Video: Log Live at Little Brothers circa 2004

Log live 2004 "On My Way Back Home" from Old 3C Label Group on Vimeo.

614 Interview With Paul Nini

Paul Nini of Log (and Househearts, among others) is not only a musician, but also a professor of design at OSU. In this 2018 interview with 614, he talks about creating The People's Flag of Columbus:

Nini was inspired by Roman Mars, Newark native and host of the prolific design-focused podcast 99% Invisible. Mars also happened to be the keynote speaker at an industry conference Nini attended in 2015 and the idea stuck. 

“I tried to follow the basic rules of what makes a great flag. The design should be simple and memorable and have meaning behind the forms,” he explained. “It has negative white spaces that come through the center representing Broad and High, with the star as a symbol that we’re the state capital. The fields of blue and green with a semicircle represent the Scioto River and the Franklinton peninsula, the heart of the city, the original area of downtown. Anything more complicated gets tricky.” 

For those who may not know, the current city flag is only the latest incarnation, with several since its inception. Over time, it’s come to incorporate images of the statehouse, Buckeye leaves, and the Santa Maria, along with the typical eagle, stars, and other stuff shared by nearly every flag of the era. But it’s all so cluttered and compressed, you have to squint to even make any of it out.

New Additions: 4 Song EP by Log

Whenever possible, I like acquiring and listening to the first release by a band. Sometimes that's all there is, but often it's the skeletal blueprint of what is to come. I acquired a copy of Log's 1993 debut 7" EP via Discogs and really didn't know what to expect. I had heard they played with a wide array of bands back in the day, including Yo La Tengo, Superchunk, Ass Ponys and Versus, and I can see why, as their sound is prototypical 90s indie rock with a midwestern flare.

Know Yer Band: Log

Band: Log

Members
Guitar/Vocals - Paul Nini
Guitar - Kevin Dimoff
Bass/Vocals - Shirley Tobias
Drums - Kelly Knuth/Greg Bonnell
Keyboards - Mark Wyatt/Chris Nini

Releases
1993 - 4 Song EP (Anyway Records)
1994 - Light The Fuse And Get Away album (Anyway Records)
1996 - My Evil Friend EP (Anyway Records)
1999 - Auto Fire Life album (Old 3C Records)
2004 - Log Almighty album (Old 3C Records)
2005 - The Early Years compilation album (Old 3C Records)
2005 - Logjammin' album (Old 3C Records)

New Additions: All My Life single by Naked Skinnies

Some Columbus releases going back thirty or forty years ago are still fairly easy to come by, thanks to plenty pressed and distributed. Then on the other hand, you have something like the Naked Skinnies lone seven inch single, All My Life / This Is The Beautiful Night, released in 1981 on Naked House Records. Fronted by a young Mark Eitzel, the band featured future Log/Moviola member Greg Bonnell on drums, and was (according to a chat with Ron House) released on Naked House Records thanks to a few bucks Ron provided to help get the single pressed. Knowing the career Mark Eitzel would carve house, it's interesting to hear his earliest recordings and musical output.

Aquabear Legion: The Western Reserve Podcast with Paul Nini

Aquabear Legion is an Ohio music blog going back to 2008, and they've hosted a number of podcasts since 2011. Most recently, The Western Reserve podcast featured Paul Nini of Househearts, Great Plains, Log, Old3C Records and more on their February and March episodes. Here's the description:

Episodes 14 and 15 of The Western Reserve are a two part interview and playlist from Columbus, Ohio’s Paul Nini. Paul is behind Old 3c Records and its current form the Old 3c Label Group and is known to Ohio music fans from his bands Great Plains, Log, and Closet Mix. Brian spends the next two episodes talking with Paul about playing in bands, putting out records, and what he’s working on now. All while playing a lot of good music.

614 Magazine: The Ultimate Columbus Mixtape

Back in 2014, Kevin Elliott of 614 Magazine spoke with a bunch of Columbus musicians such as Pat Dull, Paul Nini of Log and Elizabeth Murphy of Times New Viking to put together a mixtape that covers the last few decades of Columbus music. Here's a sample:

“Refried Dreams” – Cheater Slicks (1999) 

One of best things about living in this town is having the opportunity to go see one of the best punk bands on this or any other planet play in a bar about the size of your living room twice a month.  They’ve put out almost a dozen stellar records since defecting to Columbus from Boston in the mid-90’s, but if I had to pick a track to include on the next Voyager launch, it’d be the title track from 1999’s Refried Dreams.  I’ve broken my glasses twice whilst losing my shit during live performances of this song. 

— BJ Holesapple (member of Necropolis and Vile Gash as well as founder of Columbus Discount Records)