In the 1990s, Chicago was at the center of indie rock, propelling bands like the Smashing Pumpkins and Liz Phair to the national stage. The musical ecosystem from which these bands emerged, though, was expansive and diverse. Grunge players comingled with the electronic, jazz, psychedelic, and ambient music communities, and an inventive, collaborative group of local labels—kranky, Drag City, and Thrill Jockey, among others—embraced the new, evolving sound of indie “rock." Bruce Adams, co-founder of kranky records, was there to bear witness.

Bruce had a treasure-trove of ephemera from the years of building kranky, we really wanted to make the cover a poster that felt like you pulled it off the wall from your local venue. Layered colors and some type direction from Derek George at UT Press we made a rad 2 color print with overlays on a nice craft paper to achieve a screenprinted look.