I recently listened to a fascinating and inspiring interview with legendary designer Vaughan Oliver on an episode of Design Matters with Debbie Millman.

Millman and Oliver talk for a while about his iconic work for the 4AD record label, for which he has designed albums covers for bands like the Pixies, Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil, Throwing Muses, Lush, Mountain Goats, and many many more.

Oliver steers the conversation towards the use of photography in his designs, specifically about the Pixies and their album covers.

Designs by Vaughan Oliver

Oliver worked with photographer Simon Larbalestier on most or all of the Pixies albums. Oliver declares Larbalestier “the fifth Pixie” because his photography, especially his personal work, jives so well with the band and the essence of their music.

Photos © Simon Larbalestier

Vaughan the goes on to talk about collaborating with photographers:

Generally when I work with photographers I give them a lot of space. Half the job is done if you choose the right photographer. And then I’ll kind of work with that photographer, identify aspects of [their] work that I like, that I think fits with the music.

A lot of photographers that I’ve worked with have one foot in the art camp, have one foot in the commercial camp, and they have a lot of kind of personal work. Where are you going in your personal work? Where would you like to go next with it? Can you see it relating to this music?

I’m not [the] kind of an art director that stands over the top of a photographer and looks over his shoulder and directs him, but has the confidence in the first instinct to go with that photographer’s own aesthetic.

Getting hired for our aesthetics, instincts, and vision is what each of us strives for no matter what kind of art we create. Awesome.

Find out more about designer Vaughan Oliver, listen to the interview on Design Matters with Debbie Millman (which is a great show you should be listening to every week anyways), and view more work by Simon Larbalestier.

And of course, always listen to the Pixies.

Click and enjoy.

© Armando Bellmas

Musician Ken Vandermark is the subject of an aptly titled television program called Musician. I stumbled upon this show recently on the Ovation cable network. It was great to catch a glimpse of Vandermark at work, at home, and on the road.

Vandermark is devoted to his craft, true to his vision, and is driven to make it successful both creatively and professionally. He’ll always be an important figure in my own creative/professional endeavors (especially since he was one of my first “clients” way back at the beginning).

Play on, KV.

The Vandermark 5 “Aperture (For Walker Evans)” (6:45)
from A Discontinuous Line

© Joshua Wildman

I first got turned on to Joshua Wildman’s photos a few years ago via The FADER. This photo is from a recent post on his blog JOSHUAWILDMANGOODTIMES and is accompanied by the following caption:

i don’t know who made this poster, but i look at it everyday in my living room and it makes me feel good

Indeed.

The Ramones by The Ramones (1976) / Cover photo by Roberta Bayley

From a recent email from my four-year-old son Nick’s preschool teacher:

We also were entertained by Nick and Steven singing and acting out a song we sing called “Five Green and Speckled Frogs.” After singing this song for a few minutes, Nick decided he would rather sing a Ramones song. He kept trying to get Steven to sing “Hey, Ho, Let’s Go.” Steven looked confused but sang along anyway.

The Ramones “Blitzkrieg Bop”
from The Ramones

Photo by Maria Mochnacz

PJ Harvey “You Said Something”
from Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea

We don’t know exactly what was said and it doesn’t matter. What matters is how the world around her at that very moment looked from a distance, how it smelled as they stood by each other, and how it felt as words were said and never forgotten. It’s like remembering all the peripheral things that we associate with significant times in our lives more so than the thing that prompted the significant event itself. Most times the periphery is what we prefer to look back on or talk about anyways.

© James Day

David Byrne, one of my artistic heroes, has written a thorough and realistic piece about the changing music industry.

What is called the music business today, however, is not the business of producing music. At some point it became the business of selling CDs in plastic cases, and that business will soon be over. But that’s not bad news for music, and it’s certainly not bad news for musicians. Indeed, with all the ways to reach an audience, there have never been more opportunities for artists.

The web is changing things for artists and creators of all kinds. We can all glean some insight from Byrne’s article.

UPDATE 1/9/08: Byrne gets and posts responses to feedback his article.

UPDATE 2/15/08: Byrne’s Addendum to recent Wired Article (Part II)

Speaking of David Bryne, The Knee Plays has recently been released on CD for the first time. It’s nothing short of inspiring and a wonderful listen. Check out this video of “The Sound of Business” from The Knee Plays being performed live:

© Todd Heisler/The New York Times

I love this photograph of Bruce Springsteen by Todd Heisler. Simple and well composed. (It accompanied this article from the New York Times.)

© Armando Bellmas

By way of supercool and hardly superficial photographer Allison V. Smith comes this little nugget of a quote from Tom T. Hall via Joe Ely:

Some people can go around the world and not see anything
and some people can walk around the block and see the whole world.

Yes, definitely worth repeating.

Speaking of Joe Ely, back in my old radio daze I used to get an almost weekly call during my airshift from the same guy, always wanting to hear Ely’s “Gallo Del Cielo.” I never asked him why he requested the same song every time. However, knowing full well how music can inspire and get you through good and bad times, I was always happy to play it for him.

© Armando Bellmas

I haven’t been able to get these lyrics from Panda Bear’s “Comfy In Nautica” out of my head for days (sung in the mantra-meets-Pet Sounds way Panda Bear sings it, of course):

try to remember always
always to have a good time

I believe that’s a good thing.

[lyrics/music]

© Armando Bellmas

This is one of the first photographs I ever sold.

The band was Free Fall, one of improviser and composer Ken Vandermark’s many musical projects. The setting was backstage at the 40 Watt Club in Athens, Georgia during the Athens Creative Music Experience, a small free jazz and improvisational music festival that happened back in 2004.

I had done some design work for the festival organizers (whom I knew through the small free jazz circles I had immersed myself in during that time) and decided to head down to Athens for the whole event. I brought along a 35mm and a bunch of fast film, perfect for capturing the deep dark musical moments.

Before Free Fall was set to perform their live set (those guys rarely found themselves in the same city, let alone the same continent), one of the festival organizers, a buddy of mine, asked me if I would take a photograph of the trio, at Ken’s suggestion, while they were all together backstage. It was minutes before the show and the shoot had to happen in less time than that. I found a spot that worked and angled it so that I could catch a little play with the mirror in the room.

The next few minutes after the first shutter click were a blur. I moved around the tiny space as creatively as I could, changed angles, directed the musicians, and continually wiped my forehead on my shirt sleeves from the excitement.

When I was done Ken said thanks and to email him after the festival to talk specifics. He and the band walked out of the room.

I was by myself as I unloaded the film from the camera and labeled the roll. I sat in silence as I replayed what had just happened, still intoxicated from the moments before.

As I gathered up my gear I felt it. This was it! The sensation, the excitement, the instinct, the moment of creation. I had been commissioned to make a photograph and it was one of the greatest feelings ever.

Three years later, it still is.

My son Nick, three or so months shy of turning four, and I, just over one month shy of turning 38, on are on our way home in my car. We had the following conversation:

Nick: Let’s listen to some tunes!
Me: Okay! How about Dinosaur Jr.?
Nick: Are they real dinosaurs?
Me: Ummm, kind of.
Nick: Yeah, okay.

[Dinosaur Jr. music plays on the car stereo.]

Nick: When do the dinosaurs begin to roar?

David Byrne points us to a video by Catherine Ross titled “Trilling” that is clever, hilarious, and fun to watch.

Shane Lavalette shares some info about Robert Frank’s Cocksucker Blues, a rare and notorious film about The Rolling Stones and their 1972 North American tour.

Amy Stein’s Photo of the Week: Fireman’s Parade, Port Jervis, NY

Heavy rotation: The Hold Steady, O Samba Brazil Classics 2, Patti Smith, Vic Chesnutt

Portastatic released an album last year that is nothing short of beautiful and perfect. Be Still Please (yes, this blog’s name was inspired by this record) benefits from Mac McCaughan’s fruition as a songwriter, musician, collaborator, rocker, artist, and producer.

It’s a soundtrack and a spark around here.