CFS delegate bears ill tidings
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UBCO’s Student Newspaper
HEAT recruit stellar prospects
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Arts Feature: 2012 in music
January 7th, 2013 | Vol. 24 Issue 9
page 10
@ubcophoenix
The Phoenix News
Web
thephoenixnews.com
...judging people’s tastes in music since 1989
Life’s a Drag
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The Phoenix |
In this issue
January 7th, 2013
Room 109, University Center 3333 University Way Kelowna, BC Canada V1Y 5N3 Phone: 250-807-9296 Fax: 250-807-8431 thephoenixnews.com
Editor-in-chief: Cameron Welch
editorinchief@thephoenixnews.com
Art Director: Nadine Bradshaw artdirector@thephoenixnews.com Creative Director: Aidan Whiteley creativedirector@thephoenixnews.com Photo Editor: Hanss Lujan
photo@thephoenixnews.com
Copy Editor: Gavin Gamache copy@thephoenixnews.com
News Editor: David Nixon
news@thephoenixnews.com
Features Editor: Rumnique Nannar features@thephoenixnews.com
Arts Editor: Janelle Sheppard arts@thephoenixnews.com
Events Editor: Laura Sciarpelletti events@thephoenixnews.com
Sports Editor: Jesse Shopa
sports@thephoenixnews.com
Opinions Editor: Matt Lauzon
opinions@thephoenixnews.com
Staff Writer: Brandon Taylor writer@thephoenixnews.com Ad Sales Rep: Brendan Savage ads@thephoenixnews.com
Inside:
Managing Editor: Alex Eastman
managingeditor@thephoenixnews.com
Cover and Masthead Images by Hanss Lujan
The Phoenix is the UBC-O students’ free press. Editorial content is separate from the Student’s Governing Body (UBCSUO) and from the institution at large. The editorial staff encourages everyone to submit material to the Phoenix but reserves the right to withdraw submissions from publication for any reason. “Any reason” could be material deemed to be sexist, racist, homophobic, or of poor taste or quality.
The Phoenix
will not publish materials which condone, promote, or express actions which are illegal under current laws.
Sasha wants you to come to UBCO’s first drag show, January 18th, 7pm, at The Well
News
What is going on with the CFS? -Page 4 & 5 Idle no more -Page 6
Arts
2012 in music -Page 10-12 Review: Django Unchained -Page 13
Feature
Drag performers dish on their experiences in Kelowna -Page 14
This does not include articles which provide an in-depth examination of both sides of a controversial subject (e.g. legalising marijuana). We welcome letters: Letters should be typed, doublespaced, under 300 words, and either left with or mailed to the Phoenix office. Your name and phone number must be
Sports
Heat recruiting well -Page 17 Stands empty at The Furnace - Page 16
included. Anonymity may be granted at the discretion of the editorial staff of the Phoenix. Electronic Submissions:
Submissions on disk should
include a hard copy. We ask that you save contributions on disk in “Text Only” or “RTF” formats, or attach documents to an email. The Phoenix is published, in part by: The University of British Columbia Students’ Union Okanagan (UBCSUO) and is an active member of the Canadian University Press
Opinions
Guns in America -Page 21
NEWS
Dave Nixon
News@thephoenixnews.com
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UBCSUO delegate returns from CFS AGM offended, disenchanted over lack of transparency, reform. Dave Nixon News Editor
“Your representative, in an effort to support motions brought forward to reform the nature of the CFS and its practices, has been received with hostility even to the point of ad hominim attacks, personal attacks, to your representatives and me as a person,” reported Abdul Alnaar, addressing the board of directors on December 3, 2012 after his return from a CFS AGM from November 27-30. “I’ve been accused of having a right wing agenda, of being a communinist, a racist and accused of being a person who wants to break down student unions.” During the general meeting, Alnaar supported many reform proposals that involved increasing transparency of the CFS to its members. These were all voted down. “The CFS is it’s own worst enemy” said Alnaar. “It is through [its] tendency of secrecy and consolidation of power that it alienates our members. This secrecy and consolidation of power leads to legitimate criticisms. In the face of these criticisms, the CFS moves towards greater secrecy and consolidation of power in order to protect itself from these supposed attacks. This is exactly what played out with our sister students’ unions from Concordia who held defederation votes in 2010,” Alnaar stated. Concordia had overwhelming support in their referendums to defederate, but the CFS never ratified the vote and is now engaged in a lawsuit with their students’ unions over the procedure of the referendum and withheld member fees.
AGAINST CFS
FOR CFS
“The CFS’s response was to deny the undemocratic will of those members...The CFS is still trying to collect dues from these students even though none of these students unions consider themselves members,” Alnaar commented in support of McGill and Concordia. He concluded his report with a look at the UBCSUO: “We have taken appropriate steps this summer to focus attention on our students, such as removing branding of the CFS from any union materials. Yet I ask you this: Is that enough? We campaigned on a platform to make our organization more transparent and accountable to our students...When a student asks you ‘where does our CFS money go to?’ are you able to answer that question? I ask that you engage our students here to ask about the CFS, and to be critical of the CFS.” When The Phoenix spoke to Alnaar, he told us that the question that needs to be asked is “is the CFS beneficial to students across Can-ada?”. He expressed that the UBCSUO would be more successful in representing its students by lobbying themselves. When asked about what he may see as a benefit of the CFS, he chuckled, and said it was useful for some of the groups on campus, such as the Women’s Centre, to receive support in the form of materi-
The Phoenix spoke with Grayson Lepp, former executive chair three years ago for the UBCSUO, and current staff organizer for the Okanagan College Students’ Union in Salmon Arm. He attended the same meeting as Alnaar, and has attended many CFS meetings in the past. Lepp felt that the divide between some student unions and the CFS is a political one, and since the CFS is a progressive organization, those that are more conservative may disagree with some stances taken by the CFS. “But it’s a majority membership vote, and that’s the way democracy works,” he concluded. On the issue of transparency, Lepp defended the majority decision by explaining CFS’s delicate position as a political lobbying group. “If anyone outside the CFS can look on the website to see what is being spent on a campaign, then any organization with opposing interests to the CFS could spend more and have more successful counter campaigns.“Any member of the [federation] can go to a CFS representative and ask to see any of this information... and they have to give it to you, that’s their job.”
in a nutshell 16.80
142 000 >500 000 80
Dollars contributed by each UBCO student to CFS this year Total contribution made by UBCO to CFS this year Number of students represented by CFS across Canada Number of member student unions
Three main arms of the CFS
Campaigns • • • • • • • • • • •
Tuition fees and funding Income-contingent loan repayment Research and graduate funding Registered education savings plan Student loan bankruptcy Private universities and colleges International trade in services Aboriginal education United against violence against women Copyright G20 open letter
19%
By the numbers
Research
• • • •
Public education for the public good A yearly study on public opinion of education, the benefit of investment in education and other key factors Submission to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance A yearly study on recommendations to improve the Canadian economy and job market with relation to education
• • • • • • • • •
did it multiple times per day. Do it your way. Enrol anytime, study where and when you want and transfer credits back to your on-campus program.
Services
Travel cuts Student work abroad program International student identity card Studentsaver discount card File taxes free at ufile.ca Canadian students’ union directory Handbook & dayplanner National student health network Students’ union website services
www.truopen.ca/yourway
MC117213
The CFS is an organization founded in 1981 to provide a united voice for representing the collective interests of students to federal and provincial governments. Today, it lobbies the governments with the backing of over 500,000 students across 80 student unions. The CFS serves students by employing researchers, in order to reinforce proposals to provincials and federal governments, lobbying government through campaigns and providing various services.
Flexible • Credible • Online and Distance
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The Phoenix |
News
January 7th, 2013
Campus Pulse Dave Nixon News Editor
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No evidence of the supposed cougar on campus has been found.
Photo by siwild (flickr)
January 2: It couldn’t get any earlier
For some students, the winter term’s early start date meant choosing between missing New Year’s or missing class The end of 2012 did not bring the end of the world – it just brought the earliest start date possible for 2013 classes at UBCO. The early start date meant students were rushing to pack up and leave in the wake of their New Years Eve celebrations, which may have been difficult depending on the proximity to UBCO. International students who went home for the holidays got put in the toughest position. Abdul Alnaar, a Bahraini national in 4th year Political Sciences, was forced to be late and miss class in order to stay in Dubai for New Years and then fly back. Paul Marck in UBCO Media
UBCO’s past winter term start dates:
Relations responded as to why they did not wait until January 7 like many other universities across Canada. “UBC has a well-deserved reputation for delivering quality education and a superior learning experience to students. Class start dates are set by UBC’s Okanagan Senate and they are established to correspond to a set of guidelines which are also approved by Senate. The guidelines identify a minimum and optimum number of teaching days and examination days to fit everything into a compressed time period. The result is that there is very little wiggle room
2010: Monday, January 4 2011: Tuesday, January 4 2012: Wednesday, January 4
on dates, and some years no options at all. The preference is to resume classes on a Monday when possible, but that does not always work.” As per their policy, Senate outlines that each term must contain a minimum of 60 teaching days. It considers 63 teaching days optimal. The Monday following January 1 is the preferred start date. These policies were set out by the Vancouver campus Senate in 2004 and then adopted by the Okanagan Senate. UBCO often begins classes on Jan. 4, so to wait until Jan. 7 would have been a large deviation and a loss of three days.
Other universities’ winter term start dates: UVIC: January 3 UofT: January 7 UofC: January 7* UofA: January 7**
*UofC has a week of ‘Block Week’ courses before regular courses start. These are concentrated classes that run for a week, and then require course work throughout the term independent of a regular class meeting. They are only available for 3rd and 4th year courses. **UofA Medicine and Dentistry begin on the 2nd
UBCO’s online community an asset if used correctly Bettering the campus community has been the subject of various focus groups with students, indicating that the University has interest in fostering a student community here. A physical community may be superseded by an online community, however, which does not face the same obstacles as the former. Last semester there was a notable trend towards social media creating communities online for students to participate in. “I’m really excited to see all the student engagement in the form of online communities,” said Nick Dodds, UBCSUO Services Coordinator. “The super successful UBCO Compliments is an asset to the sense of community on our campus.” Dodds also expressed a concern that some online activity may be destructive in nature, but may be positive overall: “even when the focus of the page is misguided, that engagement is still a good thing for our campus.” UBCO Compliments, based on a Queen’s University idea, is a Facebook account that you can send a compliment to via private message, and have it anonymously posted it as a status update with the intended recipient tagged so they see it. This account currently has over 1,000 friends, which is approximately one eighth the size of the University’s current student population.
UBCO Critic is a less positive account, and has been used to criticize the school. Due to its controversial statements, however, it has managed to garner much more debate than other accounts and currently has 270 connections. UBC Solutions was also created, in the interest of having constructive discussion about how to better UBCO. There has been some discussion on it, but it has had less success with only 105 connections so far. UBCO Crushes has also emerged, to fill the void that Like a Little left. It allows someone to anonymously publicize a crush about another person on campus that has caught their eye. It currently reaches 352 people. The success of these accounts is indicative of the opportunity there is for a strong online community. If UBCO is interested in fostering a campus community, perhaps it should take a look at these examples in order to create something of value to students. As for the physical community, Dodds hopes more students will get interested: “I also encourage students to take further steps in engagement on campus beyond the online world. The ‘Get Involved Center’ is a great place to start, or come into the UBCSUO office and find out how our school can benefit from your passion and strengths.”
YLW continues growth
Cougar unconfirmed
The airport across the street is continuing to grow, and is now welcoming flights from United Airlines, the largest airline in the world. This gives a direct route from California (37 million people) to Kelowna, which means growth for the business community in Kelowna, especially for local tourism. What does it mean for students at UBCO? Well, the stronger Kelowna’s economy is, the more part-time jobs and summer jobs will be available. It means better business connections, which increases the possibility of access to better recruitment locally and globally for UBCO students graduating. Finally, the larger the airport, the more likely it will be that businesses will want to open up on the outskirts of town, meaning Kelowna will expand around UBCO.
The conservation officer assigned to the case has not discovered any physical evidence of the presence of a cougar around the UBCO campus, even after using a tracking dog in the search. This suggests that either the cougar never existed, or it has long since moved on. Even so, it was a good warning for a campus that is currently perched on the boundaries of creeping urbanization. UBCO is on the outskirts of Kelowna, and it should be no surprise to anyone that wildlife may wander through. Students should understand that these encounters are a possibility, and should take it upon themselves to understand the danger this presents. Meanwhile, another cougar was spotted Tuesday morning in a tree in West Kelowna (or perhaps the same one, there is no way to be sure).
News
Motions supported by Alnaar included: Reducing the bureaucracy involved with defederation An amendment was proposed by the Dawson Students’ Union to reduce the difficulties involved in decertifing from the CFS. Bylaw one of the CFS outlines the procedure for a local member to defederate from the CFS (i.e. to leave the CFS). It involves a petition, then a referendum at the school in question overseen by the CFS, then a vote at the next general meeting of the Federation to ratify the vote. If it is not ratified, then the member local is not permitted to defederate. This whole process can take up to a maximum of 270 days not including the time for notice to be mailed back and forth of the various votes, nor the time waiting for the next general meeting for ratification. This motion came on the heels of the controversy surrounding several student unions who atttempted to defederate from the CFS but did not have the ratification of their vote given by the organization.
Increased transparency and accountability to members A proposal was made to have the consitution documents, general meeting minutes, and CFS audits available online on their website. Another proposal was made to livestream open and closing plenary meetings so that members who cannot attend will be able to see the discussion surrounding all the motions proposed. A proposal was to require the CFS to disclose its legal activity and the costs involved with that. The CFS is alledgedly involved with numerous lawsuits all over the country, some of which are against members who had successfully voted to defederate but never had that vote ratified at a general meeting, mentioned above. A proposal to have the CFS adapt all its online material and services to mobile devices.
Supporting communities on campus Abdul, also supported various motions to work to support the rights of women on campus as well as the LGBTQ communities.
January 7th, 2013
| The Phoenix
What students across the country are saying about the CFS “I don’t think CFS is a bad organization. A lot of the work the CFS does, like fighting against discrimination and standing up for student rights, is admirable and successful. But they are too distracted by political causes that have little to do with their core mission.”
-Jane Lytvynenko, Ottawa bureau chief of the Canadian University Press, from her article “Has the CFS lost its way? Student group seems distracted and afraid of transparency”
“The perceived top-down, undemocratic nature of CFS has been a long-standing concern of local executives and members for years, and has been raised at multiple AGMs. These conversations have historically been met with hostility, aggression and ad-hominem attacks.”
-Ashleigh Ingle, member of the University of Toronto Graduates SU, in a speech to delegates
“We need to decide whether we want to continue towards being the largest consumer products company to masquerade as a social movement...We don’t just have strength in numbers, it’s about how we use those numbers.”
-From a statement read to the CFS on behalf of the McGill Graduate SU
“Each time a motion aimed at reform was raised at the meeting, we saw the following response: 1. Discussion on how this motion threatens the unity of the CFS 2. Characterization of those who support the motion as being divisive 3. Motion fails and status quo of CFS operations is maintained.”
-Erin Oh, delegate of the University of Toronto Graduate SU, in a blog about her experience
“The system works...the [majority] membership didn’t feel that those guidelines needed to be changed at this time.”
-Grayson Lepp, former UBCSUO executive chair and current OCSU organizer for Salmon Arm
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News
January 7th, 2013
Photo from Daniel Richard
Idle No More movement makes an impression locally and globally
What’s happening here in Kelowna and what a social movement with no official leadership wants Locally
How it started
“This is a grassroots movement, [with] no official spokesperson. Everyone has his or her own unique voice for how to move forward. It is a lot about permission for uniqueness, peace, harmony and friendship. [The movement] has a united voice, within which are [so many] unique individual voices,” said Daniel Richard, a resident of Kelowna and organizer of a recent Idle No More event in Penticton. The event Richard put together saw people shoulder-to-shoulder, packing the Cherry Lane Mall in Penticton, B.C., where a flashmob took place along with speeches, poetry readings, and music. Later, a demonstration at Gyro Park drew a smaller crowd of an estimated 150-200 individuals out in the snow. There are other organizers in Kelowna, and a round dance was put on January 5, 2013 at the large sail by the water in downtown Kelowna. Richard has said there will be another demonstration in Kelowna on January 10 as a part of the Global Day of Action. A flash mob is expected along with music, speeches, and more. He hopes to have it in the UBCO courtyard, but if UBCO turns him down it may happen elsewhere in town. UBCO Young Liberals have also spoken out in favor of the movement: “Bill C-45’s treatment of Indigenous treaty rights is simply embarrassing,” said Tim Krupa, President of the UBCO Young Liberals.
The movement began with four women in Saskatchewan who were concerned that Bill C-45 may erode indigenous rights. Idle No More is truly a triumphant tale of social media: after its first event in Saskatoon on November 10, there were five more events within a week. Now the movement has evolved into a broader protest of inequalities facing aboriginal citizens in Canada.
Core issues The three core issues remain the objections to parts of bill C-45, which are as follows: Indian Act: First Nations communities can now lease designated reserve lands if a majority attending a meeting vote that way, regardless of how many show up to the meeting. The Aboriginal Affairs minister can also be the one to call this meeting, and can choose to ignore opposition from the band council if they oppose the decision made in the vote. Navigation Protection Act: This act laid out that businesses with projects such as pipelines and power lines did not need to prove that they would not damage or destroy a waterway unless it was on a list of protected waterways. Idle No More claims this bill amends the act to remove 99.9% of those waterways from the list. Environmental Assessment Act: Bill C-45 reduces the types of projects that would need assessment, and Idle No More objects to this expedited system.
As Richard said, the Idle No More banner is made up of countless individuals now, all with their own unique ideas of how to progress, so the form that this movement will take in the future is uncertain.
What is happening now? Over 24 blockades have happened across Canada since the start of December, and well over 200 demonstrations overall have taken place in Canada. There have also been demonstrations of global support in the United States, New Zealand and Australia, just to name a few. Chief Theresa Spence became a focal point for the movement when she began her hunger strike to gain a meeting with Harper. She is on day 26 of the strike, and Harper has now pledged to have a meeting with a delegation of First Nations chiefs on January 11. Spence has not given up on her hunger strike though; she plans to continue it until she sees the outcome of the meeting. Harper has remained vague about the Idle No More protests, saying little more than “In this country, people have the right to demonstrate and express their points of view peacefully as long as they obey the law.” This meeting will be very important in determining the future of Idle No More.
Photo from Daniel Richard
Find out about more local events here: Twitter: @idlenomoreOKN Facebook: idlenomoreOKN Email: DL@idle-no-more.org
News
January 7th, 2013
| The Phoenix
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Study warns of smartphone addiction Darryl Gallinger The Lance (University of Windsor )
“The response to pets was the most surprising,” said Alexandra Maxwell, a spokesperson for Wind. The survey shows that 17 per cent of smartphone users would give up their pets. “I just didn’t see that coming, but I guess some people just love their phones more.” According to the survey, 40 per cent would give up video games, 28 per cent would give up alcohol and 23 per cent would part with coffee rather than give up their smartphone. “Surveys are a great way to check the pulse of consumers. With more and more Canadians switching to smartphones, we wanted to see just how much Canadians loved them,” said Maxwell. “I’d feel pretty weird without my phone,” said Hanna Bellacicco, who wouldn’t give up her pet in exchange for her phone
but would cut out coffee to stay connected. “It has to be near me. Even when it’s charging it has to be near me.” Ken Hart, a psychology professor at the University of Windsor, was surprised by the results of the survey and said it could indicate an addiction trend. Hart defined addiction as a loss of control. “The person feels a compulsive need,” he said. “This overwhelming urge to engage in the behaviour is very strong, and the person is unable to restrain themselves.” “[Addictions] cause your life to become smaller and narrower, because other activities in your life are being displaced by this,” said Hart. “Important life goals that you’re trying to achieve don’t get accomplished, so you start becoming unhappy.” A Pew Research Center study of 2,200 Americans last March in-
League and NHLPA agree in principle to ten-year deal Alex Eastman
Managing Editor
dicates that about 10 per cent feel they use their phones too much, suggesting people are becoming aware of potential abuse. “I use my smartphone every day,” said Allisa Oliverio, who admits to feeling like she’s addicted to the device. “Without it I think I’d be lost … It’s always with me; it’s always in my hand.” Oliverio said that she sets boundaries with her use, such as avoiding using it when she’s hanging out with friends since she views that as rude behaviour. Other countries are already struggling with smartphone addiction. According to the Toronto Star, South Korea has started a program to help children with their addiction to the internet through various gadgets, including tablets and smartphones. The South Korean government estimates that 2.55 million of its people are addicted.
Mohsan Beg, clinical director at UWindsor’s Student Counselling Centre, has not yet encountered issues of smartphone addiction among students. “We do see some internet addiction,” he said, adding that patients typically have issues with video game use. “[Students] engage in the technological world to escape the real world,” explained Beg. He said symptoms of depression are often tied to internet addiction and people often resort to escapism by playing video games to cope. Hart said that improper smartphone use draws people’s attention away from the current task at hand, be that studying, driving or holding a conversation. “As an instructor, I see students use smartphones in class, even when they’re not supposed to,” said Hart, adding that de-
spite his policy against mobile phones, students violate it regularly, even after seeing him confiscate phones. “It can be dangerous in the sense that it can harm their academic well-being.” Hart said he was unaware of a program to treat such an addiction, but said that he could see an increased need for one in the future. “The larger problem is being distracted … maybe they’re addicted to distractions,” said Hart. “On the other hand ... feelings of depression and loneliness can be alleviated by the smartphone, which is an outlet for social engagement.” Hart uses the internet mostly for work and engages in social media sparingly. He only uses a landline and doesn’t own a mobile. “I don’t need one,” he said with a laugh.
There will be hockey this season. Early on the morning of January 6th, the NHL and its Players’ Association agreed to a ten year Collective Bargaining Agreement, or CBA. The agreement is in principle as of press time, but barring an extremely unlikely hitch in the fine print of the final document, the NHL will play a shortened season in the following months, with the Stanley Cup handed out following a playoffs that will likely stretch into July. The deal comes after a lockout that lasted 113 days, and followed a tense, 16-hour long negotiating session that consumed all of Saturday the 5th and stretched into the dark hours of Sunday morning. Federal mediator Scot Beckenbaugh traveled from room to room in a New York city hotel, meeting with the opposite parties, before the two sides finally were able to find common ground and agree to the new CBA, which lasts ten years with an opt-out clause for either party after eight years of the deal. The biggest change in the finances of the game is a change in the percentage distribution
of hockey-related revenue, or HRR. Under the previous CBA, the players received 57% of HRR through their contracts. As the NHL has grown in popularity since the 2005 CBA, the average player salary has risen from about $1.45 million to about $2.45 million. The new CBA has the players’ share of HRR down from that 57% to 50%. There are some other notable changes. The NHL’s draft lottery system has been changed, so that all 14 teams who do not make the playoffs are eligible to receive the first overall pick. For the shortened season, The NHL’s salary cap is set at $60 million; however teams are allowed to spend up to $70.2 million. Next year’s cap is $64.3 million, a number the NHLPA fought until the eleventh hour to keep from shrinking to the NHL’s proposed $60 million. Teams are also allowed up to two “compliance buyout” options, which buy out the player’s contract without counting against the salary cap. This news likely comes across as great to fans eager to see their team’s overpaid scapegoats (Scott Gomez, Mike
Komisarek, and Keith Ballard might come to mind) out the door. The NHL’s teams will now begin a frantic training camp process to gear up for the start of the season. At the beginning of the NHL lockout, the 30 teams sent a list to the teams in the Canadian Hockey League, the premier junior development league in the world, of players that they would wish to recall for training camp should the lockout end. The players affected for Canadian NHL teams could include Frank Corrado (Vancouver), Morgan Rielly (Toronto), David Musil (Edmonton), Alex Galchenyuk (Montreal), Cody Ceci (Ottawa), and Mark Scheifele (Winnipeg) among others. Last year’s first overall pick, Edmonton’s Nail Yakupov, played in Russia with other NHLers during the lockout and is one of many non-CHL NHL prospects who will attend camp. After his strong performance in the recently-ended World Junior Hockey Championship, Calgary prospect John Gaudreau, who plays college hockey, could be considered for an invite.
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The Phoenix |
Events & Games
January 7th, 2013
JAN. 7 - JAN. 21 Jordan Leibel Jan 8, 8 PM Minstrel Cafe No entry fee,with some jazz, blues and solo piano playing.
Windmills & James Roy InStore Session Jan 11, 6:30 PM Milkcrate Records Come for a free night of great music! Donations accepted. Windmills keeps moving.
Minds and Music: The Schumann Letters Jan 11, 10:30 AM University Centre Ballroom A unique combination of storytelling, piano music and song on Schumann’s life.
Men and Women’s Heat Basketball Jan 11 & 12, 6 & 8 PM, 6 &7 PM UBCO Gymnasium Happy New Year sports fans! Now get your asses on those stands.
FCCS Visiting Author Series: Rita Wong Jan 14, 7 PM Downtown Kelowna Library The water activist and poet will be reading her work.
Kelowna Rockets Hockey Game Jan 16, 7 PM Prospera Place The Kelowna Rockets take on the Spokane Chiefs in WHL hockey action.
Hannah Georgas Jan 17 Habitat Keyboard-heavy musical goodness. Come check it out! $15 in advance, and $20 at the door.
Run the Trap w/ Luminox Jan 18, 9:30 PM Sapphire The first installment Sapphire’s “Run the Trap” series with a DJ heavyhitter Luminox.
Colour in this picture of Honey Boo Boo Child and bring it to The Phoenix Office (UNC 109, near the ladies’ bathroom). We will scan our favourites and post them for all to see! Also email us anything: events@thephoenixnews.com
Dee Bass with Arise + Trouble Jan 11 Habitat Let this upbeat group be your Friday night soundtrack!
Wild Son Jan 11, 9 PM O’Flannigan’s Folk rock electric and acoustic style with a lil’ dance mixed in.
Application Deadline for Summer 2013 Semester Jan 15, 12 AM UBCO Schooooool’s OUT FOR SUMMER. Not. Embodiment Drag Show Jan 18, 7 PM The Well UBCO’s first drag show ever is in full throttle! Check out our feature on the drag queens.
The Mahones Jan 11 Doc Willoughby’s Grab a pint and enjoy some Irish punk music.
UBC Student Services: Student Employment Hiring Fair Jan 16, 3 PM UBCO Campus Come see what employment is available for next year. Men and Women’s Heat Volleyball Jan 18 & 19, 6 & 8 PM, 5 & 7 PM UBCO Gymnasium UBCO versus The University of Calgary.
ARTS
Janelle Sheppard
features@thephoenixnews.com
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Attack of the bearded ones
The Sheepdogs and Yukon Blonde rock the Kelowna Community Centre
Laura Sciarpelletti
The Sheepdogs at Keloha
Events Editor
On Tuesday December 18th, I woke up with the flu. In a desperate attempt to make myself better by that evening, I dragged myself to the nearest 7/11 and bought a box of crackers, some fruit, and two bottles of ginger ale. As I paid for my remedies—pale faced and practically in tears—the store clerk told me that I would probably get over it in a couple of days. I told him that The Sheepdogs concert was that evening, and that I would be better by then. I was not. I discovered The Sheepdogs two summers ago when my friend played their debut album one day when I was visiting. “Who are these guys?” I asked. “They’re quite the throwback. Kind of got a Kinks and CCR vibe.” “The Sheepdogs!” she said. “Kind of retro right?”
The band has been climbing their way up the popularity ladder since 2006, playing with such legends as John Fogarty and continuously releasing versatile rock music. They take a lot of inspiration from the ‘70’s, with their long hair, beards, and bell-bottom pants, making them resemble the band Kansas at times. When we interviewed the band last summer they talked about branching out from being known as the band from the Rolling Stone cover (which they were voted onto as part of a 2011 contest). After watching many of their live performances online, I noticed several changes and progressions in their style, particularly the heightened experimental guitar playing. Leot Hanson has been known to get slightly acrobatic during Sheepdogs sets, and the Kelowna performance was no different.
The Sheepdogs are from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The Canadian rock group consists of lead singer and guitarist Ewan Currie, guitarist Leot Hanson, bassist Ryan Gullen, and percussionist Sam Corbett. Corbett was particularly impressive during a blues segment in which he had a trombone solo. During the concert, my body and mind were having quite the battle. I was enjoying the music immensely, impressed by Currie’s vocal and guitar skills, as well as Hanson’s. On the other hand, I was having a really hard time controlling my limbs as my body practically screamed “Take me home you crazy girl! I need rest and gingerale!” But I held out, weak but determined, making it through the entire concert. The audience was a Heinz 57 of all ages, and many of them were on their
Photo by Janelle Sheppard
feet through the majority of the set. Beerbreathed twenty year olds held up lighters, as they screamed the lyrics along with the band. The venue was a little conservative for a rock concert with its assigned seating. However, everyone made the best of it, singing along to Sheepdogs hits such as “I Don’t Know,” “Stairway,” and “Right On.” Local boys Yukon Blonde opened the show at the Kelowna Community Centre, giving their own stellar performance and even joined the headliners at the end of the show for one last song. I also got the pleasure of hearing all about how goodlooking the musicians were, from the two drunk middle-aged women sitting next to me with their rum and cokes and cougareyes. Despite this, and the vicious Christmas bug that plagued me, The Sheepdogs managed to save my night.
DIY project: Sushi for one or two
Switch up the sandwiches with this simple lunch sized recipe Laura Sciarpelletti Events Editor
One of my New Year’s resolutions this year, which I always take seriously, is to take a packed lunch to school every day. However, I have become rather spoiled over the years (culinary-wise), and sandwiches just do not cut it for me. Sushi is, needless to say, one of the most popular food choices for university students lately, and very easy to make.
You will need:
Photo by Laura Sciarpelletti
First, chop up your vegetables and other toppings. Place one cup of sushi rice in a rice cooker after rinsing it a few times; you do not want the water to be cloudy. The amount of water to use can be found on the back of the bag. After the rice has been cooked, place in a bowl and add three and a half tablespoons of rice vinegar. Some recipes add sugar to the mixture, but I do not. Add a teaspoon of salt, and mix and cool the rice. Next, place a piece of seaweed paper on your bamboo mat. In a pinch, a kitchen towel can work as well, although not as well. Spread the sushi rice on the seaweed; make sure the rice is evenly spread out and that there are no holes. Dampen the end edge with rice vinegar in order to insure that your sushi sticks better when you roll it. Next, place your veggies and toppings in even lines on the rice. Use the bamboo to carefully roll, and go over the roll after, with your fingers to make sure it holds together. Cut your sushi carefully and serve! This recipe makes enough for two people, or one exceptionally hungry person.
-Vegetables (for this DIY I used avocado, asparagus and cucumber) -Rice vinegar -Sushi rice -Unsalted dried seaweed -Salt -Fish, shellfish or chicken (if you wish) -Wasabi (optional) -Soy sauce (optional) -Pickled ginger (optional) -Bamboo mat
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pop MUSIC
Trap unites hip hop and EDM
2012 in
hip hop jazz pop country indie rock folk edm funk dubstep soul bass k-pop AMBIENT KRAUTROCK noise metal techno
blues trap house grime acid jazz adult FALLOUT BOY 2-step hardcore
art rock symphonic death metal wonky Bhangra Blue Grass britpop Calypso Chillwave Ska cowpunk Drone
When Hudson Mohawke and Lunice teamed up to produce the most ratchet and intelligent Trap album to date, they finally rode the 4/4 beat horses of the musical apocalypse into raves and rap clubs across North America and the UK. While the genre-bending vultures of Hip Hop have been circling EDM ever since Afrika Bambaataa reinterpreted Kraftwerk’s Trans Europe Express on Planet Rock in 1983, never had the combination of EDM and Hip Hop been so absolute and permanent as it has arrive at through Trap. MCs have been rapping over electronic samples since tape loops and synthesizers allowed it, however with advent of cheap and accessible digital synthesizer programs like Abelton, producing electronic music has never been easier or more accessible, and the lines between electronic and other genres have become ever thinner. The inevitability of the convergence of EDM and Hip Hop is a long time coming. Hip-House’s emergence in the early 1990s suggested greater integration, however the Boom Pap of the East Vs. West Coast feud overpowered the ecstasy fuelled beats of The KLF, leaving Electronic to develop Big Beat, 2 Step and Drum n Bass on its own while Hip Hop rested on the laurels of it’s 1990s critical and financial success. Meanwhile EDM moved further from its disco roots with IDM, and breached mainstream success with artists like The Chemical Brothers. When Dubstep, an evolution of earlier UK Garage, took off in America
its aesthetic transformed from one of uncertainty, timid anonymity, and cold loneliness into that one of a chainsaw running through a Super Sweet 16 bash. Skrillex and Deadmau5 became household names, and pop stars from Britney Spears to JayZ and Kanye dropped dubstep infused tracks. Hip Hop’s continued party relevancy came largely from the continued development of Southern Hip Hop, including the brashness of Crunk, Snap and Trap. It is from these Southern genres that the final convergence arose. Eclipsing the popularity of other regional scenes like the Bay Area’s Hyphy, or New York’s Purple Sound. Trap’s ascent to mainstream popularity has disseminated its distinctive rapid-fire hi-hats and simple bass lines into EDM, Electro-pop, and other Pop genres. While Trap runs the risk of over exposure, with simplistic and often horrible “Trap Remixes” available for nearly every pop track released in 2012 available on Soundcloud, where it’s done correctly Trap has demonstrated it’s swagger is more than fleeting. Hudson Mohawke and Lunice’s project, TNGHT, sounds a lot like ignint Southern Hip Hop: catchy, thundering bass lines and cheesy electronic melodic overdubs, yet the EP is defiantly bass music, with minimal aesthetics pushed toward club beats. In 2012 Trap has re-contextualized Hip Hop as much for candy raver as for the grill-boasting MC.
R&B and post-R&B merge Indie brings back hard rock, Early in 2011 “post-R&B” or, more disparagingly, “PBR&B”, rose to prominence almost solely on the breakout success of Frank Ocean and The Weeknd. Most postR&B tends towards spaced-out, introspective music that shares the themes and vocal stylings of R&B but flips the attitude and production. That said, the subgenre is fairly vague; Frank Ocean doesn’t even really fit the above bill. His mixtape Nostalgia Ultra was certainly introspective, but aside from hit single “Novacane” it was more an embrace of pure pop songwriting and emotion than a retreat into sad drughazed loft music. Nonetheless, Ocean’s work played off existing R&B, and was the first mixtape to really popularize singing over someone else’s track rather than rapping over it. The spaceyness and moodiness of post-R&B definitely spread into mainstream R&B in 2012, but more importantly so did the attitude of doing more interesting things with the genre. In recent years, mainstream R&B had started to basically mean “Top 40 Pop: Black People Edition”. R&B had lost track of much of what made it a distinct genre, and the brief introduction of “alternative R&B” jolted it back on track. Usher and Diplo’s hit “Climax” smoothly navigated post-R&B and dubstep influences to bring out dormant Ursher emotionality. Singers like Jeremih, Melanie Fiona, Dawn Richard, and even Brandy moved into the territory of post-R&B forerunner The-Dream by incorporating new-school production on
relatively mainstream R&B albums. Meanwhile, alternative R&B itself expanded itself rather than sticking to easily jockable signifiers. Frank Ocean’s major label debut explored soul, 70s pop, lounge, and retro R&B, bringing throwback influences into modern R&B without becoming a niche revivalist like Raheem DeVaughn, Raphael Saadiq, or Sharon Jones. The Weeknd went mainstream without really changing, and channeled MJ’s edgier side. Jesse Boykins made space soulful. Miguel took the sound of post-R&B and made it sensual and fun like classic R&B. Solange and Dev Hynes’ expertly blended upbeat and downbeat into one of the year’s best and most distinctive singles. Lo-fi and electronica crossovers liek How To Dress Well, Jamie Woon, and Active Child filled in the space between the genres. Jessie Ware’s mix of classic R&B vocals and lyrics with modern production and effectsdrew major attention without being lumped in with typical post-R&B. Sure, maybe it’ll jump the shark in 2013, but in a year filled with hollow, disappointing appropriation of almost everything that people thought was cool, the success of post-R&B’s incorporation is a major positive. Its rise to prominence saw its mentality go mainstream, not just its trendy sound and vibe, while it expanded to rediscover classic R&B rather than becoming trapped in its own bubble.
while Vevo appropriates indie Real rock music has barely existed for the past decade. Rock stations play hilarious white-boy butt rock that combines the worst of pop-rock and hard-rock, while the majority of 2000s indie rock haven’t seemed like real ROCK N ROLL, except in a few early-decade cases like The Strokes or White Stripes that were celebrated as bringing rock back. In 2012, a year dominated in most other genres by airy synths and electronic drops, bands like Japandroids, The Men, Cloud Nothings, Dum Dum Girls, King Tuff took up guitars and drum kits and shredded. Harder-rocking indie had been developing for a few years with the above groups and bands like Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Wu Lyf, and Calgary’s since-disbanded Women, but this year that garage-y sound came into its own as a legitimate and popular stream of indie music. This development was all the more welcome because it coincided with the rise, on the other side of the genre, of Vevo bands. “Vevo band” is the term I use for upbeat fake-indie bands whose songs are in every commercial and who all have the same accessible but empty pseudo-emotionality. I call them “Vevo” bands because if a band has a Vevo page early in their career it means that they’re already signed to a major label and are directly appealing to commercial success and mass audiences. The biggest Vevo band of 2012 was undisputably Fun., but the Lumineers also sold a shit-ton of albums. Other Vevo bands include Grouplove, Foster the People, Awolnation (“SAIL!!!!”), Young the Giant
(“my body tells me nooooooo!!!”), and Cold War Kids (although they’ve been at the fake-indie game for much longer than the others). Other bands like Local Natives and Of Monsters and Men aren’t as blatantly commercial as the aforementioned ones but they have similar sounds so you can lump them in there too. Sound-wise, Vevo bands merge the arena-ready crescendos of bands like Arcade Fire with the accessible electronic bounciness of MGMT and M83.
Really, this development was pretty much inevitable given the increasing popularity of “indie”, or at least the semblance of indie, and Vevo bands have ridden the conspicuous consumption of millions of trendy teens to massive success. There’s nothing wrong with a little popularity, but the problem with these acts is both their inauthenticity and, at the end of the day, the boring emptiness of their product. Vevo bands traffic on bombastic, emotional-seeming choruses, but the point of their songs is just to be songs. Aside from maybe a few of the more distinctive hits, they don’t actually say anything or make you feel any actual specific emotion. It’s all the idea of a song, with chorusues and harmonies and a buncha instruments and the idea of emotion. It’s all just “feels”.
Arts
January 7th, 2013
Under-the-radar releases:
Krautrock Kollaborations Heartbreaking Bravery – Moonface with Siinai The Marble Downs – Bonnie Prince Billy with Trembling Bells Spencer Krug is the lead singer of like a dozen bands – Wolf Parade, Swan Lake, Sunset Rubdown, Frog Eyes – but the Moonface name was usually reserved for his solo electronic releases. At least it was, until this year when he collaborated on a Moonface record with Siinai, a proggy Finnish postrock band that shares his love of organbased krautrock. The collaboration sounds a lot like Krug’s other bands but condenses his instrumentation to concise, brooding rock songs and tames his sometimes-arcane songwriting into simpler and more
direct couplets. The tracks on Heartbreaking Bravery don’t all match the heartbreakingness of Krug’s best work, but their accessibility and consistency across the whole disc make this release one of his strongest. Meanwhile, brooding folk O.G. Will Oldham, another singer-songwriter known for having a ton of band names got together with British 60s/70s revivalist folk-rockers Trembling Bells. Technically the organ on this record is much more baroque rock / psychedelic rock than krautrock, but the Bells’ effect on Billy is similar to Siinai’s on Krug: both bands wrap the respective brooding songwriters in accessible, steadily chuggining rock’n’roll surroundings. These albums didn’t change music in 2012 by any means and likely won’t stand out as defining moments in Krug’s or Oldham’s careers, but they did a great job of reinterpreting both artists’ work in a new way. These albums aren’t what 2012 itself sounded like, but they’re 2012’s reinterpretation of almost half a century of rock music.
Ambient Bass crafts soundscapes as art EDM continues to splinter, with sub-genres stagnating nearly as quickly as they are created. While the excesses of Dubstep and Trap have pushed the frantic pace of EDM toward a psychosis inducing rage that only MDMA and Ketamine can match, the ambient end of Electronic Music has shown more experimentation. The following 5 albums show artists coming into their own for individual artistic statements, and exemplify the diverse influences and aesthetics produced through reinterpreting Jazz, ambient, and noise music can create. Burial - Kindred EP Since the 2005 release of South London Boroughs, William Bevan has slaved to refine his own aesthetic, espousing the cold, inhumane ambience of his home in the namesake south London. While Burial has not released an LP since 2008’s critically acclaimed Untrue, he’s kept busy collaborating with Four Tet, Thom Yorke, and Massive Attack. 2012’s solo release, Kindred, sees Burial at his best. The crackled vocal samples and low end come off across as simultaneously purposeful and loose. Kindred EP bridges ambience and rhythm to create a haunting and beautiful portrait of solitude in one of the world’s busiest places. Actress – Rip You’re better off feeling the ebb and flow of the beat, hidden amongst the fuzz, blips, and clicks, rather than searching for it. Actress, stage name for Manchester’s Darren Cunningham, crafts his message on the state of man and machine throughout the course of Rip, descending into the madness of electrical modernism. Tim Hecker – Piano Drop Montreal-based Tim Hecker’s 6th album under his own moniker sees his continued exploration of beauty amongst noise. The constructed soundscapes of Piano Drop
test the auditory capacity of space. The swirling feedback and crafted noise fills every available facet of your brain with an onslaught of audible frequencies, painting imagery with sound. Flying Lotus – Until the Quiet Comes/ Captain Murphy – Duality Steven Ellison’s 4th LP as Flying Lotus, Until the Quiet Comes, emerged two years after his critically acclaimed 3rd LP, Cosmogramma. On Cosmogramma, Ellison put the listener through a rewarding, if difficult, combination of aggressive beats and jazz-hip hop fusion. Until the Quiet Comes, while more relaxed and intimate, is an equally complex affair beset with layered immaterial psychedelic imagery, stuttering stops, trap influenced highs, and trickery. Ellison kept mum surrounding the identity of his rap alias Captain Murphy for months after dropping a track with Earl Sweatshirt in the summer, eventually revealing his chops as both a producer and MC. As Captain Murphy Ellison further blurs the lines between hip hop and bass music, producing original tracks as Flying Lotus, as well as rapping over a TNGHT track. The Gaslamp Killer – Breakthrough The Gaslamp Killer, born William Bensussen, demonstrates his skill as a DJ and his vast musical knowledge on his debut LP Breakthrough. He draws upon DJ Shadow’s turntablism, afro-jazz and West Coast Hip Hop to create a sometimes disorienting aesthetic of clashing strings and psychedelic bass. As a resident DJ at Low End Theory, a weekly club night that is the locus for west coast Wonky like CBGB was for New Wave, and a close collaborator with Flying Lotus and his Brainfeeder label mates, Bensussen furthers the eclecticism of L.A.’s Wonky scene.
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Dust and Drifting: lo-fi, alt-country, and doom folk All Hell – Daughn Gibson, Prison to Prison EP – Starred, and Unknown Rooms - Chelsea Wolfe Reverby, floaty music has been big over the past few years, with various subgenres – chillwave, cloud rap, post-r&B, lo-fi, etc – pushing that vibe. In 2011, Dirty Beaches mixed that sound with old-school rockabilly, and in 2012 Daughn Gibson mixed it with old-school country. On his debut All Hell, Gibson takes deep-voiced, weary yarn-spinning from old country music and fuses it with the production and mood of current lo-fi to create one of the year’s most distinctive albums. LA band Starred created a comparable result from a different angle. They sound a ton like Mazzy Star, but there are also noticeable elements of more recent work: the dejected Americana of Girls and Cass McCombs – both friends/collaborators of Starred – and the distortion and defiance
of EMA or The Kills. Starred’s Liza Thorn drew attention this year as the face of Hedi Slimane’s new Yves St Laurent campaign – not exactly what you’d associate with good old American country music. And to be honest, Starred is certainly not straightup alt-country. The project is just as much dream pop or doom folk. What Starred and Daughn Gibson did in 2012 was definitely not creating alternative country music – it was taking the Americana iconography and settings that usually belong in country and placing them in a weary, reverby, drugged-out new context. On a similar tip, doom folk high priestess Chelsea Wolfe put out an acoustic album this year that mined the same forlorn empty spaces as Starred, and it’s also well worth checking out. This summer, take a road trip down to the States and get drunk as hell in a motel room by yourself while listening to these albums. Just trust me here.
Year-end lists Frank Ocean’s Channel Orange and Kendrick Lamar’s Good Kid M.A.A.D. City were the only widereleased 2012 albums to recvieve a Metacritic score over 90 and along with Life Is Good by Nas were the only albums to reach a “Universal Acclaim” score of 80+ while also being in the top 40 highest-selling albums released in 2012. Channel Orange and Good Kid were also some of the most talked-about and blogged-about albums of the year, and the overall combination of popularity, acclaim, and relevance makes them our two biggest albums of 2012. Taylor Swift sold over a million records in the first week alone, and her 77 Metascore almost qualified her for the Top 40 / Universal Acclaim club. Meanwhile, TS was everywhere last year, reinventing her look and ensnaring unsuspecting teenage boys while receiving near-daily attention from pop culture websites
Most Acclaimed Albums BAsed on highest metascores, adjusted to only include albums with 12+ reviews 1 – 92- Channel Orange 2 – 91 – Good Kid M.a.a.d. City 3 – 89 - The Idler Wheel... – Fiona Apple 4 – 88 – Lonerism – Tame Impala 5 – 88 - Kindred EP – Burial 6 – 87 –The Seer – Swans 7 – 86 – Life is People – Bill Fay 8 – 86 – Young Man in America – Anais Mitchell 9 – 86 – Kalaidescope Dream – Miguel 10 – 86 - Koi No Yokan – Deftones 11- 86- Shields – Grizzly Bear
Highest-Selling Albums Based on Billboard top-selling albums of 2012 chart, adjusted to only include albums released in 2012. 1. Red - Taylor Swift 2. Up All Night – One Direction (Released 2011 in UK, 2012 in US) 3. Babel – Mumford & Sons 4. Tuskeegee – Lionel Richie (!!!) 5. El Camino – The Black Keys (Released Dec. 20, 2011) 6. Believe – Justin Bieber 7. Blown Away – Carrie Underwood 8. Some Nights – Fun. 9. Overexposed – Maroon 5 10. Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded – Nicki Mi naj
Most Blogged Artists 2012 Hype Machine’s list based on their weekly tumblr aggregates 10. Jessie Ware 9. Teen Daze 8. Frank Ocean 7. Beach House 6. The xx 5. Purity Ring 4. Passion Pit 3. Hot Chip 2. Lana Del Rey 1. Grimes
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January 7th, 2013
That’s thAT shit
i don’t like
The biggest try-hards of 2012 Justin Bieber
I used to really enjoy the Biebs (ironically? post-ironically?), and it used to be hilarious for a little boy to be so extremely cocky. But now JB is a young man, and it’s really difficult to like a young rich 18-year-old being extremely cocky. Especially one that tries so hard, and so unsuccessfully, to be cool. In 2012 he was the most conspicuous ruiner of the word “swag” (originally intended to refer to effortless and unconventional cool) and almost singlehandedly de-cooled the Kanye West / ASAP Rocky style of dress. Quick flow chart to test if you should try to wear gold chains with leather drop-crotch pants and diamond earrings: Are you white? -> yes -> then definitely don’t. Editor’s note: I just watched the “Beauty and a Beat” video after writing this and was like “I can’t stay mad at that face”.
Alt-J
Britain’s Alt-J has a decently interesting blend of ragged indie folk and the electronic elements of bands like Radiohead and Massive Attack, and they rode their Awesome Wave debut to the Mercury Prize. But these Cambridge boys’ music videos and overall vibe is a corny, embarrassing-to-watch brand of tumblr-y pretentiousness. They take themselves way too seriously and their ”artsy’ depictions of slow-mo matadors and 90s gangsters in a cathedral isn’t clever or next-level, it’s simplistic accessible pseudomeaningful bullshit that any first-year Fine Arts student could come up with. They think they’re cool kids but really they’re just Mumford and Sons at an art gallery.
Cher Lloyd
UK X Factor Discovery Cher Lloyd’s US debut video and song is a complete ripoff of Karmin, and if you gotta copy someone, at least pick a band less fundamentally obnoxious than Karmin. From the first overdone facial expression to the last contrived “quirky” non-sequiter (“here’s a sound like a helicopter!”), “Want U Back” is so forced and annoying that I’m embarrassed for everyone who’s even seen it.
Worst song of 2012
Wiz Khalifa
When Drake and Kanye introduced introspection to mainstream rap a few years ago, it seemed like a defining landmark that would expand the genre. But fast-forward to 2012 and the result is mainstream rappers deciding they have to throw in a bit of amateur emotional oversharing to have a rounded hit album. When introspection in rap became the new norm it stopped having to actually be well done. In 2012, simplistic pop-rappers like Wiz decided to show their emotional side – but this side was a performance of introspectiveness, not any actual artistic insight. Wiz’s latest single, “Remember Me” features The Weeknd and competely rides his/their coattails. The track is 5 ½ minutes long and has only 1 ½ minutes of Wiz, who delivers off-topic brags and afew moody Drakeisms. Sure, it was a bummer when vulnerability wasn’t welcome in rap, but this – amateurish feelings talk to sell records and seem deep – isn’t much better. I didn’t even touch on Wiz trying to pull off his new Jimi Hendrix rock star costumes. Just stick to rapping about weed, Wiz.
Usher
Usher, you’re 34 years old. You can’t just start wearing electric blue suits and having the same haircut as Will Smith’s kid. Having a baby-face doesn’t mean you can dress like the “teach me how to dougie” boys without looking clowning as hell. The simple solution would be for you and Justin to switch bodies Freaky-Friday-style, so you’d both get your wishes: Justin gets to be black and a grown-up, while you get to be popular and young.
2 Chainz
THE YEAR IN WACKNESS
Anjulie
On “Stand Behind the Music”, Canadian R&B also-ran Anjulie tries really really hard to be MIA or Santigold while surrounding herself with commercial, corny images of “revolution” (Che Geuvara!! Spraypraint!! Riot police! Young people in mismatched clothing chanting in the street!) to make a supposed stand against empty pop music. But this glossy semblance of counter-culturalism is trite, outdated, and inconsistent with her actual song, which is complete radio pop. The video is a self-serving commercial rebranding rather than an actual stand against commercial music. By contrasting herself with an essentialized scapegoat of “dumb pop music” Anjulie tries to claim a coolness and artistic integrity that she hasn’t earned, and her “stand” just comes off as misguided and petty.
Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera is a truly ridiculous human, and as over-the-top as she’s been, at least she used to genuinely own it. In 2012, though, she dressed like a middle schooler on pretty much every episode of the voice, with pink hair streaks and purple leopard-print and a million Claire’s accessories. Combined with her latest album’s noticeably low sales figures she just seemed desperate to be cool and young, and like Bieber her supreme self-confidence made her decide that she could pull off anything that looked like “personality”. Xtina is a grown-ass woman with a 5-yearold child and like 50 million albums sold. Looking like her kid’s babysitter didn’t make her trendy or sexy or a glam diva, it just made her laughable.
You don’t need to be in every song, Two Chains.
The crown goes to Phillip Phillips, whose ubiquitous single “Home” is somehow an even cornier and more inoffensive version of Mumford & Sons’ Starbucks-approved hits. When I first heard the song in a Tim Hortons commercial I assumed it was a jingle made specifically for the ad, because no actual song could be that generic and corny and suited to images of Everyday Folks cherishing each other and coffee. But it turns out that “Home” is, unfortunately, a real full-length song. The lyrics are sound like focus-grouped excerpts from a “positive expressions!!!” list on the internet (“you get lost you can always be found”, “you’re not alone”, etc) and given that Phillips won American Idol it’s more than possible that that’s actually how the song was made. Props to Tim Hortons, though: this shit is perfect for selling coffee to middle-aged white people in a small town, and Tim’s didn’t even have to think it up themselves.
Our winner! Rihanna
When she performed on SNL last fall, Rihanna caused an uproar on the internet for featuring a greenscreen slideshow of what was clearly seapunk imagery. Seapunk, for y’all that ain’t know, is a mostly tongue-incheek subculture revolving around ocean iconography, poorly-dyed hair, and kitschy 90s computer graphics. It started with @ LILINTERNET and @LILGOVERNMENT joking around on twitetr nad has since spawned a record label, Coral Records, and about 5 million metric shit-tons of tumblr pictures. Rihanna using some niche thing from the internet isn’t wack because she’s famous, though. It’s wack because she and her song had absolutely nothing to do with the visuals and because she added nothing at all to the subgenre. Rihanna unironically, heartfeltly belts out a soar-based top 40 track, seemingly unaware of the absurd 3D peace signs spinning behind her. There’s at least a little bit of overlap between Rihanna and seapunk; she rocks bright colours and dyed hair and is from an actual island, after all. There were ways Rihanna could have been inspired by the seapunk aesthetic and done something cool stemming off it, using and befitting her huge budget and stardom, but instead she decided to just port seapunk content straight into her performance without changing it or herself whatsoever, resulting in a ridiculous and total discord between her and her appropriated imagery. Some folks who take seapunk way too seriously called Rihanna out when the performance aired: Internet darling Bebe Zeva and NY-based singer Zombelle were the most vocal, the latter tweeting “HOW MUCH DID SNL PAY RIHANNA TO ACT LIKE GRIMES ON A GREEN SCREEN?” She also lashed out at Azealia Banks, who dropped an explicitly seapunk video the same week, but Azealia’s fine in my books. She’s always been into seapunk stuff, she “came from the internet” unlike Rihanna, she actually commits to and genuinely engages with the seapunk visuals (e.g riding dolphins) and they at least somewhat fit her song and attitude. As much as Zeva and Zombelle’s reactions were excessive, Rihanna’s “seapunk moment” was perhaps the most egregious, unproductive swagger-jacking of the year. Fringe culture being incorporated into the mainstream always happens and always should happen, but this was the opposite of how it should be done.
Arts
January 7th, 2013
Film reviews▼
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The art of the satisfying ending
Blockbusters and Oscar hopefuls frustrate viewers with their false exits Rumnique Nannar Features Editor
Tarantino’s Django Unchained an unfiltered and rewarding ode to Spaghetti Westerns
Photo from The Weinstein company
Laura Sciarpeletti Events Editor
If Quentin Tarantino’s cinematic history has proven anything, it’s that he doesn’t believe in filtering his content to please potentially offended audiences. The charismatic and neurotic foot fetishist creates films that are exactly what he wants them to be: extremely problematic to some, riddled with violence, and chock-full of film geek inspired touches and references. Basically for Tarantino, anything goes; whether it is murdering the entire Third Reich, slicing up an army of ninjas, or shooting up a southern mansion. His newest film, Django Unchained, is perhaps in the same gore field as the Kill Bill films, featuring plenty of gunplay, exploding bloody bodies, and Jamie Foxx transitioning from a soft spoken and frightened slave to a quick-draw vengeful cowboy badass. Tarantino has always been interested in Westerns, often featuring western-like titles in his introductions and credits and using the Mexican Standoff method in almost every single one of his films. The acclaimed director, while having a great eye for detail, is also known for intentionally ignoring historical facts, which was most notoriously evident in Inglorious Basterds. However, in the case of Django Unchained, there is also a great deal of truth to his depiction of slavery in the 1850s, with the brutal treatment of black slaves and looseness of the law. Django Unchained has a lasting theme of cruelty, displayed by nearly every character. Fellow director Spike Lee was unhappy with the release of the film and took to his Twitter to voice his outrage: “American Slavery Was Not A Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western. It Was A Holocaust. My Ancestors Are Slaves. Stolen From Africa. I Will Honor Them.” While the film’s violence against slaves and constant use of the “N” word are upsetting, Django Unchained is a Tarantino film, and the director is all about pushing boundaries. And the fact does remain that
certain profanities and actions were in active use during that time. It would not be a Tarantino film, if it did not offend some. The director was born to make a Spaghetti Western. His action shots and violent explosions blend in with the scenery of a rather savage era: the Deep South, a cesspool of toothless trigger-happy racists. Django Unchained is nearly three hours, but so chaotic and entertaining that the length is entirely forgivable. Django, a slave played by Foxx, is bought by dentist-turned-bounty-hunter Dr. King Schultz, played expertly Basterds alum Christoph Waltz. The two unlikely partners enter into an agreement, wherein Django helps King find the bounty-heavy Brittle Brothers, and he in return earns his freedom. The pair become fast friends and excellent bounty hunters, as Django hones his gun-slinging skills, while planning to find and free his wife Broomhilda, played by Kerry Washington. Her owner is the slimy brown-toothed Calvin Candie, played wonderfully by Leonardo DiCaprio. Calvin’s slave plantation, Candyland, is where the visually electric showdowns take place, and where the sinister house slave Stephen (played by Tarantino favorite and “mother fucking” actor Samuel L. Jackson). Django Unchained is a fantastic followup to Tarantino’s masterpiece Inglorious Basterds. It features a balance of dramatic and horrific intensity with comedy. Look out for Jonah Hill’s cameo.Hill plays a KKK member in a scene involving Klansmen, trotting around blindly on their horses due to some particularly ill-made bags on their heads. The director himself makes his usual Hitchcockian cameo, wielding a cowboy hat of his own. Tarantino films are not for everyone, and Django Unchained is certainly his most potentially offensive creation to date. However, it does not fail to deliver originality, buckets of hillbilly blood, and brilliant performances.
We had plenty of brilliant films this past year; noticeably some of them seem to waffle towards reaching an adequate and satisfying ending. Filmgoers have a right to be confused and a tad angry when films showcase a number of false starts as they lurch towards an ending that fits with the film. Samuel L Jackson recently complained about Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln in The Los Angeles Times, saying “I don’t understand why it didn’t just end when Lincoln is walking down the hall and the butler gives him his hat” Jackson echoes the same sentiment felt by many of us average filmgoers when the ending just does not sit right. Many recent blockbusters and Oscar hopefuls are growing much longer when they bungle the right exit, by continuing fitfully towards the exit. Finding the right ending in our digital age can be quite difficult, especially when one tweet or status update can sink a film’s chances of suspense. The ending is always the freshest part when lights go up and the phones go on again, which makes it easier to write a film off if with 140-character zinger. It was evident when The Dark Knight Rises where spoilers were spilled over Twitter and some of us went in knowing whether Batman dropped that bomb in time or if Joseph Gordon Levitt’s name was John Henry James Robin Smith. We often blame the directors for not having enough vision to close their films without veering into self-indulgence. If they choose the cheesy and maudlin way, like
in Les Miserables, we boo and hiss. If they venture towards the ambiguous and enigmatic like The Master, we snort and wave it away as pretentious. It is as if the audience has been accustomed to all the different ways to end a film that we dismiss the next surprise a director offers. We get lost in the world the movie has set up, and you can feel shortchanged when the film ends on a crashing note. These studio films often gear towards making the biggest spectacle, which interrupts the crisp and strong storytelling aspect. With The Dark Knight, there were lots of set pieces like the Hong Kong heist or the ferry sequence that seemed to distract from the central story between the Joker and Batman. You can call it “the curse of the third act” where the multiple villains need to get punched, and the love interests need a kiss, to lead the audience to the finish. In classic older movies, directors seemed to evolve towards their endings like the final reveal of “Rosebud” in Citizen Kane or the ambiguous finish to The Graduate, to the sweetzinger in The Apartment, or Rhett not giving a shit about Scarlett’s tantrums in Gone with the Wind. Even the confounding ending in There Will Be Blood impressed us with its neatly wrapped puzzle. These films end where they need to and still produce a satisfaction with the filmgoer. If the ending does not inspire, or surprise, the films devolves into being just a “timepass.” Rest assured, as 2012 wound down, it was not punctuated by multiple explosions or directed by Oscar-winner.
Buried film▼
Little Darlings a sincere examination of teen sex naïveté Laura Sciarpelletti Events Editor
I discovered the 1980s teen film Little Darlings in a Nylon Magazine article during my second year of university. I was going through an 80s faze and had recently watched Rumble Fish, which also starred a very young Matt Dillon. What I expected from the film was not what I got. I thought that Little Darlings would be a teen romp, rich with the slight sexual innuendos that were becoming more and more common in teen flicks. Instead, what I got was a sincere and fearless look into the subject of losing one’s virginity at a young age and what it means to the individuals involved: is it just a primal mechanical action or a meaningful and romantic experience? The film takes place in a summer camp where two fifteen-year-old girls—a chain smoking streetwise cynic named Angel (Kristy McNichol) and a rich girl romantic named Ferris (Tatum O’Neal)—enlist in a peer contest to see who can lose their virginity first. Each girl’s view of sex, or “it”, is different and misguided. Ferris calls it
“making love,” blindly thinking of the action as simply romantic, not realizing that sleeping with the adult camp councilor she has her eye on could be potentially hurtful and dangerous. Angel approaches the challenge with a different attitude, calling it “no big deal” like her mother and simply being eager to beat Ferris. In the end, Ferris’s attitude towards sex becomes more realistic and grounded, as she realizes that the act is not always romantic, while Angel discovers that sex involves love. Little Darlings also starred a very young Cynthia Nixon who would later go on to star in Sex and the City. The film features an acclaimed array of music on the soundtrack including The Cars, Supertramp and Blondie. Despite having silly moments and less than stellar acting, this film is an important watch, approaching the issue of sexual initiation—which can be scary and traumatic—with poise and an understanding of the experiences of many fifteenyear-old girls.
FE ATURES
Rumnique Nannar
features@thephoenixnews.com
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Features
January 7th, 2013
who I am, but not always proud of the pettiness involved.”
The Kelowna Trailbrazers
Life’s a drag!
From L to R: Sparkle, Sasha Zamolodchikova, Angel Di Avolo, and Ella Lamoureux.
UBCO students and drag queens speak out on the drag lifestyle Laura Sciarpeletti Events Editor
Drag queen performers Dustin Dufault (Ella Lamoureux), Shannon Lester (Sasha Zamolodchikova), and Curtis Volkle (Angel Di Avolo) are helping to mould the Kelowna drag scene by promoting individuality and femme alter egos. Communities are always in need of improvements, whether it is structurally or socially, and the Kelowna drag community is no different. Fortunately, the budding Kelowna drag movement is taking off at full throttle. A rather small city, Kelowna lies on the more conservative end of the spectrum, and is in desperate need of an artistic and communal push. Drag event headliners Sasha and Ella have been working within the community to set up events throughout the city and on the UBC Okanagan campus, along with recruiting other members of the LGBT community to participate. They are currently preparing for their next drag show, Embodiment. This puts them right at the center of a movement that is small, but certainly growing. I sat down with Shannon and Dustin as they prepared for a performance, and watched their complicated routine for makeup, chest taping, wigs, and dressing. The duo are a confident and glamorous sight to behold out on the town, sashaying around in 6-inch heels and layered neon wigs; sporting better legs than mine and just plain having fun. These delightful drag characters are personally constructed symbols of good-time feminine razzle-dazzle and charisma.
Drag as an Embodiment
Being a drag queen is different for everyone. Ella—who describes herself as light, airy and girly—loves makeup and dresses.
She is a vision of glamour in her vibrant and sparkly outfits, using her alter ego as a way to express herself. For Sasha, drag is about embodiment. “My feminine side is not always visible to people, and so I use drag to embody that,” says Lester about his drag alter ego. “It also helps me expose my darker side.” Sasha has been known to use themes of cannibalism and gore in her performances, challenging her audiences and herself. She describes herself as womanly and dark, a nice compliment to the very different but equally entrancing Ella. Lester, first, started doing drag in Japan four years ago where he helped start a drag performance art collective called Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. “Actually, in Japan when I first started performing, a lot of stuff we did was on the darker side. A lot of my performances tend to have messages in them. They’re not always easy to swallow,” says Lester. For Volkle, nineteen-year-old new recruit and fellow UBCO student, drag is not just about being a pageant queen, but having a darker and deeper message. “I like to get people to see a different perspective on how they see life,” says Volkle. “I would like to function as a beacon for people who seek individuality.” However, the Kelowna gay community has been challenging to the three performers. “I’m getting a better attitude about it,” says Lester. “I mean, I’m very proud of
Photos by Hanss Lujan
Lester has noticed that gay culture is often about drugs, sex, lying, and fighting. Much of this is attributed to people not being accepted by their parents or peers. “It’s so hard for people who get kicked out of their homes,” says Lester. “Dustin and I are so lucky to have been accepted by our parents. I have a lot of friends that, when they came out, their parents gave them some money and said get out. We never want to see you again. Or they try to convert them. They tell them that if they don’t try to be straight, they won’t be apart of their life anymore. And that’s a very common thing.” This But I’m a Cheerleader mentality is a real problem today; it is a real challenge to lose these foundations and experience lifestyle uncertainties. The continuous uncertainty can be scary, oftentimes lonely, and have negative effects on one’s happiness. However, many members of the gay community have used their negative experiences to overcome their fear and uncertainty, overpowering them. “There is a lot of pain in the gay community and self-acceptance issues,” says Volkle. “People can be either really frigid or really seemingly desperate. I feel like both of those are two sides of the same coin. I try to spread a message of individuality and selfacceptance. You can be whoever you want to be. My drag is proof of that.” All three performing drag queens have had relatively positive coming-out experiences and recognize that people are becoming more accepting of the culture. “My dad loves talking about pussy. He does it all the time,” says Dufault. “And he asked me, why don’t we ever talk about pussy? Are you gay? And I said, um yes, I am. And he just said that that was fine, as long as I didn’t make out with my boyfriend in [front of him].” Even that has changed, as Dufault is now engaged to his boyfriend of four years, who has the full approval of his family. Volkle’s coming-out experience was a little more turbulent, but explaining his view helped, as well as showing how happy drag makes him.
A Hope for Future
I first met Angel and Sasha at the annual UBCO Art Party. The two were in full drag, with the already tall Sasha towering over me in enormous glittery heels and Angel decked out in a red wig, full makeup and a
| The Phoenix
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form-fitting striped-dress. But these party outfits are nothing compared to the full costumes of the drag queens on performance nights. Some people have told Sasha and Ella that they are brave to do drag in Kelowna, but they do not agree. And in observing them, one can see how confident they are in their own skin, never mind the layers of carefully applied makeup and dramatic fake eyelashes. However, Lester has found that dressing in drag can interfere with his love life, as a lot of gay men are uncomfortable with drag, a particularity femme form of expression. He believes that the gay community is sometimes about being masculine and straight acting. “There is a lot of misogyny in the gay community. For men to be femme is wrong,” says Lester. “It’s often about masculine guys looking for masculine guys, and it’s not easy for everyone to understand why we do drag and show our femme side.” Volkle, however, has found that some people accept him more now that he embodies this drag persona. He sees Kelowna as a place that has a lot of potential to become the accepting and fun place he wants it to be. “Yes the drag scene here is really new and fresh, but I see that as a chance for upward mobility,” says Volkle. “There’s room to really make a difference here and get people to be aware, accepting and joyful.” Whether it’s Sasha drinking vodka and eating burgers on stage in front hopeful potential queens and screaming fans, or Ella dancing to Sweet Nothing in all her sequin, red haired glory, drag is about embodying who you want to be and, most of all, the joy it brings you. Drag has been called an alternative lifestyle. But why must it be seen as alternative? Judgements on other people’s lifestyles are based on our own limitations. The less we judge the way others live their lives, the closer we are to truly being at peace. Sasha, Ella, and Angel seek to represent that through their art and their continuous efforts to push the boundaries of the Kelowna community. Sasha and Ella will be hosting and performing at UBCO’s very first drag event on Friday, January 18th. The show will begin at 7 pm and will feature special guest performers Lethal Leesa, Di Avolo, Kris Capone, Cissy Avarice, Sparkle, Dani Lion, Ginger Rocket and Venus Diana. The event is only $5 at the door and will take place in The Well. All guests are encouraged to dress in drag and there will be prizes for the best transformation.
Sports
January 7th, 2013
| The Phoenix
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▼ They said it “His toughness is off the charts... And, he has a lightning arm. It’s one of those things that is very difficult for a coach to develop. It’s just so natural.”
Men’s volleyball head coach Greg Poitras, on recent recruit and first-ranked volleyball recruit in B.C, Lars Bornemann. Bornemann has signed his letter of intent to play at UBC Okanagan next fall.
“It’ll be tougher (in the second half) there’s no doubt. But the girls have come together so well and have really been stepping up in tough situations. We have to be realistic, but at the same time the girls really have a profound sense of what it means to be a strong team. The girls won’t back down, whoever the opponent is.”
The visage of swagger, complete with forehead creases.
Photo by Dan Hickling (eliteprospects.com)
Goalie Swagger: John Gibson
Beware the forehad crease Alex Eastman
Goalie Swagger Guru
While much of the aftermath of this year’s World Junior Hockey Championship will undoubtedly be centered around the shortcomings of Canada’s Malcom Subban, this swagger judge (yours truly) is all about pointing out the positive performances rather than emphasizing the negatives. So in this goalie swagger profile, I turn my NHL-starved eyes to a goaltender with NHL-level poise and confidence (and size), USA’s John Gibson, who also plays for the Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League. There are multiple components to the intense swagger that Gibson showed in the States’ goal crease, radiating from his own intense forehead crease: Skill – Goalie swagger can be exhibited by a goalie of any skill level, so this is a relatively minor point, but damn, John Gibson is a talented young goaltender. Looking at the stats line for the tournament tells the story, where Gibson is the leader in goals-against average, allowing an average of three goals every two games. He is also in the top three in save percentage, while having played at least two more games than the other leaders in the category. With a combination of size, positioning, and athleticism, Gibson plays very shallow in his crease while still covering a lot of net. This gives him an advantage over goaltenders who come out farther to cut off the same angle, as
Gibson can reach back door and cross-crease passes faster. This skill would go to waste, however, if not for Gibson’s exceptional swagger. Poise – Gibson is so unflappable, he could converse with Bill O’Reilly for two hours without raising his blood pressure in the slightest. On the biggest stage for Junior Hockey in the world, Gibson kept the US team in the round robin component through a pair of 2-1 losses to heavy favourites Canada and Russia without showing much more than a huff of frustration. This composure paid off in spades, during the medal round playoffs, in which he shut out the Czech Republic during a statement game by the US team. He then carried over this powerful performance to the semi-final game, a rematch against the Canadians. Gibson stood tall in the States’ 5-1 win over the previously undefeated Canadians, frustrating an entire nation that has come to expect gold at this tournament, like a sixteen-year old expects a smartphone for their birthday. Swagger. Fashionable Gear – Rocking the red white and blue Vaughn gear, complete with stars and stripes, Gibson looks the part of a smooth, composed monster goalie. He represents his OHL team, the Kitchener Rangers, by wearing his bucket (helmet) from the team, keeping the same colour aesthetic since
Kitchener wears more or less the same colour scheme. This splash of “where I came from” mixed in with his swaggerific gear setup further drives fear into the hearts of his opponents. Forehead Crease – For every goalie there is a particular quirk that adds to their swagger. My quirk, for example, is that I don’t take my helmet off to drink (super-stylishly) from my water bottle. Gibson’s stylish quirk is his awesome set of forehead creases. Seriously, the ripples on Gibson’s face caused the earthquake over the week of January 5th and also willed the NHL and NHLPA to get a new Collective Bargaining Agreement done, so that he might get an invitation to Anaheim’s training camp, as he is their prospect. That should give you an idea of how much awe the forehead creases inspire. It lulls his opponents into a false sense of security, as they believe that Gibson’s stellar pre-hair skin visual is an indicator of stress, and then they run into the calm, composed beast that he is. So there you have it. Whether he’s rocking the OHL with Kitchener, or collecting gold medals for Team USA, John Gibson is a prospect of major note. He shows NHL-level swagger that will no doubt aid him in stopping pucks for the Anaheim Ducks, who wisely drafted this beast of a goaltender. Rock on Gibson, rock on.
Women’s basketball head coach Heather Semeniuk, commenting on the tough stretch of games her team faces heading into the 2013 portion of the season.
“It is quite an honour to be singled out for this award,” says Bell. “All of the student athletes at this level have put in the same time and effort to get here. It is a great feeling to be recognized for all of the effort put into academics and athletics. It encourages me to continue to push harder in the future.” Heat men’s volleyball player Jim Bell on being the recipient of the Capri Insurance Athletics Entrance Scholarship, which was established in 2009 to assist first-year student athletes at UBC Okanagan.
▼ By the numbers 9th—National ranking of the UBC Okanagan women’s volleyball team. The Heat were able to move back into the national rankings after earning a weekend split versus the first-ranked Trinity Western Spartans 1st—Free-throw percentage and free-throws made per game rankings for the UBC Okanagan women’s basketball team so far this season. Shooting 81.4% from the charity stripe, while knocking down over 20 points from the line per game has been a major success factor for the Heat this season 7—The number of NFL head coaches relieved of their duties following the end of the regular season. Lovie Smith, Andy Reid, Ken Wisenhunt, Norv Turner, Chan Gailey, Pat Shurmur, and Romeo Crennell were all fired after disappointing seasons 39 - 73 – Combined record of the seven NFL teams who fired their head coaches following the conclusion of the regular season 101— Number of points scored by the Heat men’s basketball team versus MacEwan University in an exhibition matchup on December 29th. By far, the largest offensive output from the Heat this season, this could be a sign of things to come with the return of Yassine Ghomari from injury
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January 7th, 2013
Heat upset the firstranked team in the nation
Heat men unable to complete the comeback
Jesse Shopa
Jesse Shopa
The Heat did what many before them could not: beat the Trinity Western Spartans. The first ranked team in the nation could not solve the Heat on Saturday night in Kelowna, falling in four sets 3-1 (25-19, 1325, 26-24, 25-17), ending Trinity’s nine game winning streak. “Our game plan was to be very patient with this team,” noted Heat head coach Steve Manuel. ”They’re a big, strong, physical team; we knew they were going to get lots of blocks and lots of digs. We served well, and we served strategically.” Down 13-19 in the third set, it seemed as if the Spartans were on their way to another victory. However, a 7-1 run by the Heat put the back in the set and proved to be the turning point of the match, as the Heat would eventually go on to secure the upset victory. “I think we came out really confident,” observed Heat middle, Katie Wuttunnee (2nd year, North Vancouver, BC). “They had their points and we didn’t get rattled. We persevered and didn’t get down on ourselves.” The Heat were led by the duo of Alexandra Basso (5th year, Kelowna, BC) and Myrte Schön (4th year, Langley, BC), who combined for a total 84 attempts on the night. Basso would finish with 13 kills, while Schön finished with 12. Basso was instrumental to the Heat defensive effort, coming up with some big digs in crucial points for the Heat. “Basso came up with her five best digs of the season tonight; she was spectacular,” added Manuel. “Myrte had a great match tonight, and our middles were strong. The people that came off the bench gave us a spark every time. This was a total team effort tonight, top to bottom.” Errors proved to be the downfall of the Spartans, who committed 39 errors on the night. Thirty-one of those came from the attack. Alicia Perrin was the kill leader for the Spartans on this night, tallying 16 kills on 24 attempts from her middle position. Amy Ott would notch 9 on 29 attempts on this night. “I am really proud of my team,” said Heat middle Emily Carroll (3rd year, Surrey, BC). “We came into this game with confidence, showed them what we’re made of and that we belong in the top 10.”
After winning the third set 25-21 the Heat found new life, but were unable to take the crucial fourth set and thus fell Saturday night to the Trinity Western Spartans 3-1 (25-22, 25-14, 21-25, 25-21). It seemed as if the Spartans were on their way to a straight set victory until an errorfilled third set allowed the Heat back into the game. The Spartans committed nine errors in the Heat’s third set win, setting the stage for a possible game-tying fourth set for the Heat. It was either teams’ set to win in the fourth, with both teams going point-forpoint. Trinity and UBC Okanagan traded the first eight points of the game, with neither team going on a run of two or more points. The set continued to play out in the same fashion, until Trinity Western took a 22-21 lead, then rattled off three straight kills to steal the set 25-21 and win the game. Once again, stalwart defense by Trinity helped in their winning effort. Currently ,sitting third in Canada West in terms of blocks per game with 2.72, the Spartans were able to send back 13 Heat kill attempts to boost their block total on the year to 135.5. The Heat, meanwhile, sit at 87.5 blocks on the year. “Trinity definitely gave us the opportunity to have success,” commented head coach Greg Poitras, following the game. “They made quite a number of errors, but we just weren’t able to transfer their mistakes into points.” As usual, the Heat offense was led by fifth-year senior Riley McFarland (Surrey, BC). McFarland was able to collect 16 kills on 36 attempts for a solid .333 kill percentage. In extended minutes, Davis Proch (4th year, Kelowna, BC) came in to replace rookie setter Kristof Schlagintweit (Abbotsford, BC) and played extremely well. Proch had 16 assists on the night and added five digs to the Heat effort. “Davis sets a nice clean game,” added Poitras. “He keeps it very simple, and I was happy with the way he came off the bench and played tonight.” With the loss, the Heat remain winless on the season and sit at 0-11, while Trinity Western continues to climb at 9-2.
Defeat the Trinity Western Spartans 3-1
Fall to Trinity Western 3-1
Sports Editor
Sports Editor
Myrte Schon continues to carry the Heat workload, tallying 44 kill attemps in the Heat’s first game versus Trinity Western. Photo by Dale Abbey
The Heat continue to rely on the offensive production provided by Riley McFarland (2) and Greg Niemantsverdriet (4) in the absence of Nate Speijer (12) Photo by Jesse Shopa
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January 7th, 2013
‘Tis the season for recruiting
A look into the remaining home games for the Heat
Jesse Shopa
Jesse Shopa
Heat make big splashes as top level athletes commit to UBCO
Sports Editor
Important games on the horizon for all UBC Okanagan varsity teams in 2013
Sports Editor
Men’s Volleyball After previously nabbing two of the top seven players in British Columbia, Heat head coach Greg Poitras continues to work his recruiting magic by signing the top recruit in the province, Lars Bornemann. The 6-3 left side hitter from Oak Bay Secondary signed his letter of intent early this past December, after securing a second B.C. AAA Provincial Championship and tournament MVP honours. “His toughness is off the charts,” says Poitras. “And, he has a lightning arm. It’s one of those things that is very difficult for a coach to develop. It’s just so natural. You walk into a gym and you hear the ball hit the floor, and it makes the kind of sound where you wonder where it came from. After a while, you just realize that it’s Lars.” After a disappointing offensive season so far for the Heat, Bornemann should press for playing time early in his CIS career, especially with the graduation of outside hitter Riley McFarland following this season and a lack of production from younger Heat outside hitters, who have yet to step up and provide substantial offense. Bornemann’s scoring touch, focus, and determination are traits that Poitras felt would be extremely beneficial to his team next year. “When he scores, he isn’t going to do cartwheels,” Poitras explains. “But he’ll be like ‘I just beat you’ and he lets you hear it. Our program is looking forward to having a guy with that kind of energy and grit. And that’s the best word to describe him. He is very gritty. He’s not a cheerleader by any means. But he is focused on scoring on you, focused on beating you.” Lars should be a great fit to the Heat men’s volleyball program; the type of high energy, impact hitter that Poitras covets in recruits.
Women’s Soccer Head coach Claire Paterson has also been active in her recruiting efforts, convincing two soccer standouts to join her women’s team for the 2013 season. Devon Frame, a 5’8” midfielder from Moscrop Secondary in Vancouver, BC, and Sarah Coghlin, a 5’7” midfielder from Dr. E.P. Scarlett High School in Calgary, AB, have signed their letters of intent to play for the Heat next season. After attending two Heat identification camps, Sarah Coghlin said she fell in love with the UBC Okanagan campus and the coaching style of the Heat. “I have attended two ID Camps and really enjoyed the coaching staff,” Coghlin said. “Their style of coaching and sense of humour, I felt it would be a great fit for me.” Sarah is a decorated player with a long list of achievements that includes gold at the U16 Tier 1 Provincial Championships and silver at the U18 Tier 1 Provincial Championships. Devon Frame is also a highly decorated athlete. She was named the Most Versatile Player in 2011, while helping her team win the 2011 Welsh International Super Cup Championship, as well as the 2011 Burnaby District Banner. “Devon is a strong player both technically and physically,” says Paterson. “She has great vision and determination which makes her a wonderful fit. I have had the chance to meet and see Devon play over a couple of our ID camps and she has never failed to impress.” On why she decided to sign with the Heat, Frame said, was “because [the Heat] have a great staff and an impressive record. I like their style of play and believe that I could learn a lot from the team.”
Steve Manuel will need to instill focus in his team if they wish to continue their on-court success so far this season. Photo by Dale Abbey At just over the half-way mark in the season, the Heat will return to the court after almost a four-week break to resume play in Canada West. I thought this would be the perfect time to shed some light on the remaining home games left for the Heat, as they look to wrap up their respective 2012/2013 campaigns. The ninth-ranked Heat women’s volleyball team will return to their home court on January 18th and 19th, looking to continue their assault on both Canada West and the CIS national rankings, while the Heat men will be looking to build on positive steps made in 2012. It will be an interesting weekend to say the least for both teams, as the UBCO-Calgary rivalry has already begun to blossom in only the second CIS season for the Heat. Both volleyball teams will hit the road for the next two weekends, returning to Kelowna on February 8th and 9th to face the Brandon Bobcats in the last weekend of the season. Expect this to be a very important weekend for the Heat women, as playoff implications may be riding on
these final two games. Meanwhile, both the men’s and women’s basketball teams will resume play after the break at home, hosting Calgary on January 11th, and Lethbridge on January 12th. A tough test for both Heat teams, count on a close, physical game on the 12th between the women from UBC Okanagan and the women from Lethbridge. Both teams are hovering around .500, and will be desperate to pick up a win to increase their chances at a postseason birth. It won’t get any easier for both basketball teams, as they will both play host to the oh-so talented UBC Thunderbirds on January 25th and 26th. The Heat will then host another tough out in Fraser Valley on February 1st and 2nd. To say that the second half of the basketball season is more difficult than the first half would be an understatement. Finally, basketball will close out the 2012/2013 CIS season on February 16th, as the Heat will host their inter-valley rivals Thompson Rivers University at UBC Okanagan Gymnasium.
Volleyball
Calgary
January 18th and 19th
Brandon
February 8th and 9th
Basketball Calgary
January 11th
Lethbridge
January 12th
UBC
January 25th and 26th
Fraser Valley
February 1st and 2nd
Thompson Rivers February 16th
SPORTS
Jesse Shopa
sports@thephoenixnews.com
A lack of fan attendance has hurt the atmosphere at the UBC Okanagan Gymnasium, also dubbed “The Furnace”.
Insert crowd here
S
Photo by Steve Shulhan, Illustration by Hanss Lujan
A small rant on fan attendance Jesse Shopa Sports Editor
With a lull in the recent athletics schedule, I’d like to take this time to talk about something I feel is important regarding athletics at UBC Okanagan. Now, before you assume that this piece is about the Heat, let me assure you that it is not. This piece is about you: the sports fan. I remember coming to UBC Okanagan in 2010 knowing little about the athletics program. I had never heard of the Heat, nor did I know of the success the Heat had enjoyed over the previous few seasons. However, I knew that I wanted to be in the stands regardless, cheering on my university team. To me, there has always been something special about university sports that cannot be found in the realm of professional sports. Maybe, it’s the fact that athletes in university aren’t seen as celebrities like professional athletes are. Sure, they may be campus rockstars to a certain degree, but when you see them in your 8:30 psychology class, that rockstar veil diminishes a bit. One begins to realize that student athletes aren’t so different from us regular students. Above all, I think, is the fact that the
fan is almost as important as the athlete to the success of the program. Let me explain myself. Have you ever watched a Duke University basketball game? Duke is notorious more-so for its fans than Coach K sometimes. On game day, Cameron Indoor Stadium becomes a hostile environment that Duke prides itself on. The crowd is both raucous and electric, and without a doubt, the fans at Duke make a huge difference for their Blue Devils. The energy both lifts the home team, while breaking the focus of their opponents. Simply put, visiting opponents hate to play at Duke because of the fans, and to say the fans at Duke don’t make a difference would be folly and downright ridiculous. This leads me to you: the sports fan at UBC Okanagan. Where have you been this season? The lack of support for your teams has been extremely disappointing and undoubtedly frustrating for the athletes that depend on you to make UBC Okanagan Gymnasium a tough place to play in for visiting foes. I’m calling you out. This is the time the Heat needs you, the fan, the most. Yet, I continue to see empty
seats and a dead atmosphere within UBC Okanagan Gymnasium that gives the Heat absolutely zero home court advantage versus visiting opponents. To say, that the support for the Heat has dwindled to an embarrassing level would not be so far off. A little harsh perhaps, but I think many people associated with the Heat would agree with me. Now, I know that the major reason for dwindling attendance has been the recent struggle from the majority of teams due to the move to CIS. After dominating the college ranks for many years, the Heat are now playing catch-up to the powerhouses of the CIS, and as a result, are not enjoying the winning streaks that used to come in the PACWEST. I also know what many of you right now are thinking: “Well, what is the point of going to a game if the Heat aren’t winning. I only like watching when they win!” I do understand where the basis of this argument lies, but the thing is, as a fan, you are just as integral to the success of the Heat as the athletes are. Okay, maybe that is a bit incredulous. But seriously, by attending games and creating an environment that
gives UBC Okanagan some semblance of a home court advantage, you can help the Heat win. A beautiful mutually beneficial relationship, don’t you think? Being a fan at the university level is special. Your Heat athletes not only don their jerseys for the name on the back, but the name on the front as well. When they play, they not only play for themselves as a team, but for you as a student at UBC Okanagan and as a fan. It is this connectedness and representation found in university athletics that makes being a part of it extremely unique to the realm of sports. And when the Heat beat UBC, well, it feels pretty good, even as a fan. I don’t wish to harp on this matter too much, as this has already begun to turn into a bit of a rant. However, the decline in fan attendance (and dare I say sports culture) at UBC Okanagan is something that I feel deserves some attention. With that being said, I am issuing a challenge to you, the student at UBCO. Come out and support your Heat teams in any facet this semester. They need you more than ever, and I promise that you may just have some fun along the way.
OPINIONS From my cold dead hands
Take a break from arguing about your guns, and look to your culture. Matthew Lauzon Opinions Editor
Matt Lauzon
opinions@thephoenixnews.com
citizen, you would run out of people before you run out of guns. It’s certainly a great defense for the country: no force on the planet could outnumber 300 million citizens and even more firepower, and not even its own government, with more nuclear weapons than every other country combined, would hope to enforce its people.
45.7
Number of guns per 100 people in Switzerland What pro-gun activists don’t realize, however, is that the amendment’s mention of a militia contains the adjective “well-regulated”. They’ll cite a country such as Switzerland with their high gun ownership rates and their low number of annual gun homicides, and make the claim that arming the American nation is the proper solution. Is arming the country a good choice of action? Is it thebest?
30,000,000
While hardly an unspoken issue, the massacre in Newtown, Connecticut was undoubtedly the hardest hitting event in 2012. Schools and citizens around the world lowered their flags and reeled at the news of twenty children and six adult’s demises in December; in the midst of the shooting, the debate on gun laws fired up, nearly overshadowing the event. Arguments such as increasing police force or limiting gun rights come from the liberals; arguments such as supplying the average citizen with more guns to thoroughly protect themselves come from the conservatives, some even going as far as to say that the country should arm
88.8
Number of guns per 100 people in the United States school teachers. Their arguments, however, aren’t focusing on the main issue of reducing overall gun violence. The biggest argument for gun supporters is the 2nd Amendment of the Constitution, which declares a “well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right to bear arms shall not be infringed.” In order for the state to defend against both outside oppressors and a tyrannical government, citizens may not legally be stripped of their weapons. It makes sense, really. A free state is essentially one that can’t be oppressed, even by its own government. I certainly appreciate not being controlled, and that average citizens must stand strong to prevent a police state; however, gun-toters who wave their right to bear arms in defense of tyranny aren’t necessarily acting as they should. If you were to hand out every gun to every United States
Number of firearms in the United States
Perhaps some insight into the often cited Switzerland can shed light on the situation. Switzerland doesn’t have an army. Switzerland is an army. With compulsory conscription to its militia, all men fit for service and aged nineteen must undergo basic military and weapons training that lasts between eighteen and twenty-one weeks. Conscripted soldiers then complete three weeks of refresher courses annually to fulfill their number of service days required. Until the age of thirty, those who are conscripted stay subjects of the militia, tasked with defending the nation should it be required. Moreover, the militiamen are required to keep their arms in their homes. This extends to possessing either a Sauer P220 semi-automatic pistol, or a SG 550 fully-automatic assault rifle capable of firing 700 rounds per minute. With a gun ownership rate of 45%, you’ll probably end up seeing a gun when you enter a residence in Switzerland. It’s a scary thought that the government issued ammunition for these powerful weapons to all militiamen up until 2007. Or is it?
30.8
Number of guns per 100 people in Canada The number of gun-related homicides in 2010 was 0.52 per 100,000 people in Switzerland. While one gun-related homicide is too many, the United States’ figure of 3.7 homicides per 100,000 completely dwarfs that of Switzerland. As gun-supporters rightly say, it’s not the guns that kill people; people kill people. The problem the United States faces is that the Swiss have done a fantastic job developing their gun culture.
O
3.7
Number of gun related homicides in United States per 100,000 people in 2010 Children as young as twelve join gun groups to learn proper gun care, sharpshooting skills, and etiquette in a professional environment. It’s this respect for the gun and a proper education among seasoned veterans and green novices alike that puts the guns to good use and prevents misconduct. This is a “well-regulated militia” that is essential to preventing a tyrannical government. Rather than focus on militia, how every citizen is a part of it, and should not be stripped of their defense, the United States needs to focus on the “well-regulated” part. The system Switzerland operates is one of delicacy and efficiency. Where the Swiss need a permit to openly carry their guns, the state of Vermont allows citizens to carry a concealed weapon without a permit. Where ammunition is subsidized by the Swiss government and can only be sold and used at gun ranges, 50 rounds of 9mm ammunition can be bought for 10 dollars in the United States without restriction. Where militants may not keep ammunition for their weapons in their homes, the castle doctrine gives american citizens the right to kill any intruder into their home--even one who may have accidentally stumbled into the wrong suburban “cookie-cutter” house after a few
0.52
Number of gun related homicides in Switzerland per 100,000 people in 2010 drinks. While legislation throughout Switzerland helps guide the citizens, it’s not the right course of action in the United States. Again, gun supporters are correct in that gun bans and regulations will only strengthen the black market and encourage crime. Rather, it’s the culture and society of the United States that needs to be revised. Slate published an informative article on December 24th featuring a module that compiled the amount of deaths due to guns in the United States since the Newtown massacre on the 14th. The module can show total deaths separated by age and gender. In the ten days between the murders and Christmas Eve, 160 people died a gun related death in the United States. While the numbers are an estimate, it gives us a look at the culture around guns: sixteen people per day. The module is updated and can be viewed every day; as of January 3rd the tally reached 409. The argument that dances around politician’s and pundit’s palate concerns only these nationwide tragedies that make headlines. We’re falling for the red herring of stopping freak massacres that make up 0.6% of last year’s gun related deaths and fail to exceed the average number of deaths that happen everyday. We’ll quiet the headlines, but keep the state in fear. Massacres are obviously horrid events that can’t be ignored, but by focusing on them too intently, we’re forgetting about fixing a heavily divided country whose name implies unity.
Opinions
January 7th, 2013
| The Phoenix
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Matthew Lauzon Opinions Editor
Dear haters: Piers Morgan exemplifies The American Way Liberal news pundit and Simon Cowell impersonator Piers Morgan, the host of Piers Morgan Tonight on CNN, pissed one too many gun-toting Texans in December following the Newtown school shooting, and might find himself getting deported from the United States by way of petition from the American public. His outburst toward a gun activist and guest on his show included calling him, an “unbelievably stupid man.” The pair argued Morgan’s stance of eliminating guns, leading him to further say his guest had “absolutely no coherent argument,” and that he “[doesn’t] actually give a damn about the gun murder rate in America.” A man from Texas responded by filing a petition to the White House to have Morgan deported. The petition, which garnered 97,000 signatures, claimed that Morgan “is engaged in a hostile attack against the US Constitution by targeting the Second Amendment.”
While the angry citizens have a right to defend their rights, their right to defend their rights isn’t necessarily in the right, though... right? The petitioners are absolutely correct in saying that a foreigner has no authority to judge a country on its own turf with it’s own resources regarding it’s freedoms. And Morgan did go a little too far with his tirade. The petitioners for his deportation, though, need to untwist their breeches, stop crying to Mom because the bad man said something about their way of life, and take it as a sign saying, “hey, you know the way you’re doing things nowadays? Maybe it’s not working as well as it should.” Morgan has seen cultural and legislative differences having lived in both the United States and the United Kingdom; he offers insight into what has worked, and what has not. And, really, we’re all on the same side here--Morgan wants to reduce gun violence like anybody else.
Spare some change? Is there anything worse than forced singing in elementary school? Even though, they were often embarrassing and “just stupid,” they gave us some pretty neat morals and teachings about our country with memorable lyrics and a catchy beat. We sang gems such as Down by the Bay, Head and Shoulders, and Kumbaya, but one of my most memorable will soon be getting removed from the list. Canada in my Pocket, by Michael Mitchell, is a catchy tune for kids that talks about what a lot of us think of as stuff that goes into a homeless man’s coffee cup, or what is held onto until we can get our own cup of coffee. Canada in my Pocket describes pennies, nickels, quarters, and dimes, and how each of their unique pictures are symbols and icons of our land and heritage. He talks about the maple leaf, how it grows as we do; the beaver, working as hard as we should; the caribou, braving the north, our country’s elements; and the schooner, that canadian spirit of trading, and being a friendly helper. I didn’t get this as a kid, and I didn’t remember the words of the song until just googling it now, but the song could soon never be sung by the country’s next generation of kids. We’re already removing the penny from circulation.
It’s worth less than the copper it’s minted on, gets dirty to no end, makes you think you have more change than you do, and is disproportionately bigger than the dime--something that’s worth ten pennies. I get it--we’re moving to debit only, and they’re only used for getting a quarter back in lieu of two dimes and four other pennies, but getting rid of the penny ruins Mitchell’s educating song and makes us forget our common heritage. There’s also talks of getting rid of the nickel too. It’s just as much a nuisance as a penny-but again, we get rid of the hard working beaver and we’re left with friendly ships, and old, cold-enduring caribou. There’s a trend here that’s reflected in society: we won’t grow as the maple leaf does, and we won’t work as hard as the beaver. New generations, like generation Y, will be entitled, lazy people. The older generations, the workers, and the well-grown have already started to scoff at this generation of nonbeavers, and wilted leaves. The Canadian spirit, the same spirit that sings in Mitchell’s song throughout schools and is reflected in our pockets will die out like the polar bears that grace the toonie. Canada will just be annoying loons like the ones you hear in the Lakota commercial.
Fast food cologne? American enough for me.
Our apocalypse, please
I’ll take actual zombies over Aberzombies any day. Top: Every club girl ever (Instagram) Bottom: CaioSchiavo (flickr)
Photo by Burger King
Did we make it through? Can I stop emailing all of my work to the office and actually leave my 10-kiloton secure bomb shelter that cost $600 per square foot (I maxed out my credit card buying 4 square feet--enough room to fit 24 cans of Campbell’s soup and stand upright)? The world held its breath for a long time as the 21st of December ran through the time zones of the globe, and sighed in relief when they noticed the 22nd had rolled around. But did we really avoid the apocalypse that spells out our doom? I’ve never had that highest faith in humanity, but we’ve done some pretty cool things. Remember that time when we got to the moon? I wasn’t born yet, but I’m sure it was great. Oh Neil Armstrong, your giant leap for mankind paved the way to entitlement and the dreadful post-modernism--if only you had known. Sometimes, I wish we hadn’t yet put a man on the moon: anytime we see how despicable humanity can be, we can just shake our head and say “look at how screwed up our society is, it’s no wonder we can’t put a man on the moon.” Now we have: “We put a man on the moon, and I still can’t get a decent cup of coffee.” Anyway, I’m losing myself. The world is a little screwed up though. With wars, fiscal cliffs, technological befuddlement, first world problems, rampant interest groups perpetrating disgusting ideology, maybe we did have an apocalypse. As often, as I hear people say “I wish there was a zombie apocalypse so I could see how long I would last. Plus, I could loot a bunch of shit,” it makes a lot of sense. Maybe an “apocalypse” is our actual salvation. Maybe not having an apocalypse will be our downfall. The world needs a good purging. I don’t recycle as well as I should, though, so I might get listed on the “deserves to be purged” side of the page...You know what, the world will probably last another generation before it all goes to hell, let’s see how screwed up we can get.
ubcsuo pages WELCOME BACK UBC-O
UBCSUO wants to help you kick off the semester right. Here’s some events happening in the next two weeks: Karaoke Kick Off to Well Wednesdays (Wednesday Jan. 9th) • Doors open at 8pm (First 5 people in line will get an OFFICIAL Well Rats Shirt) • Karaoke until midnight • Cheap Pitchers UBCSUO Theatre GRAND OPENING (Thursday Jan. 10th) • Showing Project X to get ready for #BFNP • Ribbon cutting and prize draws at 6:30pm • $5 for tickets available at Cinesnax across from the Green Thread #BFNP – Big F*ckin’ Party (Friday Jan. 11th) • Unlike any other BFP before it • $5 Tickets available in advance at the used book store • For more details check out #BFNP on Twitter ... But you won’t really get it unless you’re there BRAAP! – Big Raggin’ All Ages Party! (Saturday Jan. 12th) • For anyone who didn’t get enough on Friday or those who were born after 1994 • $5 Tickets available in advance at the used book store • Prizes, Music, UBC-O’s own DJ’s, and the total disregard for inhibitions your upper level counterparts can’t even keep up with any more. Show ‘em how it’s done! Other Events Coming this Semester • Open Mic Well Wednesday (Jan. 16th) • Embodiment Drag Show (Jan. 17th) • SLC Pub Night in The Well (Jan. 24th) • Rap Battle in The Well (Jan. 25th) • World MUN Well Wednesday (Jan 30th)
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The Phoenix |
January 7th, 2013
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