MICHAEL CARNEY
Michael Carney (born January 9, 1982) is an American art director, sculptor, and photographer. He is best known for his extensive work with the rock band the Black Keys, for whom his brother Patrick is the drummer. A graduate of the Columbus College of Art and Design, Michael has been the band’s art director from the beginning, designing all of the band’s album art. In 2011, Carney won a Grammy for Best Recording Package for his work on The Black Keys’ sixth studio album, Brothers. Later that year, Carney was profiled in the New York Times article, “The Incredible, Inevitable Shrinking Album Cover” by David Browne. (More from Wikipedia)
The cover of their breakthrough album, Brothers has a plain appearance and simply states: “This is an album by the Black Keys. The name of this album is Brothers.” The cover of their hit single “Tighten Up” has similar packaging. (This is not the same song as the 1968 hit by Archie Bell and the Drells also called “Tighten Up”). According to Wikipedia: “Inside the package, the album’s disc was coated with a thermal film that changes colors (black and white) at different temperatures.” Remarkably, Patrick Carney’s brother Michael Carney, who has designed the album art for all of their records, won a Grammy in 2011 for Best Recording Package for Brothers.
(June 2017)
