“Nope” by Michael Abels, Various Artists

Finally, after over two and a half years, I went to the movies again, and it couldn’t have been a better homecoming than with Jordan Peele’s Nope. The film tells the story of a remote horse ranch in the California back country called Haywood Hollywood Horses where strange things are happening. Clutter is falling from the sky, electronic equipment is failing regularly, and the horses are acting increasingly startled. It’s only when the ranch owners set up security cameras in the valley that they realize the real danger is lurking behind the clouds. This rather simple premise is unfolding a…

“Jurassic World: Dominion” by Michael Giacchino

So… what the hell happened? Why haven’t I published anything in almost 18 months? No sign of life, nothing? Well, I’ll tell you why… Like most stories, it all started with a pointless software update (*pause for laughing track*). In December 2018, WordPress forced the new Gutenberg Block Editor onto their customer base. And as any grumpy old man would do, I refused to adopt to the new tool right away. It was unintuitive, it wouldn’t let me do my muscle-learned workflows, and worst of all, it broke all my previous blog posts. Damn it, I’m too old for this…

Lost Covers, Vol. 6

Some things never change. A sort of mantra that was sitting on top of one of my first websites. And I guess it is just like that. But some things do change and here are six that have changed over time on HQCovers. Making a virtue of necessity Back in the early 2000s, I started making my own soundtrack covers due to the lack of high quality artwork available. This whole thing really was born out of necessity. Over time I’ve more and more started tackling soundtracks that I don’t even have. And by now I mainly do it for…

“Godzilla: King of the Monsters” by Bear McCreary

My collection for 2017s Kong: Skull Island undoubtedly included the most elaborate custom cover I have ever, ever created. From the first draft to the finished mockup it took me literally weeks! So many evenings I didn’t do nothing but sitting in a blue-lighted room all by myself. In hindsight it was absolutely ridiculous how much time I wasted on that thing. Don’t get me wrong, I really love the finished design and I still love to look at it nowadays. But it also feels kinda wrong to have spent so much time on a score that didn’t leave a…

“Red Dead Redemption 2” by Woody Jackson, Daniel Lanois, Various Artists

After months and months working entirely on one single custom covers collection I’m finally done with Red Dead Redemption 2. Like every so often I didn’t plan to do an undertaking this big, but once things kick into gear there’s hardly anyone who’s going to stop me (obviously). But if there’s one single game in the last couple years that deserves this kind of dedication, it’s certainly RDR2. Rockstar Games have had hundreds of people developing this epic tale for seven years and you can see, hear and feel the results of these efforts in every single aspect of the…