March 2012
Localized – Wake Up Nebula, OK Ikumi and The Moth...
It’s going to be an unforgettable night of local music at the Urban Lounge on March 9. Localized, this month, features Provo darlings and indie art rockers The Moth & The Flame, and the mellow electro samplings of OK Ikumi. Get there early to catch the ethereal soundscapes of electro-pop band Wake Up Nebula for only $5. … read more
SLC Tattoo Convention
SLUG asked local tattoo artists Andrew King (Heart of Gold), Catfish and Eric Sager (Ironclad), Nick Phillips (Loyalty) and Dean Bodily (Lost Art) who they’re stoked for, the work they want to do, and what they anticipate for the ninth annual Salt Lake City International Tattoo Convention, happening March 9-11 at the Salt Palace. … read more
Caustic Curators: Red Light Sound’s Five-Year Anniversary
This March, Tia Martinez and Jared Russell will celebrate five years of their label, Red Light Sound. Through trials and adversity, the couple has pressed on to showcase auditory art in limited-edition, analog pressings to generate a sense of the value of the music they help produce. Their purpose is to reclaim music as “more of an art piece in the actual product itself,” as Russell puts it. … read more
Andrew Jackson Jihad: Optimism Through Pessimism
The music of Andrew Jackson Jihad often casts its gaze upon the darkest parts of humanity. The songs on Knife Man, their most recent album, deal with homelessness, selfishness, laziness, murder, hopelessness and more, but vocalist and guitarist Sean Bonnette doesn’t see his band as the ultimate bummer machine they appear to be. “I consider myself and our band to be pretty optimistic,” Bonnette says. … read more
Gallery Stroll: UMOCA – YourMOCA
UMOCA has become a hotbed for these creative collaborations. Formerly the Salt Lake Art Center, UMOCA has been kicking butt and changing names! … read more
The Garage: Roadhouse Comfort Food
I was impressed by so many things at The Garage: The staff were prompt and courteous and the food and drinks will have you coming back. … read more
Princess Kennedy: Gaybonics
At the beginning of the year, the 801 was bestowed with the honor of being named the gayest city in America by Advocate Magazine. This came as a shock to parts of the country, but, as I explained it to my friends, we have the most gays per capita, and I think all of Salt Lake already knew how gay we are. I thought that since you are surrounded by gays on every side, Professor Princess could help you converse with us LGBTQs and teach you the new Polari: Gaybonics. … read more
Mike Brown’s Official Guide to Sobriety
This January, I did something I haven’t done in a long time—I got sober. I know what you must be thinking: This had to have been court ordered, right? No. There was no rock bottom, no moment of clarity, no family intervention and no admitting I was powerless over a liquid. It was just a simple New Year’s resolution to do a bit of self-reflection. Who knows, maybe I would save some money, too? … read more
Earth: Angels/Demons
In the world of heavy metal, the music of Earth has become legendary. The deafening style of drone doom pioneered by Dylan Carlson in the early ’90s helped to shape an entire subset of metal. But if one were to blindly listen to Earth’s recent aural offerings, metal would not come to mind. “I’ve always thought of genres as something the audience or the marketers place on you,” says Carlson. “To me it’s always just been rock n’ roll, and that’s enough.” … read more
Xiu Xiu: Noise Pop, Sex Cams and Water Play
Xiu Xiu has been a facet of the indie music scene for nearly a decade, and has never ceased to be interesting. With work that ranges from morose and purposefully uncomfortable, to noise pop masterwork, Xiu Xiu continues to build a following. With their newest album, Always, coming out March 6, singer/songwriter Jamie Stewart set aside some time to discuss the album, piracy and water play. … read more
New Label, New Sound: Ceremony Gets a Clean Cage
Zoo, twelve cuts of tuneful despondency, finds the band stretching beyond their “razor-to-the-throat” approach, listlessy incoporating strains of surf, post-punk and goth into their acrid blend of melody and bleakness. While the approach can whip Internet hardcore kids into a snotty-nosed, finger-pointing frenzy, guitarist Anthony Anzaldo says it’s just part of the biz. “We don’t go into the songwriting process and say, ‘Hey, let’s not write fast parts.’ It’s really not a conscious thing.” … read more
Chompin’ Candy Coated Vicodin with Xray Eyeballs
I first encountered Brooklyn’s Xray Eyeballs last October during CMJ. Moments before they took the stage, I met lead singer and guitarist O.J. San Felipe as he was trying to sort out the bar tab for his band. I asked what band he was in and he enthusiastically responded “Xray Eyeball!” with a noticeable accent. Five minutes later, he and his three stunningly beautiful band mates (San Felipe is currently the only male member of the band) took the stage. … read more