KISS: Behind The 'Sonic Boom' Album Cover Art

The cover art for the new KISS album, "Sonic Boom", was created by Michael Doret, who also designed the band's classic "Rock And Roll Over" album cover.

Regarding how the new artwork came together, Doret writes on his blog, "When Paul Stanley [KISS guitarist/vocalist] came by my studio to discuss how to proceed on the art for the cover of their upcoming CD/DVD package, 'Sonic Boom', I had no idea what to expect. I hadn't met with him since working on 'Rock And Roll Over', and had very little memory of what that had been like.

"Any anxiety I had melted away when we started talking. Paul is a 'gentlemen's gentleman' and I immediately felt at ease talking with him — as if all those years had not intervened since the last time we had spoken.

"After some small talk, he explained what he was after with the new cover art. His vision for this album was to make it as vital and raw as it had been when they did 'Rock And Roll Over'. He felt that that had been some of the best work that they had ever done, and wanted the new album to recreate that energy both musically and visually. While he didn't want me to reprise what I had done with my art for the earlier cover, he did want me to try to capture some of the same spirit, attitude, energy, and look that I had instilled in that piece. Also, one of his stipulations was that unlike 'Rock And Roll Over' (where I had created abstract, graphic versions of the KISS personas),this time he wanted photographic representations of the four group members in full makeup.

"When I did 'Rock And Roll Over', I had a 12" canvas to work on. Now with CD covers and digital booklets, that canvas had been reduced to less than 40% of its original size. Designing in a 4¾" space poses some very different problems from what I faced while working on covers for vinyl releases. In fact, the older cover design would not have worked at that size; its many elements would have felt crowded into a small space. So the elements of 'Sonic Boom' had to be bigger, bolder — and fewer. I made the decision to make the title the main focus of the graphics, moving the other elements (faces, KISS logo) into prominent — but subordinate—roles.

"So I set about putting pencil to paper and trying to solve this the way I solve any other design problem. I did not want to get psyched-out by thinking too much about how the new design would compare with 'Rock And Roll Over'. That cover had taken on a life of its own and had become a pop culture icon. Creating an iconic cover could not have been one of my goals. All I was capable of doing was to try to create the most compelling graphics possible within the parameters and limitations that had been set out for me. So I started out at the core of this design by creating what I call a 'word constellation' out of the title. I tried to make it communicate its meaning visually by not only making it angular and 'explosive,' but also by creating a shape that was somewhat suggestive of flight — a 'flying wing,' if you will. Bearing in mind the symmetrical, mandala-like layout of 'Rock And Roll Over', I started designing the new piece as a field growing out of the center of the square, with the four members faces moving outwards from the center, and capped with my version of the ubiquitous KISS logo.

"It took about a week for me to develop my sketch to the point where I felt confident in what I had come up with. As I had done with 'Rock And Roll Over', I felt so strongly about this cover design that I decided to not present any other options — I wanted this to be the ONE.

"This is the rough pencil [see below] I first presented to Paul. I held my breath as he first took it in, and then was able to exhale when I saw a big smile appear on his face."