Part 5: House Of Balloons by The Weeknd
Dark. Moody. Murky. Late night listening. The Weeknd is shrouded in mystery and I love it. House Of Balloons is the first offering from Toronto based Abel Tesfaye, otherwise known as The Weeknd. It surfaced in March 2011 containing nine tracks of dark, dirty “R’n’B” (I use the term loosely) and is something that I’ve been craving for a long time. Far removed from the oversaturated, sickly, bland pop R’n’B that drains radio airplay, House Of Balloons provides a murky, sometimes disturbing, soundtrack to lusty, late night tales of debauchery and over indulgence that some of us will be only too familiar with.
The artwork for this release also goes against what is expected, choosing a black and white photograph lifted from the very lust fuelled house party the content emobodies, set with simple, almost retro looking type. It whispers mystery and fits perfectly with the low key approach of the artist.
House Of Balloons is available to download from www.the-weeknd.com and if reports are to believed, the second and third parts of the trilogy, Thursday and Echoes Of Silence, will be with us in Summer and Fall 2011.
Part 4: Diary by Sunny Day Real Estate
For this edition of MTDTB we’re gonna go back to 1994. At this time Seattle, Washington was at the forefront of music, particularly the grunge scene and Sub Pop Records. Sunny Day Real Estate remain one the best bands to come from the scene, but to this day are still criminally underrated. Despite this, many bands and artists that know their stuff count Sunny Day Real Estate as an influence and this is evident in a lot of alternative and emo bands of recent years. Inbetween their rollercoaster history of break-ups and reunions, founding members William Goldsmith and Nate Mendel left to join Dave Grohl’s early Foo Fighters line-up where Mendel is a permanent fixture on bass.
‘Diary’ by Sunny Day Real Estate is a masterpiece. Don’t just take my word for it, go have a listen, especially fans of Foo Fighters, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins etc. Lead single ‘Seven’ is impossibly catchy and once heard is never forgotten. Throughout the album, Jeremy Enigk’s tortured vocals rest perfectly over soaring guitar riffs and soul battering bass lines. I count myself very lucky to seen have this band live, in their first ever UK show no less. Even through their troubled past, they produce one of the best live shows I’ve ever witnessed - every bit as awesome as the debut album itself. The reunited original line-up have matured and now seem content.
The artwork of this classic album was created by Chris Thompson and is based on a popular childrens toy. As you work your way through the booklet and liner notes there are a number of different artworks of the little people in various day to day situations. I pretty much love the cover choice. Toaster burning, still smiling.
Part 3: Brothers by The Black Keys
Design heads, how much time have you wasted skipping album tracks whilst trying to work? I know, right? The importance of being able to play an album aaaaallll the damn way through is rarely thought about or mentioned. I know I’ve spent a lot of time choosing the right music when I could have been designing (hence the birth of this blog series). Well, with The Black Keys there isn’t much skipping to be done.
2010’s Brothers is another slice of blues infused rock from the Ohio duo. For two people they make a hell of a racket. But a good racket of course. Brothers is probably my favourite Black Keys album, it has a maturity and a sense of dark truth about it. Over the years the pair have become accomplished musicians and although I like the raw, gritty, garage band sound of the early stuff, Brothers manages to throw back to that at times while also showing how they’ve grown musically.
The artwork is simple but dark and effective. There’s no denying its relationship to the music, so designers take note. The typography and design are a throw back to a dusty old bar where people spill their sorrows over heavy guitars, sitting for hours with sippin’ whiskey before heading out into the deserted night.
Part 2. Rare Tracks by Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth
By far some of the best music to design to, I find, is hip hop. I’ve grown up with it and have a lot of love for it. I still find it divides people greatly, but I think this is due in part to a lot of people being exposed only to the large amount of complete crap that gets released.
The criminally underrated Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth are a different matter. This particular collection, Rare Tracks, is a hard to find little gem of remixes and rarities. If you come across it, nice going. If you don’t, give Mecca and the Soul Brother or The Main Ingredient a try as they include some of the original versions of tracks from RT.
The tracklist of RT contains reworked versions of various classic tracks from the pairs back catalogue of classic material; sitting and listening while designing really is a joy. Pete Rock’s soul fuelled production provides a perfect backdrop to C.L. Smooth’s story telling knack. When Pete Rock is responsible for a beat (RT or otherwise) you know you’re getting something that will balance the melodic with the crashing boom-bap that gives you that extra bit of bounce and energy. So while providing a hell of a metronome for getting you moving and really stuck into that design that’s been bugging you, the soul samples and horn sections have the potential to carry you to a place where you can develop your thoughts and ideas.
Part 1: In Reverie by Saves The Day.
To kick off I’ve chosen In Reverie by New Jersy pop punks, Saves The Day. It came down to this album and Stay What You Are, but In Reverie just sneaked the win. For the purpose of this series I’m going to put aside all my memories that are linked to this band (which is quite a lot) and focus purely on this album and just how God damn ace it is.
(Very) brief album history; Released in 2003 via Vagrant and the ill fated Dreamworks Records, it featured slightly less darker subject matter than what went previously but has a more melodic quality about it. The troubled release only spawned 1 single from it’s 12 tracks.
Despite it’s troubled history I think it’s a great album. Especially to design to. There’s a sweet flow between the tracks throughout the whole album and melodic choruses sweep in and out and take you back to that neverending summer. You know the one. Favourite track? I’ll go with the title song, ‘In Reverie’. It breaks in, scoops you up and flies you away, showing you the world below.
Introduction.
To me, music and design go hand in hand. Like Yin and Yang, Romeo and Juliet, like Sun and Moon, Lemon and Lime, Fish fingers and custard… Well, maybe not so much the last one. Creating a design is a lot like making an album in many ways, having seen both take shape.
I think there’s definately a link between the two and as a designer I find music can have a direct effect on how you create. A simple concept that intrigues me. Music has a way of placing you somewhere in your imagination and this can spill over deliciously into your artwork. Sometimes.
In my ‘Music To Design Things By’ series I want to share what gives me that feeling and helps in those times when you can’t seem to get motivated. Maybe it could help you! Maybe it won’t, but at least it’ll be fun. Why not tell me yours too? Get in Touch.
