A slick new Web site has been launched for Powerhouse Factories, that gem of a design firm in Newport, Ky., that has done commercial work for Duke Energy and P&G, but is best known for its fantastic poster art for concerts both in the Tri-State and around the country. In honor of the new site, Powerhouse is offering a 10% discount on orders from its online store, which has poster prints as well as cool Powerhouse T-shirts, hoodies, tote bags and even beer koozies.—-
If you’re a regular concertgoer, chances are you’ll be able to find a souvenir poster from a show you’ve attended in the area. The poster pictured is from Canadian band Holy Fuck’s show at the MidPoint Music Festival last year and there are posters from local shows by Less Than Jake, Of Montreal, Method Man & Redman, Kid Cudi, The Detroit Cobras, Wilco and many others. There are also some posters from shows by local bands, including Buffalo Killers, Heartless Bastards, Kenny Smith and The Chocolate Horse. There’s even a print for the poster promoting CityBeat’s “Cool Issue” party in 2005 (for you CityBeat party poster completists out there), as well as other local events like a Hurricane Katrina benefit show and art openings at Visionaries & Voices and the Southgate House Gallery.
As evidenced by the offerings in the online store, Powerhouse’s reach and profile keeps expanding. This week, the buzz should grow even more as the Powerhouse crew heads to the huge South By Southwest music/film/new media conference/showcase in Austin where they’ll have a booth amongst over 100 other poster makers from across the globe at the Flatstock 29 exhibition, presented by the American Poster Institute.
The sale at the new Powerhouse Web site (click here) continues through March 31. The company has also joined the Groupon world; right now, Grouponers can get $30 store credit for $15 (find more on the deal here).
Though Facebook event postings and other e-invitations seem to suffice for many musical acts trying to promote shows, Powerhouse proves that the long-running tradition of crafting visually stunning concert posters is still a vibrant, thriving artform.
