Ah yes, another beautiful page displaying my inability as an artist 😛
I never got Ray to look right while coughing in the first panel, nor did the blood-stained handkerchief come out very well in the fifth panel. Did have some fun trying out some new panel ideas though. Also experimented with some more variety in word bubbles and font (which I might keep working with).
Since the last page did not exactly instigate a wave of discussion about how I should ink the pages, I decided on my own that I’m still gonna try to pursue the “ink shading” at least a little bit longer…
So this is the last LP Mondays before 2016 has come and gone (which is crazy to think about). So I decided I wanted to sift through my vinyls and decide to pick a band that really made an impact on me over the year. Well. Here it is.
Minstrel in the Gallery (1975), Jethro Tull. If you had told me last year that Jethro Tull would easily rank in my top ten favorite music artists of all time, that I would own a large variety of their albums, and that I would spend $70 just for the cheapest seat at one of their concerts, I probably would have been confused. It’s not that I disliked them, I just never got into them. I am extremely fond of the 60s and 70s era of music (if it’s not bluntly obvious by now), but for some reason, Tull had never really caught my ear. I had heard a single or two from them (like “Hymn 43” or “Bungle in the Jungle”) and they just didn’t stick. I was not aware though at the time that Tull’s strongest point (in my opinion at least) is in their “album” construction, not their individual singles.
So many of their albums are what are called “concept albums” where specific themes or narratives are carried throughout the entire album. While their album Aqualung is definitely and example of this, a more extreme example would be their next album Thick As a Brick, an album completely devoid of “individual” songs. Instead of songs there’s just Side A and Side B on the record. Other times their themes would extend beyond even just one album (for example, their folk rock trilogy).
In Minstrel in the Gallery, we are given a selection of tunes from “the minstrel in the gallery” that vary in subject matter, but ultimately reveal more about the character’s personality. This all accumulates in the last (technically, second last) song titled “Baker St. Muse” which takes a step back and is a very direct look at the character. I picked this song because it displays Tull’s ability to weave a story within a song while juggling different themes in their lyrics with variations in their musical style. It goes from its simple acoustic guitar, to sweeping string segments, to hard rock, and of course features Ian Anderson’s iconic flute playing.
I actually included “Grace” because it was easier to record by just letting the record finish. It’s actually exceptionally short, consisting of only four lines (it’s the last bit after you hear Anderson walk away and complain about not being able to get out). Also it’s just a pretty farewell to an album ^^
If you take anything away after reading this, it should be that this is not actually the best way to listen to Jethro Tull. This song is more of an exception than some of their other stuff, but their works really do hold up so much better in the setting of the entire album. Nowadays bands like Green Day offer some impressive concept albums (American Idiot, Revolution Radio) and there were even plenty of bands to come before Tull with some stellar concept albums, but there’s still something about Tull’s music that has managed to capture my heart.
P.S. If you’re a Green Day fan like myself, I think you’ll also smirk at the botched acoustic guitar opening followed by a whispered cuss on this song.
This year’s Christmas greeting is kinda sad honestly…
While brainstorming some ideas for this Christmas special I knew I wanted to do some elaborate font work, but I wasn’t sure what else. At some point I thought about drawing Janice and then I thought what about drawing all the girls from MitM. I then realized that sadly there was only one other girl to add. Mel.
Several of the characters that I want to introduce later on in MitM are females, but most of them are still a long way off from being introduced. Till then, please forgive my terribly balanced cast roster >.<;
Merry Christmas from all the fictional characters of Mutt in the Middle (and of course me too)!!!
So conversation post here (let’s hope someone partakes).
This is the most recent page (114) before I shaded it with pencil. Honestly, to me, this way of inking looks better at this stage than my other way of inking (“shading” like pages 111-113). There is some elements that I really like about the “ink shading” though (pages 111-113), I just feel that I need to do some serious practice with this style.
Come on Dayton. “…decided to do it yourself.” That seems a little much. I’m pretty sure Sam played a pretty significant role in convincing you to do the job 😛
Spent a lot of time writing this page. I knew from the beginning I wanted the conversation to escalate to having Dayton frustrated and on the edge of an argument, but smoothly getting there with the dialogue proved a significant challenge for my small little writer’s brain…
However, I was really pleased with how the panel layout came out. I liked the 9-panel grid (with the missing panel in the middle) and how it created this circular composition that revolves around a conversation. The conversation itself also goes through a three level system (top three panels, then middle two, and then final three) as things become tense. Another cool touch I tried to do was keep the left panels focused on Dayton and the right ones on Ray. Originally the bottom ones were gonna perfectly mirror the top panels (first panel would show Dayton with Ray silhouette in background, and the last two focus on Ray), but I switched it up a little.
Also, Oh look! No ink-shading-thingy this page. I’m not completely abandoning the ink shading, but I wanted to try and see what it would look like just filling in open spots with ink. I’d love to hear what you guys think. Your opinion could change the future of MitM’s style! 😀
A Christmas Together (1979) by John Denver and the Muppets. So I realize that John Denver was just brought up not that long ago, but this has the Muppets as well, so it’s different. Right??? ^^;
Well that and this is the only Christmas vinyl that I own…
Denver and Henson were pretty close friends and Denver showed up on the Muppet Show multiple times. Growing up I fondly remember a combination of Sesame Street and several Muppets movies. My interest in Muppets actually reignited in high school after discovering several old Muppets episodes online on places like YouTube. To this day, I still really enjoy Muppets’ fun sense of humor and I’ll occasionally catch a Muppet movie now and then.
While this album was promotion for the upcoming Christmas TV special that year, it actually features different recordings than the ones used for the show. Here’s the slightly different “Twelve Days of Christmas” on the special HERE
Also I normally just display a photo of the cover, but the inside of this LP is really cool! It features these awesome illustrations for each of the songs. Well, just wanted to share this extra little bit of detail. Have a Merry Christmas everybody!! ^^
Once again, blah blah, not sure this style is working, blah blah, it’s becoming more and more obvious I’m not sure what I’m trying to do with this style, blah blah blah 😛
Still trying to find a balancing point, but I do really want to push my art style, so please bare with me through these troubling times of extreme experimentation (I mean I’m always trying to experiment with MitM, but this is more radical and…yeah…)
Since it’s NOT obvious by any means, the long skinny panel is meant to show Dayton in four positions. Running down the stairs, grabbing a loaf of bread (yeah yeah, I know, but there are many more issues than my poorly drawn bread), slicing the bread, and then his silhouette grabbing something from the top of the cupboard. Yeah…this panel kinda just fell apart the farther along I got. I had hoped that silhouetting the last Dayton would help him and the other characters stand out more, but that obviously didn’t work. I was also unsure of whether or not to use the solid inking black for background elements or foreground stuff. Yup. Officially botched.
What’s that?? “All my LPs so far have been from the 70s or earlier?” Well I’ve only done three so far, but honestly that is what you should expect from “LP Mondays.” I have plenty of surprises up my sleeve though. How about an album that’s so new that it even hasn’t been out for a full week yet??!! :3
You Want It Darker (2016) by the late Leonard Cohen. Technically this album came out late October, about half a month prior to L. Cohen passing away (R.I.P.), but the vinyl printing didn’t come out till last Friday. I’m a huge Cohen fan, and I remember being extremely saddened upon hearing about his death. Pre-ordering his final album on vinyl was a no-brainer for me.
The album (fittingly) tackles matters of the frailness of death and his struggles with religion. Cohen was born into a Jewish family and had considered himself Jewish, but it’s really interesting listening to the lyrics within this album about his conversations with his higher power. Even if he does not provide all the answers in this album, there is still a contentness expressed between the opening track “You Want It Darker” and the closing track, a reprise of the of the album’s second song “Treaty.”
You might argue it’s not as brilliant and captivating as Bowie’s farewell album Blackstar also released early this year (I would actually probably agree honestly), but that doesn’t discount this album in any way. All in all, it’s a beautiful, deeply moving album that is worth a listen from start to finish. The album would release to critical acclaim (Rolling Stones ranked it 9th best album of the year) and become “Gold” certified in his home country of Canada before his death on November 7.
Not sure I’m digging this ink shading. I’m definitely gonna give it some more time and a little more practice, but like I said, expect some weird stylistic changes to happen this chapter.
The bottom four panels were super fun to draw though. They were designed to mirror Dayton’s four panels of him waking up on the last page. These four panels with Janice though were supposed to have actual panels around her. I drew them during the sketch phase, but they never got inked because I thought the panellessness (real word, I swear) was pretty cool. Well that and I’ve never done something like this before, and you know me, always eager to try out something new 😛
Alright. So fully aware that my first two picks were a little more obscure, let’s fix that. Before I strike out with three strikes I figured just about everybody is familiar with this album.
Abbey Road (1969), the second last Beatles album (last recorded with the whole band), as if it needed any introduction. The best Beatles album ever made? One could easily make that argument, although critics initially hated it for its heavy use of technical effects and reliance on instruments like the Moog synthesizer. If The Beatles (White Album) consisted largely of them playing around with different sounds, Abbey Road could be considered their refining of those sounds with an incorporation of blues and progressive music, as well as musical styles that would later be associated with alternative rock.
My favorite Beatles album is probably the other most likely candidate for “Beatles Best”: Sgt. Peppers. Even if it is hard to pick the best album, every true Beatles fans has their favorite Beatle. That one’s easy for me. George Harrison. While I do enjoy Harrison’s Beatles songs a lot, (see “Here Comes the Sun” for proof) it really is his solo works after the Beatles that seals him in my mind as my favorite. Don’t be so surprised to see one of his albums pop up here eventually :3
