June / July 2017

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June / July 2017 Stylus Magazine

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JUN/JULY 28 NO. 3 2017 VOL

On the Cover

Production Team Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gil Carroll

SKYE CALLOW is an Illustrator based in Winnipeg, Canada.

Assistant Editor . . . . . . . . . Harrison Samphir

See more of their work at skyecallow.carbonmade.com or @callowlily on Instagram.

Art Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kelly Campbell Cover Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Skye Callow Advertising Contact . . . . . . . . . Rob Schmidt

manager@ckuw.ca Print by JRS Print Services . . . 204-232-3558

Contributors Kaitlyn Emslie Farrell Karl Manchur Matt Harrison Colton Siemens Chris Bryson Caelum Rossell Samuel Swanson Max Hamilton Ava Glendinning Jen Doerksen Cole Neustaedter Olivia Norquay Omri Golden Plotnik Jesse Bercier

Stylus is published bi–monthly by CKUW 95.9 FM, with a circulation of 2,500. Stylus serves as the program guide to 95.9FM CKUW and will reflect the many musical communities it supports within Winnipeg and beyond. Stylus strives to provide coverage of music that is not normally written about in the mainstream media. Stylus acts as a vehicle for the work of new writers, photographers and artists, including members of the University of Winnipeg, of CKUW and of the Winnipeg community at large. Stylus reserves the right to refuse to print material, specifically, that of a racist, homophobic or sexist nature. All submissions may be edited and become the property of Stylus. All opinions expressed in Stylus are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect those of the editors.

Contributions in the form of articles, reviews, letters, photos and graphics are welcome and should be sent with contact information to:

Stylus Magazine Bulman Student Centre, University of Winnipeg 515 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 2E9 Phone: 204-786-9785, Fax: 204-783-7080 Writing submissions: editor@stylusmagazine.ca Graphics submissions: design@stylusmagazine.ca www.stylusmagazine.ca Contributions will be accepted in the body of an email. No attachments please. All submissions may be edited and become the property of Stylus. Unauthorized reproduction of any portion of Stylus is strongly discouraged without the express written consent of the editors.

Table of Contents Blah, Blah, Blah Events Around Town . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 CKUW Program Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 CKUWho Garageland 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Comics But Could you Imagine? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Prarie Punk Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Reviews E.GG // Krimewatch // + more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 CKUW Charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Features Margaret Glaspy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 MMARS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Odd Outfit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Teen Daze . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 FRIGS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Glen Murray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Bicycle Face . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Sam Singer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

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June / July 2017 Stylus Magazine

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BLAHBLAHBLAH We have finally made it to festival season, friends. Break out your hippest sunshades, trucker hat and short shorts.***Every Second Thursday is Real Love Thursday at the Handsome Daughter featuring local and touring bands***Ellice Street Festival June 9-10 featuring Kakagi, JD & The Sunshine Band, and Sheena***June 9 at the Handsome Daughter, a sweet indie night with Animal Teeth, Odanah, and the Ashley Hundred (Calgary)***Halifax’s Mauno are in town June 16 at the

Handsome Daughter with locals Ultra Mega and Bye Bye Blue on the bill, presented by Real Love Winnipeg***Winnipeg Jazz Festival runs from June 15-25 featuring Mavis Staples, Wolf Parade, Low, Basic Nature, The Joy Formidable, Mise En Scene and many many more***June 23 A la Mode performs at Alliance Française du Manitoba***Legendary post-rockers Mono (from Japan) are playing the Good Will on June 25 with Mahogany Frog***June 26 is

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a monday night and there are two amazing shows happening, Crescent Fort Rouge United Church has Dead Soft (Vancouver) with MMARS, and Homeward Bound and over at the Handsome Daughter Teen Daze (BC), Sam. O.B. (BK) and Brady Allard***Winnipeg Folk Festival is back for its 43rd year from July 6-9 at Birds Hill Park featuring The Shins, Feist, City & Colour, Begonia, and many many more***Winnipeg’s only Rap/Punk fest “Disco Needs a Squeeze” is back July 27-29 present-

ing shows all around town including Lumpy and the Dumpsters at the Handsome Daughter on July 27, Secret Circle on July 28 at the Good Will***That same weekend, Real Love Summer Fest is happening at Igninte Retreats in Teulon featuring Widowspeak, Yawn, Mulligrub, Radiation Flowers, Human Music, 3Peat and way more***Have fun, stay safe, and protect your ears***

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MARGARET GLASPY With the success of her full-length debut, Emotions and Math, and an appearance in the April edition of Rolling Stone in an article titled “10 New Artists You Need to Know”, Margaret Glaspy’s career has been on the upswing. In July she’ll be in Manitoba to play the Winnipeg Folk Festival.

Glaspy’s voice is distinct, lying somewhere in between Liz Phair, Joni Mitchell, and Frances Quinlan. Her croon is smooth. Her snarl is sharp. And her guitar work mimics these elements in groove, crispness and abrasion. Glaspy’s singer-songwriter style is impassioned yet distant; her grunge-swagger indie rock mixes with slow-burner distorted folk, a niche sound she’s made all her own.

With her upcoming visit to play the Winnipeg Folk Festival, Glaspy explains her trip here will be in the midst of an extensive tour that will take her all around the United States, parts of Canada and the United Kingdom, along with one stop in Norway.

“You’re working pretty hard the whole time but you really feel the fruits of your labour pretty instantly because of just having a really great time and getting to play music for a living,” says Glaspy. “Everybody’s just kind of living their lives but it’s fun to kind of realize that so many other people’s lives are different than yours but they’re also very similar at the same time.”

In talking about some of the things she’s learned over the years with regard to musicianship and songwriting - from her time spent gigging and playing music in Boston and New York - Glaspy touched on her ideas of success and its influence on her craft.

“In terms of just attention and things like that I think it really shifts quite a bit so you can’t really leave it as your compass,” says Glaspy. “That’s certainly what I’ve learned. And while in releasing this record it’s been fun to, you know, enjoy the kind of I

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suppose you could say successes from it. And at the same time I know I’ll make records that won’t be understood by everyone. So you just kind of have to essentially take the good with the good and take the bad with equal weight and just keep making music I suppose.”

As someone who’s created and been fully delving into her own niche style and sound, Glaspy says that “as an artist you have to truly follow your nose and make things that you find are interesting in order to kind of enlighten and do your job and enlighten the people around you also. Because if you’re following the patterns you see around you, you’re not really doing your job.”

Glaspy’s an artist that’s been known for not wanting to divulge too much about lyrical meanings and sentiments, often opting to leave these things to individual interpretation.

“Often I think of songwriting or making music as kind of my job description and less of an emotive experience,” says Glaspy. “But there is lots of craft that goes into it that makes it not really a direct representation of my feelings but more of something that I’m trying to convey overall.”

Anyone who listens to Glaspy’s music will instantly notice her unique voice, which is something that, for her, has come forth through both nature and nurturing.

“When I was young I kind of yelled when I would try and sing. I was really really loud. And then as I evolved I was able to understand dynamics and subtlety and trying to make different sounds,” says Glaspy, “but in terms of my technique and the things I try, my own inflections and things like that, those I kind of learned and cultivated over time.”

Glaspy continues, “If you liken it to any other kind of instrument, I think it makes sense in terms of,

BY CHRIS BRYSON PHOTO BY EBRU YILDIZ you know, you see a guitar player and they like to use distortion or something like that. Or they like to make their amp feed back. Or they like to play really fast or play really slow. When you’re a vocalist you also have these opportunities that are coming from just a human voice. So I think that maybe it’s not always looked at that transparently but it is that transparent in terms of just saying here’s an instrument and now I’m going to affect it and make it sound different at different times to fit the song or emotion that I’m trying to convey.”

Having lived, honed her skills and gotten close with the music scenes in Boston and New York (she currently resides in the Big Apple) Glaspy has learned a lot about the impact and importance of community.

“I think you’re kind of as good as the company you keep in a lot of different ways. I think it’s cool to really rely on your community wherever you are. And I say that as kind of someone who’s really just written songs in a room for a really long time that’s kind of always been my disposition is kind of being to myself,” says Glaspy, “and yet I can’t deny that all the music, whether it’s the records that you listen to in your room, if that’s your community, whether you’re friends with the people or not you create communities and kind of rely on them I think in a way that’s healthy and definitely has contributed to the music that I’ve made over the years.”

Glaspy says she’s planning to work on a new record after touring this year. And, if you find yourself at the 2017 Winnipeg Folk Festival, be sure to check her out.

noun (\märz\) GRAPHIC BY JOEY BRUCE

BY KAITLYN EMSLIE FARRELL As complicated as it may seem, tuning in and zoning out with the fuzz that is Mmars is easy. The name isn’t meant to confuse you, but it’s done just that. “Apparently it’s the hardest thing in the world,” says Mac. “One M is silent,” adds Mark.

Two guys, Mac and Mark, one of them is in space.

Childhood friends (and still friends), this compatible relationship extends beyond hanging out and into the world of music. “We go way back. We’ve known each other since grade six,” says Mark. “We didn’t really become like friends friends till high school. We were friends always but not.”

Mmars isn’t the boys’ first musical endeavor, but it isn’t so much a new project as it is a solidified version of what they started as teenagers. “Mark learnt bass for the band in like two months or something. And he was as good as any bass player I could think of, it was kind of crazy,” says Mac. Talented musicians but teenagers nonetheless, they didn’t totally stick with what they were doing then, but after graduation and upon Mac’s return from a trip to Poland, the two continued their jams and established their sound. “We pretty much hit it off the bat when I came back and came up with the name and we made the page,” says Mac. “And then it’s Facebook official,” laughs Mark.

Mac and Mark don’t write sad songs, but they do take their band seriously. “I kind of like the stuff we write,” says Mac. “We’re serious about the band.

We’re serious about doing this and being committed. But the songs we write, they’re fun.”

Having a good time and moving forward, it’s the path that bands hope to take, getting onto the bills of their favourite bands and sharing the stage with the musicians that provide the very inspiration used

for their own music. Passion is what drives the arts, and these guys are bursting with it.

“One thing I’ve found, ever since we’ve been playing shows and especially recently, is we’re picking up a bit more momentum, other bands are noticing us,” says Mac. Mac met the drummer from Cancer Bats which led to an opening spot on the Bat Sabbath show at the Windsor. “I have a poster of Mike in my room on the Sabian Cymbal artists montage. He’s in my room. I got that a long time ago when I first started playing drums. I’d watch them on YouTube, these guys are really cool,” says Mac. Mike formally asked Mac to play over Instagram.

“I fell off my chair at school and I just couldn’t stop laughing. My friend’s like ‘what’s wrong’ and I’m like ‘ahhhh.’ It was just like holy shit, that’s so crazy.”

Anyone can buy a ticket to a show, but there’s a special privilege that comes with the territory. “When you’re in a band it’s like you could play with them and hang out with them all night, it’s chill. I was trying not to fanboy too much.”

Mmars’ debut album Fuzzstronaut, set to release July 22 at the Good Will with fellow two-piece power duos VAMPIRES and Rust Owl, is surely to leave its mark. “We’re friends with both of them, it’s pretty awesome, I’m excited,” says Mark. “We haven’t had to book our own show in awhile so we haven’t been able to pick the lineup really,” says Mac. “It’s cool to do that,” adds Mark.

Following a live session EP recorded at UMFM, released directly to Bandcamp, Fuzzstronaut delivers a smooth blend of intensity and calm. The 10-track album is suited for all moods, hyping you up with its heavy hitting chaos, and swaying your feelings with its quirky lyrics and unique riffs, it’s anything

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but seasonal.

Although they recorded it in a basement, the album has studio quality thanks to their engineer Joe Proulx. But it’s still hard work. “We’re in a tiny room. For some of the songs we didn’t have in-ear monitor, or any monitor so when we were recording the last song that we did, Mark had to go in the hallway and we covered his amp in pillows. Then we closed the door, and I was in the room. I couldn’t hear Mark’s amp at all. We played the whole song basically by memory. It synched up great and it sounded good. It was just the hardest way possible we could do it,” laughs Mac. Typically noise bands relieve the tension but feel fresh upon every listen as they don’t follow the catchy formula of more mainstream style music.

Fuzzstronaut found a way to balance on the plank that rests in the middle, with a clear style that does in fact get stuck in your head, all the while punching forward with head bopping madness.

Don’t go anywhere, Mmars will come to you. Getting booked on the regular, you’re sure to catch them in action. Mac and Mark are going to continue stepping up and taking their band to the next level. Definitely keep your eyes peeled.

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PHOTOS BY JEN DOERKSEN

BY MAX HAMILTON It would be easy to imagine that a band as tight as Odd Outfit is single-minded in their approach to their work. But this is a group of strong players with strong opinions and varied backgrounds, and among the four core members there doesn’t seem to be a singular vision that dominates and directs their artistic sensibilities. In talking about the roots of their music and musical experiences, perspectives were shared less frequently than a willingness to listen and to understand each other’s point of view. That re ce ptive ne ss is as integral to their sound as is the usual tug-o’-war of influences and skills; When asked how they might describe their music, the thing that was roundly agreed upon was its conversational quality.

Said Alex Chochinov, “It feels like we’re talking to each other.”

As an instrumental band, this is an important part of what they do. “Everyone can help build the storyline of the song,” said Adrian Schroeder, “and you can go much further in depth with instrumental music.” The sentiment was echoed by the group, who pointed out that when you remove the vocals you bring the band out of the background, and that without a mouthpiece for the music, it can be interpreted more freely. “There’s programmatic music and there’s absolute music,” added Graeme Leaver, “in the old symphony world, some people would write for the program and it’s like, ‘okay, it’s about this,’ and you would get a pamphlet explaining it.” In naming their songs, the band does something similar. Wanting to evoke certain moods, they’ve given the songs on their upcoming album titles charged with powerful imagery. But they remain broad, capable of being uniquely personal for each listener, as

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with the song “Intervention.” Though it is as evocative as any single word can be, it will surely mean something different for everyone who hears it. “But I honestly think we shouldn’t shove a certain opinion down someone’s throat, that’s the whole art of it,” said Karl Manchur, wanting to see the audience as a part of the process of creation, building their lives into the music, rather than seeing the music

as something to descend upon and consume. “We can nudge people in a certain direction, though” said Schroeder. “If we want to,” said Manchur.

To many who are involved in the same scene, Odd Outfit stands apart from the myriad of rockers as a jazz band. But, as Schroeder put it, “jazz purists would probably be very angry if we called ourselves a jazz band.” He talked about jazz, as with anything so deeply cultural, being hugely related to a certain place and time. “It feels like all the people who were making it are dead and gone and today people are just rehashing stuff that they’re reading on paper.”

Manchur added that “it’s lost a lot of its meaning, too, because a lot of it was rooted in a cultural backlash.” Leaver cut in then, half-laughingly saying “I’ve never played a triad in this band, so I think that means we’re a jazz band.”

Between the four of them, the group has a healthy smattering of years spent in music school, many, many hours spent improvising in high school jazz ensemble, over a dozen previous bands to their names, and nearly a decade spent in devout isolation, slowly developing their craft. “It is a language,” said Chochinov, “and that’s why I love playing in this band so much, because everybody is familiar with that language, so we co m mu n i cate in a very direct way.” At the same time, said Manchur, “we all come from different dialects.” Manchur who has spent time as a jazz student at U of M, referring to the members’ punk, psych rock, ambient, and classical backgrounds. It seems, too, that in learning to play with each other, they’ve had to develop a dialect of their own. On this, Leaver said, “I came from the classical program, where a lot of people are bad at playing with other people... we just grew up relying on theory” which can be a burden at times, like having to look up words in a dictionary while reading a book. “Playing with people who didn’t have that, they really rely on their ear more, so they listen more...generally the better way to go.”

This summer, Odd Outfit will be putting out their first full album. I’ve had the chance to listen to a few spare minutes of it, and as a fan, I’m very pleased.

My hope is that it will be released before the nights start getting colder so that when it’s played for the first time it will sound just like it feels outside; dark and warm.

Te e n D a z e PHOTO BY SHARALEE PRANG

BY MATT HARRISON On a sunny May morning, warm enough to enjoy but still too cold to be called summer, I received a long awaited Skype call from Jamison Isaak, the creative mind of the alternative electronic project Teen Daze. While it was barely 8:00 AM in my living room, it was already nearing 11:00 PM for Jamison who was, at the time, enjoying a post-tour vacation with his wife in one of their favourite spots on the coast of Australia.

Prior to our conversation, Jamison had wrapped up a tour that spanned seven shows across Asia, ending in Singapore. Exciting as this tour was, it was not Jamison’s first time taking his music across the world, as he had been to Asia on tour twice before visiting Japan, Thailand, China, and South Korea.The touring life is nothing new to Jamison despite the humble roots of Teen Daze.

It was in 2010, the final year of his undergrad, that he began pursuing this project by making homemade recordings and sharing it for free online. “I had no expectations at all,” Jamison told me with a laugh. “I never would have expected that seven years later I would be referencing that time in my life.” The name Teen Daze is inspired by a final day of teenage antics enjoyed on the eve of his friend’s 20th birthday. The name was originally for a song that failed to make the cut for the first EP Jamison released. The project was, in essence, to be a sort of nostalgic time capsule. “I wanted to make a document that when I listened to would remind me of that last year of school, that group of friends, and that specific time of life.”

Teen Daze began picking

up traction fairly quickly. As Jamison recalls, it was around three months after he had self-released his EP that he began drawing attention from labels and venues from across the United States. What helped this along was his ability to share a few tracks with some friends of his who had been involved in more earnest projects. It was after he attracted this attention that Jamison was given the “opportunity to pursue these projects in a more serious way.” When looking for musical inspirations, Jamison sites the talents of creators such as Daft Punk, Brian Eno, Jonny Nash, and Suzanne Kraft. When creating a new song, Jamison is a fan of open experimentation with keyboards, synthesizers, and guitar pedals. He explained to me that during the creative process he enjoys playing around until he finds a sound he enjoys. Once he has found something he can expand on, it’s about “going down that rabbit hole”. From there, he said he likes to fill in “the gaps with vocals. Let the vibe and the feel of the instrumental lend itself to lyrics that feel they fit that kind of vibe.”

In February of this year, Jamison released his fifth LP Themes For Dying Earth through his own record label, FLORA. What charged the melancholy title of the album were personal anxieties that Jamison had regarding the condition of the world. Among these anxieties for the British Columbia born musician was the reality of climate change. “Climate change is something that’s really relevant in our day to day lives.

It’s an issue that I’m particularly concerned about.”

When making this record, Jamison wanted to channel many of these fears and anxieties and use that energy to create something positive. After explaining his motivation he added “it’s by no means a dark record.”

Looking back at Themes For Dying Earth, there is a particular track called ‘Lost’ that stands out in

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Jamison’s mind as being among his favourite collaborations. When making the LP, he wanted there to be a “stronger female presence than other albums” he had released. After a friend introduced him to Nadia Hulett, the two began emailing back and forth, sharing bits of recordings and unreleased tracks while also discussing some of the profundities of life. Jamison was clear he wanted Nadia to write her own lyrics and use the emotion she felt from the instrumentals he sent her to fuel her vocals. Nadia’s vocals were received and added to the final mix of ‘Lost’ at the very last moment, thus finishing the track.“She totally knocked it out of the park” Jamison said of his working partner.

For the future of Teen Daze, Jamison envisions much more experimenting with new and different sounds.

There is no set date for when his next album will be released but he assures listeners it will be unique and experimental.

Teen Daze will be performing at the Handsome Daughter on June 26th. @matthurrison

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PHOTO BY RICK CLIFFORD

BY COLTON SIEMENS The aggressive and visceral vocals that makes FRIGS one of the most promising young bands coming out of the Toronto scene are those of Bria Salmena. At some points, it sounds as if she’s swallowed a handful of gravel on their new singles “Trashyard” and “Chest”. This powerful and raw voice is backed up by sludgy postpunk that puts graveyard chills into listeners. Last year they put out their first EP, SLUSH, under the FRIGS moniker. They recently dropped two new singles leading up their soon to be released LP. I spoke to vocalist Bria Salmena about FRIGS and what we can expect for the future.

Stylus: How did FRIGS and your sound come into existence?

Bria Salmena: Through a lot of trial and error.

When Duncan and I started the band we were listening to different music and experimenting with psych stuff then eventually, through a lot of songwriting and a lot of recording experimentation, we decided how we wanted to write music that was a bit weird and explored tensions sonically. It was a gradual evolution through a lot of songs that we would write then decide we didn’t like then try again.

Stylus: Are there any artists that you listen to or feel inspired by that you think listeners may be surprised by?

BS: I grew up on a lot of Italian pop music and opera so I think that and soul music. I was listening to a lot of La Lupe, who’s a Cuban singer from the

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60’s and 70’s. She’s really crazy. I was also revisiting a lot of nostalgic R&B, listing to a lot of Janet Jackson, but that was just a little stint… As a vocalist I really love when I can find vocalists that aren’t necessarily within my genre, like La Lupe, because her vocal ability is amazing. She’s singing Cuban soul music, but she does it in a really strange way.

Stylus: You played some of your earliest shows at The Silver Dollar Room and you actually played the farewell show there last week. How did it feel to be a part of that?

BS: We were really thankful and felt really privileged that Dan Burke (the booker for The Silver Dollar) had asked us to play one of the last shows there. Just because he has been a really important figure for us in Toronto, since we moved and started playing here, he was really instrumental in getting us shows. So I think him asking us to play that farewell show meant a lot to us and it was a great show. I mean, that whole string of shows was pretty crazy.

I don’t know if it was emotional, but everyone was just talking about The Silver Dollar the whole time and being very nostalgic and telling stories and it just felt nice to be a part of that.

Stylus: You’re coming here, to Winnipeg, in June. Along with Fake Palms, you’re playing a DIY space called The Animal Shelter. How do you feel about DIY venues and how they effect the music scene?

BS: I think they’re incredibly important. I really enjoy playing off venues. It’s nice to play a nice venue

sometimes where you know the sounds going to be good, but I really enjoy playing house shows and DIY spots cause the space just feels different.

There’s usually a bit more audience interaction. I don’t necessarily love being up on the stage a lot of the time. I think that kind of suggested hierarchy is kind of silly sometimes or just makes me feel uncomfortable. So DIY spaces I think for in terms of performance value are really fun and interesting. I think for that most part, I would hope, that a lot of them are safe spaces so it’s nice to be a part of that and support those types of scenes. It’s kind of implied that once bands reach a certain level they don’t need to play DIY spaces anymore. It’s important as a starting off point for lots of bands, because that’s how you build your community and in a sense build your fan base. But I think it’s important to continue supporting those spaces even if you’re a band that doesn’t necessarily need to play a smaller venue. So yeah, I’m really excited for that Winnipeg show. I really love playing DIY spaces and house shows, that’s always really fun.

Stylus: Right now the Toronto scene seems to really be alive, even though some great venues are closing. Where do you see Toronto’s music scene going or growing?

BS: It’s interesting because it’s becoming harder to find DIY spaces here and at the same time you have venues like The Silver Dollar closing, so with a music scene that has so many bands and so many people who want to play, it’s hard sometimes to find

venues. If you’re wanting to go the DIY route, there are options. I think what’s happening is people are becoming very creative about where to throw shows.

There will always be venues. There’s still venues you can play, but people don’t want to keep playing the same venues and touring bands want to switch it up.

I think now there’s a lot more shows happening at Legions. There’s this one legion that’s been throwing shows. I feel like that’s kind of a newer thing for Toronto. In Calgary, I’ve seen plenty of shows in Legions and in other smaller cities. So that’s cool.

Friends of mine have started throwing house shows.

I haven’t been to a lot of house shows since I was a teenager, so it’s interesting to see that coming back again. But yeah, I think that people are going to get really creative with where to throw shows and I think it’s fun. I hope it works and people don’t fuck it up for everybody else. It’s going to be interesting. Throughout my short lifetime as a musician in Toronto, I’ve seen a lot of places close that were instrumental to the Toronto punk scene in the 00s.

I think that at the end of the day, The Silver Dollar was going to close. Everybody knew that one day it was going to end. Like that stupid saying “all good things come to an end”. Everything is going to have to change eventually. So change can bring about really great things and sometimes it can halt things for a while. So I just hope that things that keep going.

Stylus: Do you have a favourite song to play live?

BS: “Trashyard” is always fun to play live because it’s usually at the beginning of the set or end of the

set and I’m not playing guitar. I can move around and interact with people and lose my mind a little bit on stage. I can do that with “Chest” too. I think my favorite ones to play live are the ones I’m not really playing guitar on. Sometimes I feel very restricted in my movement when I play guitar. I like being able to hone in on my vocals when I’m not playing guitar and move around. It makes singing easier, to be honest, when you can move around and bend your body. So I think really anything I’m not playing guitar.

Stylus: Arts & Crafts is a really legendary Canadian label. How did it feel to sign with them?

BS: Yeah, the people we work with there are really great. Our manager, Bled, has been working for Arts and Crafts for a while and he’s a really great person.

It’s kind of funny how that came about we feel really happy with the situation. They were the only label that was really eager to work with us so it was kind of like why the hell not type situation. I think it’s interesting that they’re actively trying to work with bands that don’t necessarily fit into Broken Social Scene mold. They have a lot of resources that are useful to us. So it’s definitely been beneficial.

Stylus: Last year you changed your name from Dirty Frigs to just Frigs. Was there a specific reason for that?

BS: We just felt like we didn’t need to have the dirty anymore. There’s a lot of bands that have dirty as a first words and so we were like whatever, we’ll just drop it and just be FRIGS. It felt kind of like we’re done with it. With frigs, the word itself… it implies

TALKING POP-LITICS with

Check out FRIGS & Fake Palms with Juniper Bush and Beth when they come to Winnipeg on June 19 at The Animal Shelter.

GLEN MURRAY PHOTO BY DOMINIKA DRATWA

BY AVA GLENDINNING Former mayor of Winnipeg Glen Murray has turned his considerable talents toward mastering the craft of instrumental indie pop. Just kidding.

But the band that carries his namesake, comprised of bassist/guitarist Sam Koulack, keyboardist Jon Askholm, and drummer David B. Warkentin, will soon have Winnipeggers associating the name with more than just politics.

Glen Murray was formed nearly four years ago when Sam and Jon started jamming together, although Sam says he pocketed the moniker even earlier, after overhearing someone say that “Glen Murray” would make a good band name. “He may not have said that, but that’s what I heard!” And so a band was born. David soon joined on to complete the trio of multi-instrumentalists, and the group has been playing shows around the city ever since.

Glen Murray’s debut EP (aptly titled EP), was recorded this past winter, after the group decided it was finally time to put the accumulated band fund towards something other than post-show pizza.

The five tracks on the EP were recorded in one day

by Grant Trippel at Exchange District Studios, an experience the band members all agree was positive.

“It was a fun recording process,” says Jon. “I think it can often be grueling (but) we were practiced up, ready to go.” David adds, “It was in the dead of winter, so it was a nice time to kind of hibernate inside.” And what an amazingly productive hibernation – the EP is a sparkling collection of irresistibly danceable grooves, spanning from melodic and synthy instrumental tracks to a goofy, guitar-driven

something dirty, so having the Dirty in front just wasn’t necessary.

Stylus: Do you feel as if your sound changed with the name?

BS: I think it changed. Everything just started coming together naturally with the sound that developed. Even the live show. Everything was kind of fitting and FRIGS on its own lent to that more. It was something old and we were trying to move forward to new territory.

Stylus: What can we expect to hear from the upcoming LP and how does it differ from SLUSH? BS: I think it’s different. SLUSH was a bit of a funny one because it was just a bunch of songs we had recorded and we wanted to release.. We just kind of picked the four songs we liked the most. So the LP is kind of a continuation of that. Some of the songs are pretty old. Some of the songs on the record, we wrote specially for the record. I think it’s a really interesting mix of heavier post-punk songs and there’s fuckin strange, weird kind of Weyes Blood-esque piano songs. It’s a very funny but cohesive mix that’s all tied together through the lyrics and the subject matter.

Stylus: Do you have a release date for the new project?

BS: Slated for the fall, but we’re not making promises.

pop song about daytime TV. The album is available to stream on their Bandcamp page.

Crafting compact and catchy instrumental pop gems is a great strength of the band. Their writing process often involves Jon bringing in songs mostly formed for the others to add their own parts to, although other songs have come together more collaboratively as the band captures musical ideas they like during jam sessions. “Quite often there’s some really good stuff in there, and it’s just a matter of whether we can recreate it,” says Jon. This is where recording helps. (They recall a tragic incident of a song idea that they really liked but was lost forever when a mischievous recording device failed to have been turned on.)

While it’s difficult to pin down an influence or sound-alike, the band says they’re often inspired by the sounds that they’re able to create with their instruments. “Sometimes ideas are born just out of a certain sound,” Jon says. Changing up instrumentation also keeps things interesting for them, as all of them are capable on multiple instruments; they have one song titled “Double Bass,” in which both Sam and Jon play basses. They also mention their ridiculous practice banter, and having once described their genre on a festival application as simply “fun.”

I ask the band if humour inspires their music, and they reply by telling me about a song of theirs called Avid Milk Drinkers. “The song itself is just silly. It’s an instrumental song but it has some goofy sounds”, says Jon. Sam agrees, “It’s fun, you know. Why not have fun?”

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While the energy and cohesiveness of the songs are very apparent on the EP, the band still has difficulty describing their sound. On choosing a genre descriptor, David muses, “It’s either so broad as to be self-evident, or so niche as to be absurd. There’s no middle ground.” They’ve tentatively settled on the term “weirdo dance pop” in past bios they’ve written, but Sam says this doesn’t necessarily describe some of their newer songs. It may be that Glen Murray’s style is just amorphous enough to keep their music engaging and unique, while they craft tunes that are still consistently accessible and fun. Jon says, “It’s always interesting, moving forward, to see what we’ll do next, because even though we’ve been playing together for three years or something, we’re still sort of coalescing, in a way… We certainly don’t have a formula we’re sticking to.”

“What do we do?” asks David. “We’re still answering that question.” Glen Murray may not be exactly sure what kind of music they make, but whatever it is, it is something weird and wonderful.

Glen Murray have plans for an official EP release this coming fall, but in the meantime you can catch Glen Murray live at the Park Theatre on Sunday, June 11th, at 8 P.M., where they’ll be playing a show with fellow local acts Robojom and PC Cherry. They are also releasing a video, directed by Ashlyn Erickson, for their song Sock Hop, which will be worth checking out (they’ve promised costumes!).

June / July 2017 Stylus Magazine

09

WHIMSICAL BICYCLE

BY SAMUEL SWANSON

Pinhead from Hellraiser. Leatherface from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Bicycle Face from Winnipeg.

Right?

“I always felt like it has a touch of the whimsical, or people will think it’s funny, but I never really knew it had such a dark kind of association,” laughs guitarist Ava Glendinning.

“The name actually comes from an eighteenth-century fictitious disease.

When women started riding bicycles, they ended up suddenly having more freedom. They were just coming out of this very rigid Victorian age where they’d been wearing huge constrictive dresses, and so they were suddenly riding bicycles, had their own mode of transport, and were wearing clothes that were a little bit more freeing, and some people didn’t like this and started diagnosing people with Bicycle Face.”

Today, Bicycle Face exists not in the DSM-5, but in the form of a musical duo – academically trained second cousins who found melodic chemistry whilst pursuing degrees in their passions.

“We’re second cousins once removed, but we only got to know each other in university,” Glendinning says.

Glendinning was studying jazz guitar and Theresa Thordarson classical piano, both at Brandon University.

“We barely played music together there, but as soon as we were living in Winnipeg we needed projects and wanted to be playing music, and started jamming together.”

Strange things have been part of the Bicycle Face project from its onset.

“We started off doing really bizarre things, like a cover of a viral YouTube video called Can’t Hug Every Cat.” Can’t Hug Every Cat is an edited video of a woman in tears describing her love of cats, autotuned to a fluffy, dance-y, sarcastic soundtrack.

But Bicycle Face wasn’t satisfied with catatonic covers.

10 Stylus Magazine June / July 2017

PHOTO BY RINA PATSIATZIS

“We both had some original music that we had never really had a chance to play or the right kind of projects to bring it to, and just kind of fit together and went from there, and that was four years ago.”

Over those four years the cousins developed complementary styles for the project, and affections for oddity.

“We keep it pretty light. Our themes are a little weird,” Glendinning admits.

The Bicycle Face telling of Snow White, for example, remarks on her mere fictionality.

“Snow White, you’re just a fairy tale,” the song goes.

So, what sounds are the makings of a classical piano and jazz guitar cousin duo?

“We like to compare ourselves to a more whimsical Metric, or maybe there’s Joanna Newsom.”

The Unicorns and The Beatles are also major influences, according to Glendinning.

“We both listened to a lot of The Beatles growing up. Not that we sound like The Beatles, but I think we both try to write some catchy hooks but keep things a little bit unusual. Not your typical chord progressions.”

The duo recorded an EP a year ago, but its release was delayed by a busy summer and Thordarson’s departure for graduate studies at the State University of New York at Fredonia, which, unlike Snow White, somehow actually exists, Thordarson assures us.

“Those six songs are a collection from the last three years that we’d been playing together when we recorded the EP, so it was about time. We finished it last spring but then we didn’t have time to plan an EP release show. And my cousin left for the winter, so we are now releasing it this June,” Glendinning informs.

Alongside guests Daniel Peloquin-Hopfner and iansucks, Bicycle Face will finally release an EP of their unusual chord progressions on June 11 at the Good Will Social Club. -

www.stylusmagazine.ca

June / July 2017 Stylus Magazine

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ckuwho?

Listen to: Garageland ‘17

BY STYLUS STAFF Garageland is a CKUW summer tradition. Tune in to CKUW on Saturday’s June 17 and 24 starting at 9 am to hear tales of explorers searching for treasure through the back yards, lawns and garages all over Winnipeg. Garageland contributes to community building which is what CKUW is all about. We interviewed Kent Davies of CKUW’s Peg City Groove and Amaetuer Hour about what makes Garageland so special.

Stylus: Why do you encourage people to get involved with Garageland?

Kent Davies: Personally I think it’s just fun and interesting, especially for new volunteers who haven’t represented the station in the field before. I’ve had lasting friendships form from going out in the field to report on garage sales with new volunteers. There are very few times in the year where we as radio producers get to do field work and have the opportunity to really connect people with the radio station.

The reason I keep doing it is that over the course of ten years I keep coming across people who listen to us at their garage sales and know that this is going on and want to report in or get involved.

Stylus: When did Garageland begin?

KD: I think it was even before my time in 2004.

I think it was really a great way to reflect what a community radio station can do with special programing. It gets us out of the studio and into the community.

Stylus: What is Garage sale culture?

KD: I feel garage sales do a whole lot of good beyond making extra cash or finding cool stuff. I’ve met a lot of my neighbours this way. I’ve learned about a lot of local charity organizations that use yard sales as fundraisers. It’s a simple way to bring communities together, fundraise and reuse stuff to lessen our impact on the environment. I think Garageland is just reflecting that experience through radio. We’re providing an outlet to promote that way of thinking.

Stylus: Do you think Garageland could take off in other cities or is it purely a Winnipeg thing?

KD: I think it’s unique to our station but I don’t know why it couldn’t work anywhere else. The only real challenge is organizing and scheduling special programming during a summer month. It takes a lot of work with a lot of different contributors.

Stylus: What is the best way to organize your stuff while hosting a garage sale?

KD: I would recommend making things painfully obvious with clear labels and stuff spread out. I’ve found some real gems items buried under other stuff.

Stylus: What time do you need to get going in order not to miss out on any of the sweet finds?

KD: The earlier the better. I’ve gone to sales that open right at nine and there will already be people hovering, ready to go. However it’s always bad garage sale etiquette to show up before a sale is posted to begin.

TUNE IN EXPLORE REGISTER YOUR SALE

Stylus: Have you come across local music or copies of Stylus at any sales?

KD: Oh yeah, I found Gorilla Gorilla and Kittens tapes at a sale once. I collect local albums so that was pretty sweet. I know the most hardcore garagelander there is Rockin’ Ronnie from Bluesday on Tuesday hands out Stylus’ to all the sales he hits.

Stylus: What are the pros and cons of Yard vs.

Garage Sales?

KD: If you have a garage you have the added bonus of being able to stay open if it rains. However, yard sales have greater visibility.

Stylus: What is the most valuable thing you have ever come across?

KD: I’ll have to say I got a really sweet record player for cheap that I still use. On the whole though, I think the Star Wars Chewy bust in the CKUW on air room has been a priceless item to ever come out of a garageland. I’m not sure who found it.

Stylus: What is the best way to get involved with Garageland this year?

KD: We got a facebook group and event page called CKUW’s Garageland 2017 or you can go to ckuw. ca/garageland for more info or to register your sale.

SATURDAY , JUNE 17 & 24 9AM - 1PM

PHONE IN FROM THE FIELD 204 774 6877

12 Stylus Magazine Oct June/ Nov / July2016 2017

CKUW.CA/GARAGELAND

SAM SINGER I’ve never heard someone fantasize about a relationship in quite the same way that Sam Singer does.

Many of us dream of love and romance in a Disney or Nicholas Sparks way. Eternal and beautiful.

Not Sam Singer. When he spoke of love, he told us about his fantasy relationship with 26 year old, indie-rock queen Mitski. In this fantasy, he tweets her, they meet, they fall in love and then… they break up. After the death of the relationship, they pen beautiful break up albums about the love affair.

That’s how you know someone truly loves to create.

They fantasize about love, pain, happiness and loss all in the context of their art. Many of us know an artist, or have at least heard about one, who throws themselves into painful situations just to create more meaningful work. Whether it’s a conscious effort or not, it’s a certainly a romantic idea. And maybe that’s what Sam Singer is; a self-destructive romantic.

So who is Sam Singer, other than a person who fantasizes about his own heartbreak? He’s 19 years old, hungry to create, and always seems to have something to say. When I asked him about his favourite venue to play, he said his basement. Most local artists talk about the bars and theatres that play host to most of the Winnipeg music scene. While he recognized how great and welcoming these venues are to play and visit, he’s most home in his own home. It’s

apparent that Singer is comfortable, which might be why he loves the basement where he recorded his first release. He’s comfortable with himself, his humor, and his music. According to him, his new EP, Fatal Friends, is where he finds his own voice and genuinely likes how he sounds on each track. But he’s quick to say that even though he’s comfortable with his new sound and vocal performance, he has absolutely no plans for it stay that way. Just the opposite actually. Singer believes it’s better not to get to comfy because it only results in stagnation. So whatever the future holds for him, it won’t sound like Fatal Friends.

There’s also something charming about Singer.

Maybe it’s the moustache or maybe it’s his ability to tell a story about whatever topic is at hand. When I asked him about his most recent music video, “Last Stop”, he told me it was mostly improvised. This wasn’t entirely shocking, considering the absolutely off the wall performances and the fact that it looked like it was a bunch of friends having a genuinely fun time on camera. Which is part of what makes Singer’s music so enjoyable; you can tell he enjoys it as well. As for his “Wauneta Park Plaza” video, he told me it was even more last minute. Which is pretty impressive considering how endearing and well done the video is. “Wauneta Park Plaza” tells the story of man desperately and unsuccessfully trying

www.stylusmagazine.ca

BY COLTON SIEMENS

to gain the attention of his crush. While the video is well done and comical, it doesn’t stray too far from his own reality in a way. Maybe it’s life imitating art, or maybe it’s just Singer’s MO. As for his new EP, Fatal Friends, the follow up to his 2015 full length release, The Sammy Singer LP, the songs are tight and full of life. The tracks aren’t overly long but they certainly sound big. Singer sings about life in a Springsteen meets Casablancas way; sentimental, adventurous and generally infatuated with love itself. It’s hard not feel the infectious humour in Singer’s work. Although he points out most of his songs are quite serious, it’s often in his performances that he finds a place for his comedic side. Speaking about stage banter and the idea of incorporating skits in between songs prove how much of an entertainer Sam Singer really is.

Fatal Friends will be his first project released with local tape label, Birthday Tapes, and was released June 1.

June / July 2017 Stylus Magazine

13

PRAIRIE PUNK PERSPECTIVE

By Kaitlyn Emslie Farrell Manitoba has got its fair share of music festivals and that’s just dandy. But they’re all very genre focused. Where’s the rampage? Punk festivals aren’t shy of abundance but they are quite far away. You’re travelling the least if you head over to Rockfest in Montebello, QC or Pouzza in Montreal. Where’s the prairie punk spectacular? We did have Corefest on Garbage Hill but it’s been gone for years. We can’t all live in the past, we have weekends to fill!

Well, thanks to some very dedicated members of the community, the party will be at the Hilltop Resort for the very first Canada Day Weekend Music Festival. With over 20 bands, and a bill that’s largely local, this festival is sure to be one big long party. Like a house show that doesn’t end, it sticks to the dive bar punk scene mentality and it’s cheap too. The festival runs for three days, music is plentiful, and it’s

the people who are attending and the bands who are playing.

For punks who indulge in local shows on a regular basis, this festival is going to act as an extended gig. With so many local favourites on the bill including Mung, Dreadnaught, MK Ultraviolence, Chernobyl Wolves, Suburban Hypocrites, Yer Mum, the Murder Birds, and so many more, you’re getting exactly what you’re expecting; full face planting delivery of aggression and chaos, but in the form of dance and party.

And who knows, if all goes well maybe we can do it on the regular. There’s only a couple bands on the bill from somewhere outside Manitoba, but with a bit of success under its belt we might be able to amp it up next year. The punks operate together, so if the demand exists, the demand will be met. “I hope it becomes an annual

event and I would love more touring bands out. But I’m stoked we have a couple this year and some of the best local bands playing this year,” says Buckley.

We know it’ll be a good time, but we can hope that that good time spills over onto the community to provide motivation for more success throughout the year. “I definitely think it’ll have an impact on the punk scene in a good way. I like to believe our punk scene is already established quite well.

We have and had amazing bands since punk rooted. But something like this event is just more proof our city hasn’t stopped caring. Punk is not dead in this city. And I’m beyond stoked about this fest,” says Buckley.

Come on, come all, for the outdoor mosh pits are calling.

rious” or “Happy”, “Dream Life” takes a soft approach to the Velvet Revolver sound. The first fifteen to thirty seconds introduce the song like 2002 She Wants Revenge, until electric guitar fills the auditory space.

The central components to “Dream Life” are revved up riffs; Vines-esque chords in the choruses and verses within the mellowed styling common to stoner rock like Truckfighters. Excellent rear-view advice from singer Bobby Desjarlais. “You should have waited to see her face before you told her you loved her.” But perhaps the risk pays off. “And if it’s right where you want it, well then you’re living the dream life.” And then we’re cocky.

“And if I’m right where you want me, oh, well, you’re living the dream life.”

Samuel Swanson

On “Burn L’s,” E.GG displays such beautiful wordplay and language use, this track just slaps so well. It’d be hard to pick a favourite track on this album; but “Burn L’s” or “Still Movin (Feat. Dill The Giant)” are just so tight. No songs on the album I found to be boring ever and each beat works well with E.GG’s delivery style. Plus “For The Riders” reminded me so much of a classic 2000’s Kanye West beat (When he was talented).

This whole album is great, I would recommend this record to everyone who is a fan of hip hop and even to people who are just getting into it. I’m for sure stoked for E.GG’s next project. Caelum Rossell

E.GG Alverstone

Sadly, The Last Temptations Of Chris is the final album from Winnipeg’s wannabe goths, Surprise Party. It’s fitting, of course, that these last songs would be riddled with the highest voltage electro keyboard riffs, the hallowed old time Barbershop-eque vocals, and lyrics to set one’s teeth on edge. “Seven-layer cutie. I wanna take a dip”, courtesy of track 2, “Gloom”.

If you have not shifted involuntarily in your seat, you are a sociopath and must seek professional help immediately. Surprise Party also included

plenty of thunder elsewhere in their album. See track 3, “The Hunter”: explosions of cymbals fused to guitar with extra crunch surrounded in a phase-shifting organ riff, and capped by lyrics that conjure the ever-lurking prospect of one’s doom: “I’m the threat of the evening. I’m the trouble.

I’m the bringer of death tonight…

I’m the threat of the evening for you tonight.” Chills, instant chills. For more chills, change to track 5, “Hex”.

Deep thumping drums slowly rev the song, like an old engine, and the spark plug is the keys/organ. I don’t know enough about engines to continue this metaphor, but those sounds are all played before singer Danny Hacking’s voice checks in and sets its bed on fire.

Track 9, “Angel’s Breath” has a keyboard/organ riff that feels like Darth Vader’s WWE entrance music. In addition to the tracks, Surprise Party has included a poem tucked into the liner entitled “Liber 69”. This poem speaks to the possibility of Last Temptation being a concept album: the characters “Solstice” and “Hank” are referenced in “Liber 69” as well as track 1 (emphasis added), “Blues In F (Solstice and Hank at the End of the Universe)”.

The general flow of the album hints at a continuation of story. Perhaps you are twisted enough to follow it.

Omri Golden Plotnik

gonna set you back a whopping $35 in advance or $45 at the gate.

One of the musicians playing this historic event is Trevor Buckley of Ceilings. Opening up the festival, Ceilings is just one band in the massive pile of local punk. “The only fest I’ve ever been to was Folk Fest for the day with my dad when I was a kid and a couple different venue fests around the city,” says Buckley. “I don’t think I’ll be able to compare it to anything else, but it’ll be wild!” That’s essentially the attitude you can find within this community.

The bill was created based on who wanted to play, not who was ‘good enough’. Punk is an all inclusive genre packed full of folks looking to have the most fun. If you’re going to sleep in a tent and distance yourself from running water, why not do it with all your pals and great tunes? This festival isn’t operating for profit, it’s operating for

Local Spotlight BULLRIDER Bullrider EP Winnipeg indie pop alt rockers BB Gun changed their name to Bullrider, and even provided a playful YouTube video about the name change where every member of the band claims to have come up with the new name. To celebrate the unity and cohesion, they released their self-titled three-track Bullrider EP. The first track is adorable. The definitely cute “Curious” is about being able to let go. “No, I just don’t care at all/And it feels so good to say.” The song is begging for a licensing agreement with a television network serving a teen demographic for a montage scene for the protagonist who finally gets over getting dumped.

“Happy (Where I Am)” is listed as the second track in the digital download version of the EP, but listed as track three on the band’s SoundCloud release, where it is listed simply as “Happy.” With the same ‘everything is swell’ feel as “Curious”, “Happy (Where I Am)” is about neglecting meetings and duties to veg in bed with bae. “Yeah, the day was long and the night was too/I stayed up too late/I’m trying to take all your time.”

The third track on the EP is “Dream Life” (or second for SoundCloud listeners). With a harder edge than “Cu-

14 Stylus Magazine June / July 2017

Winnipeg MC E.GG takes us back to the golden days of rap, with his New York inspired tape Alverstone. The New York influence really works on this. Usually I would just avoid any New York influenced album because it’s been overdone to hell, but E.GG’s voice and smooth vocals work very well with these beats and honestly if someone played Alverstone, I would assume it was a classic hip hop album.

SURPRISE PARTY The Last Temptations of Chris

Under the Needle Werther” and “Abjection”. Void transports us into the lens of his camera in this exploratory common world he’s created. Whether it be in film or music his music debut Selfless is a great beginning and he’s got plenty of tools to play with. Karl Manchur

JONI VOID Selfless Newcomer to Montreal by way of France, film maker/producer/editor Joni Void’s debut Selfless delves into the ordinary and extraordinary hustle and bustle of everyday life strictly using found sounds, field recordings and samples. Opener song “Sienne” starts off with a glitch Philip Glass inspired piano arrangement if it were gradually sinking into the cracks of the back bar of a summer patio restaurant. Second track “observer” mixes a spoken word piece about perception with broken glasses in the previous tracks patio and manipulated piano as the backdrop. She stops time around her at the bar when she asks (amongst broken glass): “Isn’t it strange that we can fall in love with the idea of someone?” After exploring more rooms and scenes, we’re shifted in focus from the airport radio signal coming in and out to the hard hitting brutal bars about city gang violence, crime, capitalism and drug abuse from an Ogun/Tide Jewel to sirens of stolen cars in track Yung Werther in montage seconds.

The track comes crashing down like gun shots in the distance followed by a police chase/drug bust of the climactic next track “Abjection”. It’s a grim window into the world of a troubled mind. Joni is perhaps hinting at the fact that people in our very own neighborhoods, workplace, restaurants, churches, etc. live a life less fortunate though we’re too busy to notice. The album ends with an ascension into a disappearing high frequency, like the fast forwarding of a broken VHS about to break the VCR and blow out the TV, but just doesn’t.

If Selfless were a movie it would be one long take, each track exploring the interconnected architecture of everyday city life. From the rush hour morning/evening traffic of “Doppler” to the temple of prayer in “Aesthetics of Disappearance”, to the film reel of the black and white matinee theatre of “Cinema Without People”, to the hard hitting crime scene chase of “Yung

JESSICA MOSS Pools of Light Constellation records has been churning out some of the most honest music in Canada for over the past two decades (Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Do Make Say Think, Esmerine, etc).

It comes as no surprise that composer/violinist Jessica Moss’ (Thee Silver Mt. Zion, Black Ox Orkestar) first full length debut Pools of Light has continued the Constellation tradition of honest expressive powerful instrumental music. Split into three compositions with the darkness of climate change imbedded into the message of “Feeling Love in a Melting World” the album is sprawled with vocal manipulation, virtuosic improvisation, violin looping and layers of pedal and droning. On the piece “Entire Populations,” her violin executes the motif with classical chops of experienced caliber. The piece progresses with added layers of violin and string orchestration loops developing into intertwining gorgeous polyphony. The layers reach a climax and suddenly disappear as silence and the motif from the beginning transitions into the next piece. Jessica’s years of study and appearances on various records in the who’s who of the Montreal scene have certainly paid off in this gorgeous debut. Like the instrumental bands on Constellation she’s able to use her professional craft to tell powerful emotional messages and stories barely uttering a word.

On her bandcamp page she states: “I don’t have an agenda, certainly not a solution, just a great sense of empathy and desire to be sharing space and experiences. I believe that having these transporting moments together can be both a balm and a way to receive energy to move forward, to engage.”

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Pools of Light is an excellent debut and another testament to the growing list of epic instrumental releases from the Constellation cannon. Karl Manchur ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Meeting Of The Waters EP “Like a window that blew open, let the sunlight and fresh air in.”

These are the first words on the new Animal Collective EP, Meeting Of The Waters, and they’re a fitting description for this record’s place in the group’s discography. After the clutter and artificial lighting of their recent efforts, Meeting Of The Waters finds Animal Collective cracking the window and letting the sun in.

Recorded live in the Amazon Rainforest, the new EP is the group’s first release to feature only Avey Tare and Geologist, and the stripped down structure works well for them.

Opener “Blue Noses” drifts along like its own “cotton on a soft wind”, with Avey Tare’s quietly lilting vocals and droning, softly strummed guitar almost becoming part of the rainforest itself, a feeling helped along by Geolo-

gist’s manipulation of field recordings warped beyond recognition. At 13 minutes, the song slowly and peacefully eases the listener into its world and sets the stage for the rest of the record. “Man of Oil” is the most conventional Animal Collective offering here, with Avey Tare letting his dynamic voice loose over unintelligible vocal samples and upbeat acoustic guitar.

The chorus presents the song’s titular “Man of Oil” as a “coward and also a king”, a “wizard with a wand competing with the lightning”, driving home the record’s conservational “Man Vs. Nature” theme.

The beautiful, contemplative “Selection of a Place” finds Avey Tare dreaming of a “place to stay” while the sounds of the rainforest buzz around him and his quietly plucked guitar.

Animal Collective aren’t content to leave us in peace, though, as the rainforest is overtaken by an industrial static, reminding us that even deep in Earth’s seemingly endless natural places, there’s the constant, sobering threat of human development and destruction. Cole Neustaedter

June / July 2017 Stylus Magazine

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Iconoclast

KRIMEWATCH Demo (2016) Krimewatch is the toughest band I’ve ever heard. The New York band’s 2016 Demo, released on vinyl by Lockin’ Out records, sits at under five minutes and incorporates fast, heavy hardcore punk with some thrashy elements (a.k.a. divebombs). I don’t usually care that much about new releases, but the new(ish) Demo manages to be reminiscent of early East Coast hardcore while still maintaining a contemporary and accessible sound.

Sonically, Krimewatch inhabits the space between Boston’s Dame and Toronto’s Triage.

Featuring bassist Emma Hendry (Hotheads), guitarist Sean Joyce (Ajax), drummer Shayne Benz, and commanding vocals by Rhylli - in both Japanese and English - the band’s five song demo begins with the fast and riffy “小便 たれ” and builds into the heavy and relentless “Peach Generation”. “Coward” is an eviscerating forty-nine seconds. “ゴキブリ男” and “No Sympathy” are both comparable to Bad Brains with Rhylli’s searing vocals and ruthless drumming from Benz. Demo is scary and cool and makes me feel indestructible.

(Lockin’ out Records, krimewatch. bandcamp.com) Olivia Norquay

THE REAL MCKENZIES Two Devils Will Talk The Real McKenzies are staples in Canadian punk. This year they celebrate their 25th year with the release of Two Devils Will Talk, their tenth

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album overall. The record delivers the Scottish folklore that is always promised through the upbeat sound of celtic punk. That folklore sound that feels like the music has a deep-rooted, indisputable purpose. Each song is a story, that even previously unheard, sounds familiar on first listen. The confidence is convincing, and the music confidently suggests a mastery of style. Since it’s still punk there’s room to stray off the path. Breaking from the flow of traditional content,“Fuck The Real McKenzies” is the track that reminds us, through self-deprecation, that we are in fact listening to a punk band. They threw some other celtic band names into the lyrics because fuck ‘em all, right? We’re all the same if we’re all fucked. Amen. When a band’s been providing us with something specific for decades, we have expectations that are sometimes,

but often not met. And it’s pretty typical to watch people get older, get softer, and give in to the masses for a steady income. Fret not, The Real McKenzies deliver without forgetting where they came from and why they’re

there in the first place. Two Devils Will Talk is pretty good, check it out. Kaitlyn Emslie Farrell

95.9 FM CKUW CAMPUS/COMMUNITY RADIO TOP 30 ALBUMS ( March 28 - May 23, 2017) !=LOCAL CONTENT * =CANADIAN CONTENT r=e=RE-ENTRY TO CHART #

ARTIST

1 ! Silence Kit 2 ! Surprise Party 3 ! Personality Crisis 4 ! Smoky Tiger 5 ! Hearing Trees 6 * The Radiation Flowers 7 * Whitney Rose 8 * B.A. Johnston 9 ! Bicycle Face 10 ! Begonia 11 ! Stretch Marks 12 ! Steve Kirby’s Oceanic Jazz Orchestra 13 ! The Psychics 14 * Timber Timbre 15 * The New Pornographers 16 ! Ultra Mega 17 ! Apollo Suns 18 * Austra 19 * Five Alarm Funk 20 * Jerry Cans 21 ! Black Cloud 22 ! The Bloody Historians 23 Luke Sellick 24 * Amelia Curran 25 Old 97’S 26 ! Mohair Sweets 27 ! Jekyll & The Hydes 28 ! Ghost Twin 29 ! Tusk 30 * Ugly Beauties

RECORDING

LABEL

Started As A Whisper The Last Temptation Of Chris Personality Crisis Great Western Gold Puppets Summer Loop South Texas Suite Gremlins III Bicycle Face Lady In Mind Who & What - The Complete Studio Recordings All Over The Map The Future Sincerely, Future Pollution Whiteout Conditions Ultra Mega Each Day A Different Sun Future Politics Sweat Inuusiq Sundogs Cigarette Beach Alchemist Watershed Graveyard Whistling The Ronnie Lane Tribute EP Roll On Plastic Heart Headroom Strange Attractors

Self-Released Transistor 66 Sounds Escaping Transistor 66 Self-Released Optical Sounds / Sunmask / Cardinal Fuzz

Six Shooter Wyatt Self-Released Self-Released Sounds Escaping Head In The Sand Self-Released Arts & Crafts Dine Alone Transistor 66 Self-Released Domino Self-Released Self-Released Real Love Winnipeg Self-Released Cellar Live Six Shooter ATO Self-Released Self-Released Head In The Sand Self-Released Mad Ratios

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June / July 2017 Stylus Magazine

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