Authors: Christian Schultz
Our Beat Is Heavenly: Interview with John Peña
Heavenly Beat is the sort of band name that sticks to a project perfectly. John Peña’s Balearic indie pop arrangements balance classical guitar, steel drums, harmonica and mellotron to make lush, serene, heavenly songs. … read more
Coldwaves and City Rain: Interview with LowCityRain’s Markus Siegenhort
LowCityRain is the solo project of Markus Siegenhort, member of German post-metal band Lantlôs. On the album, Siegenhort’s post-punk baritone shifts through such brooding sonic pathways—cold synths, heavy bass, melancholic guitars—through similar thematic territory: urban nights and modern indecisions. SLUG spoke with Siegenhort about the album and some of his favorite coldwave tracks. … read more
Creature Feature: Mae Daye and Bad Kid Maenia
For its fifth Creatire Feature installment, SLUG spoke with camp queen Mae Daye about her humble descent into drag, her friends and supporters and why the Bad Kids’ brand of performance is a breath of fresh air for Salt Lake’s queer nightlife. … read more
Sharon Needles: Nightmare Before Xmas @ Metro Bar 12.14 with...
Out of the crop of RuPaul’s Drag Race contestants that Metro Bar has hosted in this post-Pride season—including Manila Luzon, Honey Mahogany and JuJuBee— Sharon Needles is most certainly the Baddest. … read more
Salt 9: Jillian Mayer
Jillian Mayer, a south Florida–based artist and Sundance Film Festival alum, is the ninth artist to be featured in the Utah Museum of Fine Art’s ongoing Salt series, which highlights contemporary work from emerging artists. Much of Jillian Mayer’s work investigates the fragmenting consequences of Internet usage through some of its most ubiquitous media—catchy pop songs, humorous YouTube videos, chat rooms and ephemeral linkages. … read more
Youth Code @ The Shred Shed 02.07 with Coming, Baby...
Last Friday, L.A.-based industrial duo Youth Code and avant-punk band Coming, both fresh off of a stint supporting AFI on a cross-country tour, played passionate, frenetic sets with a small audience at The Shred Shed. … read more
Ghouls and Dolls: Bad Kids Pageant Preliminary #1 @ Metro...
Faced with an overwhelming response upon the announcement of their second yearly pageant, the Bad Kids decided to give every applicant a chance to compete, splitting the pageant into two preliminaries before the actual main event, to be held on June 5. … read more
Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks @ Urban Lounge 04.03 with...
Let me hit you with some cold, hard SLUG truth: Stephen Malkmus looks like the lovechild that Peter Murphy and Aaron Carter spawned after a heady night of blazin’, snackin’ and talkin’ sports. Goofiness aside, The Jicks and openers Speedy Ortiz entertained a packed crowd of seasoned slackers and young fans alike at Urban Lounge last Thursday night. … read more
BE MORE EXTREME: INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR LANCE OLSEN
Lance Olsen is the literary astronaut we dreamt of being as children—turning far-out worlds abuzz with the difficult imagination, surviving re-entry with stories to share. Author, traveller, and teacher of narrativity and innovative writing at the University of Utah, Olsen wonderfully shares what it means to be alive now, here. SLUG spoke with Olsen about recent projects and the secret handshake ecology of innovative writing practices … read more
CHVRCHES @ The Depot 04.22 with The Range
Glasgow-based synthpop trio Chvrches are a bombastic, bleedin’ indie-at-heart spectacle. Their hooks and heart soar song after song on their 2013 debut album, The Bones of What You Believe, and they’re not stopping short in any part of their global pop ascendancy. They passed through Salt Lake City on their U.S. tour to played a sold-out show at The Depot last Tuesday. … read more
Creature Feature: The Bearded Femme
“People who are too comfortable freak me out. I feel so uncomfortable and indecisive all the time, so I’m always questioning myself,” says The Bearded Femme. … read more
Perfect Pussy @ Kilby Court 05.20 With Potty Mouth, Fossil...
“Whoa dude, did you see that?” I hadn’t been to a show at Kilby Court in a while, and this is what I hear from the handful of fashionable high school kids in reaction to local goth cuties Fossil Arms, as if they’ve dropped down secretly from the grey skies of some distant British storm cell. … read more
