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Whoever
says traditional reading is dead, hasn't been to Sam Weller's
basement recently.Down
deep in the spined jungle of the legendary library on Main Street, a
brand new book club has been meeting the last Tuesday of every
month. Bringing in hardcore readers to discuss some
of literature's more provocative and interesting titles, and giving
others a new perspective that they may not have caught the first time
around. I got a chance to chat with the book club creator Zach
Sampinos about the club, books they've discussed, and some other
topics that came to mind.
Last
week many of you were made aware via multiple sources that the bands
Nolens
Volens
and Uzi
& Ari
had the majority of the gear stolen in the middle of the night.
Underground media outlets like SLUG, City Weekly and UtahFM let
people know to keep an eye out for the equipment online and in pawn
shops while the search for the thieves continues. I got a
chance to talk to Andrew Glassett, who plays in both
bands, about the theft and what they're doing in the meantime. --- Uzi & Ari / Nolens Volens Gavin:
For those who don't know you, tell us who you are and a little about
yourselves.Andrew: We are a modest operation of
musicians who love to travel and work hard to perfect our craft.
In
the fallout of what was once Sugarhouse, many of the businesses that
once called the area home are finding new locations to re-establish
and call home. For once of those businesses, the transition was
easier and better that they could have hoped for.--- The
glasswork venue Artopia reopened its doors on Exchange Place in the
heart of downtown, continuing the locally owned tradition that kept
it alive on the east side.
Back
to Gallery Stroll we go, as this past Friday we took a trip
to Artspace's City Center location for this month's display.---
Near the back of the old plaza we find Tanner
Frames,
home for this month's print showcase from Paul Vincent Bernard,
displaying various prints from the past few years up
until some of his most recent work. I got a chance to
take some pictures
and chat with Paul about his work, the display, a recent trip to
California for a press, and a number of other topics. All while
having some bites of the tasty sushi made by his wife.Paul
Vincent BernardGavin: Hey Paul, first off,
tell us a little about yourself.Paul: I was born in
1953. I grew up in Bountiful, Utah.
Just
to get it out of the way now, yes, I've seen The Dark Knight, five
times since Wednesday. For those of you who haven't because
you're waiting for the giant crowds to die down, or just don't
have the time, here's all I'm going to say. The closest
comparison I can give you to relate to this film is The Empire
Strikes Back. When you thought everything was going to be okay
when they hit Cloud City... and then it all went bad and you were
left in shock. Yeah, that's what you can expect. There
are no words to describe how good it is, and as a life-long Batman
fan, I can die now. I have seen the best. A small
warning, I know it's going to be harped on by many (and we already
did it on Friday's morning news), this isn't for kids. It's not
just Batman, it's the Dark Knight. And that's all I'll
say because anything else will ruin it.--- The picture here
is the most recent look to the back wall left at the old 337 Project
location. It's been vandalized a few times in the past couple
weeks, you can see from the many layers of paint under the current
one, but no one has seen who. More than likely the same idiots
who painted the building white the first time around. I hope
someone from 337 sets up some hidden night vision around there.
If you wanna tag, go tag the Trax line so it's seen by thousands of
people a week. Let them do what they want with this space until
the new building comes and they paint the back wall black
themselves. And if you want to censor someone and paint a wall
white... go paint the Trax lines.This
week I'll be updating the calendar of events, which I've tried to add
more venues to including Club Vegas. But one I will not
be adding is Studio 600. And I feel I should address this a
little since it is my blog, plus people have written in at my MySpace
page and asked why I post certain venue's material and not others.
The dates that are posted on the “Under The Radar” calendar are
done with agreed permission. As in I emailed or called or
talked in person to ownership or leading management about what I do
with my blog and if they'd care if I posted local concert dates for
local bands and maybe come in to cover a show once in a while when I
can. I'd rather they knew what was up than just do things
without their knowing. And places who don't respond don't get
dates posted. But Studio 600 is a special case because I wanted
to do an interview with them about being a dry venue in the heart of
downtown SLC and everything that came about with them being
established and what they do. I thought it was interesting and
tried to contact them to do it. But it became clear that I was
being ignored. And after talking with a few other local media
people I found out I'm not the only one who has gotten that treatment
from their management. So either they feel the local media
isn't good enough, or they feel they're better than us. And I'm
sorry gang, but I can't stand people who act like elitists in a scene
that does not need elitists. So from this point on, I will post
nothing for Studio 600. I know they probably don't care what I
think, but that's cool because I don't care what they do
anymore.Speaking of other media sources, SLUG Magazine had
some cool events this weekend. As the post below this one will
show you, I got to talk to Mike Brown about Ghettolympics. But
SLUG also had the release of their Death By Salt IV compilation CD at
Red Light Books on Friday. I took a couple pictures in the
midst of Gallery Stroll work I was doing (which will go up Monday),
including the woman who did the artwork for the album. And then
just a few hours ago I was in that extremely hot Sears parking lot
for Ghettolympics to take some pictures of the event. Brand
new interviews all this week from Gallery Stroll, Salt City Derby
Girls, and Artopia is what you have to look forward to from me this
week. So much of what I do is spontaneous, so rare is it I know
what my week will be like, but there it is. Expect the calendar
to be updated tomorrow afternoon or Monday morning. In the
meantime, go look up the new video material for the Ghostbusters
video game. So nice is it to have Bill Murray back as Peter
Venkman cracking jokes while trying to take on the paranormal.
Forget
your average “extreme sports” competitions on TV, this one is
worth watching and attempting! ---
The 9th annual Summer Of Death series hits the
streets of Salt Lake City again, challenging the finest the state has
to offer, bringing in new twists to your usual challenges, while
still keeping the excitement of competition and fun about the event.
Since
the start of 2008, a brand new photo project started off with nothing
more than an idea and a blog to covey it on. But since then the Daily
Documentary Project has grown into an underground art movement with
almost seven months worth of profiled people in the books and more on
the way.
When
it comes to anime in Utah, the majority of people have to venture to
a media store to find a selection that is usually sub-par. That
is, if they have what you're looking for. But a good portion of
hardcore anime fans know the secret to getting good material, and
it's only on the east end of 3300 South.