Greg "Stainboy" Reinel
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Twenty years ago, if you had told Greg "Stainboy" Reinel that the punk-rock flyers and gig posters he was creating would one day be coveted by collectors, or that there would be books published of his work, he would've laughed in your face. "I was a snotty little punk
living way out on the edge," Reinel states. "I couldn't have cared
less about a 'career' in graphic design." Cut to 2008 and that's
exactly what has happened. While undertaking a 2006 tour exhibiting
his rock poster art, Reinel was approached by Dark Horse Books editor
Chris Warner. Vicious Intent: The Rock 'N' Roll Art and Exploitation
of Stainboy Reinel is the amped-up, this-book-goes-to-eleven result.
"There's no shoe-gazing ambiguity in Stainboy's work," says Warner.
"It walks straight up to you, grabs you by the throat, choke-slams
you, takes your wallet and keys, and drives off in your car with your
girlfriend. And she laughs at you, man!"
Stainboy's Day-Glo color, powerhouse linework, and love of pop-
culture trash have made his eye-assaulting silkscreened concert
posters a perennial favorite among cutting-edge rock bands, including
Queens Of The Stone Age, Flogging Molly, Motörhead, Buzzcocks,
Sevendust, New York Dolls, Joan Jett, and Nashville Pussy. Dripping
with violent wit, dark humor, and blasts of fluorescent color,
Stainboy's posters demand immediate attention. His imagery is armed
with loaded guns, busty vixens, menacing muscle cars, and tributes to
classic exploitation cinema. As Reinel says, "Subtlety is not an
option."
While many graphic artists and illustrators remain anonymous, Reinel
is no recluse, crisscrossing the country to show his work and meet
the public. Usually clad in leather, the spikey-haired Stainboy looks
like a rock star—because at one time he was a rock star...almost. From 1996 to 2003, Reinel fronted the legendary Orlando-based
power duo, Nutrajet, who released several albums and relentlessly
toured the US and UK. Reinel has no formal art training and although
he's been drawing and painting his entire life, he doesn't consider
himself an artist. "This is something I've always done for kicks. It
accidentally became my job. My posters are just loud eye candy.
They're designed to look cool, get attention and create a buzz for a
rock 'n' roll show. I'm really more of an entertainer."
