Aaron Pfenning is a musician who splits his time between Colorado Springs and New York City. He co-founded the band Chairlift and currently records music under the name Rewards. TJ Neathery: Looking through your “resume,” I see that you’ve toured and collaborated with We are Scientists, MGMT, Blood Orange, Solange, The Killers, Phoenix… So as an artist, and coming from a creative writing background because most creative writers are more individualistic than a band where you have to work with three or five other people – how do you see that coming through in your life as an artist?... Read More

Kate Perdoni is a musician, TV producer, and influencer in the Colorado Springs art community. Her band, Spirettes is made up of herself (guitar/vocals), Kellie Palmblad, Emily Gould, Lisa Show and Desi Garcia. When I first set up this interview, I planned to talk to Kate Perdoni about her band, Spirettes, an all-female rock lineup owning a sound that exists between atmospheric alternative and noise rock. Bands like The Breeders, Yo La Tengo, Sonic Youth, and Sleater Kinney come to mind. If you enjoy those bands, you’ll dig Spirettes. I do, and so I was excited for my conversation with Perdoni.... Read More

Langdon Foss is a graphic novel illustrator who works from his studio in Old Colorado City, CO. Langdon Foss is a guy with ideas. He’s a conversationalist. He makes me an espresso and I settle into the sofa. Our “interview,” which I’ve cut down quite a bit, creeps over the hour mark. It doesn’t drag. We just enjoy letting the conversation go where it leads. Independent. Individual. These describe both Foss and the ideas we toss back and forth. Foss claims that he’s never worked for a company that’s required him to attend a staff retreat. In fact, he’s spent much of his artistic... Read More

Chris Alvarez is a painter and art instructor based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Chris Alvarez meets me at the door to Second Floor Studios in Old Colorado City. He greets me warmly before leading me upstairs to his studio. The studio is full of… everything. There’s a guitar on the wall. Books. Easels and coffee cups. A spider skeleton hangs from a makeshift chandelier. Not to mention the five-foot canvas that dominates the space. A jazz record plays over the stereo, but, surprisingly, I feel right at home. I start by asking Alvarez about a quotation from an interview he did awhile back.... Read More