Every week, we’ll be posting a new illustration by David Lester. The Mecca Normal guitarist is visually documenting people, places and events from his band’s 42-year run, with text by vocalist Jean Smith.
David’s fantastic illustration is a master class in political art. By making the individuals uniquely relatable, the energized crowd of protesters is more powerful than one drawn with fewer features. It’s a stroke of genius to leave the slogans off the cluster of signs, allowing the intensity of the demands to be more general. Splatters are always a risk to add, but here they are totally successful as they tie the elements together and add to the sense of emotion and action.
The song’s lyrics illustrate exhaustion with someone who sounds like they refuse to take responsibility for their situation, let alone being prepared to join a demonstration.
“Peach-A-Vanilla” from The Eagle And The Poodle (Matador, 1996) (download):
