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35 posts

Craig

Craig is the founder of Art Before Noise, exploring the stories behind iconic album covers. From Bowie’s rice cooker to Kendrick’s lawn, his deep dives reveal the hidden secrets and visual visions that define the music we love.

Posts

  • The Music Was Always Better Than The Cover 6 min read

    The Music Was Always Better Than The Cover

    Craig
    • • Kylie Minogue • Nick Knight • Ellen Von Unwerth

    Kylie Minogue - Eighty million records sold. Number ones in five consecutive decades. One of pop's greatest ever careers. So why are some of her album covers so forgettable?

  • Da Inner Sound, Y'all 5 min read

    Da Inner Sound, Y'all

    Craig
    • • Deep Dive • De La Soul • Toby Mott

    3 Feet High and Rising by De La Soul - I came to this album backwards. Through De La Soul Is Dead, back to the beginning. I didn't know any of the songs. And then I pressed play. Here's the story behind the cover that changed hip hop.

  • The Dream She Gave Me 5 min read

    The Dream She Gave Me

    Craig
    • • Deep Dive • Smashing Pumpkins • Billy Corgan

    Siamese Dream by Smashing Pumpkins - My wife introduced me to the Smashing Pumpkins. Before her I only knew the rat in a cage song.

  • That Was On Purpose 5 min read

    That Was On Purpose

    Craig
    • • Controversial • Jarvis Cocker • Pulp

    This Is Hardcore by Pulp - I was a young man in 1998. I saw the cover and noticed a semi-naked woman. I was mesmerised.

  • The Decade The Sleeve Became An Art Form - The 1970s 8 min read

    The Decade The Sleeve Became An Art Form - The 1970s

    Craig
    • • Pink Floyd • Joy Division • Meat Loaf

    The 1970s was the decade when the album sleeve stopped being packaging and became a full blown art form. Here are the ten greatest covers of the decade.

  • Everyone Said No 4 min read

    Everyone Said No

    Craig
    • • Sleeve Notes • Charli XCX • Brent David Freaney

    Brat by Charli XCX - A disgusting shade of green. Blurry Arial font. Four letters. Nothing else. Her manager said no. Her creative director said no. Her friends said no.

  • The Cover Nobody Saw 4 min read

    The Cover Nobody Saw

    Craig
    • • Controversial • Guns N' Roses • Robert Williams

    Appetite For Destruction by Guns N' Roses - The cross and skulls design is the cover everyone knows. But there was another one. Most of the world never saw it.

  • Absence 5 min read

    Absence

    Craig
    • • Deep Dive • Pink Floyd • Hipgnosis

    Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd - Two businessmen. One of them is on fire. And, did you know about the invisible man?

  • Nothing 5 min read

    Nothing

    Craig
    • • Controversial • Kanye West • Rick Rubin

    Yeezus by Kanye West - A clear plastic case. A piece of red tape. Nothing else. I looked at it and moved on. I was wrong.

  • Cover To Cover 5 min read

    Cover To Cover

    Craig
    • • The Clash • The Beatles • Gorillaz

    Eight album covers in conversation with another album cover. Some are deliberate tributes. Some are knowing winks. Some are coincidences so perfect they feel impossible.

  • Eight Covers. One Secret Pattern 6 min read

    Eight Covers. One Secret Pattern

    Craig
    • • Mark Hoppus • Tom DeLonge • Travis Barker

    Eight studio albums. Eight covers. And hiding across most of them, a secret that nobody noticed for years.

  • The Lawn They Built 5 min read

    The Lawn They Built

    Craig
    • • Deep Dive • Kendrick Lamar • Denis Rouvre

    To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar - I heard King Kunta on Triple J and bought the album for the music. I never really looked at the cover. I should have.

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