@lazylino

Durham, Come Save Me

I’m excited to announce that I was commissioned by Faithful Johannes to create the artwork for his upcoming fourth album ‘Durham, Come Save Me.’

It contains 10 stories and folklore from Durham and the North East, told from unusual and lesser known viewpoints. There’s a woodworm eating through the coffin of St. Cuthbert, a statue of Neptune in Durham Market Square, the King of Scotland hiding under a bridge in Bearpark and much, much more.

For me this was a labour of love, exclusively listening to this album for the whole project. From sketching out ideas all the way through to putting the finishing touches to the final design, I inserted myself into the album as much as I could and I hope that shines through in the album artwork.

I felt a connection to all of the characters but two really shone through to me. Elizabeth Lee, the last convicted witch in North East England is featured on the front cover, above, and Hob of Pelaw, who met his untimely death, entertaining the crowds while tightrope walking between the central and western towers of Durham Cathedral, makes his way on (off?) the back cover.

I can honestly say, after listening to this album for an average of 8 hours a day for the best part of two months, I still love it and it still sounds fresh. It’s genuinely really interesting (who knew someone had their head blown off during WW2 while their unharmed grandson was sitting on his knee?), the lofi soundsapes fit the lyrics and tone of the album perfectly and Faithful Johannes brings his wonderful poetry and humour to some truly heartbreaking stories.

FJ also designed a lyric sheet with some of the many sketches and ideas from my sketchbook. I will upload a load of them here in due course.

The album is coming out July 3, 2026!! You can preview the song ‘I’m the Mighty Neptune’ and pre-order the album on Faithful Johannes’ bandcamp page.

https://faithfuljohannes.bandcamp.com/album/durham-come-save-me

https://www.instagram.com/fjwordsApr 22, 2026

#albumart

#penandink

#durham

#northeastengland

#witch

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