New student magazine seeks funding

Photo courtesy of Hobnail Boot

The band Hobnail Boot performs tomorrow night in a benefit concert for the new concept magazine Oil at the student-run gallery Carbonbase. From left to right stand music graduate Michael Martinez, history senior Josh Kanto, studio arts junior Beth Holub and music sophomores David Ragland and Laura Trame.

Why read magazines when they tend to only regurgitate the same information over and over again? This is a question looking to be remedied by a new UA student-run concept magazine, Oil.

One thing that makes this magazine stand out from others is that every issue will revolve around a different theme.

"The first theme is love and hate," said Calvin Clark, a University of Arizona creative writing junior and one of the magazine's contributors. "The second will be shelter and exposure, and the third is language and silence."

Jess Karabinuf, a UA psychology junior and writing contributor, said another defining characteristic of the magazine will be its broad set of perspectives from the contributors.

"It brings together oil and water," Karabinuf said. "There will be lots of different areas of study that wouldn't be together. It's the juxtaposition of fine arts, pharmacology, biochemistry."

For the first theme of love and hate, readers will see wide-ranging opinions on the matters.

"There will be scientific viewpoints on love," Clark said, "with what happens with chemicals inside the body during love."

Content-wise, the magazine aims to be less structured and more open to interpretation to better serve the attention of a wider audience.

"It will be a collage-type layout," Karabinuf said. "There is nothing else like it out there."

"The topics will be inherently interesting," Clark said. "We've got photography, digital illustrations, poetry, short stories, scientific articles. We are not going to tell people how to read the magazine. I would hope that everyone can enjoy it."

A benefit concert will be held Thursday night to help fund Oil's publication. Several bands are expected to play, including UA groups goodlikepain, Hobnail Boot and local rockers Invictus.

Hobnail Boot is a collection of UA students and alumni, consisting of music sophomore Laura Trame on lead vocals, history senior Josh Kanto on drums, music sophomore David Ragland on lead guitar, 2001 music graduate Michael Martinez on keyboards and music and studio arts junior Beth Holub on bass and viola.

The band's decision to play at the benefit show is based on a desire to assist struggling creativity in Tucson.

"We want to support resources for artists in our community," Kanto said.

The band sees the magazine as a one-of-a-kind artistic step for the UA community.

"To find the mix of science and art and music is really unique and has never been done before," Trame said. "I think it will give people an opportunity to show off their work and to collaborate with other people."

Trame said it is important that people find an outlet for their creativity and sees the magazine as a good way of "getting people aware of the need to express themselves."

The magazine is currently looking for any hopeful artists or writers to help enrich the magazine.

"(We want) anybody that can put a pen to paper," Karabinuf said. "We are always looking for submissions. It's a good outlet to express yourself."

The concert to help benefit Oil magazine is Thursday night at the student-run Carbonbase Gallery, 101 W. Fifth Street from 4 to 8. There is a $5 cover charge at the door; proceeds will go to help the magazine and support the gallery. Free food and T-shirts will be sold.