First off is Jog- the Blog, where Jog (Real name? I have no clue! Maybe Jog!) dissects comics like a surgeon with a mission. Seriously, he makes DC's über-event 52 sound halfway interesting and that, my friends, is quite a feat. While I'm not interested in some of what he posts on (he's a lot more into anime than I ever could hope to be), he's always worth checking in on.
Next up is the website for Sagmeister, Inc. For those of you who aren't familiar with the design work of Stefan Sagmeister, well, I think he's one of the most interesting designers out there. Easily. His work is sometimes a little too "out there," (namely his AIGA invite wherein all the type was, honest-to-goodness, X-Acto-ed into his flesh... ouch...), but it's always real, breathtaking and, in its way, touching. His Q&A for students is especially enlightening.
Next stop, Rotofugi, which I had the pleasure of visiting during my stopover in Chicago with the always excellent Brinkerhoffs. They're fast becoming my favorite stop for urban vinyl (basically expensive toys for grown-ups). They have a great selection at a lot of price platforms and a cool little store, to boot. Also, their logo is Able Lincoln with an eyepatch, so, yeah.
We will next stop in at the homepage for the best comics series ever, Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim. O'Malley captures the manic energy, uncertainty, awkwardness and hyperactivity of twenty-something life and love like a sonuva. Also, these books are hilarious. And they have fighting. Lots and lots of fighting.
Next stop is at Aesthetic Apparauts, home of some awesome silkscreened posters. I have lusted after more than a few of their wares for some time now. Someday I will make one mine. I'm especially keen on the "Artificial Orange Cream" one filed under "Art Prints." See, it's rad, right? Someday.
We'll also hit Netflix because it rules. Nuff said. Shall we move on?
Let's peek in on Corey "Rey" Lewis, creator of Oni Press' arcade logic title, Sharknife. His Manga-influenced art is packed to the brim with energy and while his pages have a tendency to favor denseness over clarity (it's not uncommon to have to look at a Sharknife page for a long while to figure what, exactly is happening in it), they're always pure radness. I'm looking forward to volume 2: Sharknife Double Z. It will most likely rule.
Next up is the homepage for my favoritest band right now, Spoon. I'm really excited about their forthcoming album, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga and hopefully, we'll be seeing them over this summer somewhere.
What's that? More poster sites? Okay, how about the Heads Of State? They've got some really awesome posters. Just check out the Books one, printed on salvaged maps. How cool is that?
For a really extensive urban vinyl site, I'd recommend My Plastic Heart. Aside from a clever name, they have a lot of stuff. I've not ordered from them yet, but their site is nice and, like I said, they stock a lot of cool stuff beyond just vinyl.
I've already admitted my love for the work of Mike and Laura Allred on this blog, so you know that my opinion is a little tainted when I say that the man produces some of the most beautiful work in comics today. Check out the AAAPop site if you're still not convinced. I'm still waiting on my copy of Madman's Atomic Comics #1, the new series from Image, but I'm sure it's gorgeous and cool. Such is my love for, and faith in, the Awesome Allreds.
And speaking of comics, you know when you're watching some documentary on TV and they're talking about junkies and how the first thing they do when they relocate is find a dealer and start right back on the junk they were fleeing? Well, here's the link to my latest dealer of sequential smack: Astound! Don't let the bare-bones HTML site fool you, this is a well-stocked shop, almost as good as the pillars of rad that are Vegas' Alternate Reality and Cosmic Comics. My master plan is to do some brand work for the store in trade for comics. If that doesn't work I'll start robbing little old ladies for comic money. Yeah, I have a problem.
Next up is Pete Fowler's Monsterism. Fowler's been doing covers for Super Furry Animals for a while now and his vinyl figures were my gateway into the urban vinyl scene a year or so back. It's a fun site with a lot to see and do. I especially like the "Build Your Own Monster," game.
The AIGA site had a piece on the Wooster Collective the other day and I immediately was taken with their blog. It's a blog dedicated to chronicling the emphemeral: street art. Now let me say this: I am sort of obsessed with graffiti. I have been ever since my brother Bryan and I would walk home through the Vegas wash and see it thrown up on the sides of the aqueducts. I think it's really cool and have to remind myself that it's against the law on a regular basis, otherwise Candace would be getting calls from the police every now and then asking her to come pick up her insane husband. I'm especially intrigued by sticker and stencil graffiti rather than tagging, but I think it's a really cool artform (as does my father-in-law, Dwayne. Yes, I am serious.).
Next up is Joel Priddy's Just and Honorable Empire of Pulpatoon, home to some of Joel Priddy's illustration and comics work. Priddy's offerings via Slave Labor Press have been the highlight of Free Comic Book Day for the past two years, with his the Preposterous Voyages of Iron-Hide Tom being one of the best comics (and funniest!) I read in all of last year. The man does a lot with so little. It's a little intimidating. He has some sketches, illustrations and comics up there. Check it.
Last, but certainly not least is the homepage for Hammerpress, a letterpress and design firm that does some really cool work. I respect the heck out of anyone that can make a letterpress work. It's hardcore, temperamental machinery, but when it works, it's gorgeous. Check out their store for posters, stationery, prints and other stuff worth shelling out the dough for.
Oh, what the heck, I'll throw in the link for Kuler as well, even though I have no clue what it is, but it sure is pretty, right?
And we're done. Whew. That was a lot more intense than I thought it would be. I apologize for any injuries you may have sustained, but, well, that's what happens when you roll with my clique. Word.
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