New Art Director for NIN?

[kraw]

off the top of my head here's some artwork that i created or oversaw in the last few years.

Before The Flood Soundtrack
Patriots Day Soundtrack
Vietnam Soundtrack
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- Broken
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- TDS
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- The Fragile
NTAE Album Art
Add Violence Album Art
NTAE physical component
Add Violence(with 42 Entertainment) physical component
"A Minute to Breathe" music video with Reuben Wu
Twin Peaks projection visuals
nin.com rebrand / relaunch
publicity photos
merch designs

[spahn]

are you still involved in any capacity with nin projects or are you done for now?

[Prettybrokenspiral]

@Prettybrokenspiral has created an elaborate pile of bullshit and blatant lies in the above post.

Other than deleting a few posts from trolls (likely aliases for @Prettybrokenspiral) on my instagram, i dont think i've had any negative interactions with NIN fans on my IG account. Even though i supposedly deleted everything, for someone who inexplicably thinks i'm an asshole and i suck so much, surely he/she took screenshots of all the negative drama he/she's accusing me of and would be able to produce them.

obviously @Prettybrokenspiral isn't the only person that thinks i suck, but i've not had any back and forth interactions online with anyone else.

Here are two things that are true.

1. No one was more frustrated and dissapointed than me with the quality control issues with the assembly and shipping of the vinyl I was involved with. When your name is on the sticker advertising your attention to detail and the vinyl is arriving bent or coming unglued, it fucking sucks.

2. Trent and I are on good terms.

kraw

Uh, why would I make this stuff up? For what gain, I ask? Hell, I was on here last year when it was happening on your IG, marveling at your arrogance to the whole thing, and reporting about it here then, too. Fine by me if you want to save face by accusing me of "making it all up", but I know what I saw and I'm calling it like I saw it.

Here are two things that are true, for you:

1. I have one IG account and rarely, if ever, comment on anything for anyone I follow. No, I am not on there trolling you under multiple aliases or whatever. Do you have screenshots of this stuff?

2. I do not have screenshots of what you were saying to others at the time last year, because I just figured you were full of yourself and I had my opinion of you regardless. People were welcome to go to your account and judge for themselves whether they wanted to continue to support you or not after I tipped ETS off to how you were handling the whole situation.

Alas, I'm not going to foul up ETS with an ongoing flame war with the former NIN art director. People can believe whatever they want. Calling it like I saw it, no bullshit and no elaboration necessary. I have nothing to gain from making something like this up..

[ItsChrisRoss]

off the top of my head here's some artwork that i created or oversaw in the last few years.


Before The Flood Soundtrack
Patriots Day Soundtrack
Vietnam Soundtrack
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- Broken
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- TDS
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- The Fragile
NTAE Album Art
Add Violence Album Art
NTAE physical component
Add Violence(with 42 Entertainment) physical component
"A Minute to Breathe" music video with Reuben Wu
Twin Peaks projection visuals
nin.com rebrand / relaunch
publicity photos
merch designs

@kraw

This is an impressive body of work alone. I hope that the comments on the previous page didn't make you feel compelled to justify to us what you created/oversaw.

I can appreciate the fact that you actually respond to your/NIN fans online (whichever platform) and interact with us much more than say, previous Art Directors did. If you continue to work with NIN and TR, keep up the good work. If you dont, keep up the good work.

Additionally: As someone who purchased Deviations when it was released, I thought a lot of the quality control issue were to be blamed on SANDBAG who clearly didn't have their shit together. I refuse to believe or let ONE or TWO people alone take the blame for whatever people were bitching about on here.

[nihilmatters]

2. Trent and I are on good terms.

I'm guessing you didn't work on Bad Witch art because you're too busy working on further unreleased projects associated with Trent. *evil grin*

[kraw]

thank you @ItsChrisRoss

for obvious reasons i try not to get dragged into the kind of negativity that's on the previous page, but i care enough and relate to NIN fans that are on this forum enough to defend myself against blatant lies about me being shitty to other fans.

[zecho]

I appreciate that. Yeah i'd originally planned to be more involved with ETS etc, but quickly learned to step cautiously. In all aspects of life the bad apple thing sucks, but as I was fan of NIN for many years before working with Trent (Levianthant and i know each other from the 90's) I know that a couple of vocal assholes do not represent the majority of the group.

I can't really say much about the Still thing other than it came from TR.

-kraw

Man, that's sad. It's the same reason Reznor stopped responding to fans back in 2009. It would be pretty cool to have someone from the camp interacting on this board, especially with how vague officially given information is these days. Well, hopefully this doesn't sour your feelings about the music and its fans. Most of us are pretty cool.

[arsenic]

...
Patriots Day Soundtrack

Lakeshore records is dead silent regarding this one and on insta you told me you don't know much about it either.
It's been almost one year and a half since the release, at this point we can only hope it hasn't been quietly scrapped.

Anyway, no matter how things went with TR keep up the good work and it's good to see you posting again around here.

[hologram parade]

Lakeshore records is dead silent regarding this one and on insta you told me you don't know much about it either.
It's been almost one year and a half since the release, at this point we can only hope it hasn't been quietly scrapped..

pretty sure this will be coming out sooner rather than later, on vinyl at least. Lakeshore Records posted a stack of vinyl test pressings on their Instagram, May 22nd, they tagged it with #patriotsday
#atticusross #trentreznor

[TheBang]

I can appreciate the fact that you actually respond to your/NIN fans online (whichever platform) and interact with us much more than say, previous Art Directors did.

Wow, that's a strong diss against Gary Talpas.

[icklekitty]

Twin Peaks

Extreme jealousy.

[snaapz]

While we are on NIN CAMP interacting with fans, here's a true story and my perspective.

In February 2007 NIN leaks 'Me, I'm Not'.

A user with the name 'snaapz' on THESPIRAL writes

Play Me, Im not.
Then play 03 - You're No Good - KMFDM - Hau Ruck
Exact same bass line ... and sounds the same
Its kmfdm revamped .. nothing new ...
(kind of)

again ...
ITS STOLEN FROM KMFDM -
but KMFDMs version is better ...

You're no good - Hau Ruck


THEN TR REPLIES

"You: go fuck yourself. Now. The day I steal something from KMFD-Fucking-M is a sad fucking day indeed. Call up Sasha and have him sue me if you feel that strongly about it, meanwhile let everyone have some goddamned fun without you pissing on the parade."


Then a few months later Rob and TR make a rare appearance in the NIN.COM chat room. snaapz immediately joins the chat room and Rob chooses snaapz, of all people, to have +v and ability to chat with TR (while 200 other fans without +v are unable to type/chat).

snaapz is shocked and cant think of anything to say...

after a minute of awkwardness TR writes "didn't I yell at you once"

snaapz replies "yes I fucked up"


A few minutes later TR says "well this was fun" and leaves.


Over the next few months interviews pop up where TR mentions how fans can listen, review and pick apart songs within minutes of its release, not giving music the proper experience.

I've never really seen TRENT_REZNOR since... though I know he posts on this form sometimes.



Anyways my point is that fans are fucking annoying. I have the utmost respect and admiration for NIN, yet I wrote some shit comment.

[BRoswell]

I know that a couple of vocal assholes do not represent the majority of the group.

Just remember: you can't spell "fanatic" without "fan".

Thank you for your posts and for clearing things up.

[ItsChrisRoss]

Wow, that's a strong diss against Gary Talpas.

@TheBang It was not at all a diss against Gary Talpas. Talpas was Art Director for PHM, TDS, and FDTS (maybe I am missing some). Honestly, when those came out, there were barely any platforms to communicate with anyone from the NIN camp, let alone an Art Director, so I dont see how he was supposed to interact with us on the daily. I was referring to others more recently, once social medial became HUGE. Social Media gives anyone (bands, art directors, artists, authors, actors, etc) an open way to communicate with their fans. I respect Talpas' contributions to NIN and was in no way dissing him.

I was more referring to Rob Sheridan while he was with NIN. I remember commenting or at least trying to communicate once or twice, and if memory serves, I was met with silence. NOW, that doesnt mean I did not totally dig Sheridan's work, I did. He did great things with NIN. I just mean that @kraw seems much more likely to directly communicate back to the fans than Rob did. Maybe Rob was more of a private dude. Who knows.

Hope this clears up my statement.

EDIT: Additionally, I have actually had Rob respond back to my comments on his most recent posts. Maybe he feels that he can communicate more freely now that any interactions that he has with fans are less about NIN and more about his personal work, which I can understand and appreciate.

I am not on here to diss, or slam anyone. Just adding to the conversation.

[katara]

Maybe Rob was more of a private dude. Who knows.

Responding to fan mail when you have a full-time job, your own projects, a relationship, possibly other friends too, and having to look after your own shit is tough. There is simply not enough time in the day.

Also, NDAs exist.

[fillow]

Not sure if massive amounts of sarcasim just went undetected...

[ItsChrisRoss]

Responding to fan mail when you have a full-time job, your own projects, a relationship, possibly other friends too, and having to look after your own shit is tough. There is simply not enough time in the day.

Also, NDAs exist.

I totally get it about not having enough time in the day. I am sure that Art Director for NIN is not an easy position to maintain/work (no sarcasm there).

Good point about the NDA's, I hadn't thought about that. However, I wasn't necessarily referring to ONLY NIN topics. Just general photog questions or art questions. I am certainly not a fan that would reach out to Kraw or any other Art Director just to annoy them with NIN related questions. I can see how that would TOTALLY get old very quickly.

Man. I feel like I need to keep defending myself and explaining. Its honestly exhausting.

I was simply stating that @kraw seems more likely to interact with fans. Thats it really. This wasn't meant to get people heated. I am simply just stating what I see, and what my experience has been.

[ekrekel]

Responding to fan mail when you have a full-time job, your own projects, a relationship, possibly other friends too, and having to look after your own shit is tough. There is simply not enough time in the day.

Also, NDAs exist.

Rob is pretty accessible and open to answering dumb fan questions all the time even when he's focusing on his next endeavor I've seen him recently answer questions about Bureau of Morality spotting during a video game or graphic novel reveal. He even answered someone's question about what font was used for PHM(?).

Kraw if you're still monitoring this, thanks for the work you put out there. Hope you stick around on ets, thankful for whatever insight you provide in our loopy discussions.

[cdm]

I think sometimes we (the royal 'we') forget that those in / with the band don't really owe us anything. If they want to interact, sure, but I don't think anyone should hold it against someone for being private....especially with NIN where secrecy and "the reveal' is of utmost importance.

Thanks, @kraw , for the insight.

[WorzelG]

I've only asked questions of Rob twice on Twitter but he answered both times and I was really enjoying that a path unknown thing he was doing although I've completely lost track of where it is now

[bgalbraith]

off the top of my head here's some artwork that i created or oversaw in the last few years.

Before The Flood Soundtrack
Patriots Day Soundtrack
Vietnam Soundtrack
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- Broken
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- TDS
DE Reissue Vinyl and essay- The Fragile
NTAE Album Art
Add Violence Album Art
NTAE physical component
Add Violence(with 42 Entertainment) physical component
"A Minute to Breathe" music video with Reuben Wu
Twin Peaks projection visuals
nin.com rebrand / relaunch
publicity photos
merch designs

You know @kraw , adding a nincatalog.com site design refresh to your NIN CV would just be icing on the cake

[FULLMETAL]

Has Gary Talpas ever discussed his work for NIN? I’d love for him to bust out an ets AMAAND (ask me anything about NIN design).

[paul_guyet]

Up until a few years ago, I thought I was done being surprised by album art/design. Occasionally, you'd get something insane like Peter Christopherson's Time Machines II or a really interesting deluxe packaging, but usually, the coolest thing you'd get is a print or a poster or some weird object. Then...the NTAE Physical Components started shipping and things were kind of redefined for me. I know some people didn't like the whole thing...can't figure out why exactly...but, for me, this set a new standard.

[astfgyl]

I really know nothing about the artwork side of things beyond whether I like it or not, and NTAE is also the best I have seen in years. I am still poring over it constantly to see wtf exactly is going on there and I am still (intended) none the wiser after 18 months. It certainly adds to the experience of listening to the music on there.

Now as I said earlier, I have no idea what it is an Art Director actually does, but having looked at Kraw's IG after he was announced, I was hoping to see a bit more of that particular brand of horror creeping into things. Then AV came out and it was nothing like NTAE, style-wise, and also nothing like what I see of his personal work. Now Bad Witch is on the way and what I have seen of it looks way more like NTAE in style than AV (I have only seen the front and back covers), despite the change of personnel.

Would I be on the right track in thinking that TR has a very definite idea in his head, and that it would only leave a very limited scope for anybody else involved to leave much or any of their own mark on it?

Lastly, @kraw , fair play to you for coming out of the woodwork here, and it is a pity it is only to defend yourself and/or call people out (both sides of that argument go right over my head, I wasn't witness to any of it). I know you can't tell me about the Still thing, but it would be great to see somebody such as yourself getting into things a bit more around here other than the defensive side of it.

[katara]

Now as I said earlier, I have no idea what it is an Art Director actually does, but having looked at Kraw's IG after he was announced, I was hoping to see a bit more of that particular brand of horror creeping into things. Then AV came out and it was nothing like NTAE, style-wise, and also nothing like what I see of his personal work. Now Bad Witch is on the way and what I have seen of it looks way more like NTAE in style than AV (I have only seen the front and back covers), despite the change of personnel.

Would I be on the right track in thinking that TR has a very definite idea in his head, and that it would only leave a very limited scope for anybody else involved to leave much or any of their own mark on it?

Not all artists are one-trick ponies.

However, what you say may be possible. I'm sure TR has a very particular creative vision.

[StockAvuryah]

Add Violence(with 42 Entertainment) physical component

ARG confirmed yet again.

Also, do you know why Deviations 1 is that bland and doesn't even have a booklet ? That's the only artwork and release packaging that I find... weird. Music is outstanding though.

[katara]

ARG confirmed yet again.

Also, do you know why Deviations 1 is that bland and doesn't even have a booklet ? That's the only artwork and release packaging that I find... weird. Music is outstanding though.

You're supposed to buy the $80 record, then download the pdf and print it yourself. If you didn't buy from nin.com, you're screwed (unless someone kind will PM you one).

[StockAvuryah]

You're supposed to buy the $80 record, then download the pdf and print it yourself. If you didn't buy from nin.com, you're screwed (unless someone kind will PM you one).

I already did that, printed the booklet and all.. Way better looking that way.

Also, fk you @cdm, nothing wrong with my post. Why the fuck did you pay to support this site to be toxic and contribute nothing ?

[katara]

You're supposed to buy the $80 record, then download the pdf and print it yourself. If you didn't buy from nin.com, you're screwed (unless someone kind will PM you one).

I already did that, printed the booklet and all.. Way better looking that way.

I was actually being snarky about printing the booklet. It really should have been included physically in the package. Glad I cancelled my order.

I may have seen your book on reddit? Perhaps I should get one, myself. Looks nice.

[cdm]

I already did that, printed the booklet and all.. Way better looking that way.

Also, fk you @cdm, nothing wrong with my post. Why the fuck did you pay to support this site to be toxic and contribute nothing ?

Toxic and contribute nothing? I’ll resist the urge to tell you to go fuck yourself.