We had the good fortune of connecting with Jon Krop and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jon, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
My grandparents owned a hotel and restaurant in the Czech Republic. My parents immigrated to the US in the 1960’s, and after working and saving money my mom was co-owner of a restaurant in San Francisco, and then owned a small retirement home in Sonoma. In that way, I saw the possibilities of starting a business first hand while growing up/

Going to Santa Rosa Jr. College, taking art, music, psychology and philosophy classes. I started reading HOW magazine, and used to day dream about having my own design business. After getting my first Mac in the early 1990’s, I started moonlighting and trying to build a portfolio.

I moved back to San Francisco, where I worked at the Academy of Art College as a lab tech, and then became technical director of the Mac lab. I then landed a few interim jobs, and did a couple of years working for FCB/SF. I was doing some freelance stuff on my own by this point at night and on weekends.

I was part of a huge company layoff in 2000. This was the big Bay Area Dot-Bomb moment. It was really difficult to find work at the time since there were so many job seekers in the same field. I would send in a resume only to find the employer had already gotten a few hundred replies for the same position.

I called my friend Scott Hay, who had started his own business and he was one of my clients to vent my frustration. Scott asked me what I was doing the next day – before I could answer he said “Nothing important right? I’m going to come over.” Scott drove me around to all the places and walked me thru the process of getting a business license, and gave me the push I needed at the time. I had a decent severance package, so I knew I had a few months to test it out on my own.

I’ve been a freelancer ever since.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Most of my art has been in the form of graphic design, specifically album and CD covers and packaging. My early influences were the amazing British collective known as Hipgnosis, and the album cover photography of John Scarpati.

I don’t think I have a profound signature style, except perhaps with my illustration work. Mostly I think I got where I am today by being able to listen to what the client wants, and being a bit of a jack of many trades. A willingness to experiment and try different techniques has been a key factor, and it keeps things interesting and exciting.

The work I tend to be proudest of is when something gets appreciated. When I see dozens of people posting photos of their new record or CD, and seeing people embrace and enjoy the work. That’s what makes the difficult challenging times worth it. 

It hasn’t been easy. There’s a lot of competition out there, and most of the big labels want to use their own art departments or contractors – even when a band has been working with their own team of people. Luck has been one of the biggest factors in how I’ve overcome that. Most of my clients have been thru word of mouth, so I value each one as an opportunity and do my best to not squander it. Not every project is a home run, but every time I step up to bat, I do so with the intention of hitting it out of the park.

In 1987, I bought the record “Neurotica” by Redd Kross, and it became my “Sgt. Pepper”. I fell in love with the band, and even sent in a guitar audition tape to them in the late 80’s … I never heard back from them at the time. Over the years I got to meet them a few times and became e-mail pen pals with the singer back in the dial-up modem AOL internet days. In the mid-late 90’s we got to know each other better, and in 1999 they asked me to design and build their website. A few years later, they asked me to design the packaging for the 15th anniversary reissue of “Neurotica”. I was on cloud 9. I was still essentially a novice, and did the best I could at the time with the tools I had in 2002. Earlier this year, I was given a second chance at it when they asked me to do the 35th anniversary edition. This time it was released as a 2 LP set, and I had 20 years of experience to put a whole new spin on it. That was and still is a special moment for me – how often does someone get to revisit one of their favorite records, and celebrate working with the same client for 20 years?

When it comes to design, I don’t think I have a profound style, rather it’s my ability to experiment and try different things as client’s request.
Whenever I get an opportunity to work on a record cover package, I get excited. Each one is a new adventure. I’ve been fortunate to work with a variety of artists with different sounds and aesthetics. I enjoy being asked to do something I haven’t done before.

One of the main lessons I’ve learned is to listen, and not be rigid. Take the time to try something in a different way, even if you don’t think it’s going to work – be open to trying it.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Provided that time and money were no object … and I’m going with a 7 day week. It would also depend on what bands/events were going on at the time.

Day 1 : Legion of Honor in San Francisco to soak in some art and culture. Lunch at Cha Cha Cha in the Haight, a stop at Amoeba Records, some exploration of Golden Gate Park, and dinner at Axum Cafe.

Day 2 : City Lights Bookstore in North Beach, strolling thru North Beach and Fisherman’s Wharf. A visit to The Cartoon Art Museum. A lunch at Sam’s Burgers. Dinner at The Stinking Rose. Perhaps a comedy show at Cobb’s.

Day 3 : SFMOMA, lunch at Henry’s Hunan Restaurant, adult beverages at the Tonga Room.

Day 4 : Take it easy, hang out around home in Berkeley, a visit to Telegraph to check out Amoeba Berkeley, Moe’s Booksm etc … Lunch either at Mezzo Berkeley, Saul’s, or Gordo Taqueria. Digging around at Urban Ore. A sunset walk at the Berkeley Marina, dinner at Judoku Sushi.

Day 5 : A journey down South. Coin toss: either a day at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk or Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Day 6 : A journey up North. Brunch at The Dead Fish in Crockett. A leisurely day driving thru Sonoma, Glen Ellen, Napa County visiting old haunts and whatever suited us at the time. Spend the night in Sonoma with friends or at an Air BnB.

Day 7 : Breakfast at Homegrown Bagels, a stroll around the Sonoma Plaza, late lunch/early dinner at Breads of India in Berkeley. Camp fire in back yard at home.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The band Redd Kross – especially founders Jeff and Steven McDonald. They were the first real band to give me a break when I was starting out. They only knew me as a fan and thru a few meetings. Thanks to their encouragement and inspiration, they helped shape me and grow so much as a designer. I also got to meet and work with so many other amazing people in their circle over the years. I value our creative chemistry greatly, and am honored to still be working with them to this day.

Elaine Bell – the owner of Elaine Bell Catering Company in Sonoma/Napa County where I worked fresh out of high school. She taught me the values of a strong work ethic, and how to deal with clients. She knew I wasn’t cut out as a lifer in the culinary world, and was supportive of me taking art classes, and getting me to try my wings as a designer.

John Scarpati. His photography was on many of the album covers I loved in my teens and twenties, and was a source of inspiration for me to want to design record covers (Redd Kross, Dramarama, Rush, Michael Monroe to name a few.) I got to meet him via email and phone when I was working on the Five Foot Two Records reissue of Redd Kross’ album Neurotica. We hit it off and over the years became friends. He did some digital photo editing on a photo I took that ended up being the cover of “Researching The Blues” by Redd Kross. He then asked me to be part of a couple of record cover projects he was working on which included Lee Ann Womack’s “The Way I’m Living'” – the first album I worked on that was nominated for the GRAMMY Awards. He’s essentially retired now, but we’re still good friends and share information and tips to this day. I do hope he and I can do a couple more select projects someday.

Holly Gleason – whom I met via Scarpati on the Lee Ann Womack project. Holly is amazing and I learned so much from working with her. She quickly became another mentor for me. She’s a force of nature and has always had amazing advice for me when I’ve needed it.

There are many others, all whom deserve a shout out as well.

Website: https://atomicpopmonkey.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atomicpopmonkey/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/atomicpopmonkey/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AtomicPopMonkey

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/atomic-pop-monkey-berkeley

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/atomicpopmonkey

Other: Behance: https://www.behance.net/atomicpopmonkey

Image Credits
JonKrop-Berkeley – Barb Orr JonKropDaveDavies – Barb Orr LeeAnnWomackCovers – John Scarpati ReddKross-OhCanada-Spain-Jacket – Vicki Berndt ReddKrossLPCovers – John Scarpati & Jon Krop

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