My top graphic novel & album pairings up at CBC!

Recently I wrote a piece about five near-perfect teamups of graphic novels and albums-- check it out here! 

You'll find Moss Icon, Lungfish, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Tristeza, and Harold Budd/Brian Eno represented in the mix, along with comics by Katie Skelly, Eric Drooker, Gabriella Giandelli, Kolbeinn Karlsson, and yours truly.

new Harlan Records archive site is up!



From 1994-2010 I ran a small DIY punk label called Harlan Records. That label (and its accompanying site) and defunct, so I thought I'd start up a new site to document all of those moldy old releases and bands.

I'm still working out the kinks-- but the first release is up now. Soophie Nun Squad's "We Ate Slayer" demo tape from 1994! 

Please email me at seemybrotherdance@yahoo.com if you have any photos or videos of any of the bands. Thanks!

In Memory of Sarah Kirsch



Last Wednesday, December 5th, we all lost a truly inspiring, compassionate, talented human being.

Sarah Kirsch (long-time fixture of the Bay Area hardcore punk community, formerly known as Mike Kirsch, and member of the bands Fuel, Sawhorse, Pinhead Gunpowder, Navio Forge, John Henry West, Sixteen Bullets, Torches To Rome, Bread and Circuits, Please Inform The Captain This Is A Hijack, Baader Brains, and Mothercountry Motherfuckers) passed away last week after a long and difficult battle with Fanconi Anemia. She was someone so fundamental in shaping the way I have grown to experience the world, how to move through it and how best to use my expressive energy in confronting it, that it's difficult to imagine a world without her.

Here are pieces on her passing in the SF Weekly and MaximumRockNRoll.

Growing up in Arkansas in the early 1990's, my friends and I spent countless hours skateboarding and trampolining to the Fuel LP while writing and drawing our early comics efforts. That LP remains my ALL-TIME favorite album. When I sent word to one of those friends, Nathan Wilson, about her passing, I urged a listen to the album in her honor. He remarked with such simplicity and truth, "She really did create a sound that is immediately accessible whenever I think about it (even 21 years later), and probably always will be." He didn't even need to actually play the record-- the sound was so pervasive, so deeply-rooted in every fiber of our beings, that he only needed to find the space in his heart where it (and she) resides.

Bread And Circuits in Memphis TN, June 1999.

Sarah and I finally met at a Seein Red/ Yaphet Kotto/ Deathreat show in Little Rock in 1998, and built a friendship in the year after that as we helped book shows for each other's bands, and embarked on a short leg of tour together (with Bread and Circuits, Former Members of Alfonsin, and Soophie Nun Squad). Especially in the reactionary-PC climate of the late '90's, this pairing seemed pretty weird and incompatible to most people, but it was apparent that Sarah "got" what Soophie was trying to do with our performances, and respected our creative vision with which we tried to intertwine levity, fantasy, politics, and human interaction. Likewise, Sarah's bands used a holistic approach to their work-- building up music, performance, packaging, text, and intention to convey something much more powerful than even the already incredibly passionate music. At times we'd be a bit nervous that we falsely represented ourselves as being apolitical or disconnected, especially in the presence of older punks who had a much more pointed and serious focus to their music, but Sarah would constantly put us at ease, shedding those pretensions, costuming up with us at shows and even tucking us all into bed in Memphis one night, singing us an ad-libbed Frampton-style lullabye while wailing away on her guitar with a head-mounted miner's light casting shadows across the room. I'll treasure that forever.



Sarah and her friends displayed hospitality and unrivaled generosity when Soophie embarked on our West Coast tours, showing up at her door with 12-14 people for entire weekends, at the time oblivious to how imposing our presence might've been-- she always made us feel right at home, well-fed, and ready to take in the sights and sounds of her lifelong home.



I feel so privileged to've been able to spend time and break bread with Sarah semi-regularly since then, to see her last band play on tour a few summers ago, and to spend as much time as possible with her in the hospital last February.


 In a scene/community that generally eschews the notion of heroes, Sarah was probably the closest thing I've ever had to a hero throughout most of my life, and this was made all the more sweet and amazing as our friendship grew over these past 15 years. 

I don't want to write anymore about this right now, so I'll just say this: Sarah, you are missed and loved by everyone whose life you've touched, and truly by everyone who knew you. You amaze me, and always will. I would not be who I am today without you.

I recommend these tracks to give a glimpse into her incredible musical vision:

Skinflutes-- "Rebel Run"
Fuel-- "Instrumental (2:52)", "Cue To You", and "For Lack Of Better Words (Shine)"
Sawhorse-- "One"
Pinhead Gunpowder-- "I Wanna" and "Hey Now"
Navio Forge-- "Weaponizing"
John Henry West-- "Avoiding"
Torches To Rome-- "Young Arsenal" and "Numbered Days"
Bread And Circuits-- "Statute Of Limitations" and "Bloodbath"
Colbom-- "Prisoner Of Work"
Please Inform The Captain This Is A Hijack-- "Postcards From The Future", "Transnational Vampire Killers", and "The Asymmetric Enemy"
Baader Brains-- "Fear Not The Lions" and "Vostok Welcoming Party"


In Progress.

Here's the title spread from March, written by Congressman John Lewis & Andrew Aydin and drawn by me.



And here's a little past-present-future-- the top row is all the books or stories I've had published from 1992-2012. The bottom row is pages and scripts for all the books I'm currently working on (the March trilogy, Rick Riordan's The Lost Hero adapted by Robert Venditti, my next solo graphic novel Cover, a short comic written by Al Burian for Tugboat Press's Free Comic Book Day release, and new short stories for the You Don't Say collection.)




Here's "Piano", a sweet horror short made by Bloomington staples Erin Tobey, David Woodruff, and Addy & Lewis Rogers as part of a local weekend movie challenge!




New French story in LA VILLA SUR LA FALAISE!



If you're in France, pick up a copy of Casterman Publishing's La Villa Sur La Falaise ("The Villa At The End Of The Road"), a 280-page short story anthology commemorating the 10th anniversary of their Ecritures graphic novel line (to which Swallow Me Whole and The Silence Of Our Friends belong). I have a brand new 17-page story in the book, available nowhere else!

Other contributors include Isabel Kreitz, Jiro Taniguchi, Cati Baur, Hannah Berry, Saulne, Davide Reviati, Fred Bernard, Gabrielle Piquet, and Kan Takahama. Each of us did a short story continuing a common narrative setup penned by Benoit Sekal. This was one of my favorite stories to bring to life-- I hope you enjoy it!

If you live in North America and would like a copy, I have a handful and will gladly send you a signed copy for $15 in the US, or slightly more in Canada-- just email me at seemybrotherdance@yahoo.com to inquire. Thanks.



CALLERS-- new "Reviver" album + amazing videos

Brooklyn/Providence quartet Callers has a brand new album out called Reviver on Partisan Records! You should definitely check out their previous album, Life Of Love, as well.



Here's a new video for the song "Heroes":



And here's video of a stripped-down version of Callers playing in forgotten recesses of the city.

 Callers is, at its core, Sara Lucas and Ryan Seaton (one of my hometown best friends, and former member of the bands Rainy Day Regatta, Halo Perfecto, and Flaws), who formed in New Orleans in 2004. My now-defunct label Harlan Records released their first EP in 2005, and it's my dream that Ryan Seaton score a film adaptation of one of my books someday. He's also the person used as the physical inspiration for Perry in Swallow Me Whole.

R.I.P. Fat Shadow; new musical goings-on


This is a quick post in recognition of one of my favorite Bloomington-area bands, Fat Shadow, who recently called it quits. Fat Shadow was a perfect punk-meets-classic rock storm, carved from the spaces where Heart meets X, where Jefferson Airplane meets Dinosaur Jr.




In their time, they managed to release the outstanding Foot Of Love LP, which is available here on vinyl/download and here as a direct download. 

(Here are a ton of live Fat Shadow photos I took over the years as well.)

In the meantime, definitely check out these jams from its members:

Purple 7 is a new Replacements-meets-Guided By Voices power trio with Chris Mott (Fat Shadow, Door-Keys, Landlord), Will Staler (Defiance Ohio, Landlord), and Patrick Jennings (Hot New Mexicans). They've got an incredible 5-song 12" out now on Let's Pretend Records (and here's the download), and are currently touring as well.

Here's a video for their song "Poison Ivy."



Fat Shadow drummer Jeff Grant (also of Pink Razors and Stop It!!) has a solo band project called Full Sun, with two tapes under his belt, both still available as downloads. I highly recommend the Bare Floor recording! He's also playing guitar and singing in The Sands, a new band featuring folks from Memory Map, Magnolia Electric Co., and Coke Dares, as well as internet cat-celebrity Lil Bub's human caretaker.



Bassist/wailer Erin Tobey is currently in the process of hammering out what will be a stunning second solo album; her classic 2005 debut is still available as an LP here and download here. She is also an accomplished multimedia artist and has recently teamed up musically with Tammar, Vollmar, and one-off Donna Summer cover band Bad Girls.



Vocalist Daun Fields also performs and records as Vera Maleta, and released several albums fronting The Door-Keys. She also has a blog called Crocosmia, chronicling her relationship to magic, growth, and the creative spirit.

ANY EMPIRE in Best American Comics 2012 Notables List!

I'm pleased to discover that my graphic novel Any Empire was included in The Best American Comics 2012 Notables List!

Congratulations to comics friends Anders Nilsen, Sarah Glidden, Jesse Jacobs, Jordan Crane, Kate Beaton, Vera Brosgol, Box Brown, Brian Chippendale, Lisa Hanawalt, Kevin Huizenga, my amazing teacher Ben Katchor, Tom Neely, GB Tran, Jeff Smith, Noah Van Sciver, and Becky Cloonan for their inclusions into the Best American list this year!

KALAMAZOO-- upcoming events Oct. 4-6!

Heads up, Michigan! I'll be in Kalamazoo doing a variety of events from October 4-6, thanks to the folks at Western Michigan University. Here's the schedule:

Thurs. October 4, 5:30 pm:
Slideshow presentation of my work, with an open discussion and Q&A. WMU's Richmond Center For Visual Arts, room 208.

Fri. October 5, 6-9 pm (during Art Hop):
Opening reception for my Cross Sections exhibit, featuring tons of work from 1998 to present. Everything's for sale, and I'll be selling/signing books as well. Kalamazoo Book Arts Center (326 W. Kalamazoo Ave.)-- and the exhibit runs from October 5-26.

Sat. October 6, 10am-2pm:
Comics/ visual narrative workshop at the Kalamazoo Book Arts Center. $65. Bring your projects!

See you there!


20th anniversary of publishing comics!

This week marks the 20th anniversary of publishing my first comic--  D.O.A. #1, with the combined creative efforts of Michael Lierly, Nathan Wilson, and Alan Short. We printed up 100 copies under cover of darkness in late September 1992, and sold them on shelves at Collector's Edition Comics as well as out of our backpacks at school in North Little Rock, AR.

(D.O.A. #1 cover-- art by Mike Lierly, colors by me.)


To our surprise, the print run sold out by the time issue #2 hit the stands around Thanksgiving 1992. This encouraged us to continue a bi-monthly print schedule as we worked on writing all 50 issues of the series, but naturally by the time #4 hit shelves, we were neck-deep in a number of spin-off title ideas, writing songs for our fledgling band Soophie Nun Squad, laying groundwork on a small record label and punk zine, and figuring out how to make all of these projects work together.

(D.O.A. #2 interior page-- pencils by me, inks by Mike.)


I never looked back from these early efforts, and was just as serious about telling stories and communicating ideas through comics as I am today. I feel so fortunate to have had this kind of tunnel vision since age 11, when Mike Lierly (who had already been working on earlier incarnations of D.O.A. with Nate Wilson and Alan Short) suggested we make comics together as we rode to a week-long summer camp in his parents' minivan.

(Mike and I trying to "go pro", 1991.)


D.O.A. and its spin-off titles, coupled with shop owner Michael Tierney's decade-prior underground comic Wildstars, were part of a small early-mid 90's self-publishing scene in Little Rock. Books by area cartoonists Ron MacAdoo (now of Backyard Entertainment), Jeff Jackson, Chris Raymond, Jason Binfliff, Graham Westerlund, Ben Nichols (now of Lucero fame), and Ken Edge began surfacing as well, all learning from each other as we went, sometimes having never spoken in person about these various comics efforts. 

I truly don't know what I would've done if not for the possibilities opened to me through comics storytelling. Thanks to everyone I've collaborated with, everyone who has provided criticism, feedback, and advice over the last two decades, who has written or spoken to me at a convention, and readers willing to put up with my weird-ass stories.

Here's to tunnel vision and dedication.

(Mike Lierly continues his narrative path as a painter, and was also a member of the bands Soophie Nun Squad, Tem Eyos Ki, Boomfancy, Gioteens, Divorce Chord, and Universe. Nathan Wilson is a Bay Area tech wizard who is still cooking up an epic sci-fi/fantasy comic with me, and was a crucial behind-the-scenes force in Soophie Nun Squad. Alan Short is a member of Little Rock area metal bands Holy Angell, Deadbird, Zucura, and Seahag, and was also a member of Soophie Nun Squad and Them Of Delphi. We all remain best friends for life, though our paths cross less frequently.)

limited-edition bookplate for French ANY EMPIRE!/ fundraising for Sarah Kirsch

Here's a a full-color bookplate I just finished, limited to 150 copies of the French translation of Any Empire, to be released in October by Sarbacane!



I'll have the original artwork (9"x12") for sale this weekend at SPX, and will be donating ALL my original artwork sales to help my friend Sarah Kirsch with mounting medical/living expenses during her long and ongoing fight with Fanconi Anemia. If you can't make it to SPX but are interested in this piece (or others), please email me at seemybrotherdance@yahoo.com and let me know. Thanks!

Some of you who were a part of the punk/hardcore scenes of the 1990's (and beyond) may know Sarah Kirsch (formerly known as Mike Kirsch) as the guitarist/vocalist for some of the best punk bands of all time, including Fuel, Sawhorse, Pinhead Gunpowder, John Henry West, Navio Forge, Torches To Rome, Bread And Circuits, Please Inform The Captain This Is A Hijack, Baader Brains, and most recently Mothercountry Motherfuckers. Her music truly changed and shaped my life as an adolescent, lent clarity, power, and passion to my experiences, and inspired me to do the same with my own creative efforts.




 You can directly contribute to Sarah's medical/living expense fund here. The costs have been truly staggering and will remain so-- ANYTHING you can give is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much!