Update, July 9, 2015: The hardback edition has finally landed.
After a bit of a wait, the covetable 12″ x 12″ book is now available from the The Vinyl Factory and from decent bookshops. Find out more about Massive Attack’s early years and Robert Del Naja’s visual inspirations in his 2014 interview with FACT.
Massive Attack‘s output has always made overtures to the eye as well as the ear.
Masterminded by graffiti artist turned musician Robert Del Naja – aka band lynchpin 3D – the crew’s artwork has always been a vital part of their appeal: from graffiti and stencil work (Blue Lines) through cyber-enhanced gothic (Mezzanine) to dystopian sloganeering (100th Window), they’ve continued to cultivate a distinctive and compelling aesthetic.
A new project from The Vinyl Factory is now set to cast a spotlight onto the band’s visual output. 3D and the art of Massive Attack, curated and compiled by Del Naja, is the first book to document and analyse the band’s artwork. As well as Del Naja’s own pieces, the 400-page book features collaborations with the likes of Tom Hingston, Nick Knight and, most recently, Adam Curtis, plus a host of ephemera plucked from Del Naja’s personal archive.
A special limited edition ‘box set’ version of the book has also been announced, boasting alternative cover artwork and a supplementary 12″ of a previously unreleased Del Naja track. The edition will also come with an exclusive print by Del Naja, and will be signed by the artist.
The press release for the book digs out an interesting snippet from Banksy:
“When I was about ten years old, a kid called 3D was painting the streets hard. 3D quit painting and formed the band Massive Attack, which may have been a good thing for him but was a big loss for the city.”
The limited edition box set is available to pre-order now over at The Vinyl Factory. The regular edition, meanwhile, will be available on October 28.
Earlier this year, FACT spoke to Adam Curtis about his dysphoric live collaboration with the band, Adam Curtis V. Massive Attack; head here to read.
