This past March, The Hold Steady released their sixth studio album, a 10-track scorcher titled Teeth Dreams. Since then, they’ve embarked on a globe-spanning tour that will make a stop at our own Urban Lounge in mid-July. SLUG Magazine caught up with lead guitarist and founding member Tad Kubler to talk about the new record, recent lineup changes and to ask about what’s influencing them these days. … read more
Occasionally, we beer drinkers can find ourselves in a bit of a beer bubble. It’s easy to forget that that many of the great beer styles that we enjoy come from regions of the world that are as foreign to us as a BYU singles ward. These beers were not just created to help you “get your sexy on”—they were primarily created to be necessary nutritional staples in the regions from which they hail. Why you’re drinking a beer has as much to do as what kind of beer you’re drinking. Centuries ago, when you were having a beer, it was because the water was bad or because it was a more practical way to stretch your harvest’s yield, and temperature has a lot to do with that. … read more
I had been listening to UZALA’s recordings online for three days by the time I was speaking on the phone with guitarist and vocalist Chad Remains to get the resolute details of his experience with this band, a proxy for doom. While traversing a sunny community garden, I could feel the weight of introspection speaking to me. Not unlike the physical scene I was part of, Remains was warm but with a shroud of gloom. In preparation for their upcoming Bar Deluxe show on July 14, I grilled him with some questions about his perspective on the last five years as a band. … read more
In skateboarding, it’s easy for skaters to become known for a certain trick that they do really well, or do a lot. For example, Paulo Diaz was the nollie guy; Lindsey Robertson—heelflips; Andrew Reynolds—frontside flips; Keith Hufnagel—giant ollies; etc. When I first met AJ, I was in awe of how well he skated fakie. … read more
Me and my bike are much like P.W. Herman—before he ever masturbated in public—and his special two-wheeler, in that we have both been on many adventures together. Both of our bikes have been stolen and retrieved with little aid from proper authorities, as clearly evidenced in the famous ’80s documentary, Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. My tale of thievery is a bit different, but there are several parallels. … read more
801 Sessions is an entirely youth-run music production company, formerly known as Spy Hop Records. 801 Sessions consists of a group of students attending Spy Hop Productions—a nonprofit youth media organization who puts on their own shows every third Wednesday at The Shred Shed. The students find the bands, do all of the promotion, run the sound, the cameras and the lights, and then edit and mix the live footage into one well-composed video that they share online. … read more
When SLUG offered me the chance to make a goddamn beer cake, I was not about to say no, even if I am about the worst example of domestication I know. I called the Martha Stewart of the metal world, my dear friend Lady Arsenic of local band Arsenic Addiction, and asked if she’d be interested in helping me create this heavenly dessert. To keep chocolate off the camera, my wonderful partner in crime, SLUG photographer Matt Brunk, offered to document the debauchery. … read more
Video game reviews for Age of Wonders III, Batman: Arkham Origins Blackgate, Child Of Light, Conception II, Daylight, Diablo III: Reaper Of Souls, Disney Magical World, The Elder Scrolls Online, Kinect Sports Rivals, Mercenary Kings, Pokemon Battle Trozei, Strike Suit Zero, Thief, Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition and Trials Fusion. … read more
Malted barley, hops, water and yeast—if there’s one thing that beer has going for it in the world of fermented beverages, it’s the great diversity of flavors that a brewer can coax out of these four main and important ingredients. For many beer drinkers, when the word “beer” comes to mind, tastes of light-toasted grain and grassy/floral bitterness pops into mind. This is what mainstream beer has been for so many people over the last 120 years, but there is a style of beer that goes back centuries, which owes its existence to necessity and ungovernable factors: the wild ale. … read more
When I think of Idaho, I am reminded of giddy little trips to the nearest state border from Logan, Utah, to buy Mickey’s 40 ounces and clove cigarettes, marveling at the porn selection available only minutes away. Little did I know that, as I was stocking up on forbidden fruit for bacchanal weekends, a serpent was tempting two talented musicians with visions of doom and drone. Wolvserpent, a two-piece based out of Boise, consists of Blake Green (vocals and guitars) and Brittany McConnell (drums and violin). They return to SLC on July 24 to play at Urban Lounge. … read more