A page to reminisce about what was considered by many to be the most important community driven music venue in Cleveland. Do it Yourself ..
When Speak in Tongues started I had recently moved out of my parents home in Garfield Hts and moved into the Tremont neighborhood with Brian Strazak. He was in Grain and I was the bands friend, roadie, and hype man (ha ha) .. We soon moved into the SIT building and what started I never could have predicted. We met and saw so many great bands over the years. My feeling always was "if you don't like
01/14/2026
Just two optimistic nihilists from Cleveland sharing a good laugh and conversation here in Mesa. John came here for a pinball tournament and he is also making a book of all the flyers that were made for Speak In Tongues. He gave me a preview (it’s not done yet) and shared his thoughts on how he and Ron Kretch are doing the layout. I’m super excited to see it when it’s completed! I hope you are excited too!
08/06/2025
Times have changed and times are strange
Here I come, but I ain’t the same …
Mama, I’m coming home
Ozzy Osbourne
Thank you to very very kind, dear, generous friends I WILL be attending the benefit at Bar Lucci in Kent.
I will be in Cleveland from Aug 9 - Aug 16
There will be some great items in the raffle as well as an auction to raise funds for my cause. Another dear friend of many many years donated an original Derek Hess art piece (see my story, 31 / 100) titled “Cancer of the Soul” and will be up for auction at the event along with other great items!
Here is the information for the benefit event
When - Saturday August 9th
Where -
How much? $10 donation tickets / $5 and $10 raffle tickets, and silent auction on certain items.
Who will be there? , New Band, and more to be announced ⚡️
Raffle items have been most generously donated by and I’m sure others to come … there is also a rad photo of Three Studies for a Crucifiction taken at !
I’ll be posting more here as the event gets closer!
11/15/2024
I’m not a musician, I’m a bandmate. I accompany people and we make something together. It’s a fun process, which often consists of realizing you can add the most by being heard the least.
Aaron Cometbus
I wasn’t in the band but I’m sure grateful I was along for the ride!
Grain live recording from 924 Gilman Street in Berkeley CA. July 24, 1995
📸 at the Neil House 👍🏻
Thank you Tenzin for bringing this to life!
https://youtu.be/gqPTDKMc8wQ?si=GkRbSDsr3QkFdTkQ
Grain - Live at 924 Gilman Street July 14th, 1995 0:00 intro0:18 The Thrills Of A Race Car Driver5:15 Homestead9:28 ? - "This one's for Dan"12:09 Trout17:47 Void - "This is a slow burner"22:34 ? - "This is ...
10/10/2024
If you have an idea you’re excited about and you don’t bring it to life, it’s not uncommon for the idea to find its voice through another maker. This isn’t because the other artist stole your idea, but because the idea’s time has come.
Rick Rubin
For years after being a part of Speak in Tongues I had this idea that I would put together a book using all the flyers, calendars, and possible interviews with the bands that played the venue. Since then two small books have been published about the venues; and while the effort is appreciated I still felt the right story was not being told. A few days before I left for this short trip to Cleveland my former roommate at SIT and amazing artist Jake Kelly reached out to me to tell me that he and his partner Aaron at their publishing company wanted to create a book of all the found flyers from those years at SIT. He sent me a drop box of images so I could start identifying the flyers that I created for shows. Last night we met at his home in Larchmere and shared stories and laughed a lot about those years that still fuel our lives with amazement! I was on board when he messaged me and after last night I am 1000% on board!
Coming spring of 2025, title TBD a book of flyers that share the story of Speak In Tongues through Stone Church Press. Note - this is not my book, Jake and Aaron grabbed the idea and are bringing it to life!
I’m Big Dan, and I approve this message ❤️
10/22/2023
Everyone has got to realise you can't hold onto the past if you want any future. Each second should lead to the next one
Joe Strummer
Speak in Tongues … what can I say? It shaped a community and a city. I am beyond amazed and grateful at what we were able to pull off in this building - Modest Mouse, Murder City Devils, June of 44, Shipping News, Tortoise, Five Style, the Sea and Cake, Lee Ranaldo, Sam Prekop, Archer Prewitt, Jim O’_Rourke, Low, Ida, the Delta 72, the Warmer, Karate, The Mountain Goats, J Church, the Parasites, Get Up Kids, Ethyl Meserve, Boys Life, Knapsack, Golden, Trans Am, the Ex, Joan of Arc, Jimmy Eat World, and the Promise Ring .. more bands than I can count and I hope I never forget a single one. Meeting up with Brian, Dean, and Jay of Grain; along with Solid Brass Records head honcho and dear friend Jason put a ribbon on this trip home. Thank you Cleveland; you continue to give when I think there is nothing left to give
10/12/2022
Here is the interview with Grain on the Talking Out of Harmony Podcast! I hope you enjoy it!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/0uOuQ7BpjbQgNApnIB9bNF?si=qovPkkUMQ7W1VHFXCcORWw
S2 Ep. 3: GRAIN, a conversation with Brian Strazek, Dean Eshelman, Jay Kuebler, and Big Dan Santovin. Listen to this episode from Talking Out of Harmony on Spotify. Today on Talking Out of Harmony, we have a familiar voice with some new friends, that’s right Big Dan is back and he’s brought a crew along with him, the gentlemen of GRAIN. Grain's members were Brian Strazek, Dean Eshelman, Jay Kueb...
07/26/2022
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CgdEWjEpyOQ/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=
Daniel Santovin on Instagram: "Link to the podcast is in the Bio!" Daniel Santovin shared a post on Instagram: "Link to the podcast is in the Bio!". Follow their account to see 6017 posts.
07/25/2022
Episode 10: Big Dan Santovin/Speak In Tongues Listen to this episode from Talking Out of Harmony on Spotify. Today on Episode 10 of Talking Out of Harmony, we SPEAK IN TONGUES with our friend “Big” Dan Santovin. We discuss his upbringing in Garfield Heights, Ohio, his introduction into skateboarding, the foundations of what would become Cle...
07/25/2022
It’s always a little strange when you here your own voice. I never wanted to be the guy who said, “hey! Look at me!” But today I’m happy to share what I thought was a great interview with my old friend Dan Moore, or more affectionately “Little Dan”.
We cover me being raised Mormon in Ohio by convert parents (we had no idea what we were doing), getting my first skateboard, finding music outside of the home, moving to California, working for “famous” people and then moving to Arizona to wander the desert for 11 years.
It’s been an adventure! I hope you enjoy .. let me know what you think!
Link in the Bio
Yes, I do love sports - Lebron is amazing and the Guardians will always be my Major League
07/20/2022
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5AtQFN6WwuwR5Au9KwOYxI?si=8HJVFlqHT_mRVsP2T1e-hQ
The first Speak in Tongues playlist of bands that you might like that played at the venue
Speak In Tongues Playlist · Daniel P Santovin · 74 items · 39 saves
07/15/2022
Speak in Tongues alumni Dan Santovin (Big Dan) will take to the podcast of Dan Moore this week .. I’m sure we’ll talk about SIT 🤷🏻♂️
The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why ~
Mark Twain
Born and raised and a little bit crazed … Ohio runs through my veins. Some of my favorite people and favorite memories. On Saturday I’m recording a podcast with my old friend Dan Moore and we are going to talk about Cleveland, music, skateboarding, California, Arizona and Anasazi .. I’m really looking forward to it!