It is for Jack White’s 2022 concert in Lyon, a city dear to my withered heart.
Listing all three versions of this poster even though I don’t have copies of the unique show version to sell. Just including it here for the public record.
SPERAMUS MELIORA
Latin for “We Hope for Better Things”. We certainly do.
When that was written, you could still smell ashes in the air from the Detroit Fire of 1805.
Printed on 100lb Red Mohawk paper as part of the same edition of 333 sold on Third Man Records.
Includes a set of smaller prints: DETROIT (1), DETROIT (2), DETROIT (3)
Signed and numbered using bowling scores. Boy, do I wish I could take that back. Felt like calculus.
I did a cheat for 301-333 as it goes beyond a perfect 300 game.
RESURGET CINERIBUS
Latin for “It Will Rise From the Ashes”.
There was nothing but ashes when that was written.
Detroit indeed rose again and eventually produced Richard Kiel. It also produced this pair. Great job, Detroit.
Includes a separate set of smaller prints: “...AD ASTRA" (1), “...AD ASTRA" (2), “...AD ASTRA" (3)
Printed on 100lb Neenah Epic Black paper as part of the same edition of 333 flogged on the vault.
Signed and numbered using bowling scores. Boy, do I wish I could take that back. I know I already wrote that. That’s how badly I wish I could take it back.
These are the first prints I created with DL built at 333 dpi, their max printable resolution for acetates. It allowed for a new level of detail, micro-Tron level shiz.
]]>Third Man Records opened a third location in London. If you’re not aware of it, shit, then it’s unlikely you’re going to keep reading about the poster for it. The edition in London are on 100 lb white. The ones I’m selling however are on French Lemon Drop Yellow. I hoped by being on a yellow stock that folks who forgive the sheet from having never travelled across the pond. However, again, they are on yellow paper.
BILLY STRINGS
I asked to do the Austin date. I got Las Vegas. I miss Vegas, so I readily agreed. It’s a burg I yearly frequented with various folks. It never gets old to me. Always a blinking shambled visit to a pinball machine’s insides. I hope folks who saw this pair of shows had similar good times besides marveling at Mister Shadow-fingers. The cityscape comes from an unused project Chris Everhart of Silent Giants fame and myself blew dumb time on. I didn’t want to have a real Vegas skyline, only something that suggested it. Both depict a foreground dicephalic goat. If anyone has a fer realz natural born caprine dicephalic parapagus, shoot me a fucking email. If you have a human one, keep that pair of ghosts to yourself.
Five pieces of past paper presently in the shop. Theming this one with posters printed by Krusty Kolor, an Austin print shop founded by Wade Longenberger and Lee Bolton back in the day.
Lee eventually split, and Wade kept plugging away until his death in 2004. Here’s a clip of his band Squat Thrust playing their hit single “Karate”. Wade was the bassist. He was fun and kind.
Including a sheet for a historic one man band showdown in Austin, a Strokes show in Arizona, and three from the initial peppermint wave made to support dates on The White Stripes’ tour for Elephant.
DISH UP ON BISHOP
Leona Gallery impresario Billy Bishop has been publishing an essential collection of weird ancient clip art culled from trademark registration volumes.
I’m quite familiar with the leather spines that sourced this material. I recall them heavy and bending a couple of shelves at Billy's old print shop. I always wondered when he’d share a curated collection of the mercantile phantasmagoria they contained. Well, the time was a few months ago. The first volume is smoke, but the second and third are still gettable with an anticipated fourth on the way.
Hopefully doing something fun later in the year with Billy, so tape the potato peeler inside your sunglasses.
]]>I designed this poster once. Then I got something poster folks always want but rarely get…time and a little budget. While waiting for the print queue, I worked with Sara Deck to get it closer to perfect. The memory of Zappa demands nothing less.
Double sided on some beautifully dark Neenah Epic Black Eggshell hundo pound paper printed by DL. Shipping at the end of January when Mondo and myself get our copies. If you bought yours from Mondo, I’m signing those too. First person to get a signature on theirs from Sara gets a piece of art from me. Probably something obvious for “The Yellow Shark”.
KING OF CARTOONS IS NOT TAKING YOUR SHIT
I saw the Dirtbombs put on a fucking show at Emo’s. My phantasmagoric flickers of recall involve a lot of Ko Melina tornado-ing the shit out of the stage. I tend to watch the bass player the most at shows which makes my employ by the Stripes more ironic. Bassists are either an Entwistle steady vision or a Burton blister of energy. Ko somehow seemed like both. Blackwell threw drums from both kits towards a corner at the end. They stacked so perfectly, it felt like watching the tape in reverse but live, if that makes sense. He kept the audience tense for a jenga that never seemed to come. My primary memory though is Mick Collins standing like a tower of cool in front of the low rumble of their Bauhaus dipped cover of “Kung Fu”.
Not long after, I attended a poster show in OKC and witnessed an unbelievable display of printing wizardry from Andy Diesel. He printed white ink on black paper so opaque that you couldn’t tell it was white ink. I realize that might read weird to the uninitiated. You have to be familiar with how disappointing 1 or 2 hits of white ink tends to look landing on dark paper. It often greys it out a touch. How many hits did Andy take to get that opaque coverage? One. The secret was throwing in an ungodly brick of GID powder. It imbued a truly mesmerizing glow once you hit the lights.
I asked for the same fire on my upcoming Dirtbombs poster for a Berlin gig. I wanted my poster to share the same incandescence I presumed would come off that stage after Mick and Co. nuked it.
CHECK OUT THAT OLD 90’S THEREMIN DOCUMENTARY
Made for sale at shows that didn’t have individual posters from the Stripes grand 2004 tour of the European continent.
The siblings White offered a mini-theremin at shows during this tour. I’m sure I had Beach Boys on the brain from that fact. It is the city of Detroit vibrating.
Will rap about Vault 46 stuff later, otherwise, I got my copy in and it looks rad. TMR folks are kicking up a goddamn racket.
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The Raconteurs are on the prowl again with a new album and an extensive tour. Help Us Stranger is available now and quite the corker. In true Racs fashion, I got asked about cover art pretty close to the release date.
Fun fling with the ghost of Christmas Past getting to work with Patrick Keeler again who also shot the photos for the record art. I have to credit Tristan McNatt, a TMR design stalwart, who provided the inspiration that eventually led us to the final cover image. Should probably also thank happy childhood memories of the classic Star Trek episode “Who Mourns for Adonais?"
I now involuntarily think of the Raconteurs whenever I’m driving (or walking on occasion) and see an illuminated crossing signal. Optically hoist by my own petard I guess. If the Racs are playing in your town, ignore the crossing signals and risk the broken leg to get to the show.
KNOXVILLE, NASHVILLE, BASHFUL, GRUMPY AND DOC
Due to Mondo commitments, I knew I would only have time for a few posters for this tour as Racs stuff tends to take way longer to produce. Roe Peterhans and Sarah Stawski of TMR asked which cities I would want to tackle. It was a fairly easy choice.
As hinted by the Sun Sphere on my desk, I adore Knoxville. It’s where we spend Christmases with my sister. There are a few Raconteurs posters already in her house, and I wanted to make sure to create one for a show in her city. After that I asked for Nashville as I hoped to keep my “Agent Alice” series going from past Raconteurs’ hometown shows.
GRIEF + GRIEF + GRIEF = GRIEF
Making some new Grief prints available. Three are shipped in mint condition. The fourth took a tumble Lubetkin style to the floor and ganked one corner. Is it terrible? Eh, it wouldn’t bother me, but folks are picky. Since the affected print is about drinking whiskey, it sort of feels appropriate considering how many injuries that liquid has caused my own meat suit over the years. To make up for it, I’m going to doodle something on the damaged area of each. Maybe just a drunk cartoon character, maybe an attempt at a Dylan Thomas portrait if I’m in the mood.
RACONTEURS POSTER PARADE
The new album finally got my seat scorchy enough to put nearly all of my remaining Raconteurs posters from past tours on the site. I still have to add a few strays from 06.
If you buy 10, you get a surprise. If you buy 9, you might get a surprise. If you buy 8, I’ll draw a heart on the tube.
WHISKEY WISHES AND COEDIENE DREAMS
Got asked by the great Connie Collingsworth of Print Mafia and Butch & Sissy fame to create a poster for Saskatchewan songsmith Colter Wall’s Austin City Limits taping. If you like country music that sounds like country music, then you’ll love Colter Wall. If you like to say how you like all music but country, then you can go stomp nails barefoot.
ARCADE FIRE
Worked on this beauty with Chris Everhart from The Silent Giants for the Everything Now tour.
I have to admit I had no idea why the Rush song was called “YYZ”. Working out these verkakte airline codes for the poster, and now know at least what Neal was referring to.
I still have a Sigur Ros poster Chris (from Silent Giants) and I worked on for their last tour I need to get up on the site. Hopefully on the next update.
SHIPPING NOTICE
I will be disappearing next week into the vortex of MONDOCON 5 and houseguests. If you’re in Austin on Sept 14th or 15th, get a ticket and get lost in a world of poor decisions. Lots of amazing artists from around the world will be there displaying the cause of the callus on their index fingers. I will be there wearing gold lamé and an uncharacteristic smile, so come see the elephant.
Too much going on to be able to ship poster orders made this week on top. So please bear in mind there will be a mild delay on shipping until after Mondocon when I get the house occupancy calmed down to one high Canadian, an exasperated wife, 3 yappy dogs, and one cat.
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I have all for sale in the store and will ship them out after I finally get some sleep.
For the Nashville one in particular, I have to thank Olivia Jean as well for sending the pinball into my brain that knocked the idea for my poster loose. Also a special thanks to Jason Edmiston for helping me out by helping some artists out during a couple of tight spots on tour. I truly take advantage of all the maple that flows in his veins.
I recently summoned sheets for Jack White’s majestic 3 night stand at the Hammersmith or whatever they’re calling that joint now.
Took a note from his recent cool hand haute couture and imagined the C369 identification as something different.
I am offering the first poster from me celebrating Jack White’s current tour for “Boarding House Reach”.
Inspired by the song “Over and Over and Over” and the cover to “Technical Ecstasy”, although the figures on that cover were having a better time than the pair of Jacks here.
Thanks to Nathanio Strimpopulos at Third Man for the font assist.
JACK WHITE
It’s been four score and four years minus four score since Jack opened the taps, but there’s a gusher coming this spring in “Boarding House Reach”, his third solo album.
I was asked to design covers for the first two singles: "Connected by Love” and “Over and Over and Over”. A real team effort here with Jack, Chris from Silent Giants, and Nathanio Strimpopulos from TMR.
See you at one of the shows.
New Kills single out now, so I figured I should finally crow about this surprising reminder that another 5 years have passed. For this 15th anniversary tour, I imagined their career happening inside a photobooth. I littered the floor with what I though was an appropriate amount of cigarettes. I then realized that accuracy would be entirely too comical, so I just put enough to indicate that some folks had been there quite a while.
The version I’m offering is the tour version in metallic gold to match the lustrous tones of their last platter, Ash & Ice.
THE RACONTEURS
Also putting my remaining copies of the Racs 2011 posters on the site as singles. I wrote a fun fact for each image on their individual pages so there was something new to read about them. Enjoy.
TRÉS GRIEF
Releasing three prints today I intended for last years Mondocon. I wound up not having a table and choosing instead sanity and breath.
READING RAINBOW
Lots of books to recommend.
Another member of Canadian Monster Force has a tome to tout: Ghoulish: The Art of Gary Pullin is available online.
I wrote a touching foreward recognizing the titan talents of the wendigo that learned to draw. Inside you’ll find page after page of colorful evidence. The exclusive edition comes with a 3D print for “House” and a pair of custom specs to peep at it with.
If you wish to see a book depicting the drain that wound up swallowing my last years of youth, please head on over to Amazon and order a hard cover sandwich of some of Mondo’s best slices. I wrote some words in the front, I wrote some words in the back, and a few of my efforts lurk in the middle. Makes a great gift for folks whose favor you wish to curry.
Also, Jason Edmiston’s “Visceral” and “Pop Eyes” plus Todd Slater’s "The Rock Poster Art of Todd Slater" are still available if you want to give Amazon a hernia.
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UNCUTS FOR SALE
Dan Willet at Unbox has some fun versions planned for this year, so keep your eye out if you missed out on the “blue” run.
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I made some shiny paper to commemorate the grand opening of Third Man Pressing, the new state of the art pressing facility attached to Third Man Records in Detroit. It looks to be a hell of joint, like what I imagine a record plant looks like in the future in a movie made in the 80’s, like “Looker” or something. That sort of possible flying car future that never seems to arrive. So paint your Honda like a tardis and head to Motor City and get a peek at progress.
Special thanks to Jack White as always and also Nat Strimpooulos and Roe Peterhans for their contributions. Roe observed the half globe looked a bit like the spoked street layout for downtown Detroit and sent me a quick map to illustrate. I thought that was an interesting echo to use on the pressing plate at the bottom and included it in its center.
Shout out also to my Dutch buddy Jeroen Huijbregts who designed a nifty shirt for the grand opening.
"WHO WANTS ICE CREAM?"
Had a great time late last year at Mondocon III despite being a bit of ghost around my booth. I didn’t even have time to change into my “Council of Ricks” jumpsuit until the second day.
I hawked another round of “Grief” originals and assorted items that made my mouth corners turn north. I’m offering the remaining splendor today.
Items include:
Eternal thanks to Billy Garrett for lensing all the lovliness and for signing my yearbook.
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The phantoms of my mind have now entered a third dimension, GOG.
Dan Willett, the warlock behind Unbox Industries crafted a vinyl figure based on a character I created for one of my past gigposters. Gog has his roots as one of the legendary protectors of the city of London. A statue of him and Magog, his snappily dressed counterpart, reside in Guildhall while wicker versions of both precede the Lord Mayor each year during his trek to proclaim fealty to the Queen. Now he protects my desk from my cats.
I had a great time working with Dan on this for the past couple of years and hope folks enjoy the result.
TFS
My good friend and eternal sounding board, Todd Slater, released a book earlier this year entitled “The Rock Poster Art of Todd Slater”. I was asked to write an introduction that literally brought a tear to his cloudy eye and will likely wind up on his tombstone later next year.
If you have someone who likes either “Rock” or “Posters” then it will make an excellent gift this holiday season.
VISCERAL
If you have someone in your life who had a creepy bedroom in high school or likes Halloween a bit too much, then give them this book to get a smile in return.
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With the disappearance of my pages on Gigposters.com (R.I.P.) I guess I need to speed up putting the remainder of my oeuvre here on the site. Starting off with three posters from the White Stripes 2005 tour. Here’s answers to the emailed questions I expect to get: Yes, these are from the original run. The venue/city name for the Boston poster is located in red where you’d expect to find Boston on the globe above Saint Christopher. Yes, I appreciate the texture and crunch that sprinkles add to a doughnut.
MONDOCON III
I’ll have a booth again at this year’s Mondocon in Austin, TX. Here’s a link to details should you choose to attend and watch me treat my nephew terribly. I’ll be revealing more of what will appear at my booth on Instagram, so please stay tuned there for updates.
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Offering up my versions of some various projects I’ve done for TMR.
TMR: TWS Record Store Day Uncut 2016
First up is a an uncut sheet of large-size postcards made to celebrate the Record Store Day release of the complete White Stripes’ Peel Sessions. As with the previous set I’ll be signing the back of each with a small drawing or a short missive likely dealing with buying records.
For these images, I cast John Peel in the role of the Wizard presented initially during his salad days flying away from the old Radio London ship towards his new digs at Radio 1.
Card 2 shows the Stripes meeting John for the first Peel Session at Maida Vale studios. It must always be a little strange when meeting radio personalities. At least back in the day they pretty much existed as disembodied voices that caused your brain to imagine some nebulous physical form. I would expect meeting one in the flesh feels a bit like seeing the old man behind the curtain.
Card 3 depicts lovely Peel Acres, John’s house in Suffolk, where he recorded the second White Stripes session. I envisioned it as a drop-in of sorts and figured it would be exciting for John considering how many Stripes singles he kept in his famous box at the time of his passing.
Rest in the shade, Mr. Peel, and thank you for making these and so many other wonderful recordings.
TMR: Detroit Grand Opening Poster 2015
I felt the opening of the new TMR was a good enough excuse to revisit my mega-city image made for a series of 2005 TWS Detroit dates. For those posters I attempted to emulate the city collage Boris Bilinsky created to advertise the film Metropolis. For this poster I wanted to try an arrangement more aligned with my usual style and ardor for symmetry.
For the version sold on my site I introduced some small differences to keep the one sold at TMR unique.
TMR: Detroit Record Store Day Poster 2016
The original idea for this primary image was to just keep it in print with different colors for the TMR Detroit store, but in light of the Stripes release for RSD I thought it might be more interesting to theme it up with the band. Beyond adding the lights this time around, I littered the city with a number of Stripes references including characters and items from past Stripes posters.
Again, for the version sold on my site I introduced some new elements or replaced previous ones to make it a little different from the one sold at TMR.
THE KILLS: Made for the current tour promoting the immanent release of their newest platter, “Ash & Ice” which my wife and I eagerly await. Oddly enough, I probably jam the Kills with her more than any other band as opposed to KISS which requires private listening lest her eyerolls damage the ceiling.
HEARTLESS BASTARDS: Doubly honored not only to make a poster for the Bastards but for the all important home-town show as well. Cincinnati always has a special place in my heart as it’s essentially where my Aunt Diana lives and a place in my stomach as I’m overly fond of Skyline (screw Gold Star). It’s also where my mother was born as it boasted the nearest hospital across the river with lights. I really connected with their last album, “Restless Ones”, as a lot of the lyrics reflected echoes in my own skull. It’s a fight forward to trudge away from the bizarre seduction of fear and darkness. Erika is probably more successful at the hike than me.
SPOON: A pair of posters representing yet another collaboration with the eminently talented Chris Everhart from Silent Giants. We bashed our brains together for the final poster of Arcade Fire’s last tour. It went so sweetly we tried to recapture the alchemy for these Spoon gigs in support of “They Want My Soul”.
]]>Finally have some time to put out a few items long overdue on the site including “Grief” related wares. Deck your halls, your torso, and your lapels with fractured moments of my brief time above ground.
Items include:
For the recent Third Man Records Vault release of “Under Amazonian Lights” I was asked to design a few elements for the box set: namely the graphics for the box itself, an enamel pin, DVD onbody graphic, and a set of postcards highlighting the three South American dates from the 2005 tour. For these cards I thought it would be fun to continue documenting the globetrotting of the Tin Man and Dorothy as seen in the “Under Great White Northern Lights” set. Considering Brazil’s considerable primate population, it seemed appropriate to bring the winged monkeys into the mix.
I am signing these on the back and like the RSD ones, I’ll write a short missive in the last space or maybe draw an exhausted rabbit.
Welcome to the new website designed by Rocket Society’s Justin Jewett who has the patience of Job. I plan to have more fun stuff and regular updates, but we all know how that usually goes. You hope to have a farm with lots of rabbits but wind up with a bullet in the back of your skull.
]]>Welcome to the new website designed by Rocket Society’s Justin Jewett who has the patience of Job. I plan to have more fun stuff and regular updates, but we all know how that usually goes. You hope to have a farm with lots of rabbits but wind up with a bullet in the back of your skull.
JACK WHITE PAPER FOR YOUR HOME OR GARDEN
Offering the final batch of posters I created for Jack’s electrodazzle tour for “Lazaretto”. The baseball card “pitcher” series for Honolulu, Santiago, & Porto Alegre is being sold only as a set to streamline shipping as they all require flat boxing rather than tubes.
I’m also placing posters from the Jack White 2012 tour set up for individual sale. Will be weird seeing these on my site without the “For Sale Soon” beneath them.
DEAD WEATHER: DYNAMITE IN YOUR EARHOLE
I was asked to enter the Thunderdome once more and collaborate with the Dead Weather on a new album design. For Dead Weather biz I always like to try take a psych approach but present the bad trip side of things. Always a group effort, but special thanks to Alison Mosshart for providing the long hand script used for label and back cover tracklisting on the regular release version. My job is always easier with good photography, and Dave Swanson’s snaps once again greased the mouse.
This is my favorite Dead Weather album so far, and I think folks will join me in singing track 3 in the shower for a month once they hear it. It’s a beautiful ceti eel of a tune in a tank of ceti eels.
I’m also offering posters from the Dead Weather 2010 and 2011 tours up for individual sale. Everyone who purchases a Dead Weather “Louisville” poster will get a drawing on the back of a dead mouse, or dead turtle…depends what mood I’m in.
MONDOCON: SHORT FOR MONDO CONVENTION
I’ll have a booth this October at a convention celebrating the efforts of my day job: MONDOCON. More details and surprises of what will litter my space coming in the next month, but rest assured of the top shelf nature of it all. Besides getting the rare chance of seeing me in public smiling, you’ll witness a host of artists of the highest caliber displaying their genius… and Todd Slater. If you’re in Austin on October 3rd to 4th then zoom over to the official site to learn how to get a ticket. One note, Mondocon will have a shit ton of on point food trucks and beverage trucks (including a double decker juice bus) just outside the doors. So no worries about attending a convention and having to settle for some shitty airport pizza and a can of Mr. Pibb.