archeolatry

In the body of your post, include the following info:

Trading/Giving/Hoping Are you trading bracelets? Giving them out to whomever? Did you not make any but are hoping to receive some? State any and all that apply. Top 3 Albums: (or Top 5, if you must) No guarantee you'll get a Sparkslet representing your favorite album, but it's a fun metric. (Want a whole stack of Hippopotamus-related bracelets? Maybe it's someone else's fave too and they're itching to use every bead and letter to prove it.) And you never know, another fan might have one --or make one!-- just for you. Team Ron or Team Russell: YesYesYes, we love them both. But who do you love most? (Again, for metrics.)

In your tags, include the following info:

The #Sparkslets hashtag... So we can find you!

The region of the show/s you're attending... Japan (JP), the UK, Europe (EU), or North America (NA). Americans, add your state's 2-letter abbreviation.

...the city, and which night if there's more than one date there. If you're doing multiple dates in the same city, mark them as 1, 2, etc. If you're doing multiple cities, give them each their own tag. If you're going to a festival, use the festival's name. For example, if someone was going to both London shows AND one in Paris, their location tags would look like this: UK: London: Night 1 UK: London: Night 2 EU: Paris

Whereas someone doing an upper-midwestern US leg would tag like this: NA: OH: Cleveland NA: Toronto NA: IL: Riotfest Capiche? If there's enough general interest we (me/Daley) will see if we need to start a Google Sheet or something. If not, reblog amongst yourselves.

One of the reasons we love Sparks, I think, is that despite their aura of mystery, they're also surprisingly accessible- even sort of intimate? They have lifelong fans that have known each other for decades, they've always kept their operation pretty compact, and it's clear that they —or at least Russell— still have the passwords to their own social media. (I get that's why a lot of people are disappointed in this possible AI cover.) So how did this happen? First, it's in How the Sausage Record Gets Made.

You remember when Ron and Russell started making an impromptu music video on British TV because their record label wouldn't give them any more money to make a video? The situation that led to this is possibly akin to that. Again, Sparks are kind of an arty cult band- two things that usually aren't great for ROI. That means they won't get a lot invested into them. This live album is not going to move millions of units, and if they want to make more in sales than they spent to make it, they're going to have to cut some corners.

One way of doing that is stock images: ones that are available to license outright for professional use on websites, in textbooks, or on album covers. Even that license can cost hundreds or thousands depending on the purpose. The hippo photo on Hippopotamus? Stock image. The fist on Madder!? Stock image. The person who put this together is also an art designer more than a graphic artist, so her sphere is more color and composition rather than making original art. Unfortunately, the art for this was likely a stock image that was not clocked as AI soon enough, and the license —potentially hundreds/thousands of dollars' worth of it— may have already been bought. Likely an innocent mistake, and possibly one too costly to fix at this point. The best solution is not to boycott the album or anything like that. The band and their management (and likely that poor graphic designer!) have seen the reaction to these AI stock images and now know that the fans will not accept this going forward. But why not contact a fan artist and have them do it?

Well, there's an old saying that sex workers "aren't paid for sex, they're paid to leave afterward". And while that's kind of a crude way of putting it, that's kiiiiinda why bands/labels can't just use fan artists for projects like album covers. At least not artists without an agent/agency representing them. There needs to be a buffer between a band like Sparks and whomever is doing their art unless 1) it's someone Sparks know personally, 2) it's an independent artist/designer with a proven record of discretion/professionalism, or 3) someone who is introduced to Sparks by a trusted third party who is willing to vouch for their discretion/professionalism. Very few amateur fan artists are going to have the professionalism it takes to both talk to the Maels like normal people and to be able to take a criticism without it affecting them personally. If you send them an album cover pitch and they don't like it, are you going to be able to let it roll off your back, or are you gonna go to some sort of fan forum and be like "my favorite band HATES me! (╥﹏╥)" ? (They may not, in fact, hate you. Maybe they appreciate your art personally but aren't ready to have that art represent them forever professionally.) Are you gonna be so heartbroken you never buy another album or ticket? Are you gonna badmouth them? Is that badmouthing gonna breach fan-space containment? Is it gonna cause fan wars between those who agree with you and those who don't? If another fan gets picked are you gonna badmouth that fan until it the space stops becoming civil? Things can snowball quickly with negative talk running faster than clarification can walk. Or conversely, if you get picked, are you gonna be able to change an aspect of something they don't like in a timely manner AND not take it personally? Are you going to be able to do all those things AND not tell The Lord and Errybody what Russell's email address is? Are you going to be able to do all that and not perceive any greater intimacy with the band than just making an album cover? The chance that you're gonna become besties with them is slim to none. (Hell, Russell's already been stalked and groped and squeezed so hard his ribs cracked- there's a decent chance he had his fill of bad fan interactions decades ago.) If you agree to get paid in a backstage pass and a handshake, are you going to be able to leave it at that without expecting backstage passes and handshakes in perpetuity?

In other words: Are you going to be professional enough to leave afterward? And who can/will hold you accountable if you don't?

"I'm a fan artist and I still think I could do it better, but I don't have money for an agent." Well, it's likely too late for anyone to do anything about it now anyway.** But before you go trash-talking the art designer, making your own cover and trying to promote it/show it off as an alternative, or —heaven forbid!— sending your own art to Sparks' management: Don't. Take a couple of deep breaths. Count backwards from ten. If I can't dissuade you, then at least let me offer an opinion on how one might (MIGHT- highlight and underline that twice) say "I will do art for you Sparks because I love you!" in a way that is less likely to make you look like a desperate creepy stalky weirdo or bite you in the ass professionally later.

So if you're a fan artist that's a budding/semi-pro artist or graphic designer not currently signed with an agency, AND you think you fit ALL the above criteria of professionalism AND are going in knowing full well that all you may get is that backstage pass and handshake: 1. Assemble a design portfolio. Highlight your Sparks fan art, but also include other art that represents your style/the varieties of style you are most capable of/comfortable with- especially if they align with the band's aesthetics (portrait-based, clean organic shapes/lines, vivid palettes, et al). Highlight any awards you've won or places outside personal/fan spaces your art has been featured. Either make up a quick website or put it all together nicely in a PDF. Include your artsy social media pages/contacts.

2. Find the most responsible, professional adult you know that is not immediately related to you. Decent choices would be a paralegal, a gallery owner/administrator, maybe an art professor with a career of their own-- anyone who might be familiar at the intersection of art and commerce and knows how to make/read a contract. This is probably going to be hard, because they'll have to be willing to work on your behalf for almost nothing AND bet their professional reputation that you won't do any of the bad shit I described above. 3. Knock out a quick Artist Representation Agreement that says how much money your ad-hoc rep is entitled to, if any. Make and save several copies for both of you. 4. Have that responsible professional email Sparks' management and ask if they can submit your graphic art portfolio for consideration. Highlight any professional training you might have, any awards you have, and say —in the most professional language possible— that you're a gigantic Sparks fan and are willing to make art for them for pennies/handshakes and autographs. Do not send links or files unless given the okay. I don't have time to explain the legal/copyright reasons why. Just don't. 5. DON'T TAKE IT PERSONALLY IF THEY SAY NO AND THEN THANK THEM FOR THEIR TIME. What I'm describing is the absolute longest of shots; a total Hail Mary play with no guarantee. You may get told No Thank You, you may get bounced to someone at their label, you might be ignored altogether. And if by some Festivus Miracle someone actually wants to take a look at your portfolio/website, be prepared for a possible rejection after that. And if that happens, DON'T TAKE IT PERSONALLY AND THANK THEM FOR THEIR TIME. Maybe you're not right for an album cover, but on the nose for a t-shirt or poster down the line. (They actually really seem to enjoy working with fans who are also professionals in some capacity. So be professional as possible!)

And if it's accepted? Then it's up to you, your ad-hoc rep and a team of lawyers. I would do that while the controversy is still hot, like two weeks maximum from today. But ONLY if you are willing to take on the responsibility if it actually pans out. No casual timelines here. And again: don't shit on the band or the graphic designer who used AI-generated stock photos. You'll look like an asshole and no one on the industry side needs that. The idea that you're trying to step up to Sparks specifically to offer your services for cheap is probably enough of a hint.

We brought in very few outside illustrators during my time there, and usually the band already had an idea in mind of who they wanted to do their album art. But the portfolio review process was how we picked photographers and video directors. And it was through a third-party recommendation that a friend of mine got a recent gig doing tour graphics (for another cult artist, no less!) so I imagine the process hasn't changed much. For legal reasons I will reiterate that this is not encouragement, not professional advice, or a recommendation for anyone's art in particular; I am not saying you should do this. Instead, it is merely an informed opinion on how not to shoot your shot in the direction of your own foot, coming from someone who has seen that part of the album-making process. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.