The reusable outer cardboard storage box, printed in two-color thermography, protects the book and allows it to be stored spine-out on a shelf. The covers are made from a specially commissioned run of colored Davey Company high-density recycled binders board. Normally wrapped in printed paper for bookbinding, these boards have been die-cut in the shape of an acoustic guitar and left exposed in their natural raw form.
MTV Unplugged
Launched as an antidote to the overproduced and synthetic recorded studio music of the 1980s, MTV’s Unplugged—a series of live acoustic TV concerts—evoked a small-club setting, allowing artists like Nirvana, R.E.M., Sinead O’Connor, and Eric Clapton to connect with fans in an honest, immediate, and unmediated way. To capture the same feel of intimacy and warmth in a static medium, we created a book that uses raw and unprocessed materials—the equivalent of an acoustic book.
Creating an Unbound, Rough-Hewn Look
The Debut of a New Paper Stock
The book is printed with four-color offset lithography on uncoated stock. It features the first commercial test run of a new paper from Mohawk Paper Mills, Inc. Then known as Brand X (later named Mohawk Options), the paper has a toothy feel and yet excellent ink holdout.
Your Own Personal Backstage Pass
Printed by letterpress in two colors and individually numbered (1 to 50,000), each label on the cover is hand-tipped into a circular deboss. It’s like getting your own ticket for a seat at the concert.
