Editor: Sarah Étoile Cover Design: Sarah Étoile Writers: Brendan Barlow Sarah Étoile Layout Design: Sarah Étoile Photo Contributers: Alex Richler Will Winter Naomi Rain Sarah Étoile
Top Movies of 2010 Tops Bands and Musicians of 2010 Top Albums of 2010 Music Review Interviews The Maddigans Data Romance What To Expect in 2011
Top 10 Movies Of 2010 Written by: Brendan Barlow
10. Tron: Legacy One of the slickest movies I saw this year, but lacking drastically in the story department. If you miss this movie in theatres then between now and the time it is released on 3D blu-ray, go out and buy a 3D TV, and the best surround sound system you can possibly get your hands on. Then watch Tron. It’s not one that will hold up on its own, storywise. However the slick 3D effects and Daft Punk soundtrack make it my number 10. 9. Shutter Island Leo has had an amazing year, plain and simple. This movie was no exception. It was intense, scary and mind bending. Any movie that leaves you arguing about the ending has obviously had the desired effect. It’s moody, dark and oh-sosatisfying as a mystery. 8. Toy Story 3 If you saw this and it didn’t damn near destroy your being with both joy and sadness. Just as good as the first 2 and 100 times as heart wrenching. Pixar has proven once again that they cannot be beaten (save for Cars… because I mean. wow). What a treasure. If you didn’t well up watching this, you have no soul. Seek therapy. If you didn’t like it, same thing. 7. Unthinkable This little gem seemed to get totally over looked. Probably because Samuel L Jackson’s anger-face was splashed across the cover and that sends some pretty negative connotations. However, this time he delivers. This movie was surprisingly compelling and really left me with things to think about. I suggest you have a look at this one, it’s fantastic. Albeit a little cheesy at one or two points. Have a look, you won’t regret it. W 6. Piranha 3D This movie fulfilled my two theatre-going movie requirements. Or preferences, if that makes more sense. It was 3D and it was completely, and totally outrageously violent. If you didn’t see this movie in 3D and get a serious kick out of it, then you have zero sense of humor left. Try and enjoy yourself when you go to the movies, instead of being a douche. This movie had all of the camp, boobs and violence required of b-horror and what’s more, it was 3D. Suck it James Cameron. 5. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World This movie was great. Slick, action packed and wildly entertaining. I’m sure almost everyone who saw this felt the same way. Unfortunately it bombed in theatres, as many movies worth watching seem to do. Anyway, it was charming and even Michael Cera’s awkward one-tone acting really seemed to work for this one. So check it out, if you haven’t already.
4. The Town Ben Affleck knows his way around behind a camera. No one can deny that after his fantastic demonstration of directing chops when he graced us with Gone Baby Gone. He’s done it again, with a really thrilling flick about bank robbers in a small area of Boston. Though, anyone who is familiar with Ben’s appearances on Saturday Night Live might have gotten a good chuckle from his first line in his Boston accent. Beyond that, its great and I’m sure everyone who watched enjoyed it. Not to mention, Ben is j-a-c-k-e-d. 3. Black Swan One of the most gorgeous films I watched all year. Clint Mansell’s soundtrack and the dark and moody look of the movie permanently embedded it in my mind. Portman and Kunis give great, and incredibly disturbing performances and the movie all around was just beautiful. I have a feeling it’s going to be one of those movies that becomes an Oscar sensation that loses its beauty and becomes overrated and pretentious. See it before that. 2. The Social Network I was shocked at how compelling this movie was. Bombshell performances all around and an amazingly edge-of-yourseat story line. It made me interested in Facebook’s origins, and even moreso interested in, well…being rich as balls. He may not be a GOOD guy, but he sure as hell is a smart one. Check this movie out, it’s pretty amazing. David Fincher proves his chops yet again, and gives me even a little bit of hope for Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’s impending remake. 1. Inception Wow. Just … wow. This movie blew my mind on all levels. Christopher Nolan is on fire and just can’t seem to drop the ball. The same goes for Leo DiCaprio, the man has had a two movies on this list, and a career that puts many others to shame. If you didn’t enjoy this mind-bender then your top 10 flicks probably included Twilight and Yogi Bear. That’s mean, but it’s… probable. DiCaprio aside, there are some other amazing performances from Tom Brady and of course, Joseph Gordon-Loveitt. Who had to learn to run on a rotating hallway. If that doesn’t earn him some major props, I don’t know what does. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, look into it! That’s my main list. I will say though, that Harry Brown and Girl With The Dragon Tattoo were two of the best movies I saw this year, though they TECHNICALLY were released in 2009, so I didn’t put them on the list, due to sticking to stupid rules that I set for myself. So, watch those movies.Also, a few that I missed in theatres, and ran out of time to see, are True Grit, 127 Hours, The Fighter, Due Date, Faster, Harry Potter 7, It’s Kind Of A Funny Story, Hatchet 2, Easy A, and well, a couple of others. So if those are great, feel free to let me know. I’m sure I missed out or misjudged a few, but it’s only a top 10 list. So this is my top 10 list. Enjoy it and tell me your top 10 movies. I really do want to know! Thanks for reading guys, and please continue to do so!
Top Bands and Musicians of 2010 The following bands and musicians are my picks of the year 2010. They are chosen because of their devotion and dedication towards their music. The following were, and still are, working hard on their art. Whether they toured across the country, recorded new music, or released a new album, they earned some sort of success within the year of 2010. So therefore I wanted to acknowledge their hard work and expand most of the readers music taste. So that is why I chose the following. - Sarah Étoile
The Maddigans Edmonton, Alberta Genre: Pop-Punk www.myspace.com/themaddigans
Data Romance
Vancouver, British Columbia Genre: Pop www.dataromance.ca
Prom Night In Black And White Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Genre: Power Pop www.myspace.com/promnightinblackandwhite
The Red Threat
Edmonton, Alberta Genre: Post Hardcore www.myspace.com/theredthreat
Fall In Archaea Victoria, British Columbia Genre: Hardcore www.myspace.com/fallinarchaea
The Kick Off
Victoria, British Columbia Genre: Powerpop/Pop Punk www.myspace.com/thekickoffband
Unicron
Victoria, British Columbia Genre: Hardcore www.myspace.com/unicronwillrockyourface
The Perfect Trend
Nanaimo, British Columbia Genre: Alternative Rock www.myspace.com/perfecttend
On Call Heroes Victoria, British Columbia Genre: Pop Punk www.myspace.com/oncallheroes
We Are The City
Kelowna British Columbia Genre: Progressive Indie www.myspace.com/thecitiesmusic
Steph MacPherson Steph MacPherson Vancouver, British Columbia Genre: Folk/pop www.myspace.com/stephmacphersonmusic
Vancouver, British Columbia Genre: Folk/pop www.myspace.com/stephmacphersonmusic
Zachary Lucky
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Genre: Folk www.myspace.com/zacharylucky
Andy Shauf
Regina, Saskatchewan Genre: Acoustic/Folk www.myspace.com/andyshauf
Vince Vaccaro
Victoria, British Columbia Acoustic / Folk Rock www.myspace.com/vincevaccaro
Christopher Arruda Nanaimo, British Columbia Genre: Rock/Folk www.myspace.com/christopherarruda
The Bravest Ghost
Yorkton, Saskatchewan Genre: Folk/Pop www.myspace.com/thebravestghost
Jordan Klassen Calgary, Alberta Genre: Folk/Pop www.myspace.com/jordanklassen
That Sunny Girl Victoria, British Columbia Genre: Acoustic www.myspace.com/thatsunnygirl
Christina Wynans Port Alberni, British Columbia Genre: Pop/Jazz www.myspace.com/christinawynans
Aidan Knight
Victoria, British Columbia Genre: Pop/Soul www.myspace.com/aidanknightmusic
Top Ten Albums of 2010 Versicolour - Aidan Knight Brotherhood - On Call Heroes Alive Together - The Kick Off Powerbomb - Unicron Trees - The Red Threat The Swaine - Christopher Arruda Of Fools and Gold - Jason Zerbin Way To Start This - The Maddigans Bears, Mayors, Scraps & Bones - Cancer Bats Dog’s Blood - Alexisonfire The Suburbs - Arcade Fire
Music Review Way To Start This - The Maddigans Way To Start This is The Maddigans second EP, and to be frankly honest it’s really good. I thoroughly really enjoy it. But if you don’t like upbeat pop-punk, then well suck it up, this is about pop-punk. The first track (Hold It Down) grasps your attention with an intro of the drums, bass, then following with Trisha’s, amazing vocals. The second track which is coincidentally called Way To Start This, and it happens to be one of my favorite tracks off the EP, along with Diamond Rings and Pretty Things. Both, and all the songs on Way To Start This are all superb, it’s hard to criticize and get into major and minor detail how well structured everything is. Each song on this EP flows and goes well with each other, and all the songs have a nice catcy sound to it, and you will remember each song after listening to it. I strongly suggest you pick up Way To Star This, it’s an amazing EP and you will enjoy it. It’s something different, in a good way.
Interview: The Maddigans
www.myspace.com/themaddigans What is your favourite part about writing and playing music? There’s barely anything we dislike about it. We love touring the most though. What influences your music style? Were mostly influenced by Pop Punk bands, both older and new wave. Blink 182 to The Maine and everything in between. What are your goals as a band? To be able to consistently tour independently. One of our biggest goals has been a US tour which is happening in spring 2011! We hope for it to be the first of many! So you’ve toured with several different bands of different genres. What bands and tours stood out for you? And which crowd was your favorite? We love every band we’ve toured with. Lots of Western Canada has a pretty underground scene and it has been cool playing diverse shows where the kids watch every band. Then you go out east to Ontario and Quebec where there are a lot more bands so the shows are a little more matching. Either way were just happy to play. Can’t honestly pick a favorite crowd we love them all. How was Warped Tour? What was the most memorable moments from the experience? ****ing hot and extremely fun. We hung out for about 10 shows in the states and it was very cool to meet so many people as well as watch our favorite bands every day. Trying to sleep in the van when it was +25 Celcius was brutal though. For some reason our GPS decided to take us to the middle of the Bronx on our way through NYC, which was definitely an interesting experience. What are some of your plans for 2011? First up is a Canadian Music Week showcase in Toronto at the Hard Rock on March 11th. Then as we mentioned before we are touring the US. After that we will be coming back to Ontario, Quebec and Western Canada. We missed BC last time so well be making up for that. Thanks for the interview and best wishes in ‘11! :) <3 The Maddigans
Interview: Data Romance www.dataromance.ca
Is there a significant meaning behind the name, Data Romance? If so, what is it? Amy: We used to go under the band name “Names”, which was impossible to search on the internet, so we changed our name to Data Romance which I think represents us as well as our sound. Ajay: Data Romance as a name did come about more as a necessity than anything else, but I think shortly after we decided on it we realized that it did apply a lot to our sound, our personalities and our way of working. In your own opinion and words, how is Data Romance different from Names? Amy: I think the name change came at just the right time. Our sound was evolving at a quick speed, and it went from somewhat chill and lounge sounding, to more upbeat and experimental. We’re still the same band we always were, and we’ll always be changing sounds to fit our moods, and we’ll always be inspired by the music that we listen to as well. What made you two decide to make music together? Amy: Jay had written some instrumental tracks, and asked me to sing on them. It was definitely a side project at first, but somewhere along the way we realized how well we worked together as partners, and wanted to make the band a priority. Ajay: Yeah it wasn’t a very serious or big decision when we first started at all. But it is a good fit and being a duo has a lot of perks that a 5-piece band doesn’t. Could you briefly describe the music-making process? Amy: Plain and simple. Jay makes beats, sends them to me, and I write vocals. Those are the first steps, then we get together and workshop the tracks until we’re happy with them. We’re both perfectionists, and to be honest I’m surprised we ever release anything haha. We could work on songs forever really. Ajay: Yeah I definitely feel like we can always do better, and at certain points you just have to cut yourself off and be like “ok, this song is done. Don’t touch it anymore.” I think that’s a good thing though. When it stops feeling like we can do better in the future, I’ll probably just stop making music.
How would you describe your music to someone that has never heard of you two before? Amy: I’m horrible at describing our sound. I would probably ramble on about electronic, pop something, then just get frustrated and play them a song. At the same time I’m proud of not being able to categorize our sound. It keeps things fresh. Ajay: I pulled this quote out on another interview we did recently, but a fan tweeted it and it’s the most succinct description I’ve heard of us yet: “It’s like 2-step and trance got married and had two hot kids.” I don’t know about the validity of the second half, but I just like how that whole phrase sounds. So your song Bones has been getting a lot of hype lately, first off congratulations. WSecondly, what is the meaning behind the song? What was the inspiration for it? Amy: I can tell you the inspiration definitely came from a very real place, and very real situation in my life. The meaning is really just what the lyrics read.. “I cannot divide my heart from these bones.” I have a very hard time separating my actions from my feelings. I wear my heart on my sleeve, and I’ve been told I’m too emotional on many occasions. But hey, it writes songs, and it’s who I am. If you could collaborate with anyone, music-wise, who would it be? Amy: Lykke Li and Thom Yorke.. together preferably. Ajay: Mr. Trent Reznor.... but I’d probably just want him to do everything cause I couldn’t do it as good. So maybe that’s a bad call. I’d love to work with Apparat too. Same deal though. I’d also love to work with Ross Robinson who’s an amazing producer, but mostly cause his techniques are notoriously vicious and I’d like to see what Amy’s vocals would sound like. What are some of your plans for 2011? Amy: Definitely to release an album, and get a solid live show going. But other than that it’s pretty up in the air at the moment. Jay and I want to do anything and everything this year, including more videos, singles, and maybe even a mixtape. Ajay: We want to start getting more content out there on a regular basis for sure. I think an EP will be first, then hopefully a full album and a mixtape before the year is out.
What To Expect in 2011 Albums 21 - Adele The Rookie - Everyone Everywhere Gatherings - Fall In Archaea In Severance - The Perfect Trend Endgame - Rise Against Recklessa and Relentless - Asking Alexandria Goodbye Lullabye - Avril Lavigne Lupercalia - Patrick Wolf Born This Way - Lady Gaga The Internetz - Radiohead Half Fold The Univerese IWRESTLEDABEARONCE Enter Shikari The Wonder Years Say Anything Taking Back Sunday Tenacious D Blink 182 We Are The City Movies The Green Hornet - 14 January The Rite - 28 January The Roommate - 4 February Paul - 18 March Sucker Punch - 25 March Scream 4 - 15 April Priest - 13 May The Hangover 2 - 26 May The Resident - Spring 2011 Green Lantern - 17 June Rise of the Apes - 24 June Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part Two 15 July Captain America: The First Avenger - 22 July Cowboys and Aliens - 29 July Sherlock Holmes 2 - 16 December The Muppets - 25 December Red State John Dies At The End Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Be Afraid of the Dark The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn