''UKULA Magazine'' was an independent arts and culture quarterly founded in 2004, based in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It was created by co-founders Kevin Renton and Graeme Maclean, who first started out DJing under the now well known UKULA moniker at the city's Andy Poolhall in 2002. Copies of ''UKULA'' were to be found throughout the cities of Toronto,

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. Plans were underway to extend full distribution to include

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

, though limited distribution was available in these two cities. In addition to publishing its glossy magazine, UKULA also had event planning and arts/culture consultancy departments catering to local bands and haute couture fashion houses interested in promoting their brand. Leah Rumack, writing for

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

, described the store as the "ground zero for all things impossibly cool in music, books and fashion".

History

After a year in Toronto, Renton and Maclean relocated to Montreal in 2003, where they continued their series of popular DJ nights. A year later, the first issue of ''UKULA Magazine'' hit the streets, a slim staple-bound 32 page paperbacked-sized volume that included interviews with then up-and-coming bands

Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's current touring line-up also includes former core member ...

and

Kasabian Kasabian ( ) are an English rock band formed in Leicester in 1997 by lead vocalist Tom Meighan, guitarist and occasional vocalist Sergio Pizzorno, guitarist Chris Karloff, and bassist Chris Edwards. Drummer Ian Matthews joined in 2004. Karl ...

. By the third issue, the magazine had evolved into a vibrant, glossy (with an average length of just over 100 pages), professionally bound magazine, with content about film, literature, travel and fashion. Renton and Maclean returned to Toronto in August 2006, and opened the UKULA boutique on 492 College St. A multi-purpose venue that could be converted for stage concerts and parties, the storefront featured a street-level lounge-style cafe, and sold books, magazines, CDs, and clothing. The magazine offices were located in the building's basement. Events at the UKULA store included the Canadian book launch of Stephen Hall's ''

The Raw Shark Texts ''The Raw Shark Texts'' is the debut novel by British author Steven Hall, released in 2007. The book was released by Canongate Books in the US and the UK and published by HarperCollins in Canada. The title is a play on " Rorschach Tests", whi ...

'', as well as concert performances by

Born Ruffians Born Ruffians are a Canadian indie rock band based in Toronto. Officially founded in 2004 in the Georgian Bay town of Midland, Ontario, the band is composed of frontman Luke Lalonde, bassist Mitch DeRosier, and drummer Steve Hamelin. During the ...

and The Coast. On November 5, 2005, the UKULA Bright Lights Festival in Toronto's

Distillery District The Distillery District is a commercial and residential district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, east of downtown, which contains numerous cafés, restaurants, and shops housed within heritage buildings of the former Gooderham and Worts Distillery. ...

featured bands such as

Elbow The elbow is the region between the arm and the forearm that surrounds the elbow joint. The elbow includes prominent landmarks such as the olecranon, the cubital fossa (also called the chelidon, or the elbow pit), and the lateral and the me ...

The Duke Spirit The Duke Spirit are an English rock band based in London. Their sound has been seen as a melding of influences ranging from alternative rock bands such as The Jesus and Mary Chain and Spiritualized, the tremulous rock'n'roll of bands such as T ...

, Stirling, The Call Up and

the Meligrove Band The Meligrove Band is a Canadian indie rock band, based in Toronto, and consisting of Jason Nunes on vocals, guitar and piano, Darcy Rego on vocals and drums, Brian O'Reilly on guitar and synthesizer, and Michael Small on bass guitar. History T ...

. The 2007

Virgin Festival The Virgin Fest, known as the Virgin Mobile FreeFest in the United States, was a rock festival held in the United States and Canada, a spin-off from the V Festival held in the UK. In North America the Virgin name, and more recently the Virgin M ...

Afterparty hosted at UKULA featured a performance by

The Cinematics The Cinematics were an alternative rock band founded in 2003 in Glasgow, Scotland, and disbanded in 2011. The band released two full-length albums, '' A Strange Education'' (2007) and '' Love and Terror'' (2009), as well as a five-track EP, " ...

, and attracted members of

Metric Metric or metrical may refer to: * Metric system, an internationally adopted decimal system of measurement * An adjective indicating relation to measurement in general, or a noun describing a specific type of measurement Mathematics In mathem ...

Smashing Pumpkins Smash may refer to: People * Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler * Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above. * DJ Smash, DJ and music producer Ar ...

and

The Killers The Killers are an American rock band formed in Las Vegas in 2001 by Brandon Flowers (lead vocals, keyboards, bass) and Dave Keuning (lead guitar, backing vocals). After going through a number of short-term bass players and drummers in t ...

. The magazine and its storefront and website all folded in 2008.

References

{{Reflist

External links

''Ukula'' website
(archived)
''Now'' Magazine: Store of the Week: Feb. 2007

(archived)
Profile on the McGill Daily
2004 establishments in Ontario 2008 disestablishments in Ontario Alternative magazines Visual arts magazines published in Canada Defunct magazines published in Canada Magazines published in London Magazines established in 2004 Magazines disestablished in 2008 Magazines published in Toronto Magazines published in Montreal Magazines published in New York (state) Mass media in Edinburgh Independent magazines