SFGate

4resas It looks like you have a moisture issue with the bottom row of block. You need to fix that before you do anything else. If your style is MCM there are sculptural panels or wood that you can glue right to it. If not you can try barn wood wall paper, it MAY go over the wall OK, especially if you run it horizontally. If it isn't a hall you can run storage cubes all along the front.

joannpb The same sort of stucco that is used on a house exterior can be used to produce a "French country" plaster effect on cement block. If that's a good style for you, it looks awsome.

4resas Venetian plaster or wood blocks?

twylahaj You definitely need to take care of the water issue first. If not, anything you do will be throwing away your hard earned money. Even seemingly minor dampness that is only occasional is going to be a problem and covering over the walls without mitigating the problem will make things worse later on as you'll likely get mold in between the cinderblock and wall material.

My hubby spent a huge amount of time and a good bit of money applying two coats of colored dryloc to our basement walls and an epoxy paint (like in garages) to the floor. He scraped and wire brushed the previous layers of stuff, filled every hole and crack, ground down uneven areas after they dried and then applied the dryloc and finally painted the floor. It helped a great deal; we still get a little water sometimes...but now it's from the windows! SIGH...

Once you're solved the water issue, the sculptural panels that 4resas posted look really cool.... I'd avoid drywall in a basement unless you go with a special type for damp areas. Drywall works kind of like a wick for water - ask anyone who recently went through Superstorm Sandy....