Mighty Joe Castro is an accomplished Pennsylvania based collage artist, musician (Mighty Joe Castro and the Gravamen , The Situation) and designer. His artwork has been shown in galleries and art spaces across North America and Europe and have been described as “a controlled explosion, aggressive and pensive (Kolaj Magazine)” and “bold and diverse… one of those collage artists whose works you recognize immediately… (Toombes.com).” His work has appeared in The Age of Collage: Contemporary Collage in Modern Art (Gestalten), Arkitip(0062), The Baffler (issues 35 & 45),Esquire, GQ Style, Glamour,as well as on a board series for Element skateboards. He performs and records regularly with his Ameripolitan rock-n-roll band, Mighty Joe Castro and the Gravamen. For more information, please visit mightyjoecastro.com

Born in New York, he spent his formative years in Delaware where he was the guitar player in several bands including the critically acclaimed The Situation. Formed in 2001, The Situation signed with Elephant Stone Records in 2004, releasing The Reece Nasty EP, followed by their self titled full length in 2006, both garnered critical praise from Pitchfork, The Big Takeover, Skyscraper and Magnet. The band toured the states, and opened for bands such as The Strokes, The Libertines, Nada Surf, BJM, The Make-Up and Arthur Lee & Love. Their music has been featured on shows for both MTV and Fuel TV. The group disbanded in 2006.

His musical project, Mighty Joe Castro & The Gravamen have been described as sounding like Buddy Holly (if he’d had access to a stack of effects pedals and some Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds records). Influenced by 50’s Rock and Roll and infused with post modern Easter eggs cribbed from old episodes of MTV’s 120 Minutes, Mighty Joe Castro takes a modern, lyric driven approach to songwriting while The Gravamen layer on Jesus and Mary Chain-cover-Link Wray guitar atmosphere, booming doghouse bass and swinging beats. The quartet lurks at a crossroads where Sun Records and Creation Records meet.

Formed in 2018, the band quickly released their debut EP, Wake Up, You’re Rockin’! that same year, with their debut full length album, Come On Angels following in 2020. Known for their energetic live shows, the Gravamen have shared the stage with a diverse collection of groups including The Squirrel Nut Zippers, The Heavy Heavy, Wayne Hancock, and BIg Sandy and his Fly-Rite Boys