Heavy Metal Art Book Is On The Way!

I'm doing a lot of conventions, and many, many times, I have metal fans dropping by my stand, and ask questions about this or that heavy metal album cover I painted.

I did quite a bunch of album covers over the years, and some of these bands / albums became highly influential in the music industry.

I'm fortunate enough to be the artist who was commissioned to paint the artwork for some of these albums. No one knows in advance what death metal album will become a classic, I just happened to be at the right place, at the right time.

So after chatting with fellow metal fans in these conventions, I thought it would be a good idea to put out a book that covers every aspect, of every albums I worked on. How I got in touch with the bands. How I got to work with this or that label. The sketches I did, approval process, photo session with models when needed. Logo designs sometimes. Or record labels sponsoring my public art performances. Also bands praising my work as well as unhappy bands who went as far as issuing death threats.

There's lots of funny facts an artist can reveal around a heavy metal album cover he's done!

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The hard cover book should be out sometimes this fall. Page count is not final yet but it should be around 250 pages. I'm still gathering all the content to fill the pages, and every single day I find stuff I totally forgot about. There's just so many things to cover!

«Yes but... Will this book show the same stuff as your other one, Universe In Motion?»

Nope! While Universe In Motion features a bunch of my heavy metal album covers, it doesn't include all of them - far from it. With this new book you will have everything, and I'm also adding comments and funny facts to spice it up...

So hang on there, and look out for an official announcement!

sv bell

Black Flag TV: network upgrade!

Folks, if you noticed some downtime lately, I'm sorry for that! Keeping the stream steady becomes a daunting task and I called the techs since it appears the problem isn't in my studio.

So I'm on it. My ISP's tech came this morning to investigate the problem, and it appears there is a signal router to be replaced, located up in the post at the corner of the street.

I'm told the problem should be resolved tomorrow, the time another tech comes back with the replacement part.

So the stream will be erratic for another day, I apologize for that! Hang on there folks.

Follow the updates on my Twitter account!

Plus que quelques jours avant le Festival BD de Montréal!!

Les 29, 30 et 31 mai, c'est le Festival BD de Montréal au Parc Lafontaine! Venez rencontrer auteurs, éditeurs, libraires spécialisés et intervenants de la scène de la bande dessinée locale.

Je serai au kiosque de La Boite à B.D. de Laval avec mes séries de comics! D'autres auteurs sont aussi présents au kiosque de La Boite à BD: Rémi Paradis, Le David Gauthier, Jean Marquis et Michel Viau. Beaucoup de plaisir en perspective sous le chapiteau... On se voit là-bas!

Want a Free Ad In My Print Comics?

You publish your own comics? Or you're an indie author? Maybe an independent filmmaker? You're probably looking for places to advertise your stuff, give it exposure and reach a new audience.

I'd be happy to run your ads in the pages of my print comic books!

Yes, all my comics are in PRINT, that means your ad will be seen for years. Unlike digital stuff, print ads last forever.

How much? That's FREE! But, of course, spaces are limited. Contact me ASAP for details and deadlines for the next issue.

Want to have a guaranteed placement?
Sure thing, I can do that for a small amount!

Black and White, Full Page -- $20
Color, Full Page -- $35
Color, Back Cover -- $50

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*** Ad Selection ***

Black and White Ad $20.00 USD Color Ad $35.00 USD Back Cover $50.00 USD

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Thanks For the Amazing Weekend! Ottawa Comiccon 2015

Thanks to all who attended the Ottawa Comiccon 2015, and who took the time to drop by my stand! It was - once again - a memorable show. Metro News reports there was a record crowd of some 40.000 visitors!

It was awesome meeting and greeting with fans, thanks again for the amazing support you have for my work, comics and movies. I actually ran sold out the box sets of my feature films! I'll get some more done for the next comic con, in Montreal, July 3-5. (Montreal Comiccon)

I've had many of you to ask about the next issues of my comic books! They're just around the corder! Realms of Fear no.2 and Silverblood no.4 are on the way, and also a french version of the three first issues of Silverblood.

I'll be at the FBDM Montreal on May 28-30th, and I hope to have the french version in time for that show. Come see me at the stand of La Boite à B.D.!

I'm also working on the first issue of Monsters and Models graphic novel. More about this one soon!

Cheers,
Sv Bell

EIP Laser Turntables Are Here!

This sure looks like an awesome buddy! EIP released a turntable for vinyl records that uses a laser head instead of a needle.

I'd be curious to hear how this laser-driven turntable sounds like. The laser head reads the record's surface, and translate it to high fidelity audio. No physical needle scratch the surface of the record to read the bumps, making the album much more durable.

However... I must say that I seriously doubt the sound would be as good as a real turntable, requiring a needle. Simply because the warm sound of a vinyl album comes from the friction, the contact between the needle and the vinyl. Breaking this contact is killing the warmth. Much like shaking hands with a friend will always be more warm than a phone call.

I agree that the album preservation is a concern when a needle scratch the surface. Over time, it gets worn, and inevitably you start hearing crackles after a few years.

But imperfection is part of life. It's the element that makes something looks (and sounds) alive. The difference between a computer-generated character, and a real actor in a film. Why do we prefer the actor? Because he's not perfect and he has a personnality of his own.

Same goes, why do we prefer the old sneakers we're wearing for a few years? Because they're getting older, with their owner. How about they'd permanently stay new over the years? It just wouldn't be the same.

If you listened to that old Metallica vinyl album you grew up with, and a new vinyl of the same album you bought recently, you know the feeling. The old one with the crackles sounds more alive than the new, pristine vinyl you got.

More infos on the EIP turntable here.

Le samedi de La BD Gratuite à La Boite à BD de Laval!

Ce samedi, 2 mai, c'est le Samedi de la BD Gratuite!!

Pour l'occasion, je serai à La Boite à B.D. de Laval pour une amicale séance de signature. Plusieurs autres auteurs de BD et 'cosplayers' seront de la partie pour une journée mémorable.

Besoin d'informations à propos de cet événement annuel? Visite la page Facebook:
Le Samedi de la BD - Page Facebook

Plusieurs librairies à travers le Québec participent à l'événement, il y en a certainement une près de chez toi. La liste des librairies participantes est sur la page Facebook.

Viens chercher ta BD gratuite le samedi 2 mai! On se voit là!

-Sv Bell

This Saturday! Free Comic Book Day!

Yes, the greatest day of the year is coming! This Saturday, it's the annual event Free Comic Book Day! The name says it all: just visit your local comic book shop, and get some absolutely FREE comic books.

How can that be? Visit the event's website for all information, and get the list of all participating book stores across the world.

Free Comic Book Day

April 23rd is World Book Day!

What did you get?

Own a website? Google Downgrades Rankings for Non Mobile-Friendly Sites.

It hasn't been covered a lot, but as of April 21st 2015, Google change its search engine algorithms. One of the main impact is that now on, if your website is not mobile-friendly, it will be automatically downgraded and pushed away in Google search results.

So if your website relies heavily on Google search queries to get visitors, you will have to make sure it is fully responsive. If you notice lesser visits on your page starting today, that may be the reason why.

Read the Google webmaster article.
Also reported on Forbes.

The Models, The Angels...

Someone asked me on Twitter if I was using actual models for reference when I draft my doodles for Monsters and Models.

In many situations, yes I do! Interested? If you're a demon, have tentacles or giant eyes, send me your modeling pics!

I tend to draw and sketch based on photos from models sending me their albums and galleries. Pro and amateur models, fetish, goth, cosplayer, I like to call them the Black Flag TV Angels, and the Angels also have some of their pictures posted on a special section on my site! Visit them here, they're bold, they're beautiful, they're wonderful: Black Flag TV Angels

Would like to submit your photos? Please do!
Fire me an email with a link, I can't wait to see!

sv bell

Movie Poster Art I made for Slasher Horror Death Dive!

I've been fortunate enough to be invited by canadian filmmaker Alain Vézina to take care of the artwork for his latest horror movie, entitled "Death Dive" (in french: "Le Scaphandrier").

The film tells the story of a dead diver who's treasure has been taken away from a wreck, and he comes back to life to claim what's his. And take a few lives on the way. With the help of an army of zombies of course. This is Alain's second horror feature film. His first one (La Morte Amoureuse) is available on DVD here.

This slasher horror film is very 80s, and that was the goal from the producers and the filmmaker. I created the art to follow the same retro pattern. Not sure when the DVD will come out, it still has to go thru the approval process at the distributor's, but the film's producers are all excited about this cover.

I'll let you know when a release date is announced!

Official trailer (in french):

Enjoy!!
- Sv Bell

Black Flag Pictures Stuff No Longer on Amazon!

You may have seen my tweets already, but I have removed all my stuff from Amazon! Now on, for everything Black Flag Pictures, please visit my store right here!

Why removing everything from Amazon? Well, several reasons, mainly that Amazon doesn't bring me much new customers. I was basically sending them buyers, and they'd take a markup on the sales. So I'd rather keep my own customers on my own web store instead of sending them somewhere else and have a billion dollar company monetize on my efforts.

Should Amazon eventually want to buy volume of my DVDs or books to offer on their site at discount, I have no problem with that! But until then, use my own store! You'll love it, I promise!

- Sv Bell

Cosplay section coming on Black Flag TV website

I'm working on it!
A new section dedicated to cosplay models is opening this week, and will be gradually deployed on my website. It's already accessible, though there's very little content as of writing this. More models will be listed in the next few days (and the following weeks!)

I've always been a fan of that culture; back in the early 80s when I started to do conventions, I always enjoyed to see people dressing up in comic book characters or TV icons! So I wanted to have a place where I could share the love, pay tribute to those models who have a passion for costuming and modeling, and in some cases do it professionally. That will be my tiny and humble contribution to the movement.

And maybe, just maybe, one day, I'll be fortunate enough to see someone cosplaying one of the comic book characters I created!

Sv Bell