Best record sleeve of the year (so far)

We’ve just clapped our eyes on some finished copies of the forthcoming Atoms For Peace album adorned with artwork by Stanley Donwood. They’re pretty special…

Set for release on February 25, Amok is the debut album from Thom Yorke’s Atoms For Peace band which features Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea on bass, Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich on guitar, keyboard and synth duty, and also Joey Waronker of Beck and R.E.M. on drums with instrumentalist Mauro Refosco on additional percussion.

The album, which is being released on XL Recordings will be available in no less than four different physical formats comprising two normal releases: a CD version packaged in a gatefold card sleeve (£10, front cover above), and a double LP version in a wide spine sleeve which will also include the album on a CD (£20, shown below)

And then there’s two special edition releases. They’re more expensive, but with good reason – they’re very beautiful things to behold thanks to the combination of wonderful artwork by Donwood, and beautifully realised packaging produced by Think Tank Media. First up is the limited edition CD packaged in a 12-panel, concertina folded, debossed and silver foil-blocked on reverse board edition (£12).

Plus there’s a limited edition double LP version (£30, cover shown top of this post) which comes in a triple gatefold, debossed and silver foil blocked on reverse board package which comes with a lyric sheet and blind debossed and foiled inner sleeves plus the album on CD. The following gif shows its contents:

Regular readers of CR blog will recognise the apocalyptic artwork (depicting a flooded and burning LA being bombarded by meteors) as we posted about it twice last year – first in April when Eliza posted here about the artwork’s original iteration as an 18-foot lino-printed panorama exhibited at LA’s Submliminal Projects

…and again when artist INSA’s project saw him paint Donwood’s Lost Angeles artwork on to the XL Records office in LA (four times)  to create an eye-popping piece of ‘gif-iti’ in December. Read Mark’s post about it here.

To find out more about Atoms For Peace or to pre-order a copy of the album, visit atomsforpeace.info. See more of Stanley Donwood’s work at slowlydownward.com.

CR in Print
The February issue of CR magazine features a major interview with graphic designer Ken Garland. Plus, we delve into the Heineken advertising archive, profile digital art and generative design studio Field, talk to APFEL and Linder about their collaboration on a major exhibition in Paris for the punk artist, and debate the merits of stock images versus commissioned photography. Plus, a major new book on women in graphic design, the University of California logo row and what it means for design, Paul Belford on a classic Chivas Regal ad and Jeremy Leslie on the latest trends in app design for magazines and more. Buy your copy here.

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