Today's link is flagrantly, flamboyantly NSFW – in the truest and most sincere meaning of the acronym.The Gigwise music site presents a slideshow of 20 disgusting album covers, including the infamously short-lived "butcher cover" of the Beatles' in1966 US only Yesterday and Today LP shown above. This is actually one of the less repulsive covers in the lot. The site's commentary informs us, to nobody's surprise, that it was "John Lennon who pushed for the photo to be used." We didn't think it was Ringo's idea.
Given the tiny sample size, it's a little presumptuous to make generalizations . . . but, hell, I say, let's do it, let's be presumptuous.
Among "genres" of foul ideas, violence – usually depicted as potential or in its aftermath – makes up the largest proportion of the covers. But, curiously, second place goes to poop. Word hounds Peter Novobatzky and Ammon Shea have pointed out that the English language, "tongue of Shakespeare, Bryon, and Mellville" contains "a puzzling number of words that mean 'to spray with shit.'" This cultural obsession with human waste seems to have carried over into the American cultural innovation of rock and roll. Defecation – human, animal, and human-from-an-animal (deathgrind unit Cattle Decapitation's oh so tasteful Humanure album cover) – is an oddly popular topic for album covers.
Also, there's not one, but two covers (and the commentary mentions a third) featuring the taboo of bestiality. How this subject, which is hardly a major theme of rock, ends up on even a single cover is mystery best answered by minds smarter (or more twisted) than my own.
5 comments:
as potentially nsfw as this post was (and the link), work doesn't mind that.. Today.. Heh.
The Michael no-talent-ass-clown Bolton one in the middle was pretty good..
What?! Amongst this selection of album covers that involve bestiality, there is no mention of the Tiger Lillies' "Farmyard Filth," an ENTIRE ALBUM dedicated to the subject? http://tigerlillies.com/2003/index.php?main=recordings&pubId=10
Shocked! Shocked I am at this glaring omission.
I also could've sworn their cover for "Bad Blood & Blasphemy" album cover would've garnered a nod: http://tigerlillies.com/2003/index.php?main=recordings&pubId=13
Keep in mind: this is not a death metal band. If Your Mum had happened to wander in whilst you listening to their songs, she may very well think how nice it was that you were listening to sea shanties sung by a operatic contratenor. Until she stuck around long enough to realize that a song may very well be about crucifying Jesus [ http://tigerlillies.com/2003/index.php?main=recordings&trackId=9 ], sociopathic sprees [ http://tigerlillies.com/2003/index.php?main=recordings&trackId=244 ], or the tragically mundane world of pimps and whores [ http://tigerlillies.com/2003/index.php?main=recordings&trackId=131 ]. What's even more shocking is how tender and genuinely heartrending a lot of their songs are.
True story: when I saw them last year at UCLA's Royce Hall, the presenter prefaced their introduction with the fact that in their over one hundred years of history in live performances, the Tiger Lillies were responsible for the FASTEST letter of complaint ever received. [It was registered by e-mail before their performance was even over.]
If you would, please outro with this song, "Terrible": http://tigerlillies.com/2003/index.php?main=recordings&trackId=93
-Troy Z
What? No mention of Big Black's classic "Headache" 12" ep?
- The Evil Twin
Bah humbug! That list is nothing without the Dwarves' "Blood, Guts & Pussy," Unsane's first album or Brujeria's "Matando Gueros," that's what I'm saying!
But And Now the Screaming Starts rules--great, fun site! Thanks for the hard work!
--Ivan
eyyyyy incredible record ... although I'm afraid paul head of the doll on her knees way too freak, but these things would do just the beatles
Excellent Notebook
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