FLESH & BONE In pursuit of art and music VOL. 14
FLESH & BONE In pursuit of art and music
THE TEA M FOUNDER / EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Brandynn L. Pope
COPY EDITOR
Donald Kimber
DESIGN & LAYOUT
Brandynn L. Pope
COVER DESIGN
Morgan Fraser
COVER PHOTO
Brandynn L. Pope
ILLUSTRATOR
Jason Lambidis
WRITING TEAM
Sara Almlah Logan Grudecki Ashley Houston Donald Kimber Brandynn L. Pope Cale Zebedee
PHOTOGRAPHY TEAM
Courtney Cook Christina Kelley Clare Kim Rickie Miller Brandynn L. Pope Brittney Tambeau
INQUIRIES & SUBMISSIONS
fleshbonemagazine@gmail.com
WEBSITE
fleshbonemagazine.com
/fleshandbonemagazine
F EATURES 06 08
POLL QUESTION STAFF STORY Poem | Donald Kimber
62 ALBUM REVIEWS 66 PLAYLIST
MU S IC 12
LVL Up / The Front Bottoms Courtney Barnett / Chasity Belt
16
Against Me!
18
Elvis Depressedly
20
Warped Tour
24
Heffron Drive
Gallery | Clare Kim
Review & Photography | Brandynn L. Pope Gallery | Clare Kim
Gallery | Brittney Tambeau Interview & Photography | Sara Almlah
28 BoyMeetsWorld
Interview | Brandynn L. Pope
32
Frnk Iero AndThe Cellebration
Interview & Photography | Brandynn L. Pope
40
Nina Ĺ tajner
48
Jared Last
54
Brad Kunkle
Interview | Brandynn L. Pope
Interview | Brandynn L. Pope Photography | Jared Last Interview & Photography | Sara Almlah
28
AR T
32
40
POLL QUESTION: Is there a difference between inspiration & immitation? When first starting out as artists it is easy to instantly attach to what we know before creating our own voice. But to what extent are we being inspired by someone, their music, their art and just becoming an immitation of them?
please do not reproduce Jason’s work without his personal consent
Yes 90% The difference is intent. You know in your heart if what you’re doing is genuine individual expression. Nobody else has to. Just always keep in mind that that’s never gonna stop people from having their two cents about it. (ANDY RICHTER of BOYMEETSWORLD) I feel imitation is more like copying, trying to do something like someone else accurately. (which is I guess okay if you learn and don’t promote yourself with it). Painters often imitated older masters to learn. Inspiration is when someone (or something) inspires you to do your own work. You can “borrow” his/hers approach to colors, line, mood or just about anything. But you make it your own. I believe I collect this little fragments of illustrators and also things that I love. These things show through in my work. But it is mixed, and mine. I never actually copied anyone (that I would know of). But often when I see a great artwork I get this urge to create something on my own. In my own way. (NINA ŠTAJNER)
No 10% These days... I think the lines are very much more blurred. I think there should be a line. Some people don’t understand that. That’s why I think you see more legal action with things. But when things get into the legal realm it’s all about money and if there’s enough money to be spread around then those get blurred even more. (FRANK IERO)
If you copy someone, it must mean that you really like it. Being said, lets say someone establishes a style of music; I’m going to use Big Time Rush as an example. Boy bands came back, or at least came back for that band. Then there were many followers trying to create a boy band – some exploded, some didn’t. You can copy anything you want stylewise. It doesn’t mean each one of those is going to be successful. There’s usually three of a style that takes control. Otherwise, you gotta make your own. (KENDALL SCHMIDT of HEFFRON DRIVE)
Donald Kimber Personal Poetry
8 | Flesh & Bone
LVL UP
Clare Kim
12 | Flesh & Bone
MUSIC
The Front Bottoms Clare Kim
Chastity Belt Clare Kim
Courtney Barnett
Clare Kim
16 | Flesh & Bone
Against Me! In the last four years I have attended more shows than I could possibly keep track of. Whether it was as a friend, fan, or working as a photographer, I’ve always enjoyed going out and experiencing live music. Regardless of the city, there was always one thing in common to every show I attended: a poor crowd. I say it lightly, since every show is different in terms of how and why a particular crowd is disappointing, but there is always some sort of “affliction� that makes other people at shows seem unpleasant. You try to respect everyone for having a good time, but they do not reciprocate. There are people there who just want to hurt those around them, or people who arrogantly push their way to the barricade in order to get the best photo they can with their new iPhone. What I can say about the band Against Me! is that the crowd they attracted surprised me, and gave me hope for people who attend these shows. Everyone was respectful and genuinely enjoyed the music. They were community minded and all wanted to see the band they mutually loved. I can understand why. While Against Me! is known for their impact within the music scene, promotion of human rights, and the famous transformation of Laura Jane Grace, there is so much more to
their music and performance than the media hype. All of their music is thoughtful, and their performance is just as considered. Rather than filling the silence with chatter and jokes, the band rolls through song-after-song, never stopping to take a break except for quick sips of water. As a photographer, I instantly noticed the modest lighting and how simplistic the stage show was: an example of musicians feeling what they believed in. The energy remained the same throughout the entire performance, and the crowd fed off of them, oozing even more energy. Looking on either side of me, kids, adults, and middle-aged people, men and woman alike, were consistently singing back the lyrics to every single track. The entire show was completely refreshing to see, and I was quick to realize that people were simply there for the music, with no misguided intentions. I personally feel that regardless of whether you are a fan of Against Me! or not, witnessing their performance is a sight to be seen. I have nothing but the greatest respect for these musicians.
Elvis Depressedly Clare Kim
Warped Tour 2015
22 | Flesh & Bone
24 | Flesh & Bone
Heffron Drive I recently had the privilege to sit down and chat with two of the most talented people I have ever met! The duo known as Heffron Drive, composed of lead singer and guitarist, Kendall Schmidt, and guitarist/back-up vocalist Dustin Belt, originally from Burbank, California, have been part of the band for nearly 6 years now. The only blip occurred when Kendall had the opportunity to star in the Nickelodeon television show, Big Time Rush, resulting in the decision to put Heffron Drive on hold. Despite this, their ambition truly radiates from them, making it easy to see the passion they have for what they do as they rock stages such as Webster Hall in Manhattan and World CafÊ Live in Philadelphia. In response to the release of their new acoustic album, Happy Mistakes: Unplugged, released April 28th, the band has set out on their own mini-tour.
FACEBOOK - WEBSITE - TWITTER
Q: How has the past year been for Heffron Drive? KENDALL: It’s been really awesome. It’s been a whirlwind. 2014 was a crazy year, 2015 is equally crazy, but in a better direction. Most importantly, recently, was releasing the unplugged album April 28th. It’s invigorated us musically because it’s fun to play the shows. Not that the full band stuff isn’t fun – it’s just different. We don’t get to maybe ‘vibe’ as much. Acoustically you could just really feel; its been a fun year, we have a lot of traveling to do coming up.
Q: Tell us about TOLbooth records – what was the process? K: It was a lot of paper work, other than that’s about it. It’s the financing behind Heffron Drive. It only seemed obvious to make a label. One day I’d like to have other artists under it and possibly partner up with a major label.
Q: What does Heffron Drive bring to the industry? What makes your music different/ unique? K: That’s a great question. DUSTIN: I think it’s heartfelt. A lot of the music right now is stale. K: Very generic music happening. D: A lot of the themes of Heffron Drive songs are love, appreciation for situations and relationships. I think it’s just a different approach. Its more positive. K: If you asked me, the radio could use, I don’t want to say us, but us.
Q: Lets talk about Happy Mistakes: Unplugged. I know you guys had the original album, Happy Mistakes. Was there any song that was more difficult to record than others? K: You know which one was difficult? D: ‘Parallel’. K: ‘Parallel’ was hard to record because of the cajon. We never recorded with one before – AJ (touring drummer) came and played it for us obviously. Everything on that CD was recorded by Dustin and I at TOLbooth studios. D: Everything on that album was recorded by us with the exception of the cajon. K: Setting up all the mics, trying to figure out what sounds best, queuing everything, that was all us. D: A lot of really long nights in the studio. K: I can tell you one that I thought that was going to be hard but end up blossoming out of nowhere. That was ‘Division of The Heart’. I had no idea; I think I even went in early in the morning and started working on it. Dustin showed up and I said, ‘this might sound crazy,’ but then we just exploded with it afterwards.
Q: What happens to the tracks that are created, but didn’t make the cut? D: We usually store it then possibly use it for the next record. So many ideas, half ideas, and quarter ideas. Of course we don’t know where it can manifest in the future. K: All it really takes is to sit down and really figure the song out. It’s hard to flesh out an idea immediately so sometimes you just get something and then you’re just like, ‘eh, lets put it away for a while’ and come back to it with fresh ears.
Q: What is your favourite song lyrically, and musically, on the record? D: Lyrically, for me, is ‘Nicotine.’ A lot of word play in that song. It’s about a girl, and the alliteration of smoking a cigarette. It has nothing to do with smoking – it’s all about a girl. K: I can tell you my mom was like, ‘ugh, I just don’t get the message.’ Well mom, its about a girl.
Q: On Youtube there are a lot of covers of your music. How does it feel to know that your songs brings out creativity in others?
K: It’s hard to spend time thinking about it because it’s just such a cool feeling. I actually met some girls yesterday who were like, ‘you favorited our videos’ and I was like, ‘ honestly, thank you,’ because to write something is one thing, but to write something that makes someone want to perform themselves is amazing. D: We met someone today at the meet-and-greet who told us ‘[that] because of you guys, I’m going into audio production.’ She’s learning how to be an engineer. K: I told her to stand next to the front house guy and watch him.
BoyMeetsWorld Today we are joined by Andy “Drew” Richter of BoyMeetsWorld, a band out of Cinncinati, Ohio who are famous for their time spent on Warped Tour, and a name that rings nostalgia in our hearts. However, do not confuse them with the 90s television show! While they are well aware of it, and state that, “Brad used to watch it,” and more than anything it has become a catchy name that fits with what they embody as a band. Richter states that it, “serves as a good metaphor for our frequent themes of facing the challenges of growing up as a person young at heart.” FACEBOOK - TWITTER
R
ewinding to the very beginning of it all, Richter reflects on how the band came together, starting with vocalist, Craig Sulken, returning from schooling in Florida so he could play music. At the time, he played guitar for the band. Sulken’s brothers, Ryan and Brad, together filled in the drum and bass roles, agreeing that all of them wanted to take their project seriously in order to pursue a full time career in music. As a collective, the band had decided to have a sound reminiscent of pop-rock, and the punk bands of the early 2000s. Craig ended up switching from guitar to being the vocalist after the band lost its first few singers. Richter recalls how, as a friend to the guys in BoyMeetsWorld, they would ask him to fill in on guitar for upcoming shows since he had played with them previously in jam bands: “gradually I decided to put my other projects to the side and focus on BMW full time because I enjoyed the direction they were heading in.” Building to their current line-up as a band, they had Drew Thomason get
in contact with them after losing their other guitarist. He had been a part of other local bands and now remains full-time with BoyMeetsWorld as they continue to pursue their dreams. Guitarist, Andy Richter, first got started with music when he received a guitar in elementary school. He stated, “me and my friends just decided one day we wanted to be in a rock band. I kinda left it relatively untouched for a couple of years, but started committing to learning how to play around thirteen. Ever since then I’ve just been playing with tons of different variations of my friends, including the Sulkens in other bands.” Of course, there are a lot of people who enable themselves to play an instrument and never pursue it in a professional manner. For Richter, he began taking music seriously when he came to the time in his life for him to focus on what he was going to do as an adult. He recalls realizing, “the kind of passion that I had for it was the kind of thing people talk about when they say, ‘Do what you really love.’ It was
just one of the only things that always made sense to me and always kept me engaged.” With that realization, he has made the comment that his band members have also been playing since they were a younger age, assuming that for them the passionate feeling is mutual. When it comes to writing music, everyone in BoyMeetsWorld has their own variation on musical tastes, but all of them seem to find their niche in similar genres. Richter explains that “there’s a wide array of musicians and genres that I look to when I write and play. On the whole we draw a lot of influences from older bands like Good Charlotte and New Found Glory, as well as newer bands like Mayday Parade and All Time Low.” These influences are manifested as audio with their new album, Become Someone, which was released on June 16th. The above influences can be heard, in particular, in songs such as “So In What” which is reminiscent of an older Mayday Parade. Richter goes through
the different guys in the band placing their name with different musical influences, first starting with himself: “I draw a lot of influence from bands like Glassjaw, Taking Back Sunday, and New Found Glory. Ryan is really big on the Used, Brand New and Underoath. Craig loves Mayday Parade and the Maine. Brad is literally obsessed with New Found Glory, but he likes pretty much anything from that era and genre. Drew T is a mystery to me. Give him time.” Warped Tour has become one of the most popular summer tours across North America, and has spread to Alaska and the United Kingdom, showing off just a small portion of what Warped Tour really can entail. BoyMeetsWorld are well acquainted with the tour, attending both as music fans, and as performers. Richter recalls his first time attending as a fan being one of his favourite years of attendance: “the experience of seeing my absolute favorite band of all time, Killswitch Engage, and other great bands like Every Time I Die and Chiodos, when I had never really been to a rock concert before was amazing. I went with my best friends, and we all went home more physically exhausted than any other time in our lives from the heat and the energy. It was such a rewarding feeling, and I felt like it embodied everything that Warped Tour is about from a fan’s perspective.” Now that he has performed at Warped Tour along with BoyMeetsWorld as well as SXSW, he has a bit of a different perspective on larger shows. When asked about the difference between intimate venues and these festivals, he stated, “mostly the security of having a built in audience for festival shows, though we do a lot of promoting when we play at Warped Tour to make sure our sets are as big as possible. There’s also always a little more incentive for some crazy state antics, for us at least.” This is evident while crawling through BoyMeetsWorld’s social media. They have images posted of balloons being thrown into the crowds, creating a colourful show on top of their own separate performances. Not only this, but other images support
30 | Flesh & Bone
an energetic live show. Out of their performances Richter hopes that people, “have a great time that they’ll talk about for days to come, and walk away a fan.” The fun that BoyMeetsWorld shows off in their performances is not limited to the stage. There’s a certain sense of humour that the members have, which involves things like pranking one another and getting into a weebit of mischief. Richter recalls a prank that got out of hand, saying, “Ryan sandwich punched my $10 burger when I hadn’t eaten all day and it was so good. I won’t go into detail about the rules of sandwich punch, but basically it revolves around looking for certain prerequisites to be met that give you the right to decimate another persons sandwich with your fist. I’ve never partaken, even in high school, yet they insist I’m a part of it because I know how to play. Not having a sense of humour pertaining to his particular prank, the incident ended with me throwing items of Ryan’s meal across the restaurant, which later I cleaned up and apologized to the manager for.” While this is just one example of their pranks, they have all had their turns on one another, especially when they were younger. Now Richter states that he has, “no doubt that the pranks will get more extreme and involve other bands as the years of touring go on.” While BoyMeetsWorld pride themselves on showing off their funny antics, they still take their time as professional musicians seriously. There are always parts of the lifestyle that are exciting, but one thing that they have also constantly reaffirmed is that “you gotta take advantage of your time on the planet. Seeing the country and meeting tons of new people all the time is an amazing feeling that a lot of people don’t get to experience.” As a final sign-off, Richter speaks on behalf of the band, saying, “we’re really thankful we get that opportunity.”
Frank Iero ( FRNKIERO ANDTHE CELLABRATION )
While most people know his name from his position as rhythm guitarist in My Chemical Romance, Frank Iero is an artist of many mediums and projects that has expanded further than his former alternative-rock band. His anchor-like design symbolizes the different pieces of work that his name has been attached to, including his musical projects Leathermouth, Death Spells, and most recently, FrnkIero andthe Cellabration. Frank Iero has a passion for the art of music and what it provides for the people he performs to as well, but Iero’s interest in music extends into the personal and therapeutic nature of music too. Flesh & Bone was able to catch up with Iero in the midst of his tour with the famous punk band, Against Me!, where we were able to get some insight into his artistic mind.
S
itting down in an empty hallway Frank Iero reached over to play with the glass prism I brought with me for the afternoon. Taking his phone out he started photographing through it, seeing its different effects that it had, manipulating his perspective. It was evident, to me immediately, that he had a playfully creative mind, needing something to work with. Previously, through the numerous musical groups that he had associated himself with I had an idea of his creativity but now I could see its physical capacity. His artwork, both musical and visual, has been marked from an anchorlike symbol made up of a reversed Byzantine cross, an Orthodox cross, and two opposing cobras. This symbol was first composed in 2004 / 2005, embossed into Frank Iero’s limited prints he had made for My Chemical Romance. Since then it has been adapted into all of the work he claims as a part of himself. When asked about the symbol (tattooed behind his right ear) he went on to explain, “as far as the actual image it’s less of a visual and it’s very much the push and pull of evil [...] I wanted to have an evil element to it so I added the two opposing cobras at the bottom and in doing that it took more of an anchor feel, which I love because I feel that it was kind of being anchored in this vision. It’s very much a yin-yang sort of deal. It’s good luck, bad luck, for me.” Most recently, the symbol is seen all over Frank Iero’s current project FrnkIero andthe Cellabration. Before forming the band, Frank Iero started to write these songs as something that was originally for himself. While some might read .stomachaches. As just another title for an album, it had direct references to the state that Iero found himself
in. Most of the songs were written in times of his greatest pains, turning the horrible state he was in into something positive. Iero stated that he now is at “that point of my life where having kids, trying to be, not a role model, but showing them a way of turning something bad into something good and not just wanting to curl up and die on something. So for me I needed to do that. I couldn’t just waste away or curl up into myself.” From there, Iero took the step of deciding to himself that in the times he feels like he cannot do anything that it would be the best time to force himself into doing something. Further, he stated “some people work better in sadness, some people work better under the gun, you don’t have time to do it, I guess i work in... defiance.” There is no doubt that with the raw sound of his personal work that it came from a sort of therapy. With Frank Iero’s approach to taking in his negative experience, there’s a lot of questions as to how he would continue writing a second record with this project. FrnkIero andthe Cellabration’s record .stomachaches. was written without any thought of the songs ever being heard by anyone outside of Frank Iero, and in the future would extend to his family. It wasn’t until he casually played them for a few people and was told they wanted him to put it out. In order to tour on the songs he had to pick a group of people to join him, deciding on his brother-in-law, Evan, who he had wanted to be in a band with for years. He then brought in Leathermouth’s Rob Hughes, and then
Matt Olsen who he had met through mutual friends. It was not long until the group found themselves touring on the music. Now, with the thoughts of a second album Frank Iero has no desire to revisit the pain he endured for the inspiration on the first. A lot more has to be considered with the second album, for one the change in dynamic of writing for himself and that to considering an audience. Iero expanded “knowing that if I do another record that people are going to hear it plays into the process. You’re going to edit yourself in a certain way and that irks me a bit. So I don’t know. I keep going back and forth on it. But, that being said there’s certain songs kicking around in my head that I want to get out so we’ll see what that turns into.” Not only that, but further consideration needs to happen when the dynamic of a single writer and four musicians work together to create something. In the past, Iero has worked with bands where it was all collaboration and working together into a final product. His process to working on his own as an artist came down to these questions, “How do I do this now? How do I self edit? How do I take it from zero to one hundred?” Even just adjusting the music he wrote for himself to present with a band is a whole other process. Though he states that it was much easier once
the record was done, and that the songs have just changed live. Thinking about working with his band on a second record, Iero has commented that “I don’t know how easy that will be. But maybe it shouldn’t be easy. But then at the same time if it does turn into a band “band” how do you call it Frank Iero and the whatever? It’s something I haven’t figured out just yet. I’ve definitely been thinking more about what’s next. I don’t know if it’s necessarily called FrnkIero andthe Cellabration. I like that. I like that it could be over and it could be something else, not that it’d be different people or anything.” With the different projects that Frank Iero has explored there is no surprised that he has this mind set of building up something new and doing something new. For him, he likes to be invested into a project once he is in rather than trying to do a bunch of different things at once, even though it does not always work out. He states “sometimes it happens that way without you really being conscious of it and it flips on its head and you abandon things and go with what’s working.” Death Spells, one of his previous projects, is considered with this thought. At one point it had been his main focus, but James Dewees, his partner in the project, had to leave on tour and the project simply was never finished. On a bit of a different note, there are always different songs and pieces of inspiration that float around and need to be organized into their projects. Iero shares that “it tells you what it wants to be. There’s a b-side that’s going to be released on a 7” in the UK next month. That song was probably supposed to be a Leathermouth song but at this point it was like ‘what, am I going to go back and do that band again?’ So I’ll just do
it with this.” [Editors Note: Shortly after talking with Frank Iero it was announced that he would be releasing a 7” split with Lonely The Brave that is now Sold Out.] Not only does Frank Iero think of his different musical ventures as art projects, but he even takes into consideration every aspect of how his art will be perceived. Just by taking a visit through videos released under FrnkIero andthe Cellabration you have an idea of his creative mind. Each video explores a different topic, both in relation to their songs as well as taking their own artistic turn. For the promotion of the album, Iero wanted to do something a little bit different from other videos. Explaining his experience with coming to the video he stated “I’ve said everything I’ve wanted to say in the song so now I have this capital to make another art project. So it’s like I’m just going to take the money and make something cool. So that’s what I did.” The label agreed to pay half of a music video, but with the idea that Iero had in mind they came to decide that it was too much, that he’d need to do something else. Rather than altering the project, Iero suggested that he take a little bit more of the money they did not want to give him and instead make two music videos with it. To his surprise, they agreed, enabling him to make the story of “Weighted” come to life as well as the project behind “Joyriding.” When explaining the video behind “Weighted” he states that “I wanted to do something a little tongue-in-cheek and a little bit funny. I had this idea for a short story and now I get to make that into a movie. So I did that. It’s very Goonies meets Stephen
King.” The first video turning out how he wished it to be, Iero reflects on the second video, “Joyriding” and how a seemingly easy task ended up being one of the more difficult projects. This music video was to take a different turn from the first, showing off more of what the song was about rather than creating an all together new art project. His explanation behind “Joyriding” continued in him wanting a visual representation, stating “to me the song is about being so empathetic, taking in everyone else’s emotions so much so that you can’t hold onto it anymore. It just explodes from you, or oozes. So basically that video is starting out, everything is fine, everything is stark white and then the video progresses and the people in it can’t hold onto this blood anymore so it starts to leak from every orifice. You would think that it would be the easy one to make, that’s what I thought [...] we basically had to build a room in my backyard and then destroy it in a matter of hours and it was horrible.” Regardless of the mess that came out of it, still the project remains one that Iero is proud to of been able to of done. Possibly one of the most impressive things about Frank Iero and his progression to the work that he is making today is how everything is a project. The work he puts behind his music is more than just a mathematical system, but true dedication and passion. He’s metaphorically spilled his guts out while also actually enduring immense pain and turning it into art. Whether or not he continues with the title of FrnkIero andthe Cellabration, his vision will carry on into something more for years to come.
40 | Flesh & Bone
ART
Nina Štajner As children, we tend not to consider how the small wonders of our lives will translate into the inspiration of our adulthood. Instead, we are left with the scraps of our imaginations: colourful scenery and personified animals. For aspiring illustrator Nina Štajner, a large portion of her portfolio revolves around the child-like wonder of the world. In her images of mice in aprons, sleeping rabbits, and adventurous children who spill out of the paint brush and onto the canvas, she clearly expresses her passion for art, and sharing art with the world. Štajner communicates it all with precise whimsy, reminiscent in style to classical fairytales. Flesh & Bone was able to reach out to her, and discuss how she came to be an illustrator, as well as how she chooses explores her passion through her processes. WEBSITE - INSTAGRAM
“A
nimals, animals, animals... mostly animals,” Nina Štajner enthusiastically stated when asked about what themes she likes to explore in her artwork. A simple look from the illustrators internet presence shows this off. Different pieces of hers illustrate forest animals interacting both in nature as well as in the the “human” life style. She creates beautiful hand-drawn images similar to that you would open up in a children’s book of fairytales, showing off the sweetest aspects of the creatures that populate the planet. While she cannot quite pinpoint the exact reason she has been so drawn to these animals she suggests that a part of it could be her life living close to the beautiful forests of her home country, Slovenia. Her passions have always laid on recreating what is seen in nature, floral elements and forest creatures. Though formally educated in Visual Communications, Štajner has kept her focus on the traditional medium rather than working in digital illustration. She spent 2007 at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana and at the time, the Academy did not offer anything specifically for illustration. Emphasis was put on graphic design and illustration courses and painting basics were minimized. Essentially all the techniques that can be seen in Štajner’s art work are from being self-taught. When asked about what she would want to change in her post-secondary education she stated “although my program gave me a solid design background I wish I knew more about painting and illustration. I would still consider doing design work in the
42 | Flesh & Bone
future but at this moment I am pretty dedicated to illustration.” Though she was restricted, that did not stop Štajner from exploring her interests within her courses. Her “tender creatures” and “lovely girls” featured themselves in her work solving problems in design. She states “although some of my professors really weren’t impressed with this kind of work I still kept on doing it.” Even now that she works for clients she finds the time to create work for herself. Personal projects are an important part of her life and what keep her inspired and excited to keep on working stating, “I do them to remember why I chose this as a career.” Following her time at the Academy, Štajner began to focus on UI design and illustration for children’s mobile applications. This enabled her to use both the formal education as well as show off her friendly critters. Her persistence in solving design problems in a playful way payed off and enabled her to be come a co-founder of Toonia Apps. Her work with the application mostly revolves around brand
44 | Flesh & Bone
development and the UI design but she is still involved with the concept art and illustration. On top of that she also took a three month course with the SmArt school with Marc Scheff where she was able to take in some more information in regards to illustration. She has a great understanding that there are always more techniques to learn in order to establish a successful feeling within yourself stating that “I am only learning to compose a compelling image just now, thinking about focal points, camera angles, compositions, doing a lot of thumbnails, etc.” While the Academy may not of opened her mind to illustration the way that wanted it too she still is going out of her way to constantly learn and collaborate. In part of her process she states that she has “discovered” gouache as it “fits my painting technique so much better than acrylics. I have also started considering coloured pencils as a technique worth trying out.” The “natural” approach to illustration has this attraction to it due to the fact that you can see each touch from the artist. There is a part of the artist in every thing that they do, and traditional mediums will show those mistakes that
are integrated into the whole image. Each approach is a little newer, and for Štajner there has always been comfort in drawing only with a pencil to which she states “I want to get out of my comfort zone, even though it’s hard sometimes.” Due to her background she still invests time in digital illustration as well, mostly working with vectors. In her study of it she recollects, “I had to learn vectors in order to do artwork for mobile applications. It was hard to learn, a lot of tears [were] shed. But after months of work it finally became quite natural to me.” While a lot of artists find themselves working in a particular routine, Štajner has found that there is no ritual that she follows every time she approaches her work. Often things work out from sketching, doodling and just trying things out. Once there is a base that she is happy with she’s able to attach more details to it all stating “I learn through trial and error. Sometimes I work for hours and have nothing, sometimes the process is more smooth and I can see the results right away.” While there are a lot of successes she also states that there are a lot of failures that she has to endure. By the end of it all she states that she will change her mind on how
she is going to do something before she reaches the finish product. With the amount of time and dedication that Nina Štajner has put into her work there’s no doubt that she will be able to find more success in her medium and whatever other opportunities that present themselves to her. When asked what the most important thing to do for yourself as an artist she signed off with these important words, “Work hard, be persistent, get out of your comfort zone and listen to other people’s advice, especially from artists you admire. We have tons of podcasts—listen to them. You can get so much information for free
these days. We are basically all going through the same process. Growing takes courage and at some point you have to accept failure. Don’t think that if you fail you are not talented and give up—I think hard work and having an open mind is key to the progress. And in order to grow you have to be critical of your own work and always see the room for improvement. Not being satisfied—although it is a struggle sometimes.”
Jared Last “
Originally born in Calgary, my mom and I moved around Alberta for a few years before settling for the majority of my life in the city of Wetaskiwin, AB. Wetaskiwin is situated on a major train junction, and as a child I was exposed to tons of graffiti rolling through town daily. I was always a creative kid, painting and drawing or even sculpting little dinosaurs out of paper- maché and wire, but things never really got serious until I got into graffiti. Throughout high school I was buried in my sketchbook, always doodling or piecing, until I finally got a job and could afford to get my hands on some paint. From graffiti I transitioned into stencils, at first just ripped off of pictures from the web, but eventually as the years unfolded my stencils transformed into something entirely different, and for me at least, a lot more exciting. I got really tired of seeing all the cliché images of stencil based street art and sought something different for my own work, and stopped making anything even slightly representational. At that point I had started to look at my stencils more as objects as opposed to 2D images, and began experimenting with sculpture, and looking for ways to amplify that and explore it within my work. If we fast forward a few years to ACAD, I discovered glass, and became totally captivated by the material and its working methods, eventually deciding to major in it. Glass challenged me in tons of different ways, physically, socially and most of all creatively, and honestly I chose to major in it because I thought it would be the hardest thing for me to excel in. Fusing my painting practice with my new found glass addiction was a monstrous challenge, figuring out how to draw the same patterns on a 3D shape as opposed to a flat sheet of paper took an enormous amount of effort, but eventually I succeeded. Glass has a bit of a mind of its own, and once I figured out how to get my patterns onto the surface, certain effects, notably optical effects, of the material again started ” to transform my work into something else. Now, after 4 years in the program, the work that I make in glass is heavily influenced by optical art, colour theory, and architecture, with a dash of Zen Buddhism in addition to my prior influences of graffiti and street art. It’s also exclusively hand made. Analog, baby. INSTAGRAM
48 | Flesh & Bone
How did you come to “settle” on the geometric style that is present within your art, regardless of whether it is a two dimensional or three dimensional medium? What is it that is most appealing about it? Completely accidentally, actually. I had been doing a ton of portrait commissions for a while, and got rather bored, so I was really focusing on making interesting backgrounds for the various people to be set in. I was also in a bit of an experimentation phase and trippy things were all the rage, and super into manual drafting, drawing blueprints and house designs and stuff like that. I actually almost went to school for architectural design as opposed to art school! When I first noticed one of my stencils appearing to shift and change as I moved around it, exactly like an optical illusion I was immediately hooked, and have been exploring that ever since! I love that I can induce a particular visual experience for anyone, regardless of background or culture, and to be able to do that with what is, for many people, an already mystifying medium like glass is even better!
You’ve had formal education in the arts. What were the benefits of this for you? What was a downfall? First and foremost, the ability to think critically, and the ability to situate my work within the broader scope of art history. As well, the opportunity to spend as much time as possible developing my work and my skill set, and a direct injection into the arts community are all enormous benefits. Not to mention studio access, not just for glass, but for everything. I’ve gotten to try tons of different mediums, and learn from some of the best artists in the country in their respective fields, and formed some of the most endearing friendships I’ve ever had.
I’ve also had plenty of opportunities spring up from connections I’ve made at school, such as my involvement with the Village stage at Shambhala Music Festival, work on an installation for the Beakerhead engineering and arts festival, and multiple art shows, not to mention this very interview! In terms of downfalls, the first, most blatantly obvious one is of course the finances. Art school can be very expensive, often unattainable for a lot of people. There’s definitely been times where I had to choose between food and supplies. It can also put an enormous strain on your relationships with people outside of school, romantic or otherwise, but that’s just postsecondary in general!
How long have you been working with glass? How do you feel your craft has changed since you first started working at this medium? I have been working with glass for 4 years, 2 of those as a major with vastly more studio access. To be honest, it’s astounding how much better I have gotten over the course of the past few years. The learning curve seems nearly vertical! I can remember a time where I was hardly able to handle the clunkiest, most misshapen blob; now I’m making 5 part goblets, super thin and all assembled hot. I can pretty much make anything I set my mind to in the hot shop these days, maybe not on the first attempt but usually by the 2nd or 3rd or even 4th try. All of this is in addition to the meticulous hand craftsmanship skills I’ve developed through working on my larger sculptural and vessel forms outside of the hot shop. It’s safe to say I’ve come quite a long way!
Are there any people that inspire your craft? What about those who inspire you in general? Of course! Definitely have the faculty at ACAD to thank for that, Tyler, Natali, Rob, Jim and Marty. Not to mention any number of different glass artists from around the world. Notable artists, at least for me, would have to be Preston Singletary, Paul Schwieder and Mark Mathews, and probably the most inspiring for my overall practice, the (in) famous Shepard Fairey. There’s also a few of my colleagues at school that always make me want to work harder, we’re a competitive bunch! I also can’t forget The Village Crew, and my pals at PK Sound!
What else do you enjoy doing? Is there anything else that you would want to try out, wish that you were better at, or had more time for? I’m a huge fan of music, of pretty much all kinds. I love to ‘DJ’ in the hot shop and have always had an inkling to learn how to actually spin records, but neither the time nor the funds to do so, at least yet. I’d also like to devote more time to painting than I currently do, but I don’t really have an appropriate space to do so right now, so in time I hope to rectify that. I also really like to cook!
In the future, where do you hope to see your art work? Anywhere but my own house! Haha. If I’m lucky, in a few galleries across Canada/the US or other international
locales, if I’m REALLY lucky in museums or parliament buildings or airports. Maybe huge corporate headquarters. Time will tell!
Do you think that social media is still helping artists? Absolutely! Probably more now than ever before. I myself use it to promote my work, and as a means to keep up with other artists! I’m a huge fan of Instagram, (@wildmadthrills), because everyone has their phone in their pocket and you get to see a lot more behind the scenes stuff happening than you would otherwise, especially with glassblowing! But it’s also a great way to follow all sorts of artists working in all sorts of media from all around the world. Not to mention, having an audience is a great motivator to get to work, so you have things to show people! I also feel that utilizing Facebook to advertise or promote your event probably ensures a greater attendance rate for shows and things of that nature than previously available only through word of mouth! But, simultaneously social media has drastically shortened the attention span of the average audience, especially our generation and younger, so it can be a bit of a mixed blessing. But overall, I’d have to say it is a positive thing for artists!
54 | Flesh & Bone
Brad Kunkle Brad Kunkle is a independent artist from Lehighton, PA, currently living and distributing his artwork in Brooklyn. He uses silver, linen, and gold, amongst other things, to create his particular form of artwork. He has inspired many individuals to follow their artistic intuition with his unique and innovative artwork. He has a solid theme, focusing on the unfortunate and uneven balance between the masculine and feminine in art. BRADKUNKLE.COM
Q: Give us some background information on yourself. How long have you been an artist? BK: I’ve been working professionally for about 6 years now. Before that, I was painting dog portraits for a living for two years. Even before that, I was in an indie-rock band and painting houses to get by on the side. I still play in the band.
Q: Is there one specific artist that influenced you the most? BK: Early on I would say Sir Lawrence Alma-tadema. Now, artists like James Turrell influence me – and he’s not even a painter. He’s literally purchased an extinct volcano as an art project. He’s turned it into an installation. If James Turrell can buy a volcano and turn it into a piece of art, I can finish that big painting.
Q: When did you know you really had a passion for art? How did it Q: How long does it take for you start out? to complete a piece of art? BK: Ever since I was a little kid. My BK: Anywhere from a week to, two brother was drawing, I just wanted to months. be better than him. We’re talking five year old. He’s two years older than me. I just wanted to be like my older brother – but better. It wasn’t until college that I knew I really wanted to be an artist.
Q: Where does the inspiration for your work come from? BK: By following intuition and the challenge that it is for everyone inspires me. I’m really interested in equality in general. More specifically, the demonization of the feminine for centuries. I feel like there is a balance that’s off between the masculine and the feminine.
Q: Is there a piece of artworks that you’re most proud of? BK: I’m really proud of The Gilded Wilderness. I think there is 8 figures in it. I’m really proud of it because I’ve been thinking about it for so long, about two years, and I finally executed it. As well as another piece, The Separation Of Church and Fate, which is two men in the garden of Eden. There is also one with two women in the garden of Eden, called The Proposition. I’m proud of them because I actually painted them. They’re clearly religious and political statements, and its not easy to cross that boundary sometimes, for me, because I like to lead everything more ambiguous.
that environment. The leaves for me became a representation of nature itself, but also when we connect with ourselves or with nature, we can then follow our intuition. Birds have this 6th sense to know what direction to fly. Science is still trying to find out why they can do it, and I love that.
Q: What is the process of creating one of your works?
BK: I usually start with a clear idea. I’ll then photograph models for that idea. A lot of them will start with a photo shoot for that idea, but then I’ll have great photos that I feel connected too. I’ll paint the figure up on the panel, Q: I notice you use a lot of birds, and then everything else around it just becomes automatic painting. women, and leaves in your
artwork. Is there any particular reason?
BK: The leaves came about first. For many reasons, but mostly, I’m trying to add back to the feminine. The world used to worship goddesses. All of a sudden, women became demonized. I grew up Lutheran, I no longer identify with that church, but I was raised in
Q: Is there any other type of art or medium you’d like to test out? BK: Film. I’ve tested it a little bit where I projected film onto a painting and presented it at my last opening. I actually scored some music with it too.
ALBUM REVIEWS Annie Girl & The Flight ALBUM: Bodies EP RELEASE: 06/15/15
STAND OUT: “Swans”
AUTHOR: Brandynn L. Pope
Before even listening to this bands album I had the pleasure of listening to their Bodies EP live. I was blown away by their hypnotizing performance! It was as if I were cast back in time, onto the set of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, listening to the band performing at the Bronze. ‘90s pop-culture references aside, I knew that I wanted to share this album and band with other people. When I try to explain Annie Girl & The Flight to people, I found it difficult to really pin-point what they are and who they sound like. Instead I have resigned to just tell them that they just needed to listen to the band and find out for themselves. In some ways they are reminiscent of artists such as Metric, Silversun Pickups, and Sonic Youth. Each song on the Bodies EP flows into the next with the same rhythmic groove. Possibly one of the most remarkable parts of this album is the pedal play from the guitarist. It creates an artistic chaos in each song,
62 | Flesh & Bone
9 which makes the album feel like the soundtrack to a dark indie movie. To be specific, one of the most beautifully uncomfortable songs is “Swans.” In the song, the lines “are you living or are you dead” springs out from the song, painting a dark image amidst the musical chaos. The closing and title tracks “Bodies” reprises musical themes that appear throughout the rest of the album, while having an upbeat nature that can be heard during the credits.
Being As An Ocean ALBUM: Being As An Ocean RELEASE: 06/30/15
STAND OUT: “Judas, Our Brother” AUTHOR: Rickie Miller
Over the past few years the scene has been radically changing, sparking tons of lively discussion. Should we still thrive in hardcore’s past, or should we embrace the future? Is this scene really dead? I think we’ve finally realized that we’re alive and well, and so is Being as an Ocean. A self-titled album usually means a band is making a complete transformation, or it eclipses everything they’ve ever stood for. Being as an Ocean has realized what worked for them in the first place, and they’re now better, darker, and more alive than they’ve ever been. Being as an Ocean has tackled melodic hardcore in full force by learning their lessons over the past 13 months. Previous tracks had unsettling variation
Between the Burried and Me ALBUM: Coma Ecliptic RELEASE: 07/10/15
STAND OUT: “King Redeem /Queen Serene” AUTHOR: Cale Zebedee
North Carolina prog-rockers Between the Buried and Me return with their eighth studio album and first release in three years: Coma Ecliptic. As previously mentioned by the band, the album’s concept is that of a man trapped in a coma who then journeys through his past lives. Each track is laid out almost as a chooseyour-own-adventure book, and the protagonist is forced to adapt to the different situations and scenarios that he is faced with. While previous efforts focused more on heavy guitar tones and chaotic anger, drawing influence
8.5 and inconsistency through lyrics and progression. The band has already learned early-on how to capture the sound that works beautifully for them. This album is full of realized anger and the process of forgiveness. These lyrics hold an emotional toll on the listener, even if you have no reason to relate, such as in, “When I was young, you were awful to me; a terrible father, a worse husband. You have to see the blood on your hands.” (“Ain’t Nobody Perfect”) As well as in, “My spring on the latch, failed midnight incursion. I thought I knew The Word, heeded Your lessons, but my pride has left me in ruins.” (“Judas, Our Brother”) This album is going to be a hit, and definitely one to remember.
8.5 from all over the musical spectrum, the band has focused their tone into that of a rock-opera that would make Freddy Mercury or Roger Daltrey proud. Although this is a newfound sound for the group, it feels like a natural progression, and fits perfectly on their timeline rather than rehashing old sounds. The only qualm I had with the album is that it clocks in at almost seventy minutes of music, and is hard to digest in a single sitting, even for a long-time fan.
Counterparts ALBUM: Tragedy WIll Find Us RELEASE: 07/24/15
STAND OUT: “Choke”
AUTHOR: Logan Grudecki
Counterparts have set a high standard in the hardcore community with Tragedy Will Find Us. After leaving Victory Records, the Hamilton, Ontario based band announced they were joining Pure Noise Records as well as New Damage Records earlier this spring. Their first album through these two labels easily sets Counterparts apart from every other band in the hardcore/metalcore scene. The lyrics to every song on the album have the signature Counterparts feel to them. The lyrics describe the emotions that frontman Brendan Murphy had while writing the album, including the line, “Bury me breathing so I can watch myself decay” from the album opener “Stillborn.” The song “Compass” from
Northlane ALBUM: Node RELEASE: 07/24/15
STAND OUT: “Weightless”
AUTHOR: Cale Zebedee
64 | Flesh & Bone
One of the year’s most anticipated albums comes from the Australianmetalcore band Northlane. Their debut album Node, with the new vocalist Marcus Bridge “Node,” provides a more dynamic side to the band never before seen. After the 2014 departure of founding vocalist Adrian Fitipaldes and open auditions for a new front man, the band was put under a microscope by fans and critics alike for their choice of Bridge. While they continue to follow the trends set by their previous releases, their heavy-metal sound is still quite present despite this new version of Northlane including more ambience and rhythm driven sections, such as in the track “Weightless.” Bridge
9.5 The Difference Between Heaven and Hell, Counterparts last album, is referenced in “Solace,” as well as the emotional heavy-hitter “Choke.” Every song on Tragedy Will Find Us has a unique feel that only Counterparts can give. This album provides a sound that Counterparts has strived for in an album, that they are now able to achieve through their new labels. Tragedy Will Find Us even draws many parallels to their first album, Prophets, and is a top contender for album of the year for me.
7.5 not only provides heavy and brutal screams on the tracks, but is also quick to changes the dynamic with clean singing and melody. Tracks like “Ra” and “Animate” really showcase his vocal dynamics and range. Although this is not the Northlane that originally caught everyone’s attention, the band has progressed in a positive direction, which proves Bridge was the proper candidate for the position.
ALBUM RELEASES 08/07 08/07 08/07 08/07 08/14 08/21 08/28 08/28
Pos itive Songs For N e g a tiv e Pe o p le Kill The Lights D eathles s Black Cat Vikings I mmor talized I nanimate Objects Abandoned
F r a n k Tu r n e r L u ke B r y a n M iss M a y I Never Shout Never N e w Po litic s D istu r b e d A tla s Ge n iu s D e fe a te r
09/04 09/04 09/04 09/11 09/11 09/18 09/18 09/18 09/18 09/25 09/25 09/25
23 Live Sex Acts The Book of Souls N o Clos er to Heave n That’s The Spir it Repentles s To Thos e Left Behin d Cr os s eyed Hear t Pagans I n Vega Abys mal Per manence Ire Better N atur e
A g a in st M e ! Ir o n M a id e n T h e Wo n d e r Ye a r s B r in g M e T h e H o r iz o n S la y e r B le ssth e fa ll Ke ith R ic h a r d s M e tr ic T h e B la c k D a h lia M u r d e r N o D e v o tio n Pa r kwa y D r iv e S ilv e r su n Pic ku p s
10/02 10/02 10/02 10/09 10/09 10/10 10/16
Ps ychic War efar I Wor s hip Choas Futur e N os talgia I f I Should Go Befo r e Yo u The Color Befor e th e S u n Black Lines The D ar e EP
Clu tc h Ch ild r e n o f B o d o m The Sheepdogs City A n d Co lo u r Co h e e d a n d Ca m b r ia M a y d a y Pa r a d e Loren
PLAYLIST _____ Here are some suggested tracks brought to you by the staff.
es ul ius ec en ol G M tlas A
s ed l B ts ra tinc ne is Fu he D T
n ai n St itize C
CK BA
R ol RTE Po UA Q S 66 | Flesh & Bone
The Clouds of Pompeii 4 Above Bear’s Den Got Spirit Kid 4 You’ve Coheed and Cambria I Ever Loved 4 Everything Nothing Gold Can Stay Dormer 4 Natalie Cloud District
4 Sober Childish Gambino 4 Response Mirror Pal Side Up 4 Sunny Faith No More I Hear The Word 4 Still Lushlife (feat. Stles P)
4 Deathcamp Tyler, The Creator Time 4 First Vance Joy
click on the 4 buttons + images to play the song!
Flesh & Bone | 67
In pursuit of art and music Do you want to join our team? You can contact us at fleshbonemagazine@gmail.com with your application.