[Book Description]
KooKoo is a striking art photography book that offers a panoramic chronicle of the groundbreaking collaboration between punk icon Debbie Harry and surrealist master H.R. Giger for Harry’s 1981 debut solo album. This volume not only documents a rare convergence of music and visual art, but also captures a moment of fearless boundary-pushing and avant-garde experimentation.
Debbie Harry, frontwoman of the legendary band Blondie, was already a global symbol of the New Wave movement in the late 1970s and early 1980s. H.R. Giger, renowned for his biomechanical aesthetic and creature design in the film Alien, brought his signature dark vision to the project. Their collaboration for the KooKoo album produced a now-iconic cover image: Harry’s face pierced by sleek metal rods—striking, unsettling, and unforgettable. The artwork was so intense that it was banned from display in the London Underground at the time.
Beyond the album cover, Giger also directed the music videos for two tracks, Backfired and Now I Know You Know. He not only staged these surreal visual narratives—featuring sarcophagus-piercing rituals and sci-fi-infused imagery—but also appeared on-screen himself. In these videos, Harry transformed into a dark-haired, Giger-esque creature, becoming part of a mythological, xenomorphic dreamscape that fused science fiction, ritual, and body horror.
This book is written by Chris Stein, Debbie Harry’s longtime collaborator, and features behind-the-scenes photography and reflections, along with rare design sketches and artifacts from the Giger archive. It also includes a personal introduction written by Debbie Harry, in which she revisits this extraordinary creative process and reflects on how it shaped her image and artistic path.
KooKoo is more than just an art book—it’s a cultural document that captures a one-of-a-kind creative collision between music and visual fantasy. For fans of music history, design, or H.R. Giger’s darkly imaginative world, this book is an essential and collectible volume.
[Publication Details]
Authors: Chris Stein, Debbie Harry
Publisher: Titan Books
Dimensions: 33 × 26 cm
Binding: Hardcover
Pages: 192 pages