1. xander
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   Ever since I started listening to TM & Belly I've been very interested in their record sleeves. Aside from eyesore I never found a site that collected 4AD record sleeve scans so I hunted them down from different sources and started my own site.

   Last month I finally found the inside artwork for the "Feed The Tree" EP so I posted all the insides: Slow Dust, FTT, & Gepetto. Plus all the back covers are up.

   I'm also trying to get the word out about Cash Music. It just seems crazy to me that all these great songs are out there for free and they're not getting anywhere near the attention they deserve.

   If you get a chance check out RJ Battles, maybe you'll see some pictures you haven't seen before. I've tried to make the kind of site that I'd like to spend time looking at and reading. Thanks, RJ

   http://rjbattles.blogspot.com/

2. petrolboy
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   If you're a particular fan of the Belly sleeves, Chris Gorman and his bro have a site packed with lovely photography at http://www.gormanstudio.com/

   WHY didn't they use any for the Best of Belly CD? Very sad.

3. ska4me
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   Though I've been to their site before, it never occurred to me that--duh--they share with David awesome graphic talents:

   http://lakunadesign.com/

   I guess when you're artistic, you're artistic, and it's going to express itself one way or another...

4. ej
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   Wait! I just cruised the Lakuna website and it looks like Dave did artwork for an In Shock single! Did that ever get released????? HOW DID I MISS THAT?????

5. Alistair
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   4AD certainly released it:

   http://www.4ad.com/releases/in-shock-0/

   Not sure about it being a 7" though.

   Maybe Yeproc didn't in the US? Was there something about getting the extras as mp3s...?

6. Silverfrown
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   yes, "In-Shock" is a cd-single in fact, a beautiful digipack. i have it!

7. ej
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   OK, now I remember, I did get the single but not as a digipack, it was with free with Learn to Sing. I think I will need to move into completist mode for a quick minute and find it as an import, darn that 4AD and their beautifully packaged stuff!

8. xander
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   You know, petrolboy, I was pretty excited when I saw that the Gormans had their own website with their photos, but I have to say: they're very talented, and it looks like they're doing well, but as nice as their newer photographs are, I think they're missing the certain quality that I like in the Belly photos.
   And I know a lot of time has gone by and artwork goes in new & different directions- it just doesn't do a lot for me.

9. petrolboy
   Member
   Posted 2 years ago #
   

   That's interesting. I adore it. I think the toys series has lots in common with the Belly stuff and has moved on a little in style. Perhaps a little more commercial. I love the portraits too.
   I wonder if it doesn't do as much for you because it's not part of something? The Belly shots were part of the album and came together with the music, the packaging, the moment, whereas praps a picture of a cake decoration is a picture of a cake decoration at times for some?

10. xander
    Member
    Posted 2 years ago #
    

    I think you're right. Plus, so many of the pictures were enhanced by Chris Biggs's design. I think it was the perfect collaboration. For example: the back cover of Star is a great photo, one of my favorites, but it's the lettering of the song titles and the small circles with the numbers inside that really make it special.

    I just posted some Like A Prayer[/i]-era singles and I really the like the back cover of "Keep It Together", but would I like it as much if, instead of listing remix versions, it listed Limp Bizkit song titles?

11. petrolboy
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Indeed, Chris Bigg is a great designer. It was good the photos weren't just 'plonked' and the detail and consideration is very good. I love that there's hidden details there if you look. Check the Gepetto single artwork on the inside and where the scattered Belly logos appear one of them secretly says 'Miro' rather than Belly.

12. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Yeah, I always wondered if that was "belly" in Italian.

    I like the inside of the "Super-connected" EP- buried at the bottom there's the Belly logo with a pair of dice.

13. rugan
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    i don't know why, but i always loved the sleeves of Tanya's "Lovesongs"-era output. They're very straight-forward (the blue "Tanya"-logo is downright ugly), but there's something about the coherence; all the single covers are variations of the album artwork.. the typography is straight to the point; the images are simple, it's as if Bigg didn't want to intruse on the music.

    It's my least favourite Tanya-record, and somthing tells me Bigg feels the same way, but the artwork still serves its purpose. It's very "pop music".

14. christopher gorman
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    chris bigg is a genius and for some reason he is currently living on an island off the coast of england. i picture him living in a lighthouse with his studio at the very top and his desk just under the spinning beam. 99% of the work we have on http://www.gormanstudio.com is indeed commercial. not long after the belly years i started getting more and more offers to shoot for
    money so our photography is more a creative professional occupation than a professional creative one. The things i do that i call art are rarely in the photographic category these days - i mainly use the camera to pay the bills. we do have a new toy client
    which has brought me back into a room full of toys but they are more the stuff of movies and comic books than attics and basements. i have been digging through all my old images and scanning when i can find the time and i am adding to the archive portion of our site. I just added images from the mid-late 80's RI hardcore scene and a belly still life series goes up tonight or tomorrow. i agree that Mr. Bigg turned my oddities into art but they are still images i am proud of on their own, and all things considered they were the start of my professional photography career.

15. petrolboy
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Ah, that explains why I couldn't find out much about what Chris Bigg was up to these days on the net.
    The Belly archive was great to see - love the tree shots the most. Brings back memories of hanging things upside down in the bathroom and taking photos of them for college photography projects - you've alot to answer for!
    Good to hear from you Chris, you should drop by Slumberland again sometime so we can ask you nerdy fan questions.

16. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Has anyone seen the new issue of Spin? Courtney Love's on the cover- I guess she's getting Hole back together. Anyway, on the front it says they're doing a Where-are-they-now story on other 90s bands including Belly.

    I looked for the story online but couldn't find it.

17. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Never mind, it's up today on the main page.

18. rugan
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    "postpartum doula".. wow!

    doesn't shine through that she's working on a new album at all.. i hope she's still writing/recording.

19. petrolboy
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    She is indeedy. Apparently she's recording now from a bit of a backlog of songs that she's built up. As to when it's released, who knows, but fingers crossed for this year.

20. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    I was at Stop & Shop today with some time to kill and Looked over the new Spin (online it's just TD). In the magazine there's a full-page photo of TD, a short article, and also a short article about the Gorman brothers.

    I didn't quite get the thing about 'it would take a lot of therapy before there could be a Belly reunion' Whatever, it would be nice, but really whats the big deal, it was all 15 years ago, would it be that hard to play some songs together.

    Plus, didn't TD drop out of 2 bands so she could play all her songs. Then, what, 4 solo albums in 13 years- where are all the songs? Come on.

21. maria
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Xander: Wha...? Who are you and why are you so rude? Never mind answering; I don't really care.

22. rugan
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    i don't think it's a matter of necessarily recording many songs, but more about recording different songs that wouldn't fit with any of her previous bands. And that she has done. In my opinion, Lovesongs would be better if it were a Belly album, but the following records couldn't be done by anybody but Tanya herself. She really fell into place with Whiskey. Absolutely gorgeous album, and so in line with her becoming a doula :)

23. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Harper Lee is 83 years-old and she put out one book back in 1960. Maybe she could've found the time to write another.

    Are you twice as mad now?

    Ultimately, another person's rate of creative output is none of my business. Still, I commented on it because I find it interesting.

    You seem awfully quick to get outraged.

24. petrolboy
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Xander - I found your comment amusing, and yes, I'd love to see Belly reform if only for a concert or online release or something. There never was too much exposed about the reasons for the break up and I like to think there weren't bitter rows. I think Chris mentioned he'd be up for it once but I think Tanya is too settled in things to need to/want to go back. Plus, in a way, I like the fact they left things at a good time, it'd be awful if they ended up dissolving because the music ended up getting a bit tripey. Vaguely similar (but not) in that I think Friends went on a bit too much and I lost interest after series 45; it's always good if you're left wanting more.
    Rugan - Whisky Tango is my favourite Tanya album! Has a real classic dusty old record feel to it with robust songs.

25. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    A Belly reunion would be cool- even if only to put out an EP of songs that were left unfinished at the time; probably won't happen, I just hate to see people not getting along.

    If there's one band I'd like to see re-form it's The Sugarcubes. Bjork has had some good solo songs but I think the 'cubes had something special together (though I could do w/out the male vocalist).

    (I haven't seen many "Friends" episodes but that's how I feel about "Roseanne"-I stopped paying attention after Darlene's wedding to David. Things got too wierd and it stopped being funny.)

26. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Since I started RJ Battles I've posted mostly about record sleeves and lately I've tried to branch out to movies, food, art, and other things I'm interested in.

    On the other hand, from time to time I'd like do posts about certain songs and/or albums.

    Like I could do a post about "The Real Ramona" album with sleeve scans, magazine and newspaper reviews, and interview quotes about the making of the record.

    Or I could post about, say, "Slow Dog" and include sleeve scans, a link to the video, a link to the demo version at Slumberland, and TD's statement about the song from "Sweet Ride".

    That's something I'd like to read, but am I the only person who would be interested in that kind of thing?

27. derek denim
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    No Totally not. I really like your site. I've checked it out several times. Carry on!

28. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Thanks for the support. I started the blog in October of 2008 and I've hardly promoted it, so for the first year or so I was basically writing only for myself. Which is fine- there's a lot of freedom in that.

    And like I said before- I'm trying to make the kind of site that I'd want to go to.

    So, I think I am gonna go ahead and do it, though it probably won't be "Gepetto" for a while- I can't find my booklet for "Sweet Ride" and I don't know how to post links to youtube. But I'll think of something.

29. xander
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    Alright derek denim, I did it.

    I decided to go with Siouxsie & the Banshees's "Kiss Them For Me" (and of course I couldn't manage to post a youtube link)

    Anyway, I also put up a post where I say that Stephen King and KH both approach their craft in the same way.

    Plus I posted a bunch of Frank Black sleeves from 1993 and 1994.

30. rugan
    Member
    Posted 1 year ago #
    

    some nice looking Frank Black sleeves.. i love browsing for cover artork, could spend hours on eyesore.no and discogs.com.

    didn't know you had Snus in the states, though! :)

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