STACK #212 June 2022

MUSIC FEATURE

FLORENCE + THE MACHINE CEREMONIALS (2011) Double LP The musical partnership of vocalist visionary Florence Welch, songwriter Isabella Summers and producer Paul Epworth wasted no time following up the promise of Florence + the Machine’s number one debut Lungs (2009). Fans were eager to see where the UK act

decade. Ceremonials ’ melodrama nodded to gospel, gothic and blues, delivering flag-rippling battle cries ( Heartlines ), organ-led manifestos ( Shake It Out and No Light, No Light ) and glittering high-art ( Spectrum ) – all of which are elevated to freshly extraordinary heights when listened to on vinyl. There was no stopping Ceremonials ’ chimerical hold on the public’s imagination, and it quickly became the UK band’s second consecutive number one album.

TOP TRACK: Shake It Off FAST FACT: Ceremonials ’ cover image was shot by

Twickenham photographer Jamie Beard. Beard lost his hearing in one ear after getting headbutted in a street fight at age 13; he subsequently found school very difficult and began taking photos instead of attending class, ending up at Camberwell College of Arts as a teenager – where he met fellow student Florence Welch.

would take the baroque-pop tapestry, and were rewarded with some of the most bewitching sounds of the new

DON’T JUDGE AN ALBUM BY ITS COVER

CHART Vinyl

W hen you think of classic metal album covers, the expansive work of Derek Riggs on Iron Maiden’s Powerslave or the late Don Brautigam’s provocative art for Metallica’s Master of Puppets are likely to come to mind. What won’t is Black Sabbath’s Paranoid . An absolute barnstormer

of an album wasn’t quite matched in the cover art department. Said artwork is a photograph taken by Keith McMillan, who shot the brilliant cover for the band’s debut album, the eponymous Black Sabbath . It’s essentially a geezer sporting a crash helmet, dressed in a colourful pig suit with blue

underpants, brandishing a sword and a shield. The image was supposed to correlate with the album’s original title, War Pigs , which was changed by the record label at the last minute. They were concerned that a potential connection to the unpopular Vietnam War would hurt album sales.

Regardless, even if it had remained War Pigs , it’s still a crap album cover. But it’s by no means the worst album cover in the genre of music Black Sabbath defined. In no way a reflection of the music on these albums, here are six of the most dreadful covers in heavy metal history.

1. HARRY STYLES Harry’s House 2. THE WEEKND Dawn FM 3. HILLTOP HOODS Drinking from the Sun 4. HARRY STYLES Fine Line 5. HARRY STYLES Harry Styles 6. FLEETWOOD MAC Rumours 7. TAME IMPALA Currents 8. KENDRICK LAMAR Good Kid, M.A.A.D City 9. PINK FLOYD The Dark Side of the Moon 10. ARCTIC MONKEYS AM (10th Anniversary Edition)

Adema Topple the Giants WTF is going on here is anyone’s guess.

KeyDragon Drink from the Waters of War Remember that sketch you did when you were ten after playing Warhammer ? KeyDragon used it for an album cover.

Jack Starr’s Burning Starr No Turning Back We can only assume that the album budget was totally expended by the time it came to the artwork.

Riot Fire Down Under Some band mascots rock, like Iron Maiden's Eddie. Riot's seal head guy 'Tior'? Nope.

Wolf Wolf “We need a wolf for this cover, man, a terrifying wolf. Whatcha got?”

Pantera Metal Magic Magic happens. But not on this album.

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