Music
▼ Interview
Inside the Cult of Cut Copy
SLUG had the chance to chat with Cut Copy’s bassist Ben Browning about their upcoming world tour, in which Salt Lake City will be their second stop, and how they landed True Blood star Alexander Skarsgård to lead in their new music video. “We’re really interested in cults, hippie culture and rave culture of the ’80s and early ’90s,” says Browning. “The idea of a cult that listens to Cut Copy music had been an idea for a video of ours for a while.” … read more
Atlas Genius are Pop Trojans
Atlas Genius is the latest indie rock radio darling hailing from Adelaide, Australia. Their freshman release, When It Was Now (2013), has seen healthy airplay by virtue of two solid pop singles, “Trojans” and “If So.” I interviewed founding member and front man Keith Jeffery about the state of affairs in Atlas Genius. … read more
Don’t Kill Mother Fucking Depeche Mode: An Interview With Sascha...
Sascha Konietzko is a music machine. For the last three decades, Konietzko’s band, KMFDM, has produced an album every other year, often with a tour to accompany its release. KMFDM have pushed the boundaries of industrial music, sex and politics. From the sense of nihilism brought on by the formulaic nature of modern music, to the feelings of outrage over political oppression, KMFDM have been there to address the issue. SLUG Magazine got the opportunity to talk with Sascha Konietzko about his recently released album Kunst, his wife and bandmate Lucia Cifarelli, the Syria conflict and Konietzko’s perspective on the progression of industrial music over the years. … read more
Preaching the Keller Gospel: An Interview with Dad Horse Ottn...
“I had this experience when I was playing in Circleville, Ohio—I was doing the sound check and there was this lady my age sitting at the bar and she said “Hey! What are you doing?” I said ‘I’m [playing] a mixture of country, gospel and punk music,’ and she said, ‘You play gospel in the bar? My mother sang gospel in the choir and she would have never sang in a bar.’ Once again, it’s a pity because that is where the Gospel should be heard.” … read more
Cut To The Bone: An Interview with Patrick Santana of...
“I think that’s what keeps it addicting: the fact that it’s not a consistent job. You show up and you don’t know what is going to happen at a show and that what makes the good moments even better—going into a situation and you don’t know what is going to happen, but you hope for the best. I don’t think anyone in our band is fearful of getting hurt. I mean, our singer is an animal. He’ll bury himself for the band.” … read more
Salt Lake gets Aokified: an Interview with Steve Aoki
“When it came to writing music, I was never technically trained. I picked up the guitar when I was 15 years old and started a band. We were fucking horrible. We ate the dirt and just got back up. You’re going to have a lot of big fails and people don’t want to see you succeed, but you can’t dwell on them, you just have to keep going and move forward.” … read more
The Outlier: an Interview with Quasi
Quasi have seemingly distilled their influences from everything else they do to make something seemingly effortless and celebratory. You might be tempted to dismiss parts of it as scattered, but that’s that whole point—that they are able to deftly touch so many bases.They answered a passel of SLUG’s questions with answers as enigmatic as their music. … read more
Live from Planet Wyndorf
Monster Magnet, in conjunction with the release of their 10th album, Last Patrol on Napalm Records, are planning their first full United States tour in a decade. SLUG got in touch with frontman Dave Wyndorf to discuss the new album, the rock n’ roll climate of America and the things that motivate him to keep playing this music now. … read more
Widowspeak: An Eerie Treat
Molly Hamilton and Rob Thomas are cinematographers of music, intentionally webbing together songs that evoke reminiscing. Inspired by the gloomy dark of the Northwest and the nostalgic imagery of the old American west, Widowspeak could be described as “cowboy grunge,” not so much literally, but in the sentiment. … read more
Red Fang Conquer the World
Like a drunk supernova in the darkest reaches of space, Red Fang’s star just keeps getting bigger and brighter. The group has met the demands of their rising fame, becoming the kind of tour-hardened road warriors that lesser musicians whisper about in stories to their children. You don’t want to miss Whales and Leeches, which drops the same day Red Fang hits SLC on their headlining tour, Oct. 15 at Urban Lounge. … read more