Behind The Artworks: Rise Of The Wood - Discharge (2025)

On the album cover for our new album, "Discharge," the familiar mammoth has returned, albeit a bit older, just like the band itself. "Older" doesn't mean the band's energetic side has disappeared. In fact, the energy on this album has only become stronger and more noticeable.

But back to the mammoth: it's been Rise of the Wood's logo since the beginning. The mammoth was designed by graphic designer Jason Teunissen, brother of guitarist Jeff Teunissen. And this mammoth represents the raw, raunchy tone in the music that appeals to primal instincts. The third eye adds somewhat of a supernatural flair.

During the recording process, there were many discussions about the cover for "Discharge". Initially, the idea arose to either place the mammoth in the background or leave it out entirely. This was because several lineup changes had resulted in a different band sound and musical direction. Two graphic designers, an artist, and a few other people have been busy coming up with various concepts. Ultimately, we had over 50 concepts to choose from. But none of these concepts had what we were looking for. Even after evenings of deliberation and having beers, we couldn't find the right one.

Since we’re completely independent (read: having to finance everything ourselves), having no money to hire a professional artist, and with time running out fast, we finally enlisted the help of artificial intelligence, and the mammoth returned. While most of the final design was created by AI, the guidance and finishing touches were provided by Manfred Gstrein (brother of singer Leo). And now we know even more for sure that the mammoth is here to stay!