they appear to be in motion when we know they’re stationary. It’s an apt representation of the album’s dueling thematic components: fantasy versus reality, whimsy vs obligation, restlessness versus tranquility.”

Or as a fan succinctly puts it on the Something Awful forums: “I dunno, that album cover looks pretty much how Animal Collective sounds”.

For me it evokes other associations. Do you remember those awful magic eye pictures that ruled the world for a few months in the early 90’s? Basically they were just a messy, indistinguishable shape but if you looked at them in a certain way and concentrated, a 3D shape would pop out.

I was in primary school when they became popular and I had real trouble seeing the hidden image. Other people would take one glance and then be all like: “Oh yeah, it’s a plane.” Meanwhile I squinted, held them close to my eyes and then pulled them away slowly; tried crossing my eyes and uncrossing them. After a protracted period I might finally make out the hidden image but not before suffering derision for my evident lack of insight.

I imagine for many that it’s like this with indie music. A bunch of cool kids hear an unusual band and get busy loving them, while a clueless and somewhat frustrated majority try to make out what’s so special.

For die-hard fans of thrash, the release of Infidels is a major event. At War were an important part of the underground thrash scenes in the 80’s and were well known for the pro-military themes that run through their work.

The thrash trio hark from Virginia and many of their friends and family are in the military. This could explain why one of their songs includes a po-faced recitation of the Rifleman’s Creed, or why their last album (released over twenty years ago in 1987) was called Retaliatory Strike.

Back in the 80’s the enemies were the communists. Looking at the cover art for At War it doesn’t take long to figure out what the new menace is. Much has been made of the chorus of Want You Dead:

They want you dead
Kuffar die
They want you dead
Open your eyes

And the cover art is as uncompromising, paranoid and aggressive as the lyrics. The artist behind it is Claudio Bergamin, an industry legend that has been responsible for a prolific output of metal covers.

He explains that the album “stands for the band’s values, which are very much America against the Muslim world.” While stressing that this is not his worldview, he says that the cover was designed to be controversial: “I like controversy and I like to make people angry. I think that is one of art’s functions – to generate dialogue and debate. But this particular work does not necessarily represent my personal ideas and values.”

“The band wanted something very straight forward; a statement about how war on terrorism is perceived in America nowadays. They wanted to portray their pride on their way of life and how ready they are to defend it against fundamentalist intolerance.”

“I guess because of the nature of the concept, I wanted something very heroic in a classic way. The message is pure Americanism and let’s be honest, most of the material you get on this matter in movies or comic books is cheesy as hell. I didn’t want that; I didn’t want to go Rambo or GI-Joe. I wanted it to be very elegant. So I pointed my art compass towards classic school – artist like Goya, Caravaggio and Doré.”

It took him several weeks to develop the concept and he jokes that “I think Paul thought I’d escaped with the money at some point!”

The band were happy with the eventual idea “but the character was not right for them: they sent me an email saying: “we like it, but please give the character bigger muscles and long hair”.”

The cover was produced in London.

“I used life models as reference for pose and lighting. The main character was someone my girlfriend knew from the gym and the Muslim warriors are basically my nutcase flatmate Ubaldo Esteban in costume holding a katana for arm position. Next step was painting the illustrated versions of the characters on Corel Painter. I wanted thick brush strokes for it. I painted just four Muslim warriors and just one AK-47 template; I cloned them and slightly varied them on Adobe Photohop to achieve the battalion effect.”

On the anniversary of the day that initiated the “war on terror”, many will be reflecting on the shock and sadness the attacks caused. This cover is a reminder that for many Americans the tragedy also inspired a galvanising and furious anger.

“One has to believe in what one is doing, one has to commit oneself inwardly, in order to do painting. Once obsessed, one ultimately carries it to the point of believing that one might change human beings through painting.”
Gerhard Richter 1973

The same could probably be said of music.

When Sonic Youth went into a modest New York basement studio in 1988 they baulked at the $1,000 a day fee. Although they’d previously recorded four other albums, they had yet to achieve a national profile and only had limited means. To keep the budget under $30,000 the band worked through the night and rushed some of their takes.

Despite these limitations, it seems they had some inkling that down in their basement they were building a monument. Everything about the finished result announced a bold intent, from the double album format through to its suggestive title. And the cover became central to its iconic status. As Jutta Koether, a German artist and critic, wrote in the liner notes to the 1993 Reissue, “With the inclusion of “high-art” cover-art, it became visually and musically a description of loss and self-doubt.”

After 8 years of Reagan, the candle represents a lone spark of hope and optimism, one that is albeit vulnerable and lonely. Depending on whether you are a “half glass full” or “half glass empty” kind of person, it could either represent the undying hope that Obama evoked or the dwindling remainder of once-great aspirations.

The featured artwork is “Kerze” (candle), a painting by German artist Gerhard Richter.

Facing the complicated question of what to paint at the beginning of his career, Richter instead decided to amass thousands of images taken from photos and clippings. He would pick one, project it onto the canvas and then recreate it in a photo-realistic manner. The distinctive touch that brought him a worldwide following is the “Blur” – the smudging he applies that disrupts the image.

He also went on to create a body of abstract work.

He’s an amazing artist. But by the late 80’s he was also an artist of the establishment, so the band’s decision to use his image was as unexpected as it was inspired. The inside-fold of the sleeve features a portrait of Sonic Youth circa 1988 and they don’t exactly look like they’re on the best galleries’ opening night invite lists yet.

The gap between the value of the Richter’s painting and the income of the “Daydream Nation” was only underscored when “Kerze” went under the hammer at 2008 Sotheby’s auction. Sonic Youth fans watched on gob-smacked as members of Europe’s high society rapidly drove the price up with every bid. It eventually went for over 7 million pounds.

But who needs the painting anyway? For less than $50 you can score a Daydream Nation poster for your wall and the soundtrack to go with it. You’ll find it still sounds pretty relevant.

In WWII, when American soldiers were asked by journalist why they were going to war the standard response was “for Mom and apple pie”.

For some reason the dish of apple pie worked its way into the American consciousness as a representative of all that was wholesome and good about the nation; a reminder of comfort and innocence. Which eventually made it great fodder for those subversives keen to test another American ideal: freedom of speech.

Enter Mom’s Apple Pie, a ten-member band from Ohio that boasted a sound similar to bands like Chicago. They released two albums in the early seventies and, while they achieved a degree of national success, are best known today for their controversial cover art.

At first glance, Mom’s Apple Pie’s self-titled release features cover art that might be at worst ironic. We see an American Gothic style painting, reminiscent of the work of Grant Wood.

While the “Mom” in Wood’s painting looks thoroughly miserable, the Mom on this album cover is instead licking her lips – perhaps in anticipatory delight. Further subverting the image are the large, modern speakers in the background that suggest that this mom likes to rock out while she’s baking. It’s a strong image but not one that lives up to its legendary status until, as the tagline to American Beauty suggest, you “look closer”.

Meet the oozing, bright-red vagina that resulted in this classic cover being banned. However to imagine that the band was outraged or shocked by the ban would be a little naïve.

Roger Force, saxophonist for Mom’s Apple Pie, gives some background: “I remember (Terry) Knight (the head of Brown Bag records) at one of our recording sessions, showing us the cover. He said it was one of his publicity stunts… He had it all planned, the record would get recalled and it would be a big deal. It was 30,000 albums covers that were recalled.”

“I was 19 at the time. My older brother was a two-term Vietnam veteran; I was the one with the long hair. I took that album home to show my parents and – I’m embarrassed. My father looks at it and he says, “well – it’s not that bad.”

While reflecting on what a cool dad Force obviously had, I also can’t help but wonder what it is about penetrating pieces of pie that seems to capture the imagination?

I suppose don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.

Knight was a true master of publicity and one of the coolest things about his label was that the records really came in a brown paper bag. He said of the Mom’s Apple Pie campaign: “that was some slice of pie, eh? We sent out piping hot apple pies in brown paper bags to all the DJs throughout New York to promote that record. That was a good campaign.”

He had also anticipated the band’s response to the album recall. When the authorities banned the original cover, a second version was promptly released, with the slice space filled by a prison wall and barbed wire. An American flag sat on top, as a tongue-in-cheek critique of censorship in the “land of the free”. Unfortunately I can’t find an image of this alternate cover anywhere but both versions have become eagerly sought-after collector items.

It’s a striking case of cover art that outlives the music. As Force sardonically observed: “I also remember Knight saying “I can take a piece of shit and turn it into gold.” Meanwhile, I’m famous – for an album cover.”

Illinois was not only the most acclaimed album of 2005, it’s also the second installment in what may be one of the crazily ambitious musical projects ever hatched. Grandly title The Fifty States Project, it refers to Stevens intent to record an album about each of the US States. So far, he’s managed Illinois and the 2003’s Michigan.

To be fair, it’s widely assumed that the Fifty State Project is more than a little tongue-in-cheek, a good example of Stevens’ gift for self-promotion and media coverage. The cover for Illinois got a fair amount of press for all the wrong reasons, however, when its launch was delayed due to legal action from DC comics.

As rapturous reviews filled newspapers and sites across the country, fans became frustrated to learn that label Asthmatic Kitty Records had been forced to halt all retail sales. A détente was negotiated in a fairly swift fashion, with a balloon sticker employed to cover the copyright infringing superhero. Subsequent copies removed him all together.

A blogger named John, writing on beelerspace, best captured the sense of disappointment we inevitably experience when we discover just how little popular culture actually belongs to us. Writing as the news broke, he argued: “Including Superman on the cover of Illinoise was a mistake made in ignorance but also in innocence. Sufjan assumed that we owned Superman; that the man of steel was an icon that belonged to us. Sufjan’s Superman is the one of the classical heroism, the one driven by the public good, by honor and nobility, by that which is good…

“In DC’s legal universe, Superman is more like the one Frank Miller portrayed in the Dark Knight: a pawn controlled by an opportunistic, media-driven, shadow-government-cum-corporation. He’s not a hero, he’s a property…

“Sufjan’s intent – and that is the heart of what we’re talking about: intent – was to merely acknowledge the existence of Superman as an icon of America and Illinois.”

It’s a passionate case that he puts forward and one that is particularly refreshing in an age of cynical defeatism. The people at Asthmatic Kitty were a little less argumentative, merely conceding that they’d “forgotten” to check with DC. They were doubly unfortunate that DC were just wrapping up lucrative deals around the Superman Returns movie and that the album ended up becoming such a hot item so soon after release.

The cover art has also been blamed for inciting waves of mispronunciation, as the headline’s infectious call to arms has lead the album to be known as “Illinoise”.

But even without the controversy, the cover still stands as a very charming tribute to the state of Illinois. It’s a state that’s notable not only for its major city Chicago but also for being the “average state”. Widely considered a political bellwether, it is demographically diverse and culturally rich. Stevens’ cover pays tribute to icons that include the Chicago skyline, gangster Al Capone and the agricultural industry.

Superman has long been a proud part of Illinois’ history since DC decided to place the fictional Metropolis there. Life went on to imitate art, when a small town of less than 7,000 people changed its name to Metropolis and in June 9, 1972 the Illinois State Legislature passed Resolution 572 that declared Metropolis the “Hometown of Superman”. I strongly recommend a visit to the online Metropolis Chamber of Commerce.

In a subsequent release of outtakes from the album, The Avalanche, Stevens recasts himself as the superhero, pulling free of the strings that hold him up.

Should he ever release a commemorative edition of this contemporary classic, he may well choose to add an Illinois icon whose story is as impropable as you’ll find in any comic book. Obama’s unlikely to sue.

Okay, so here’s the lesson of today’s story: always pick up cool looking hitchhikers.

Illustrator Neon Park (born Martin Muller) was driving from the Mothers of Invention offices, where he’d finally succeeded in getting paid the $250 he was owed for the cover of Weasels Ripped My Flesh. (We’ve previously written a post about the history behind that awesome cover).

He saw a guy called Ivan who, as he tells it, “was hitchhiking in the rain in a tee-shirt, didn’t have a coat. He was getting very wet. He had a guitar with him, stuffed under his shirt. That’s why I picked him up.” As it turned out, Ivan was a songwriter and a friend of Lowell George, the co-founder of Little Feat and an ex-member of Mother of Invention.

“So I was on my way home, and there was this fellow human being in misery, and I picked him up. Almost got hit by a bus doing it. He said I should come with him to Lowell’s… I had my portfolio with me, so Ivan said I should show Lowell my stuff. Little Feat’s first album had just come out. I showed him my stuff and he liked it.” It was the beginning of one of the great collaborations between band and cover artist, as Park went on to create the images for nearly every Little Feat album to follow. At the same time the band’s line up would change constantly.

The first cover Park created for the band was the highly suggestive and very funny Sailin’ Shoes, which took us to an alternate Versallies for a trippy homage to Marie Antionette.

If the relationship between the cover and the title “Sailin’ Shoes” is hard to discern, that’s because when Park began the artwork the album was to be called “I’ll Eat It Here”.

He would get used to this kind of thing – in fact, it only got worse. The album Dixie Chicken was supposed to be called “Handcuffs and Accordians”, which once again explains the dissonance between the cover and the title.

The Dixie Chicken that Little Feat sing about is a southern strumpet who seduces a guy by singing him a song one night. He goes on to marry her and buy her everything she wants (“My money flowed like wine”). Once she grows bored of him, she runs off – but his humiliation isn’t finished.

Then one night in the lobby
Of the Commodore Hotel
I chanced to meet a bartender
Who said he knew her well

And as he handed me a drink
He began to hum a song
And all the boys there at the bar
Began to sing along

As great as the lyrics are, the woman on the cover of Dixie Chicken isn’t the femme fatale who comes to mind. She seems an urban vixen, as moneyed as she is mean and desirable. Much of the humour comes from how highly sexed the image is, with an instrument as neutered as a piano accordion transformed into a phallic, lust-filled object. The giant, pillowy background with its cold blue tones evokes a world that is one giant mattress; a place for endless play.

Park admits that the change of the title really worried him but the cover was much loved nonetheless. And if the visuals didn’t always match the new album titles, they always matched the feel and mood of the music.

Had he been given the brief for an album title “Dixie Chicken”, he may well have put forward one of the feathered females from his well-known duck series.

Park also worked with David Bowie, Dr. John and the Beach Boys and made illustrations for Playboy and National Lampoon. It is a terrible irony that this great illustrator started to notice a numbness in his hands in the early 80’s. It wasn’t until 1992 that he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease. His response to the doctor? “I never even played baseball.”

He died a year later, having already assured his legacy.