I usually do not focus on bad art but when it hits the NY Times, I have to at least give it a quick gander. I would say that the Merciless Death cover kicks ass and very well executed.

They get the info from “The Merciless Book of Metal Lists,” a new compendium of heavy-metal indexes written by Howie Abrams, the founder of the metal and hard-core label In-Effect Records, and Sacha Jenkins, the former music editor of Vibe magazine.

Are the examples they give really that bad? Can you find worse?

I was a big fan of Alison Lilly’s work as soon as I saw it…she employs the right amount technicality along with looseness that makes the work give off an overall ethereal vibe.

How did you get your first paying art job?

I got involved in doing this type of artwork through friends in bands of the Vancouver
hardcore/metal scene. They liked my work and asked me to do some custom illustrations for
an album cover. The first project I completed was for the Vancouver band ANION for their
Carrion King LP cover.

Have you always worked in your current style and if not how did you work before?

I was involved in mural and graffiti art about 12 years ago, that played a large role in the
progression of my illustrative style. I always enjoyed exploring different mediums and
methods within my personal arts practice such as Digital collage and mixed media painting for
solo and group art exhibits.

Who are your artistic influences?

To name a few: Suehiro Maruo, Arthur Rackham, Francis Bacon, Jenny Saville, Bernie Wrightson,
Gustave Dore, Albrecht Durer, Francisco Ribalta, Austin Osman Spare, Pushead, Egon Schiele,
Mario Bava, James Whale, Georges Franju, David Lynch, Park Chan Wook.

Tell us about your work area or studio space?

My studio space is not in my home, although I do work from home sometimes on smaller size
drawings and illustrative projects. My studio space is great, I prefer working there because It
helps me focus and I am free to create larger scale paintings if I choose. (see studio pic below)

Take us through a typical day.

For the last year and a half I have been apprenticing tattooing in Vancouver so most of my days
are spent at the shop, either tattooing, drawing or painting. Most of my band commission work is
done in the evenings at the studio.

How do you create your work? Take us through the process from concept to final.

It really depends on what I am working on, but for most projects I begin the research process by
gathering reference materials. I use found photos and sometimes use my own photographs and
models to help me get the specific imagery I am looking for. I also use literature if it is a particular
subject of interest. Next I create a series of sketches outlining different approaches to the piece.
This serves as a good way to really figure out my options in terms of composition, and be able to
give the client at least a few different versions to choose from for the design. After I am happy
with the design and the preliminary sketches are approved I get to work doing a final draft of the
piece, which usually includes an inking process of some kind, adding black and darker values etc.
If the image is a one colour design this is usually my final step for the design before scanning. If
the work is in colour I will then continue on by adding colour washes and painting more detail into
the piece.

What materials do you use? How much if any is done on the computer?

I love mixed media and I mostly use pencil, ink pens, ink with brushes, grounds and gessos to
build texture, acrylic washes and watercolour.

I hand draw or paint every illustration. I mostly use photoshop to prepare images for printing, like
posters or t-shirt designs. I do enjoy digital photography and collage, but it is not something I do
a great deal of. I have used photoshop to add colour in past works, but I prefer to use hand
painting techniques to add colour to my pieces.

Do you use reference materials or does all of it come from your head?

Both. I use a lot of reference materials for concepts and ideas and I like to have photo references
when I am painting human figures, organic shapes and animals. The imaginative aspect mostly
happens during the initial conceptual process of a design, when I am laying out the composition. I
write a lot of notes to myself on sketches, I find this really helps to organize the work and
remember interesting ideas I might use in future pieces.

Do the bands give you any direction?

There are a few bands I work with on a continuous basis. Often when I have worked with a band
more than once I am usually encouraged to have free reign to create my own vision for the design
or project, or they have more trust in my artistic vision.

I also really enjoy it when bands come to me with their own ideas and when those ideas are
unique , It is a rewarding experience, because it can be challenging going out of your comfort
zone working on a subject matter you haven’t studied before.

Do you listen the band’s music when you work on their project?

Not exclusively, but I have found that practice to be enjoyable and interesting. I usually listen to
the band’s music during the conceptual part of the process, it can help generate ideas etc.

Do you have an advice for artist’s who wish to do artwork for bands?

Try to be original and develop your own personal style. We are all influenced by other artists, I am
constantly inspired by other work, but it is so obvious when people copy whatever the popular
themes and artists of the time are doing. It is ok to be inspired by other art, but don’t straight up
copy somebody’s work. I would also encourage anyone working professionally to always have
clear and set guidelines for the commission when working with clients. Communication is key,
Contracts are key. It shows clients you are professional and it weeds out the people who are
unorganized, unprofessional and out to take advantage of artists.

Take us through the process of creating the art for the new Anciients record cover.

Anciients are good friends of mine, so it is great working with them. They had some very specific
ideas about what they wanted in terms of the artwork theme for Heart of Oak. They wanted to work
with me to make the conceptual process for the art work a collaborative effort. It took a couple of
brainstorming sessions along with me sitting in on the recording of the album, to really get a feel
for how I was going to approach and execute the project.

I created preliminary sketches and more discussion followed and changes were made. Once I had
the go ahead on the revised drawings I started working on the main painting ‘Heart of Oak’ which I
decided to paint in a larger format. It is 62” x 48”, mixed media painting on paper. This was the
most time consuming piece of all the album artwork, which took about a month to complete.

The second painting for the album cover is smaller 15”x 22” .This was primarily inspired by
Kazakhstan eagle hunters, which was of interest to the band. I also did a small illustration of two
eels for the CD and vinyl label. This illustration was done in pen and ink with no colour. The eels
were originally intended to be added into the band’s logo but it was decided that it would look
better on its own as a separate design.

What are you currently working on?

I am currently working on a personal project consisting of a series of paintings which I will be
printing and selling in limited editions. I am now focusing on learning the craft of tattooing, which
takes up most of my time these days.

Have you ever turned down a project?

Yes, sometimes people approach me with projects that do not fit my artistic style, so I have to turn
it down because I know there are more appropriate artists for the job out there, I usually suggest
these artists to the client.

Do you have any dream projects?

There are a lot of bands and artists I would really love to work with. Neurosis is a band who I have
followed and loved for years, I would be so honored to work with them on any level. Their artistic
aesthetic has always been amazing. Tom Waits would be amazing to work with too!

What are your favorite bands of all time and what bands are you listening to right now?

I have too many favorite bands to narrow down, I like so many types of music and it is such a
large part of my life and arts practice it would be a very long list.

I love listening to older music … 1920’s blues, Jethro Tull, Willie Nelson and Bessie Smith are
some current favorites.

Also… Pallbearer, Wovenhand, RWAKE, Big Business, TAAKE, early Autopsy and Roky Erikson
have been playing recently in my studio.

Who would you like to see featured on MBA?

You might have already featured him? Lucas Ruggeri of LR illustration, I love his work!

Great questions, thanks!

The Black Dahlia Murder: Everblack

The Collectors Bundle comes with Everblack CD, LP, 2 tees (standard and pre-order exclusive colors), flag, armband, limited edition art print set, and all five evidence bags. All packaged in a hand-numbered collectors box.

This is the only bundle to contain all band member’s evidence bags. Combine the contents of all five evidence bags and uncover the clues to the online location of a secret BDM item.

The art for the CD was done by Nick Keller and the shirt art was created by Mark Riddick

Amon Amarth: Deceiver of the Gods

The Loki Boxset comes with-

+ Limited Edition Collectible Loki Bust (Appox. 10 Inches Tall)
+ Multi-Panel Digipak with 16-Page Full-Color Booklet
+ Under the Influence Mini Poster
+ Limited Edition Fliptop Keep Case

Artwork for the CD was created by Tom Thiel

There is, however, one aspect about the death of the tangible that severely worries me: the demise of album art. When I write about this stuff for MetalSucks, I wonder, “Does anyone care?” I hate to sound old, but I’m seriously asking: do kids look at the miniscule version of the art that appears on their mp3 player or iTunes or whatever? And if they don’t, doesn’t that mean that, inevitably, within the next generation or so there just won’t be any such thing as album art?

The very thought sends shivers down my spine. Because I so closely associate my favorite albums of all time with their cover art. I can’t imagine a world in which the music didn’t conjure the visual, or vice versa. Here are the five (really six) metal album covers which made the biggest impression on me when I first saw them, and continue to fascinate me today. I don’t mind admitting that three of these instances, it was the album art that led me to check out the band in the first place.

5. Cannibal Corpse, Butchered at Birth – art by Vince Locke

This is the first album on the list which I wanted to check out based on the album art alone. At the time, it seemed edgy as fuck, but now I actually find it kinda funny, ’cause a) it is the very definition of “over the top,” and b) the dude on the right looks like he’s playing Operation and is seriously afraid he’s gonna set off the buzzer.

But the truth is, although I can guarantee there’s no way I would have been conscious of it at the time, it’s really the color scheme that first catches the eye, not the gore (it might be the gore that retains the eye, though). There’s really only three colors in various shades: black, white, and red. Even the dead lady’s brown hair is really reddish-brown. The artist is then able to make focal points just by utilizing the tiniest bit of contrast: there’s only one dead baby that’s predominately white, and Operation Zombie’s face is yellowish. I’d wager that 99% of everyone who has ever looked at this piece of art has had their eyes drawn to those two spots first. That’s what I really don’t like about today’s “pizza vomit” artists — their work is usually so over-the-map and bright in terms of its color scheme that your eyes can barely focus, and you can’t tell if you’re looking at Deathcore Band A’s shirt or Deathcore Band B’s shirt or Deathcore Band C’s shirt. Simpler is usually better.

The eye for detail in this illustration is really fantastic, too. Not only do no two dead babies bear the same facial expression, but no two dead babies seem to have met exactly the same grisly end, either.

4. Napalm Death, Scum – art by Jeff Walker

I wonder how many kids today even realize this was created by the legendary Carcass frontman? In any case, it’s a doozy; like the album’s title, it’s so dirty and rough… it’s like the ultimate version of something fucked-up a fifteen-year-old would draw on his notebook during detention, which makes sense, because the members of Napalm Death were adolescents when they made this (I believe Walker was eighteen).

Like the Cannibal Corpse Butchered album art, this seemed much more provocative then than it does now… but it’s still just so goddamn striking. Once again, we’re dealing with a fantastically simple color scheme and a great eye for detail — not giving The Suits pupils was a brilliant decision, because it makes them feel that much more evil.

I also think it’s worth noting that the piece has a real “flow” to it, for lack a better term — the skull heap naturally leads your eye to the impoverished family and The Suits, which then naturally lead your eye up to the demon, whose wingspan creates a frame for the band’s name. In fact, the entire image is really one pyramid, with the placement and size of each member — demon on top, smaller Suits below him, smaller family below them, skulls at the bottom — creating a caste system of sorts.

3. Megadeth, Peace Sells/Rust in Peace – art by Ed Repka

Okay so I’m obviously cheating here, but I always associate these two Repka classics with one another… I have a crackpot theory that he may have inadvertently inspired the covers for Guns N’ Roses’ Use Your Illusion albums.

ANYWAY, Repka’s post-apocalyptic, sardonic, cartoonish-yet-not-at-all-cartoonish style always recalls the old Mars Attacks! cards for me, although they’re more painterly and the colors are deeper. And speaking of color: once again, take note of the extremely simple color schemes, and the way that, as a result, even the slightest bit of contrast (e.g., the glowing green pyramid on the Rust cover). I also love the way he creates a frame within a frame in both images in order to ensure that Vic Rattlehead is the focus point. I’ve also always suspected that the hooks in the mouth were to better round out the edges of Vic’s face, so as to give the appearance that he’s smiling.

Vic Rattlehead, by the way, is unarguably the second greatest metal mascot in history. I shouldn’t have to tell you who the first is, but in case you think it’s the dude from the Disturbed covers, i) go fuck yourself, and ii) scroll down to my number one entry.

2. GN’R, Appetite for Destruction – art by  Billy White Jr.

Look: I know that this is pretty goddamn simple, and I know that Guns N’ Roses aren’t exactly the most metal of metal bands, but this cover made SUCH an impression on me when I was a kid, and Appetite for Destruction is probably my single favorite album of all time, so I can’t not include it on this list, y’know? There’s a reason we made MetalSucks shirts that parody this cover. There’s also a reason you’ll see people wearing a shirt with this design on it pretty much all the goddamn time. It’s a classic.

And pretty much everything about it is great. The skulls all have personality even though skulls are ostensibly featureless, and there’s a strong contrast between suggesting that the band is dangerous (the skulls) and that the band is beautiful (the cross). Which is perfect for a band called “Guns N’ Roses.”

And oh hey, you’ll never guess what I’m gonna say about the color scheme.

1. Iron Maiden, Killers – art by Derek Riggs

Killers isn’t my favorite Maiden album, but it’s my favorite Maiden album art, in no small part because it’s what made me buy the record in the first place, serving as my initial introduction to Maiden.

Once again, you’ve got a great, relatively simple color scheme. The sulfuric yellow light is just nasty; there’s a reason you see so many modern filmmakers using that color to light villainous characters. Eddie grinning… and having just the tiniest bit of blood dripping from the axe… and the victim’s hands, grasping, practically begging for life… it’s all just so, so, so… FUCKING EVIL. (I also love that there’s a sex shop in the background. I mean, why not make the setting as scummy as possible, right?) And as I recently told Metal Injection, without Riggs, I don’t think we ever get the Megadeth or Cannibal Corpse covers in the first place.

-AXL ROSENBERG

Today’s installment comes all the way from Portsmouth New Hampshire.  Matt Talbot’s style is not what you would normally fine on MBA, but our goal is to never have a “Normal” anyway.  Matt is a really talented artist who moonlights in a band called The Honorable Mentions (future double threat perhaps?).  I would describe Matt’s style as “Anti-Kich”.  I would love to continue to wax poetic about how much I enjoy his work, but I have to go trademark “Anti-Kich” and let all the hipsters know I was ground floor on that movement….

What was your first paying art job?
Man, I have a hard time remembering! I guess you could technically say it was back in 1998, when I graduated from college and started working at a design agency. Around that same time, the college I had just graduated from also hired me on a freelance basis to do some illustrations for their alumni magazine. That’s pretty much been my model ever since–design agency during the day, freelance illustrations at night.

Have you always worked in your current style?
I don’t think so, and really I’m not sure what my current style even is! I really try to figure out what a project might need before I set a style for it. I like so many styles that I try to switch things up frequently. That being said, people often tell me they can identify my work by site, so maybe I’m just fooling myself.

Who are your artistic influences?
I’m really influenced by 50s and 60s illustrations. Pulp book covers, old magazine editorial paintings, and things like that. If I could paint like those artists, I’d be so, so happy. But I often try to incorporate some of that feeling in my work.

I’m also a huge comic nerd–so much of what I do has its roots in comics. Of  comic artists working today, I can’t get enough of Erik Larsen, Dave Johnson, Sean Phillips and Francisco Francavilla. Of the classic guys, Jack Kirby, John Buscema, and John Severin come to mind.

What is your creative Process?  Take us through it from conception to completion.
I usually spend a ton of time thinking about assignments. Actually, really stressing about them. I torture myself trying to come up with a good idea or concept. This could take hours or days–I’m definitely guilty of taking as much time as I have to do something.

Anyway, I usually sketch a ton of thumbnails on loose letter-sized sheets of paper until I hit on something I like. Then I’ll tighten that up and send it off for approval. If it gets approved, I start drawing the real thing in Adobe Illustrator. I do about 90% of my work in Illustrator–that would be the line-art, a lot of the coloring and the typography and son on. And I’ll bring it into Photoshop if I need to do extra fancy coloring or something.

What Materials do you use?  How much work is done (If any) on the computer?
It’s all computer, basically!

Do you ever use reference materials?   Are there monkeys with robot limbs available for this?
I do use a lot of reference. You think you know what a gorilla’s foot looks like until you have to draw one. That’s where the internet is so handy. You go “Oh, so THAT’S how a gorilla’s foot works, with the weird toes and stuff!” There aren’t so many robot limbs available, but luckily robots can look like whatever you want them to and no one will complain.

When working on art for bands, do you get a lot of direction?
It really depends on the band. Sometimes, hardly any at all. Sometimes, too much direction! I feel like I’ve had some stuff that’s been, well, I don’t want to say ruined by over-management, but definitely watered down.

Sometimes, direction the band gives you leads to really cool and interesting collaboration! Robotmonkeyarm was a great example of that–Ryan (the head monkey) and I batted ideas back and forth quite a bit until we got to the concept for the final covers.

Some bands just let me do whatever I want, and that’s always really awesome.

Ultimately, though, I just try to be respectful and appropriate to a bands vision and sound. At the end of the day, it’s their name on the poster or cover. I want them to be totally psyched to have the stuff I make representing them.

Do you listen to a bands music for inspiration?
Yes! That’s the best part! I’m a huge music geek. When I get to work with a band I really dig, it’s so exciting.

Take us through a typical day.
During the day, I work at a graphic design studio in Portsmouth, NH. I design logos, websites, publications–all kinds of things.

The stuff you see on my website is the stuff I do at night when I get home. I truly love drawing and designing–it’s my hobby in addition to my job. If I don’t have extra projects to work on at night, I invent projects for myself. I constantly feel like I need to be working on something or I get unhappy really fast.

So anyway, I get up, head into Portsmouth to work at 8am. Fast forward eight hours and I come home, make dinner with my wife and take a couple hours off to goof around on the internet or go on a walk or something. Then I settle in and work on my band work or extra projects until 11 or 12.

Tell us about your studio space.
Ha! My “studio space” when I’m working at home is my kitchen table with my Mac Powerbook and a Wacom Tablet. It’s terrible for my back. But I live in a tiny house and it’s the best place for me to get stuff done.

A Lot of artists really go heavy on the black when creating grim imagery.  Your art has a great way of showing dark images without skimping on color.  Is it a conscious decision or is it a natural direction?
I do spend a lot of time thinking about color in a piece, and trying to figure out how to get maximum impact out of color. I often try to limit my color palette, too, while keeping things generally colorful. Constraints can be good.

What are you currently working on?
I’m actually working on a really cool project for Ryan from Robotmonkeyarm’s OTHER band, Congress of the Sloth. I don’t want to ruin the surprise. But when all is said and done, it will be one of the coolest things I’ve been involved with, I think. I’ve got one other album cover coming up too.

I made a decision at the end of last year to cut down my workload a bit so I can spend time in 2013 working on a graphic novel, which I’m really excited about. But I’m super bad about saying no to projects as they come along, so who knows if I’ll actually be able to stick with my resolution.

Who are your favorite bands of all time.  What bands are you currently listening to now?
Heh… well, my choices aren’t really all that metal. I hope I don’t get made fun of for these bands? Anyway, Elliott Smith is tops in my book. John Vanderslice. Jim Noir. Nada Surf. Aimee Mann.

I’m currently listening to a lot of Jim Noir, Tame Impala, Moon Duo–basically a lot of psychedelic pop/rock. I can’t get enough psych right now!

Do you have a dream project?
Any of those bands I listed, I would just die to work with in some capacity. Also, I’d love to do a poster for Mondo some day. I’ve sketched out some movie poster projects for myself for fun if I get time to work on them.

What artists would you like to see featured on Metal Band Art?
There’s a guy named Patrick Leger–he’s just awesome. He did a cover for a band called Mansions that was so great that I bought the album just for the cover. Luckily, the album turned out to be great. I think he’s primarily an editorial guy, but his work is so cool.

Here is part 2 of our trip to the Great White North…

      Continuing our artistic tour of the great white north with Winnipeg’s  Randy Ortiz.    You can see from just a brief sample of Randy’s work that his creative process is very well thought out.  You can also see from skimming this interview that he is also fucking hysterical.  Randy is quick to make light of his process, but his fantastic designs speak for themselves, and speak volumes.  I Highly recommend paying attention to his Facebook page for the next opportunity to profess your dirty love for him in an effort to obtain some of his fantastic art.  If that does not work I think he still accepts cash (American or whatever Canadians use for money…it might be hockey pucks).  

What was your first paying art job?
I think my first gig poster for a local show called “Slamfest” was my first paying job. That or I was allowed in for free or something, I can’t remember. Local legends Malefaction, Figure Four, Electro Quarterstaff and KEN mode played this show back in 2004. My work sucked so much back then.

Electro Quarterstaff Rocks, and its a great name.
EQ is certainly a talented bunch. My good friend, Ben Bonner , does all their artwork. If you think my stuff is enjoyable, please check him out as well. The vibrant colours of his work has been known to give people sugary sweet mouth ulcers. Definitely gives Skittles a run for their money.

On your website Damn The Design  you often show the progression of your art.  I think this is awesome.  Do you do feel that it is important to show the evolution of the design?  It’s not so much important, but more about how fun it is to flip through. It’s like watching a deformed child grow. It gives the audience a sense of attachment and investment in some way and I think that gives a certain piece more meaning.

Do you ever look back on parts of the evolution and see other possible directions that could have been taken, or was the end clearly in sight from the beginning.
In most of my work, I have no idea what I’m doing. I kinda black out early in the drawing process and when I wake up, the work is done and I’m left baffled at how I ended up there.

Who are your artistic influences?
There’s way too many to list, but off the top of my head: Aaron Horkey, Matthew Woodson, Ken Taylor, Jean Giraud, Vania Zouravliov, Chris Ware, Charles Burns…

Tell us about your studio space.
My studio space is crammed into my tiny bedroom in an apartment located in an area of Winnipeg that smells like poo most of the time. They’re about to start construction on a new condo right next door, directly across from my bedroom window and I feel I might want to move soon. If anyone knows of a place for rent near my area, that is relatively cheap and allows cats, please let me know.

Take us through a typical workday in your life.
I set my alarm for 9:30am and hit the snooze until it’s 10:30/11:00. I roll over slightly to my right side, which causes me to fall out of bed and directly into my studio space. I then read my emails and sigh deeply at the realization that I’ve dicked around too much the past few days and now have to rush on some work. Then I take a huge dump, brush my teeth and make some coffee, eggs and bacon. After three hours of eating my breakfast and watching netflix, I finally get to work. This usually consists of opening up a Photoshop file to draw a few lines, then stop to spend 2 hours trying to find the best podcast to listen to. I then give that up and decide to surf netflix again for 2 hours instead. When I finally find a movie to watch, I remember that I’m still in my underwear and then I ponder whether or not I should put on pants. This takes approximately 30 minutes to decide, but I usually browse through Reddit at the same time. Two birds with one stone, nah mean? At this point it’s dinner time and I have another realization that I forgot to make my paleo meal in the slow cooker earlier in the morning and now I have to cheat on my diet yet again with donuts and coffee while perfectly good meat and vegetables that I bought two weeks prior spoil in the fridge. I then draw like a mad man while stuffing my face with garbage and sugar and caffeine until 3am. I then shove my cat off my side of the bed (where he sleeps the entire time this is all happening) and go to sleep on my mattress stuffed with the millions of dollars I make doing art.

What materials do you use?  How much of your work (if any) gets done on the computer?
These days all my work is done digitally with the use of a Wacom Cintiq 24HD. I’m addicted to the undo command and I’m not ashamed of it.

When working on artwork for bands ( like Intronaut ), do you get a lot of direction?
I work a lot better when it’s just my ideas, but occasionally I’ll get direction from the band. There have been times where I cut the project short due to moronic ideas that go nowhere, though. Kill fee, kids. Always have a kill fee in your contracts. Sacha from Intronaut was awesome to work with. He had a vague idea to start with and then I just took it from there.

Do you draw inspiration from the bands music?
Not really, unless I’m doing work for a Tijuana Brass band.

Do you use reference materials?
Life is my reference material. Why do you think I spent a year in the Amazon studying Emperor Tamrin monkeys and eating nothing but twigs and grub worms? For scientific research? Nah, muh. It was for a new print that I’m currently doing.

I anxiously await that print.  I assume it will not come cheep.
It’s the most affordable yet most costly print ever made. To obtain one, you must offer me your life. The price is equal to blood spilled.

You recently had a give-away on Facebook where you asked people to profess their love to you.  What was the winner’s entry?  ( I did read this right?  That wasn’t a drunken hallucination?)
The winner was picked randomly, so I don’t really remember if their love proposal was tantalizing or not. I was extremely disappointed in the lack of response from the ladies, but that’s a given. Women don’t seem to respond well to creepy Asian men who offer artwork in exchange for meaningless words of passion on a public forum. Oh well. The majority of responses were from grown men and they were absolutely disgusting yet hilarious.

What projects are you currently working on?
I’m currently working on myself as a person and trying to overcome my insecurities and crippling social anxiety. I find being a freelance illustrator does NOT help with this at all. Oh wait, you mean what am I drawing these days? I got a few commissions for poster prints coming up as well as some top secret stuff that I cannot reveal just yet. I also have a gallery show in NY coming up in October with 3 other rad dudes that I’m really excited about. As far as band work goes, I don’t have much coming up other than more shirt designs for my friends in KEN mode, so if they’re rolling through your town in their upcoming tour, please pick up a shirt and help pay for their gas/food expenses!

What are your all time favorite bands, and what are you listening to right now?
I don’t really listen to metal anymore, to be honest. I tend to listen to more chill shit like Tycho, Stebmo, Sven Libaek, Library Tapes or Janko Nilovic. However, these days I find myself wanting to listen to podcasts rather than music.

Do you have any “Dream Projects”?
I’m sorta moving away from doing music related projects and property stuff and focusing more on doing my own thing, which is coincidentally a dream project in itself.

What advice would you give to an artist that is looking to design for bands?
Make friends in the music scene that you can practice making designs for. Hopefully that band won’t suck and they’ll recommend you to other bands. NEVER work for free. It only cheapens the profession and further perpetuates the belief that all artists should be starving. No matter how tempting it is to work for ‘exposure’ never do it. That’s a bullshit excuse for cheapness. You can’t pay your bills with the 10 new Facebook likes that the band gets you.

Have a contract in place to protect your ass and have everything lined out in specifics as to what you are going to do so there is no misunderstanding.

Above all, assess what you think you’re worth and never back down.

Randy, this was a fantastic interview and I really enjoyed letting you speak your mind.  You are a very talented artist and I look forward to degrading myself on facebook for future prints of your work!

 Designing a great logo isn’t easy.  Neither is writing multiple introductions to articles about designing them.  So lets just dive right in with a personal favorite of mine.

This logo is Fan-fucking-tastic!  It is a perfect example of a legible representation of a Sludgy, Doom Metal band from Arkansas named Deadbird.  We here at MBA (and by “we” I mean myself and Vertebrae 33 ) love birds.   I personally think V33 should throw a bird into everything he draws.  I’m not sure his clients would agree…

Ghost looks like a band that sacrifice’s goats on stage, but they sound like they got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell.  This logo fits their retro spooky sound and tongue-and-cheek Satanism perfectly.

Fuck yea.  Shiny bladed lettering underscored by more shiny jagged tools of death.  Only cartoon death metal maniacs Dethklok can make a dream catcher look metal.  That is a nightmare catcher.

Rob Zombie is a every polarizing figure in both the metal world, and the art world.  Love him or hate him, he injects everything he touches with a rusty horror movie syringe filled with stars, tits and monsters.   White Zombie’s logo worked great on many different vehicles.  Its circle design made it look great on a sticker, patch, CD label or Button.  Fueling the WZ merch machine.

Let me start off by saying….Dragonforce makes cheesy music.  Lucky for me this is an art site.  This logo is a wonderful representation of what you are in store for when you gingerly place a Dragonforce disk into your Alienware computer.   I am assuming the people that listen to Dragonforce have grossly overpriced gaming computers.  Now that I got all the joking out of the way (in an effort to save some street cred) let’s admit that that this logo is pretty sweet.

This is simplicity done right.  The Gaza logo fits the rebellious, defiant personality of the band itself.  A twist of the anarchy symbol written as if it was scrawled on a wall by fire bomb throwing protesters.

Certain artists make work that just resonates with me on so many levels. Seldon Hunt is one of those artists. He has done work for such bands as: Isis, Neurosis, High on Fire, Melvins, sunno))), Pelican and Nachtmystium. Whether he is engulfing the viewer in gnarly details or transporting us to another place with his photo manipulations…it just finds a place in your brain to sit and hang out. Long after I am done looking at his work, it keeps coming back to me.

How did you get your first paying art job?
A friend of mine showed my work to KK Null of Zeni Geva. 6 months later he commissioned me to do a cover for a solo release on Manifold records. Although there was no money involved, it essentially was the first time I was commissioned for my own style of work.  I’m not sure when I first got paid for an art project!!!

Have you always worked in your current style and if not how did you work before?
I guess I have always had a certain aesthetic approach. Certainly the hyper detail work began fairly early and I have developed that over the years. I am always interested in pursuing new techniques and mediums. Drawing was something I did not do a lot of in the early part of my career but I started developing that as I wanted to create more personal images.

Who are your artistic influences?
Honestly I am not sure. I loved Anselm Kieffer, Basqaiut, Brett Whitely early in my life but I’m not sure if they influenced me at all outside of just wanting to be an artist. Its not arrogance to say that I am not influenced, but one thing I have always wanted to be was completely original. I never mimicked any artists style, or wanted to create anything that represented someone else’s work.

Tell us about your studio space?
I work from home.

Take us through a typical for day Mr. Seldon Hunt?
Generally its coffee first, a walk then it depends on what I am working on. I work at nights 4 times a week, so my schedule can be pretty hectic.

How do you create your work? Take us through the process from concept to final.
HA, well that depends on the technique I am using. with drawing I do some rough sketches, to get client approval, then start a detailed pencil base. Once I have this finalized I just start inking from left to right until its finished. With the hyper detail work, well, I just start and make it up as i go along, as its kind of hard to plan those out. I usually have a general idea in my head of what I want but it usually evolves into something entirely different.

What materials do you use? How much if any is done on the computer?
I use a computer for the digital work obviously. I tend to work with Rotring pens for my hand style works.

Do you use reference materials or does all of it come from your head?
Most of it comes from my head. With the drawing Ill often use google images for reference, especially if there are animals in the mix. I like to get their basic form correct.

Do the bands give you any direction?
50% of the time. It depends on the band, sometimes bands give no direction and then hate what I have done because its not what they wanted!

Do you have an advice for artist’s who wish to do artwork for bands?
Yeah, don’t expect to make a living from it, and don’t expect it to last forever. Scenes die and you tend to get dragged down with that.  I guess also be stubborn about being paid. If a band cant afford $700 for a cover, then they shouldn’t have the gall to ask you to work for them.

What are you currently working on?
I’m working on the new release by The Ocean.

Do you have any dream projects?
I’d like to work large scale with architects on mural projects.

What are your favorite bands of all time and what bands are you listening to right now?
ACDC, Cosmic Psychos, Neurosis, Motorhead, The Ramones, Autopsy…. and I’m listening to them still.