switchblade symphony
Making the
comicbook
It was 1995. Living alone as a young comicbook artist in my first apartment, MUSIC was my primary entertainment. Mobile phones wasn't a thing, and the internet was just getting started...two things not available to me. This is important information because it's crazy how I made this happen....
It was a fun time. I frequented the goth scene in Charlotte. You would be able to find me at the Black Cat or any number of popup warehouse venues. In my job as an artist, I took on the pseudonym, "UglyBoy" and in my social circles I was called "the happy goth"
I drew a fun poster for myself creating a crew of teen goths and filling the background with my favorite bands at the time, including Switchblade Symphony, Siouxsie & the Banshees, Bauhaus, Ex-Voto, and the Cranes.
And then I did the AUDACIOUS thing.
Noticing a mailing address in the sleeve of my Serpentine Gallery CD, I made a photocopy of my poster and sent a letter to the band by mail.
(There was no social media or e-mail at the the time)
I gushed FANBOY style about how much I loved their album and I added the photocopy of my drawing as a token of my appreciation.
Within two weeks their manager called my apartment!
I had a landline phone with no answering machine so that in itself was a small miracle only old timers would appreciate.
I ended up talking with the band and they asked if I could do an animated cartoon of them. I told them, that I unfortunately couldn't make the cartoon (knowing the intensity of work required) but, that I was a professional comicbook artist and that I might be able to produce a comicbook for them.
The next day in the comicbook studio, I ran the idea past my publisher and gave him a listen to their music and he green lighted the Switchblade Symphony book idea. BUT, in order to do it I was required to include the publisher's flagship character, Razor, into the story.
I put my publisher and the band manager in contact with each other to handle business end of things and I got started on writing the plot for the story ... going for a dark whimsical vibe.
In each of the following pages I'll share some of the behind-the-scenes info and other fun facts. 🦇
front cover
back cover
