Gossip Should Have No Friends

[April 5th, 2006] BARE TALK Scoop sure wishes Lars Larson were a conventionally prudish right-winger. First Larson was Photoshopped into a Brokeback-style bed scene with Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron Saxton for the cover of local mag BrainstormNW (brainstormnw.com). Now comes this revealing shot of the syndicated talk jock getting a real bareback rubdown . The photo was taken for the cover of national talk-show publication Talkers. Ugh. Since the image leaves us speechless and Larson himself could not be reached for comment before press time, perhaps our readers can help us explain what's goin' on here . Email your caption suggestion for this cover image to kclarke@wweek.com by Monday, April 10. Pen the best caption and win a pair of tix to the hottest political party of the year, Candidates Gone Wild, coming up May 1.

SOLD SKY Reports reached Scoop's desk that Bold-Sky Cafe & Studios , North Mississippi Avenue's year-and-a-half-old restaurant/art space/bar/reading room was kaput. But the real skinny is that owner Nicole Davis is selling the space to her good buddy Jim Brunberg —the owner of next-door neighbor Mississippi Studios . She won't talk money, but the plan is to combine the spaces and create one big venue under the working title of Mississippi Station later this year. According to Davis, Brunberg's spot will still be a live music venue. Bold-Sky will become its "local, organic, sustainable" tavern counterpart, in addition to functioning as a Parisian-style salon where Davis will host everything from poetry nights to fire dancing.

ECHO CHAMBER Seattle's Band of Horses played to a packed crowd at Doug Fir last Wednesday night. But their best—or most intimate—Portland performance came across the street in Galaxy's karaoke lounge. Hours after opening for Jason Collett, and a few glasses of Maker's Mark later, Horses frontman Ben Bridwell showed off his vocal stylings with Garth Brooks' "Friends in Low Places," followed by bassist Matt Brooke's rendition of "18 and Life" by Skid Row. Scoop is pleased to report that Band of Horses chose wisely when Bridwell, not Brooke, was named their singer.