An Interview with artist Steven Franks

For anyone who was lucky enough to have recieved one of the awesome Mooster Records pizza magnets, you are already familiar with the work of Steven Franks. He also contributed the artwork to the now infamous compilation CD that we split with Jolly Ronnie Records titled "...for the last slice"

Steven has a unique style of illustration(which is what drew me to him) its WEIRD, really fucking weird, in fact, I LOVE IT! The grotesqueness and strangeness and cuteness(sorta) all rolled into one just shows me that this art is being created by a truly original human being.
I think I first saw his work on a sticker from The Young Rochelles, it was some sort of weird little woodland creature that apparently had nothing to do with the band but worked, really worked. Ive asked him to do a couple of projects for my label because we love supporting weirdos, thats because we are weirdos too. Below is my interview with the only punk in Franklin, Ohio, Steven Franks! 

Mooster. First off, tell us a little about you and what you do for peeps that dont know.

Hey, I’m Steven. Or Steve, whatever you prefer to call me. I like long walks on the beach, candle lit dinners, and horseback riding. Actually I'm not into any of those and I’ve only been to the beach once and hated it. I'm from Ohio, I draw a lot, I like video games, bad action movies and old cartoons. That pretty much sums me up I think. 


M: How did you get started with art making? Flyers? album art?

Probably from my lack of a social life and having little to no friends growing up. So I spent many days drawing and still do to this day. But once I started using sites like Facebook and such I got a lot more requests to do various artwork for people. I think my first was a flyer for a show in Boston? Then after that I just kind of kept going with it and slowly started to improve little details as I progressed with things. 

M: Who are your influences and what did you learn from them?

Mostly John K. A lot of his work really helped me out and understand little coloring tricks.



M: Tell us a little about your band, and where we can find music and stuff.

I actually haven’t been playing music any in the last few years. But Le Jumarts(dumbest fucking name ever) was probably my last attempt at playing. The quality of the songs are a bit rough. You've been warned. http://lejumarts.bandcamp.com/

M: How would you describe your style?

Well it’s kind of sloppy, cartoon-y with lots of eye popping, huge nipples, snot and vomit. 



M: Do you make art outside of the punk community? I’ve seen a lot of creatures and stuff but was wondering if you made comics or anything just for yourself. 

I’ve tried making some comics in the past but my story writing is awful. Plus the thought of drawing a ton of panels really scares me. But maybe in the future I’ll give it another shot.




M: Can you briefly list some of the amazing bands and clients you have done art for? 

The Hung ups, The Young Rochelles, Grim Deeds, Mooster Records! And a flyer for the Parasites/Flamingo Nosebleed tour. I know there’s a lot more I've done, I’m really sorry if I missed a handful.  

M: What plans for future art or projects do you have? 

I’m probably going to try finish filling in these new sketchbooks I recently bought. Then I might give painting a few more attempts as well as some digital art.  


M: List your top 5 fave bands and top 5 fave movies, so we can judge you. 

For music it’s really hard to decide honestly but I’d have to say They Might Be Giants, Jay Reatard, The Muffs, Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and Mean Jeans are a good few I think will probably never get old for me.

As for movies off the top of my head I’d say Robocop, Freaked, Clash of the Titans, Waynes World, and I can’t really think of a fifth so I’ll go with Killdozer!








M: Thanks for an awesome interview, Steven! Let us know any plugs, web address, how to get in touch with you. 

-Tumblr – Crabtornado.tumblr.com
-Instagram- @Crabtornado
-Twitter- @ImStevenFranks
-Facebook- facebook.com/Stevenfranksartwork
-Personal Facebook (easiest way to get in touch with me): Facebook.com/Imstevenfranks