Steve Newton, who once touched skull rings with Keith Richards, is one of the longest-serving employees at the Georgia Straight. He started back in '82 after enquiring if the paper needed someone to cover a Black Sabbath concert. Beginning as a freelance rock writer and part-time proofreader, he graduated to full-time typesetter, then was christened Time Out (listings) Editor by then-editor and art director Bob Mercer, who liked what Steve had written about his band, the Dirty Shirts. During his time at the Straight "the Newt" has penned more than a dozen cover stories on local bands, music producers, and the horror scene, and in April of 2010 started up the Ear of Newt blog, so he could write about whatever he damn well wanted. His other journalistic claim to fame involves being Vancouver correspondent for renowned horror mag Fangoria for a lucky 13 years. He enjoys reading Michael Connelly novels, listening to blues and guitar-rock, and wanking around on his Strat. He also enjoys touching skull rings with Keith Richards.