It is a pleasure to inaugurate the Artwork Fanatic feature with Hugo Jeanson as our first guest. Not only is he a very talented graphic artist but he’s had a lot of musical projects over the years, most recently under the name ALONE and as a driving force behind the somewhat short lived but prolific MENACE collective. Others will know him from his time in hardcore bands PLUS MINUS and ENFORCERS (RIP). He is also an avid record collector and, let’s face it, quite a music nerd! In short, a perfect fit for the feature.
Check out his work at hugojeanson.com.
Name one or more designs that you consider to be perfect for each of these categories :
Since I don’t want to lose my mind trying to find the perfect answer, I will only pick stuff from the legendary MISFITS and BLACK FLAG, since their classic eras are untouchable and that their artwork are as great as their music:
- Album cover
The BLACK FLAG album covers are so well-known, my favorite may be the Everything Went Black LP, but I chose a lesser-known comp, drawn by Pettibon and featuring the SST roster, perfect use of contrast for a black and white cover:
One of the best punk 45’s and an equally great artwork, the MISFITS’ Bullet EP:
- Flyers
I love the Max’s Kansas City simple ads with only the band names in white on a black background, but this simple MISFITS flyer is really mean looking:
Hard to pick BLACK FLAG flyers since Pettibon has drawn so much incredible stuff in his peak, and considering the fact that a lot of stuff could not be printed today without raising some eyebrows, I’m choosing this safe but weird pick:
- Merch
My favorite MISFITS design, on shorts, what more can you ask for?
As for BLACK FLAG I don’t think they had much shirt designs in the 80’s, and the boots are usually just art from their albums or flyers, so I will skip them for this and just say that the BIOHAZARD backpack from the mid-90’s is the greatest merch item I’ve owned.
Who are some of your favorite artist ?
Cal Schenkel, an American graphic artist who designed most of FRANK ZAPPA’s stuff and a lot of records from the 60’s to the 80’s. Some of his stuff is over the top, some is traditional, some is really intelligent, some other really dumb… I love how he mastered the whole spectrum.
On the more “sophisticated” tip, Yukimasa Okumura’s work in the 80’s is mind-blowing. He did a lot of my favorite albums and has been one of my inspirations in the last couple years.
As for punk and HC, Spoiler, he is the Sean Taggart of our generation! The CRO-MAGS used his design for years, so that means a lot. I remember being so stoked when he agreed to do the cover for the first Lifers zine. His zine Push the Limit was great and not only he excels at drawing tough characters and moshing dudes, he has a great sense for designs of all kinds. Just the way he draws shadows and perspectives, it shows that he’s not just some dude drawing stuff for fun. He’s also a great writer/poet and a mean bass player. Lots of respect and admiration for him.
Best unusual/novelty vinyl sleeve?
The first album that comes to mind is Laissez-nous vous embrasser où vous avez mal by PÉLOQUIN-SAUVAGEAU, the first pressing with the band-aid that holds the gatefold together. They were an experimental/avant-garde duo of poetry and electronic music from the early 70’s, and it is now hard to find a copy in good shape or for a decent price. This is the kind of record that people listened to when they got high so the sleeve was too fragile for carelessness. My copy is in good condition so I framed it, just in case…
Another classic is ISAAC HAYES’ Black Moses, which is not too unusual but becomes a cross when unfolded, with a full picture print of Hayes dressed as a 1972 version of Moses. I would also love to find an original In Search of Space by HAWKWIND in good condition, or a first pressing of SOFT MACHINES’s first album, with the die-cut rotating clock. Thinking about it, there are so much records from the late 60’s/early 70’s with crazy covers but that are now hard to find in decent shape. Even classic records like the Velvet Underground & Nico (with peel-off banana cover) or Sticky Fingers (with the glued-on zipper), which tens of thousands of copies were sold, are almost impossible to find now.
But the holy-grail may be this Italian promo bag for PRINCE’s Purple Rain, with ¾ of a purple record, a plastic rose and a fake note. I feel like this is THE perfect promotional item, which is an art by itself (as weird as it sounds) and unfortunately a thing of the past. Who cares about download codes and promotional e-mails? Modern PR people are the devil.
Top 5 best album covers?
This is almost impossible to answer, but the first five that come to mind are:
BÉRURIER NOIR – Concerto pour Détraqués (Bondage Records, 1985)
My favorite punk record ever. The art is menacing while being silly, which is the perfect way to describe their sound. It just look so hard. Even the back cover is a perfect example of what a punk record should look like. I just recently found an original copy of the LP for the first time and I spent an hour straight just looking at it, since I only knew the cover from the CD version.
BRIAN ENO – Another Green World (Island Records, 1975)
Perfect record, perfect cover art. Simple and delicate. The fact it used a small part of a painting by Tom Phillips (After Raphael) indicated what was to come with future Eno. His first solo albums were really packed and condensed with elements, and as years went by his artwork became more and more simple, but not empty, just like his music.
YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA – BGM (Alfa Records, 1981)
This is where YMO became more serious in their sound, which makes the front artwork kind of absurd while still making sense. When you look closer, you can see that there are different layers in the illustration with hidden elements that can be found in the booklet, which represents their work so well.
BURN – s/t (Revelation Records, 1990)
This 7” is definitely the record that entered HC in a new phase. Even design-wise, it is perfect. The logo looks amazing, the still on the front is bizarre even if you can clearly see that it is from a show, the way the yellow logo, pink outline and blue background blend together is simply the best, the handwriting on the back is great, and that picture with those weird characters? On a HC record? I’m not even gonna bother talking about the label on the b-side… ridiculous.
CLUSTER – Zuckerzeit (Brain Records, 1974)
Such a tasty looking cover, looks like the logo for a foreign candy or something, and the title means “sugar time” so it makes sense. The contrast of the pink, bubbly calligraphy with the black background and the small band name in white is perfect. There was something in European water in those years; I wish I could have been part of it… They knew they didn’t need a complex artwork for this album, which is probably their best LP and definitely my pick for the best Krautrock album. The art for their Grosses Wasser LP is also one of my favorite.
What artist or band do you believe have achieved the most well thought out aesthetic, as a whole?
I think every artist or band start to get some flaws in their work at a certain point, whether if it’s in their beginning or near their end. For example, TYPE O NEGATIVE, from their debut to the late 90’s, had a perfect, coherent run of designs and releases. They got cheaper in the 00’s, design-wise, but their music got a little refined. Even artists as influential and thoughtful as BRIAN ENO had some really horrific designs in the 90’s. I feel like when too many people are involved in the creative process, things tend to get sour pretty easily. I love the entirety of ZAPPA’s catalogue, he managed to use so many different styles but you always know that it’s a ZAPPA release. You can sense the decade it was released in, but there is a coherent vibe throughout the years.
To answer your question without being too humble, I think that the entirety of what I did for Menace Collective is almost flawless. It was the first time I was able to be the main graphic designer for an entire project, and even though I was and still am a rookie in the field; I felt like I knew what to do and did it the way I wanted. I still get compliments for it so maybe I did something right? And since the project is now done, things didn’t get the chance to go sour.
Besides BLACK FLAG, what are your favorite stencil/spray paint logos of a punk/hardcore band?
Definitely the DRI thrashing silhouette. Other good logos that could be stenciled, but not punk/hc: PUBLIC ENEMY’s target, PRINCE’s love symbol and the WU-TANG W. (they should be considered punk though!)
Best demo cassette cover art?
I love the MERAUDER 93 demo front illustration (always wondered if it was a stolen image or if they designed it, since the original drummer apparently wrote everything, maybe it was him?) Other than that, I love the BREAKDOWN Running Scared artwork, LEEWAY Enforcer demo, the Life of Agony demos also look good (great promo pictures too.) For more recent stuff, I love the STICK TOGETHER demo art. Really clean.
Most odd/disturbing piece of artwork?
Without falling into the novelty stuff, probably ROYAL TRUX’ Sweet Sixteen, especially considering the fact it was released on a major label. It looks disgusting but I also think it looks great, composition-wise. Love the band logo made with cake frosting. You can feel that they were stuck with the “heroin-chic” label perpetuated by the media and needed to show where they came from, more than fashion icons or another 90’s “alternative” band. APHEX TWIN’s Windowlicker may also be disturbing to some people. The video made a profound impact on me as a teen watching Much Music, late at night… His two albums before that, I Care Because You Do and Richard D. James Album, are also frightening but weirdly endearing.
Do you have a technique that you prefer when it comes to albums covers (eg. drawing, picture, collage, etc)? Is there a technique that you dislike out of these three? If so, can you give us an example of an exception: an album cover that uses that technique but is still beautifully done?
It really depends on what the client is asking or has in mind, but I like working with most of these techniques. I started doing flyers with only an ink pen and a cheap scanner, without even adjusting levels in Photoshop, I didn’t know better then. As I got more interested in graphic design as a whole, my interests shifted and stopped doing them. People used to ask for designs and were so bummed when I showed them what I had in mind, working with classic fonts and trying to emulate the stuff I was discovering. They all wanted the cartoon stuff, bubbly letters, graffiti style. Nothing against that, I just felt at one point that other cats were doing it way better than I did, with more precision and professionalism, and that spending 20-25 hours on a small flyer for 25$ was stupid. Not that I did it for the money then, but you gotta respect your value and time at some point.
My weakest point when it comes to design is definitely vector illustrations, even though I can easily do them, it is the medium I used the least in the past 10 years, I’m more of an image-manipulation guy. I love to work with scanned pictures and use small elements, blow them up, and then give them a whole new dimension. The scanner is one of my favorite tools.
The toughest part is working with low-resolution pictures. I’m used to it, but in a perfect world, every client would know that you can’t do miracles with a small picture found on Google images or Instagram.
I’m not a big fan of “digital” stuff, but I respect those who excel in that field. I’m more into the optic of doing things that could have been done without a computer. I used an old version of Photoshop for the longest and I’m not really up-to-date with the newest techniques and developments of the software. I use what I know and use it the hard way to get to what I have in mind. I don’t have a particular album cover in mind, but I like some of Designer’s Republic stuff from the 90’s, even though it is far from what I’m usually into, but it’s probably just some kind of nostalgia from my pre-teen years and the new century that was coming.
Which decade has produced the best artwork?
1980’s, I think it peaked in that decade, considering the tools people had to use, the pre-Photoshop days. I could pick any genre, any artist, and probably find something I like about the art, even if it’s only the typography or some small elements. Even the biggest pop artists had some amazing art for their singles or albums. Don’t get me wrong though, some pretty horrendous stuff was done in that decade, maybe even 50% of it, but I’m not talking about the cheesy “retro” 80’s stuff, which I absolutely despise. If you plan on doing a design with a “retro” feel, don’t do it. You will probably fail. Or invest in working with a professional. Do your part in making the world a more beautiful place! Here are some examples of good, timeless 80’s design:
It is kinda difficult for me to explain why. I feel like this was the last great period for everything, art-wise. Not everyone knew how to use design software, so it stayed within circles of professionals or actual visual artists. Photographers knew their craft. Now I see promo pictures for bands that are so cheap-looking, like a friend of theirs had a DSLR camera and looked for tutorials online when it came to editing. You can just feel the over-saturation of cheapness right now, musically and graphically.
As for punk and underground stuff, the DIY boom made people do incredible things, push boundaries, try to differentiate themselves from other artists, and most importantly (or unfortunately), they established templates in the early 80’s that are still copied today.
There is also some amazing stuff that was done in the 60’s, 70’s or even the 90’s. I just feel like the 80’s is the decade where timelessness was perfected.
Do you remember the first time you were truly amazed by a piece of artwork?
The first record I was absolutely fascinated by was ZAPPA’s 200 Motels. My father had a small framed poster with the full artwork and I used to sit in front of it, spending hours analyzing every single detail. When I look at the record now, it is like going through an old photo-book, brings back a lot of memories. This album cover probably made a good percentage of who I am today, which may be a bad thing depending on some standards.
Another record sleeve that made a profound mark on me is Evil Empire by RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE. Not that the design was particularly remarkable, but I was obsessed with the pictures of the books inside the booklet. I couldn’t believe that there was a book named The Anarchist Cookbook, which was a weird concept for a 10 year old who didn’t really know what an anarchist was, besides being “punk”. I thought it was an ironic title at first. I guess this made me realize that bands could share information that was not directly related to their own craft.
Thinking about it, my father used to subscribe to Guitar Player magazine, and there were always ads for Blue Grape Merchandising. I used to spend hours analyzing every t-shirt designs on there. Before I started buying records and before we had an internet connection, it was my only way to find out about bands (unfortunately without hearing them), skateboard magazines were essential too. Blue Grape licensed many different bands so it wasn’t only metal stuff, like you could find the “Washing Machine” Sonic Youth design and a “Butchered at Birth” full-print shirt in the same ad. That was the time when we used to hit HMV just to go see what they had in store, then save your money for a couple weeks, hoping the cd you wanted was still going to be there.
What are some of the best artwork that any of your bands put out?
I’m kinda harsh on past releases, especially recording-wise, but I guess everything related to the Progression Through Ignorance EP by PLUS MINUS was pretty amazing, considering the blandness of QCHC around that period, 2011-2012. We made collages on 3 full 24”x24” panels, everything hand-cut and glued with Pritt sticks, then took high-res pictures with a camera Ben borrowed from his old job. We set-up a scene in Simon’s living room for the promo pictures, made a fake tabloid ad as a teaser and a crazy flyer for the release show. We were proud of that EP and put a lot of time into everything related to it. The bar was set pretty high but unfortunately we didn’t release anything after that. Considering that most HC bands are following design templates from different eras or trying to emulate other artist styles, I’m pretty proud to say that we did something unique that totally represented us as French-Canadian HC kids and our various influences.
Is there a recent piece of artwork that blew your mind by its originality?
This poster, done by my friend Florian Petigny, commissioned by Heavy Trip, a booking and management agency run by another friend. Simple, bold, straight to the point, absolute perfection in my eyes. Its originality lays in the fact that he used common fonts from another era but used them to carry a message that is definitely of our time:
I’m also a huge fan of Braulio Amado’s work, which I tried to block off my mind for a long time because I don’t really like to check out other designers’ current stuff, beside the people I’m close to, in fear of being influenced by them. One day a friend told me to really check out his stuff and stop ignoring it, so I did and felt like he already mastered styles I was trying to figure out in my head, he already was two steps ahead of me! Kind of frustrating in a way, but the world needs great design so it’s all good.
Which music genre offers the best artwork in your opinion?
Anything Japanese pop/synth/electronic/avant-garde, early to mid-80’s or US rap, mid to late-80’s. The Japanese stuff from those years mastered the art of composition, use of graphic elements and also abstraction, sometimes with a touch of humour or melancholy that inspires me every day. I’m also a sucker for obi strips, so even the worst pop record could look good in Japan.
As for US rap, labels hired great, young photographers and art directors who had the chance to make these artists, who mostly came from “nothing”, ultra-important figures and worldwide icons, build them an image of respect, only using the artist’s charisma and their genius. Photographers like Glen E Friedman, Janette Beckman, George DuBose, Derek Ridgers are really important for that particular era. Their influence on hardcore aesthetic should always be acknowledged by current designers.
Coolest rip-off design?
COLD WORLD definitely mastered the art of rip-off design in the mid-00’s. I think the only sad thing about it is that they didn’t really share any info on where the designs came from, unless you asked them, but I come from the school of curiosity so it never really bothered me. Things sometime need to be hard to find, especially in our era of immediacy.
I think TYPE O NEGATIVE where the kings though, even if they didn’t rip-off designs (or maybe they did at some point), I love how they used common slogans or pop references and transformed them with satire, tongue-in-cheek style. “This Blood’s For You”, “The Drab Four”, “Fright Attendant”, “Just Say Yes”, “Tragical Misery Tour”. I wish I could have been part of that team. Peter and his great sense of humor are highly missed.
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