Authors: Ricky Vigil
SLUG Holiday Comix: My Racially Insensitive Halloween
When I was a kid, I never dressed up as anything scary for Halloween. Instead, I dressed as whatever pop culture icon I was obsessed with. The best Halloween was when I dressed up as Dennis Rodman. … read more
Top 5: Atom Age
The second full-length album from this Berkeley, Calif. quintet blows the doors right open with “Dig the Future,” blistering with punk rock fury and garage rock swagger. Brendan Frye’s sax is easily the standout element of The Atom Age’s sound, as he gives an extra gallon of rocket fuel to the band’s already frantically fast numbers , but is an equally effective attitude enhancer in slower songs. … read more
Black Tusk Needs Your Beer
Last fall, Black Tusk broke forth from the swamps of Savannah, Ga. once again to unleash their fourth album, Set The Dial, upon the world.Black Tusk have become known for combining various aspects of aggressive music and filtering them through their Southern roots to create a style of metal as crushing as it is fun. “I don’t just listen to metal music by any means. That’s why we don’t just sound metal all the time,” says drummer James May. “We don’t hang out in graveyards or worship the devil. We just do it in a fun way.” … read more
Bomb the Beehive: Bomb the Music Industry! Returns to SLC
The first time Bomb the Music Industry! played Salt Lake City in the fall of 2007 just so happened to be one of the worst days in Jeff Rosenstock’s life. “I had the flu, and I was having fever dreams in the van. It was snowing that morning, and I got woken up by a text message from a friend that said, ‘Yo, Radiohead just totally yanked your style, dude,’” he says. Even so, Bomb the Music Industry! rocked the fuck out of Red Light Books that night with their spazzy blend of ska, pop-punk and ‘80s-style hardcore. … read more
Big Business: Loud, Weird Rock
Formed by bassist Jared Warren and drummer Coady Willis, Big Business has been deafening fans of all things heavy with their brand of thick, freaky rock n’ roll for nearly a decade. Fresh off a tour of Europe with Unsane, now featuring three members, and armed with a brand new 7″, Big Business will be embarking on a US tour this fall. Before their stop in Salt Lake, SLUG spoke with Willis about the band’s current state of affairs. … read more
Baby Ghosts: Pop-Punk Poltergeists
Part Provo and part Salt Lake, the aggro-adorable music of Baby Ghosts exists in a nebulous world where pop-punk, cuddlecore, anime, garage rock and 8-bit video games coalesce into a perfect party soundtrack. The co-ed four piece utilizes three of its members as vocalists—singing, screaming and harmonizing playful yet thoughtful lyrics over bouncy melodies that give way to some certifiably shredding guitar work. The band has a wide appeal, equally embraced by the more indie rock-oriented crowds of Velour as well as the blossoming Provo hardcore scene. … read more
Eagle Twin: The Serpent and The Crow
Eagle Twin is two beasts, operating in a spectrum of duality. Eagle Twin is finesse and power. Eagle Twin combines the power of the riff with the freeness of jazz. Eagle Twin is the serpent and the crow. Eagle Twin is Gentry Densley and Tyler Smith. In 2009, the band released their first album, The Unkindness of Crows, on the legendary Southern Lord Records. Now, the band is preparing to release their second album, The Feather Tipped the Serpent’s Scale. … read more
Mariachi El Bronx: A Cleverly Disguised Rock Band
When it comes to long-running bands, side projects are an inevitability. But sometimes, a side project can take on a life of its own. Such is the case with Mariachi El Bronx. The offshoot of the LA punk band, The Bronx, initially began when the group was asked to perform a song acoustically for a TV appearance. Rather than taking the easy route, they came up with a mariachi arrangement of the song and unwittingly began the next chapter of the band’s existence. … read more
Kvelertak: Meir Og Meir
After missing their scheduled set earlier that night on Converge’s headlining tour due to van problems, Kvelertak rolled into SLCto play a last-minute show on 10/22/12 and delivered their potent mix of black metal, punk, hardcore and classic rock n’ roll to a rapturous crowd. Kvelertak riled up the crowd so much at midnight on a Monday that multiple fights broke out, but, as vocalist Erlend Hjelvik potently put it when the band stopped in the middle of a song to calm the audience down, “We are here to party, not to fight!” … read more
Russian Circles: Louder Than Words
Sprawling. Swirling. Ominous. Auspicious. Any number of multisyllabic words can be used to describe the music of Russian Circles, who have been creating dynamic instrumental music since 2004. In anticipation of their performance at The Great Saltair on Feb. 15, SLUG spoke with bassist Brian Cook about the upcoming tour and what Russian Circles have in store for 2013. … read more