UnCovered: L.A. Rockers The Gitas Discuss Cover Artwork for New Album ‘Beverly Kills’

The Gitas are a Los Angeles-based rock trio that are set to release their 13-track full-length, Beverly Kills, on February 17th, 2017 (pre-order RIGHT HERE). A rad rock recording fusing elements of grunge, punk, pop and heavier rock elements, Beverly Kills explores deep themes with undertones of Hinduism-based thought. The album’s psychedelic cover art displays imagery of Kali, the goddess of material illusion. We checked in with Ukrainian-born band founder, guitarist and lead singer, Sasha Chemerov, to better understand his new release’s artwork.

What was the inspiration for the album’s cover artwork?
Chemerov: The idea was to put the Kali, the goddess of material energy, in a California style environment with modern details. This is basically an illustration of the feeling you get when you understand that there is hell, even in paradise.

Your new album cover is crazy-cool. Tell us about the artist and how you found him/her?
Chemerov: When I was in Ukraine, I had a band and we were looking for a keyboard player. A guy messaged us saying he was a keyboard player and he wanted to come to audition. His name was Gosha Vinokurov. He came with shitty keys, like kids Casio keys and we started to play and he couldn’t play. I asked him, “Hey man, whats your goal?” and he said “I want to play like John Lord from Deep Purple.” I asked him what else he could do and he said “I can paint.” I told him to stay and make artwork for us, and he stayed forever.

Would you consider the artist an additional band member, or someone contracted for just this piece?
Chemerov: As Gosha has stayed with us for so long, we definitely consider him a band member. But sometimes he’s that bad character that acts like a junkie and just disappears. But we love him and you can check him on Instagram @GoshaVinokurov.

Have you ever purchased an album solely because of its album artwork? If yes, did the music live up to the artwork?
Chemerov: I used to buy all Nirvana’s records with different pirate made covers, with the same songs, just because I like the band.

With the increasing popularity of digital music, most fans view artwork as just pixels on a screen. Why did you feel the artwork was important?
Chemerov: Because we’re old.

Have any favourite music-related visual artists?
Ramazzini: Alex Grey, because he does really beautiful psychedelic art. He has collaborated with Tool, a band I personally enjoy a lot, and I also enjoy being under psychedelic influence and appreciating his artwork.

Chemerov: I’m really fond of the psychedelic poster era. Like from the ’60s and ’70s, especially some San Francisco artists.

Check out the video for the song “Bevery Kills”