This weekend at the Spinning Plate Gallery in East Liberty, Unicorn Mountain presents "Tomb of the Spy Magicians."

	Andy Kehoe's illustration of a Strickle can be found in Unicorn Mountain's "Wolfman's Got Nards: A Compendium of New American Monsters." "In certain parts of rural West Virginia and Blawnox, fried Strickelkin legs are considered a delicacy." Click photo for larger image.

OK, it sounds like a prog-rock show with lots of fog, robes and keyboards -- but it's not.

It's a two-day event showcasing the city's comic art, small press publications and independent music, organized by Unicorn Mountain, a cross-disciplinary art collective, along with art-zine Encyclopedia Destructica.

"We're trying to marry the idea of an indie comics show with a small press convention with the beginnings of a Pittsburgh music festival, and our idea is to do it under one roof," says Curt Gettman of Unicorn Mountain. "As we grow we'd like to open it up to people out of town."

On Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., artists, comic creators, zinesters and "other crafty Pittsburghers" will showcase their work. Unicorn Mountain will debut a new art book called "Wolfman's Got Nards: A Compendium of New American Monsters," which features a new monster creation on every page (it was recently lauded on USA Today's Pop Candy blog (blogs.usatoday.com/popcandy/). Then, from 7 p.m. to midnight, there is a hard-hitting underground music lineup with Don Caballero, Zombi, Black Moth Super Rainbow and Washington, D.C.'s the Apes.

		Tomb of the Spy Magicians When: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday for tabling (free), followed by music 7 p.m. ($5); workshops and acoustic music noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Where: Spinning Plate Gallery, 5720 Friendship Ave., East Liberty. Details: www.unicornmountain.com.

On Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. there will be book-binding and print-making workshops, readings and acoustic music by Julie Sokolow and Phil Boyd (Modey Lemon).

"We didn't want it to be just a comic show where people sit behind a table and sell stuff," Gettman says. "We wanted to there to be workshops and seminars for people interested in doing things themselves."

And where does the music fit in?

"A lot of the creators involved in Unicorn Mountain are also in bands," Gettman says. "It's kind of a zeitgeist. The people interested in music and art are all the same kids. Whether it turns out to be something musical, illustrated or painted, there's incredible work coming out of Pittsburgh that we want people to know about. There is a great energy in the underground, and people are supporting each other."

Gettman even sees the city's gritty work ethic extending to its art scene. "Unlike other so-called scenes, there's a refreshing absence of poseurs and pretentiousness here. Pittsburgh creators value integrity -- they're more interested in doing the work than looking the part. Maybe it's our blue-collar roots."