While randomly browsing PIC's photography website I stumbled upon the pictures linked below which seem to show a small part of the story behind the Closes Vol. 1 cover.
1. If you notice in the artwork itself there is a time-stamp that points to 16, 17 and 18 August 1997. 1997 is the year in which on the old Boards of Canada site was stated this release was re-pressed on CD. This could mean the artwork on the original 1992 cassette release was totally different then on the re-press.
2. The man from this picture could be the on who appears in most of the pictures in the artwork. If somebody could translate the text, it could also help us learn something new.
3. The fact itself that PIC put the artwork us could mean the brothers let him do so because a possible release of either the "Bocset" or Closes Vol. 1 itself could be around the corner, but the possibility of this being the case is highly unlikely.
I'm glad I could finally contribute after lurking for so long with something you guys enjoy. Hopefully this finding can somehow help us find more about Closes Vol. 1.
I can raise the following points:
1. If you notice in the artwork itself there is a time-stamp that points to 16, 17 and 18 August 1997. 1997 is the year in which on the old Boards of Canada site was stated this release was re-pressed on CD. This could mean the cover on the original 1992 cassette release was totally different.
2. The man from this picture seems to appear in most of the pictures in the artwork. If somebody could translate the text, it could also help us learn something new.
3. The fact itself that PIC put the artwork us could mean the brothers let him do so because a possible release of either the "Bocset" or Closes Vol. 1 itself could be around the corner, but this possibility of this being the case is highly unlikely.
HighScore wrote:1. If you notice in the artwork itself there is a time-stamp that points to 16, 17 and 18 August 1997. 1997 is the year in which on the old Boards of Canada site was stated this release was re-pressed on CD. This could mean the cover on the original 1992 cassette release was totally different.
Also but not terribly enlightening, the first jpg image has a "The Mummy" poster which would make it at least as old as 1999. So PIC's "In Life And In Song" project has(had) been continuous at least since 1999...
HighScore wrote:I'm glad I could finally contribute after lurking for so long with something you guys enjoy. Hopefully this finding can somehow help us find more about Closes Vol. 1.
I can raise the following points:
1. If you notice in the artwork itself there is a time-stamp that points to 16, 17 and 18 August 1997. 1997 is the year in which on the old Boards of Canada site was stated this release was re-pressed on CD. This could mean the cover on the original 1992 cassette release was totally different.
2. The man from this picture seems to appear in most of the pictures in the artwork. If somebody could translate the text, it could also help us learn something new.
3. The fact itself that PIC put the artwork us could mean the brothers let him do so because a possible release of either the "Bocset" or Closes Vol. 1 itself could be around the corner, but this possibility of this being the case is highly unlikely.
That makes sense about "new" artwork, they weren't even using Boards of Canada as their name at the time Catalog 3 and Acid Memories were originally made. I'm sure Catalog 3 and Closes Vol. 1 both got their known artwork for that CD "reissue" they had in 1997.
The story behind the Acid Memories art is more interesting to me...
This is new information to me that I have not seen anywhere. I have known for a long time that BoC Maxima was purported to have been pressed to CD, but not with any other unreleased back catalog record/EP.
This is new information to me that I have not seen anywhere. I have known for a long time that BoC Maxima was purported to have been pressed to CD, but not with any other unreleased back catalog record/EP.
HighScore wrote:3. The fact itself that PIC put the artwork us could mean the brothers let him do so because a possible release of either the "Bocset" or Closes Vol. 1 itself could be around the corner, but the possibility of this being the case is highly unlikely.
wait did PIC barely upload these or have they been there forever?
HighScore wrote:3. The fact itself that PIC put the artwork us could mean the brothers let him do so because a possible release of either the "Bocset" or Closes Vol. 1 itself could be around the corner, but the possibility of this being the case is highly unlikely.
wait did PIC barely upload these or have they been there forever?
I can't remember precisely when I last checked his website, but it should have been during this spring. The website had a different design then and didn't include many of the pictures which are now present after it's been redesigned including the pictures I have posted about.
HighScore wrote:1. If you notice in the artwork itself there is a time-stamp that points to 16, 17 and 18 August 1997. 1997 is the year in which on the old Boards of Canada site was stated this release was re-pressed on CD. This could mean the cover on the original 1992 cassette release was totally different.
Also but not terribly enlightening, the first jpg image has a "The Mummy" poster which would make it at least as old as 1999. So PIC's "In Life And In Song" project has(had) been continuous at least since 1999...
Yeah that's also a 1999 football strip in that photo.
I think given the dates on the photos, PIC's project was probably started in 1997. It would be a way bigger oops if those color photos weren't dated from that year. I always thought the artwork was shaped like CD artwork, so I'm sure it was new for the CD version.
Given the communal aspect of Hexagon Sun, especially prior to them being proper label musicians, it would make sense for PIC to contribute some of his work as artwork for what amounts to a private album release ahead of any other plans that he might have had for those photos. This was before BoC was really BoC and before PIC was as well established as a photographer as he is now, I'm sure.
Most of the B&W photos were taken at a later time than the other ones, probably revisiting some of the same people from the original project so having these more modern indicators in some of the photos makes a lot of sense.
I think both Catalog 3 and Closes got a CD repress of 30 copies each, that's miniscule and I'm sure they all went to family and friends and no outsiders, which explains why they've never leaked. They had already shopped around Maxima/OT/Twoism to prospective labels, MHTRTC was imminent, so they were able to go back to a tight circle of who to share their music with.
GOOD FIND!
