This is shaping up to be a big year for those that were involved in the Nightmare Before Christmas. Henry Selick, the director from NBC, tells the story of Coraline, originally a children’s story by Neil Gaiman. From the looks of the trailer and the viral marketing posters I have seen around, not to mention the interactive window display in Union Square SF, it looks to be another crown pleaser.
Well this is nothing like that, it’s Threadless 12 Club. For $200 a year you will get an exclusive tee delivered to your door every month for a year. Head over to their site now to sign up and to check out last years offerings.
No not the singer from Toronto, this is a new game for the mac that is still in beta. I was lucky enough to get my hands on a copy before they closed the download link. As it is described on the site, “A journey over mountains and through deep forests lies ahead. The trail isn’t told to be an easy one. Mad foes and unsafe dirt tracks are on its way. Only with cunningness and by risking to eat dodgy food one might find the power to reach the end of the journey.” The black silhouetted foreground contrasts with bright and colorful backgrounds, giving the game a eerie yet beautiful environment. As of now the game only consists of two short levels, but give the guy a break, it was his college thesis! It’s really more about the visual presentation right now. I can’t wait to see what this beta will grow into.
It’s that time of year again. Snow is falling (somewhere, not here) and 2008 is winding down, giving way to a new year. This is the first year I have had a blog, so in the tradition of some of my friends, I give you the albums that kept me motivated, helped me relax, and contributed so much to my well being working as an artist…
It was hard enough for me to decide on these, so they are in no particular order in their respective sections.
TOP 10
Bon Iver - For Emma, Forever Ago
The Bronx - Self Titled
Gaslight Anthem - The 59 Sound
Thrice - The Alchemy Index Vols. III & IV
Sigur Ros - Með suð í eyrum við spilum endalaust
Portishead - Third
Alkaline Trio - Agony And Irony
Black Keys - Attack & Release
Minus The Bear - Acoustics
Nine Inch Nails - The Slip
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Lewd Acts / Hour Of The Wolf Split
Cancer Bats - Hail Destroyer
Coldplay - Viva La Vida
Cold War Kids - Loyalty To Loyalty
Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid
Faint - Fasciinatiion
God Is An Astronaut - Self Titled
H20 - Nothing To Prove
Little Joy - Self Titled
Man Man - Rabbit Habits
The Out Circuit - Pierce The Empire With A Sound
Polar Bear Club - Sometimes Thing Just Disappear
Raconteurs - Consolers Of The Lonely
Rise Against - Appeal To Reason
TV On The Radio - Dear Science
Verse - Aggression
Young Widows - Old Wounds
Wolf Parade - At Mount Zoomer
Bloc Party - Intimacy
TOP 10 HEAVY
Trenches - The Tide Will Swallow Us Whole
Dragonforce - Ultra Beatdown
Disfear - Live The Storm
In Flames - A Sense Of Purpose
Norma Jean - The Anti Mother
Opeth - Watershed
All That Remains - Overcome
Bring Me The Horizon - Suicide Season
Children Of Bodom - Blooddrunk
Cursed - III The Architects Of Troubled Sleep
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Abigail Williams - In The Shadow Of A Thousand Suns
Bleeding Through - Declaration
After The Burial - Rareform
Scar Symmetry - Holographic Universe
Shai Hulud - Misanthropy Pure
Torche - Meanderthal
Trivium - Shogun
Underoath - Lost In The Sound Of Separation
Unearth - The March
Veil Of Maya - The Common Man’s Collapse
While the publish date did get pushed back a bit, I am still as excited as ever to finally get my hands on Beasts! Book 1 and 2. If you are in the Seattle area, consider yourself lucky, Fantagraphics is throwing a book release party and art show. The show will feature etchings, letterpress, screenprints and art by over 50 of the artists involved in the book.
More info at Fantagraphics
Years and years ago MTV once played music videos. This is back in the day when Ricky Rachtman was still hosting Headbangers Ball. MTV’s new uber-database of videos is searchable by artist or song and looks to have nearly every video they have ever played. Go now!
One of the destinations that I make sure I visit every time I am in SF is a little store in the Mission District called 826 Valencia. It doubles as a pirate supply store and also offers tutoring. While it might seem like a strange combination, you will instantly forget as you are perusing the various drawers full of telescopes and compasses. They even sell lard out of a giant barrel! If you have never been, I highly suggest you check it out. Now for the reason I am writing this post. A design firm in SF called Office recently gave the store some visual upgrades in the form of a new identity, posters and over 50 new products.
With past showings by artists like Chris Anthony and Sylvia Ji, the Corey Helford Gallery in Culver City remains to be one of my favorite galleries in Los Angeles. An upcoming show by Lola will draw me to this gallery once again to look at art that I can’t quite afford. Maybe they will offer prints of her new stuff, fingers crossed.
If someone like Tim Burton, Roman Dirge or Jhonen Vasquez were to make a puzzle game, then it would probably look and feel pretty close to World Of Goo. I won’t need to say much once you watch the video above but it’s fun, quirky, addictive, and well designed. Along with being a somewhat challenging puzzle game, it’s sarcastic humor and visuals will have even those not interested in video games hooked. Get it on Wii Ware now! You can read a more in depth review on this game here.
A video of Gary Baseman sketching inside an old book drew me to this site. Seeing established artists process is not only beneficial to learning how to bring your own art to the next level, but shows you how each artist emerges into his own style. This site has tons of amazing videos by all kinds of artists sketching, hence the name.
If you have ever wondered what was going through a designers head when they were designing your favorite band’s album cover… then look no further because Sleevage will educate you from a designers perspective. While they don’t have interviews from every designer, they do have some great insight as to what goes into creating these essential works of art, some of which become just as legendary as the bands themselves. I especially enjoyed the history of Iron Maiden’s albums and the evolution of Eddie over the years. Get ready to spend some time on this site.
If you have been watching True Blood and Dexter this season like I have, you may have noticed that they both have exceptionally designed intro videos. That is no mistake, as they were both produced by Digital Kitchen. Besides contributing to both these amazing shows, they are also guilty of creating the awesome intro to Six Feet Under, as well as tons of other great projects. It always makes me happy when the entertainment industry recognizes the importance of hiring professionals to design their logos and intros, as there are so many shows and movies that just fall short. Maybe it’s because I am a designer myself, but I am pretty sure it’s not just me that is disappointed when a much anticipated movie or show comes out with bland white text scrolling across the screen for the credits with a title that looks like it was typed out in arial at the end of it. If I ever get a chance to contribute to an intro for a movie or show, you can bet I will definitely be looking to these guys for some inspiration.
Sorry for the lack of updates lately. I am back and in action now, there will be regular updates from now on. I swear I wasn’t just playing this instead of writing posts.
Crate and Barrel has just raised the bar with the coolest coffee table I have seen in a while. Designed by a London based graphic designer who was inspired by a table seen at a Paris flea market. I can hear the type nerd voices in my head telling me to reach for my credit card… must resist…
If you are a graphic designer and work in the music industry at all, this book is a must have. It features the logos of bands from all types of music. In addition to that, it has interviews with some of the designers. Great insight into what goes into designing a logo for a band.
A good friend of mine, you know who you are, was able to work on the team that created the campaign for a new show coming out on FX called Sons Of Anarchy. If you live in LA, you may have already seen the ad (above, left) on bus stops and billboards. I love the direction, it is akin to something I would do myself. I always appreciate when mainstream media takes the time to get a real design team in place to do the work right. The show looks pretty awesome too… motorcycles, guns, drugs, and women, should make for some great family entertainment! Premieres Sept 3rd at 10pm on FX.
My friend and fellow designer Jim Richards is one of the creators of a recently launched clothing line called Lead Derby. In his description, “Lead Derby captures a moment in time, a memory, and the idealistic nature of taking it all easy and enjoying the now. It is Lead Derby’s hope that wearing our clothing brings you half the enjoyment it brings us in making it.” Which is exactly what it accomplishes. They will be in Vegas next week at the Pool Trade Show, if you are there, come check them out! Now available at Fred Segal Man.
Who knew Dex was a member of the Obey posse? He is back for a 3rd season and it couldn’t have come any quicker. Mark your calendars for Sept 28th, 9pm. Yes I did actually set a reminder in iCal.
If you feel inclined to add my blog to your iPhone home screen. Now it will have a nifty Moon logo icon!
Christopher Lee’s entry for Beasts! Book Two, the next book of an emerging series that I recommend you check out. I missed out on the hardcover version of the first book, which features work by my friends at Invisible Creature, as well as many other great artists. Luckily they are going to release a paperback version on the same day that Book Two comes out. You can bet your ass that I have pre-ordered both so I don’t miss out this time, I suggest you do that same.
These guys have always inspired me with their dynamic style of graphic design. Don and Ryan deserve no less than their own successful design firm and metal band, Demon Hunter. They are down right amazing guys. As it says in their bio, “they have poured all of the creative passion and heart that two heavily tattooed, God fearing mama’s boys can muster into this new venture.” I have seen the creative passion first hand and believe every word of that statement.
If you haven’t already seen JSLV everywhere, you soon will. My friend and talented designer, Jayson Valencia, launched a clothing brand last year that has definitely made a mark on street culture in a short amount of time. These guys are everywhere, skate demos, X Games, car shows, music videos, you name it. I look forward to watching this brand grow even more.
Established in 2007, JSLV is an upcoming lifestyle collective brand, supporting the skate, snow and graffiti culture. JSLV was created in Southern California by two hungry young minds that come from two different lifestyle backgrounds and diverse cultures. Our first goal was to have a stylish and unique hat, from there came the fresh logo design that had the clean signature feel. We then produced some hats, printed the logo on some tees and laced all the family up. Soon after we took the name and what we stood for, reppin hard into the streets!
From the love and response that has come from the family and the streets we are mad hyped! We are dedicating ourselves to creating and producing fresh quality apparel, while continuing to appreciate every moment of this opportunity that we are blessed with. So whether it’s the fresh gear and kicks you’re rocking or what your dreams are, just always remember that life is what you make of it. So always keep your hustle on and JUS LIV…
Joshua Ortega and I have been collaborating on projects for years. We met while we were both working in the music industry, him at Drive Thru and myself at Vagrant. Then we both ended up designing for clothing companies, so needless to say our paths continued to cross frequently. Over the years we have become good friends and a great design team, when we get to work on projects together. We used to produce work under The Epidemik. The Epidemik is now at rest and had a site at one point (which was never fully functional), but neither one of us has ever really had a working portfolio site. With that said, we recently decided that we need to push each other to get a site up. Now that day has come…. Josh has worked for many of the clothing companies that you probably have in your closet and designed at least a few of the records you have on your shelf. He currently holds it down at Roxy, designing his heart out for the ladies.
Yes you read that correctly. My website is officially live on 8.8.08. Take a look, love it or hate it. Either way, send me some referrals will you? Keep an eye on my blog for future updates.
Check it out keathmoon.com
I know, it’s been 4 months since I said I would have my site posted. Well thank you to everyone who has been good enough to give me a steady work load. My plans for the site may have fell to the way side while I was taking care of my clients needs. After all, that is what this is all about isn’t it? I should have my site soft launched by the weeks end. I will be adding more work over the course of the next week after that. Once that is done it will be up to date and ready to bring me more work than I can handle!
I’ll start this blog out with a professional post, I am sure it will take a turn for the worst sooner than later. Until that happens, here it goes…April 2008 will mark my first foray into the world of freelancing full time. With the help and support of my friends, my family, and my clients, I have finally made this possible. I look forward to expanding business with my current clients and to working with new people in the future. One great web resource that has helped influence my decision is Freelance Switch I suggest that anyone interested in finding out more about freelancing read the resources that this site has to offer and listen to their podcasts.
Who is ready for 