Tad Peyton: Old School Hardcore Tattoos

I recently realized that there haven't been many tattoo posts as of late here. Nevertheless, tattoos are and have been one of my big interests in life, and I am always researching the history of tattooing and looking to find out about cool artists around the globe. Tattoos are so close to hardcore, such a big part of it. I have often tried to find out the connection between the two and what has made tattoos and hardcore blend so well, but I'll leave that to someone else. All I know is I love both. So now it's time to check out some cool tattoo art and spread the word on the artists who deserve it...

One great artist that I've recently found out about is Tad Peyton. This guy tends to create some super clean & bright, traditional old school images.What's more is that Peyton has a soft spot for creating hardcore-related tattoo themes; his art has been featured on hardcore merch and posters (Out Crowd, United Blood Fest '13), while he's also making tatoo flash that focuses on common hardcore and street punk themes/songs. What could be more amazing than a straight edge tattooist paying respect to his favorite hardcore bands? Yup, this shit is as good as it gets.

http://tadpeyton.com

Tattoo Spotlight: The Old School Tattoo Art of Mike Adams

Mike Adams is a prominent US tattoo artist who specializes on traditional, old school American-style tattoos. Through his solid work, he plays an important role in the current comeback of the traditional style. His work points to the origins of American tattoo with no particular 'modern' twist, thus preserving this glorious form of skin art!

Sailor themes, eagles, girl faces, animals (pumas, horses etc) with classic colors are all part of Adams's old school American feel. This style brings us back to a time when tattoos had a deviant nature and a life-long meaning to those who got them!

Check out this Mike Adams on Tumblr: http://mikeadamstattoo.tumblr.com/

Hardcore Personalities: Dave Haze (That's What's Up)

Dave Haze: "I don't care if it offends"

Dave Haze is the singer and most recognizable figure behind the infamous Detroit straight edge hardcore band, xTyrantx. This 7th Dagger recording outfit has raised more than a few eyebrows due to some militant edge viewpoints, as well as its violent sound and admittedly extreme looks. 

Let's face it: xTyrantx is not here for the happy PMA kids. However, Haze and xTyrantx help in representing hardcore as the most extreme and dangerous music subculture in the world!

Aside from xTyrantx, Haze also tattoos at Eternal Tattoos and is apparently a big fan of outlaw country.

Respect to the people who are still keeping hardcore extreme!

http://www.facebook.com/xTyrantxFTW

http://www.facebook.com/SEVENTHDAGGER

Tattoo Spotlight: True Love Tattoo Madrid, Spain

In general, we'd have to admit that there must be more than a few tattoo studios entitled True Love around the world. The name might not be exceptionally and totally original, but it surely stands for a lot. And sure enough, the things that happen in these studios are indeed quite unique. We have a lot of work to do to cover them all, but we'll start by throwing the spotlight on Spain's True Love Tattoo, Madrid.

I personally hadn't heard much about this particular studio beforehand, but the video below says it all. It seems like True Love Tattoo Madrid is a real mecca for people to get tattooed when in this city. I love the studio's old school feel, the checkered floor pattern and the fact that it seems like a place that a lot of HC kids and gals get their ink done. Moreover, as you'll notice by watching the video, one of the artists is wearing a Warzone t shirt and that's a definite bonus!

Enjoy this professionally shot video by Ronink Media and listen some cool tunes (including one from Social Distortion) accompanying the well known tattoo machine sounds.

Old School Tattoo flash, by Dean Denney

If you're like me, you can never, ever have enough tattoo flash to stare at and get inspired from. Traditional tattoo flash is amazing as a contemporary art piece, as inspiration for those of us who draw, and of course as ideas for our next tatttoo! Get it done!

http://deanieweanie.com

Dalmiro Tattoos - Religion Kills

Dalmiro Tattoos is the work of Dalmiro Dalmont, an impressive and diverse tattoo artist who specializes in full color traditional Japanese style as well as old school / Americana tattoos (or a mix of both). He does mostly large scale work with incredible, eye-catching detail and color. You can check out his awesome work here and see more of his truly inspiring skin art.

The image above is one of Dalmiro's newest creations, with the dark yet awesome title "Religion Kills". An art critic am I not, but I can understand that the pain caused by imposed religion over the course of mankind still lives in the hearts of people. From what I've seen in my time documenting hardcore and tattoos, many people who live and create within alternative cultures have the urge to express their hate towards religion. At the same time, in a world of crisis we frequently witness other people's strong urge to go back to those old values. So do we need religion, or not? The answer, like always, is only personal.

Image used by permission of the artist

With The Light Of Truth: A Book on Straight Edge Tattoos (Coming September 2011)

Hasn't hardcore always been connected with tattoos (for whatever reason)? Haven't straight edge tattoos become a huge part of the worldwide hardcore culture as we know it? Well, finally, here is a book that will document all of it! A project put together by Dan Smith, for whom you can read a TYS article here.

Vegan Hardcore Tattoos - Tattooed Commitment

It's always interesting to study the way tattoos have become an inseparable part of hardcore music and lifestyle. In many cases, words collide and it's hard to tell who influences who: people cross from one culture into another, i.e. start from vegan straight edge and go to just being vegan without listening to hardcore but keeping the principles from a scene they grew out of. In other cases, people who are vegan come to discover hardcore and its philosophy, draw the parallel lines and become true dedicated vegan sXe hardcore kids.

All is possible, and while people change their beliefs and shift from one culture to another in their endless pursuit of a solid, justifiable identity, one thing is for sure: the emblems that they chose in the process will definitely stay on their bodies. We're talking about tattoos, of course, and the way that they pay testament to a person's beliefs and past. I think this is exactly why tatoos have been so big in hardcore (aside from the fashion, which is always a factor). Hardcore as a style of music has always been related with strong beliefs and life choices. For sure, hardcore bands have always been outspoken about their philosophies and personal beliefs. This is what makes hardcore interesting ; this is what makes hardcore unique. 

Today's post is a small photo collection exploring the world of vegan tattoos.The following photos are not necessarily from people who are die hard hardcore fans, but the action it self of getting a huge vegan tattoo is pretty hardcore and deserves to be presented here! So let's go!

Nice throat tattoo with a direct nod to ALF

Vegan knuckles is always a good way to go

Working hard to maintain vegan fitness

 Don't ask if it hurt

Walter Bond, the 'Lone Wolf' - imprisoned animal rights activist

Supporting animal rights for life

Los Ocegueda, vegan tattooist

Little Linda, a vegan sXe model and tattoist

Like always, this isn't no propagation article.We just show it like it is. Personal beliefs may coincide with certain ideologies, but we're not trying to push anything down people's throats. Also, we should not forget to let vegans and aspiring vegans know that there is vegan ink that they should use for their tattoos if they want to remain 100% vegan (most tattoo ink contains gelatine, certainly an animal product). It's more expensive and most tattoo shops don't have vegan ink yet, but... yeah.

Hardcore Personalities: Dan Smith - The 'Unknown Tattooer'

In the world of hardcore, there are often personalities who don't exactly fit in with the traditional norms. We often see people who have come from the hardcore scene and have taken that ethos and transformed it into something else. I am talking business owners, filmmakers, tattoo artists, whatever; the examples are pretty much countless. Dan Smith is such a personality and this is why we feature him here on our blog.

Dan Smith is a UK born, New Zealand raised, US residing tattooist and musician. Admittedly, he is a man of many talents who has succeeded in many different aspects and in a way is a role model for many who follow in his path (choosing alternative and/or unconventional ways to earn one's living). As a tattooist, Dan Smith is following a pretty much traditional style of old school designs, but with trademark precision and detail. In many of his designs, one can see the shared influence and similarities that hardcore and tattoos have always had in their aesthetics. The straight edge aspect also comes up quite frequently in his work, as Dan Smith is a very proud X man! Here is some awesome work of his:

Dan Smith's music side is a totally different story from what you might expect. He sings for The Dear & Departed, a band which does not necessarily have much to do at all with hardcore. But it's really not that important, as the band plays a very nice mix of new wave punk, like AFI meets the Cure meets the Damned (or something). It is the kind of music which is perfect to chill out to after an intense hardcore show or when you're just not in the mood for hardcore. Definitely music with a unique sound, to put on as a background while you do stuff, like draw, make a zine or a flyer! In any case, The Dear & Departed already have a loyal following, and have played with bands like Sick Of It All, the aforementioned AFI and Avenged Sevenfold.

There is more to check from Mr Dan Smith for those who are interested. He has participated in Peta's 'Ink, not Mink' campaign (hooray!), has designed stuff for famous companies like Macbeth, and has participated in the world-famous reality TV show 'L.A. Ink'. All this is just to show that proper 'hardcore personalities' are not just bald guys who act hard. The way I see it, they are creative people from all walks of life who are out there doing stuff, working hard and making a good name for themselves. It's all about what you put in,  not the posturing.