THE EMPENNAGE

2010-10-28T10:18:00.000-07:00

The Baltic Sea EP Release Show at Space Gallery, Portland, Maine.
Recyclable UV print on craft paper via Portland Color.

"UV curable direct-to-substrate printing is a digital relative of silkscreen printing. Using a digital workflow, ink is painted a line at a time onto a substrate, held in place by a vacuum bed. The substrate can be a flat board or rolled material, and the print bed is typically 5 feet by 10 feet in size. Traditional UV curable inks (free-radical inks) are sprayed onto the substrate and then immediately exposed to very bright, hot lamps to cure the inks instantly."

2010-10-15T20:55:00.000-07:00

AoK SF record

2010-10-03T08:56:00.000-07:00

After a non-stop summer of mountain biking, surfing, extreme back injuries and finally healing I think its time to get back to some artwork. Putting the final touches on AoK's packaging hopefully in time for their cd release show with legendary Thrones.

AoK Suicide Forest, Kaveldt, La Otricina (Holy Mountain), Desolate Grace.

2010-07-01T19:37:00.000-07:00

Isis / Cave In prints SOLD OUT

2010-06-23T16:21:00.000-07:00

The limited run of 73 prints were gone about an hour after the doors opened for the show last night here in Portland, Maine. Thanks to everyone who purchased a poster and thanks to the bands for a killer night of music. I might be doing a second edition run for anyone that still wanted to get one. More on that soon.

printing isis + cave in

2010-06-20T10:31:00.001-07:00

Last show in the United States. Limited run of 70 prints, s/n. Posters are $10. Available at the show or email me at theempennage@gmail.com

....metallic shine

ISIS / CAVE IN

2010-06-18T05:14:00.001-07:00

Isis broke up. This is the last tour.
Metallic gold and black ink on HEAVY 120lb. paper.
Pics of screen prints coming soooon

Swarming Hordes vinyl discography

2010-06-06T21:10:00.000-07:00

Wriggle By Day, Writhe By Night!
Seattle, Washington's SWARMING HORDES 1996-2006 Discography
12" vinyl record jackets. Lathe cut clear vinyl by Peter King, New Zealand. Very limited release of only 42 copies. I designed and printed these for Los Angeles based label Trademark Recordings..
metallic gold and black ink on wicked nice paper.

2010-06-06T21:07:00.000-07:00

AoK posters available for $10
contact me at theempennage@gmail.com

AoK Suicide Forest, Megachurch, Clan of the Cavebear, Lapsed Axis

2010-05-16T15:34:00.000-07:00

The Holwell Account

2010-04-30T16:50:00.001-07:00

EP cd package for the Maine metal group.

MONOTONIX!!

2010-04-02T15:33:00.000-07:00

metallic gold, dark red and black ink on white tag board. 11"x17". Run of 48.
Available at the show.

Lesbian. Mountain Bar, Los Angeles.

2010-03-24T13:26:00.000-07:00

AoK Suicide Forest / Kaveldt debut show

2010-03-11T07:06:00.001-08:00

2010-03-05T10:23:00.000-08:00

cage the elephant

2010-02-25T10:48:00.001-08:00

Town

2010-02-13T11:50:00.000-08:00

Humboldt County >>Music at Mateel

2010-01-25T12:35:00.000-08:00

Poster for an arts festival at the Mateel Community Center in Redway, Ca.
Benefit for Casterlin School.

Street Metal is the Devil's Art

2010-01-11T20:12:00.001-08:00

Back to the Mountain

2010-01-10T13:26:00.001-08:00

Two Thousand And Ten

2010-01-01T18:58:00.000-08:00

As far as music goes, I am now playing drums in the Portland metal band Hessian with some local dates coming up and a new (post-Conifer) project Kaveldt is coming along. Debut show for that band I am hoping will be in March sometime. The trans-national sound collective, Machu Picchu Mother Future, that I am apart of with 10 other members (consisting of 3 bands)was just released on red wax vinyl via the French record label MusicFearSatan. This release is a split with Nadja and Year of No Light.

Posters at Space Gallery film screening 1/7

2010-01-01T17:20:00.000-08:00

Film: American Artifact:The Rise of American Rock Poster Art
Thursday 01.07.2010, Doors at 7:00 PM, Starts at 7:30 PM, $7 or $5 for SPACE members, All Ages

American Artifact chronicles the rise of American rock poster art since its birth in the 1960s and suggests that we're currently in the midst of a rock poster renaissance. The film, which includes interviews with over 30 artists, takes the viewer on a journey through the different decades and incarnations of this rebellious art form, and spends time with some of the finest artists of this era talking about what inspired their truly American works of art. Work by local postertmakers Leif Sherman Curtis, Zachary Howard, Kris Johnsen and Reuben J. Little will be on display.

FAMILY

2009-11-30T15:15:00.000-08:00

Stasis/Bloodhoney hoodie

2009-11-27T11:33:00.001-08:00

For the doom metal band Stasis from the lovely state of Maine.

Warrior/Hunter

2009-11-24T06:26:00.001-08:00

Illustration/design for New Jersey's (Damn) This Desert Air t-shirts.

2009-11-22T15:12:00.001-08:00

2009-11-21T18:01:00.000-08:00

fly eagle-deth, to everyone

2009-11-09T15:32:00.000-08:00

Junius + Tombs + Irepress + Herra Terra. Middle East Club, Cambridge, Mass.
First draft.

Wriggle By Day, Writhe By Night

2009-11-08T17:27:00.000-08:00

SWARMING HORDES!! 1996-2006 Discography
12" vinyl record jackets. Very limited release of only 42 copies via Los Angeles based label Trademark Recordings..
metallic gold and black ink on wicked nice paper.

Still need to be cropped and scored..

comrade

2009-11-08T17:13:00.000-08:00

Kyle Bryant in the shop

2009-10-30T13:45:00.000-07:00

geometry from decay

2009-10-18T16:20:00.000-07:00

colepitz reunion shirt

Slaying some prints...

2009-10-17T23:41:00.000-07:00

Autumn Dweller

2009-10-09T15:55:00.000-07:00

Haunted Harmonies Halloween Show: The Cyborg Trio + Baltic Sea.
Heavy tagboard. 3 screens. 14"x22". Run of 67. s/n

Prints done today while jammin some black metal and German rock.
Color gradiants on two of the screens. Metallic silver to blue,
then the second layer red to orange to metallic gold/yellow.

The Acadia Sessions

2009-10-06T22:46:00.001-07:00

Over five years ago my friends Marc & Gina Bartholomew first rented a warehouse space in the Bayside neighborhood of Portland, Maine to build a recording studio. My band Conifer was the first band to record in the space...barely any walls erected and with minimal gear we recorded our first full length. That was in 2004. Since then they have recorded some of the best records to come out of our city & elsewhere (Ocean, Cerberus Shoal, Seekonk, An Evening With, from extreme metal to indie rock to folk and beyond)... Their latest endeavor, with the help of film documentarian David Camlin, is a new music documentary series filmed inside the studio called The Acadia Sessions to be aired this winter on public television's WPBN:

The Acadia Sessions Trailer from Marc Bartholomew on Vimeo.

Today I printed the posters for the shows launch party at Space Gallery..

((taped the screens up))

((multi-colored split fountain w/ metallic gold into red/orange into green))

[first layer down}

((then the final layer of black))

{pop}

done.

2009-09-28T16:32:00.000-07:00

Illustration

PICNIC 2009

2009-09-14T08:03:00.000-07:00

The music + craft festival was a success, despite the pouring rain all day. We almost sold out of the "Bury Me In Maine" shirts and another design. Thank you to all who came out that day and to the festival organizers who made the event possible.
One of the best performances of the day was a great set by the band Batshelter. Go see them.

SWARMING HORDES 1996-2006 LP

2009-08-26T19:48:00.000-07:00

Swarming Hordes 12" discography! Lathe cut vinyl by Peter King, New Zealand. Clear vinyl, VERY LIMITED to only 42 copies available mid-September for pre-order from Los Angeles based record label Trademark Recordings. I designed the drafts below and will be screen printing the jackets. Metallic gold and black ink on hvy white.

(front)

(back)

"Alright, let’s go straight to the facts by listing the three most important bands in Seattle music history: The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Nirvana, and the Swarming Hordes. No, this is not hyperbole. Ask anyone who has lived in Seattle for the past decade or two and they’ll say the exact same thing. The Hordes toured with Modest Mouse, said “fuck you” to an offer from Sub Pop, played so hard they’d often throw up at the end of shows, had fashion mullets and ironic mustaches before it was fashionable and ironic, skateboarded to Hell and back while cranking Nuns Have No Fun, made Slayer and Metallica temporarily break-up, and laughed in the face of the Fucking Champs. No superlatives needed. Seriously, just ask. I dare you. Just ask! Bow down and play some fucking metal."

Members went on to jam with Girth, the Abodox, and tons of other bands.

"cauliflower ear"

2009-08-25T12:18:00.000-07:00

(back)

BLACK FLAG GRIPS

T-shirts for the on-set grip crew of the film The Fighter, directed by Darren Aronofsky and starring Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale, to be released sometime in 2010. The story of boxer Micky Ward.

"I am the walrus....skull."

2009-08-24T13:39:00.000-07:00

It's a New Day On The Prairie

2009-08-20T16:30:00.000-07:00

CD Release gig poster for Arms & Sleepers + Junius.
MiddleEast Club, Cambridge, MA.

2009-08-11T20:56:00.000-07:00

Lee "Scratch" Perry printed

2009-08-04T15:57:00.001-07:00

Metallic gold and black ink. 11x17. hvy tagboard. Run of 100. s/n

kaveldt two-thousand-nine

2009-07-31T16:21:00.000-07:00

Empennage + Arm Factory at PICNIC Music & Arts Festival

2009-07-31T08:41:00.000-07:00

Confirmed...i think. I will have a booth and the print shop co-op will have one hopefully right next to me. The event will be taking place at Lincoln Park in downtown Portland, Maine on September 12th... It will have a number of local bands performing, many many crafters and some food vending going on. I will be doing a very limited run of posters for the PICNIC Festival..and there might be a giant fluffy monster eating itself on the poster, but that has not been confirmed yet.

[Photo Recap] ASSEMBLE at SPACE GALLERY 7.18

2009-07-26T18:10:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday the 18th the Arm Factory took over SPACE with live painting on stage, delicious food and live screen printing! Below are the process pics for the Baltic Sea posters I did and Arm Factory poster comrade Daryl Tapley printing an original limited run. Pictures taken by fellow local screen-printer Kris Johnsen...

2 colors down!

Setting up registration for the final color...

Lee "Scratch" Perry poster

2009-07-22T14:40:00.000-07:00

This is the second time I have had the privilege to do a poster for the original Upsetter, LSP, live and in the flesh..

First draft. Extra-terrestrial sorceror of a lost tribe.
The first layer will be metallic gold ink and second layer black.

The Baltic Sea printed

2009-07-19T09:53:00.000-07:00

3 screens. Metallic silver, gold & bronze ink. 17x24 hvy tagboard. Run of 50.
Printed them live at the Space Gallery last night. Poster comrade Reuben Little of 43rd Parallel Press printed the second layer.

ch-ch-ch-changes...

2009-07-17T07:21:00.000-07:00

we broke up..
but here is a recent review that was featured in the United Kingdom's avant-rock/alternative metal/noise magazine, Rock-A-Rolla:

Recently I have been playing with some new people. The new stuff has repetition, synth keyboards, rock n'roll, some krautrock influences, and some of the HEAVY. There will be a vocoder, there will be lyrics. Sounding a bit psychedelic. It is very driving. It is not stoner rock. It is not metal. It does remind me of a Conifer II, but thats because I can't breakup with myself.

The name of the band is definitely not High-A-Synth.

The Baltic Sea / Henry Gale at the Arm Factory shop

2009-07-14T15:11:00.000-07:00

First draft..

Local songscape walkers The Baltic Sea are joined with Boston's instrumental whale wrestlers Henry Gale at The ARm Factory...200 Anderson street, Portland.

I will be printing these posters live, saturday night at the Assemble event, at Space Gallery. The orange color you see will be metallic gold ink, the grey will be metallic silver and the dark brown will be a dark copper.
Most likely a limited run of 50 or so.

My practice scratchboard sessions are going well. The next poster i do will have a last layer of black that will be something from scratchboard.

Assemble poster process

2009-07-10T20:57:00.000-07:00

Done. 100 prints. 5 colors. 4 screens used. 18x24 hvy tagboard. s/n

Started with the water..

Then added the sky...

After that I put down the hot hot pink, which made the orange pop out, then last layer of black.

Big thanks to Zarra, Jeremy and Dom who swooped down to the Arm Factory to help me out, someday we'll get a drying rack.

Assemble poster

2009-07-06T15:42:00.000-07:00

Assemble is a multi-media event at the Space Gallery organized by Dominic of the Arm Factory. There will be live wall painting, live silk-screening, food and music. I'm going to be printing new original prints and probably the finished version of this poster. Here is the first draft:

Graveyard in San Francisco prints

2009-06-28T12:17:00.000-07:00

I'm really happy the way these turned out, this is a killer bill. Two screens used, the first layer was a split fountain of burnt orange and sahara red. White tagboard 18x24. Sunset on the warrior.....check out Graveyard.

Citadelle

2009-06-28T07:02:00.001-07:00

Shirts are done for Citadelle , a fantastic psych band that you've never heard of. Their first lp will be seeing the light of day soon. I am doing the artwork and will post first drafts for that.

Radiance Arts & Culture Festival printed

2009-06-25T03:53:00.001-07:00

3 screens

Radiance Festival 2009

2009-06-15T21:34:00.000-07:00

First draft for the third annual multi-media happening. More information coming.

Graveyard (Sweden), Lumerians + Citadelle. Cafe Du Nord, San Francisco.

2009-06-15T21:26:00.000-07:00

First draft.

Arm Factory at Bonnaroo Festival

2009-06-09T17:01:00.001-07:00

Been helping the guys get ready for the festival. They hit the road last night for Tennessee loaded up with shirts, hoodies and posters galore. I did a bunch of poster runs for them. Here is one, Fire Mother, designed by Bob Smyth, printed by me. One screen, three colors.

Secret Chiefs 3 / Kayo Dot

2009-05-01T19:51:00.000-07:00

Poster for the Space Gallery-Portland, Maine show

Arm Factory Print Shop Collective shirt

2009-04-27T16:02:00.000-07:00

Print & Destroy!!

Here is some local press about Portland, Maine screen-printers and our various shops..

QUALMS tshirt

2009-04-27T15:57:00.000-07:00

ultra minimal for the Chicago duo featuring drummer Dale of Lynx fame

Tshirt for Citadelle (San Francisco psych-rock)

2009-04-24T17:13:00.000-07:00

Moneycastasia poster..

2009-03-20T09:08:00.000-07:00

Here is a flyer for Leif's (Conifer, Prism Camp)other band Moneycastasia for a Portland, Maine show! I'll post soon a tshirt design for San Francisco's psych rockers Citadelle (formerly of Portland, ME) and a hoodie design for the Maine doom band Stasis. Big changes are in the air, very excited about the Maine thaw. More SOON...

Fred Wesley poster (trombone player for the James Brown Band)

2009-03-11T15:18:00.000-07:00

super minimal... and I am going crazy. More work will be posted soon.

My hibernation, tour.. & a gigposter for The Baltic Sea...

2009-01-09T10:32:00.000-08:00

Wow, I haven't updated this blog for a number of months...until now. I remember my friend Demian Johnston giving me shit about not updating The Empennage regularly...about two months ago when we played a show with him in Seattle at the Comet. Demian and Shane used to play in the now defunct and lovable Playing Enemy and now they have a two piece project called Hemingway (which to no surprise really was absolutely amazing!). This was the first show of the west coast Conifer tour but actually wasn't even a Conifer show but a Conifer-Lesbian improv-supergroup-sound-worship collective known as Machu Picchu Mother Future. I must really talk about this show as I rank it as one of the best performances I have ever participated in. Truly amazing, members flying in from around the country, making it to the club literally minutes before playing on stage. There were 9 of us total including two drummers, four guitarists and three bass players....and a fog machine. A packed house at The Comet where at one point, when I felt like a goddamn spaceship was lifting off inside the club, everything went slow motion and the stage and audience were one swirling ameoba of hair and smoke and fists shaking in the air, the sound clowns climbing and circling to greater heights weeping and wailing.. Ahhh, what a PERFECT way to kickstart the energy of our tour. You can see more pics of the whole west coast jaunt at the Conifer myspace site if you're interested. ...oh, here is a gigposter I did for the Baltic Sea at the Space Gallery coming up soon....

conifer west coast tour poster

2008-10-24T19:57:00.000-07:00

Arm Factory Collective print shop moves to East Bayside Portland

2008-10-11T06:40:00.000-07:00

After midnight moving crusades, freight elevator journeys and with help of dear friends and participants, the Arm Factory has now left the mill building in Westbrook and finds its new home in the east Bayside neighborhood of Portland. A much bigger space with multiple rooms, this move is exactly what we all needed for the shop! First friday art walks, live shows including music and printing and other workshops shall be a constant.. Stop by and check it out sometime...200 Anderson Street.

NEW POSTER: Conifer record release party with Akimbo

2008-10-08T19:00:00.000-07:00

Poster for the Space Gallery show in Portland, Maine with the thunderous AKIMBO of Seattle. Shark on.

Conifer shirt design for IMPORTANT RECORDS

2008-10-08T15:21:00.000-07:00

Shirts and albums on sale at ImportantRecords.com. New record out and gearing up for the west coast tour. Vinyl should be available very soon if not already thru Important. We will be sporting some very special edition Conifer shirts for this...very psychedelic and lots of colors. Will post soon once they are made. This has been the craziest few months that I have had in years, and I am not sure when it will finally let up.

Another shirt for Stasis...

2008-10-08T15:16:00.001-07:00

tshirt for Maine doom band STASIS

2008-09-30T14:11:00.000-07:00

In homage to the Scorpions EP of 1972 called Lonesome Crow, which has nothing to do with Stasis, but gave me the inspiration for art. Bling bling.

GET DEAF!!! ... a very limited run of Conifer shirts

2008-09-22T14:56:00.001-07:00

Tshirts for SEAN (2 piece band from Seattle)

2008-09-22T14:51:00.000-07:00

For our Weekend of the Unicorn Ride Tour buddies...

Print Show at Corduroy (Portland 1st Friday Art Walk)

2008-09-22T14:45:00.000-07:00

Big thanx to the crew at Corduroy and to everyone who came out.. such a good time..
more pics soon..

Anduin LP jackets printed!

2008-08-03T18:56:00.000-07:00

Jackets printed with the help of Leif over at the Conifer/Ocean practice space (aka 43rd Parallel Press headquarters). Happy Birfday to Rueben...
Now it's time for me to design/print me arse off for the show at Corduroy (the First Friday print show in September). See you there. Also doing some shirts for An Evening With

Anduin 12" LP cover

2008-06-30T07:02:00.000-07:00

Jonathan Lee of the Richmond, Virginia band Souvenir's Young America is releasing his solo record as Anduin, 12" lp titled Forever Waiting. I will be printing up a very limited 300 very soon.
Jonathan is releasing Anduin through his Richmond based label called SMTG Limited. Be sure to pick one of these up when it's available and soak in the "world of slow-moving, drone-melodies and buried found sounds".

Moneycastasia shirts

2008-06-29T16:39:00.000-07:00

Printed these up today at the shop. Bling Blam "Fish On!" Maine style.

Moneycastasia tshirt design

2008-06-27T18:14:00.000-07:00

For the gypsy-folk-prog rockers of Portland, Maine. Moneycastasia features Leif Sherman Curtis of Conifer/She-Level.

OXBOW European tour shirts

2008-06-03T07:48:00.000-07:00

For the cum-fight-hypnographic noise makers of San Francisco, one of the greatest "art-rock" bands that nobody cares about...

New Poster: Lee Scratch Perry/ Portland, Maine

2008-06-01T19:38:00.000-07:00

The legendary Scratch, aka the Upsetter, the Super-Ape, Pipecock Jackson, Inspector Gadget, the Firmament Computer, and a cornucopia of other monikers and aliases— visits Portland, bringing his odd blend of Rastafarian psychedelia/reggae/dub... YES PLEASE..

some gig posters from the past year...

2008-05-31T21:35:00.001-07:00

confirmación

2008-05-13T13:39:00.000-07:00

It's confirmed. My stuff will be on display in September at Corduroy, a surf boutique & gallery located in the Portland Old Port. Stop by there NOW and check out Chris Dingwell's paintings that are up....absolutely jaw-dropping.

Print & Destroy

2008-05-11T16:02:00.000-07:00

Working on setting up a show of my prints in September, including new b&w series i have started and some minimal 1,2 + 3 color silkscreens. These will not be gigposters (a seperate show featuring local Portland, Maine gigposter artists is in the works) but this show will be for my original prints....and will also feature a collaborative print with my friend and fellow aural/visual terrorizer Demian Johnston of Seattle, WA.
MORE DETAILS COMING SOOOON

2008-05-07T11:57:00.000-07:00

hot chef

2008-05-06T19:00:00.001-07:00

1979

2008-05-06T18:52:00.000-07:00

Portland, Maine vs. Krypton (Skelaxin)

2008-05-06T18:50:00.001-07:00

Machu Picchu Honeycomb tshirts

2008-05-06T18:38:00.000-07:00

New Conifer Crown Fire prints available at the shows.... and i threw my back out.. Yay.