More front / back cover drawings

Fineliner drawing of Manchester School of Art tutors in 1890. I have made the grouping of people more circular in an attempt to compliment the roundness of the CD / record it will be housing.

Different options for the record booklet / liner notes

I also want to push myself in terms of producing the booklet for the compilation that is packaged together with the CD / record. I originally considered producing a standard CD-booklet type mini zine but I'm now thinking of different ways I could fold the booklet to make the booklet more visually interesting and innovative.

I have taken inspiration from this NoBrow booklet

also their highly successful series of 'Leporellos', large concertina books which advance a narrative as the reader progresses through the folds. It can also be pulled out to be transformed into a poster.

I also really like Chris Ware's innovative use of booklets and different folding techniques in his recent release, Building Stories. Chris Ware is a comic creator and graphic novelist, Building Stories is a coherent graphic novel packaged in a box containing many seperate comics and sheets of drawings which the reader must pick out a narrative from themselves.

Contents of the Building Stories box

Cover design beginnings

Experimenting with different media to use for the titles on the cover of the compilation.

Drawing with fineliners and brush pens

hand printing

oil pastels

fineliners

Experimenting with typefaces

Pitching my product

I've pitched my product to a number of other students and Manchester-based music promoters to gage their opinions and ideas for possible changes to the project. I have asked for both general feedback and feedback specifically concerning how they think this product would perform whilst on sale.

I've asked the co-founder and promoter of Party Hard, a Manchester based alternative clubnight, what his opinions of the project are. Party Hard have booked Manchester based bands several times since they started their night in 2011. He had this to say:

"I like the idea but maybe with further research you could find out some more bands who are students right now or bands that formed while at MMU. You could so some recordings of the music in the Holden Gallery that you mentioned."

I also asked one of the co-founders of the feminist clubnight, Typical Girls, to give me some feedback.

"I think we could sell something like this at our clubnight, we usually have a stall. Have you considered doing something similar for other venues around Manchester?"

Playlist Development

Thought of changing / adding some songs so that they are by Manchester bands. Really don't want the compilation to end up being an homage to the likes of The Stones Roses / Happy Mondays etc so I'm going to stick with more contemporary / current bands mixed with the more esoteric side of Manchester's musical history.

This version includes all Manchester-based bands and also some other Manchester School of Art alumni. Some of these include bands such as PINS, LoneLady and Linder Sterling aka Ludus.

The tracklisting for this version is:

LoneLady - Nerve Up
A Certain Ratio - Knife Slits Water
PINS - Say To Me
Ludus - Mutilate
The Freshies - Children of the World
Blue Orchids - Agents of Change
Shield Patterns - Good Care
Magazine - Definitive Gaze

First Version of Compilation

Here's the first version of the compilation. It's general theme is both the progression from first year to third and the progression from the beginning to the end of one year. It also includes tracks by notable musical alumni John McGeoch (Spellbound) and former Head of Art, Professor John Hyatt (The Three Johns).

The tracklisting goes like this:

Flying Lotus - Nose Art

John Maus - Keep Pushing On

Chromatics - In the City

The Three Johns - Death of the European

Siouxsie & the Banshees - Spellbound

Sonny and the Sunsets - Too Young to Burn

Aloe Blacc - I Need a Dollar

Gold Panda - We Work Nights

The Animals - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood

The Zombies - This Will Be Our Year

The website I've used automatically shuffles the tracklisting but the tracklist above is in the intended order.

Further Ideas for Compilation

I'm really keen on progressing with the compilation record idea.

My idea for it now would be to base each track on the compilation to different areas, rooms or events within the art school. An example of this would be:

Holden Gallery

Holden Cafe

Interactive Arts Studio

All Saints Park

Print Workshop

Link Gallery

New Building

In The Lifts

or

First Year

Link Gallery

Collaboration

Mid Year Breakdown

Exploration

Visitation

Degree Show

In the liner notes for the album would be a map of the Art School either as a floor plan or a more mind map type of drawing, depending on which route I decide to go with regarding the theme of the tracklisting.

The notes would also include a short paragraph on each track talking about the location / reasoning behind why each track was chosen to represent each place / event / etc.

I would also like to incude collaboraytions with other students, art courses and tutors, maybe getting submission for artwork to go along with the notes or for song submissions / reasonings.