Processed with VSCO with 6 preset When Steve DelMonico (vocals/guitar) approached John Faraone (drums) with an impossibly unique band name, there was no way of knowing that 10 years later they’d be sitting at Nolan’s with...
Photo: Dave Rezendes. John Faraone: a man of many bands, many instruments, and one poetic voice. While John wouldn’t call himself a poet, I certainly believe that his lyrics are simply stanzas waiting to be printed....
Photo by James Brooks. Okee dokee folks… I have referenced the Jethro Tull song, “Too Old to Rock & Roll, Too Young to Die,” A few times in my 22 years of writing for Motif, and...
(Photo credit: Keith J.G. McCurdy, from the cover art of Vudu Sister’s Adynata; photograph of the art installation LO SGUARDO - Humanitas - Physis by sculptor Igor Mitoraj at the Neopolis Archaeological Park of Siracusa...
Mount Pleasant. Elmhurst. The Valley Arts District. These are all neighborhoods whose offerings I thought I knew well, having worked in and around Providence over the last few years. But you can certainly miss a...
Buddy Mott. Once upon a time, if you wanted a tattoo, one of the things you could do was traipse to Newport from any of the four corners of the world and get yourself a tattoo...
The actual declaration of Independence was first proclaimed to the people of Newport from this building in July 1776. (Photo by Maureen O'Gorman) It doesn't take long for a person new to Rhode Island to find...
The RI Department of Transportation (RIDOT) announced a major initiative to repair potholes caused by a harsh winter. A new Pothole Service Requests Dashboard site on the web – https://www.dot.ri.gov/travel/potholes.php – allows the public to...
The tattoo artist who goes by Mish, of Fall River, MA, created this month’s cover. “I got the nickname when I was younger, and it just kinda stuck,” she says. Also, it stirs a little...
On the “Weekend Update” satirical news segment on Saturday Night Live. anchor Colin Jost displayed a snapshot of an unhinged rant laced with profanity in the form of a Donald Trump post to Truth Social,...
Wednesday, May 276 - 10pmMyrtle, East Providence Join us for the 4th annual Motif Spoken Awards! We are excited to be returning to Myrtle to celebrate RI’s spoken word community. Want to see your favorite Rhode Island...
VOTE HERE! "May your tattoo ink never run dry," as the ancient Portlandian blessing goes, has rarely been more applicable. Motif is proud to partner again with Narragansett Brewery to bring you the RI Tattoo Awards,...
By Lillian MK Photography By Olivia Lunger By Izzy Cooke ...
The Music Awards went off without a hitch this year, and over the course of the evening more than 400 local music lovers dropped by to dance, listen, and cheer on fellow musicians. We'll have...
It’s often said (well, I definitely say this), that some of the deepest conversations and connected moments can happen while one is sitting in a car. This is certainly true for the duo, band, sisterhood...
Image: Olivia Lunger. Local Civil War re-enactor Bill Sherman was having trouble recruiting young people into the hobby, so he hit on a novel idea that is perfectly suited to Gen Z. He immediately telephoned his...
The Continental Congress, befooled. April Fool’s Day originated among the French a few years into the Revolutionary War. Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin had been pleading with them for any sort of assistance. The brand...
If you have been a craft beer lover over this past decade, you may remember when the first Rhode Island Brewery Passport was released. It was changed to an app in 2020. Six years later,...
After attending Chalumeau’s release party for their album BLUE at The Met in Pawtucket last August, I wrote that if you ever got the chance to see them perform live, you should jump on it....
On February 28, after 20 years of being a community staple for first dates, Super Tuesday regulars, and movie fanatics alike, CWTheaters (previously called CinemaWorld) was forced to shut its doors for good. The decline...
Last year, I had a blast and a half working on a fun commercial shoot. I landed the gig because the fella producing, Josh Kirk, asked around to find an actor to portray the client’s...
Photo: Jenn Lombari. @jennlombariphotography ssa lin has been making a local splash like a rockin’ rainstorm after a record-setting blizzard, since releasing her first single, “tallboys,” at the end of 2025. The feedback has been good,...
Here are some hot new local tracks to finish melting the ice. The Hopeless Romantics – “Quiet Kind” The third and final single from The Hopeless Romantics’ upcoming debut album, “Quiet Kind” is also a reworked...
Okee dokee folks… PLEASE stop using AI. The more it knows, the more it grows. We are feeding a beast that will someday destroy us. AI is not your friend, though it may pretend to...
Graphic by Olivia Lunger. ...
Hey idiot, why are you and your friends getting high indoors? Don't you know? We have a planet, a whole, big planet filled with trees, rivers, and critters. The outside world doesn't have to start...
Medical marijuana was legalized in Rhode Island in January 2006, and by May 2022 even recreational sales became legal through state-licensed dispensaries and authorized retailers. Yet it still isn’t safe for medical users to come out of the closet....
Cover artist Elliott Italiano of Jamestown is a self-made glass artist. As a young adult, Italiano's interests centered on fashion, inspiring thoughts of pursuing a degree in luxury marketing and design. He relates to his past...
MAD Magazine cover, Feb 2016: Donald Trump and Alfred E. Neuman We fought a military war; our opponents fought a political one. We sought physical attrition; our opponents aimed for our psychological exhaustion. In the process...
Cover artist Mina Miki of Providence calls her baby blanket her longest friend. “His name is Blankie, but now he looks less like a blanket and more like a piece of tangled silk,” she says....
Watching a room full of drunk people sing along to a Backstreet Boys song while filling out a trivia sheet somehow seemed so natural when it happened, even if it’s a bit hard to imagine. “Trivioke” is the collision of your two favorite late-night activities: trivia and karaoke. Jan 23 brought Trivioke to Boombox PVD […]
This is a little step away from the kind of outdoors stories I normally write, but it seems appropriate for this time of year. My story begins on the Monday afternoon after the Patriots won the Super Bowl. My son Jack’s kindergarten was cancelled due to the coming snow storm. My son Eli doesn’t have preschool on […]
The instructions were simple – make six quarts of your choice of soup, pair with a six-pack of beer and then trade it with approximately 15 or so privileged, mostly super-Caucasian 30-somethings with nothing better to do on a chilly winter’s eve. This is a soup swap. As has been tradition for the past nine […]
February brings us Valentine’s Day, a celebration first linked with love during the Middle Ages. Today, it is a popular boon to florists, greeting card retailers and restaurant owners, but it is not a holiday that many of us would associate with health. Well, think again! As it turns out, love can be as essential to good health […]
On Tues, Feb 24, the Queen of Hearts Ball will be held to raise funds for the production of a new musical by the drama club at the Nathan Bishop Middle School. The event will feature music and dancing and will be held from 6 to 10pm at the Providence Marriott, 1 Orms St, PVD. There […]
Rocque and Roll: Lord Bendover (guitar, vocals), Count Bassie (bass, vocals), the Duc D’istortion (guitar, vocals) and Jackie Kickassis (drums)
One fine winter’s morning my good friend and owner of Cady’s Tavern, Robin Tyo, called to tell me she was having The Joe Moss Band come from Chicago to play at her tavern in Chepachet. “You’ve got to come check him out,” she said. I said I’d try my best to get there, but because […]
Over the past two years, I have had the pleasure of interacting with a variety of individuals who share the common goal of ending marijuana prohibition. Do not be mistaken, however, as even though these individuals find themselves on similar crusades, their definitions of victory differ. These differences can be categorized into four basic categories: […]
The Fetish Fair Fleamarket is coming back to Rhode Island! It will take place at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Warwick from Feb 13 – 15. Originally developed in Boston, this flea has been around more then two decades. It happens twice a year and it is the biggest fetish festival in all of New […]
Like with many new exercise programs and tools, Kegel balls could benefit from an FAQ. The Center for Sexual Pleasure and Health answers some of those “Who can I even ask about this?” questions. From sex toys to fantasies to how to tell your kids about the birds and bees, we’ll supply the answers you […]
