About InterPow
InterPow is the creative studio of Mike Hetman, designer, musician, and programmer. Over the years, InterPow has grown from a web design company into a multifaceted multimedia studio, bringing together website design, branding, music composition, photography, and other creative disciplines.
In addition to his design work, Mike is a member of the New Jersey-based indie-rock band The Mighty Alrighty. He also explores the more ambient side of music composition through his solo work, creating music inspired by discovery, personal loss, and healing. His compositions have been featured in multimedia projects, independent productions, and historical preservation efforts, including the soundtrack created for IronMiners.com.
Today, InterPow serves as an outlet for Mike's ongoing creative pursuits, bringing together design, music, photography, and storytelling under a single banner. Whether creating a website, composing a soundtrack, or developing artwork, the goal remains the same: to create something meaningful, memorable, and uniquely its own.
InterPow has also exhibited custom artwork and photography on its website over the years.
The Artwork Behind Necessary Disaster
June 10, 2026
Inspired by the uplifting yet melancholic character of the songs as they developed, particularly Party At The End of the World, Mike sought to capture a similar emotional balance in the artwork. Influenced in part by current events, the concept explores the contrast between promises of a brighter future and the realities of uncertainty, tension, and conflict. At its heart is a question many people wrestle with: do we ignore the chaos around us, or do we choose to find meaning, love, and hope despite it?
After studying classic pulp-fiction covers, comic-book illustration, and vintage typography, the visual direction gradually took shape over several months. The final image depicts a young couple standing beneath a blood-red sky while disaster looms in the distance. Their parked car sits nearby. Have they abandoned it? Are they connected to the unfolding events? Are they oblivious to the danger, or simply determined to enjoy life in spite of it?
The artwork is intentionally open to interpretation. For some, it may reflect the turbulence of a relationship. For others, it may symbolize the uncertainty of modern life or the resilience required to navigate it. Much like the music itself, Necessary Disaster invites the listener to decide what the story means to them.
Client Spotlight: North America Overland
November 1, 2020
InterPow's client North America Overland (NAO) was just rated one of the best Land Rover restoration companies in America by Autoweek! A long time client, InterPow crafted NAO's logo and brand from the ground up, following the vision of founder Mike Sandone, and continues to maintain the website today. Kudos to the team at NAO for their exceptional hard work and dedication which has earned them recognition from this prestigious publication.
Lost Revenue During the Pandemic
September 10, 2020
What are you doing during the pandemic to make sure your business or organization is still bringing in revenue? With leaving home remaining a risky proposition for many, opportunities exist to run or promote some core functions from your website.
If you aren't currently accepting payments through your website, a simple PayPal payment button is relatively simple to setup and will allow prospects to easily make a purchase or donation, regardless of whether they already have a PayPal account. This is because PayPal now allows you to make your payment first, then decide whether to store your information in a PayPal account for subsequent payments. In addition, your payment is still made securely through PayPal, and the same fraud protection measures apply. If you are a non-profit, you may even accept donations through PayPal.
For organizations that rely on social gathering such as regularly scheduled meetings, substituting these dates with a virtual Google Meet or Zoom meetings may inject a feeling of connectedness to drive the agenda forward. Public events or shows may be substituted with virtual live events. The live events may be accessed through your browser, provide links to shopping carts, and only be available for a limited time, to impart a feeling of urgency.
If you have been considering adding a shopping cart to your website, there has never been a better time than now. Your shopping cart will allow you to conduct business even while you're sleeping. Many solutions are available, scalable to your unique needs.
InterPow can help bridge this gap in your business or organization. We are already assisting our clients in these areas.
Mike Hetman
Another decade of web design
December 30, 2019
As the year closes out, it is once again time for reflection. The expectations for a well designed website have increased, probably exponentially. A decade that began largely with full screen layouts optimized for desktop screens, has gradually embraced mobile becoming the dominant vehicle for the Internet experience. Skeuomorphism has been replaced by minimalism which is finally being realized as a trend and being re-evaluated due to its lack of humanity. Old practices have been abandoned, will be forgotten, then rediscovered. What will the trend setters invent next?
In the meantime, as a professional web designer, I will try my best to identify trends for what they are and embrace forward thinking and timeless applications in design. The history of web design will eventually identify distinct phases where the evolution of technology and permanency of certain trends coalesce. How will your website fall along this continuum?
Mike Hetman
Designing my approach to web design
October 26, 2019
As someone who has spent the majority of his professional career building and maintaining websites, I have played every role from cog in wheel to captain of ship. While I studied programming languages such as C, C++ and assembly language in college, I desired to produce a visual aesthetic in my work, not just code. Having dabbled in graphic design for years beforehand including crafting ANSI art for Bulletin Board Systems, the role of Web Designer, seemed very appealing — a blank canvas that would allow me to follow my passion for art and design while coding to build the foundation and control moving parts.
Growing up I was fascinated by album cover design, especially of hard rock and heavy metal bands. I enjoyed seeing how the logo and accompanying visual or illustration painted an impression on the music. And I appreciated how the choice of fonts in the lyrics and credits impacted the narrative of the album to create a cohesive and compelling package. If album cover design could immerse you more into the music, what other things could strong design immerse you into? This spawned my interest in logo design and branding and ultimately impacted my approach toward web design.
I incorporated these principles into my web design work and further developed them over the course of my career. While a Senior Web Designer at Music.com, I was given the opportunity to design websites, Flash animations and web art for upcoming and established music artists including Placebo, Lou Reed, Samhain, Tega and Sara and others.
After my position at Music.com expired, I aspired to paint the same level of excitement over band art design and branding, to more traditional design and branding. When I was commissioned to design a website for Hydronics Enviro Corp., a company that custom engineered solutions to remove and recover particulates, fumes and mist, it was as far from rock and roll as one could get. However, after I had time to review their brochures and learn about their technology, I could feel myself gaining the same level of excitement as I felt designing music websites. At the end of the day, one’s excitement over a service or product is only related to their individual needs or the needs of their organization. If I could garner a level of enthusiasm about a product, service or organization, no matter how not hip or square they are, I’ve done my job.
Mike Hetman