Congratulations to Andre Power for being voted by YOU as Commune’s Featured Local of the month. I messaged Andre to congratulate him on winning and to see what rad stuff he had going on.

1. How would you describe your art?

Majority of my art is a reflection of the person viewing it as well as the things in our surroundings that release energy. I consider every piece created a visual translation of LOVE. Every piece I create, whatever medium it may be, is intended to give the viewer a bright light of joy within, so that vibe comes out of my subconscious with every stroke of the brush. My art possesses vidid colors, recognizable items and people from American pop culture as well as my interpretation of the female form.

2. What inspires you?

LIFE is my main inspiration. Each day of life that I live adds more fuel to my artistic engine. Interaction with the people i encounter each day gives me what I need to create. As far back as I can remember my main goal  has always been to help others around me in any way that I can and I feel that I am a vessel for creation and inspiration so I tend to focus most of my energy in pushing others to fulfill their creative desires and ispiring them to create. Inspiring others inspires me.

3. Where can people find your art? Any upcoming shows or cool things you are working on?

I try to be as active in the San Diego and Los Angeles art communities as I possibly can - there are always events added to my calendar daily. Social networks like Facebook and Twitter seem to be the best way to build a personal relationship with everyone I meet so that is the best place to find out about where my art is around Southern California and the best way to stay on top of the events I curate and am featured in. At the moment I have 2 monthly events, both at Bluefoot Bar & Lounge in North Park. The one I’m most proud of, and a favorite to many of the locals is “Art in the Park“ , which is held at Bluefoot every 1st Thursday. This event is special to me in so many ways but is also unique because we focus on Live Art and the process of creating so every event you will see at least 10 live artists painting during the event, as well as creative vendors, amazing music and sometimes ever catered vegetarian soul food. The second event is “Steez” - a trunk show, which is held every 3rd Tuesday. Steez is a showcase of vintage fashion, street apparel and hand-made jewelry. Both Art In The Park and Steez are free and are always great for meeting and networking with local artists and amazing people in general.

Last but not least in early 2012, I will be launching Punctilio Project with Eden Hagos where we will provide people with recycles, reused and renewed men’s & women’s clothing that we’ve hand-picked from thrift and vintage stores all over the country. This project will provide more than just the product for a customer, but a full fashion/art experience as well as awareness about shopping thrift.

4. What is your favorite thing about Commune? (more…)

Congratulations to So Many Wizards for being voted by YOU as Commune’s Featured Local of the month. I messaged Nima to congratulate him on winning and also to get the dirt on what So Many Wizards has going on.

1. How long have you guys been playing together and how did you come up with the name So Many Wizards?

I started So Many Wizards as a solo project in late 2008 but we’ve been playing together as a full band for about 2 years.  I got the name from an excerpt out of my favorite book of all time, DON QUIXOTE.

2. How would you describe your music?

Our music is hard to pin down, but running constant is a dreamy quality to it. Maybe because of all the reverb I use?

3. What’s one interesting fact about each person in the band?

I (Nima) used to have Night Terrors and OCD.

Frank is a die hard Leonard Nemoy fan.

Erik once wore LAKERS sweatpants for a month straight as a child.

4. Do you guys have anything exciting coming up that people should keep their eye out for?

People should look out for our upcoming show with LORD HURON and WRITER November 12th at SUNSET TEMPLE in North Park. It’s part of Sezio’s 4 day weekend festival! We’re also working on an LP!

5.What’s your favorite thing about Commune?

My favorite thing about Commune is the amazingly tailored shows you guys put on and the cause behind them.

6. Why do you think it’s important to take a stand against Big Tobacco?

If we don’t take a stand against Big TOBACCO, they will devour us all.

7. Anything else you want people to know about So Many Wizards?

We love playing in San Diego and appreciate making new friends every time. Once more, look out for our epic full length in the New Year.

CONGRATS again to So Many Wizards for winning Commune featured local. For more on So Many Wizards check them out here.

If you would like to be part of Commune and stand up for a smokefree scene, contact us at jointhecommune@gmail.com

Congratulations to Farrell Lynn for being voted by YOU as Commune’s Featured Local of the month. I met up with Farrell to congratulate him on winning and also to get the dirt on what he has going on

“You almost even feel bad for the companies…it seems like these big tobacco businesses’ addiction to money is turning their hearts black.” – Dr. Seahorse

Dr. Seahorse is one of those types of musical ensembles that isn’t really easy to categorize. They have elements of a few different genres but at the end of the day, they are what their fans perceive – and for the band’s 2 members, that’s fine with them.

Mark and Trevor describe their music as electronic, indie-pop and soul but the genre lines aren’t that clearly defined. Dr. Seahorse tries to encompass their sound into words by describing it as “Michael Jackson meets Postal Service meets Wes Anderson,” if that doesn’t do it for ya, one of their favorite fan descriptions is “Adele as a breakdancing dude dressed as an unassuming hipster.” Clearly, there is a lot going on here.

Trevor and Mark never initially intended to even be in a band together. Trevor was working on his own solo music and asked Mark to work on some remixes for him. When he got the tracks back, he was so into them that he asked Mark to start a side project with him and 2 years later, we all love and enjoy the most educated fish ever, Dr. Seahorse.

About the band:

Mark - grew up playing drumline in Colorado and became part of the Denver Blue Knights drumline winning a WGI championship.

Trevor - was the only white kid singing in an all African American gospel choir but as he grew up he became a shy bass player in a punk rock band and no one knew he sang.

CONGRATS again to Dr. Seahorse for winning Commune featured local. For more on Dr. Seahorse check them out here.

“We admire Commune for its ambitious goal to get all these hipsters to quit smoking” – Ghostline

The three members of Ghostline are no strangers to musical projects, having been in various bands for about three years. Collectively, they have been in Ghostline for about one.

What does Ghostline mean? Nothing. Moving on…

The band describes their sound as “a fine wine chased with a shot of cheap whiskey.” They went on to explain that their work is continuously evolving, therefore being ‘content’ isn’t really an accurate way to describe something that never stops. Ghostline has been known to tweak, edit or change songs live and just sort of go with the flow. Keeping things unpredictable means keeping them exciting.

The boys in the band are currently working on their debut full-length and until that masterpiece blesses your ears, you can check out their write up in Voice of San Diego.

Amusing tidbits about the band:

Patrick – Listens to NPR in the dark…all day

Brian – Is an aspiring stand up comedian

Chris – Holds  strong disdain for crossing guards

Congrats again to Ghostline for winning Commune Featured Local! For more on Ghostline check them out here.

“Its easy to become discouraged by large corporations with a less than noble agenda with an even less noble track record of marketing” – Nik Ewing

Nik Ewing describes his artwork as deconstructive, European influenced, vintage, Dadaist and minimalistic but none of that is true…or is it?

Influence is a subjective term for an objective process and Nik embraces that living contradiction and harnesses its power to turn what he likes and feels into what he wants to see. He enjoys layering artwork with old and new simultaneously, creating something that really only exists in the present.

“Its like clear stars that have been dead for years, but the idea just lives on,” he explains.

As far as his creative process is concerned, Nik is most inspired by playing music, which he does in a handful of bands, which inevitably leads him back to physical artwork. Check out Nik’s work at NikEwing.com and keep an eye out for him at Commune Wednesdays…he’ll be the guy bogarting drink tickets.

“It’s important to take a stand because most of these businesses are looking after one thing, their money, the last thing they’ll care about is our well being.” – The Stereotypes

Having been at it for 10 years, The Stereotypes have created their own success going completely DIY and that’s what makes them Commune’s featured local.

Currently the band has 3 releases in the works; all 3 are different styles and you can also catch a Stereotypes tune in a new Blue Moon Beer ad. Altogether, The Stereotypes have released 9 full-length records and have licensed almost 20 songs to TV and film…all of which was done completely free of any record label or promotional company.

For those of you that aren’t yet familiar with The Stereotypes, they play modern rock with a little old school influence and aren’t afraid to experiment with their sound. They keep their music honest and don’t stray from the DIY approach that has got them to the point at which they currently reside.

When asked about Commune, The Stereotypes said “We’ve always liked being a part of events that bring various types of artists together. We also support your cause and enjoy playing for likeminded people. Beer, music, art, and girls mix really well.”

So true…so true.

Congrats again to THE STEREOTYPES for being voted Commune Featured Local!

For more on The Stereotypes click here

If you would like to be part of Commune and stand up for a smokefree scene, contact us at jointhecommune@gmail.com

Congratulations to Double Hearts Treasure for being voted by YOU as Commune’s Featured Local of the month. I emailed Paula to congratulate her on winning and to see what she had going on.

1. When did you start Double Hearts Jewelry and where do you draw inspiration?

Double Hearts started as an accident, sitting in traffic, driving from SD to LA.  I was wearing a ton of bangles, and one broke.  I had a multi-tool pliers that I used to twist it into a ring.  I started breaking all my bangles on purpose to make more for myself and friends, and the different designs came about from there.

2. How did you come up with the name?

Double Hearts was a term my sisters and I would describe what jewelry we were wearing.  We would wear two heart rings together, or two heart earrings on the same ear.  I’m a firm believer that two hears is better than one!

3. Where can people find your stuff? Any upcoming shows or cool things you are working on?

My Facebook is a great way to get a hold of me and order new and custom pieces: Facebook.com/doubleheartsjewelry

You can purchase directly from Etsy: Etsy.com/shop/DoubleheartsTreasure

Now that the weather is warming up, I will be doing the Melrose Trading Post a couple times of a month and will always announce on Facebook which Sundays I will be at.  I also plan on doing other craft fairs/flea markets, whose details will also be announced later.

4. What is your favorite thing about Commune? (more…)

Congratulations to The Slpwlkrs for being voted by YOU as Commune’s Featured Local of the month. I emailed Waly and Memo to congratulate them on winning and to see what they had going on.

1. How long have you guys been playing together and how did you come up with the name Slpwlkrs?

After 5 years of playing together with Buddy Akai, we came up with The Slpwlkrs in mid 2010.  We didn’t start playing live shows until December and had our first official show at the Casbah on the 28^th, that same month.

A name that would not only represent who we are, but our outlooks on society and the world as a whole, was very important to us when creating the name for  our new project.  On that mind set, The Slpwlkrs came to Memo and we all embraced it immediately.  We all live our lives as sleepwalkers, on automatic.  We do things without being aware, without being fully present in the moment.

2. How would you describe your music?

Our music sounds like Electric Rock n’ Roll with a little bit of Techy Soul.

3. What’s one interesting fact about each person in the band?

We have all suffered from somnambulism at one point or another.

4. Do you guys have anything exciting coming up that people should keep their eye out for? (more…)