Spiritualized

In the spirit of integrating words, images, and sound, I thought that a fun thing to do with this blog would be to regularly spotlight a different band or musical artist that represents themselves visually in an interesting or intriguing way. 

Specimen #1: Spiritualized

Known for their epic soundscapes and emotionally stirring lyrics, Spiritualized are in a class of their own.  Fusing shoegaze, jazz, rock 'n roll, and even gospel, the five-piece Brit band broke down the genre classifications long ago.  Fronted by Jason Pierce (aka J. Spaceman), he remains the lone original member since the band's formation in 1990.

Coming to the forefront of the music scene in 1997 with their second full-length release, Ladies and Gentleman We are Floating in Space, Spiritualized also began their collaboration with the design firm Farrow Design.  The pairing of Pierce's vision with Farrow's innovative spirit inspired a number of celebrated album designs, breaking the barriers of traditional cover art and taking it into the realm of package design.

For Ladies and Gentleman We are Floating in Space, the bands' 1997 hallmark album whose subject matter mostly concerns recovery from a broken heart, the design was inspired by the packaging of prescription drug packets, the compact disc being found in one of the bubbles packs.  The bands' logo designed for this album, which includes the registered trademark sign, is still carried out in their designs today, keeping a visual consistency throughout their catalog.

The follow-up to Ladies and Gentleman..., 2001's Let it Come Down, also became a well-known album treatment in the design world. Removing the conventional jewel case once again, the disc was placed in a white plastic packaging featuring a relief of a futuristic looking girl with ponytails, with the band's name and album title embossed on the back.  The cardboard sleeve of the disc, also white, contained the embossed track listing with the album's necessary information printed in a pale grey on the opposite side.

The design aesthetic based on the themes of futurism and pharmaceutical products that Farrow had  established for Spiritualized has continued to be carried through throughout the band's twenty-year career.

This past year saw the reissue of Ladies and Gentleman... for a tour in which the band played the album in its' entirety backed by an orchestral horn and string section along with a gospel choir. Of course you can't have a reissued album without a redesign, and in true Spiritualized and Farrow fashion, it was not a disappointment:

Although now twenty years in, Spiritualized's career is far from over and we look forward to not only hearing the aural innovations that Pierce and company continue to produce year after year, but also we  to the always intriguing design collaborations between Spiritualized and Farrow.

"Soul on Fire" video directed by Jim Canty

Spiritualized Official Website

Farrow Design