NEW ERA

Mid-Michigans Culture Zine

Sterratic

Jared Talcott

Plus:

Artist and Designer Katherine Rodge Poet Calvin Elliott

Writers Note
For those of you who have come upon this publication, I first want you to be aware of a few important things. There are some issues that need to be addressed. Something is missing. Something is wrong. Something needs to happen. Its called representation. For what, you may ask? Culture: the arts, music, literature and people. To be particular, its the embodiment and creations of the mid-Michigan youth who have strived for ideals and aspects different from what our contemporaries and peers have tried to achieve. If youre the kind of person who wants to put a label on it, feel free to do so. Im not going to. Im sure that for some of you reading this you are at least partially aware of some of the things that are happening in some of the cities we populate in. The Jackson Symphony Orchestra (JSO) shows in Jackson, the punk rock shows at the B.E. Henry Hall in Marshall, and the artistic hole-in-the-wall community of Basement 414 in downtown Lansing are some of the events and gathering places of this growing faction. The music and people who come to these shows are attempting to achieve something more than what the culture or scene in mid-Michigan is nationally known for. I apologize for this somewhat blunt generalization, but this magazine attempts to document and appeal to those who spend more time listening to My Bloody Valentine than Bullet for My Valentine, although this publication does not wish to exclude anyone interested in finding out more about us if they do not feel familiar or associated with who we are. If you know little about the first band mentioned, I recommend you listen to some of their limited (release-wise) but altogether exciting work (although if youre a virgin to certain kinds of noise, I suggest you adjust your headphone volume slightly lower than usual). All in all, the bands, the art, the literature, and the other pieces of information that make up this magazine are meant to connect those who have similar tastes or interests to work together and inspire one another. Furthermore, we try to enlighten and inform those who are curious or looking to find something more exciting, perhaps enticing, but altogether, just different. If you are a musician, poet, writer, artist, painter, photographer, business owner or a promoter looking for some representation and a chance to get your art or ideas out in the open, this magazine is for you. Lastly, Id like to thank all of those people who over the past few weeks have given up their time to help me produce this, and without them this zine would still be just an idea: Sterratic, Jed Thompson, Jared Talcott, Katherine Rodge and Calvin Elliott. With this all said, let me be the first to welcome you to the first (and hopefully not the last) writings of the New Era.
PL

Music:

Features!

Sterratic - Jacksons Fuzz

Art/Photography:

Jared Talcott -Stay Away Katherine Rodge Water Color Drawing

Literature/Poetry: Ads

Calvin Elliott The Choice

STERRATIC
Jacksons Fuzz
Sitting in Dennys, the intellectual hotspot of the community of Jackson, Michigan sometime around 12:00 AM on a Friday night, I sat with the four members of one of the growing local acts in the midMichigan area. Featuring Olivia DeJonghe (guitar, vocals), Jed Thompson (bass) Jared Talcott (lead guitar) and Steven Edwards (drums), Sterratic is quickly becoming a noticeable name on numerous flyers and venue listings both in and out of Jackson. If you havent gotten a chance to hear Sterratic play at venues like the Jackson Symphony Orchestra (JSO) downtown, The B-1 Bar on East Michigan Avenue, or The Hub on Spring Arbor Road, allow me to give you a slight word play of their sound: Fuzz-filled guitars playing through tube-driven amps and other assorted pedal goodies, an equally fuzzed bass thundering through providing both rhythm and melody, encompassed by a solid drum beat filling out the backbone as your hear the searing and passionate vocal melodies of DeJonghes voice that altogether provides for a mesmerizing performance that takes your ears on a date that includes both dinner and a movie. The band members themselves have their own tastes that mold together so well, that theyre favorite Tom Hanks movie is Forrest Gump Who Saved Private Ryan While Getting Mail. So how did a band like Sterratic get itself off the ground from a basement band to playing shows in mid-Michigan? Sterratic began its origins in January 2010 when high school friends Olivia DeJonghe and Steven Edwards began playing together in Edwards basement in Michigan Center. The band started off as a two-piece, with Edwards on drums and DeJonghe on guitar and vocals. The band played this way for a few months, even playing their first show to friends in Edwards basement as a duo until bassist Jed Thompson met the band through a mutual friend and began playing with them in May of that year. The trio continued practicing and playing small shows to friends in garages until their first formal gig at the JSO in November. In playing that show they met local guitarist and photographer Jared Talcott and soon became quick friends. After Talcott came back to Jackson after wrapping up the school year at Grand Valley State University this past spring, he was asked to join Sterratic as their lead guitar player and fuzz expert. A combination of the word erratic and the addition of the letters st, the bands name has always generated a wide array of interpretations, even from the band. Talcotts interpretation of the name means something that sticks to you involuntarily. Thompson summarized the overall significance of the name and how the band felt the name transfers to their listeners: Everyone has their own fun interpretations. They think its a word and come up with their own meaning for it.

When it comes to creating the music, the band mutually agrees that the songwriting process, predominately achieved through DeJonghe, is also becoming a collaborative process. Sometimes Ill bring in a whole song, and the rest of the band just adds their parts, says DeJonghe, Sometimes Ill bring in [just] an ideaor Jed will write a chorus or come up with a riff. Thompson expands on the process, stating Well bring it [a song] in, and we basically show it as it is or come up with all the parts and then tear it apart and then rebuild it and play it for about two weeks and during those two weeks well add nuances to it Talcott adds, We jam on stuffsuggest chord ideas and stuff like thatits pretty collaborative. When it comes to writing lyrics, DeJonghe writes about experiences and feelings that I have at the moment; heartache, love, friendships. Thompson, who also helps write, states I read a lot about relationships, so my chorus lines are about are things I liked about relationships, or things that I put to rest or wanted to put to rest. Sterratic is also a band of many different musical influences. Popular influences include the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Yuck, The Pixies, Nirvana, Tokyo Police Club, Smashing Pumpkins, and in general, just fast, fun indie pop. Local bands have also influenced Sterratic and they include such bands as Cardboard Cathedral, Admiral Apricot and the Marigolds, God and the Architects, Omri Reid and The Escorts. The band recently released their first EP, titled Blank which is available for free both online on their Facebook page as well as at any of their upcoming shows. Recorded live in Edwards basement by his brother, owner of You Can Do It Studios, the EP displays five of Sterratics original tracks and one blooper track, including such songs as Coping Strategies, No One Survives, and one of my personal favorites, Phantom Pains. Their first release allows interested listeners to hear a band thats unique in many different respects. We just strive to be our own, says DeJonghe. Other bands kind of have a sound or idea in their head they want to be band or idolize. Thompson adds, We have so many different tastes between the four of us, I think at the end of the day they [their tastes] all have a similar goal or sound, but theyre so different between each other its always kind of neat or new. We try to keep the integrity of our own selves. Another quality that makes the band unique is their willingness and goal to promote their hometown and show that more than just conventional bar bands or hardcore metal groups can come out of the area. The band has seen that instead of their initial belief that many people would be close-minded, they instead have received great feedback and praise from people that they did not expect approval from. Rather than move away and disassociate themselves from the area, Sterratic embraces Jackson and hopes to make an impression both to the people as well as their contemporaries and peers. I feel like the town that were from should know who we are, says Edwards. If were going to do something with our lives I feel that our town should know us and like us before we go on. We want to make this place a better place, whether people like it or not, concludes Talcott. The band is tentatively planning on releasing another EP with more new material near the end of summer and may release a full LP later this year. If youre looking to check out Sterratic in the near future, they are playing at the The Hub in Jackson on July 8th and at Basement 414 in downtown Lansing on July 9 th. Support the local music scene and have a great time and come out to these shows! PL

Art/Photography!
Jared Talcott Stay Away

Water Color Drawing

Katherine Rodge

Literature/Poetry!
Calvin Elliott The Choice
Inside a man, there is a plan. Whether to be calm and collected, Or rebellious, unperfected. This is where I stand, unnoticed, unheard. Feeling the desires of fame, But not wanting the wholesome shame. I want to have the ideal life, But without the poor mans hopeless strife. To live happily, thoroughly and peacefully. Having a family, but not feeling worthlessly, About myself, my dreams, and every thought in between. But isnt that selfish? To be caught up in my daze, while my family starves for days? Shouldnt I be satisfied with the love of my life, And the gifts of the vine that make it so right? Or can I be the artist, Filled with the dissatisfactions, tortured with his own creativity, Yet be utterly daring, attractive and wellenacted. Its all an illusion, to think Im going to fly. Cut to the chase and break it to me, Youll burn out and die. But no, I am the artist, not the ass. I will not let my loved ones suffer, feel the sting of the crass. Rather, I will keep true to my passions, and love endearingly. But where will I muster the strength to live so fervently? Im not able to handle, These truths beneath my eyes. I feel so empty, nothing fills inside. To attribute oneself, to their idol of the masses, Is just an excuse, to inhale all their gases. Maintain my sanity, go with the flow, But how long will it take, Till I will fake it no more? Its a scary realization, knowing Im a lie. Kissing my heroes, as if they were I. Some call this self-esteem, but I call it a joke. Im standing in the long line of prejudgments, waiting for my yoke. But I still have the choice. The decision of my lifes voice, The understanding of me. I love the people I have, Yet hate them all at a minutes pass. So go ahead a sue me, I wont make the choice. I have a lot to experience, still growing into my voice. Suffering is a cycle that never comes to an end. But I think Ill keep going, take a turn at the bend. With this understanding I know, I will love the choices I have made. Because we all know by then, that this pain will fade.

If you are a local business owner looking to promote your own business, a musician trying to start a band/look for someone to jam with, or someone trying to sell their equipment/gear and looking to place a cheap ad, please e-mail New Era magazine at newerazine@gmail.com or message the New Era page on Facebook (search New Era) and provide your name, contact information and the information you wish to present in your ad (This includes text, logos, etc.) and send it over. Thanks!

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