The Elder Scrolls Online: How the Fantasy Game Keeps it Real

The Elder Scrolls Online gameplay

The game opens in Coldharbour, which is a nasty-looking place somewhere within the hellish dimension of Oblivion. Right off the bat, I was glad to see that the control scheme felt exactly like that of Skyrim, so it was easy to pick up and play. After being visited by an apparition who called himself The Prophet, I set off on a prologue quest to bust him out of Coldharbour and get back to the real world. … read more

Two Arrows Through My Heart: Coleman Barks and David Darling

David Darling performing live poetry

The pairing of the two friends was really interesting to watch again, as it seems they balance each other in their friendship much like Shams did with his student Rumi. Throughout the night, Barks kept emphasizing that the beloved is in everything. He talked about watching Allen Ginsberg read “Howl” in 1955 and that he’s “Seen the greatest minds prowling the street for a fix, and that’s the beloved, too.” On the plane over to Utah he watched Louis CK for the first time, and Louis CK is the beloved, too.  … read more

The Pack A.D. @ Kilby Court 02.14 with Super Moon, Dead Tooth

I always say that women make better punks than men, or at least I do now. Just ask Patti Smith. Or ask her doppelganger Becky Black, the lead singer of The Pack A.D., a two-piece garage rock outfit from the ‘Couve. This band is chained to The White Stripes on every website they’re featured on, but I don’t see it. In fact, the only thing they have in common that I can see is a female drummer. … read more

LUST featuring Wolfgang Gartner @ In The Venue 02.15 with Mark Radwin, Nrkotic, Shortsirkit

Wolfgang Gartner with American Flag bandana covering his mouth

 The entire room sang along when Gartner dropped a remix of “Where’s Your Head At?” by Basement Jaxx. Personally, I was surprised Gartner didn’t play the entirety of his Weekend In America album (2011), but he put on a great show nonetheless. In the crowd, people went wild as foam LED glow sticks were tossed back and forth in the air in such masses it looked as if every concertgoer had at least two in hand.  … read more

Pixies @ The Great Saltair 02.15 with Best Coast

Black Francis of Pixies

The “Great” Saltair? I know, it’s old and quasi historic and hosted some soft-rock shitty bands your parents liked back when my uncles were jamming with Jimi and Janis on an airbase in Dan Nang. Whatever, though. It was Valentine’s weekend, and though I dug deep into the corners of my misanthropic being, I just couldn’t find it in me to get all that mad about seeing Pixies (no asterisk—fight me) in the live sphere. … read more

Clay Cavender: In A Room With Everywhere To Go

Clay Cavender headshot

  When I meet with Cavender, he talks about finishing college this semester from Utah State University with his BFA, how he hopes to take his art to Europe, possibly be the creative designer over a fashion label, conceivably dabble in producing music and eventually make a living out of creating, it’s obvious he has a plan. … read more

Killing the Grade: Reviving Art Education in Utah

 “If you don’t understand the art, it’s because there is nothing to understand. If it’s illegible, it’s illegible; it’s unsuccessful as a story, as a narrative.” An artist’s inability to communicate through their work can be largely attributed to the conventional four-year programs. The curriculum at CAS stems from traditional curriculum, found in 19th Century Paris, when art education was at its prime. … read more

The Buds Next Door: The First Month of Legalized Cannabis in Colorado

Trevor Ung of cannasaver.com in Denver

“Socially, it’s exciting for people to be able to go buy Marijuana legally, and there’s a lot of tourists here,” says Larisa Bolivar, founder of Denver’s first medicinal dispensary back in 2006 and a candidate for a Master’s Degree in public policy with concentration in national and international marijuana reform. “Financially, this is making much more money than people expected.” … read more