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interview The Word Made Flesh: Literary Tattoos

January 21, 2011 - 8:14 am

Two years ago, Eva Talmadge and Justin Taylor were commiserating over burritos about the sorry state of the global economy, when they decided it would probably be best to shift the topic to something a bit less depressing. As fate would have it, their respective roommates had both come home with snippets of prose from Mark Twain, William Faulkner and Herman Melville tattooed on their bodies. One year later, Talmadge and Taylor are the proud parents of a beautiful, 192-page book full of literary tattoos and the equally colorful stories behind how they came about. Entitled The Word Made Flesh: Literary Tattoos From Bookworms Worldwide, the book documents what they viewed as a growing trend in body art: a natural progression from text on the page to text on the body. (Check out a trailer for the book here, then pick up your own copy at Amazon.) We had a digital sit-down with Eva to talk about some of her favorite pieces, as well as get the inside scoop on her next book, which you could very well be a part of.

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Art/Design A Decade of Dark Arts in Salt Lake City

by Zoetica Ebb

June 22, 2010 - 10:45 am

It’s always a little sad when good things come to an end, even when that end signals new beginnings.

Last weekend, Salt Lake City’s Dark Arts Festival celebrated a decade of operation with its final installment, the three-day Alumni Festival that featured performers who’ve appeared at the event over the past ten years. Clint Catalyst, a good friend and man of many hats, hosted the DAF back in 2002 and was invited to join the party. He recruited goth-rock veteran Paris Sadonis [Premature Ejaculation, EXP, etc.] and me along for the ride. We cooked up a very special, butoh-inspired performance piece, piled into Clint’s hatchback, and set out for the land of goths and mormons to help The Dark Arts festival commemorate ten years of all things dark and arty.

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Featured Music 20 Years of Bullying the Jukebox: Bouncing Souls Bryan Kienlen

by Barbie Brady

April 26, 2010 - 11:43 am

If you ever dipped your toe into the punk rock stew, you inevitably got a little Bouncing Souls on you. This band has been around the scene for 20 years now and they are holding steady as one of the most hard working, rocking, always relevant bands out there. It was my pleasure to interview bass player, Bryan Kienlen to hear how the years have been treating him as an icon of the scene.

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Art/Design Ink it Up!

by SailorBeware

September 2, 2009 - 7:42 am

Inked-up and sleeved-out were de rigueur at Tattoo Hollywood, the first annual tattoo convention held in the heart of LA, at Hollywood’s Renaissance Hotel on August 21^st-23^rd. Freaks hadn’t gathered in this capacity since the Inkslingers Ball in 2006; where tattoos have no stigma, carry no stereotypes, nor make you different from the rest of the crowd. It was a meeting of artists and patrons, both equally passionate about artistic expressions and individuality.

Over 200 booths were set up, with tattoo artists representing New York, Missouri, Ohio, Florida and most of California, to name a few. Most had their portfolios displayed, showcasing photographs of their best projects. Many artists were at work, setting needle to skin at make-shift benches for eager clients. According to Chris from Daddyo’s Electric Tattooing in Centralia, IL, artists come to conventions not only to market their shop, but to hold court, some having celebrity status among ink-seekers. Clients will go to a convention to acquire a tattoo from a notable artist they might not have been able to come in contact with otherwise.

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Art/Design Twin Atlantic Breaks the Skin

by Barbie Brady

June 15, 2009 - 10:26 am

Sam McTrusty looks nauseous. He’s about to commit an act that is essentially irreversible and permanent. The lead singer for rock band Twin Atlantic has burned a lot of brain cells contemplating this tattoo and the final verdict…a triangle. That’s right, one solitary triangle on the wrist. Its entirely loaded with meaning, and yet a basic shape that every child 2 and up can identify.

And that’s the beauty and the art of the tattoo. At its best it should mean the most to the one who wears it. Its so personal as a form of expression that it should be thought through and slept on for many many moons. Sam wanted to remember this place and time, and the triangle is a powerful symbol throughout history. It stands for the symbol for god, or the trinity, for power, danger, math, astrology and so much more. Those three little lines are loaded.

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Art/Design Twin Atlantic Scratches the Skin

by Barbie Brady and Sidney Bensimon

June 9, 2009 - 9:29 am

The truest way to set a memory is to mix it with a little of both pleasure and pain. Scottish rock band, Twin Atlantic, broke virgin skin in the service of remembering their time recording in Los Angeles. For singer Sam, and drummer Craig, it was their very first tattoo. Bass player Ross already has a few mementos of his own from previous encounters with inkslingers abroad. While Guitarist, Barry, just watched it all unfold.

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Featured interview Music The Lords of Altamont will kick your ass!

by Barbie Brady

March 15, 2009 - 4:12 pm

From left to right: Kevin Starr, Jake "The Preacher" Cavaliere, John "Big Drag" Saletra, Johnny "Stiggs" Devilla, not pictured Shawn "Sonic" Medina

Named for the infamous speedway immortalized in the Rolling Stones concert film, Gimme Shelter, the Lords of Altamont evoke the feeling of psychedelic influenced, 60’s, biker culture. Their collective black hair, skinny jeans, fitted tees and obligatory tattoos unify them as an old school punk rock band. Personally, I appreciate the effort. Their attitudes and attire are more reminiscent of the Steve McQueens of the motorcycle movie world, than say, the Peter Fondas.

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