ALBUM COVER STORY: EVERGREY's "ARCHITECTS OF A NEW WEAVE"

Swedish metallers, Evergrey and fellow countryman artist Mattias Norén of ProgArt Media - Artwork by Mattias Norén have worked together for more than 20 years. Their latest collaboration is the imagery Norén crafted for the band's new album “Architects Of A New Weave," which will be released in May 2026.

This hyper-detailed vision was traditionally painted and fine-tuned digitally and reflects aspects of the album's music and lyrics. in the following interview, Evergrey's vocalist/guitarist, Tom S. Englund and Mattias Norén talk about the making of this imposing piece.

What inspired the cover concept for "Architects Of A New Weave"?

Tom S. Englund: We wanted to do something that was more traditional in a Metal sense. When me and Mattias Norén started talking I let him know what I desired and that I also wanted a lot of nuggets and hidden messages, so that it would remind myself of the days when I was totally immersed into cover art of Iron Maiden mostly. So, there is a lot to discover if you dive in and examine it. If you also listen to the music, it will make a lot of sense.

Mattias Norén: The idea was born with a figure with threads that led to pictures where each picture represented a song from the record. I bought a paper twice the size of any watercolor I had done before. I didn't even have a base big enough to tape the paper to, so I had to buy a second-hand tabletop to be able to work with the project. The plan was that the cover would only be a small part of the entire painting. I thought for a long time about how to make the best use of this. I don't know if it was the ultimate solution, but it was good enough. I divided it into six parts, of which the cover is only one of the parts."

The image on the album's official cover is just a fragment of the complete artwork.

Tom S. Englund: The cover is indeed part of a pretty huge piece. Again, the old love for vinyl covers led us further and we wanted some art to represent almost every song of the album, and on the fold out versions of the album you get it all in all its glory! It's definitely one of Mattias's proudest moments, he told me so... but also for me and also knowing it's all done for real, with brushes and watercolor, then we added some of the nuggets digitally, but I own the original painting and can't wait to hang it on my wall at home!

Mattias Norén: I guess I will have to call this my "magnum opus." An enormous amount of time, love and effort that was invested in it.

Mattias also designed other illustrations for the album's layout/booklet. 

Tom S. Englund: Each and every page has more or less dedicated art for the song. Mattias has also painted more paintings for songs like "The Shadow Self," "Call of your Lions," etc.

You have collaborated (regularly and sporadically) in different projects during the last two decades. It has been a fruitful creative relationship.

Tom S. Englund: Mattias has worked on a lot of Evergrey's covers starting with our third album "In Search Of Truth" (2001). He did a bunch of them. Mattias also worked on some of the art for my band Silent Skies and I love his sense of art direction and also layout skills. 

Mattias Norén: It's now 25 years since I made my first cover for Evergrey. A lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then and the older I get, the more I want to explore what can be done with an album cover. It's easy to get stuck in old habits but I'm driven by trying new things.

Pre-order “Architects Of A New Weave" at https://napalmrecords.com/deutsch/evergrey

See more of Mattias Norén's work at https://www.progart.com/