The Radio Head - Justin Hampton, Seattle, 1995

Artist: Justin Hampton
Type: Gig Poster
Print: Silkscreen
Size: 11 3/4 x 23 1/8
Event Date: 7.10.1995
Venue: Sailors of the Pacific Union – Seattle, Wa
Signed, numbered edition of 100

This poster from Justin Hampton, the third co-creator of Post Ne-Explosionism (we’ve already discussed Jermaine Rogers and Emek), is one of the earliest screenprinted gig posters for the band I know of. It’s also got a complicated history.

I've seen people complain about the image being a literal translation of the band’s name, but this is understandable as it was still very early in their evolution. The Bends had just come out and it was two years before OK Computer. The band’s message was not yet as well-formed and prominent in their songs as it is today (Burn the Witch and such).

Here’s a quote about this poster from Justin himself:

"The original run, as in a lot of my really early posters, had no signed and numbered run. There were only 75 or so and they were only used for promotion of the show and I'd get a few extra as well. I decided to make a signed and numbered print run [in 1998] to make available to fans and did reprint it. The colors are much better on the 2nd printing, the run is of only 100 with a A/P set of 25."

So there are a few versions out there. First we have the impossible-to-find original 1995 unsigned/unnumbered poster with a run of 75:

Not mine - this image is from Expressobeans.com

The 1998 reprint, signed and numbered in a run of 100 with corrected colors and no “S.U.P.” stamp:

There is also the 2007 handbill version which is signed/numbered in a run of 250 and a set of progressive proof handbills from that same year limited to only 6 sets produced:

Also from Expressobeans

I have the 1998 reprint and the 2007 handbill, but the original from 1995 has always eluded me. There just aren’t very many left. Even finding the reprint for sale is a challenge now. I wouldn’t want to guess what these would go for nowadays, but the last one sold in 2009 for $250.00. The handbills come up a lot more often and tend to go for less than $50. Good luck with this one.