Each October I run a horror movie marathon, with the aim to watch 1 movie per night. This year's theme was "folk horror," (Letterboxd list is here with all the films) and to expand on the project I got the idea to create a mixed tape along the same theme. The name, "Mary's Black Art," is inspired by a line in Arthur Miller's, "The Crucible," and the tape is a mix of (mostly) metal all around the theme of witches.
If you'd like a copy of the tape, send me a message! Obviously none of this music is mine, so these aren't for sale - it was simply a fun project I got stuck in my head and needed to get out into the world. And if you don't have a tape player, you can still get your face melted with the Spotify playlist here.
Onto the tape!
Inspiration
"Grotesqueries" and "Crypt Rot"
These examples are all from Caligari Records and Frozen Screams Imprint - their tape design is top notch. They really go all out with the liner illustrations, as well as using see-through or neon colored tapes.
Sketch & Layout
Getting the initial liner layout and elements positioned.
Skull and witch sketch, I lost the pumpkin pencils. (yes, this idea was absolutely inspired by the 3rd Halloween movie, "Season of the Witch.")
Inks
Assembling It All
Side 1
Side 2
The Final Product
Head on over to the "extras" section to get your own tape label template! There's a blank Photoshop file as well as a PDF with blank liner label, as well as the tape label itself you can print off and use to design your own.