Burning the midnight oil with James Flames.

James Flames is an artist who was born in Brooklyn but now resides a town called Asheville in North Carolina. He likes Cajun Food and Lego and made our day when he agreed to let us interview him. Below he talks about posters, living in the country and christmas presents.

How long have you been drawing/painting for and when did you first start screen printing? Why did it appeal?
Oh, I've been drawing since before I could remember. My mother, or someone, had the good sense to sit me down in front of a stack of plain paper and put a pencil in my hand, and I pretty much have not stopped since. But screen printing – I've only been doing that since, like.... I think 2006 was the first time I tried it. In my living room, no less. Trying to wash the screens out in my shower. It wasn't pretty. I got a little better in '07, but then I stopped till just about a year ago – I just didn't have the space to doit. Now I have a full setup in a great studio space, and I've been cranking stuff out as much as possible.

Where do you live? If there was one thing we should check out in your area what would it be?
Right now I live in Asheville, North Carolina. I'm originally from Brooklyn, NY – spent most of my life there, so it's weird being the city boy here in the middle of the countryside. But it's real beautiful here, and way cheap to live and make art and stuff. If you could only do one thing while visiting Asheville, I'd say go see a live band play at either the Orange Peel or the Grey Eagle. We are so lucky to have two such amazing venues in a small town like this. They're both very different – the Orange Peel is rather large, fits like 1200 people, and has amazing sound; the Grey Eagle is much smaller, it's super intimate and kinda looks like the inside of a barn or something – plus they serve authentic Cajun food there. Both places are run by the most amazing people. I think some of the best shows I've ever seen in my life have been at those two places.

When creating your posters for bands, do you actually listen to music? Does the music from the band often inspire the poster?

I always listen to music, pretty much when I'm doing anything. Either that, or talk radio. But I'd say99% of the time, my ears need to be distracted. So yeah, I definitely listen to albums by the bands that I'm working for as I draw – and when I'm sketching and getting the concepts together, I also read lyrics, watch video by the band, and listen to music of other bands that inspired them. All that usually really helps solidify a concept and direction – it's very important to me that each poster works specially for a band and the people who dig that band. Then, once I got everything down, I'll listen to anything while I finish the rest of the drawing and printing.

Who in your opinion is the ultimate gigs poster artist? Are there any other guys doing the rounds that you think are worth us having a look at?

That's maybe an impossible question to ask, cuz there's waaaayyy too many great poster artists out there – so many that have inspired me, whose work planted the seeds in my head to even start doing this stuff in the first place. That said, there is one dude that I was talking to my girl about just last night, who I feel like might be one of the most 'natural' poster artists around today – Ron Liberti, who also works out of North Carolina, is just incredible. It would be hard to explain, but I think if you were teaching a college course on posters or something dumb like that, it'd probably be a good idea to start with Ron, to kind of set the standard of how far the possibilities can go. Just a few of the other poster artists whose work I'm forever indebted to are Jake Kelly, Ken Taylor, Dan Stiles, Strawberry Luna, Zach Hobbs, Todd Slater, Crosshair, Tanxxx, Tim Gough, Aesthetic Apparatus, Drew Millward, and god knows how many more. Some of the most talented artists today are making posters, in my opinion.

What was the last record you listened to?

I usually make playlists of a bunch of stuff on my computer, or just let it go on “random,” but the last records I put on my turntable were the two most recent 7inch's by Gentleman Jesse and His Men. Killer stuff.

Where can we find you online?

My website is like the central place – www.jamesflames.com – you can see all my work and buy posters, and from there you can link to my facebook page, my blog, my twitter, and if you're real savvy, you can get into my bank account help me pay my bills. Or steal what's left. You're call.

With Christmas coming up, is there anything in particular that you hope Father Christmas will bring down your chimney on Christmas Eve? What was the best/worst Christmas present that you've ever received?

I'm not big on requests for presents – I know it sounds lame, but I really appreciate anything I get. Though it'd be real awesome if Santa knew how to re-stretch a screen, cuz I put a hole through one of mine the other day. That sucked. The best gift I ever got was probably when I was real little and my brothers and I got a giant Lego set – I think it was the castle, it was all yellow and stuff. That pretty much kept us busy and creative for the next few years. I was so psyched when we opened the box and that's what it was. I wish I still had some Legos.

What are your other inspirations other than art and music?

Food. I love to eat it, I love to cook it, I love to watch people cook it. I'm a big fan of food. I don't
know that it directly inspires my work, but there is a creativity there, a certain skill that I think can be appropriated to making good art and music.

Can you give us an example of Cockney Rhyming Slang?

You mean like “There once was a man from Nantucket...” or something like that? Hold on, let me
Google it.....
Okay, I was way off. Just read about it. That stuff seems really hard to understand! I'm gonna try one though: “Kitchens” would be slang for “Ink,” cuz it rhymes with “Kitchen Sink.” Am I even close?
Maybe I should practice before I visit the UK again....

Could you please finish this sentence, "Tuckshop Community Radio makes me feel like……"
...having a threesome. Or a onesome. I take what I can get.”














































































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Cheers James Flames...

I was rather excited to receive this fantastic poster from the mighty James Flames yesterday. The Tuckshop HQ walls have yet another fine piece of artwork to show off. James Flames is indeed worth checking out and has kindly promised to answer some questions for us on this very Blog so keep you eyes peeled for future postings.

Go check out his website and store now. His blog is also worth a gander as he very cleverly documents the process for each of his prints. To see how the above was crafted just visit here...

Lewes Bonfire Night

The Tuckshop Community Radio faithful had the pleasure of attending Lewes Bonfire night last month . For those of you that aren't familiar with the English tradition of Bonfire night, it's when we celebrate Guy Fawkes who unsuccessfully tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament in 1605.
Lewes, a smallish town in East Sussex, usually a perfect postcard picture of English idealism takes the celebration to the absolute limit and indulges in 36hrs of pure anti Catholic Hedonism. Boys and girls of both young and old toss bangers into the streets with rebellious nonchalance , a lot of Local Harveys ale is consumed, crosses are burned and many effigies are blown up . All in all it's a spectacle I hope to experience for many a year.
















































































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For Folks sake this album is a beauty!

The Christmas Compilation of the week has been brought to us by the wonderful people at “For Folks Sake”, produced by the excellent Joe Innes it features traditional songs recorded with a festive folk twist. Including Dear Winesburg and a whole load of other acts that Tuckshop now want to check out, It will keep you foot tapping and your heart warm. Better still the proceeds go to charity so go visit this site and bag yourself a copy.

A quick exchange with Dead Zebbra

Dead Zebbra make the type of music that would make your parents cover thier ears and ask you to turn down when listening through the stereo in your bedroom. Their songs are loud, fast and will put the fear into most old people, scaring all members of the local neighbourhood watch . They're also pretty amenable and seemed happy to talk to Tuckshop Community Radio about Horse Shoes (local high end cuisine ), their home town and Nintendo characters.

So Dead Zebbra could you please introduce yourselves to us?
We're Dead Zebbra, a three piece hard rock band from the U.S.A that started in the spring of 2008. Our main influences are Nirvana and Led Zeppelin. We got sick of all the "rock" that was on the radio and decided we needed to do something to save it. Our original bassist Matt left in the summer of 09 was replaced by some fill in bassists and eventually the spot was taken by Amanda Radford.
Nathan Leinberger(guitar, vocals) and Kyle Wells(drums) are original founding members.
We recorded our first album "Peachy Keen" in early 2009...and we are still trying to release it. We are currently recording an EP. Also we toured the east coast of the U.S in June 2010 and are planning more tours in the Spring and Summer of 2011

Where do you guys live and what's it like?
We live in Springfield Illinois, but we all grew up in small towns outside of Springfield. Springfield has high crime and high unemployment. There's nothing to do and little future for people here. Its hot and overly humid in the summer and colder than a witch's titty in the winter.

If you were playing on a Nintendo and you were magically pulled into the game, what character would you like to be and why?
Nathan:Hmmm, that's a good question. I think maybe the dog from Duck Hunt. I would like to laugh at peoples failures.
Amanda: Legend Of Zelda. I'd be Link because he has a cool sword and an awesome costume.
Kyle: Mario Cart, I would be Bowser, because man...he's gnarly.

Why are you guys called Dead Zebbra?
Nathan: one night after having a few too many beers, I was watching the show Man VS Wild and he was in Africa and looking for something to eat. He came upon a dead zebra but kept pronouncing it Zeb Bra. Being drunk I thought this was a good name. The next day at practice I thought it was stupid, but suggested it anyway...oddly, they liked it and it stuck.

As a child I once went to Twycross Zoo and saw an animal that was a cross between a Zebra and a horse, it looked like a brown and black Zebra, do you know what that animal is called? have you ever seen any strange animals?
Nathan: Of coarse! That's a Zorse...its what Zorro rides. I think Michael Jackson is the strangest animal Ive ever seen.
Kyle: An Alligator Gar is pretty weird
Amanda: An Okapi, a half horse/zebra that lives in Africa. A Frilled-neck Lizard is the weirdest thing Ive seen.

Besides yourself ,who are the three musical artists we should check out after reading this interview?
Bands you should check out...Soy City Stranglers from Decatur Illinois,
The Black Clouds from New Jersey and Oblivion from Minnesota.

What was the last thing you watched on the television? what was it about?
Amanda: 1000 Ways To Die, it was about a bunch of people dying in absurd ways.
Nathan: The Templar Code on the History channel. It was about the Knights Templar.
Kyle: The First 48...Its a crime scene investigation show.

Tuckshop Community Radio loves music, but we also love food what is your favourite food?
Amanda: Fried Chicken.
Nathan: Springfield has its own dish. Its called a Horse Shoe. You have a piece of toast on bottom, then a Hamburger, although you can put almost anything on it...like chicken or fish. Then you put a bunch of fries on top of that and smother the whole thing in cheese sauce. Its the shit.
Kyle: TACOS!!

What's the most ridiculous thing you've ever seen at a gig?
Nathan: This band called The Sex Zombies from New Jersey throw tampons out into the crowd.
Kyle: Yeah the Sex Zombies show. The singer/guitarist put one of the tampons in his beer and drank it.
Amanda: The light shows.

Can you please describe Dead Zebbra in one sentence?
Nathan: We've been soaked in mud, cleaned in bleach and coated in an addictive sugary substance for your enjoyment.

On a scale of one to infinity how much do you like Tuckshop Community Radio?
Nathan: After all the planets align and this world is destroyed and all that remains of Earth are the radio signals...we will still be listening.

Dead Zebbra can be found on their myspace page here.

To listen to Tuckshop Community Radio just tune in here


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Huxley Piece for Skirt V Shirt

So the Skirt Verses Shirt debate is back on and as a result I've just posted a piece on Huxley Jumpers, which I thought people might have an interest in seeing as it's so bleedin cold!

If you want to check out more from Skirt V Shirt then go visit the blog or facebook page












With the temperature dropping and with the goose pimples slowly crawling up ones arm Huxley Sweaters are just the thing to keep you warm and inject some colour into your wardrobe. Made from the finest Scottish Merino by old boy wool specialists who have been weaving Scottish knitwear since 1874, these guys clearly know a thing or two about producing quality garments.

Bright and bold, Huxley are just waiting to be added to many a gents staple wardrobe, and who could argue? as merino wool is soft , thin and warm. Perfect for days when one needs to look sharp, take a stroll down the pub or as an all important goal post when having a kick about down the park.

Huxley are 100% British and are without a doubt kicking the sand in the faces of all those Ralph Lauren cable knit wearing wise-guys. There is a British dandy in all of us, so grow a beard, embrace the colour and and throw a Huxley jumper over your shoulders.































































Huxley jumpers can be picked up at a whole host of independent stores and can be bought at their own shop www.huxleyclothing.co.uk

Bye Bye Bernard is out now!

This weeks show is dedicated to Bernard Matthews who served the nation with premium Turkey products (or so we think) Enjoy!

Tuckshop Christmas Photo Comp is now open for entries.

As the festive season is upon us and also due to the fact that we have a sack of goodies that even Father Christmas would have a job carrying we at Tuckshop Community Radio have decided that the time has come to have another photo competition.

The rules are easy; send us your photographs of what you think best represents Christmas.... it's that simple!

We'll upload every picture we've been sent on our Facebook page and at the end of each week we will post the best up here on the blog. We may even use your picture as the artwork for that week's episode.

So raise your mobile phone, Olympus trip, Lomo or digital Camera high in the air start snapping and claim our bag of goodies that includes records, t-shirts and sweets.

Please send your photo's to tuckshopcommunityradio@googlemail.com or alternatively upload them to our Facebook page.

Who's the Daddy?

Way back in the summer I stumbled across the Daddy Donkey burrito stall on Leather Lane whilst on my regular trip to Peters to get my locks trimmed. I can't vouch for the food but the actual stall is mighty impressive covered from head to toe in this brilliant artwork, at the time i had my trusty LCA Lomo so I snapped away,but a week later that actual roll was accidentally thrown out. However earlier today I arrived at Peters with just enough light to replay the shoot, although this time i was armed with my trusty iphone so the pics could get straight to the blog in quick time.

If you're ever in Leather lane you should give Daddy Donkey a try and if you ever in need of a decent barbers, Peters will happily sort you out with the best short back and sides a man should ever need.

Jay Bee now has a website!

Resident Tuckshop artist Jay Bee has just set up a new exciting Tumblr Blog. Responsible for the rather shambolic artwork that has become a important part of Tuckshop Community Radio, his more polished pieces and daily photographic insights can be viewed here on Tumblr……Go and say hello!

Christmastime Approximately is out now..

The Great people at Where it's at is where you are have just put together a very merry compilation of Christmas records. Full of Indie festive cheer it features records from the likes of Betty and the Werewolves,Eux Autres and Jeff Mellin. Our personal favourite is the cover of East 17's stay another day by The Ei8ht Expect a duet with the legend Brian Harvey in early 2011

Go bag yourself a copy here (they have a limited number of free downloads available!)

Animal Train goodies received with gratitude.

 

A big thank you to Animal Train - a loud raucous Punk band straight outta philly who are fresher than any early Will Smith comedy and in all honesty even harder than the sheer upper body strength of Uncle phil. These guys posted us a selection of goodies which including stickers and even more records which we are eternally grateful for.

Go check out Animal Train Now and if you're reading this and want to send us your t-shirt then please get in touch!!