The Playlist: Illustrator Andy Pratt
By day, Andy Pratt is a Creative Director at Funny Garbage, an interactive studio in Manhattan, where he’s worked with clients like Cartoon Network, Smithsonian Institution, Crayola, and Noggin/The-N. By night, he runs Andy Pratt Design, a small design studio where he focuses on his quirky-fun line of paper goods. Between gigs, we asked him to give us the rundown on the music that makes up his day.
What do you listen to while you work? Depending on my mood, I like my music to either have a good amount of rock in it (Hot Snakes, Gun Club, or Can), have some good energy (The Go-Team!, CSS, or Cody ChessnuTT), or be mellow and relaxed (Bon Iver, Andrew Bird, or The Books). I also like to listen to This American Life and Radiolab if I am not in the mood for music. And I recently had a baby, so I’ve been slowly introducing kid-friendly artists into the mix, like They Might be Giants, Alexi Murdoch, and Kimya Dawson, so we won’t get stuck listening to traditional kids songs that will make us go mad.
How do you listen? At work, I used to listen to music with headphones through my computer, but I found that I was having to take them on and off so many times that I decided to get some good Harman Kardon speakers instead. While I am working at home, I usually listen to music through my iPod, which is hooked into a good Altec Lansing speaker dock.
Do you have any favorite music websites/providers? I’ve been listing to music on thesixtyone.com for a little while now. I also like to check out Last.fm every once in a while.
Does music influence your work? That’s a good question. I like to think it has an influence just anything else that inspires me, but I can’t point to any specific element.
Where do you find music recommendations? Who influences your musical taste? I would say most of my new music is introduced to me by my friends—they are much more on the pulse than I am! We also have our iTunes libraries shared at work so it is fun to browse the various playlists and see what I can discover.
If your work was a song or a musician, what or who would it be? I like to think my work is like The Go! Team. It has a ton of energy, is really fun, and hopefully brings a smile.
ANDY’S PLAYLIST
Can’t You Wait, Geographer
To Rachel or Sharon, Wynn Walent
Flume, Bon Iver
Girl Is On My Mind, The Black Keys
Sex Beat, The Gun Club
Mushroom, Can
Light Sweet Crude, Obits
Bottle Rocket, The Go! Team
Run [I'm A Natural Disaster], Gnarls Barkley
Junior Kickstart, The Go! Team
Look Good In Leather, Cody ChessnuTT
Images: Andy Pratt