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i've hung out with mike before, am a fan of his graffiti and drawings, have nothing against the guy, but...his tattoos are awful. his style doesn't translate well to the body at all and he has no real concept of tattoo design and it seems no intention of learning how to correctly design tattoos and execute them well. it seems that the main reason people want tattoos from him is they are fans of his other artwork. you're better off buying a print or drawing i think. i also read that interview where he says flat-out that the clothing label pays him more so he quit tattooing. pretty fucking lame. but, to each their own. we all pay our own bills in the end.

There was a time that I could be pretty sure - that at any given time , I was the only tattooist on a plane flight or at a baseball game or at parent- teacher school open house. That if I met another tattooist at such an event it would be like meeting a former schoolmate while vacationing in a foreign land. What are the odds of that? I remember a time that I could tell , just by looking , that someone did what I did and we shared a common bond and if you spotted one another at an amusement park or a mall- you knew one or the other of you had travelled out of your own territory. There was a time when introduced into the life of a child that they would remember you, for the rest of their lives as the tattooed man or lady. There was a time that when responding that I was a tattooer, when asked what I did for a living - was met with the same awe, disbelief or astonishment as if I had answered that I was an alligator wrestler, an astronaut or in the French Foreign Legion. That was a great time!

BUT if you have well-executed tattoos, you still stand out. Quality still trumps quantity.

I have an appointment with Irons on Sunday, Rapture permitting.

As always, the comments on the Vice article are more telling than the article itself, thanks for sharing it. I think that there are a lot of terrible tattoos everywhere in America, that's part of what makes this country great. To each their own.

Don't you think you should GET some traditional tattoos before you try to write a book on the subject?? Your line-up of contributors sucks. I watch Miami Ink A LOT, and I haven't even heard of ONE of those people. Utterly fails the tattoo cool test. You probably don't even drink. What are you, vegan? Um, wanna make a TV show about the book?

Paulywhore: You are correct, period. Not that it's a prerequisite for seeing simple insecure egomania for what it is, but I have a decent amount of experience from the collector's perspective. I've been lucky enough to have been tattooed by the following, among others: Lehi, Rassier, Malone, Sylvia, Grime, Don Nolan, Bert Krak, Stell, Adam Ciferri, Seth Ciferri, Whitehead, Brooks, Spanks, Roberts, Conn . . . and my best bud Kyle Franklin! You don't need a fancy bullshit worthless psychology degree from a "Little Ivy", which I happen to have, to deduce that most tattooers succomb to the temptations of warped adolescent egomania. There are exceptions, but those guys (and gals) tend to get so disillusioned with tattooing that they quit. Read Mike Malone's letters to Keith Underwood in recent issues of TAM. Spot-on. He rags on "cool guys" who are too self-absorbed to actually learn about the fucking artform. I've wondered if the absolute elite echelon isn't as likely to be possessed by this meek demon. Hell, if you spend all your time seeking empty accolades and proverbial fellatio, it might be hard to fully concentrate on something of substance. Then again, I don't know: Bullshit megalomania permeates tattooing from the bottom up, doesn't matter how well you paint or tattoo. Power corrupts, in every context. If you're used to having your ass kissed, you come to expect it. Fucking pathetic. I'm sorry these folks are really insecure and immature, but it'd be peachy if they wouldn't take it out on me while I put food in their mouths. To be fair, at the same time, I can totally see why tattooers get sick of clients. I couldn't do their job. Hell, I can be annoying as fuck, myself. Give me a painkiller and I never shut up. That being said, some of the behavior I've personally experienced and witnessed is absolutely inexcusable. Straight disrespect. Funny thing is, most tattooers are sedentary lumps of shit that couldn't fight their way out of a colostomy bag. Tattoos don't make you tough. Tattooing's an intimate and intense experience, and, too often, familiarity breeds contempt. Like I said, having spent a fair amount of time in tattoo shops, I can totally see why being a tattooer is the yellow brick road to misanthropy. I hate people, too, but I try to be humble, honest, and respectful. Ya know, all that "Golden Rule" bullshit. Speaking for myself, I'm glad my bodysuit's about done. I'm too old for this shit. It's too much work. God Bless!!