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Access All Areas w/ Sam Rodriguez
It's the last AAA of the year, but surely not the least. For this round, Rhymesayers connected with Sam Rodriguez, the illustrator behind the cover art for MF DOOM's MM..FOOD 20th Anniversary Edition. Read below to see some of the process and what inspired the design.
RSE: What was your first reaction when presented with the opportunity to design a new cover for such an iconic album? How did the original cover play into your thought process?
SAM R: It didn't process at first, I thought it was one of those spam emails. As for the original cover, being that this is an anniversary celebration for the album, I felt it needed to remain somewhat consistent with Jagel's art, so I referenced his color palette, MF DOOM's wardrobe, and him sitting at a table. Of course the mask and characters were all MF DOOM's making, and the iconic DOOM lettering of Keo from Xmen was a must to include.
RSE: The design has many easter eggs for hardcore DOOM fans to find, and all of DOOM’s alter egos were incorporated. How do you feel the diner scene connects with the music on the album or DOOM's legacy as a whole?
SAM R: At first when I proposed a diner it was as a front cover only. When Rhymesayers and DOOM's family saw it they asked to expand the diner onto the back cover and add his alter egos. I loved that they were excited and thought it was a great idea to explore. As for how I came up with a diner scene, the idea sort of tapped me on the shoulder. I happened to be studying Norman Rockwell illustrations and watching the show Madmen which have aesthetics that depict American idealism. I thought it would be interesting to flip that style and pair it with DOOM's world. It reminds me of the show Twilight Zone and Diner's are very NYC. It ended up being a great platform for us to include all of DOOM's cast of characters.
RSE: How did the fight cloud become a feature in the design? It seems to incorporate a lot of the themes in DOOM’s music.
SAM R: I was inspired by some of his interludes and samples. They sound like vintage recordings of cartoons, and movies. Those fight clouds in Fleischer old Popeye cartoons in my opinion feel like DOOM's samples so I referenced them.
RSE: Where can fans find info on you and your work? Anything coming up that you can comment on?
SAM R: Thanks to everyone who showed love. You can find my work on my website, samrodriguezart.com, or instagram @samrodriguezart. I'm always making new stuff...right now me and my homie Josue Rojas are working on a project called Cratemarks where we'll be (visually) remixing Album Covers so stay tuned for that.
RSE: Ok, last but not least, give us your top five DOOM songs?
SAM R: Top 5 for me is "Fo Ti," "Kon Karne," "Deep Fried Frenz," "Blood Root," and "Accordion."