{"id":2359,"date":"2013-03-31T16:58:50","date_gmt":"2013-03-31T16:58:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/secretacres.com\/?page_id=2359"},"modified":"2023-02-23T15:29:28","modified_gmt":"2023-02-23T15:29:28","slug":"brendan-leach","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/secretacres.com\/?page_id=2359","title":{"rendered":"Brendan Leach"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\nBrendan Leach<\/span> is an Ignatz and Xeric Award winning Cartoonist and Illustrator. His comics have been published by Secret Acres, Top Shelf Comics, and Retrofit Comics. Brendan\u2019s illustration work has been recognized by the Society of Illustrators and 3\u00d73 Magazine<\/em>, and his comics have been included in many collections and anthologies, including Best American Comics 2011<\/em>. He used to drive a Zamboni in New Jersey, now he draws pictures in Brooklyn, NY.
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IN PRAISE OF BRENDAN LEACH<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s not every day<\/span> you see a graphic novel set in Newark, New Jersey, let alone Newark in 1961. For all the changes of the last fifty years – from riots to revitalization, from Sharpe James to Cory Booker – a Newark of greasers and ice skating rinks seems almost mythological.<\/p>\n

And yet, there it is, in the bold black and white illustrations of Brendan Leach\u2019s graphic novel Iron Bound<\/em>. This Newark is a gritty industrial town, filled with classic cars, working stiffs and long shadows – a gristmill where young toughs in leather jackets mix with old crooks. The result is a bitter meal of crime and regret.<\/p>\n

– Stu Hovarth, Medium<\/span><\/p>\n

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Set in 1960s Newark, New Jersey, Iron Bound is a crime drama about two leather-jacketed greasers who work as hired muscle for a local, small time mafioso. Benny is a loose cannon. At the start of the book, on a bus from Asbury Park, we see him nearly beat to death a fellow passenger who makes the mistake of telling him to keep his voice down. Eddie is the more level-headed of the two, with ideas about going straight, but he has a lot of blood on his own hands to deal with. The narrative jumps back and forth in time to reveal two violent incidents in the recent past that will have repercussions for both young men. Leach does a fantastic job of building tension, especially in regards to Benny, who is the gun in the story that you just know will go off at any moment with no warning. What makes the book a little different from most street-level crime dramas is the setting and time period. A Jersey boy himself, Leach’s stark black and white drawings seem to capture this era of leather jackets, greased-back hair, bowling alleys and skating rinks and embodies it all with a rich level of Jerseyness. It’s like The Lords of Flatbush<\/em> by way of the Jersey Turnpike. Like that film, it has a very ’70s vibe to the pacing and feel of the story, even though it’s set in the early 1960s. Leach’s drawings have a loose immediacy to them that may not appeal to everyone on an aesthetic level, but their sketchbook-like quality makes it feel like he was there, hanging out on Broad Street or on the boardwalk, watching all this go down. His style and seemingly prolific ability to put out books quickly reminds me of Jeff Lemire (who provides an endorsement on the back of the book) but also of the great Italian comic artist Gipi, who is no stranger to crime stories himself.– Rich Barrett, mental_floss<\/span>Iron Bound<\/em> is sort of the \u201cLeader of the Pack\u201d of comics. Set in early 1960s New Jersey, it follows the violent lives of a small group of motorcycle gang members (they wear the jackets at least, but no one ever rides a bike) and their girlfriends, but the comparison goes beyond the subject matter. Like The Shangri-Las\u2019 song, it\u2019s not too concerned with being neat. Instead, the narrative and art ring raw and busy, rendered in quick and sometimes ugly strokes that capture the passion and mess of being young and stupid.Leach\u2019s line resembles that of New Yorker<\/em> cartoonist Ben Katchor, down to the surprisingly detailed backgrounds that contrast with the simple figures. No one is pretty. The men bristle with unglamorous stubble. The women\u2019s butts stick out in funny ways. Noses slash through faces or poke out of profiles as if added on as an afterthought. It can be offputting. But page after page of these characters slouching, pissed off, through the New Jersey night ends up growing on you. They\u2019re not stereotypes. Each is an individual, even if his or her background isn\u2019t fleshed out.<\/p>\n

Iron Bound<\/em> is a focused book. The scope of the story is small and the group of people within is likewise intimate. One could call it provincial, or maybe it\u2019s just about provincialism. It\u2019s about the desire to get out of your small hometown and make something of yourself, and the way your friends keep pulling you back into the tar pit.<\/p>\n

– Hillary Brown, Paste Magazine<\/span><\/p>\n

MORE PRAISE FOR BRENDAN LEACH<\/span><\/a>\n