Foo Fighters Poster Albuquerque 2020

Concept and Process

The inspiration came from my love of vintage DayGlo and flocked blacklight posters — the kind that seemed to hum with energy in a head shop window. I wanted that same tactile, electric feel — something that could sear eyeballs and melt faces.

This is the effect I wanted. I wanted to sear eyeballs and melt faces. 

I always get a little meek when suggesting processes like this since someone always has to budget for it and screenprints arent cheap to begin with. But I pitched it a a kind of “wouldn’t it be cool to…” and luckily the band jumped at the chance to make a real-deal fuzzy Day Glo rock poster. Now it was up to me to live up to the process and make something worthy of being presented that way. So I began my research 

WHAT THE FLOCK?

The flocked texture process (yes, it’s actually called flocking) was something I’d wanted to try for years. It gives the black ink layer a fuzzy, velvet-like feel. Cat Palace Prints in Texas stepped up for the job, handling the tricky and somewhat hazardous process. The results were pure rock-poster magic.

Designing For Albuquerque

I didn’t know much about Albuquerque at first — apart from the obvious Breaking Bad associations I had no interest in repeating. Instead, I discovered the city’s famous International Balloon Fiesta and decided to use that as my anchor. Hot-air balloons have that classic, retro vibe. To keep things fresh, I mashed the idea with the Southwest’s UFO lore. The scene evolved into a surreal sci-fi desert landscape: the band’s red van rocketing down an endless highway toward a massive UFO, beaming up balloons like alien abductions.

A Scene from a Movie

I wanted the Foo Fighters poster Albuquerque to feel cinematic, not just illustrative. The van became a character in itself — tires retracting to reveal thrusters as it raced toward the mothership. The band name appears subtly on a weathered billboard, while Easter eggs hide in plain sight: the date on the license plate, the venue on a bumper sticker, an alien doodle on the van’s dusty rear gate, and floating Roger Dean–style mountains overhead.

Easter Eggs and Hidden Jokes

I had one last touch to add. The lower left corner felt empty, so I added a vulture. Then another. And because I can’t resist a good joke, one vulture is eating a roll of “Footos.” It wasn’t planned as a nod to Them Crooked Vultures (Dave Grohl’s side project with Josh Homme and John Paul Jones), but I’ll gladly take credit for the cleverness.

A Poster for a Year Like No Other

When the posters went on sale in December 2020 through the Foo Fighters’ online store, they sold out in under a day. My own Decabet release sold out almost instantly.

Honestly, I’m still amazed that a poster for a show no one attended could move that fast — but 2020 was a year when people needed something joyful. I’m grateful this print brought a little color to it, and I’ll forever thank the band for taking that gamble. Foo Fighters remain a class act in every way.