9 Best Electronic Album Covers Of All Time

9 Of The Coolest Electronic Album & EP Covers Of All Time
| January 01, 2017

An album or EP release is a huge deal for an artist, as it holds the power to define their career and bring it to whole other heights.

A lot goes into the creation of an album or EP, obviously one of the main factors being the tracks that are actually on it. The strategic placement and order of the tracks should have an underlying meaning behind it that embodies what the entire album is about- what its story is. The producer's personal life affects the album/EP creation as well, and another factor is all the hard work the record label, publishing, and management teams put in to be able to get this album out there.

Although all these factors play a pivotal role in album/EP creation, one specific factor that is almost just as important as the physical piece of music is the artwork. The artwork on an album provides the audience with the visual representation of what you're trying to portray through sound, and is a vital piece of the puzzle that makes up the bigger picture of what the story behind this album/EP is. It plays a bigger role than one would think, and I truly hope that artists don't forget to show love to and put effort into the design of album covers.

So on that note, we're gonna switch things up a bit and show some love to the art, rather than the music. Here are 10 of the coolest, funkiest, iconic, and most aesthetically pleasing electronic album and EP covers of all time:

 

1) Worlds - Porter Robinson 

Quite possibly one of the most influential and emotion-evoking albums in electronic music history, Porter Robinson's Worlds was the godly producer's album that defined the rest of his career, and established his unique brand as an artist. 

Released in 2014, the 12-track album generates a universe of its very own through sound. The cover features two essential icon's to Porters Worlds brand and his overall brand as an artist: the infamous【=◈︿◈=】logo and the purple hand. The blue and purple pastel tones, with the hand being the main focal point, embody the delicate nature of this very album. It visually stimulates you, while soothing you at the same time.

 

2) Woman - Justice

French electronic legends Justice have taken music to new heights over the past decade, with their unmistakable cross logo to represent their mark on the world. This logo, as shown on their preceding album Cross released approximately 10 years ago, is followed up with their latest album drop Woman

The story behind this album cover, according to an article in Thump, is an interesting one. The cover was inspired by a photograph of søl oil taken David Zilber, sous chef at a world-famous restaurant in Copenhagen- and the duo decided to fuse together this colorful, swirly oil design with, of course, their signature cross logo. Thus, Woman was born.

 

3) ▲ (Triangle) - Slow Magic

Our favorite masked wolf Slow Magic knows how to hit us in the feels and transport us to a dreamland of sparkly synths and chill-wave beats that make us feel like we're floating on a cloud- as properly exemplified by the 2012 release of his album, Triangle

The album cover features the silhouettes of three young children playing on a beach. These silhouettes are filled with galaxies and stars, and this warm feeling of nostalgia washes over you upon looking at this cover. The pure innocence and beauty of this album is captured brilliantly through its art, and you can almost hear the waves crash in perfect unison with the endless laughter and giggles coming from the children.

 

4) Opus - Eric Prydz

The man, the myth, the legend- Eric Prydz. You may also known him as Pryda, Cirez D or any of the 12 total aliases he performs and produces under. The long-awaited release of his Opus album finally was no longer something to wait for come February earlier this year.

The cover is something you definitely need some kaleidoscope glasses upon viewing- its holographic and colorful lines are shaped and formed to replicate the face of Prydz himself. The contrast of the colors and curvature of the lines flawlessly create the depth and dimension needed to successfully emulate a human face, specifically Prydz's, making this cover art timeless and iconic.

 

5) Dive - Tycho

 

A huge influential factor in Tycho's music is nature, especially in his album Dive- which is the epitome of peaceful down-tempo and this blissful form of ambient electronica. Graphics and visuals play a major role in Tycho's (aka Scott Hansen's) everyday life, and Scott himself is responsible for creating his album artwork, which allows him to directly connect his music to his art.

The calming colors of the landscape in contrast to the bright colors of the sunset are fused together to exemplify perfect visual harmony. The distorted effect that occurs once the sunset meets the land, and projects the sunset forward can entice anyone that feasts their eyes on this earthly masterpiece.

 

6) 99.9% - Kaytranada

Haitian-Canadian DJ and producer Kaytranada's album release of 99.9% this past year has only resulted in a massive amount of success. When analyzing the album cover, it goes without question that there are a medley of things going on here- but nonetheless, it goes without question that this album cover is colorful, eclectic and one-of-a-kind, just like the funky tunes on the album. 

99.9% features a portrait of Kaytra himself, but it's not just regular Kaytranada- it's Kaytra with a twist! A lot of symbolism is going on here: from the 6 eyes instead of 2 all the way down to the fusion of physic images, the devil, religion and culture- all which come together to bring you 99.9%, thanks to Brazilian artist Ricardo Cavolo

 

7) Various EP Releases & Singles - Dirtybird

Now I know these aren't necessarily all albums or EPs, but there was absolutely no way that I could let these gems not make a feature on this list. Funky and quirky tech-house label Dirtybird, ran by boss man Claude VonStroke, is one of the few labels out there that has built one of the most unique brands for themselves that will make its mark on music history for years to come. 

Last year, every track release off of Dirtybird, from either label vets or brand-new artists, got its very own unique artwork to accompany it. Two animals of any size or species were selected and fused together into a new imaginary breed, and was featured on the cover. These illustrations, brilliantly created by artist Raoul Deleo, come out surprisingly adorable, realistic and visually stimulating- which can only be done by someone possessing true, unmatched talent and creativity.

 

8) Game Over EP - No Mana

Mau5trap wonder-boy and prodigy No Mana has been absolutely dominating the scene with his unique take on progressive electro-house. His past EP releases all features his signature salt shaker logo with a cheeky tongue-out smiley face, and the titles of these EPs go in order of "1UP, 2UP, 3UP..." and so on. 

Video games play a major role in No Mana's music and artwork, and following his last EP release of 9UP came Game Over released a few months ago. His previous EPs all featured his signature logo with a solid bright colored background, and now this EP cover features a simple grey background, with a broken, upside-down version of the logo, to exemplify that it it's "game over." The brilliant order and design of these EPs ooze creativity and underlying meaning.

 

9) > album title goes here < - Deadmau5

Our favorite internet troll and dance music legend Deadmau5 has had numerous album and EP releases through the year, one of his most recent ones being W:/2016ALBUM/. 

There are a lot of notable characteristics that make Deadmau5 who he is, the most obvious one being his signature mouse head that he wears while performing. His mouse head is featured on the album, but with a unique twist. The mau5 loves his beloved cat Professor Meowingtons, and it's safe to say that Meowingtons wins the award for the most epic cat name of all time. This album cover is Meowingtons' head morphed with Deadmau5' head- so who's to say that a cat and mouse can't get along?

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