Album Art of the Week: The Matador – ‘Bad Day for a Snake’

The tattoo culture has a vast, storied history that oftentimes intersects with the metal realm. I don't need to go into all of the history of the relationship with Noisecreep's readership, but with respect to The Matador's new release, 'Bad Day for a Snake,' some detailed history might be a good idea.

'The band was open to the idea of me just doin' what I do," artist Devin (just Devin) from Liquid Courage Tattoo & Piercing in Omaha told Noisecreep. "So, I really liked the idea of painting a snake and the name of the album certainly helped. The image was hand painted with drawing inks and watercolors. All done on cold-press watercolor board. The idea of keeping the background stark white was a collaboration (as was everything) with the band, also."

Devin goes on to explain more of the artwork, "I personally always dug the cover of Biggie's [Smalls] 'Ready to Die' album. Just classic. So, that helped inspire me. The back cover also has a little nod to the Matador band name: a Spanish style sword as the reason for the Snake's 'bad day.' However, the album's final track is an even more serious reason for a snake to have a couple counseling sessions lined up!"