Father & Son present... "Crazy 88"

My dear friends in Father & Son have just released a great new single, titled "Crazy 88." The first time I  heard this song live at the Charleston in Brooklyn, it honestly blew me away. Thankfully, the studio recording captures the magic of the live rendition. Download it for free at Bandcamp!

For the cover art they commissioned me to do, the only direction I was given was "POWER." Keeping that in mind, I absolutely wanted to convey the aggressive nature of the song in some fashion. I also took inspiration from the forthcoming music video, directed by another dear friend: the super-talented Jon Conklin - the goal being continuity between Jon's clip and my still image. While I borrowed the color palette from the video, I aimed to give my cover a voice of its own - hopefully through the torn+textured paper theme, the handwritten typography, and the portraits of the band members. Hope you like it!

Ryan Smith - skins, sax, bass, back-up voice


Tim Barr - guitar, voice


Post-it note


Final design

Side Effects

I decided to illustrate and design an original poster for Steven Soderbergh's latest (and apparently last) theatrical film, titled "Side Effects." The movie was written by Scott Z. Burns (Contagion) and stars Jude Law, Rooney Mara, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Channing Tatum. I saw an advanced screening of it last night, and can't stop thinking about it. It's a creepy, well-acted, noir-ish piece of cinema. The kind that will no doubt reward repeat viewings, which is my favorite kind of film.

I received some nice mementos last night, including a few posters and some nifty ticket stubs.




Hope you like the poster!

Here's the illustration I scanned, and subsequently vivisected, for the final poster:

Finally, here are some of the thumbnails and early ideas that led to the final image:

Chairlift

If you're like me, then you were probably introduced to Chairlift (like so many were) via the famous iPod commercial featuring their song "Bruises." It's a great little spot, and famous for a reason, but if that's where your knowledge of the band's music begins and ends - I highly recommend you check out their sophomore album "Something" and be blown away.

Chairlift's debut LP "Does You Inspire You" has moments of greatness that aren't to be overlooked ("Planet Health", "Evident Utensil", "Le Flying Saucer Hat"), but their follow-up is a fantastic leap in every category.

The inspiration behind the above posters comes chiefly from the music video for "I Belong in Your Arms", which itself was partly inspired by singer Caroline Polachek's time in Japan as a child. The colors are directly taken from the cover art of past Chairlift singles. The textures and smudges were somewhat of a last-minute addition, but I think it adds a layer of interest that wasn't present before. I was also hoping to evoke a comic book/manga feel with each poster, which is hopefully evident not just in the word balloons but also in the general layout.

For more insight into what I was thinking, check out these thumbnails that ultimately led to the final designs. As you can see, the idea I ended up pursuing was based on the thumbnail in the upper right with the red "C."

More thumbnails...

Here are the raw scans for the portraits I drew...

Caroline Polachek

Patrick Wimberly

Chairlift recently organized a Hurricane Sandy Benefit show at Glasslands Gallery in Brooklyn, in which all the proceeds went to Sandy relief. The sold-out event featured a fantastic line-up that I can no longer plead ignorance to: Chairlift guitarist Jason McMahon, Slowdance, Empress Of, and Twin Sister - all leading up to Chairlift taking the stage somewhere around 12:30am.

It was a lovely set. Singer Caroline Polachek was clearly in a state of gratitude ("We're Chairlift. This is Glasslands. And you are awesome."), as was the audience. Highlights included the drastically different live version of "Evident Utensil" and "Take it Out On Me" (the latter being my favorite song from Chairlift's last album). It was also cool to see Caroline's sister Jen joining the band as backing vocalist for "I Belong in Your Arms", and then for "Grown Up Blues" (a live debut!!), and finally "Amanaemonesia."

Despite the sometimes excruciating wait time between bands, all the acts seriously impressed (which is a rare thing), and it was all for a great cause.

Here are the framed, final prints - numbered, signed, and personalized by me for the band - a few hours before the show started.

And I met the band! My head nearly exploded when I shook Caroline's hand and she asked "Have we met before?" in complete earnest. She and Patrick were both incredibly nice, and I'm beyond thankful for the entire experience.

A very special moment...

Caroline's facial expressions are that of legend.

Another special moment...

Signing my copies...

Me and the great Patrick Wimberly.

Thank you, John Penola, for taking all of the above photos at Glasslands - it means the world. You are a great concert-partner and brother!

Finally... my personal copies of each poster, signed graciously by both Caroline and Patrick.