Carved in Sound
- gilfaloartdesign
- Nov 19
- 3 min read
Since I can remember, music has been a huge part of my life. I never played an instrument( no skill whatsoever so ever) but I could just feel what a band or musician was trying to say with their music.
From my first record I every received… thanks to my sister Sandy (Stay Hungry by Twisted Sister)
to the first LP I ever purchased (Led Zeppelin II)
with the help from my grade school friend Kevin… we each put in $3 to buy it, I kinda knew that music would ALWAYS be something that stuck with me.
When Opportunity knocked on our studio door, March 2023, with a chance to make this a full time gig, I jumped at the chance. Running Gilfalo Art Design with Dani is our way of carving my inner love of music into history…..literally.
Over the years, we’ve had the chance to work with some bands that made our younger selves do a double take. (“Wait, us? Designing for them? Somebody pinch me.”)
The Wailin’ Jennys
When Nicky, Ruth, and Heather of The Wailin Jennys sing, it’s like the world holds its breath( I don’t condone holding your breath, fyi) 😂. Designing for them means trying to make visuals that harmonize just as beautifully.
Spafford
Our Spafford posters are pure improv, just like their shows. We’ve leaned into word games and Alien Cowboys but left space for mystery. With Spafford, the fun is in not knowing where the jam will take you.
The Steel Wheels
The Steel Wheels feel like family, so we’ve always designed for them in a way that makes you want to gather on a front porch and play until the sun sets.
Blues Traveler
With Blues Traveler, we went a different route. This time it was their advertising material. We wanted bold lines, a clear nod to the bands iconic smoking cat( we gave it a more distinguished look), but also a playful energy that they have.
Glen Phillips
Designing for Glen, a solo musician and lead singer of Toad The Wet Sprocket, which both Dani and I have been following since our highschool years( holy crap it’s been awhile), was nothing less than stupendous. His “In Your Home Tour”, a small and intimate tour put on since Covid times by KC Turner https://kcturnerpresents.com feels like a road trip in ink. It’s the kind of poster that belongs right next to his guitar case covered in stickers.
Dizgo
Aliens, spaceships, and psychedelic jams in a Chicago night sky? Yes Please!!! :-) Dizgo set the perimeters and said go wild, so we carved like the mothership was landing in our studio.
Festivals: Centerfest, Sand & Strings, Red Wing Roots
Festivals are their own beast….. so much music and variety, so many people and so much magic in one place, it’s truly challenging. We worked hard Capturing Lewistown MT stone city charm, which wasn’t to hard (damn it’s a cute town), Sayulita MX sun-drenched beaches( we need to go) or Virginia’s blue ridge mountain air means channeling the whole vibe into one or 300, 15x21 sheet of paper.
We still geek out every time a band or festival trusts us to bring their sound to life in linocut form. And honestly? We hope we never stop geeking out.
If you’ve made it this far, thanks for being part of this journey with us. We’d love to share even more behind-the-scenes stories, process pics, and future posters with you.
👉 Subscribe to our Substack so you don’t miss the next chapter, and if you want to snag a piece of this story for your own wall, check out….
If you’re interested in working with us or know a band that would like to work with us, please send an email over to Gilfaloartdesign@gmail.com
Here’s to more ink, more bands, and more nights where the music never stops.
Comments