October 6, 2015 by joshuaon

THE SHAMAN IS HERE

SUPERNATURAL GRAPHIC NOVEL SHAMAN SUMMONS COMEDY FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE

In what editor Andrew Carl calls, “perhaps the greatest comic ever about a single father necromancer,” New York writer Ben Kahn and Barcelona artist Bruno Hidalgo have teamed up to bring their debut creator-owned graphic novel to stores.

In a universe populated by superheroes and megalomaniacal villains, death is nothing more than a temporary nuisance. A hero makes a noble sacrifice only to come back seven months later thanks to an implausible story contrivance. But what if resurrection was the domain of one, unpredictable man? That is the question Shaman seeks to answer.

Shaman collects five chapters of witty and wild adventures in an urban-fantasy setting. Comicosity writes, “Shaman will stretch the limits of your imagination and provide a poignantly sharp and thoughtful presentation on superhero absurdity that fans of Constantine and The Venture Brothers will be easily drawn to.” Ben and Bruno set the Shaman and his adoptive family against an imaginative array of villains, from skeletons and space heroes, to zombies and baseball monsters. Shaman is a gleeful dismemberment of superhero tropes that follows the one man in control of superhero comics’ infamous revolving door of death.

Now, Locust Moon Press is ready to unleash this creation upon the world. Shaman is available in stores everywhere. The 132-page graphic novel features art by Farel Dalrymple, Alice Meichi Li, Rob Woods, JG Jones, James Comey, and Jim Rugg.

Kahn imbues Shaman with energy and wit. He crafts tales of imaginative characters on mind-bending adventures. And it is in Hidalgo’s deft hands that the book comes alive. Thanks to Hidalgo’s unique style, Shaman bursts at the seams with charm and character.

Shaman is available now in stores (DIAMOND CODE JUL151468), through www.locustmoon.com, and via the spirit realm.

Bruno Hidalgo is a Spanish illustrator and cartoonist. He’s the co-creator of Shaman and has had his work featured in Dark Horse’s Once Upon A Time Machine.

Ben Kahn is a New York based writer. He is the co-creator of Shaman and a writer on several mobile adventure games. The graphic novel represents Ben’s comic-making debut.

Ben Kahn is available for interviews and press appearances. Contact him at kahanartist@gmail.com or 203.644.2522.

Trade cover by Farel Dalrymple

Issue 1 cover by Bruno Hidalgo

Issue 3 cover by JG Jones

Issue 5 cover by Jim Rugg

July 30, 2015 by joshuaon

Awards and Onwards

So… it’s a bit of a heady time here in the land of the Locusts.

Andrew went to San Diego, and came back with these things:

Those globes are actually spinnable, and the base is made of solid wood. But beyond even their fine craftsmanship, these objects also have symbolic value. They are Eisner awards, assigned by a jury of our peers, recognizing the transcendent beauty and Herculean it-takes-a-village communal effort that is LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM.

EISNER winner Our collective labor of love was recognized as BEST ANTHOLOGY, and Jim Rugg’s gorgeous work on the package was singled out for BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN.

We’re humbled. So much dedication and care went into the crafting of the 118 beautiful pieces contained in this collection. And we couldn’t be prouder to be behind one of the projects spearheading this surprising and splendid Winsor McCay revival – between our anthology, IDW’s RETURN TO SLUMBERLAND mini-series, Taschen’s complete Little Nemo reprint, and Katherine Roeder’s academic work WIDE AWAKE IN SLUMBERLAND, our man was the recipient of, count ’em, eight Eisner nominations and four Eisner awards. These are some pretty voluminous coat-tails, and we’re riding ’em in good company, hanging on for dear life.

Then we turn around the next week and find that LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM has been nominated for two Harvey Awards, (BEST ANTHOLOGY and SPECIAL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN PRESENTATION; voting open till 8/31), and Locust Moon Press was nominated for a Philadelphia Geek Award for COMIC CREATOR OF THE YEAR. The accolades for this beautiful book are coming faster than we can tweet about them. It’s a remarkable thing, to see the spectacular work and incredible passion of so many visionary cartoonists recognized by their industry and their colleagues.

BUT – lest you think we’re resting for even a moment on our laurels – we thought we might take this opportunity to give you a glimpse of what we’re working on.

Friends, this is the calm before the storm. All spring and summer long, we have been planting seeds.

Soon – the harvest.

Here’s what’s coming from Locust Moon in the next three months. Gird yourselves, comic lovers.

LITTLE NEMO’S BIG NEW DREAMS

We’re pleased and honored to announce the newest incarnation of our seemingly endless Little Nemo revival project: we’ve partnered with TOON BOOKS, Francoise Mouly’s remarkable comics-for-young-readers imprint, home of beautiful children’s books by Art Spiegelman, Jeff Smith, and Neil Gaiman, to create a miniature, abridged edition of our ginormous compendium.

Gorgeously designed by Francoise herself, edited by myself, Chris, and Andrew, and featuring an introduction in comic strip form by none other than Art Spiegelman (!!!!), this beautiful new book is our attempt to create some version of our dream-tome fit for libraries, schools, backpacks, picnics, and budgets without room for triple-digit literary line items.

Due for release on September 1st, this edition is a sparkling treasure smuggled out of Slumberland while everyone was distracted by the cacophonous pomp of the LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM parade.

Some great early reviews of LITTLE NEMO’S BIG NEW DREAMS are already in from ICv2 and Kirkus.

SHAMAN

This is a project that’s been bubbling away on Locust Moon’s most favored back burner for a couple years now, and it’s finally come to a boil. Ben Kahn and Bruno Hidalgo’s gleeful dismemberment of superhero tropes marks the long-form debut of two top-flight storytellers and one bitingly brilliant comics-making team. Ben and Bruno’s sharp, nimble, contagiously funny creative vision is about to be loosed on the world in the shape of a charming supernatural saga that’s sure to leave readers enraptured and hungry for more. In the never-ending battle between good and evil, the door between life and death swings both ways – and Shaman’s the asshole with the key.

SHAMAN: Volume One, featuring special appearances by the likes of Farel Dalrymple, Jim Rugg, and J.G. Jones, will be in comic shops everywhere October 15.

Make sure your store gets it! Diamond order code JUL151468.

QUARTER MOON: IMPRACTICAL CATS

Yes, this is a whole issue of Quarter Moon about cats. Mostly this cat…

…but a lot of other cats too.

Our little quarterly-esque comics anthology is growing up, pouncing into the future with its wildest, prettiest and most ambitious iteration thus far. Featuring a cover by Lisk Feng and artwork and stories from a lineup of ringers including Paul Pope, Farel Dalrymple, Dean Haspiel, David Mack, Bill Sienkiewicz, Ronald Wimberly, and many more, this celebration of our furry friends prowls and purrs like the fine feline she is.

The sixth volume of QUARTER MOON will hit shelves by November. Our hope is that the slow boat from China gets it here in time to debut this creature at Comic Arts Brooklyn.

PROMETHEUS ETERNAL

We’ve been keeping this one a semi-secret outside of some slightly obnoxious vaguebooking, but goddamn. We’re just too excited to hold back any longer.

We’re teaming up with the Philadelphia Museum of Art (you know, from Rocky?) to produce a comic book companion to their upcoming WRATH OF THE GODS exhibition – a show featuring representations of Prometheus throughout history, including works by Rubens, Michelangelo, and Titian.

How do you answer the call to arms that comes in the form of a collaboration with one of the greatest American art museums, in a show featuring a number of old masters?

You recruit a lineup of the greatest cartoonists in the world. Our PROMETHEUS ETERNAL comic will feature illustrations and stories adapting the Prometheus myth by creators including

GRANT MORRISON
DAVE MCKEAN
LISK FENG
BILL SIENKIEWICZ
PAUL POPE
ANDREA TSURUMI
DAVID MACK
JAMES COMEY
FAREL DALRYMPLE
YUKO SHIMIZU

We’re bringing the visions of these incredible storytellers into a context in which it deserves to be seen: among other great works of art history. If our crazy plan works, this book will be the first of many, and this partnership between Locust Moon and the P.M.A. will mark the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

A little taste, courtesy of McKean…

UPDATE: And now, Bill Sienkiewicz’s cover!

April 15, 2015 by joshuaon

Party All Weekend at Locust Moon!

There’s no Drink & Draw tomorrow, my fine feathered friends. Save your strength for a weekend-long celebration of comics and community at Locust Moon.

It begins Friday at 7pm, when we host a signing of COLONIAL COMICS, the beautiful new collection of stories set at the dawn of our great and troublesome nation, hot off the presses from Fulcrum Books.

Many of our Locust Moon mainstays contributed to this handsome volume, including James Comey, Mike Sgier, Charles Fetherolf, Jason Rodriguez, and yours truly, humble scribe and scrappy utility infielder Josh O’Neill.

Jason will play the fife. I’ll bang a drum. if you’ve been yearing for more fife in your life, this is the place to find it.

Then join us the following day for our QUARTER MOON: REVENGE release party. Though there is no formal presentation, Dave Proch will be performing scenes from his unhinged love/hate story GYPSY at full voice and unexpected intervals throughout the evening.

Be there, or be the next victim of our swift and brutal vengeance.

On Sunday, we rest, and maybe eat some waffles.

April 8, 2015 by joshuaon

QUARTER MOON: REVENGE to Debut at MoCCA-Fest!

Have you been wronged? Mistreated? Betrayed? Cut off in traffic? Dumped, dissed, kissed off, cussed out, ripped off or robbed?

Well, the law firm of Kitchen, Seitchik, Woods, Dougherty, Simple, Turbitt, Heimer, Comey, Proch & Krayewski is in your corner.

But it’s not justice we offer. It’s REVENGE.

The fifth issue of our quarterly comics magazine features eleven jaw-clenchingly vindictive tales of retaliation, comeuppance and just desserts from many of the finest, angriest cartoonists working today.

It premiers at New York’s esteemed Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art Festival on April 11th & 12th, from 11am to 6pm. So come find us at table 316, and we’ll seal your copy with a spiteful kiss.

You could also order one from our web store today!

Then come join us the following weekend on Saturday, April 18th for a ruthless evening of retribution and reprisal. A book release party to flaunt our joy and success in the faces of our many enemies and detractors.

Bring your grievances and grudges. We will drown them in blood.

An eye for an eye. A tit for a tat. A comic for you, you heartless, blood-thirsty hate machine.

BYOBile.

July 1, 2014 by joshuaon

The Locust Moon Top 40: June 2014 – Nemo Edition

This is the space where we usually spotlight 40 amazing things from the last month — adorable cat videos, cheesy songs we can’t stop listening to, and COMICS COMICS COMICS. For the month of June, we’ve decided to do something a little bit different.

If you’ve been anywhere in our general vicinity or exist within nine degrees of separation from us on Twitter, you are probably by now aware of the epic Kickstarter campaign we’ve launched for our insane, Quixotic, 16″ x 21″ hardcover Winsor McCay tribute LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM. This is one star-studded anthology — maybe the most star-studded comics anthology of all time — and there’s been a lot of press and attention on the big names who’ve come together to pay tribute to our favorite Sunday strip: the Paul Popes, John Cassadays, Michael Allreds, J.H. Williamses (and Yuko Shimizus and Bill Sienkiewiczes and Dean Haspiels and yada genius yada).

So we wanted to use this space to draw attention to 40 artists in DREAM ANOTHER DREAM whose names you may not know yet — cartoonists and illustrators whose work is stunning, beautiful, restlessly inventive, original and bold, but who haven’t yet achieved the name recognition of the people mentioned above. One of the things we love most about LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM is that it combines the biggest artists of its day with the biggest artists of tomorrow. Here, in no particular order, are forty folks you should be hearing a lot about in the next few years.

Note: click on any artist’s name to get to his or her website and see more.

40. RAUL GONZALEZ. Raw and refined. Sweeter than sugar, harder than real deal moonshine.

39. BODIE CHEWNING is, quite simply, one of the most talented people out there. If only we could get him to draw more than six pages a year…

38. Master of puppets JENNA TROST charms and creeps in equal measure.

37. DAVE CHISHOLM slings a pen and a trumpet the exact same way — like he invented the thing, and he’s gonna show you what it can do.

36. With a precise cartoonist’s eye, KATIE MOODY turns stories upside-down, inside-out and back again.

35. BISHAKH SOM‘s mind-bending architecture, gentle characters, and inviting colors can keep us staring for hours.
Continue reading →

January 21, 2014 by Andrew

Tuesday Tease

This week’s tease is a little different than most. Here’s a project that we put a great deal of love and work into, but sadly just didn’t come together in the end.

The right ingredients were there: Atlantic City, mysticism, kung fu, heaven & hell, boardwalk vagabonds, a heavy helping of Bruce Lee, and a dash of David Bowie.

But for the time being, here lies AMERICAN MONSTER BUFFET, and all the awesomeness Chris Stevens (story) and Jimmy Comey (art) brought to it.

– Andrew Carl

August 27, 2013 by Andrew

Kickstarting the Quarter Moon

Now being Kickstarted!

Locust Moon is undertaking a lot this fall, between the publication of QUARTER MOON #2: “Locust Man vs. Monster” and Rob Woods’ 36 LESSONS IN SELF-DESTRUCTION, the hosting of our second comics festival (at which both of those books are set to debut), and putting together all of various other comic projects we currently have in the works. That’s why we’re asking for a hand on QUARTER MOON – we’ve got a lot riding on October 2013, and we hope you can help us make it through in one piece!

Any little thing you can donate will earn our eternal thanks – but we’re not about to ask for money for nothing! We want to send you stuff in return like the book itself (naturally), the first issue of QUARTER MOON (“Silence”), signatures, sketches, and some special extra stuff thrown in from Locust Moon projects old (ONCE UPON A TIME MACHINE) and new (36 LESSONS).

Pages from “Bow to the Wizard” by Bodie Chewning

QUARTER MOON #2: “Locust Man vs. Monster” will be 48 pages and contain 5 complete stories, by cartoonists Steve Lafler (Bughouse), Kate Farquhar (Zodiac & friends), Dave Proch (Once Upon a Time Machine), Bodie Chewning (IdN Extra 02: Neo York – Mightnight Sessions), and Daryl Seitchik (Smarter Child). It will also include 3 one-page strips by James Comey (American Monster Buffet), illustrations by Lindsey Wavrek & Steven Bradshaw, and exclusive peeks into the sketchbook of Farel Dalrymple (Pop Gun War, It Will All Hurt). Providing this issue’s cover – and title – is Ulises Farinas (Gamma, Catalyst Comix).

The beginning of “A Hard Boiled Heart” by Dave Proch

Here’s a little breakdown of the main stories we’re going to be sharing with you guys:

Bodie Chewning‘s “Bow to the Wizard” or “Don’t Get Your Diapers in a Twist It’s Only a Cthuloid” stars a narcissistic Wizard who may need a little more help from his assistant than he thinks.

Dave Proch‘s “A Hard Boiled Heart” teaches us that underneath every hard shell is the wrong man who will go to the ends of the Earth for the right woman.

Steve Lafler will introduce us to an expat family in Oaxaca, where Steve currently lives. There’s a wannabe superhero Luchadora (female Mexican wrestler), an existential encounter with death, and a 2500-year-old vampire. Chickens are involved.

Kate Farquhar is uncovering some secret, fantastical histories of Philadelphia.

And Daryl Seitchik will take us on a semi-autobiographical jaunt through a cartoonist’s dreams.

Page from “Oaxaca” by Steve Lafler

Like the first issue of QUARTER MOON, “Locust Man vs. Monster” will be partially in color and partially in B&W, depending on how each artist wishes to present his or her art.

But unlike the first issue, “Locust Man vs. Monster” has no single theme. The guys & gals are running wild here.

1 of 3 prints by Lindsey Wavrek & Steven Bradshaw

QUARTER MOON #1, “Silence” (56 pages), spotlighted wordless comics from Charles Fetherolf, Alex Eckman-Lawn, Sophia Wiedeman, Jeremy Baum, Alexandra Beguez, Chris Stevens and Rob Woods, along with sketch pages by Farel Dalrymple and a wraparound cover by Jeremy Baum.

: Jeremy Baum

: Charles Fetherolf

: Alex Eckman-Lawn

: Sophia Wiedeman

: Jeremy Baum

: Alexandra Beguez

: Chris Stevens & Rob Woods

We hope you guys will help us out! We love the idea of getting this great work out into the world, and it’s really wonderful to see other people getting behind the idea, too.

See you in Kickstartland!

June 19, 2013 by Andrew

Locust Moon Comics Festival 2013

This October, the LOCUST MOON COMICS FESTIVAL returns! If you want to find more info on the festival, its guests, and its programming, check out the Locust Moon Comics Festival website. And if you’re an artist, creator, or publisher yourself, you can apply for a table at the event. But before all that, check out the wonderful poster Rob Woods whipped up for the occasion:

On Saturday, October 5^th, Locust Moon Comics will host the second LOCUST MOON COMICS FESTIVAL, an annual celebration of comics, illustration, and graphic arts, to be held at the Rotunda in West Philadelphia (4014 Walnut Street).

Building on last year’s event, this year’s iteration will feature more than twice as many creators in a larger, more versatile space, and add an expansive schedule of programs including workshops, panels, and discussions on the art, business, and history of comics. More than just a convention, this unique event will honor comic creators and comic creations. The emphasis will be on independent and creator-owned books, as the Rotunda will play host to some of the most distinguished and acclaimed artists, writers, and publishers in the comics world.

The LOCUST MOON COMICS FESTIVAL will boast a variety of local Philadelphia talent such as J.G. Jones (Final Crisis), Robert Woods (36 Lessons in Self-Destruction), James Comey (Donkey Punch), and Box Brown (Everything Dies), alongside acclaimed cartoonists from across North America including Farel Dalrymple (Pop Gun War), Chrissie Zullo (Cinderella), Todd Klein (Fables), Tom Scioli (Gødland), Michael Kupperman (Tales Designed to Thrizzle), and Benjamin Marra (Lincoln Washington: Free Man).

The festival will be an all-day affair on Saturday (10am to 6pm), as a cornucopia of publishers and creators vend their wares, sign books, and greet fans. A number of artists will debut festival-exclusive prints, and several will debut new books, including Robert Woods’ 36 LESSONS IN SELF-DESTRUCTION, the long-awaited complete collection of DEPRESSED PUNX mini-comics. While the festival itself takes place on Saturday, events and festivities at Locust Moon Comics will spill across the weekend, including a Drink & Draw, 36 LESSONS book release party, and post-con pancake breakfast.

“This new annual tradition is our way of recognizing and celebrating the huge variety of unique, independent voices in the world of comics,” says Locust Moon co-owner Josh O’Neill. “We want to exalt the infinite possibilities of the medium and acknowledge the intrepid talents that restlessly explore and expand its edges.”

Locust Moon Comics is a retail store, art gallery, and publishing company based in West Philadelphia. This event is the most recent of their many efforts to unify, accelerate, and publicize the burgeoning Philadelphia comic book scene.

Find further information about the event and more guests as they’re announced on the LOCUST MOON COMICS FESTIVAL website (locustmoonfest.com), Facebook (facebook.com/locustmoonfest), and Twitter (twitter.com/locustmoonfest).

April 5, 2013 by joshuaon

The Locust Moon Top 40

40. Five Ghosts

Frank Barbieri’s retro-pulp debut is a shot of old-fashioned adventure-comics adrenaline.

39. Rob’s Drawing Table.

Now long defaced by its creator. Burn it down, build again. Nothing gold can stay.

38. The Fabletown Pool Party

You have never seen this many pairs of glasses in a pool.

Continue reading →

Locust Moon Comics

West Philly's favorite small press and former comic shop/art gallery.

james comey