There’s no place like a hometown gay bar. In this Pride Month issue, LV offers a brief herstory of the Blazing Saddle and Basix — two Iowa bars that quickly became vital spaces for LGBTQ+ organizing and outreach. Open seven days a week, they remain reliable sources of community, glitter and good, weird fun. Plus: Before this state was a state, it was an enigma to all but the people who’d lived here for generations. A new book finds worlds of wisdom in an 1837 map of Iowa devised by the Ioway — and unpacks why it was drawn in the first place.
Also in this issue: The Awful Purdies, a mainstay of Iowa City’s live music scene, mark 20 years together — “my longest relationship” joked member Kate Rowe. Waterloo brings back Chroma63, a free music festival honoring Iowa’s punk past and present, while Saeed Tokhi’s monthly Monday takeover of Maggie’s Rumble Room combines punk playlists with tongue-in-cheek activities. And Kiki, our resident sex advice columnist, answers their most philosophical query yet.
Cover by Jordan Sellergren and Kellan Doolittle. Photo from the 1992 Iowa Drummer Leather Contest, courtesy of Kristian Day via Blazing Saddle
