Electric Earth-Touching the void

Here is the cover of Electric Earth's new album. I am always kind of interested in pictures that show a band live/on stage being put on the cover of a studio album. This one is different perhaps it's a partial shot and not straight fron on live shot like Ted Nugent put on his album covers on several occasions. I like that there is the main focus on the guitar and then you see the masses in the audience in the background. I think that adds a certain depth to it. The contrast in colors between light and dark work nicely too. This isn't a cover that overwhelmed me at first, but I definitely like it.

KISS-Dynasty

1979

I remember a time long ago when I would get excited about any picture I would see with KISS in make-up including this cover. That view has changed over the years partially due to me notting listening to KISS as much and almost certainly partially due to the steady reunions and whoring of their products. So now over the last 15 years or so seeing KISS in make-up on every product possible has been a regular occurance. Some make-up covers like Dressed to kill and Destroyer still hold up pretty well. However Dynasty's cover hasn't quite stood the test of time. Sure, seeing four ugly guys in this make-up is better than seeing them out of make-up. So that thinking alone makes this better than most of their 80's albums covers. Still it's really just their four faces sitting there with a border, the logo and album title around them. Not bad, but nothing special.

Dwarves - Blood, Guts and Pussy

This past Sunday during the Super Bowl, we were treated to Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley in the huckstering trade yet again, this time strapping on the duds and kabuki for Cherry Dr. Pepper. Annoying enough, yet it was the "Little Kiss" gag utilized in the commercial where dwarf versions of all four players in matching costumes which I found a bit more vulgar. Some thought the ad was amusing. I personally thought it was just another step down in a recent wave of low maneuvers the remnants of Kiss have exercised to keep the coffers full.

Thus, let this album cover serve as my tribute to such baldfaced make-a-buckery. Punk rock nasties the Dwarves notoriously combine nudity, gore, mud and yes, an actual dwarf mascot on their covers. What else might you expect from a band with song titles such as "Fuckhead," "Motherfucker," "Insect Whore" and "Let's Fuck?"

All an in-joke, assuredly, much as rock 'n roll capitalists Kiss are being defended by some to just get a life and roll with the punchlines, no matter who they offend in the process. As the Dwarves would say, fuck that...

With these blood-slicked chicks, even Gene, the king of blood squibs, might want to reconsider a love gun tryst in this instance. Meet, meet you in the laaadiiiiies rooooommmmm....

Fear-The Record

This is about as basic as an album cover can be and still have something on it, but somehow it works for this album. It ties in with the raw up front sound that Fear delivered on this album.

Invection-Demented Perception

I have always liked mazes for some reason so I kind of like that part of this cover. I don't get the part where the big ugly faces are either coming up or going down in some of the rooms of the maze in the background though.

Dio-Rainbow in the dark

Early Dio rocked, "Rainbow in the dark" is a great song and Dio's mascot Murray is normally pretty cool. However the color scheme on this single is just far too bright to work. It' like poor Murray is trapped in a swirl of eye-stabbing colors and he just cannot escape.