Experimental Rock
MUIR is a self-titled album, released as an instrumental collaboration led by Nashville-based founding guitarist Drew Creal. It contains 11 songs which span a wide range of emotive dynamics and influences. Played by a total of 10 musicians. Distorted and delay-drenched guitars, grooving bass and intricate drumming create a myriad of sonic textures, taking listeners on a series of unique journeys.
Role and Responsibilities
My role for this project was art director. I was responsible for crafting the imagery and artwork intended to match Drew Creal's vision for his sonic masterpiece.
Approach
Before, delving into the art direction for the album artwork, I first needed to grasp the client's inspirations, which would guide my creative decisions. The client shared influences such as nature—specifically John Muir's explorations—Native American energy and symbolism, and a broad sense of freedom and range. Understanding these elements allowed me to align the artwork with his vision and effectively translate these inspirations into a cohesive visual representation.
Themes
I envisioned life starting from a single point and expanding outward in a spherical pattern. The disk design, with its circular lines radiating from a tiny electron-like sphere, symbolizes a growing energy that could surge into a larger explosion. This design conveys potential and the foreshadowing of future power, while also reflecting the possibility of depleting into smaller forms, creating an environment where smaller energies can rapidly become significant again. Nature is constantly in flux.
The classical elements—earth, water, air, fire, and spirit—naturally integrated both conceptually and sonically into the design. I incorporated these elements into various panels, ensuring they interconnected seamlessly. For example, the cover features a photograph I took of Joshua Trees. These trees have interconnected root systems. Rain dissolves and transports soil nutrients to these roots, while air provides oxygen for respiration. The overlay of an energy sphere represents fire, and the presence of the unseen spirit realm is implied. All of the elements represented. This connects nicely to the Native American homage.
Designing The Infographic
Each song is paired with an original illustration inspired by symbolic Native American iconography, each representing a specific musician. These symbols are integrated into a circular cipher that maps each musician to the track numbers they performed on. This unique design effectively connects musicians to their respective tracks by placing the song titles in the center and arranging the cipher in a circular layout, creating an infographic that efficiently displays the information.
Results and Impact
The client was pleased with the design and overall direction, which led to increased sales of his shows, higher online music streams, and even greater levels of stoke. Since then, he has achieved significant success in the music industry, with notable achievements in performance, teaching, podcasting, and more.
