Night after night, in the shadowy light of the Badlander bar, Aaron Bolton’s relaxed smile beamed from behind the sound board. He was in his element, there in the bar that he bought with a trio of friends in 2007 and helped transform into a cornerstone of Missoula’s nightlife scene.
On Monday, Bolton’s friends in the music community struggled to cope with the news that his body had been pulled from the icy waters of Seattle’s Elliot Bay early that morning.
“He was simply the nicest person I ever knew,” said Justin Lawrence, owner of Hellhouse Sound and the regular sound-man at the Palace Lounge, a music venue in the basement of the complex of bars at the corner of Ryman and Broadway. “(He) never had a cross word to say about anyone or anything.”
Details of Bolton’s death remain sketchy. According to Seattle Police spokesman Jeff Kappel, police fielded a report at approximately 6 a.m. Monday of a body floating in Elliot Bay, near Pier 57 in downtown Seattle. Bolton’s body was fished out of the water by firemen around 7 a.m.
Kappel said that no cause of death had been determined, and would not confirm Bolton’s identity. [Read More...]
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There’s a great interview with local animator and writer Andy Smetanka in the Winnipeg Free Press this week, advancing a showing of his animations there. As usual, Andy is erudite and funny as he talks about his work and his town: “I’m too attached to Missoula,” he admits. “It’s a little like Boulder, [...]
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In the world of marketing, it’s said that no press is bad press. Seattle’s Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band is testing that truism in its own, indie-rock way.
Looking at the mastheads of the rags and blogs that have weighed in on the band’s sophomore album, “Where the Messengers Meet,” one would assume MSHVB is a new darling of the indie music world. Pitchfork weighed in, as did Paste, Spin, and the Onion A.V. Club.
Not bad for a five-piece band signed to Dead Oceans, a small Indiana-based label.
Or is it? [Read More...]
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I haven’t really mentioned this publicly yet, but I guess the cat is officially out of the bag: I am embarking upon a book project to document the life and work of Drummond artist Bill Ohrmann; and this week Humanities Montana announced that I am among several folks selected to receive research grants for the coming year. I’ll be talking about this more in the future, needless to say; but for now, here is the press release announcing all of this year’s grants. [Read More...]
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