Nathan Smith Gives The Redds’ “KLOPPO” a Psychedelic Liver Bird Cover

A familiar Liverpool emblem becomes a sculptural canvas for music artwork in Nathan Smith’s cover image for “KLOPPO,” a single by The Redds. Smith’s brief brought together three distinct cues: a classic liver bird, peace-and-love psychedelia and football culture. The result had to make those references read as one image, with enough character to represent a track as well as its visual world.

Smith sculpted and rendered the image in ZBrush. That choice places the work in a three-dimensional process: the bird could be shaped as a form, with its silhouette and surface carrying the image’s identity. The source doesn’t describe the specific colours, materials, lighting or final composition, so those details can’t be pinned down. What it does establish is the central design move: taking a recognisable local symbol and reworking it through a lively, psychedelic football sensibility.

One emblem, several visual cues

The liver bird gives the artwork a clear starting point. It is a well-known Liverpool symbol, while the brief asks for a “classic” version rather than an abstract creature with no place-specific connection. That recognizable foundation matters when an image has to work at the scale of single artwork: the viewer needs to grasp its main subject quickly, even before spending time with the finer details.

The other references shift the tone. Peace-and-love psychedelia suggests a playful, expressive treatment; football culture gives the brief another layer of energy and association. The design challenge is to combine those signals without letting one erase the others. If the emblem remains legible, the image can feel rooted in its subject while still taking a more colorful, interpretive route.

For illustrators handling a similarly layered brief, it can help to identify which element must remain immediately recognizable and which elements can change its mood. Here, the bird supplies the anchor. The psychedelic and football references shape how that anchor is presented. That distinction is useful when a client brings several ideas to the table: decide what the audience should recognize first, then use style and detail to communicate the rest.

Why a sculpted image suits the idea

ZBrush is the only named production tool in the source, which credits Smith with sculpting and rendering the artwork there. A sculpted approach can make the subject feel substantial, giving the artist a way to develop its form before presenting a finished image. For this brief, the bird is not just a flat sign: it is the main character of the cover, and its sculpted treatment gives the concept room to carry a distinctive visual attitude.

The source doesn’t specify whether the final image uses a particular camera angle, surface treatment or lighting setup. Those are exactly the decisions a 3D illustrator would normally test as the image develops. A practical sequence for a brief of this kind is to establish a readable silhouette, check that the subject still reads at small sizes, and then refine the surface and rendering choices to support the intended mood. Those steps are general considerations for 3D cover art, rather than details confirmed about Smith’s process.

That workflow also points to a useful distinction for creative teams: the software is part of how the image is made, while the brief defines what the image needs to communicate. Naming ZBrush tells us about Smith’s medium; the liver bird and the peace-and-love football direction tell us what the picture had to hold together. Both kinds of information help designers understand the project, but they answer different questions.

Credits and release context

The project credits illustrator Nathan Smith, client Manfred Keller (The Redds), and agent AAA Rep. The Redds is described as a music project by German musician and producer Manfred Keller. No release date is supplied in the source. It reports that “KLOPPO” passed 70,000 Spotify streams in its first couple of months after release, a measure of the track’s early reach that doesn’t establish how the cover itself performed.

That distinction is worth keeping in view when discussing artwork attached to a music release. A streaming figure can place the project in context, but it doesn’t explain which visual choices drove listeners to the track. The design can still be assessed on its own terms: the brief starts with a specific place-based symbol, asks for a spirited visual treatment, and uses a sculpted image to bring that combination into a single cover concept.

Smith’s portfolio is available through the Directory of Illustration, and his representation is listed at AAA Rep. The artist’s website and Instagram provide further ways to see his work. The project image is credited to Nathan Smith and AAARep:

For designers planning artwork with several cultural references, the practical takeaway is to set a clear visual anchor before layering in tone. A recognizable subject gives the image a foothold; sculpting and rendering can then give that subject a particular presence. Smith’s “KLOPPO” cover starts with that balance, making a local emblem the meeting point for music, psychedelia and football.