I like this cover . It's also like a homage to the first Roxy album.. I like the upside down - the flaw in the diamond - always feeling that it needs to be picked up and turned around. I just looked at "This is Hardcore" by Pulp .. there's similarities there too .

Here in the States I don't think Kate Moss carries much cultural meaning anymore (I'm not sure she ever did, but if she did it's long since evaporated...)

Maybe this cover will generate some excitement for the album, (something that didn't happen when You Can Dance was released w/ a supposedly enticing video) but somehow I doubt it. It will generate a little buzz but quickly fade once the album is actually released....

It seems like an eternity since the release of the Olympia was first announced and it still won't appear for another 6 weeks! Yawn...

"Naomi Campbell and Helena Christensen, French actress Catherine Deneuve, her ex-boyfriend Johnny Depp, and designer Alexander McQueen."

"Forgive and forget, Major"*

*Basil Fawlty

These people are wise enough to see through paparazzo-crap of mainstream media imo.

Cause they've experinced 'em too..

I partly agree with DSJ, but at least there's a story to tell (Moss, Manet, (art+fashion+music, and how they tangle), not told yet, and art people both here and over there are curious cats. I think the cover-concept already have a lot of talking going around, don't you think?

St.L:
I agree that the cover is creating some kind of art+fashion buzz; the big question is if it's generating a music buzz. Given the response so far to You Can Dance it doesn't appear so. But maybe it will prove different when the whole album is officially released.

After parsing through the song-by-song credits for Olympia I can't help but think that it is a cobbled-together pastiche of various unreleased tracks form the past 15 years or so. For example, Robin Trower shows up in a couple of places and it seems the last time he was involved with BF was back in the days of "Taxi." And Dave Stwert shows up (wasn't he working with BF in the late 90's?) And the Scissors Sister track is almost 5 years old at this point.

I can buy into the idea of a coherent art+fashion iconography for the album cover, I'm just not convinced that it extends over into the actual music. While there are aspects of Mamouna that I don't like (e.g. the cold, calculated sound of the drums) it did stand as coherent ALBUM and not just a collection of tracks. My fear is that Olympia will follow the path of Frantic and be simply that: a collection of tracks.

At least that's my opinion at this point; maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised when I finally get a chance to hear Olympia in it's totality

All the best,
DC

Well forwarded DC, thanks for the reply.

"finally get a chance to hear Olympia in it's totality".

I think we will.

all the best yourself

St.L.

To define the world, doesn't mean to accept and embrace, can't people see the difference? I'm surprised and baffeld of general naivism here.