The Lonesome Crowded West

This image was created for the Beck's Music Inspired Art - The 100 Cover Project.

I chose to create artwork for “The Lonesome Crowded West” because I love the album's dark narratives and the distorted, dystopian sounds which convey a sense of something broken.

The urban West is at the heart of the album's theme and TV struck me as being a strong symbol of this – television is a medium which can make you feel both claustrophobic and isolated at the same time. Together with the uneasy nature of many of the songs, I was struck by the existential lyrics – the futility of life suggested by songs like 'Cowboy Dan' and 'Doin' The Cockroach', the struggles and senseless confrontation. I wanted to capture this atmosphere of the album in an image, something darkly amusing, poignant, excessive and on-edge.

Hope you enjoy my interpretation!