The BQE – Sufjan Stevens

The BQE – Sufjan Stevens
10/29/09

Just wanted to give everyone who is a Sufjan fan the heads up about his instrumental album The BQE. Maybe some have heard it already or don’t care, but it came out last week, and I have been enjoying it all morning.

Not to diminish his eerily beautiful and emotion filled vocals, or his expansive and vivid song writing skills… but the star of the Sufjan show for me is the musicality of his arrangements. You often can’t tell if a Sufjan song should be played at a house party or a funeral. But, either place is a perfect fit. The music alone provokes the release of a spectrum of emotions, and often continues build in intensity throughout the entirety of a piece.

Well, The BQE takes his time tested and mother approved skills and expands them across an entire album, with out all those pesky lyrics getting in the way.

An apparent homage to the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (and maybe Hoola-hoops), the entire album emits a clear vision of movement, busyness, loneliness and excitement. When you hear it, you’ll know what I’m talking about.

It’s done in a way only Sufjan could, or would do. However, this album takes the man from Detroit to another level of credentials and status that normally wouldn’t befall even an indie artist. It puts him on a pedestal that will allow his next tour to be in Symphony Halls and Opera Houses, not smokey and small night clubs. The BQE brings socialites and hipsters alike come together to appreciate and explore the same music.

Apparently there is also a film that accompanies the album, or vice versa, you can check out bits and pieces on Youtube, or get the entire film when you buy the album. Here’s a sort of trailer to give you a taste:

Check it out.

Fun work

Martin Luther King Tribute
06/1/10

I wanted to attempt this style  in February, and being Black History Month I chose the Rev. as my muse.

His face is made up of the words of his epic Lincoln Memorial “I have a dream…” speech.

Take a look. I am having it framed as I type.

Smoking Goat Branding
04/1/10

I like beer.

Beer high in flavor, alcohol and price. I brew at home, but wouldn’t consider myself very good at this point. I’m working on it.

We have friends in Louisiana who I would consider really good. I designed some branding for their forthcoming brewery down there.

The Smoking Goat will hopefully be amazing, especially if I get some good beer out of the deal.

Have a look. Then drink a beer and have a look again. Continue this process until the logo looks awesome.

New Poster
02/4/10

This is a poster I made for my buddy Dustin.

A classic quote from him as we drove by Effingham, IL’s infamous and huge cross.

I thought it would look good in his new apartment.

Sheltered Perceptions
01/6/10

I recently got the chance to work on a project for the Humane Society. Given the fact that every time I walk into an animal shelter I have to be talked down from taking home every animal in the place, I was happy to help in anyway I could.

With the majority of pet buying in the United States coming from breeders, mall pet shops and unfortunately mills, animal shelters (specifically the Humane Society) are left overflowing with pets that need loving homes. They are running into a perception problem however, and many misconceptions about shelter pets are accepted as fact, and often repeated as such.

To get past this, we decided to take the problem head on, and address the most common misconceptions individually.

Here is where we landed:

Lauren and Dan sit’n in a tree…
01/5/10

My good friend Lauren is getting married in July, and though I am extremely jealous of her fiance Dan (don’t tell my wife), I made their save the date cards.

I use VistaPrint to print these types of things. Though the quality suffers, and the rumor is that they are destroying local community printers nationwide, for the price they can’t be beat. Check them out next time you want to customize your own holiday card or invitation.

Here’s how Lauren’s STDs turned out: