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JULY/AUG 2019
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Janet Adamana
ASSOCIATE EDITOR Ally Sigurdson PROMOTIONS DIRECTOR Steff Shields
Outspoken Hearts, Restless As Sharks Note From The Editor
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Rise & Repeat Tobey Kai talks her new EP, Running
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Manitoba Summer Festival Guide Summer music festivals during July/August
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Artists to Watch Our Artist Picks for July/August
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SPF X ALICE RL Lookbook Learn all about the SPF X Project
STAFF WRITERS Graeme Houssin Candace Houle
SOUND, PHRASE & FURY is a Canadian music magazine out to promote musicians not usually covered in mainstream media. All music, photos and articles used are for the purpose of spreading the knowledge of these artists and their music. We always encourage readers to support every act by purchasing releases, merchandise and attending live shows.
info@soundphrasefury.com @soundphrasefury facebook.com/soundphrasefury soundphrasefury.com
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+ EDITOR’S NOTE
OUTSPOKEN HEARTS, RESTLESS AS SHARKS 'Out with the bitter cold that beckons you to sit around and listen to the saddest of songs. ‘Tis the season to bust out the upbeat jams, and dance-inducing anthems.' It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Summer As with every year, the guide is brimming is finally here and we at team SOUND, PHRASE & with weekend-after-weekend full of awesome activities all over our amazing region to help you FURY could not be happier about it. make the best of the season. Out with the bitter cold that beckons you to sit around and listen to the saddest of songs. ‘Tis the As our scene grows and changes with the times, season to bust out the upbeat jams, and dance- so does the guide. This year we have the pleasure inducing anthems… and blast them in-between of welcoming a few brand new festivals into the mix, spanning almost every genre from classic all those sad songs. rock to indie-pop, ensuring there is fun to be had Our July/August issue is one of our absolute no matter what music you like. favourites to bring you as it allows us to dive deep into the arts and culture scene of our fantastic Join us this summer as we sit in the glorious province to bring you our annual Manitoba sunshine while soaking in all the amazing talent our province (and country) has to offer. Summer Festival Guide.
Save me the daylight Janet Adamana Editor-In-Chief
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+ Q&A
RISE & REPEAT For Canadian musician Tobey Kai, music has always been a vessel for her to shine a light on important issues; from Alzheimer's, environmentalism, and cancer awareness. Her goal has always been to use her songwriting and voice to enrich and enlighten the world. After a terrible ski accident that left her with a severe brain injury, her music became something even more: a motivational tool and a physical and emotional healing mechanism. While her body was healing, Kai pushed herself to continue writing her debut EP, Running. The four-song release became a project to keep her going, a future to look forward to and a way to continue her humanitarian efforts. Tobey Kai spoke with us about her selfless nature, her resilience, and how she came out of such a devastating incident with so much heart, hope, and even humour.
STORY BY JANET ADAMANA PHOTO COURTESY OF NICE MARMOT PR
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Music is more than a creative outlet for you and has helped you through some recent hard times. Tell me a bit more about that. TK: I had a brain hemorrhage in January. I fell on a ski hill, and as I was laying there, another skier struck my brain; they just ran over my head. I lost consciousness and became paralyzed from the neck down. For a long time, I couldn’t do much. I couldn’t walk. I wasn’t talking well. I didn't think well, but I had music. At the time, I had just recorded my first single, “Who Are You," which was dedicated to memory loss – the irony in that. I was in the hospital, and my producer sent me the master of the song. He had no idea what had happened. I was in the neurosurgery ward, and I heard the song. I wrote it before my accident. It was a snapshot of me imagining what it would be like to lose my memory, and there I was, without my memory listening to
what I had [written]. It was unreal. Music helped me tie myself back together. For a long time, there was a huge gap in my memories and of who I was. I didn’t know what I was like before [the accident]. There was just no sense of me, and music helped heal that and bring back a lot of those memories. Were you still recovering when you started writing again? TK: Yeah, I’m still recovering. There’s a lot of cognitive problems I’m still dealing with, but I was able to move around after a few months, so we made a workstation for me, where I could be propped up, and I could write and play. At first, writing was difficult. My neck had been badly injured, and just from being out for that long, it takes a little bit of time to get back into it. I wrote a song after I had recovered a bit called “Ondine,” which is the second song on my EP. That was dedicated to ocean conservation awareness.
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'Long story short, I want to leave the planet in a better state than how it was when I came into it.' In that situation, most people would have been like, ‘I’m going to take this time off. I’m going to be in bed and let my body do whatever it needs to.’ What made you so driven to get yourself back to where you left off with your music? TK: It wasn’t like I had a baby and I was recovering from that. It was more, this horrible crap got thrown at me, and that sucks, but if I let it take any more time away from me, that’s time I will never get back. That’s always how I’ve felt about my time. It’s so precious. I didn’t expect to survive that accident. With subarachnoid hemorrhages, 30% of people die right away, and another 30% of people have a lifelong impairment. I was thinking, ‘what if I never get past this point? What if this is as good as I’ll ever be, and I’m just waiting for years, and I never get there?’ There was also the risk of vasospasms where your blood vessels go crazy, and you end up back in the hospital with something similar. I thought, ‘I’m not going to wait for that to happen to me!’ Writing your entire EP throughout your recovery, what does it mean to you to finally have it out now? TK: I feel grateful that I was able to do it, but mostly, I feel relieved that I was able to do it. I wasn’t sure if I could ever sing again or write something coherent. I’m thinking with a damaged brain right now, but I feel like I did pretty well [laughs]. I think pre-brain damaged me would still be proud of what I’ve done.
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I've finally finished it even though it came out way later than expected. When I first started writing, I felt I needed to use my voice to bring awareness to things that matter the most. It always bothered me when people who have that power don’t care enough to use that power to influence other people in a positive way. I’m not Angelina Jolie or Beyonce, but I do have a voice. I can write, and I can put ideas out there, and I needed to make this EP about things I care about. I just needed to get it out there and hope that with every song I put out it brings more attention to my music and therefore brings more attention to these causes. Where does that sense of advocacy come from? TK: I’m not sure. Starting from a young age, I’ve always cared immensely for all living things, not only people, not just animals but living things in general and I think that’s part of the reason I became a biologist. I think all of that is just my nature, good upbringing, and a good environment. I wouldn’t say I had a peaceful childhood, but I had a dog and he kind of taught me what unconditional love and empathy means and how all these quoteunquote, 'lesser lifeforms’ truly give back to us and how much we need them more than they need us. I think that’s how it all began. Long story short, I want to leave the planet in a better state than how it was when I came into it.
Tell me about your new song coming out? TK: That song is called “Commandeer.” The first time I heard that word was in Pirates of the Caribbean. Commandeer is a term that’s used to describe hijacking – when someone steals a ship, which is what happened in [the movie]. When I think about [the word], I think about this one toad, and when I mean, ‘toad’ – we’ve all heard the story of the princess and the toad – I’ve kissed a lot of toads [laughs]. There’s one in particular, and his story is so ridiculous, so it’s about a person who can’t keep their hands to themselves, and how as women we’re so unconditionally loving and forgiving, that we keep going back. It’s the story of how I felt at the time, told in a jovial way. For once it’s not about something dark like the other songs - Alzheimer's, cancer, or ocean conservation, it’s just about a horrible, horrible boyfriend [laughs]. Had your songwriting switched because you went through so much while writing? TK: That’s the one thing that hasn’t changed. I had written the first song about Alzheimer's and dementia before my accident, and so I had already planned to have this entire album dedicated to those causes. The last song was a bit of a curveball. Initially, I wanted the last song to be dedicated to environmentalism, but one of my best friends was diagnosed with breast cancer and another rare type of cancer in February. That song [“Running”] was written, produced, finished within three months and it's dedicated to her. She’s running an
Q&A +
ultra-half marathon this year. It’s 101 kilometres. I’ll be singing it to send her off and then meeting her at the finish line. Going forward, is that the route you'll continue to take or are you more dabbling in whatever you are experiencing at the time? TK: My music is a diary of who I am and I think that’s the way it should be. I think everyone should write music for themselves. The minute you start writing with the full intent of just selling your music, that’s when it loses that magic. Depending on where I am in my life [my songs] might be different. My music might be darker. It could be heavier, but it could even be comical. I think empathy and humanitarianism is the core foundation of who I am, and that’s not going to change. Whether or not I’m going to write every song about that depends on how I’m feeling. Even people who sympathize with these causes don’t really want to listen to how the earth is dying on three different albums, and I don’t want to sing about that all the time either [laughs].
Stream Tobey Kai's new EP, Running through Spotify and Apple Music. Stay up to date through her official website, Facebook and Instagram. Stay tuned for her new single, “Commandeer" when it comes out July 19th, streaming on all major platforms.
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COME JOIN THE LOST SOULS SOUNDPHRASEFURY.BIGCARTEL.COM
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A B O T I N
MA F R E M M U S E D I GU 12
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L A V I T S FE SOAK IN THE SWEET MANITOBAN SUN & SOUNDS Summer in Manitoba means high humidity, sunny blue skies, and the festival circuit and its guaranteed great times. With so much summer fun to do and only so many weeks, we know the importance of making the best of your time. To help you plan this season’s musical intake, we’ve compiled the best music and arts events for you to hit this summer.
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HEART
July 5 – 7 • Hilltop Resort, Beconia, MB
TION A N E F TH
New to the summer festival list is Hilltop Resort’s Heart of The Nation Music Festival. The fest’s inaugural year kicks things off with a bang featuring a roster full of heavy hitters and beloved up-and-comers including Sweet Alibi, Attica Riots, Odder Than The Otters, Ego Spank and so much more. This familyfriendly fest offers a weekend full of some of Manitoba’s best in the folk & country scene, for a wallet-friendly price: adult early bird passes are $44 and includes camping for up to seven nights.
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July 11 – 14 • Bird’s Hill Provincal Park Manitoba’s top festival for the past 45 years; this year’s roster boasts 70+ amazing acts from Canada and around the globe including The Sheepdogs, Kacey Musgraves, Death Cab for Cutie and Jason Mraz. Sharing the stage among these superstars are tons of local favourites like Taylor Janzen, Olivia Lunny, Begonia, Roman Clarke, Two Crows for Comfort and William Prince. This year also marks the 20th anniversary of the STRINGRAY Young Performers Program, helping foster local youth talent and launch their musical careers. This year’s program includes Carson Friesen, Erika Fowler, Heidi Wright, and Katherine Fischer.
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July 26 – 28 • Teulon, MB The Real Love Summer Fest takes over Teulon July 26 - 28. Produced by show promotion company, Real Love Winnipeg, it’s one of Manitoba’s most beloved festivals and always presents the cream of the crop of Canadian acts year after year. This year’s organizers have brought together a multitude of local favourites in the indie, pop, and rock scene. Dance under the prairie night sky with Begonia, Ivory Waves, JayWood, Mulligrub, Odd Outfit, Silence Kit and so much more. As one of the city’s biggest advocates for inclusive spaces, Real Love Summer Fest is a safe and welcoming event for all music-lovers.
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FESTIVAL GUIDE +
EMOTION Aug 1 – 5 • St Laurent, MB Melding art and electronic music is the Emotion Arts and Music Festival. Taking over Stony Ridge Campground in St. Laurent, the fest features over 90 DJs and dance-worthy acts from around the world. This year’s lineup includes Nicky Genesis, X-Ray Ted, Monkey Twerk, Sleepless Dragon, and Kilma. The event also consists of four nights of camping, beach parties, and a relaxing movie night.
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Aug 2 – 4 • Minnedosa, MB Every August long weekend, the rock gods bless the festival grounds in Minnedosa to bring you Rockin The Fields of Minnedosa, the Province’s premiere classic rock fest. This year fans can catch April Wine, Collective Soul, Tom Cochrane with Red Rider, Sam Roberts Band, Harlequin, Sass Jordan and more. Festival camping and day passes are available.
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Aug 2 – 4 • Lac du Bonnet, MB Taking over Lac du Bonnet and filling it with the most fantastic acts in the funk, soul, roots and folk scenes from around the world, is the Fire & Water Music Festival. The three-day weekend fest features Brent Parkin, Cohen Sieg, Ken Kansas, Jaxon Haldane, and Raine Hamilton and is bound to get the entire audience up to dance. Along with the talent-filled line up, the event also has their annual Artisan Square Craft Trade Show featuring some of Manitoba’s top makers.
FIRE & WA TER MUSIC
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IVAL T S E F DIC N A L E IC OBA T I N A OF M
Aug 2 – 5 • Gimli, MB
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Celebrating the Interlake’s history and culture is the Icelandic Festival of Manitoba (Islendingadagurinn). This familyfriendly staple brings together people from all walks of life to enjoy the beautiful lakefront and landscapes of Gimli, its rich history and take in great local talent. Musical acts include Brooke Palsson, Slow Leaves, Ariel Posen, Aurora Peiluk and Kieran Bjornson. New events making their debut this year are the Icelandic Fashion Show and Fjallkona Tea, the Gimli Film Festival Icelandic Film Screening, and a collaboration between the Music on the Rooftop and the Art Show to celebrate the art show’s 50th year.
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Aug 15 – 1 8 • Winnipeg, MB The city’s ultra electronic music festival celebrates their tenth year and ascends upon downtown Winnipeg this August. This year includes musical acts on five different stages: The Met Rooftop, The Pyramid Cabaret, The Garrick, 91 Albert, and The Cube in Old Market Square. A festival turning ten is no easy feat, and organizers celebrate this milestone with a roster brimming with the most prominent electro acts the world has to offer including Elle Fast, Joe Silva, Stacey Pullen, Danger Bay, Billy Dalessandro, DJ Lyer and more.
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Aug 16 – 18 • St. Malo, MB Rainbow Trout Music Festival is the premiere event dedicated to great times and good vibes. Set on a small private quarry in St. Malo, this festival keeps its audience tight-knit and its line up always bumping with the best local acts. Guaranteed to make you laugh, cry, sway and dance the night away is this year’s roster featuring Juniper Bush, JayWood, Apollo Suns, Lana Winterhalt, Kenzie Jane, Royal Canoe and more. Every year also features a community art station and installation, their famous cribbage tournament, and days to float along the oh-so-relaxing ice-cold quarry. It sounds like the swellest of times, doesn't it?
FESTIVAL GUIDE +
HARVEST
Aug 16 – 18 • Kelwood, MB
At the Harvest Sun Music Fest, you come as strangers but leave as family. The always welcoming and communityoriented festival is set in western Manitoba and brings together rural and city folk like no other event. Festival organizers are dedicated to showcasing and celebrating Manitoban musicians, artists, small business owners, and farmers. Their mandate is to build a thriving rural community through music. This year’s line up includes prime acts in the country, folk, roots and indie-pop scenes like Mise En Scene, Sol James, Logan McKillop, Ego Spank, Matt Foster, Slow Spirit and so many more.
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Aug 22 – 25 • Kerry, MB Riding off the success of its inaugural year, the 2nd annual Hoot Owl festival takes over Kerry, MB with a line up full of the best of the best in indie-pop, rock, punk, and folk offering something for everyone. This year’s stage features Attica Riots, Mobina Galore, Sweet Alibi, Micah Erenberg, Malcolm Jay, House Handshake, and Sports Club. The event also features art installations and animations, fire dancing entertainment, local vendors as well as yoga and mindfulness workshops. If you’re looking for a well-rounded, all-encompassing fest, Hoot Owl is your best bet.
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Aug 23 – 25 • Portage Le Prairie, MB Winding down the always-awesome summer fest circuit is the Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival. Their theme this year is “Free Your Spirit,” and this event is definitely the way to do that. Located in a beautiful lot just outside Portage la Prairie, the festival features a whole slew of the finest folk music around in a gorgeous landscape full of nature trails and a wild pollinator garden; all tucked away in a magical place between the trees. Relax and recharge while listening to ATLAAS, Ashes & Dreams, The Rainy Day Apparel, Raine Hamilton, Two Crows for Comfort, Justin Lacroix, and Amy Brown.
HOLLAR F OLK FEST
Folk/Roots/A coustic Tickets
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+ ARTISTS TO WATCH COMPILED BY JANET ADAMANA
We’re welcoming the sunny skies and warmer weather with these artists added to our always-expanding summer playlists. We’ve searched all over to bring you some of our favourite artist picks for July and August!
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+ ALT-POP
90S KIDS COLUMBUS, OHIO
FACEBOOK • INSTAGRAM • LISTEN Don’t let their band name fool you, 90’s Kids isn’t some N*Sync & Spice Girls cover group. Instead, the Columbus, Ohio four-piece graces listeners with an addictive blend of late 80s pop, 90s R&B, indie-rock from the early 2000s, and current electro-pop. It sounds like a lot but the group seamlessly pull it off, serving up nothing short of a masterful time capsule of the best parts of each musical era. Providing a laid-back summer vibe, 90’s Kids is a must-have for a day trip to the beach or soaking up the sun with all the windows rolled down.
POP-ROCK
SUMMER HEIGHTS TORONTO, ONTARIO
FACEBOOK • INSTAGRAM • LISTEN Even emo kids can enjoy the sunshine this season, especially with Toronto pop-rock group, Summer Heights. The trio is giving us the feels of early All American Rejects, fellow Canadian pop-rockers Faber Drive and that golden era of teen heartache, that even the most put together millennial can relate to. The group may have just formed in 2017, but their debut EP, Sparks and their latest single, “GoneTooSoon” show that the young musicians are already off to a very good start.
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ARTISTS TO WATCH +
INDIE-ROCK
SPIELBERGS OSLO, NORWAY
FACEBOOK • INSTAGRAM • LISTEN Get ready for things to get nice and loud. Indie/alt-rock outfit, Spielbergs solidified a spot on our radar with their brand new album, This is Not The End. A little bit of 90s grunge, garage rock, and indie-rock thrown into a mixer with some glum emotions, the group spew out an unforgettable mix that’s fit for any rock-lovers playlist. If your heart swells over hearing blaring choruses, fast-paced sweeping verses and a whole lot of angst, stick Spielbergs on repeat and thank us later.
INDIE-POP
EMILY REO BROOKLYN, NEW YORK
FACEBOOK • INSTAGRAM • LISTEN PHOTO: BRIAN VU
Brooklyn’s indie-pop artist, Emily Reo serves up a soulful and whimsical brand of indie-pop. Reo’s new album, Only You Can See it, melds dreamy synths, smooth jazzy elements, cutesy beats and ghostly, ethereal vocals to bring you an upbeat and psychedelic record that’s fit for both an energetic summer party, or a low-key day at the park. With such an impressive debut, it’s no wonder Emily Reo is spending the summer opening for superstar indie-pop group Charly Bliss on a giant American tour.
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FIELD MEDIC SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
FACEBOOK • INSTAGRAM • LISTEN
Reminiscent of impromptu songs sung around the campfire, Field Medic gives listeners a simplistic, honest brand of folk. There’s just something special about Field Medic’s low-fi, stripped back approach to songwriting that instantly sticks with you. Maybe it’s the straightforward narrative or the tenderness of every sung word, but his debut album, fade into the dawn immediately sucks you into his world, and paints a somber picture of the plagues of the human condition. Playing into your ears like your best friend relaying his most introspective thoughts, Field Medic will easily capture any folk-lovers heart.
FOLK/ACOUSTIC
THE RAINY DAY APPAREL WINNIPEG, MANITOBA
FACEBOOK • INSTAGRAM • LISTEN
PHOTO: LEANNE DOELL
We’ve had The Rainy Day Apparel on our radar since late last year, and we’re over the moon to see the artist hitting the Manitoba festival circuit this season. The up-and-coming folk artist melds, country, and a little bit of acoustic pop to analyze the messiness that is life while offering some insight and a handful of hopefulness. His stripped down acoustic show matches perfectly with the laid-back vibes of summer on the Prairies so be sure to catch him playing at Canada Day in Portage la Prairie, the Carman Fair, and the Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival.
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SPF 7.4 ARTISTS PLAYLIST Snag a listen to the artists featured in Sound, Phrase & Fury 7.4 on Spotify. SoundPhraseFury • SPF 7.4 Artists
SOUNDPHRASEFURY.COM
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DIGITAL LOOKBOOK
SPF ALICE RL
2018/2019
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SPF X BRINGS SOUND, PHR MAGAZINE TOGETHER WITH ILLUSTRATORS.
THE AIM IS TO BRING READERS LIMITED EDITION MERCHANDISE THAT CELEBRATES OUR MANTRA, “GET LOST IN SOUND” THROUGH T EYES AND STYLES OF NEW ARTISTS
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RASE & FURY H LOCAL
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For the project’s inaugural year, SPF X has partnered with Alice RL, a non-binary, Ojibwe artist whose work draws inspiration from their experiences and cultural teachings and melds it with a signature palette of bright, playful hues. Their artwork creates stunning juxtapositions of human brutality and emotion with hope and whimsy. Alice’s projects include game and comic book art, digital and traditional illustration, and graphic design aimed at presenting beautiful and emotional stories that are LGBT2SQ+ inclusive.
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SPF X continues our aim to create platforms for artists - from the musicians we cover to the writers we work with.
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ORTION OF EVERY SPF X ALICE RL LE GOES TO THE ILLUSTRATOR.
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Our hope is to give SPF supporters a glorious piece of wearable art while connecting local artists with new audiences.
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