My client, a rock country/soft rock/adult contemporary/piano led band that blends haunting bittersweet melodies with emotionally rich vocals atop a bed of Southern-flavored alt rock, wanted cover art and cd packaging design for an acoustic album targeted to men and women in their 20’s and 30’s. Themes represented in the songs include dealing with struggle and disappointment, overcoming obstacles, dreams, belief, hope, optimism, disadvantage, not caring about money, brotherhood, and love. To further drive the point home they feature a different independent artist on each song. These artists know and live the struggle of a musician working long and hard to make it in this difficult industry. By definition the word underdog is a noun that describes the unlikely winner in a contest or struggle. They requested an interpretation of what this definition meant to me. Didn’t want anything too literal (ie, no dogs). They also requested to use their letter “M” seal logo in some capacity. On past album artwork, the M had been strategically and subtly hidden – they wanted to continue this tradition.

 

I used Photoshop to create a layered composite that mixed a modern street art style with vintage effects. My end result was a candy-colored, Wizard of Oz theme that, I think, reflects on childhood, the value of a journey, and how home feels more comforting than any exotic land no matter how exciting the land may seem. The “M” monogram us used as a pattern background texture on the retro sunburst.

"Great taste, easy to work with and does above and beyond what’s asked and expected!" --SAMUEL OAKES DUIS (MANAGEMENT V) & MELODIME