t.A.T.u, “Waste Management”

t.A.T.u, Waste Management (2009)
T.A. Music
Designer: T.A. Music

The road to t.A.T.u’s third and final English studio album was bumpy, at best. Waste Management almost didn’t happen in the first place. Internal conflicts between the duo, Lena Katina and Julia Volkova were at a pinnacle and they walked away from the project after the Russian edition of the album was released a year earlier.

There were many artwork revisions for both Waste Management and it’s Russian counterpart, Весёлые Улыбки (Vesyolye Ulybki/Happy Smiles). The reason for this, partly, is the name change. The Russian edition of the album was originally titled Ypravleniye Otbrosami, which directly translates to ‘Waste Management.’ The accompanying artwork that was released provided the Y and O of the album’s title in a contrasting fashion: the Y was old and rusted, and the O was studded with diamonds and clean. (The artwork was still used in the booklet in the jewel case of the Russian album release.)

When t.A.T.u, after long delays of the album, finally announced the release, it reavealed the new title the new album cover: a smiling astronaut against a plain white background, with the band’s logo in pink and album title in rainbow letters. Many thought it was a joke. Many weren’t phased, not expecting the album to be released at all. Later, their management assured fans that the smiling astronaut face wasn’t the final artwork and another design began to circulate with the astronauts face covered with a black box. Fans were relieved to find a slightly different cover on iTunes at midnight when the album was released, with the waving astronaut reflecting a scene from Mars on his helmet. The reason for the change, apparently, was a clearance issue with the image in question.

Luckily, the English edition of the album kept the original name when it was released in December 2009. This could have possibly been done just to get the album out and end the project. The artwork also stayed the same, with the duo covered in dirt and tattered clothing to run with the theme of the album. This album art was released over a year prior, when the name of Waste Management was initially announced. Evident in the controversial video for “Beliy Plaschik”/“White Robe,” directed by James Cox, the album plays with themes of humanity’s treatment of one another. Lena Katina goes on to say:

“It’s about how everybody on the planet needs to manage their own waste. Not just literally, in terms of throwing out your garbage, but internally too: people are always doing bad things to each other.”