FEATURE:
Down to a Fine Art
IN THIS PHOTO: The cover for Glüme’s 2023 album, Main Character/PHOTO CREDIT: Andrea Riba
The Importance of a Great and Distinct Album Cover
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I have suggested in the past…
IN THIS PHOTO: The cover for The Beatles’ Abbey Road (1969)/PHOTO CREDIT: Iain Macmillan
how album art has become less important. In terms of artists doing something innovative and eye-catching. Maybe that assumption most people stream albums and there will not be much artistic appeal or need. A thumbnail or an album cover that is wonderful and genius might get overlooked. I feel, as vinyl sales continue to rise and people are buying more and more albums to keep and play over and over, we are seeing artists react to this. The Best Art Vinyl 2023 has announced a longlist. It is going to announce their winner in January. There are some really amazing covers to behold. Compared to songs and albums, you do not get that many lists that spotlight the best album covers. Still this feeling they are not relevant today. I would disagree! Even if they do not stand the test of time the way the music will, an original and appealing cover can bring people to an album. It is part of the whole package. I have been put off by great albums with a terrible cover. I have bought others on the strength of their cover! I guess it is entirely subjective what a ‘great album cover’ is. Is it is impact with minimal intrusion and details?! Is it about having a striking single image or a composite that attracts the eye?! I don’t think there is a secret ingredient that makes an album cover stand out. Think about the classics and how different they are. Whether The Beatles’ Abbey Road or Nirvana’s Nevermind, each artist can make their mark with their own image. I feel the artwork and cover defines an album. They very much go hand in hand with the music. That relationship between the songs and the cover art.
I do know that there are a lot of music fans who think highly of album art. You have these albums – usually vinyl but also C.D. – in your collection. That is the first thing that you see! I would like to see more celebration and spotlighting of great album art and why, with vinyl and physical sales increasing, it should be a new priority for artists. Dig! have ranked their favourite album covers of this year. The top five are all very different equally striking:
“5: PARAMORE: ‘THIS IS WHY’
Five years after the release of their pop-inspired fifth album, After Laughter, Paramore erupted back on the scene with This Is Why, which plucked influences from 2000s Britrock, leaned back into the group’s own infectious guitar hooks and traded in the delicate lyricism frontwoman Hayley Williams has displayed across her solo projects. Written on the back of a global pandemic, the album is awash with paranoia, impatience and fear. Picturing Williams and her Paramore bandmates, Taylor York and Zac Farro, slammed against a condensed shower screen, This Is Why’s artwork earns its place among the best album covers of 2023 for encapsulating the chaotic pressure everyone has been under in the years leading up to the album’s release.
Photographer: Zachary Gray
4: ASHNIKKO: ‘WEEDKILLER’
The follow-up to their electric 2021 mixtape, DEMIDEVIL, Ashnikko’s debut album, Weedkiller, charts a journey to selfhood, introducing audiences to every shade of the songwriter’s inner turmoil, but with a healthy helping of fun and whimsy. One of the best album covers of 2023, the portrait image echoes the vulnerability and mythology that the US artist has woven into the album’s subject matter, as Ashnikko cradles themself while entombed in an extraterrestrial egg surrounded by earth and burning skies. It suggests an inhospitable alien world resides within, but Weedkiller embraces listeners from the very first listen.
Photographer: Vasso Vu | CGI: @razorade
3: MELANIE MARTINEZ: ‘PORTALS’
Melanie Martinez’s third studio album, Portals, showcases the US singer’s unique and unconventional art-pop style as she sings of swamp-dwelling faeries and alien-like embryos. One of the best album covers of 2023, its sleeve boasts a striking image of dream-like surrealism, for which Martinez was photographed wearing pink prosthetics that give her a feline appearance. Remarkably, the album’s title is crafted from real-life hair, adding an eerie touch that’s both alluring and unsettling.
Photographer: Jimmy Fontaine
IN THIS PHOTO: The cover of Ashnikko’s Weedkiller
2: YOUNG FATHERS: ‘HEAVY HEAVY’
Straddling the line between hip-hop and rock, Young Fathers have never paid attention to typical genre boundaries, and Heavy Heavy is, as its title suggests, pretty heavy-heavy. Reverberating with thundering drums and gospel choruses, the album aims to leave listeners with wild thoughts and outrageous questions the likes of which its artwork does little to address. A truly arresting entry among the best album covers of 2023, the sleeve pictures an obscured figure pierced with sharp objects; it is based on the Nikisi figures found in many West and Central African cultures, which are believed to have spiritual capabilities that can banish evil.
Designer: Tom Hingston
1: GORILLAZ: ‘CRACKER ISLAND’
Returning after a three-year gap, Gorillaz remain in ultimately wacky form on Cracker Island, adding a raft of new collaborators to their roster, among them Tame Impala, Thundercat and Fleetwood Mac’s Stevie Nicks. Continuing to develop the group’s image, Gorillaz co-creator Jamie Hewlett has worked up one of the best album covers of 2023, drawing on themes in Damon Albarn’s lyrics as he reframes the group as members of a cult somewhere on the edge of the world.
Illustrator: Jamie Hewlett”.
I think that things have changed in the past few years. Maybe the pandemic had something to do with a shift. People turning more from streaming and getting music digitally to wanting to be at a record shop and buying an album. I think this will be the case going forward, as Spotify is laying off staff and is driving people away from their service. If buying albums is expensive, there is still true value to be found in them. They are an investment and something that is physical that you can keep for years. This feature/podcast asked about the use/need for cover art in a ‘post-album’ age. That was in 2019. A new appetite for physical albums means that album art is very much back in focus. I don’t like it when an artist does not take much time or thought to create an interesting album cover. It is very disappointing. The cover gives an idea to the content of an album so, if yours is boring or simple, how appealing is that going to be?! I will finish by returning to this year’s best album covers. There have been some fairly recently. This blog explains why album art is absolutely crucial in the modern age. That was published in 2022. Great album art can draw listeners in. They also reveal hidden meanings and symbolism. That means, years from now, discoveries can be made about some albums that bring them back to public attention.
In a modern age, there are more and more options when it comes to art. Whether using AI to generate unique and unusual images, making the cover animated or interactive, you can turn it into this moving and memorable experience. Last year, Parma Recordings went deep with the album art. Ways in which it is important:
“A Symbiotic Relationship
The relationship between music and artwork is symbiotic in that they both inform each other. Just as a painting is an extension and reflection of its creator’s influences and ideals, album art reflects the personality of the artist and the tone of their music.
The artwork on TELEMANN FANTASIAS from Navona Records uses a unique juxtaposition of photography, a popping color palette, and geometric shapes that all work in harmony with each other, a deceptively simple yet complex cover that’s reflective of the baroque works featured on the album.
Featuring mezzo-soprano Megan Marino, Evan Mack’s THE TRAVELED ROAD from Ravello Records features the singer’s silhouette fused with the titular concept on the cover, marrying the multiple facets of the album into a compelling visual presentation.
With so many musical genres and artistic voices contributing to music these days, the range of artistic styles in album art has expanded tremendously. Additionally, the tools needed to produce album art have greatly improved with better cameras, graphic design software, and an ease of access to sources and information through the internet.
This growing industry of musical expressions paired with modern technology has created a limitless world of possibility and originality for the visual side of music.
Illustration in Album Design
Even with all of these digital tools at our disposal, the use of illustration in album design still remains a prominent and viable way to stand out in the industry today.
There are a number of different directions a pen and hand can travel. Illustrated by Christopher St. John, the GRAMMY nominated album THE ARC IN THE SKY from The Crossing utilizes a neutral color palette for its cover, its focal point a cascading and imaginatively-drawn bird arcing its wings in flight.
An album title like HIPSTER ZOMBIES FROM MARS surely needs cover art that captures all of those enticing characteristics. Look behind the album’s arresting presentation to find interesting and musically complex works from composer Nicholas Vines.
Having unique, eye-catching visuals that both attract and hold the attention of your ideal audience is essential to making your work stand out from the crowd. Before streaming music digitally was the norm, consumers were thumbing through racks of cds and vinyls that grabbed attention far easier. Now that album covers are exposed to listeners in thumbnails on streaming platforms, developing artwork that draws the eye is as crucial as ever in garnering attention.
Animated Cover Art
Streaming music has generated a wide array of options for visual mediums, most notably with the use of animated cover art. Animation adds another layer of originality to albums and can help them stand out in a sea of static covers. With Spotify Canvas for example, animated artwork can play along with a track in a three to eight second loop on the platform akin to a short music video. Additionally, opting for animated artwork in conjunction with a release can be directly applied to social media networks, making it an enticing asset for digital promotion.
In an ever-expanding, ever-evolving marketplace, nothing matters more than staying on top of shifts in the industry and culture. Even as trends trickle in and out and new technologies begin to surface, creating eye-catching, meaningful visual media for your music will always remain a vital part of the equation”.
One good point regarding why album covers are vital and should be a big consideration applies to new artists and getting attention. At a time when albums on streaming services might make them very little money, making the cover as good as possible can drive physical sales. When people might be less patient when it comes to listening to entire albums on streaming services, the artwork and cover can help convince people to listen. Stand one artist out from the rest! Also, as this 2022 article explores, album art is part of an artist’s brand and identity:
“Streaming Services And Dwindling Attention Spans
We all know the popular saying “never judge a book by its cover”, and many might argue that the same should apply to music. After all, listening to music is primarily an auditory experience, and as such, nothing is more important than the quality of the sound itself. Nevertheless, we also know that people do judge books by their covers, and certainly do the same with music. In fact, our cluttered, visually-dense social media timelines have created an environment in which we judge a ‘book’ by its cover several times a day.
Studies have shown that we’re living in a time when our attention spans are considerably low. And if an artist or musician wants to stand out from the crowd, they have to come up with elaborate new visual “hooks” to catch the viewer’s eye within seconds, since people only have that amount of time to be instantly attracted to what they see before scrolling on to the next thing. For decades, the cover artwork’s main purpose was to compete for attention with other albums on the same rack in the store. Now, not only does an album’s art have to compete with other covers from around the globe, it also has to stand out next to memes, innumerable selfies, TikTok challenges, animal videos, and everything else vying for attention on crowded timelines!
For upcoming artists that don’t have a big name or solid fan base yet, capturing the attention of listeners can be a daunting, but crucial task, and even the more popular artists still have to make the effort to retain the attention they have already garnered. When it comes to streaming services like Spotify (for example), the numbers are mind-boggling and go a long way in helping us understand the importance of impactful, well-considered album art. Take, for instance, the statistics that show that in 2021, United States users streamed over 900 billion songs. This means that album art popped up over 900 billion times as well, which is really where the aesthetic design takes hold: because people will almost always see something before they hear it, if an artist doesn’t make a lasting first impression with their artwork, then the connection is already lost.
PHOTO CREDIT: cottonbro studio/Pexel
More Than Just Packaging
Thus, it goes without saying that album art is more than just the picture on the front of an album — it’s part of an artist’s online brand, which will forever be associated with them and their work. The importance of album art itself cannot be overstated, since the artwork can add to (or subtract from) the overall quality of music. Depending on what kind of cover it is, it can either spark interest or put off someone who is searching for something to listen to. From a listener’s perspective, it pushes the personality of the album to the fore, giving a glimpse into the content and flavor of the album, while simultaneously providing the listener with imagery that can be twirled around in their head while they listen. On a more aesthetic level (which many of us can confirm), if an album cover gives off a certain vibe or feeling, many listeners will be interested to hear how the music presents it.
Long gone are the days when cover art was simply a form of packaging per its original function. In 2022, it serves a much broader purpose in helping to curate an overall experience. Since music is spread along with the artwork, the two are intertwined in such a way that the art can retain interest and heighten the listening experience. Just as the title sets the tone before the listener even presses play, the album cover functions in a similar way.
So while it is true that music will always be the ultimate representation of an artist’s work, cover art should not be taken for granted. Although physical packaging is no longer considered a serious part of the equation when it comes to an album’s commercial success, the presentation of the album cover plays an increasingly crucial role in attracting potential listeners and ensuring the memorability of the work”.
IN THIS PHOTO: The cover for Steve Mason’s Brothers & Sisters (2023)/PHOTO CREDIT: Tom Marshak/DESIGN CREDIT: Matthew Cooper and Paul J Street
I love thinking about the classic album covers and whether there are modern competitors that can match the best from time. It is interesting that the album cover size and dynamic has changed through the decades. Often now viewed as a small square on a screen, I think that there is this return and reversal. As physical music is increasing in popularity, the appeal and importance of the album cover is clear. If some wrote good covers off as irrelevant in a streaming age it is not the case anymore. I am going to finish with a feature from Far Out Magazine from August. They ask how important album artwork is. Even if the reason why artwork is important now is different today than decades ago, it all still comes down to standing out and capturing the senses:
“That doesn’t mean that album artwork has lost its spark, though, far from it. In fact, its significance has surged to new heights as artists must increasingly leverage visual elements to establish their identity and cut through the noise. Platforms such as Spotify have, in a sense, both equalised the field while somewhat muting creativity: in the past, albums thrived within the cocoon of their own artwork, blessed with graphics and fonts specifically chosen to epitomise their sound. Now, however, streaming sites have standardised works, confining them to a narrow spectrum of categories, all sporting the same font and presentation as the next title.
PHOTO CREDIT: cottonbro studio/Pexels
So, even though album artwork may seem a smaller task – literally, given the fact that sites present them within tiny squares – it’s actually still as important as it ever was, if not more so. In the midst of platforms where uniformity reigns, artwork stands as one of the few opportunities to truly distinguish yourself. In an environment that often leads to snap judgments, artwork frequently becomes the initial arbiter of our impression of a musical piece. For example, if a cover bears the hallmarks of amateurish 1990s aesthetics, coupled with a questionably composed photo of the artist, you’re probably going to assume the music is lacking in quality, too.
In reality, artwork is the bridge between that first engagement and diving deeper into the musician’s artistic realm. Artwork is a veil that should be treated as the gateway that it is – it’s a powerful way of extending creativity into something that holds profound visceral power. Then, if a fan really likes a piece of music, buying a physical copy of an album is akin to crafting a world around those interests.
Album art has evolved beyond being a mere image gracing a record’s front. It now stands as an integral facet of online brands. Within the realm of streaming, a visual dimension profoundly impacts a musician’s trajectory toward success: this is a void that needs to be elegantly filled with accompanying album art”.
Maybe a discussion we would not be having in 2019 or 2020 concerns the new relevance of the album cover. I think that we are almost going back in time. To a point when vinyl sales were big and, with it, so many great covers were there to be discovered. Features and lists like this highlight some really compelling covers. I have always loved the album cover but, in the past, I have asked whether it is still important. Many people felt that great album covers were pointless in a digital time. That is now shifting. It is wonderful to see some exceptional, memorable and enduringly original albums covers…
PHOTO CREDIT: Martin Parr
STILL being produced.