THE RULES DO NOT APPLY! - Poster

RULES 2 Distressed by LuvataciousSkull

I decided to kinda break the trend I had and just post something different. This time it's my "RULES" poster. Really fun poster to make, sort of a totalitarianism-style going on here.

Enjoy!

SEPTA Has New Busking Rules: Good and Bad News

Exactly 2 years ago as of May 2nd, the impact of an even that happened in March of 2007 came to a head. Anthony Riley, then 20-years-old, was arrested for singing in Rittenhouse Square. What followed on May 2nd was the blow back, a group of musicians and smart-minded people who realized that this was wrong. The protest was large, with nearly 100 people there. I was there during my run for mayor. I wore my favorite black suit and a pair of sunglasses. In one hand was a small red amp and in the other a gig bag for my Scott Ian Lyon/Washburn signature series guitar. I approached Anthony, talked with him for a bit and some other people and a reporter, and played along in protest to these insane laws. The police came to try and stop the peaceful protest, but Anthony was able to show the proper documents and we were allowed to stay.

In August, Anthony had his day in court. After an hour-long trial where the defense showed a weak and laughable case, the judge dismissed all charges. Anthony had beaten the system, and the ability to busk in Philadelphia was permitted.

I asked myself if our fight was just. It was... but I knew we had all created something that would not end well.

Although I was quiet about it then, I spent the months leading up to the trial watching as musicians came out of the woodwork for to exercise their right and ability to perform to the public. It was amazing and fun at first, but as the trial came, I saw more and more people busking and I realized that this may be a problem.

By the Summer of 2008, it is safe to say that there was a large problem with busking in Center City; everyone and anyone with a instrument and an amp to play pre-recorded music seem to come out and try their hand at being a small star. Some days it was a pain to go to Suburban Station, as 5 or 6 people would all peform in a small area at the same time. Trying to pick out one sound against another was a pain. There were some people who were great, though I don't know their names. A small R&B group that played at Market East Station, a child violinist who would pop up from time to time, and a man who was, in every since, a one-man band with class, playing the drums while singing at the same time and peforming, periodically, with other people.

It was Philadelphia seeing its first real busking boom since I've been alive. Up until 2007, there were very few, if any, people busking at SEPTA stations. It was nice at first, but one day as I tried to catch my train, a group of breakdancers created such a crowd, it was almost impossible to get by. At the same time, a lot of the people peforming were either mediocre, bad... or just plain boring.

In March I decided to go to Market East Station and give busking a try. I wasn't doing it for the money, just the chance to dress as I wished, paly what I wanted, and see how people reacted. I went down there with full distortion on my little amp and played whatever metal songs I could cover and a ton of original stuff and improve. After about 2 hours, on a good day, I made $15, which was more than enough for me! I had a employee tell me to move once (vey rudely, I might add)... that netted me $5 in pitty cash. I was mad I was told to move and in the back of my mind I though, "Well, put up a damn sign if I can't play there!"

They did.

Starting Monday, signs started showing up in Center City train stations telling people that they could no longer simply go up to a spot and start peforming. Instead, a rule was created: "All peformers will need to get a permit which could be attained for free and they could only play for 3 hours." I found this fair and sound, and OK. Then the last part: "No amplification of any kind." This part is where I have to disagree!

Yes, people can play loud with an amp. REALLY loud. But I have heard plenty of instruments, from accoustic guitars to drums to just people singing, that are louder than most amps turned to a reasonable setting. My beef is that there isn't wiggle room here, just "no". Some people need SOME amplification, and this rule smacks in the face of a lot fo people, in particular that small R&B duo I mentioned.

In an article in today's Philadelphia Metro, people had mixed feelings on this, and understandably so. The amplification part, in particular, had two interesting notes. A woman who goes to Suburban Station often said that the noise "became down-right annoying, especially from those with amplifiers." A man named Peter, who has played the keyboards for nearly 6 years, is angry as his revenue will most likely shrink from $80 to $20 because of the hour limit."

While the signs are posted, the rules don't go into effect until August 6th, 2009.

Myself? I'm sad I can't just pop downtown and play the train station like I used to. It was fun while it lasted. I'm just mad about the amp thing...


(Photo of the Busker in Suburban Station courtesy of Detainee)

SHRED KRISTIN COLLISIONS FACE!!!!

This has to be my favorite skateboard deck that I've ever designed... really happy with it, one of my best designs... I could just go on. Please check it out and if you buy one, please take some photos with it!

The Rules Deck by LuvataciousSkull
Shop for skateboard decks at Zazzle.com
Browse more Vintage Historical Skateboards

For Anyone in a Band That Wants Art, or Any Artist Who Wants to Work With Bands...

GoMediaZine just finished up an awesome article on the 15 Mistakes Made by Designers in the Music & Apparel Industry. It was a really good and interesting series and because I know there's a lot of great artists on this forum, and even more people with bands, I wanted to post this to help just about everyone.

I'll run down the rules and post links to the articles at the bottom:

The 15 Mistakes Made by Designers in the Music & Apparel Industry

• 1. Not Charging Enough
• 2. Ignoring Typography
• 3. Unprofessional Behavior
• 4. Over Promising
• 5. Not Understanding Apparel Production
• 6. Lack of Originality
• 7. Not Following Directions
• 8. Not Utilizing the Medium to it's Fullest
• 9. Lack of Respect for Other Designers
• 10. Delivering Files Before Getting Paid
• 11. Working for "Exposure"
• 12. Failure to Research a Client
• 13. Unclear Communication Up Front
• 14. Letting One Client be 40% of Your Income
• 15. Thin Skin - Unable to Take Criticism

The First 5 Rules: http://www.gomediazine.com/industry-...y-part-1-of-3/

Rules 6 - 10: http://www.gomediazine.com/industry-...stry-part-2-3/

Rules 11 - 15: http://www.gomediazine.com/industry-...stry-part-3-3/

Every illustrator and designer, both starting out and industry pro, has and will make these mistakes. Myself? I've made each mistake happen at least once, especially when I was first starting out. It's amazing that commercial art school, for all the time and money, doesn't teach you a lot of otherwise common-sense things.

One example? I had a job early in my career where I was excited for a lot of reasons, one being that it was a chance to work for someone who could lead to a lot of work. After doing a ton of work and revisions, and sending the original files and everything, I wound up never seeing a penny and getting promised "exposure". In this one job, I had virtually broken all 15 mistakes (save maybe one or two) and looking back, the outcome taught me a lot.

I recently had a client where I actually learn all of my lessons and me and my client came out on top. It was a win-win situation and we're both reaping the benefits of it.

If your just starting out as a designer or an illustrator and dream of working with bands like I did and, in fact, still do, these rules are really good to follow. I know that if I had followed these rules early on I would have saved a ton of aggravation and would have done a lot better.

Bands and musicians, I honestly hope you learn a bit from this before you start hiring an artist. I know a lot of people on here would never do anything to purposely hurt someone who wants to help them, but even when you don't think something you do is wrong, it still can be. I think not understanding the process that's involved can lead to a lot of problems and I personally like to try and help my clients understand it. Don't be afraid to ask any artist you hire how they work or what they're up to; communication tends to be key.

Well, I hope you enjoyed the post. It was a really cool series of articles and I hope I helped both the bands on here and my fellow artists who post here as well.

KICK-ASS! New Larry West Shoe Available, MORE ON THE WAY!!!!

I can now sell SNEAKERS!

Expect a LOT more tomorrow and over the weekend!

Right now, you can only get the "Punk Skull" shoe, but hell, it's perfect for back to school! Buy it so I don't need to start stalking you!!!!




AND COMING SOON:

Cafepress Bribed Me With Free Alcohol

Well, not really.

The meeting for Cafepress members was nothing short of AMAZING! The folks there were great, and meeting my fellow members was cool. Turns out I was one of the "oldest" people there since my store has been up since December of 2001. Most people were there in the last 5 years or so, which means I was actually ahead of a trend for once. Neat!

They had an open bar, free food, and free goodies (like a journal, keepsake box, bumper stickers, and buttons)! It was great, and a good time was had by all!

Even better, one of the organizers from Cafepress actually BOUGHT something I did online! Really psyched about that! What did she buy? Why, nothing else than something from my recent RULES collection! CHECK IT OUT! BUY IT! BUY IT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!

Stupid Rules: Coming to a Stadium Near You...

The Kansas City Chiefs are instituting a "No Standing" rule at Arrowhead Stadium. All I want to say before I post the article is this: If this was ever introduced at Lincoln Financial Field here in Philly where The Philadelphia Eagles play, riots would erupt. Seriously, they would.

The Kansas City Chiefs have a "Fan Code of Conduct," which is essentially a list of rules that fans have to follow when they're attending a game at Arrowhead. In theory, it's not a bad idea, as you'd like your stadium to provide a friendly atmosphere for families and people who aren't drunken hooligans.

In practice, though, it might not be such a great idea, especially if the person responsible for coming up with the rules is an 85-year-old woman who teaches the 2nd grade and regards standing up as one of the evil things that young whippersnappers often do. Seriously, standing erect is the No. 2 item on the list of things that are prohibited:

• Standing and/or obstructing the view of other fans

Not only that, Pro Football Talk points out how seated fans can anonymously tattle on their upright counterparts:

The Chiefs also have set up a text-messaging system that allows fans who might be offended by behaviors like standing to report the situation to the powers-that-be.

Fans are asked to treat Chiefs games like bowling matches