This week brought the news that longtime UK graphic design studio The Designers Republic has closed for business. With over 20 years in the business across various media, tDR was a beacon of originality, arguably at their peak during the mid to late nineties. At the time the studio could do no wrong, producing a seemingly endless run of fantastical sleeve art, predominantly for Warp Records. This mix is a tribute to an era when the names Warp and The Designers Republic were so intrinsically linked, they may as well have been the same company, and all this from Sheffield in the North of England (where it’s always sunny!). All tracks are taken from Warp releases (bar one) where the artwork was created by tDR. Also, all are in chronological order of release, starting way back in 1990 right up to 2008. Hit the jump to take a look at the sleeves involved and for that all important download link. Will tDR ever see a resurrection? Only time will tell.

Tracklisting

1. LFO – LFO (Leeds Warehouse Mix) (WAP5) (26/07/1990)

2. Tuff Little Unit – Join The Future (WAP12) (29/01/1991)

3. B12 – Hall Of Mirrors (WARP9) (29/03/1993)

4. Aphex Twin – On (WAP39) (15/11/1993)

5. Elecktroids – Silicon Valley (WARP35) (29/08/1995)

6. Autechre – C/Pach (WARP38) (06/11/1995)

7. Björk – All Is Full Of Love (In Love With Funkstörung Remix) (12FAT022) (01/11/1998)

8. Aphex Twin – Windowlicker (WAP105) (22/03/1999)

9. The Other People Place – You Said You Want Me (WARP90) (03/09/2001)

10. LFO – Blown (WARP110) (22/09/2003)

11. Autechre – Altibzz (WARP333) (03/03/2008)

Download

BosBos – tDR. The Death of a Republic. (50mins, 116MB)