Music
▼ Concerts & Festivals
Genre Zero @ Kilby Court 06.26 with Flashbulb Fires, L’Anarchiste
Rainy days are the best for concerts. The atmosphere flashes with lightening that almost seems to blend and highlight the most fantastic of musical notes. The splattering drops plodded away the evening of June 26 at Kilby Court, and the bands were more than willing to lend themselves to the polite, contemplative brooding of a nice little storm. … read more
Courtney Barnett @ Urban Lounge 07.02 with Your Friend
It’s true she owes a lot to the slacker rock martyrs of the ’90s like Lou Barlow and J Mascis. Nobody writes a song with the chorus, “I don’t want no nine to five, telling me that I’m alive!” without having at least listened to You’re Living all Over Me once. But, just as you pigeonhole Barnett as some slacker rock disciple, she rips the roof off the joint with hostile sounding version of “Avant Gardener,” giving me chills like I’d just heard Joe Cocker for the first time. … read more
FantasyCon 2014 Kickoff: Wooden Wisdom (Ft. Elijah Wood)
Starting out with the soundtracks to Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal, it’s extremely clear that both Zach Cowie and Wood are quite familiar with and embracing of Wood’s nerd credibility. Have I mentioned that they also closed their set with a disco version of the Return of the Jedi Ewok dance? Spoiler Alert: That totally happened. … read more
Fitz and The Tantrums @ Red Butte Garden 06.30 with...
The sun was setting and I had a perfect view of the mountains surrounding Red Butte Garden—is this real life? … read more
Psych Lake City: Night 2 @ Urban Lounge 06.28 with...
The lineup and show from the previous night was pretty solid, and I was all too eager to see how tonight was going to play off in contrast. And the fact that Spell Talk’s name was on the marquee stood out in my mind as a proverbial safety net if, for whatever reasons, the other bands didn’t deliver. Of course—again—this didn’t turn out to be the case. … read more
Psych Lake City: Night 1 @ Urban Lounge 06.27 with...
At the end of the night, every band—whether strictly psych or loosely psych-related—gave killer performances that words couldn’t do more justice explaining than eyes and ears. But those who missed tonight had a chance of redemption at catching the second half of Psych Lake City tomorrow. And for those of us who did go tonight, we have every reason to be fucking stoked. … read more
2014 Utah Arts Festival: Sunday 06.29 with Zodiac Empire, Watches,...
This year’s Utah Arts Festival was rad!!! No, it really was. After skipping out on the last few years to do absolutely nothing I finally decided to check it out again when the opportunity came up for this assignment. What was really impressive was the amount of entertainment available that didn’t require me to spend a small fortune buying pretty things for my apartment. Aside from music, the 6+ stages offered everything from local comedy shows to beatboxing to children’s theatre. … read more
Dark Arts Festival @ Area 51 06.20-22
When I stepped foot through the doors of Area 51 during the Summer Solstice, I realized that I was in store for a not so ordinary weekend at my frequent haunt. The bar was decorated like an enchanted forest and I felt as if I had fallen through the looking glass into a world of faeries, Red Queens, vampires and all creatures of the dark. It was time for the Dark Arts Festival Of Utah. … read more
EMA @ Kilby Court 06.24 with Strong Words, Secret Abilities
Despite the fact that Anderson was friendly and approachable while running their post-show merch booth, her stage presence is fantastic—and kind of terrifying. Through her live performance, she was able to capture the versatility of her music, resulting in an emotional punch to the gut that was both sincere and thought-provoking. … read more
Punk’s Dead Concert Shoot With Indiegogo Fans @ The Complex...
Many have traveled from all over the states and even internationally to take part in something inspirational for punks. If anything, the showing of support proves that punk is not dead. Not even close. The camaraderie around this event is impressive to say the least. Even if this film is controversial for some, this gig helped put Salt Lake City back on the map for punk rockers. Exactly where it should and always be. … read more