Or their headwear, which includes a revolutionary-era Phrygian cap and a boat made from newspaper. I’ve always loved this one – a collage made from National Geographic photographs – and must have looked at it a hundred times, without having noticed myriad details.įor instance, that none of the children crammed into this hot tub with various wild animals look very happy about it. “It turns out that I’ve never looked closely before at my favourite covers. This is both a visually and aurally transgressive record.” – Sarah Person Pitch (2007) The album deals with many controversial and taboo subjects, including body image, and therefore it is a perfect fit. Richey Edwards, the band’s lyricist who has been missing since 1995, approached Saville and requested that the artwork be used for the album cover she allowed it for free. It depicts a plus-sized woman in her underwear, challenging ideals of beauty. Its design is a triptych painting titled ‘Strategy’ by the feminist artist Jenny Saville. “I was familiar with this image before I’d even heard of the Manic Street Preachers, never mind listened to the album. We asked our music and arts teams to share the album cover art that has lingered with them. From the iconic designs of Manchester’s own Peter Saville to the contemporary photography of Vlad Sepetov, cover art can linger in our imaginations long after we’ve stopped humming their associated tunes. At their most powerful, album covers transcend the music they denote and are art forms in their own right.

The meanings behind all gorillaz albums