Jerome Douvendahns casts his discerning eye over many of this year’s album covers and presents
THE TOP 30 ALBUM COVERS OF 2018.
IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER:
1. The Weight Band. ‘World Gone Mad’.
A charming and nostalgic image. It's like a postcard from a bygone age. Maybe it’s the Barnum & Bailey Circus setting up on the outskirts of the metropolis.
2. Becky Warren. ‘Undesirable’.
It’s the Alt. Country scrap heap with all of life's discarded and tragic remnants.
3. Janelle Monáe. ‘Dirty Computer’.
If the cover is a metaphor for a dirty computer …then it is beyond me. Majestic and exotic, the image reminds me of those 70’s kitsch paintings by Vladimir Tretchikoff.
4. Laura Gibson. ‘Goners’.
What is out there? An engaging image with a pensive and wistful atmosphere and an underlying sense of longing.
5. Deena Abdelwahed. ‘Khonnor’.
Captivating isn't it. What a beautiful yet unsettling way to wear a tea cosy.
6. Holtgram. ‘Modern Cults’.
Is he jumping? No! He’s hanging. Oh the drama.
7. Keep Shelly in Athens. ‘Introvert’.
No! She wants to get out. Who wants to stay in Athens anyway? Besides Shelly looks like a bit of an extrovert to me.
8. Holly Miranda. ‘Mutual Horse’.
It is like a pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood painting. Who is this Innocent, mythical and mysterious creature that Dante Gabriel Rossetti has painted? What is she carrying and why?
9. Suburban Dirts. ‘I want blood’.
Well you got it. Now for the cover up. Blood has been spilt. Here we have the aftermath of some unspecified and unspeakable horror ...and the suffering of the innocents.
10. The Jayhawks. ‘Backroads and Abandoned Motels’.
Atmospheric and poignant. A forlorn setting especially enhanced by the contrasting green light in the foreground and golden light of the sky. Welcome to one of those forsaken alt. country spaces of middle America.
11. Neko Case. ‘Hell-On’.
Cigarettes and singed hair. Cough! Ouch! Phew! …and with the beautiful Neko Case. It is an overload on the senses. Has Neko been covertly commissioned by the anti smoking lobby?
12. Cowboy Junkies. ‘All that reckoning’.
Unfathomable goings on here. The kid is absorbed and oblivious of any potential danger ...and the setting looks menacing to me.
13. Unknown. I’ve lost the details of this album.
An album of the ambient genre from memory. Still trying to track it down.
14 John Paul Keith. ‘Heart Shaped Shadow’.
What an elegant black and white photo. The stylish pose and striking composition put this cover a cut above many of those with a musician and guitar.
15. Riverside. ‘Wasteland’.
Image, music and album title beautifully in sync. Sometimes 'metal' can do your head in!
16. Dan Israel. ‘You’re Free’.
An ode to 2001. This symbolises one giant step in human evolution! What AM FM radio? NO! MUSIC!
I modified this image for sablues.org’s celebration of our 300th podcast!
Another giant step in human evolution: Podcasts from sablues.org
17. Cindy Wilson. ‘Change’.
I often wondered what was inside the head of this former B-52 band member.
18. Brother Dege. ‘Farmer’s Almanac’.
The haunting Gothic like image of a scarecrow at dusk dramatically contrasted by that windswept sky.
19. Tiny Deaths. ‘Magic’.
Still can’t work out what it is. The mystery remains and deepens!
20. Courtney Marie Andrews. ‘May You Kindness Remain’.
Courtney you charmer. Here is an image that lingers. What is she watching on TV? What is she reading? Is there room on the couch for me? I'd like to get inside her thoughts.
21. Jim James. ‘Uniform Distortion’.
I like sepia tone photos with their sense of a bygone age, their graininess and …over exposure!
22. BC Camplight. ‘Deportation Blues’.
It’s BC Camplight caught in the headlights. Will he be deported?
23. Zhu. ‘Ringos Desert, Pt. 1’.
Strikingly silhouetted by the white sand, Zhu continues his search for Ringo’s Desert, Pt 2.
24. Marisa Anderson. ‘Cloud Corner’.
It's just a row of deciduous trees shrouded in fog. But wait. Feel the chill, sense the stillness, hear the quiet …what an evocative photo. Hear the quiet? Do you hear quietness? Well no ...but you know what I mean. It reminds me of 'The Avenue at Middelharnis' by Meindert Hobbema.
Marisa's album was the ispireation behind one of my video creations, its imagery quite different from that on the cover.
25. Night Flowers. ‘Wild Notion’.
A dramatic composition, it's a balancing act playing on diagonals.
26. Hybrid. ‘Light of The Fearless’.
Evocative and broody. Sometimes a cover prompts you to have a listen to the album. This cover certainly did.
27. Jen Cloher. ‘Live at The Loft’.
Lady lounging with guitar. What a delightful and intimate black and white snapshot.
28. Willie Nelson. ‘My Way’.
The man and his guitar, performing and in the spot light. Beautiful.
29. Julia Biel. ‘Julia Biel’.
Absorbed singer song writer musing, composing and contemplating.
30. The Putbacks. The Putbacks.
Yes it’s the Putbacks jumping with joy. What energy! This is even better than that Madness cover 'One Step Beyond' with all the guys leaning back.
Well there you have it. My TOP 30 ALBUM COVERS FOR 2018.
OK! OK! I’ve been pressured into narrowing down the field and nominate what I consider to be the best cover of the year. Hmmm. Difficult. After much consideration I HAVE SELECTED THIS COVER AS THIS YEAR'S BEST.
By the way, 12 of these albums have tracks that have been featured in podcasts from sablues.org over this year.
