Jessica 'Evil' Eye EYE BELIEVE. STRAIGHT OUT OF

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Gennifer Harding- Gosnell With a master's in journalism from Kingston University in London under her belt, Gennifer Harding- Gosnell, is one of PressureLife's most experienced writers, bringing her unique perspective to every article PRESSURE LIFE she crafts. Gennifer never shrinks from covering controversial or taboo topics, but in all seriousness, she's one of the funniest people Creative Director, Owner Jim Bacha on our staff. Gennifer considers herself to be too sarcastic for her own good, and if you've got a problem with that she'll likely tell Chief Operating Officer, Owner John Gardner you to “Piss off, mate!”

Editors Amy Sokolowski Gennifer is a huge futball (and “football”) fan, listens to way too Sarah Maxwell Ryan Novak much and is a fantastic cook. As a left-brainer, she values logic and reason, but doesn't need a reason to get weird once in a while. Art Director Hannah Allozi

Illustrator Aaron Gelston @gelston.design

Senior Writers Adam Dodd Will Kmetz Casey Rearick Staff Writers Dan Bernardi Self-described as neither tall, dark, Matt McLaughlin nor handsome, Casey Rearick is the Kevin Naughton keen eye behind the lens on many Contributors Casey Rearick of Pressure's most vibrant photos, @caseyrearickphoto striking a distinct tone in his images Alex Bieler that bring each subject to life on the Ben Diamond page. Casey's studio is located at Cleveland's own creative super- Darrick Rutledge castle, Lake Affect Studios, where he shoots fashion, editorial, and Stephanie Ginese Jae Andres advertising photography. You can check out a showcase of his work Brandon Lee Wise at www.caseyrearick.com and on IG @caseyrearickphoto.

Distribution PMK Logistics When he's not snapping pix, Casey enjoys literature, poetry, and film, and is of the distinct minority that prefers Ace Ventura 2 to the original. Casey also fears moths, and will run if they near him. Enjoying PressureLife? We would love to hear your thoughts. pressurelife.com/feedback

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MARCH / APRIL 2016 ½ OFF WINE EVERY TUESDAY EVENING 10 All wine bottles under $99 are CONTENTS DEAR FRIENDS... half price beginning at 3 PM 06 Good Vibrations 30 Courtesy of EarthQuaker Devices

08 Kickmaster A young shoemaker makes his mark 13 10 Made in Cleveland Cleveland's fashion scene is 06 about more than just T-shirts Weir is He This Time?

13 Coda vs. the Hydra With Spring just around the corner, we thought for sure that this time Weir Can rock and roll save Tremont? would emerge from his hibernation with a renewed sense of purpose and a strong desire to rejoin the herd, especially after our diligent reader Megan 14 Brewers Gold 26 discovered him nested away at Bonnie's Bar & Grill in our last issue. Alas, this is Ohio’s untapped potential not the case, and before we could tag him with a GPS tracker, Weir galloped off in hop and barley farming into the pages of PressureLife, once again treating our advertisements like his 16 Eye Believe own personal nature reservation. Cleveland’s own has her eye on the prize What Weir didn't take into account is that he's big game, and on the prowl is his most dangerous predator: you, the reader. Weir is no match for your 21 Viva Dance 08 21 heightened senses and unparalleled cunning, so as you flip the pages A downtown dance club of PressureLife with your sharpened claws, keep your eyes trained. For with a distinctly Cleveland feel your chance to win a $25 gift card, locate the elusive Weir stashed away in one of our adverts and be the first to submit his location to@thepressurelife 22 Hometown (Super) Heroes (through Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram). Game on! Cleveland’s newest hero of print and screen—Apama!

26 The Curious Case Want to wear Weir? of the Unknown Man PressureLife.com has your size. Did the Zodiac killer call Cleveland home? 30 The Dyngus Among Us Everyone’s Polish

FOLLOW US 16 Facebook // Twitter // YouTube // Instagram @thepressurelife

Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 5 The behind. He had simply found something that he loved to do. "At no a selling point for people in his industry, but there are other reasons point in that [time] did I intend to make a business out of it." for doing things the way they do. "It would be so much cheaper and smarter for us to farm all of this out," he says, but keeping things Aftera while, a few of us step outside for a smoke. in-house enables EQD to have more control over the manufacturing VROOM, VROOM The sky is a grey blanket and it's just cold enough process. And while he doesn't believe that a pedal made by hand is to be frustrating. Julie tells me about the homeless guy that harvests inherently superior, there is a certain security in knowing where it SOUND their cigarette butts. Then she shows me a video (she's got a bunch). came from. "If anything goes wrong, you can call us at any point. We'll The bum is a white-hot ghost captured on infrared surveillance cam- know everything about it, we'll know how to fix it, and we'll do it for eras. We watch him shake the receptacle upside down like a giant salt free." shaker before he realizes the bottom pops right off. I look up and down the streets, but see nothing stirring. Part of being Midwestern is not noticing that you are different until you venture out. Stillman noticed it at trade shows when he heard FACTORY We go back inside and Stillman gives me a tour of the ground floor. ridiculous marketing strategies and product pitches. EarthQuaker There are large, open spaces for storage and deliveries. They've got a Devices has always used a clean, and simple approach to advertising: a Jamie Stillman and entire operation from his basement. He leans forward and explains new machine for the pedal enclosures and for printing pedal designs. white background, a picture of the pedal, a brief description. Anything in a low voice how the journey began. In an adjacent room, dozens of employees sit at workstations for assem- extra doesn't seem necessary to Stillman and his coworkers. He laughs EarthQuaker Devices are Akron's bling electrical components. Because every pedal is made by hand, because it sounds too simple: "We make a thing, and we sell it, because The noise started when Stillman was in his late you could technically call EarthQuaker a boutique pedal company, we like to do it." guitar pedal industry RUMBLINGS twenties, back home in Akron after touring with but Stillman doesn't like to use that term. He acknowledges that it is various bands for nearly a decade. For music equipment, he was left On a similar note, he doesn't try to overtly promote the famous artists Ben Diamond with "garbage gear and very little of it." He still had one pedal that he who use his pedals. But EarthQuaker Devices is associated with quite really liked (a DOD 250 overdrive), but it was broken and he couldn't a few notable names and Stillman reluctantly gives me a few: Queens When I first get there, I wonder if I have the wrong find anyone to repair it. Without thinking twice, he looked up the of the Stone Age, Radiohead, Coldplay, The Mars Volta, Paramore, KNOCK, KNOCK place. I'm looking for EarthQuaker Devices, the schematics and fixed it himself. At the time, he was working from Sleep, Failure, High On Fire, Pearl Jam, Oasis, Modest Mouse. He guitar pedal company based here in Akron. Pale bluish paint is peel- home as a freelance graphic designer and had a lot of time on his hands. likes some more than others. Because you can also find their products ing off the bricks of the warehouse. There's no logo or sign. Just some Guitar pedals became an obsession. "I started tinkering with stuff— EQD'S Favorite Pedals in so many studios, sounds made by EQD pedals are more prevalent directions for deliveries on the door. But Google Maps confirms it and breaking a lot of things—and eventually I made some pedals for than ever, but that's not what matters most to Stillman. "The one thing there are a few cars parked out front. Encouraged, I ring the doorbell friends, and they said they liked them." that we've done is we've actually just maintained friendships with a and I'm buzzed through. some much needed chaos into the lot of these big bands or little bands or any bands that we like," he says. One of his friends was Dan Auerbach, the guitarist The Speaker Cranker: world. It takes a certain kind of per- I'm startled twice before I see any people. First, at and vocalist for local up-and-comers The Black A single knob overdrive pedal, it's son and a lot of patience to wield From the sound of Stillman's own band, Relaxer, he favors the heavier the sight of a dressed-up skeleton under the stairs. The thing about Keys. Stillman became their tour manager around Stilman's favorite, partly because this one. Look! It's even starting to bands, the ones that deliver a certain kind of raw power. Relaxer's Second, at a barking watchdog who sniffs me out the same time his pedal obsession began. About a it's maddeningly simple and look like a triple ! What Lasers is self-described on Bandcamp as "ear splitting, cine- when I reach the second floor. His master calls EQD's pedals is year into his experiments, Stillman, who by then esoteric. "Anything that we've does this mean?! matic, prog influenced psych rock" and is accompanied by artwork of him off and I finally meet some humans. that they're not had unloaded some pedals on eBay, produced a made has come from something a floating skull shooting lasers from its eyes. fuzz pedal for Auerbach. Somebody photographed that I need or want," he says. The Jamie Stillman, his wife Julie Robbins, and a just pedals. Auerbach using the pedal at a show and posted an Speaker Cranker is a prime exam- The Hoof: The thing about EQD's pedals is that they're not just pedals; they're few employees are huddled around a computer, They're portals inquiry on an online forum: "What pedal is this? It ple. He took it from his personal This is the one that started it all. portals to new realms of sound. They're little Pandora's boxes that listening to a demo of one of their pedals. Even sounds awesome." Stillman happened to be lurking pedalboard to the production Striking this gold box with a clo- draw you in with their righteous designs and symbolism. Their names through the desktop speakers, the sound is burly to new realms on the same forum and he identified himself as the line only after receiving a great ven-foot will turn your guitar into perk the imagination: Talons, Hoof, Afterneath, Dream Crusher, The and the riffs are satisfying. Impressed, the group of sound. architect. deal of positive feedback. saw, a sword, or half of a two-man Depths, White Light. These devices are just part of the inventive world disbands, leaving Stillman in his office, which has band. Based on the green Russian that Stillman and his team continue to build in Akron. They're a model impeccably clean hardwood floors and is bordered A flood of messages came through. People wanted Big Muff (get your laughs out example of Rust Belt reinvention that has taken advantage of cheap with amps, a few guitars and some band posters. I to know if Stillman could duplicate the pedal. From The Rainbow Machine: now), this woolly fuzz pedal has real estate and a tight-knit community to build an authentic, Ameri- get the impression Stillman wears a lot of black. There's some silver there it was all word of mouth. At first, Stillman sold directly to individ- This Pepto-Bismo pink pedal can been linked to Dan Auerbach's can-made product. Only instead of rubber, they manufacture sound. showing in his beard and he tucks more black hair behind his ears. uals, but then he secured some larger dealers. He needed help to meet make full on double-rainbows all own pedalboard. the demand, and the basement began to get more crowded. the way across the sky. Stillman EQD inspires loyal followers from all over who actively promote Stillman is the founder of EarthQuaker Devices. Since its inception had some fun with this one. De- their brand, but what about their presence in the surrounding area? in 2005, it has become an established force in the music industry and In the early days, mailmen were always asking questions. "What do scribed on their website as "a cold Honorable Mention: I ask Stillman if anyone knows they're here. "No," he says flatly. In its products can be seen on guitar rigs and in studios around the world. you guys make? What do you do for EarthQuakers?" If Stillman was digital beast made to pretend it has The Dispatch Master is a popular fact, he even took a quiet pleasure in shutting down the city block They staff just under 40 employees, ship between six to eight hundred wittier at the time, he would have told them to watch out for a big one feelings," The Rainbow Machine is a reverb-delay combo pedal that so that data cables could be wired to their new headquarters. I pedals a week, and recently moved into this 11,000 square foot ware- on June 12. In retrospect, he might have picked a different company polyphonic harmonic pitch shifter can create a lot of unique sounds. gather that he doesn't mind the isolation. It only means more quiet house—but there was a time not too long ago when Stillman ran the name. But Stillman was locked in, never thinking too far ahead or that uses an accurate, but archaic It also pays tribute to the original to fill with noise. methodology. Stillman purpose- name of the erstwhile Cedar Point fully made it imperfect to release coaster, The Disaster Transport.

6 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 7 rate skills. This can mean anything from sewing to stitching to "skiv- ing," which involves thinning the leather with a very sharp specialty blade. The other processes are evidenced in his workshop, accessible Kick Master by spiral staircase in the corner of his apartment. On the landing, there are shoeboxes, cuttings, and miscellaneous debris cluttering the floor space. A few sewing machines line the wall. Shoe molds that look like feet from missing mannequins are stacked on shelves. Rolls of alligator, ostrich, and python hide—dyed licorice black, forest green, and candy red—are tucked underneath a large standing desk. For the simplest project, the process can take 12 hours, but for the more ambitious shoes, CRAFTSMAN he can expect to put in 80 hours or more. Jacob Ferrato's custom kicks bring To own a sneaker from JBF Customs, expect a heavy fee. The cost of materials, the number of hours, and Ferrato's level of craftsmanship a timeless touch to the sneaker world certainly warrant it, but you might be wondering, who would pay that much for a pair of shoes? Those familiar with the sneaker world are not phased by that question. Sneakerheads are more than will- Ben Diamond // Head Shot: Casey Rearick @caseyrearickphoto ing to shell out gobs of money for new, exclusive, or hyped-up shoes. However, Ferrato's clientele extend beyond this cliquey community. he business takes care of itself. It's always been that way, which is They can be average Joes, collectors, fashionistas, or celebrities, but good for Jacob Ferrato, because he can get lost in his work. "I don't they all have a few things in common: they want something unique T usually know what day of the week it is," he says half-jokingly. and authentic, they want something with a story, and they appreciate having a hand in the creation. A recent project for Cavaliers guard He may not look it, but Ferrato is a master craftsman. He could blend Iman Shumpert comes to mind. Iman's brother, Ahrii, developed right into a crowd of fellow Cleveland urbanites, although few 24-year- the concept with some sketches and it was up to Ferrato to make olds have built a coveted custom sneaker brand from scratch. Under sure the concept was possible and to build it. "Some people just really the name JBF Customs, he has attracted appreciate hand-made goods," Ferrato says. "It's such a rarity these Some people just a slew of celebrity clients and Instagram days, so I think some people really with that." followers. All of Ferrato's shoes are made really appreciate to order, starting at the base price of $1,000. The motivation to build the business continued when Ferrato realized Every artist has a signature and Ferrato is no different. After invest- hand-made goods. He deconstructs and re-imagines classic what was at stake. If he could make it a success, he could be his own ing hours on a pair, he'll sometimes paint his logo (two plus signs) sneaker designs with exotic animal hides boss and determine his own lifestyle. And that's exactly what he's on the tongue and write his tagline, "Incomparable"—because that’s and tasteful colorways. He has even begun done. He's amassed a huge social media following, the most coming exactly what they are. to build shoes completely from scratch. Whatever the method, the from Instagram with 122,000 followers. His creations thrive on social emphasis is always on impeccable craftsmanship. media. They're visually stunning, dopamine-inducing shoegasms. It's really fun to read the comments from people whose minds have just A good gig if you can get it, the custom shoe game is certainly a exploded—a common response is a series of fire emojis. It's also easy niche one. Ferrato attributes his career to luck, but also to seizing to see why JBF Customs has been such a success. Once you see a opportunity. Ferrato got into customizing shoes in 2008 while he was pair, you need a pair. attending Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls. At first he tried painting, then stitching and gluing materials directly to the shoe, Instagram likes are nice, but for Ferrato, it's all about the craft. He's but these methods didn't translate into an ideal product. Learning to been told that shoemaking requires the mastery of around 200 sepa- do a proper shoe reconstruction was more difficult, but it gave him the tools to advance his craft. He found his range in college, adding custom snapback hats with snakeskin brims to his repertoire. While the hats were easy money, he decided to post five pairs of original kicks online, priced at $350 each. They quickly sold out, and he received some incentive to make more: people were offering him a few thousand dollars for a pair. At the time he was 19, and that kind of money seemed too good to pass up, so he jumped on it. The requests kept coming and a spark was lit. There reached a point when Ferrato thought, "OK, I've probably got something here."

8 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 9 Take us through your design process. First, I definitely research. Even What inspires you? I actually got into fashion through basketball. I used though I don’t like to look at what other designer’s are doing when I’m to sketch sneaker designs in elementary school, so I kept up with that. working, it is important to know what’s going on and what the trends You know, I love Michael Jordan and I wanted to work for Nike. After are—take a few that you like and then incorporate them in your own high school, I moved to San Diego and fell in love with fashion there— Made in way. I have to find my inspiration before I even start designing. I won’t everything was a little more high-end than where I had come from—so Stephanie Ginese // Photography: Jae Andres even sketch anything until I’m sure of what the inspiration is. Then, I I started teaching myself how to sew. The Jordans still inspire me. I find the fabrics I want and order the swatches offline. It sucks that in design a lot of my dresses based off of those shoes. When the Jordans leveland is known for many things: great beer and even bet- Cleveland we don’t have any really good fabric stores. Jo-Ann Fabric drop, people know the exact date and they’ll wait out in the cold to get a ter food, a once highly-flammable river, a rich rock and roll sucks. Then I move onto drawing, painting, and rendering my figures. pair. I call it the “Jordan Effect.” I want to have that for my line. history, and lovable sports teams ranging from the winning Next I do the muslins on the figure, and finally get to actually making C wine and gold to the boo-worthy brown and orange. One thing the piece: the fun part. How do you see yourself in the world of fashion? People don’t usually Cleveland is not really recognized for is a strong presence in the put two and two together that I make glam dresses. I really love when CLEVELAND fashion world. However, many local designers are working to I’m networking with people and telling them that I make dresses and stitch up that perception and sew the city’s name into high-fash- men’s wear because, being here in Ohio, people just assume you make A look at the local fashion ion hemlines. PressureLife caught up with three of these fashion T-shirts, which is fine, but you know, I’m doing some real stuff: buying scene from some of its most aficionados to find out how we can get Cleveland runway ready, fabric, cutting, and sewing. I love that I surprise people. and how they plan to take their handmade designs out of the innovative designers dawg pound and onto the catwalk. What are your thoughts on the local fashion scene? I like what’s going on here. I like Yellowcake and ILTHY. ILTHY inspires me to make better T-shirt designs for my T-shirt line. Anyway, I think Cleveland is really good. A lot of people count us out, but we’re so close to New York. There’s always something going on with fashion, especially when Jevon Terance it starts to warm up.

She puts pieces together that no one would ever think would make sense, "People don’t usually put two and two What’s next for you? I’m building my next big show, which will be called but she just has crazy style. Also, I don’t look at anything fashion related together that I make glam dresses." from “Lorain to Paris.” I had to do a collection based off my visit to Paris. when I’m searching for inspiration. If you look at other designer’s work, I’m working on doing maybe another Fashion Week in the fall. Just you’ll subconsciously design what you’ve been seeing. I like to go outside more branding, branding, and branding... of fashion for inspiration. Jevon Terance, named after its creator, is the chic, yet edgy fashion-for- Do you feel as though you take inspiration from being here in Cleve- ward line out of Lorain, Ohio. Growing up, Terance was more about the land? Yeah, for sure. I can’t always afford to travel, so my boyfriend and I basketball court than the runway, but he took a drastic turn when he always like to check out the really cool thrift stores here in Cleveland. We began to learn the art of sewing. Taking most of his inspiration from just went to Flower Child yesterday, and to Sweet Lorain. I run a blog, so the legendary Air Jordan sneakers, Terance began creating elegant Danielle Pusateri I’m always trying to find cool places around the city to shoot the photos. women’s and men’s pieces based off of the shoe. He currently owns and operates a boutique in the heart of Lorain right next door to the historical "I just want people to not be afraid of fashion, and to What kind of impact would you like to make on the local fashion scene? Lorain Palace Theatre. With over 200 runway shows and a showing at be more adventurous. Just put it on." It’s always the same thing here. You see girls all dressed pretty much Paris Fashion Week in 2015 under his black, leather belt, Jevon Terance the same. I feel like the men are a little bit further in the fashion scene is a local fashion force to be reckoned with. here. I want to be able to inspire people to be more creative with their Dawn Fox looks and more comfortable with trying new things. Tell us about the Jevon Terance brand? My brand started in 2007. I Danielle Pusateri, the fiery fashionista, is a 2013 Kent State graduate design both women’s and men’s clothing, which most designers don’t "The imperfections of handmade make it look more quality who started out majoring in graphic design, but decided to switch lanes What would you like to see more of on the local fashion front? I just do. It’s really cool for me because it makes me more diverse. My pieces versus now when items are mass produced." into fashion design after attending a campus fashion show. After grad- want people to not be afraid of fashion, and to be more adventurous. are everyday wear on a high-end scale. uating, she designed a men’s line for Xhibition, a local art and fashion Just put it on. People around here should have more confidence. If you gallery, but she later jumped ship to Forma Apparel Manufacturing in like it, wear it. What makes your brand unique? Like I said, being a women’s and Beachwood, where she is currently helping to design their kidswear line, men’s line, I feel, makes me unique. Also, I have a good eye for Dawn Fox is a personal-style trailblazer and a walking work Orgava. To gain a more in-depth look in Pusateri’s supreme aesthetic, You’ re designing for other lines currently. However, if you were to prints and different fabrics. I like to take challenges with work- of art. A graduate of Virginia Marti College, she had hopes of check out her fashion blog at danni-p.com. start your own line, what could people expect? Lately, I’ve been lean- ing with different fabrics. A lot of designers don’t like to change opening a shop in Lakewood, but when those plans unfortunately ing more towards women’s wear. I like men’s wear, and my style is the settings on their machines, so they’ll work with just knits or fell through, she began to craft pieces on the side while working What inspires you? I like utilitarian. I personally wear a lot of men’s very androgynous, so it’s always been easy for me to flip-flop between cottons. I like to show those diverse fabrics and go searching for other odd jobs. She then took a job as a maker for a local clothing. I like baggier fits, but that can still be sexy. There’s this German the two. Definitely, women’s wear first. I like men’s wear, but it’s just different things. I also design my own fabrics and patterns, so my company, which allowed her to gain a lot of experience and to con- film student on Instagram whose style I just love. She goes by @majawyh. more expensive to make. pieces are definitely one of a kind. tinue to harness her craft. However, she left the position aftershe

10 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 11 began to feel stifled—as so many creatives do—and continued to work on her designs on the side. She’s made custom dresses for friends and , such as her sister-in-law’s wedding gown. She now puts all of her design efforts into her own Etsy store, which features one-of-a-kind accessories and designs. You can follow her on Instagram at @fuchsshoppe and shop CODA vs. the Hydra her Etsy store at etsy.com/shop/FuchsShoppe. Matthew McLaughlin // Illustrations: Aaron Gelston @gelston.design Tell us about your designs. My designs are heavily influenced by a lot vintage. I like men’s wear, such as military pieces and ot too long ago Chef Dante Bocuzzi decided to open his cowboy-inspired looks, for the ladies, but with a twist. I want fourth enterprise, this one on Professor Ave in Tremont. to make sure it’s still feminine. Very vintage inspired, because Tucked down in the basement, Coda is a low-ceilinged, I like the handmade look. Back when people used to make Nred lit little music venue, with a square footage less their own clothes, I think the imperfections of handmade than your average one bedroom and a bar the size of a thimble. made it look more quality versus now when items are mass Around about 600 BC, Hercules kicked the shit out of the Hydra. produced. They just look cheap to me and lack character. I try And ever since then, he’s been wandering around picking on anyone to stick with things that I like. I have a weird style, and I like he thinks he can handle. Now, he’s got his eyes on Coda, the new to mix a lot of different pieces. kid on the block.

Do you feel as though you take any inspiration from being When the Hydra slides down the steps and into the subterranean here in Cleveland? Um, yes. I mean, I definitely get more music space, one of his heads is definitely headed to the bar. There inspired to get my ideas out there because I feel they’re so it finds a decent selection of craft beers, shitty domestics, a few different from what you see in Cleveland. The city itself, I cocktails, and enough fernet to know, is not high fashion and people sometimes will look satiate an army of bartenders. Now at you weird if you wear something that’s even a little out thoroughly distracted, Head One there and creative. So, it does inspire me to get my pieces out The funniest fare is gonna be held up for a while, as into these kinds of areas in hopes that people will at least be being a grilled it works it’s way through a Doctor willing to try it out. Funk #2, a beautifully balanced cheese sandwich drink with just the right amount of What are your thoughts on the local fashion scene? You don’t with spicy Absinthe. In the meantime, Head see a whole lot of unique styles. I do definitely appreciate that Two wanders up to the front to the Cleveland area does have a lot of vintage shops. I love that. Cheetos, cooked take a look at what’s going on with I meet a lot of people that either buy vintage or they have their in a waffle iron. the crowd. Looking at the graffiti own stores. I think that there’s a lot of hidden talent here. I mural behind the stage, he mutters know people from going to school at Virginia Marti that have under his breath “fucking yuppies.” some really great ideas; it’s just a lot of Cleveland fashion goes But, when he actually looks at the back to the basics. You know, they sure do love their T-shirts. show calendar and notices bands like Duo Decibel, Fever It’d just be cool to see more people venture out of the box. Child, and Bullfighter, along with some decent touring acts like Farnsworth, and some local favorites like The Suede Bros, Head What would you like to see more of on the local fashion Two has to concede that it’s a pretty legitimate venue. front? I always like that when you look at old photos or movies, you see the men all in suits. The women are all in dresses. I As Head Three heads towards the bar, it realizes that One is now know that it’ll never be like that again, but I think it would trashed and hitting on one of the bartenders, and Two is engaged in be cool if people could tie more things like that into their a heated discussion about whether or not punk is dead on the other daily wardrobe—something as small as even wearing a skirt side of the room. Three's also gotten a little hungry. The food menu with a T-shirt or combining those ideas. Anything to look a is pretty small, all bar food with Bocuzzi flair added. The funniest little more classic and classy and get everyone out of those fare being a grilled cheese sandwich with spicy Cheetos, cooked in a PJ pants. It would also be great to see more fashion shows. I waffle iron. After Three munches pleasantly on the bizzaro bites, it Know the Enemy: know there’s Cleveland Fashion Week and other events, but has decided that One, who now can barely talk and should probably even a small show in a storefront, or to throw a show for a stop shooting Ferraris with that guy in suspenders, should probably The Hydra is a many headed, ancient beast, known for smelling like good cause. go home. The Hydra stumbles out of the basement, not quite sure garbage, having poisonous fangs, and insisting that you’re a fashion punk. why he was there in the first place, but pretty sure he will be back. PressureLife Magazine gives Coda 85 out of 108 poisonous fangs.

12 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 13 With the Pacific Northwest (Washington, Oregon, Idaho) at the forefront, states such as Montana, Nebraska, Minnesota, Indiana, New York, New Hampshire, and Maine are all taking the leap in the hop growing game. A name you don’t see on either of those lists is Ohio. BREWERS GOLD Of the 45,000+ acres of U.S hops harvested for industry use in 2015, only 50 were from Ohio, with the overwhelming majority coming from the Pacific Northwest. The U.S. harvested nearly From Backyard to Bottle 3.1M acres of barley in 2015, and Ohio isn’t even on the list of growers. But with Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati making big splashes in the beer scene, an existing farming infrastructure Will Kmetz // Illustrations: Aaron Gelston and favorable climate, Ohio has the potential to be a big name in hop and barley farming. The current revitalization of heirloom ccording to the Brewers Association, there are now 4,000+ in recipes. Although U.S. hop acreage has increased nearly 52% malts and hop and barley growers expanding outside the Pacific breweries operating in the U.S. to date, opening at an astonish- over the last three years, hop availability is sporadic at best, and Northwest and upper North America offers the perfect opportu- ing rate of approximately 1.8 per day. Colleges and universities hop contracts are almost entirely consumed by established brew- nity for farmers to take the plunge. The shortage of supplies due A are creating programs dedicated to the eries. And on the other end, distributors are to the craft beer boom has brewers looking to local hop and barley science of brewing, and many are calling it With an existing farming blackmailing smaller breweries to purchase growers, piggybacking the local resources movement. With our quits on their established careers to choose their surplus malts in order to get the hops society is fixated with 100% local ingredients and 100% local beer, the brewery life instead. With many of these infrastructure and favorable they want. it doesn't get much better than that. breweries already rooted in the community climate, Ohio has the and even more vying to make it big, opportu- While malts aren’t quite as difficult to get Some growers in Ohio have already begun to take advantage of nity seems to be a glass half empty. But you potential to be a big name your hands on, the majority of barley used this shortage. According to the Ohio Hop Growers Guild, there don’t have to brew in order to cash in, and in hop and barley farming. in beer making comes from the European are nearly 40 small Hops farms stretching from Toledo to Cin- that’s exactly how farmers across the nation Union. And in North America, Canada cinnati. The potential is so great, The Ohio State University and are viewing this cultural and economic boom. doubles the output of barley compared to the the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center hosts As an to the craft beer trend in the Midwest and a recog- U.S. Of the entire world’s harvest, a mere 22% is for industrial use, an Ohio Hop Conference and Trade show to help growers and nized farming state, Ohio has the potential to capitalize. including malting and beer making. This hasn’t gone unrecog- anyone else interested in growing learn more about the product nized, especially by farmers from the U.S. who are noticing stern and industry. And while there aren’t farmers who grow barley There are four main ingredients in beer: water, barley, hops, and federal regulation of hops and barley from growers overseas with alone, some grow it alongside other small grains such as wheat, yeast. With this extraordinary growth in breweries, resources loose regulations. Aside from the big players in barley farming oats, and corn. It may never gain the same traction hop farming are at an all-time low. Of the four ingredients, barley and hops are (Montana, North Dakota, and Idaho) states such as South Dakota, does since Ohio has been and will continue to be a large producer of particular interest. A shift from intensely bitter to flavor and Colorado, Wyoming, and Minnesota have all seen increases in of wheat, but Ohio is well on it’s way to becoming a sustainable aroma packed beers means nearly doubling the weight of hops seeded acreage over the last year. The same can be said for hops. grower and producer of some of the nation's best craft beer!

HOW TO: Grow your own hops in 5 easy steps

Obtain rhizome of desired hops to be grown. You can find these at your local home String a trellis system up directly behind the rhizome. This can be 8-10 feet structure. In years two and three, you will begin to see substantial gains in flowers, which 01. brew shop when in season (spring). Keep the rhizome moist and refrigerated until 03. depending on space constrictions or up to 20 feet tall to allow the vine to grow in are your harvestable hops cones. the soil is ready for planting. subsequent years. After the vine has reached about a foot in height, choose the hardiest vines (2-3) and prune the rest. Now wrap these around the trellis in a clockwise motion It’s time to harvest (Aug-Sep)! You’ll know the hops are ready when the aroma is Spring is planting time. Choose a location with southern exposure to sun and and prune subsequent vines from the base of the plant. 05. most potent. Test by crushing a cone in between your hands and giving it a whiff. 02. plenty of space (~20 feet) upward or horizontally for the vine to grow. Dig a hole Mature cones should be plump and begin to dry only slightly. Pick only the cone, leaving about 1-2 inches deep and plant the rhizome horizontally. Allow ~5 feet of space between The first year will establish the permanent root stock, called the crown. This can behind leaf material. Cones that are brown and slimy are no good. Dry your harvest each rhizome. Frequent, but short waterings work best. The soil should never remain dry 04. survive deep freezes so don’t worry about the dieback on the rest of the plant. You thoroughly either by air or dry heat. They’re ready to use! Most home grown hops are for extended periods of time. won’t get much flowering growth in the first year. Try to focus on maintaining the vine used for flavor and aroma, as the potency (alpha acid %) is mostly unknown. Enjoy!

14 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 15 JESSICA 'EVIL' EYE E Jessica Eye hasn't just cleared her own EYE BELIEVE path, she’s pioneered it

Sarah Maxwell // Photography: Casey Rearick @caseyrearickphoto

andles are glowing with soft, warm light. The hotel room between these two events? These are not your typical, bullshit Kim is full of luxurious pillows. The “Ambassadors of Comfort” Kardashian pig-tails, these are badass, trademark war braids. These were here and missed no pertinent detail. Fight week is intricate braids are part of a mental preparation that sets everything extraordinarily intense and draining mentally, emotionally into motion for the next day. It is time to tighten up everything. It is and physically. After months of training, days in the gym time to transform mentally and physically from a hometown Cleve- and more lean protein than any human should have to land hottie to a warrior renegade. It is time to convert from Jessica consume, a tiny bit of indulgence is all any man or woman Eye to Jessica “Evil” Eye. would want. After all, the end game is to mentally morph your mindset to beat the living shit out of someone with absolutely The Woman Behind the Evil. “Never judge a book by its cover” they Cno remorse or regard for their well-being. say. Fuck that! I judge everything by its damn cover, and you’re lying if you say you don’t as well. Eye could make the toughest badass guy Fight Eve. After weigh-in, the real preparation begins, the mental piss his pants and quiver in fear--she literally knocked a bitch’s ear off prep, the “rituals” that get you into your game. This is where you will before--all while enigmatically attracting him. But Eye completely fits observe a scene straight out of a slumber party every chick has ever the saying, she is not the type of person who wants to be a pull-quote been to: one girl is sitting on the couch, pounding a jumbo size bag of or meaningless headline about muscles, this incredibly tough (physi- M&M's while her bestie braids her hair. The monumental difference cally, mentally and emotionally), but poised woman has something to

16 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 17 say. Refreshingly, her message is about Cleveland and why everyone THE BATTLE FOR QUEEN: needs to pay attention to this burgeoning city we all live in (were born Eye vs. McMann in and never left) amongst other empowering adages. When you are from a small town in the Midwest, you do not often Once upon a time, Eye (UFC ranked #7) hear success stories motivating you to change your entire path and trained with friend and Olympic Medalist direction. That lack of a clear set role model did not stop Eye from turned MMA fighter, Sara McMann charging down her own path, as she always knew she had more in (ranked #6). They thought it was a great her. No part of her less than picturesque upbringing and life was opportunity for the two, in different weight going to stand in her way from turning herself into the role model classes, in different divisions, with different that the city was lacking. Careful though, she refuses to assign that strengths and weaknesses, to elevate their type of moniker to herself. “I am able to give people the ability to find games. Eye asked McMann to train with her strength in me. There is not male/female diversity anymore. For me prior to her 2013 Bellator debut. “I beat the to be called a role model, that is something that someone else has to crap out of her every day she was out here give to me. It is important. I hope they can accept me in my mistakes training. I blew her knee out. I put her down the one time,” Eye reminisced. and my successes and show you that no matter who you are, you there.” Eye continued that Kalikas told her, “We are going to ride this can succeed.” ship to the end. We will do it with gold around our waist. We’re going A few years later, as McMann prepared to do it here in Northeast, Ohio.” for her UFC debut, she asked Eye to join To achieve the high-level notoriety and success that Eye has realized her to return the favor as she was facing quickly and furiously, she has not only had to clear her own path, but Female Tough, Male Tough. You would expect people (read: bros) to . Eye obliged and all was pioneer it. She focused solely on her hometown of Cleveland support be a bunch of assholes and dismissive about taking a female seriously well in the MMA world, until two weeks and was determined to make sure people not only knew her name in in such a physically tough sport, but Eye has never truly come up later when Bellator cut Eye, getting rid of fighting, but knew about women fighting. As Eye prepared for her against gender diversity boundaries. Men and women are treated their women’s division. The UFC wasted no first fight, the organizers handed her a stack of tickets. Most people as equals and train right along one another in the gym. You will see time and immediately picked her up and would look at this as a daunting, meaningless task, but instead she men and women fighting and kicking one another’s ass on any given Eye was moved up a weight class, putting “sold them hand and foot.” Not only did she want to prove herself as occasion during those long hours training. The media picking up on her directly in competition with McMann. "We are going to ride this ship to The once seemingly pleasant rapport a legitimate force to be reckoned with, she also wanted to prove that female driven athletics has helped close any, no matter how small, quickly turned icy when many of Eye's calls there was a space for women’s fighting, and it mattered. Her sales gender gap that once separated the sexes in athletics. Eye explains, the end. We will do it with gold and messages lobbed at McMann went pitch was direct and fierce, just like she is: “I’m going to sell you a story “You are really seeing women outshine men in sports.” around our waist. We’re going to unreturned. Eye tried everything to reach that you are never going to hear again. I am Jessica Eye. I want to be a McMann, but when she didn't hear back, a mixed martial artist, you might not have heard of me yet, but maybe EYEBelieve. Eye is no stranger from channeling inner-strength into do it here in Northeast, Ohio." feud was born. When McMann ending up if you buy this ticket you will be onto something before anyone else.” creating momentum. “Self-belief is a hard thing to have,” she says. In dropping the fight against Kauffman, Eye today’s current climate, self-value, worth and belief have plummeted. picked it up, making a serious entrance onto Ultimate (Fighting) Squad Goals. Keeping good company and sur- It is an epidemic of a bunch of people who feel like shit about them- the UFC stage by kicking ass. rounding yourself with a supportive net is important for all the pieces selves, mainly because they are told they should. of the puzzle to come together. Beyond the “Ambassadors of Comfort,” These two will meet again soon when Eye Eye’s inner circle has been with her from the beginning. Eye noted This self-rooted confidence is what moved Eye to create her own and McMann reunite in the octagon. “So here we are three years later and it looks that among them there is an immense “sense of togetherness" that clothing line. “I wanted to sell a lifestyle, wanted to sell a belief. It is like we will get to settle it mano y mano "is so heartwarming and you can feel every inch of that.” She has about more than me. E.Y.E is about self-assurance,” Eye describes. in the cage. I guess the way two women everyone she needs from “Murse,” a friend who literally holds her She whipped up a few shirts and they immediately sold out in one should settle it,” Eye said. purse when needed; Marcus Marinelli, her coach; Shannon, her night. Her hope was that when people were wearing the motto across personal braider; and Greg Kalikas, her manager. their chest, it would help them believe in themselves, help them find More details to follow on PressureLife.com. their own self-assurance, help them find their own voice and help Eye says that Marinelli is the father she never emotionally had. He them move towards their passion the way her self-reliance did for her. took a leap of faith on her. “I earned his respect. It was probably the “The world needs more of believing in something happy and good out first time I ever felt I earned a man’s respect. It was one of the more there. It is so easy to get caught up in something negative. We all need addicting things in my life.” When Eye executes in training and sees to refocus and find that one thing,” Eye elaborates. how happy it makes her coach it motivates her and pushes her to go harder. Eye wants people to feel strong when they wear her shirts, feel proud of themselves and their roots. That is why she continued her The same goes for Kalikas, who has been by her side before she was foray into fashionable monikers with “Straight Outta Cleveland.” even a fighter. He stuck by her and gave her a chance. Eye explains, Though obviously a play on "Straight Outta Compton," Eye still “Stepped onto the mat, he was there. Stepped onto the octagon, he was owns the rights to the slogan, so I would think twice before trying

18 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 19 Celebrating One Year to use it, beyond the obvious that you are legally not able, she could Heriberto Perez and Rebecca Sweet, The one-year anniversary party, obliterate any of us. decided to open the studio there. slated for March 19, is going to be one of the studio’s biggest events yet. STICKERS! Shit Talking. When it comes to the entertainment aspect of fight- Amsel first encountered the space In addition their own performers, ing, throwing shade and calling out your opponent has become while he was exploring the halls out- Viva Dance will showcase dancers part of the game. A lot of competitors will play up the banter to side of Negative Space gallery, where from studios across the city. Elevated, 500 VINYL try and sell the fight. Eye’s fans don’t care if she talks shit about Viva Dance a friend was hosting an open mic the popular Cleveland-based hip the other fighter or not, they want to see her fists. They want to Industrial elegance at downtown dance studio night. “I saw these big glass doors hop dance group, are among those DIE CUT see her destroy someone “Street Fighter” style. that were unlocked, so I walked in scheduled to perform. Kevin Naughton and checked it out,” he recalls, “and STICKERS Eye is more of a ball buster than anything else and she doesn’t it was this huge, beautiful place with With open dancing, drinks, and really play into the Twitter bullshit, “I’m good for a ‘fuck you.’ I’m this amazing view of downtown.” appetizers, the party sounds like it’s $ basic. Who has time for character chasing?” On the other end of He quickly contacted Perez and not one to miss. If you can't make it, 149 the spectrum is fellow fighter Sweet, both of whom were already however, worry not: Viva Dance plans 3x3" Custom Shape White Vinyl / Full Color Full Bleed / Liner Prints Available (pronounced Betch), who tends to partake in successful dance instructors, and on celebrating many more years Eye had to sack up the social media ribbing. they too fell in love with the place of being a truly unique and stylish and swallow her upon seeing it. dance studio. 1000 HIGH QUANTITY Eye and Correia were once set to fight on the ROLL STICKERS pride to get past this same bill in Pittsburgh, but Eye had to pull Since overcoming the initial chal- $ part of her career. out of the fight. Correia took the opportunity lenging task of building out the 187 to tell her Twitter followers that Eye pulled space from a vacant, cavernous space to the stylish dance studio 4" Circle White Vinyl / 2 Colors out of the fight so she could pursue acting it is now, Viva Dance has been holding dance classes with a wide and Hollywood. There was a reason Eye did not move forward with range of styles. “We have instructors for all different styles, whatever the fight: her team had her back, as they always do, and asked her you are looking for,” Amsel points out, and you don't have to have a 500 ULTRA-DURABLE to pull out of the fight. background in dance to join in, either. “We have progressive group SCREEN PRINTED DECALS classes. All of our level one progressive classes are complete beginner $ Big Girl Panties. Eye is coming off a losing streak, but not just any [classes].” 211 losing streak: decision losses. Decision losses might be the worst for 3x3" White Vinyl / One Color a fighter to handle since it basically means the decides one good dancer is recognizable in any setting. Whether it’s the “We really focus on lead and follow, and not just patterns, so you can Yellow and Clear Vinyl Available fighter lost and it is all up to his/her opinion. Eye said she would have star of a big-budget musical or a hungry artist performing on go out and dance with anybody and have it work,” Amsel explains. rather a KO than have to have the fight left to opinion. She calls those the street, most people instinctively know a talented dancer “Some places just focus on patterns and you can really only dance years the hardest years of her life, she has always been a winner and when they see one. The setting of the performance, however, with other people from that type of studio.” That’s handy, because in Call 216.622.6360 A been at the top. If she was not riding high on the top, she wondered if and what it says in tandem with the music and the choreography, addition to the classes, Viva Dance regularly hosts parties and per- Click jakprints.com she was doing the right thing with her life by fighting. She begged to tends to get ignored; it’s a rather puzzling, undeserved snub for formances for dancers of all skill levels. Their popular weekly events get onto the Pittsburgh card to pull herself out of the slump, but her such an integral element to the artform. have a much different feel than events at other team asked her to trust them and turn it down. OK, Bethe? studios: “Most studio parties feel like a dance A STICKER ART Not so at the Viva Dance studio. Situated Bare brick walls and remnants studio practice session,” Amsel explains. “Well, Eye had to sack up and swallow her pride to get past this part of her on the top floor of a repurposed factory, the of heavy machinery give the our parties really feel like you’re no longer at a ANTHOLOGY career. She needed to fall back in love with her training and dieting. atmosphere is strikingly different from most studio. You’re at a club.” She needed to transform back into the gladiator, until finally she studios. “A lot of studios are boxes, you know?” wide, high-ceilinged room BY FILMMAKER ALEXIS DEFORGES was ready to take on another fight. When she fell back in love with observes Parker Amsel, co-owner and dance a distinctly Cleveland feel. West Siders tend to view the East Side as some IN COLLABORATION WITH her training and discipline, “the heart she created on the inside instructor at Viva Dance Studios. “This studio sort of impenetrable labyrinth that begins as started showing on the outside.” This is what makes her dangerous. is—well, I don’t even know how to describe soon as the numbered street signs change from

PRESENTED BY this.” Shani Mayer, a world-renowned Zouk and Kizomba dancer, gave “W.” to “E.” However, located at 1541 E. 38th St. in the Asian Town The Land. This is Home. There is finally hype around our city and the studio some high praise after a visit: “She said this is the dopest Center building, the studio is more than easily accessible. “It’s actu- Eye wants to bring the UFC home. When the UFC is in town you studio she’s ever seen,” beamed Amsel. ally not that far to get to, because we’re right off the freeway,” explains A FIVE EPISODE SERIES FEATURING INTERVIEWS WITH can feel the energy from the fans, it swarms the city, its builds up Amsel. “You can get here from East, South, West, you know? It’s SHEPARD FAIREY / DAVE KINSEY / DB BURKEMAN / CJ RAMONE the city. “That is what I want to do. I want to build it up when I am “Industrial elegance,” as Amsel whimsically put it, actually describes really easy to get here, actually.” ABOVE / BIG FOOT / ERIK FOSS / EL TORO / SERGIO VEGA + MORE back in a contender spot,” Eye says. Eye has no plans of leaving the space quite nicely. Bare brick walls and remnants of heavy machin- Cleveland, no matter the circumstance and options that come her ery give the wide, high-ceilinged room a distinctly Cleveland feel, not Wherever you’re from and whether or not dancing is your thing, Viva way. “Cleveland is always with you. You’re home. Your roots always to mention the absolutely stunning view of downtown through a Dance is a stunning location worth seeing for any Clevelander. And if come back to Cleveland. Cleveland is here, Cleveland is home, I windowed wall that spans an entire section of the studio. The space you can somehow manage not to have a good time dancing in a room won’t leave..ever.” is truly remarkable and is the main reason Amsel and his co-owners, like that, I'm sure there's something good on television tonight, too.

MARCH 26 | STICK-TO-IT.COM 20 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 21 Hometown(SUPER)

Adam Dodd

aster than Kenny Lofton, more powerful than a keg of Great Lakes Blackout Stout, able to leap Terminal Tower in a single bound—it’s man, it’s beast, it is Apama! After F an ice cream truck driver dons an ancient and talismanic costume he finds in the woods, he unleashes the savage and HEROES mysterious powers of the Local filmmakers mythic cryptozoological We wanted to take what beast, the Apama. What and comic follows is a spirited trial was the best of the old of errors and an engaging creators bring comics, but we felt we had coming of age for a hero something different to say in training set in our own their latest backyard. With immense in the superhero genre. prints scaling the window creation to fronts along Superior and Prospect avenues, local page and writers, Ted Sikora and Milo Miller, introduced this cryptic creation to many downtown commuters after they teamed with South American artist, Benito Gallego, to create the screen. legend of Cleveland’s resident superhero.

One does not have to turn many pages in Apama: The Undis- covered Animal, an anthology which collects the first five issues of the comic in a single paperback, to spot the numer- ous shoutouts to The Land. Whether it’s someone grousing about the “punks on Tremont,” a panel featuring a “stately Rocky River manor,” or a character in the background of a diner lamenting LeBron’s shooting performance, Apama owns its hometown love. “I never wanted this to be a ‘rah-rah Cleveland’ book,” Sikora explained. “I think The Drew Carey Show did that. Cleveland has a brand. There is an authenticity to it. It’s a hard working mentality that is just woven into everything I’ve known growing up.”

22 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 23 PRESSURE PICKS UPCOMING SHOWS TO SEE

Hopsin March 26 // Odeon LUNCH, HAPPY HOUR, DINNER Meatloaf March 30 // Hardrock Rocksino

Tom Segura Apama was first conceived in 2001 during the writing of Mill- to draw a parallel between his works and that of the pulps March 31 // Hilarities er’s and Sikora’s independent film, Hero Tomorrow. Apama was he read as a child. A trained eye will note the similarities in originally the fictional creation of film’s protagonist, also a comic Apama’s art to that of comic legends like John and Sal Buscema Steve Byrne creator. After failing to get his and John Romita. To this end, Sikora was sure to offer credit work published, the film’s protag- where it was due during our interview. “What I like about April 14 // Hilarities THE PREMIER BISTRO AND WINE BAR Cleveland has a brand. onist assumes his own character’s Benito,” he gushed, “is that he is so pure to the story. There’s Discover the sensational avors identity after his girlfriend fash- humor to it and authenticity. People don’t look like fashion of a seasonally-inspired menu There is an authenticity and an international wine list in a Surrounding Cities ions him a costume. As Sikora models, they look like real folks.” When asked how he balanced casually-sophisticated atmosphere. April 15 // Beachland to it. It’s a hard working explained over the phone, “It’s if honoring the nostalgia that inspired him as a child while still mentality that is just like Stan Lee’s girlfriend made remaining relevant to modern readers, Sikora responded, “We Sinbad him a Spider-Man costume and wanted to take what was the best of the old comics, but we BISTRO83.COM woven into everything Stan Lee, in trying to understand felt we had something different to say in the superhero genre. April 15 // Hardrock Rocksino I’ve known growing up. his creation, decided to run around We didn’t want to do something that people had seen before.” as Spider-Man at night and starts Platform Concert Series fighting crime himself.” Hero If the evolution from a fictional comic portrayed in the film April 16 // Lake Affect Studios Tomorrow was well-received and selected for screening at multi- to an actual comic in our reality had not enough layers to ple film festivals including the Cleveland International, Fanstasia, unravel, Sikora and Miller have just begun the process of and Montreal. The film’s success would prove the inspiration for securing financing for the creation of their next feature film. Santigold Sikora’s next project. This one based on the larger-than-life exploits of Apama. For April 19 // House of Blues those keeping score at home, that will make Apama a feature In a very meta moment, Sikora and Miller did in real life what their film character based on a comic character that is based off a Filter cinematic counterpart could not when they created the very comic comic that is featured in a movie based on that same comic that failed to gain publishing in their film. “We spent so much time that never existed in the first place. Still with me? April 22 // Agora thinking about that idea in the film,” Sikora explained, “that we realized there was a lot of layers that we could riff on. We thought, Sikora and Miller are just coming off of a fun and successful Brian Jonestown Massacre ‘Wouldn’t it be fun to do the book that was just in his head, if our residence at Cleveland’s recent Wizard World Comic Con- May 4 // Beachland main character could have just got his book published?’” vention where they signed copies of their comic and film and hosted a feature panel spotlighting the process of bringing George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic After the first volume was well received, it did not take long for their creations to the silver screen. Currently, they are busy Sikora to realize the advantages of keeping his ideas on the page finishing the colors on issue seven of the ongoing Apama May 7 // House of Blues rather than the screen. “We had so much fun making the comic,” comic series, while Gallego works the pencils on issue ten, he admitted, “as much or more so than the movie, that we just kept both of which will be included in the next collection, soon to Blue October going and found the comic book experience to be so liberating be released. To get a copy of the film, Hero Tomorrow, or your May 15 // House of Blues because whatever you dream up goes right on the page and you own edition of Apama: The Undiscovered Animal, which collects don’t have to worry about budget or location and actors and all the the first five issues, visit www.apamanation.com as well as their headaches that come with making a movie. This is just a total joy.” Facebook page. Check in regularly for updates on the release of the comic’s second collection of issues coming soon and the Joined in art by Benito Gallego, Sikora made a conscious decision forthcoming Apama motion picture as well!

24 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 25 Adam Dodd // Illustrations: Aaron Gelston @gelston.design

he old man kept to himself. He said little and was seen less. He had few friends and even fewer possessions. With the doors and windows locked, several days had passed before the over- T ripe stench coming from his apartment became unbearable and the landlord was forced to enter. The old man’s body was face down in the bathroom. His hand still clung to the .38, it shell casing not far apart. A week of decomposition in the dead of summer left the scene a fetid travesty. Responding officer, Joe Truczak, had to wait to enter until gasmasks and respirators arrived. The Eastlake police report cites “thousands of maggots were on and around the body, mostly the head.” With no apparent next of kin to claim the body, the man whose identification read ‘Joseph Newton Chandler,’ was cremated. As Officer Truczak explained over the phone, “For a gentleman who lived that identity for so long there was no reason at the initial point in the investigation to feel that he was anybody, but Joseph Newton Chandler.” The original case report ends with, “…apparent cause is suicide. Case closed.”

…Until it wasn’t. trail. He paid for everything in cash. He kept to himself and made It was not long before peculiarities began appearing in the case. little associations from the day he materialized in Cleveland in 1979, When police interviewed Mike Onderisin, an estranged co-worker seemingly from nowhere, until the day he ended his life. Aside that Chandler listed executor of his will, he remembered Chandler from a partial lifted from an ashtray, no prints were recovered from as a man of distinct peculiarities. An electrical savant, Chandler the scene or the body, which had been cremated shortly after its fashioned headphones that broadcast white discovery without taking DNA evidence or per- noise to drown out the rest of the world and forming an autopsy. breaker boxes that changed the channel any- It was not until a cursory time commercials ran. The man had lived in the search into his social By the time local police realized the simple sui- same one bedroom apartment since 1986 and cide was anything but, any potential evidence had yet had next to no possessions. “Very mundane,” security number revealed been lost or damaged. This includes the murder Truczak remembered, “very few personal items that his alleged identity weapon that, “due to condition and manner in in the residence. Hanging in the closet he had which weapon was stored, any fingerprint evi- The Curious Case of the very few articles of clothing. It’s almost like traced back to an eight- dence would have been destroyed,” according to someone barely lived there.” Onderisin, like the year-old boy... an Eastlake police report. John Doe had a home rest of the world, assumed Chandler to be little computer, which, as stated in the same police more than a queer old man, whose only crime report, “was accidentally dropped, broken, and was a painfully isolated existence. It was not until a cursory search discarded when property was being moved.” Elliott lamented, into his social security number revealed that his alleged identity “The computer was lost which would have been great for us. We traced back to an eight-year-old boy who died in a Tulsa, Oklahoma would have been able to find some stuff on that.” Reluctantly, Elliott car crash on Christmas Eve, 1945. The man who committed suicide considered, “If they would have thought he was someone else I in 2002 was an imposter and had been living under the lie since think they would have put more effort into trying to find more he relocated to Cleveland in 1979. fingerprints.” Officer Truczac shares Elliott’s concerns, sharing, “If there would have been questions regarding his identity then there UNKNOWN MAN “He could be anybody,” explained US Marshal, Peter Elliott, when would have been more done at the initial point.” I met with him at his downtown office. “People that assume other people’s names and live covertly for a number of years under Two years after his death, Onderisin grew impatient and filed “A guy needs somebody to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don’t make no difference that name and went through all the cautions he did are usually an official complaint with Eastlake Police Department in order who the guy is, as long’s he’s with you. I tell ya, I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an’ he gets sick." someone on the run.” Elliott added, “I think when it’s all said and to determine any of John Doe’s potential heirs. Lieutenant Tom done its going to be someone who’s been on the run for something Doyle’s formal response read in part, “This investigation has John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men significant.” Whoever the man was, he was careful not to leave a consumed many, many man-hours, but is noncriminal in nature.

26 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 27 fabricate a past so geographically tied to the one you’re attempting certificate (that of the actual Joseph Newton Chandler) to be mailed to escape, that is, unless you’re modeling your life as a different Joseph to a dilapidated shack in Rapid City, South Dakota in 1978. There, he Chandler all together. then used the fraudulent certificate to obtain a social security card. The Rapid City Journal has local Detective Tom Senesac looking back Stay with me, because here’s where we go down the rabbit hole… in retrospect, “The fact that a forty-one year old man was requesting a social security card should have sent up a red flag at the time." Born in 1950, there was a third Chandler, a Joseph Nelson Chandler living in San Rafael, California at the same times as the Zodiac mur- A year later, John Doe settled in Cleveland and lived the rest of his ders. (For clarity’s sake, we will refer to this third man as “Nelson” for life in obscurity until he ended it all on June 24, 2002. Curiously, the rest of the article.) While Nelson is innocent of any such crimes, eight years earlier, on the same day John Doe would commit Zodiac and/or John Doe may have been someone he worked with or suicide, Nelson died unexpectedly at age 44 in 1994. This is the lived near. Consider that after crossing the San Rafael into the same year our John Doe stops receiving social security benefits rest of California on the I-580, San Rafael commuters enter California after switching his work to that of a contracted employee. Was this Although we desire to provide closure to some family’s mystery proper on the I-80. This inevitable stretch of freeway for anyone living done in fear of drawing attention to a social security account which and to return property to family members nothing is occurring, in San Raphael either leads or links to Vallejo, Bencia, Napa, and at would have had the actual benefit contributions of one man (John nor is anything anticipated with this case.” His explanation was its furthest, Modesto, all sites of Zodiac’s murders. One of the maps Doe), the listed work history of another (Nelson), and the registered similar when we talked, “I was making a case to the judge that the Zodiac mailed to police, known loosely as the “Mt. Diablo map” numbers of a dead child (Tulsa Boy)? Elliott informed me that in we don’t have any standing in this case, the city of Eastlake. It’s was a road atlas map of the San Francisco Bay, which, he alleged, led 1994, John Doe told his friend, Bob Onderisin, that unspecified taken up lots of time and it’s going nowhere and it’s a civil matter. to one of his victims. No bodies were recovered, but we now know people “were closing in on him” and that he would have to “lay It doesn’t involve us. It doesn’t even have an allegation of a crime. the Zodiac used road maps prominently featuring San Raphael low for a while." There is a period of time during that year that, to I can’t speak for the Chief of Police, but I and the nearby freeways that linked from this day, is unaccounted for in his records. know that there is no interest in it. They there to his crimes. Our John Doe’s alleged don’t have the time or interest to pursue work history also sees his employment near Eight years later, on the very anniversary that Nelson died, our something that is just a great curiosity.” another two California crime scenes of Zodi- John Doe locks the doors to his apartment and eats the barrel of a Perhaps most sensational ac’s, Lompac and Riverside, during the very .38. Was the date significant to him? Had the years alone and the Since the mystery began, there has been is the possibility he and stretch of time. recent diagnosis of advanced rectal cancer left him looking at the no shortage of theories. Perhaps most date as an enviable swansong to exit on? Is that why the day after sensational is the possibility he and the the Zodiac Killer, the serial After reviewing what straws I could grasp, is blacked out with an “X” on the calendar found in the apartment, Zodiac Killer, the serial killer who stalked killer who stalked southern a theory emerged. After fleeing California, as if he knew that the 24th held an inescapable terminus fated for southern California in the late sixties to the Zodiac and/or our John Doe would be both men? Was the parallel one last riddle for the Zodiac to leave the early seventies, are one in the same. California in the late sixties looking for an alias. The Tulsa crash of 1945, behind, a symbolic of the hat to the man who’s life he adopted As unlikely as it may seem, when I to the early seventies, are which was featured in several papers, would for so many years? asked Marshal Elliott if he ruled out the have drawn his attention. It was common potential, his answer was immediate and one in the same. for children in rural areas at the time not I relayed the theory to Marshall Elliott. “It has me looking at certain without reproach, “No, not at all. We have to be automatically registered with social things in a new light,” he offered. His answer was non-committal, not ruled anything out, including that.” security. The child’s death would leave John but better than the tinfoil hat for which I assumed I’d be fitted. A photo of John Doe, with his physical Doe with an opportunity to exploit. But more After a subsequent search, Elliott could not confirm John Doe’s appearance regressed to how he would have appeared in the late importantly, the boy shared the same name as another man in the alleged California work history and conceded that particular seventies, finds striking similarities to the infamous police sketch area, his possible acquaintance, Joseph Nelson Chandler. Was this a Zodiac angle would need more conclusive evidence to move for- of the Zodiac Killer. The two share similar glasses, male pattern means to hide in plain sight? Any superficial look into his connection ward. Even still, he encouraged me not to give up the ghost. “I have baldness, knobbed chins and the same distinct bent bridge to their to California in the late 1960s would only become muddied when something else I want you to look into,” he suggested. “There were noses. At five foot seven inches, John Doe was distinctively shorter invariably confused with Joseph Nelson Chandler from San Rafael. some unsolved murders in East Liverpool in the seventies that than an average man. Nearly every report given to police had Zodiac It should be noted, if even circumstantially, Nelson and the child also might be interesting to the case.” at the same height. Elliott mentioned during our meeting, “What’s shared their name with the lead investigator who failed to apprehend going to rule out a lot of people is their height.” the Zodiac’s personal hero, Jack the Ripper. Ripper was favored by the Zodiac and even mentioned in his notes. Additionally, a non-existent Mia Marcum, the Ohio director for the Doe Network, which works emergency contact given by John Doe, “Mary Wilson," also shares to identify unknown persons, said as much when she wrote to her name with another English serial killer of the same era. The To be continued... the Eastlake police while they were still investigating. Although odds would be too great to pass up for a mind as bent on patterns and Look out for part two of The Curious much of what John Doe claims has to be considered dubious at best, riddles as the Zodiac’s. Case of the Unknown Man in Issue 7 of Marcum drew light to his listed previous work experience which PressureLife. places him in California at the same time as the Zodiac. Even if What we do know as fact is that John Doe made his first known his work history was fabricated, it would seem counter-intuitive to appearance under his new alias while requesting a “copy” of his birth

28 PRESSURELIFE | Issue 6 Issue 6 | PRESSURELIFE.com 29 PRESSURE Music Reviews

Alex Bieler 99¢ Santigold, Atlantic It’s hard not to dance when you listen to Santigold. That’s a particularly impressive statement from me, a rather large man whose chosen form of movement at a concert is what I call the “restless leg syndrome foot bounce.” Still, I couldn’t help but (awkwardly) sway and bop to the beats on the Philadelphia-bred musician’s latest album 99¢. Apart from a couple of tracks, the vibe of the album is sunny, bouncy, and just plain fun, so when she sings, “Rip it up, I’m having a good time,” you can’t blame her. Santigold alternates between ‘80s synthpop goodness on “Rendezvous Girl” to the rock-pop jam of closing track “Who I Thought You Were.” Even when the album’s sonic sugar rush slows down, there are treats to be had, as “Run the Races” is a lovely comedown after several THE DYNGUS AMONG US bangers. If you’re looking for a good time, you’ll certainly get your money’s worth with 99¢. One of the world's oldest and oddest holidays is near and dear to Cleveland's heart. 4/5

Dan Bernardi // Illustrations: Brandon Lee Wise @brandon_lee_wise_art Heaven Adores You Soundtrack, Elliott Smith, Universal It’s been over a decade since Elliott Smith died, but a new collection uried away on your calendar is a little holiday called Śmigus-Dyngus, taking place annually on the Monday after Easter. Originally the day was observed in with a series of music is trying to help people get a new look into the life of the of absurd rituals in honor of Easter and the end of Lent, but after a heavy influx of Polish immigrants to America, the revelry was imported, toned down a bit, and given the half influential musician. The soundtrack for Nickolas Rossi’s documentary Heaven Adores as silly name of Dyngus Day. Six years running, Cleveland is hosting a massive Dyngus celebration, so if your St. Patty's hangover has finally worn off, this is another great time to You features several alternative takes on some of Smith’s memorable tracks, as well as a party- Polish-style. This year, I propose we do this Dyngus right and resurrect a few of those retired traditions alongside the new ones. Better bring a towel. B couple of private recordings provided by family and friends of the late singer/songwriter. Tracks like “Hamburgers,” “Don’t Call Me Billy,” and closer “I Love My Room” show off a Each year Cleveland coronates one special local Polish lady One of the highlights of the modern Dyngus Day is a goofier side to the man known for “Miss Misery,” making for an intimate experience with WET MONDAY with the title of Miss Dyngus. If you can make a pierogi, I LOVE A PARADE colorful parade that marches down Detroit Avenue, a man that we’ll never really get to truly know. Even if you haven’t seen the documentary, dance the polka, and know how to fashionably sport a babushka, you've got a showcasing beautiful Polish garb, polka, and piwo. If you haven't tried piwo, you'll this soundtrack is a must for Elliott Smith diehards and an intriguing new perspective fighting shot at that Kielbasa Crown and sash. In the past, however, Polish girls love it. It's beer. But at the dawn of Dyngus, the parade was a totally different beast. for those who are only familiar with the idea of Smith as a moody singer/songwriter. got less-than-royal treatment on Śmigus-Dyngus, which translates to “Wet A procession of noisy boys would frolic through town, using a live bird's squawks to Monday.” The guys would find a girl they fancy and affectionately dump a bucket announce their presence. One lucky bro would dress like a bear wearing a bell on his 4/5 of water on her head. Girls could retaliate with water and crockery (yes, they head, trolling for gifts from the townspeople, before he was ceremoniously dunked threw plates), or offer the boys painted eggs to avoid a drenching. Bring back the in a nearby pond. This year, it may be a perfect excuse to hit the streets with your splash this year, and when your crush figures out why you drenched them on a friends and cause a ruckus in the city. If the neighbors don't reciprocate with food , cold spring day, they may be smitten by your amorous gesture. And if they're and presents, you can shame them for being culturally insensitive. , Domino clearly not into you at that point, just claim it was for ALS. There’s plenty of the usual weirdness on display on Painting With, In the olden days, songs were sung to accompany something that’s pretty apparent from the start thanks to album Super soaking the object of your affection isn't the EVERYONE'S POLISH many of these wild traditions. As a more poetic opener “FloriDada.” The track bounces around with gleeful abandon, propelled forward by WIND IN THE WILLOWS only way to participate in the more romantic side departure from the aforementioned holiday abuse, the boys would also take to a million little details combined into a bed of whirrs, thumps, and robotic noises. “FloriDada” of Dyngus Day. In fact, it used to be much more violent than that. Boys would take the rooftops and speak in verse to declare their intentions for the day, while girls sets the tone for the album, a weirdly catchy combination of elements that come across as pussy willow branches and whip the legs of their love interests, occasionally with no would rebut in verse in an attempt to shoo their pursuers. I picture it like a hostile playful. Tracks from Painting With aren’t going to carry the same weight as previous tracks warning, and girls would strike back the next day. In 2016 the tradition has not fallen version of Grease, only with more sauerkraut. While it would be quite the change like “My Girls,” a song that rightfully earned the band plenty of fans. Instead of a steady, by the wayside, so bring the pussy willows: equal lashings for all. And when you're of pace, if you're not up for conversing in iambic pentameter this holiday, join the shimmering buildup, these tracks are wobbly numbers that feel patched together, which done, don't throw out the branch. Blessed pussy willows were once considered good revolution and hop on the polka bandwagon. Any seasoned vet will tell you that isn’t always a bad thing. When the formula works, it comes across as a fascinatingly odd luck charms, granting their bearers health and prosperity. Some even claimed they on Dyngus Day, one polka dance is mandatory, and after a little more piwo, you construction. When it doesn’t work, it’s just odd. At the very least, it’s an interesting ride. had supernatural abilities, such as preventing lightning strikes. Unfortunately in this may actually enjoy the upbeat rhythm of that blaring accordion you usually hate. case, they do not prevent the sting of a good leg whipping. As they say, “Everyone's Polish on Dyngus Day!” 3.5 /5

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