Month: July 2013
Deafheaven, Marriages, Cult Leader @ Kilby Court 07.10
The old adage about how the more things change, the more they stay the same is perfect for a description of Kilby Court, the favored venue of the underage and over-hip in Salt Lake City. Since the first time I attended a show there in 1998 or 1999, many improvements have been made to the venue, but the actual room itself is still a sweltering hot mess of juvenile machismo and shared sweat. Granted, the sound has improved immensely from when the venue first opened, but, at least to me, that doesn’t make up for having to wade through the throngs of terrible “ironic” mustaches, distressed V-neck T-shirts and dudes in cut-off chick jeans. Trivialities and old-man judging aside, I ventured out of my cave to attend the Deafheaven/Marriages/Cult Leader show at the aforementioned venue, and though not a total loss, it isn’t an experience I’m going to treasure for the rest of my life. … read more
You’re Killing Me Smalls: Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of The...
Tucked back behind brick bungalows and unassuming chain-link fences is a field whose notoriety is surpassed only by the fantastic one-liners associated with the movie based on it. That field is The Sandlot, and on a hot and sweaty Saturday in July, hundreds of people flocked to Navajo Street in Glendale to participate in one of the best anniversary celebrations of the year. … read more
Peter Murphy, Ours @ Urban Lounge 07.17
Allow me to give a bit of a precursor to why I love the music of Bauhaus/Peter Murphy more than most people in their mid-20s. To begin with the most obvious point, I grew up listening to Bauhaus a lot. My mother was a participant in Utah’s then-thriving industrial/goth scene in the late ’80s, and one of the things I inherited a strong background of industrial music. Bands like Skinny Puppy, Revolting Cocks and KMFDM were part of my playtime music, so I’ve had an instinctual draw to industrial music from the beginning. Fast forward 12 years, and I’m sitting in a crowd of sweaty midlife crises as Mr. Murphy ambled onto the raised platform and, from what I could tell, looks pretty good for being in his 50s. … read more
Heartless Bastards @ Urban Lounge 07.19 with Writer
Since releasing their sublime fourth album, Arrow, in February of last year, Heartless Bastards have been on a mean hot streak, so it only seems fitting that the Urban Lounge was also a sweltering mess inside on Friday night. … read more
Winter Kills: The Rebirth of DevilDriver
Vocalist Dez Fafara has been a staple of the heavy music scene for going on 20 years now, and the man is a prolific music-making machine. He is the head of nu-metal giants Coal Chamber (who have just returned from a hiatus most fans thought would be permanent), as well as helming DevilDriver, the “California Groove Machine” of melodic death metal that defies boundaries and expectations, and contributing to a myriad of other projects with members of bands from all over the heavy music spectrum. SLUG sat down with Fafara as he runs his latest press gauntlet in support of DevilDriver’s upcoming release, Winter Kills, to talk about this new rebirth for his band and discover his unique inspirations and challenges as an artist. … read more
Pitchfork Music Festival 2013
Another Pitchfork Music Festival has come and gone, leaving in its summer wake a fantastic tangle of performances, pictures, #hashtags, tweets, Instagrams and glistening memories. … read more
David Bazan @ Big Cartel 07.23
Seeing someone I’ve admired from afar in such a cozy setting came welcome, as Tuesday night I found myself in a room with David Bazan no more than 15 feet away, sharing the space with around 50 people for his Living Room Tour at The Big Cartel. … read more
Let The Dance Begin: NOW Dance Company Performs The Wedding
On Friday and Saturday, July 26 and 27, NOW Dance Company officially launched its career with a performance of The Wedding, held in the Salt Lake Masonic Temple ballroom. NOW was formed by Charlotte Boye-Christensen in collaboration with her partner/husband Nathan Webster. Boye-Christensen recently departed from the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, after serving for several years as artistic director. … read more
Adam Ant @ The Complex 07.23 with Prima Donnas
The man is on top of the world on his own terms and he seems happy about it. No bosses. No record labels. No shitty deals and scams. Just a man and his creative will to do something bigger. … read more
Trading Cantos with the Deseret Experimental Opera Company
The term “opera” often brings to mind puffed sleeves and fat ladies, but according to Quebbeman-Turley, that’s not quite what they offer: “We’re using the term ‘opera’ loosely. We don’t use the term in the sense of Wagner or Mozart opera. For us, it’s a work that’s visual, narrative, musical and theatrical all at the same time.” … read more