Well this is interesting....

[j]

Lol WTF people.  It's not a huge deal or anything, it just shows at the very least carelessness and lack of professionalism on the part of the artist.  I'll hardly lose any sleep over it, but I'm not sure why some people are getting so worked up trying to defend it.

-J

[DJay32]

But he didn't use the stock image, though; he based the unicyclist off of said stock image. One look at it will tell you the two are different in drawing style and appearance, whereas Circus Maximus just took the image and reversed it. And personally, I really like that. I love the cover as a whole; I find it very striking and memorable.

On another note, I may be one of those people who thinks the album cover and title are perfect. But maybe that's just because I'm undergoing a very dramatic turn of events in my own life, so I need something like this to obsess over. I love the album name, though, and the art is among my favourite album art of all time now. And by the way, the title reminds me heavily of Moving Pictures, which was another simple phrase with art done by Hugh. Though yes, Moving Pictures is a triple entendre, but it's still a very simple phrase.

[Guitalguy]

It is unfortunate but this kind of coincidences happen a lot.

The thunder sample in the beginning of this song should be pretty familiar...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vkXqyF8BXQ0

The thunder sample is the exact same as you'll find in Apple GarageBand. Jordan is obviously an Apple fan, and I guess those samples are free to use for anyone. I was kind of amazed when I was just fooling around in GB, and found this sound all of a sudden though.

[Zook]

OK, I don't think it's that big a deal anymore. A lot of good points have been made in this thread. Plus, audio samples are used and reused and reused again in movies all the time. Shit happens. I mean fuck, in The X-Files, every time a metal door is opened, it's the same damn sound. It's all about what's cheaper these days.

[7StringedBeast]

I don't care if 30 people used the image or none.  I still think the cover isn't very artistic and its a lame photoshop job.  That's just how I feel about it.  No need for people to get all upset over it. 

[Gorille85]

I don't care if 30 people used the image or none.  I still think the cover isn't very artistic and its a lame photoshop job.  That's just how I feel about it.  No need for people to get all upset over it. 

[dvargas]

If DT are aware of this, then I wouldn't be surprised, but if they signed off on it not knowing, then that's a shame.

Although I agree with everybody saying that the important thing is the music - the artwork does have a place too.

It can sell an album - much like a package can sell a product. In fact, at times I have actually purchased X album over Y album just based on their art - I know lame and stupid - but that's what marketing is all about. People see them on the shelf and may go with the one they think looks better. Just sayin...

I think it shows a lazy approach by the artist and demonstrates once more than the covers created by the people in this forum were superior.

[chrisbDTM]

ffs, there's no shame


they thought it looked cool, obviously, and they arent gonna know if a back and 1 arm was originally in a stock photo.

[Obfuscation]

They should keep it this way so the controversy or conspiracy or whatever you want to call it can keep on going.

[hefdaddy42]

It was intentional.  DT decided that it was about time that they ripped off Circus Maximus.

[ReaPsTA]

It was intentional.  DT decided that it was about time that they ripped off Circus Maximus.

[Adami]

It was intentional.  DT decided that it was about time that they ripped off Circus Maximus.

If you consider the possibility of Time Travel, DT have been ripping off Circus Maximus for years.

[GuineaPig]

Exactly. If people are cool with In the Court of the Crimson King, I don't see why this cover is such an embarrassment.

YOU TAKE THAT BACK

[wammabe]

I like this album cover more than most of the album covers I see on the local CD store. That still doesn't mean I'm really fond of it though, I think Dream Theater should change the cover artist for the next album. As for the copy paste thing, I don't mind it, but I think its quite lazy.

[matt1722]

What A Dramatic Turn Of Events . . . . I'm sorry I couldn't help it.   

[GasparXR]

Here's my two cents:

I don't like that the clown is, or at least is based off readily available stock photos, but I still enjoy the final product, and it seems like that ruined it for some people.

[BlobVanDam]

It's not that he used stock footage, it's just mindblowing that he used the same clown that appears on the cover of another prog metal band that many people think sounds like Dream Theater.

Anyway, I thought the cover was ok aside from some errors (like the rope that clips off before the edge of the screen, zoom in on the left edge of the picture where the rope goes off screen), but this kind of ruins it for me pretty badly. I mean is there any work involved in this cover aside from copy pasting an image? I mean the rest of the picture is just sky and probably a plane taken from another website. Very lame. How is this guy even an artist?

When you're as prolific as Hugh Syme, you probably can't go and take a photo shoot for every album cover for an element you can find online. Obviously he put in the work to change it, such as swapping the lower half, adding the gloves, making a new left arm, new hat etc, so it's more than just copy paste. When you do so many images, you look to stock images for your base elements, then adapt them as necessary. I'm sure plenty of things have used the same stock unicycle image before. Hugh Syme took the time to create something new with it instead of just slapping it on the cover as is.
I get bothered by little mistakes that creep in too, like the rope, and the fact the DT font is squished, but DT is just another job at the end of the day. He's not going to analyze and scrutinize it like us fans. With any luck, we hopefully won't see the rope problem once it's printed on the CD sleeve anyway.

And it's much less excusable that Circus Maximus used the Megadeth font. The font is even called "Megadeth"! There's no chance of the creator and band not realizing what they were doing. Megadeth are one of the "big 4". If you even know the band by name, you know what you're doing. Personally, I don't find it too hard to believe that DT isn't familiar with a particular album cover by the band, despite being in the same genre.


I'm still not a big fan of the ADTOE album cover (at least as the cover), but the use of stock images is not a revelation. There was the stock photo of the woman on the Octavarium artwork, I could even show you the site where the Octavarium ball texture comes from. The difference here is that someone else used it on a similar product beforehand, and while unfortunate, isn't something that affects my judgement of the cover. More work went into the DT cover than the CM one anyway.

[j]

I get bothered by little mistakes that creep in too, like the rope, and the fact the DT font is squished, but DT is just another job at the end of the day. He's not going to analyze and scrutinize it like us fans.

Personally, this is the problem I have with it.  Integrity should compel him to scrutinize it because it's his creation, that should be a given IMO.  I couldn't care less if he uses stock photos or whatever, it's just that everything is obviously so sloppy.

-J

[BlobVanDam]

I get bothered by little mistakes that creep in too, like the rope, and the fact the DT font is squished, but DT is just another job at the end of the day. He's not going to analyze and scrutinize it like us fans.

Personally, this is the problem I have with it.  Integrity should compel him to scrutinize it because it's his creation, that should be a given IMO.  I couldn't care less if he uses stock photos or whatever, it's just that everything is obviously so sloppy.

-J

Comparing the full resolution artwork of BCASL to the actual physical album, there is a pretty substantial margin around the artwork that does not get printed (was the only album I had on hand, you could check others). Even the larger lithograph that came with the special edition is cropped.
The rope is so close to the edge that Hugh Syme would know that it won't get seen on the actual album. They probably should have cropped it for the high res version they put on the net, but there is a legitimate reason for ignoring it other than simply not caring. Keep in mind that he's creating 15+ images total for the album artwork, so it's understandable to me that he could miss minor details, even checking carefully.

[Pols Voice]

This is pretty sad. All of Syme's DT covers have been kinda lazy, but man...I didn't like this cover from the beginning, and now I REALLY don't like it. Hugh Syme's better than this and he knows it.

[Jalis]

What A Dramatic Turn Of Events . . . . I'm sorry I couldn't help it.   

[ZKX-2099]

That unicycle looks like it's at the wrong angle to stay on the rope, never noticed that before.

Thats the dramatic turn.

[Millais]

Here's my two cents:

I don't like that the clown is, or at least is based off readily available stock photos, but I still enjoy the final product, and it seems like that ruined it for some people.

this^
minimalism makes a great finished product in this case - but it's a shame it has indeed been based off a stock photo. not a huge deal though, really.

[robwebster]

Well I for one think it is a travesty that there is not a secret vault of super-exclusive stock photos that only Hugh Syme has access to. Hidden in a bunker. Which is opened via a retina scan. Of his dog. So in conclusion, I think we can all agree that anyone who uses stock photography is an artless hack, and this is certainly not the most moronic storm-in-a-teacup in DT fandom's collected living memory.

That last clause isn't even sarcastic. It isn't the most moronic storm. And that torments the very depths of my soul. Oh, silly season. You make diplomacy so damned hard - which probably means I should duck out for a few months, before this becomes a chore. But I'm going to try anyway.

Look, everyone uses stock photography. It's standard practice. That lady on the back of the Octavarium booklet? Stock photography. The textures on the swinging balls? Stock photography. I even remember tracking them down once. Although they've violated the art of human ingenuity by using them, stock photography is, sincerely, a photoshop artist's bread and butter. It's the entire point of the medium. The Octavarium balls have been transformed from a high-resolution sheet-texture into a big deep sphere. The grass from the same cover has likewise been transformed into rolling hills. It's no less creative than not mixing your own paints. This is... I don't like being so impatient, but this is sincerely par for the course. It's like being annoyed that the Ghostbusters don't actually seal away ghosts. The photoshop artist uses images from different sources to create a new image. That's the whole point of the medium. This doesn't represent a gap in Syme's creativity.

[Super Dude]

I do wish they'd try a new cover artist every once in a while, although I don't mind this cover at all.

[robwebster]

I do wish they'd try a new cover artist every once in a while, although I don't mind this cover at all.

I do agree with this. Although I'd actually say this has been his best with the band, four Hugh Syme pieces in a row has been more than enough, and I'd like them to change it up next time.

[BlobVanDam]

Well I for one think it is a travesty that there is not a secret vault of super-exclusive stock photos that only Hugh Syme has access to. Hidden in a bunker. Which is opened via a retina scan. Of his dog. So in conclusion, I think we can all agree that anyone who uses stock photography is an artless hack, and this is certainly not the most moronic storm-in-a-teacup in DT fandom's collected living memory.

That last clause isn't even sarcastic. It isn't the most moronic storm. And that torments the very depths of my soul. Oh, silly season. You make diplomacy so damned hard - which probably means I should duck out for a few months, before this becomes a chore. But I'm going to try anyway.

Look, everyone uses stock photography. It's standard practice. That lady on the back of the Octavarium booklet? Stock photography. The textures on the swinging balls? Stock photography. I even remember tracking them down once. Although they've violated the art of human ingenuity by using them, stock photography is, sincerely, a photoshop artist's bread and butter. It's the entire point of the medium. The Octavarium balls have been transformed from a high-resolution sheet-texture into a big deep sphere. The grass from the same cover has likewise been transformed into rolling hills. It's no less creative than not mixing your own paints. This is... I don't like being so impatient, but this is sincerely par for the course. It's like being annoyed that the Ghostbusters don't actually seal away ghosts. The photoshop artist uses images from different sources to create a new image. That's the whole point of the medium. This doesn't represent a gap in Syme's creativity.

I have missed your posts so much. 

I do wish they'd try a new cover artist every once in a while, although I don't mind this cover at all.

I do agree with this. Although I'd actually say this has been his best with the band, four Hugh Syme pieces in a row has been more than enough, and I'd like them to change it up next time.

I'd say SC, followed by 8V. Both of those were really good covers imo.

[Super Dude]

So did he do the ToT artwork?  It doesn't say either way on Wikipedia.  Also, who did the earlier ones?

[BlobVanDam]

I'm pretty sure he didn't do ToT. Those images were taken from existing images from some artist. He has a site, but I can't remember the name. I don't think he did any before that, but I'm not 100%.

[Zydar]

Jerry Uelsmann did the ToT artwork.

https://www.uelsmann.net/

[reneranucci]

Sheesh guys there's nothing wrong with the cover, its very nice

No, it's horrible. Well, not horrible, but not good by any means.

This is the DT album with the worst tittle, the worst cover and the worst opener so far. Hopefully the rest of the music will be good.

[reneranucci]

And,

I don't care if 30 people used the image or none.  I still think the cover isn't very artistic and its a lame photoshop job.  That's just how I feel about it.  No need for people to get all upset over it. 

This.

By the way, another thing I dislike from the cover is that I can't make an emotional connection between it and the album tittle. Every other DT cover (except for WDADU) is a perfect match with the ideas behind the tittle. This one feels like the artist had no idea of what the name of the album would be.

[chrisbDTM]

This is the DT album with the worst tittle, the worst cover and the worst opener so far.

in your opinion

By the way, another thing I dislike from the cover is that I can't make an emotional connection between it and the album tittle. Every other DT cover (except for WDADU) is a perfect match with the ideas behind the tittle. This one feels like the artist had no idea of what the name of the album would be.

maybe you should wait for the music to see if it connects. and its also possible that syme didnt know the album name. a couple weeks ago, DT had a song called 'the shaman's trance'...

[Kotowboy]

This probably isn't really relevant... But sometimes I have purchased albums that I really didn't enjoy at first simply because the cover and booklet had such nice artwork.

The last time this happened, I grew to *love* the actual album.

BUT..If i want an album, having artwork I don't fully enjoy won't sway me from purchasing the *music*...

Just for the record - I really like the ADTOE cover - I like blue and it reminds me of Octavarium, my favorite DT album.

[tri.ad]

I pretty much agree with robwebster here; also, I find this debate to be pretty amusing.