Record sleeves for refugee aid.
Secret 7” takes 7 tracks from 7 of the best-known musicians around and presses each one 100 times to 7” vinyl in the hope to raise money for refugee aid charity Choose Love.From 6000 global entries, 2 of our designs were selected to be exhibited at the NOW Gallery in Greenwich and then auctioned off.
Our designs were featured on Its Nice That, alongside work by superstars Anish Kapoor, Stanley Donwood, Gavin Turk, Jeremy Deller, and Michel Gondry.
Bob Dylan - Blind Willie McTell
This song takes its title and inspiration from a blind Blues singer.
A figure in history, like no other, who felt the dark side of America and put it into art. That’s why we wanted to draw our inspiration for the record sleeve from the exact same place: His music and life story are a window into the history of black music and white power, the culture, language and landscape of the deep South - the violence, the leisurely pace of life and the music that grew right in the heart of it — The Blues.
This artwork is representative of these times and the music that sang about them. To make the artwork, a single branch of cotton was first soaked in black ink, then burned in a studio and captured on medium-format film. The result is a still life that is full of story, sadness and history - just like the Blues.
Aretha Franklin - One Step Ahead
This is the third of 3 pieces entered into Secret 7. Unfortunately, this one was rejected but we couldn’t resist wanting to make a cover for Aretha.
This song is an intimate portrayal of love & heartbreak. The cultural ritual of ’plate smashing’ celebrates the bond between two people. It is thought that the act of breaking plates scares away evil spirits by making them believe that the couple is upset with each other - rather than in love. The play between upset and love is why we drew upon ‘plate smashing’ to bring the emotions of the song to life.
To make the artwork, an intricate plate was made, borrowing some of the technical languages of a 7” single - the speed, production credits and product-coding - the plate was designed to echo the look & feel of a genuine record. The plate was then smashed, and photographed in a studio.
Miles Davis - Miles Runs the Voodoo Down
This piece of music was born from an entirely improvisational process and in the words of the musician - “not some prearranged shit”.
This sentiment became the driving force behind the artwork design. Presented with a ”musical sketch" from the creator’s mind, 11 musicians improvised together in a studio to create the piece of music on this record. And so, for this piece of artwork, 11 elements were printed out, ripped up and pieced back together from an assortment of type and image bearing the musician’s identity.
This improvised arrangement of type and image was scanned back into the computer in a ‘one-take manner’ to form a fast, frantic and explosive impression of the musician and their creative mind. From the beginnings of a ‘musical sketch’, then pulled apart in 11 different ways, this recording comes together in one unforgettable take, just like the artwork.
Made with Charlie Rout.