About Me, Myself

So you want to know a little bit more about me, huh? You’re in luck, because I enjoy talking about myself. To start with some census-style data, my name is Justin Radford, I am a lifelong resident of the Portland, Oregon metro area. Born in Clackamas, have lived in Boring and Gresham, and currently live in southeast Portland.

When I was 3-4 I decided, after figuring that being a firefighter was too dangerous, that I wanted to be an artist. I drew. A lot. People thought I was pretty good at it. After being exposed to Tintin books, I started making a ton of graphic novels starting when I was 6. Mostly sci-fi space opera type of fare. Probably because the first TV show I liked was Star Trek: The Next Generation. I was Captain Picard for Halloween in Kindergarten. I peaked early.

I finished my first novel, “The Ice and Snow”, when I was 10. This time it was fantasy, as I had started reading some Tolkien, and was obsessed with Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. 285 pages, handwritten in college ruled paper. Maybe the book was a bit derivative, but isn’t all fantasy derivative?

Then I got obsessed with wanting to be a movie maker. By this time my obsession turned toward the TV show Babylon 5. Which is still my favorite show. Alas, I started writing scripts for sci-fi space opera movies. Not much you could do on a middle-class budget in the late 90’s, but I did get a digital camera for Christmas in middle school so I could make stop motion Lego films. Managed to make 10 minutes of footage for a dystopian anti-Capitalist film.

So that was also the same time I got into music. Heavy. It was the artform that won the artform wars and remains king to this day. I had played piano starting in Kindergarten, but I got tired of that and started playing drums in seventh grade. Also got into rock music, starting with The Beatles, eventually branching out into Metallica and The Who in high school. In college, groups like King Crimson distorted my mind. Recently I dig the occult-retro-rock revival (I don’t know what else to call it). Blood Ceremony, Lucifer, Jess and the Ancient Ones. No, seriously, check them out.

And throughout all of that, I write. And play. High school I did competitive marching band, concert band, winter percussion, and jazz band. Joined my first band, Manafest, at 18. Played some sweet heavy metal. Rev0 occupied the first half of my 20’s. Started my own band, Rock Gaga (a Lady Gaga hard rock tribute act) back in 2015, we play off and on. And I also work a 40 hour a week day job. There’s just no justice in this world.