Heart on the sleeve

Harper’s Bazaar (October 2008)

‘A cool album cover is a necessary to connect with the people who listen to the records,’ says illustrator and graphic designer Alan Aldridge, the man responsible for otherworldly record sleeves for the Who and the Beatles. ‘It is also the icing on the cake for the musicians, who have spent a year in the studio.’

With his first UK retrospective, called ‘The Man With Kaleidoscope Eyes’, to open at the design Museum on 10 October, and the imminent publication of a book of the same name celebrating Aldridge’s work (£24.95, Thames & Hudson), it is clear that our delight in cover art is still strong.

Aldridge’s psychedelic covers paved the way for scores of visually thrilling sleeves, including illustrator Steve Wilson’s combination of hand-painted designs with computer-generated artwork for Australian star Sam Sparro. ‘Illustration can reflect a mood without being too literal’, says Joy Elton at Virgin Music, the label of the Chemical Brothers, whose covers feature Kate Gibb’s silk screen prints.

Many bands and designers forge strong ongoing relationships. Darren Wall, of design studio Wallzo, who has created covers for British electropop quintet Hot Chip, explains the process as ‘a kind of visual diplomacy’. I put a bit of myself into the artwork, too.’ he says. The art for the band’s forthcoming album is to feature a geometric cardboard model. ‘It was handmade by a monk in Minnesota who was delighted to be involved,’ says Wall.

Even in the realm of intangible digital downloads, sleeve art still has a place. For Chris Coco’s electronic music label Reverse Analogue, ‘micro’ artwork is created for very track, designed to be seen on the screen of an MP3 player.

For some, including illustrator Kate Moross, there is no substitute for the traditional 12-inch record sleeve. Moross founded her own record label as part of her company Isomorph in 2007, so that she could ‘repackage existing vinyl music, paying attention to the aesthetic of each record’. ‘The finished product is like an artist’s print you can listen to,’ she says.