Verb Issue R75 (Apr. 26-May 2, 2013)

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ISSUE #75 – APRIL 26 TO MAY 2

SHOTGUN JIMMIE EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING AND

FURRY FASHION Gerry Armsworthy is a “roadkill specialist” ALL OF OUR DREAMING Q+A with Skydiggers PAIN & GAIN + CHASING ICE Films reviewed­

PHOTO: COURTESY OF KEVIN BERTRAM

CONTENTS

CULTURE

NEWS + OPINION

ENTERTAINMENT

Q + A WITH SKYDIGGERS

LIVE MUSIC LISTINGS

The evolution of a band. 8 / Q + A

Local music listings for April 26 through May 4. 14 / LISTINGS

FURRY FASHION

ITALIANISSIMO

NIGHTLIFE PHOTOS

Gerry Armsworthy is Saskatchewan’s “roadkill specialist.” 3 / LOCAL

Quartetto Gelato join the RSO for one pyrotechnical night. 9 / ARTS

We visited The Owl.

BACKSEAT HEROINE

PAIN & GAIN + CHASING ICE

VERBNEWS.COM @VERBREGINA FACEBOOK.COM/VERBREGINA

15 / NIGHTLIFE

EDITORIAL

Emma-Lee pushes the boundaries of alt-country. 9 / ARTS

We review the latest movies. 16 / FILM

CHANGING THE NEWS

ART & PRODUCTION DESIGN LEAD / ROBERTA BARRINGTON DESIGN & PRODUCTION / BRITTNEY GRAHAM CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS / BAILY EBERLE, MAXTON PRIEBE, ADAM HAWBOLDT + ALEX J MACPHERSON

New online morning show combines traditional with cutting-edge. 4 / LOCAL

ON THE COVER:

SHOTGUN JIMMIE

On everything. 10 / COVER

PUBLISHER / PARITY PUBLISHING EDITOR IN CHIEF / RYAN ALLAN MANAGING EDITOR / JESSICA PATRUCCO STAFF WRITERS / ADAM HAWBOLDT + ALEX J MACPHERSON CONTRIBUTING WRITER / JESSICA BICKFORD

BUSINESS & OPERATIONS

CHANGING PERCEPTION

AU NATUREL

ON THE BUS

Our thoughts on when bullying becomes something more. 6 / EDITORIAL

This week we visit the Naked Bean.

Weekly original comic illustrations

by Elaine M. Will. 18 / COMICS

12 / FOOD + DRINK

OFFICE MANAGER / STEPHANIE LIPSIT MARKETING MANAGER / VOGESON PALEY FINANCIAL MANAGER / CODY LANG

CONTACT COMMENTS / FEEDBACK@VERBNEWS.COM / 306 881 8372

COMMENTS

MUSIC

GAME + HOROSCOPES

ADVERTISE / ADVERTISE@VERBNEWS.COM / 306 979 2253

Here’s your say about governmentprepared tax returns. 7 / COMMENTS

Anderson Burko, The F-Holes + Kiss.

Canadian criss-cross puzzle, weekly horoscopes and Sudoku. 19 / TIMEOUT

GENERAL / INFO@VERBNEWS.COM / 306 979 2253

13 / MUSIC

DESIGN / LAYOUT@VERBNEWS.COM / 306 979 8474

PLEASE RECYCLE AFTER READING & SHARING

PHOTO: COURTESY OF KEVIN BERTRAM

2 APR 26 – MAY 2 VERB MAGAZINE

CONTENTS

LOCAL

EDITORIAL

COMMENTS

Q+A

ARTS

COVER

FOOD + DRINK

MUSIC

LISTINGS

NIGHTLIFE

FILM

COMICS

TIMEOUT

VERBNEWS.COM

LOCAL

FURRY FASHION Saskatchewan roadkill specialist turns run-over animals into clothes BY ADAM HAWBOLDT

W

hen an animal gets hit by a car and dies, one of the first things that happens is the bowels evacuate, splattering s**t everywhere. The next thing that happens is the animal starts to decay under the skin and in the stomach area.

Now, you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to realize how messy and putrid one of these animals must be when you get up close and personal. That’s why Gerry Armsworthy only collects roadkill in the winter months.

“When I first started picking the animals up I thought I could do it at any time of the year — bad idea,” says Armsworthy. “When they get run over, if they split and it’s not freezing out, decomposition starts almost immediately.” Armsworthy pauses, thinks about how to describe what it’s like when you pick up an animal that isn’t frozen. “You know what it smells like when you go to the bathroom and defecate? That’s what it smells like when an animal is run over and split open.

The bowels break. It’s messy.”

But as long as the fur is intact and usable, Armsworthy will put the animal in a plastic bag, place it in the garbage-bag lined trunk of his Cadillac CTS, and whisk it away.

Now you may be asking yourself: why is Armsworthy picking up all this roadkill? Is he a government worker assigned to the job? Nah. Gerry Armsworthy is just a “roadkill specialist.”

The first time Armsworthy picked up a dead animal off the side of the highway was about 20 years ago. At that time he was on the Shriners’

board of directors, traveling around the province visiting various clubs. He had also recently taken up the hobby of sewing and was learning to make leather slippers.

“I needed fur to put around the top of the slippers, but I didn’t have any fur. Didn’t know where to get any, either,” says Armsworthy. “But as I was driving around the province I was seeing all this roadkill — coyotes, foxes, deer — and I thought to myself, ‘Jeez, all that stuff is going to waste, maybe I should start taking some of it home and use it.’”

With the skinning process outsourced, Armsworthy taught himself how to tan hides. But before he could get the fur on the slippers there was one last little thing that had to be done: he had to learn how to sew fur.

“I found an old fella at Bregg Cleaners Tailors & Furriers, and asked him if he’d mind if I hung around the shop and watched him sew fur,” says Armsworthy. The old fella told him it was no problem, and Armsworthy’s armchair apprenticeship was underway.

“It took a while to learn,” admits Armsworthy. “Broke a lot of needles,

It took a while to learn. Broke a lot of needles, made a lot of mistakes.

GERRY ARMSWORTHY

And that’s precisely what he did.

But one doesn’t simply take roadkill home and use it to make slippers.

Armsworthy had no idea how to do any of it, so he checked out books from the library on all the things he’d need to prepare the fur for sewing.

“Once I read up on some stuff I went to work on skinning,” says Armsworthy. “I quickly found out I wasn’t so good at that. But lucky for me there was a person who lives close by who skins and fleshes animals.”

Armsworthy chuckles and says, “Remember when I was talking about frozen animals? Well, by the time you go to skin them they’re thawed out and they don’t smell too nice. The guy who does my skinning has a constitution as tough as any you’ll see.”

made a lot of mistakes. But if you do something wrong, you can just take it apart and start again.”

And it’s not just slippers Armsworthy sews, either.

What started out as a passion for sewing has blossomed into a small business of sorts for Regina’s “roadkill specialist.” These days, if you walk into Armsworthy’s workshop you’ll see things like mukluks, mitts and fur hats.

All of this he sells at craft markets or through his made-to-order business.

But Armsworthy makes sure not to work too hard. “I usually start in September and I’m finished by Christmas,” explains Armsworthy. “Then in January we go to Mexico for three months.”

After he returns to Saskatchewan, you’ll find Armsworthy out by his pool, cutting new patterns, and getting ready for when the sewing and roadkill collecting begins again.

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@AdamHawboldt ahawboldt@verbnews.com

3 APR 26 – MAY 2 /VERBREGINA

CONTENTS

LOCAL

EDITORIAL

COMMENTS

Q+A

ARTS

COVER

FOOD + DRINK

MUSIC

LISTINGS

NIGHTLIFE

FILM

COMICS

TIMEOUT

NEWS + OPINION

LOCAL

CHANGING THE NEWS

PHOTO: COURTESY OF ADAM HAWBOLDT / VERB MAGAZINE

CBC releases an innovative morning show in Saskatchewan

BY ADAM HAWBOLDT

F

or the longest time, media information has flowed one way — from the top down Think about it. The sharp-dressed television anchor with the perfectly coiffed hair telling you what happened in Saskatoon. The silver voiced radio host reporting the latest, breaking news from Regina. Newspapers and magazines writing stories full of quotes, telling the public what’s going on, and sometimes even what to think.

That’s just the way things work.

The media provides the news and the public consumes it. It’s a timehonoured tradition.

It’s also a tradition that a new online radio show in Saskatchewan is looking to change.

The show is called Saskatoon Morning, and it’s not your typical morning show. Sure, there will be the traditional top-down flow of information from on-air host Leisha Grebinski. Every weekday morning at 6 a.m. Grebinski will be hosting an on-line radio show at www.

cbc.ca/saskatoon, giving all the up-to-date local news, traffic, and weather reports.

Now, you may be thinking, “what’s so special about that, outside of the fact it’s online?” Well, that’s easy. You see, the program isn’t

teractive portion to field questions from the audience, who would use their phones, iPads or computers to submit queries through the show’s new website.

“The website uses a program called Cover It Live — it’s a live

The days of an anchor in a power suit delivering the news are on their way out.

LEISHA GREBINSKI

simply news and banter. There’s also an interactive component to it.

This interactive portion is hosted by Matt Kruchak, and how it works is like this: say, for instance, a local or provincial politician was scheduled to appear on the show. First that politician does the interview bit, bantering with Grebinski and answering questions. Then, when that segment is over, the guest switches to the in-

software,” explains Kruchak. “And what you’ll do is log in, using Facebook or Twitter or whatever, then you can ask questions of the guest, talk with other people on the live chat, post pictures.

This live chat is something really innovative.”

So innovative that no other station around is doing it. This change excites both hosts, but it’s not the only thing.

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE »

4 APR 26 – MAY 2 NEWS + OPINION

CONTENTS

LOCAL

EDITORIAL

COMMENTS

Q+A

ARTS

COVER

FOOD + DRINK

MUSIC

LISTINGS

NIGHTLIFE

FILM

COMICS

TIMEOUT

VERBNEWS.COM

“Another exciting thing about this is we’re trying to create a brand new habit for people,” says Kruchak. “What you’ll do is wake up in the morning … turn on your laptop or press the power button on your mobile or some other device, and start chatting with us. You can be lying in bed, eating breakfast or having coffee, and chat with us.

Engage in the news.”

The key word here is engagement. That’s really what this new morning program is trying to harness — public participation.

“The days of an anchor in a power suit delivering the news are on their way out,” says Grebinski.

“What we’re creating is very much a two-way, three-way, four-way conversation. It’s not just about putting together a show reading the news and telling people what’s important. With the [interactive] portion people can tell us the news, tell us what’s important.”

And thus, adding a different direction in which the news can now flow.

And that begs the question: what goes into making a potentially game-changing online morning program like Saskatoon Morning?

“A lot of work,” says Grebinski with a smile. And she should know.

For five years Grebinski, who is from Regina, was an associate producer of CBC Radio One’s The

Morning Edition in Saskatchewan, with host Sheila Coles. After that she spent some time co-hosting CBC Radio’s Daybreak in Prince Rupert, B.C. So yeah, Grebinski knows a thing or two about what it takes to run a show like this.

“I’ve been a radio girl, through and through. And putting this show together has been a lot of work,” says Grebinksi, her voice stopping and stressing the word ‘a lot.’

See, contrary to what some people think, morning hosts don’t simply go to work earlier than most of us, turn on the microphone, put on the headphones, read the news, banter amongst themselves, then call it a day.

“That’s not the case at all,” explains Grebinski. “There’s a lot of preparation that goes into it.

The day before you are trying to figure out what the big story is that people want to hear. From there you have to find guests to come on your show and talk.

You have to do a lot of research, make a lot of phone calls, do a lot of writing. There are a lot of hours involved.”

And sometimes all that beforehand preparation can be for naught if news breaks suddenly. “The thing about live radio is, things can change on a dime,” says Grebinski. “If we hear about those two explosions at the Boston Marathon, obviously we have to change the content.”

That makes developing a program like Saskatoon Morning a tricky task. Not only do you have to prepare diligently, even though that preparation may end up getting cut, but at the same time Grebinski and Kruchak are wading into uncharted waters with their new show.

“It’s unknown territory we’re in,” says Grebinski. “It’s not like we’re taking over an established show, which presents its own special challenges. But we’re starting with a blank slate here, and in a way that’s both a blessing and a curse. There are a fair amount of challenges ahead of us, but it’s all incredibly exciting.”

So exciting, in fact, that when Kruchak speaks about airing the first show, his voice rises and quickens in anticipation.

“The real challenge is the wait,” he admits. “We’ve been working so hard preparing this show and developing it, we just want to get in there and get going.”

He won’t have to wait long.

The first online broadcast of Saskatoon Morning airs on Monday, April 29th on www.cbc.ca/saskatoon, so tune in and help change the way news flows in this province.

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@AdamHawboldt ahawboldt@verbnews.com

5 APR 26 – MAY 2 @VERBREGINA

CONTENTS

LOCAL

EDITORIAL

COMMENTS

Q+A

ARTS

COVER

FOOD + DRINK

MUSIC

LISTINGS

NIGHTLIFE

FILM

COMICS

TIMEOUT

NEWS + OPINION

EDITORIAL

CHANGING PERCEPTIONS We need to conceive of bullying in a different manner

I

think we’ve got to stop using the term bullying to describe some of these things. Bullying to me has a kind of connotation ... of kids misbehaving. What we are dealing with in some of these circumstances is simply criminal activity.”

Those are Steven Harper’s words following the tragic death of young teen Rehtaeh Parsons in Nova Scotia, spoken in Calgary a few weeks ago. And like or loath the guy, you have to admit — he has a point.

To be frank, labelling the kinds of activities alleged to have occurred in the Parsons case or other similar cases as “bullying” cloaks the hostility of those kinds of acts, dressing them up, as Harper noted, as simply “kids misbehaving.” And we think that’s wrong.

Generally speaking, we believe that any youths that are old enough to be prosecuted, whose bullying constitutes violent criminal activity, sexual criminal activity, or criminal harassment shouldn’t be treated as bullies. They should be treated as criminals.

The term “bullying,” frequently trotted out to identify any number of behaviours, conjures up a rather benign, perhaps even nostalgic image of kids in a schoolyard teasing one another, blowing spitballs, pushing each other into puddles.

You know — the kind of behaviour anyone would witness on the average elementary school playground.

And we agree: that is, absolutely, bullying. Is it shameful, and should efforts be made to reduce it as much as possible? Well, yeah.

Though to some extent this kind of bullying — the “kids misbehaving” type — seems to be a part of the human condition, educators, parents and the community should continue to work together to reduce it as much as possible.

And in fact, at the moment, we are. Saskatchewan’s provincial anti-bullying strategy includes: a) “new policy directives that require all school divisions to ensure that every school in every community has a program in place to address bullying,” b) “develop enhanced anti-bullying and suicide prevention and intervention services for our province’s young people by working with mental health service providers.” and c) “seeking changes to the Criminal Code of Canada and the Youth Criminal Justice Act to specifically deal with systemic bullying.”

And that’s all well and good, but that “kids misbehaving” behaviour isn’t what we’re talking about here.

Occasionally, there comes a point when bullying becomes something more, when it becomes criminal activity. And it is at this point that

we believe the full weight of the law should be brought to bear.

Now look. We aren’t advocating that some eight-year-old gets life in jail for threatening a friend, or anything like that. We understand children aren’t born with a perfect knowledge of what is and is not appropriate, and of course elementary school aged students still have plenty to learn on that front. But teens are a different story. At the teen level the effects of what is often called severe bullying can be literally life or death, and we think the legal consequences of such behaviour, proven in a court of law, should reflect that reality.

And we’re not the only ones who think this way. Apparently Darrell Dexter, Nova Scotia’s premier, feels the same — after all, he is meeting with Harper in light of the Parsons case to discuss possible changes to the Criminal Code of Canada. Look, we have enough existing laws to address cyberbullying, which Media Smarts identifies as having six key features: insulting, targeting, identity theft, uploading, excluding and harassment. What’s needed is for a shift in mindsets, a change in perception rather than a change to laws.

Think about it: what if an adult was to threaten another adult with bodily harm? Seek them out and torment them mercilessly at their

home or place of business? Well, the situation would be treated as a serious legal offence and prosecuted accordingly, and rightly so.

You simply can’t act in such a manner in the real world and not expect repercussions. So why the heck should it be any different amongst teens?

These editorials are left unsigned because they represent the opinions of Verb magazine, not those of the individual writers.

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@VerbRegina feedback@verbnews.com

6 APR 26 – MAY 2 NEWS + OPINION

CONTENTS

LOCAL

EDITORIAL

COMMENTS

Q+A

ARTS

COVER

FOOD + DRINK

MUSIC

LISTINGS

NIGHTLIFE

FILM

COMICS

TIMEOUT

VERBNEWS.COM

COMMENTS

ON TOPIC: Last week we asked what you thought about governmentprepared tax returns. Here's what you had to say:

– Keep the government out of my taxes don’t trust them to do them properly. It doesn’t take that much to have an accountant do it for you stop vein so lazy!

– Haveing the gov’t prep tax returns makes sense but how will they pay for this it’ll mean hiring a bunch more people no?

– Prepared tax returns sound incredibly convenient, though cue the conspiracy theorists who will assume that this means they somehow will be losing out more money.

– How easy! You wait for the document and then basically click “i agree” and they send you your return. Netherlands has got it right with most things, and this especially.

Text yo thoughtsur to 881 VE R B 8372

the idea of having the government prep the returns for us and the ease of convenience of this method is appealing. So why not??

– Wait: there’s a better, more common sense and more efficient means of doing our taxes and Harperites haven’t yet? Wonder if they’ve been paid off by lobby groups....

OFF TOPIC – I just read your review on 42… kinda disappointed you don’t have “Field of Dreams” Shoeless Joe as an honourable mention…oh well! good review none the less will probably check it out this weekend Darcy In response to “Remembering Robinson,” Film, #73 (April 12, 2013)

SOUND OFF – What happened to the good old days when people would prepare their tax returns themselves? It seems like people want everything done for them these days

– I don’t think getting your taxes done is as tiring a task as you described in your editorial, but

POWERED BY THE CREW AT MOGA MOBILE

– Another crusty rocker 50 years past peak is coming to Regina. All good. They get treated like back in the day by the hicks. Hickville gets to “play” big league.

– Ears are very simple things 2 microphones. The brain does

something extraordinary to this simple input to create hearing.

It can create a model of space around us. Most of the time we listen to speech other sounds but we can also feel the sonic in a fingertip or skin like way with music and noises like nails on chalkboard styrofoam squeaks. Some you felt even that mention. Its all in your mind, hearing.

– Bombings in Boston, Ricin poison letter sent to Pres Obama, massive explosion in Waco, Texas today.

April 19, 1993 the Waco siege ended with the deaths of 76 men women and children of the Branch Davidian cult. Good chance the topper, something bigger, tomorrow.

– Chechnya! The Boston bombers were Balkan terrorists. WTF! Up tip now they’ve only hit Russia. I thought this week anniversary of Waco and the Oklahoma bombing was American Fremen. Maybe Waco this week was an accident?

Strange days Strange times! Violent times!

– My heart breaks for Boston and the victims, but so impressed by the people that did whatever they could to help. Lived there for a couple years back in the 90s so hits close to home. Boston spirit is unquenchable, and I’ve no doubt they’ll pick right up.

– In the ancient relationship plants giving their seed speaders Diabetes would be dysfunctional. If you have a sweet tooth do your best to satisfy it with fruit.

– When a funny smell from your sofa thats been haunting you for months turns out to be one of your regular guests thats DOWNtown.

– Clean the city sidewalk in front of your house?? Why stop there??

Paint the traffic lanes on the road you might take downtown to drop your taxes for 2013.

– God giveth life and the devil taketh it away.

NEXT WEEK: What do you think about changing the way we perceive of bullying? Pick up a copy of Verb to get in on the conversation: We print your texts verbatim each week. Text in your thoughts and reactions to our stories and content, or anything else on your mind.

– YOU KNOW WHY WALMART HAS THAT SMILE FACE ?

BCAUSE US COMPANY SCREWED U!!

– Dam the man! He takes enuf he just take more if he gets the chance.

– BS! you arrange with caretaker split rent They ADD 50-100$ late fee they Screw you when you leave! Avenue Living

– Rental properties Are Black listing Tenants!! chargeing 90% rent Increase for Hovels

– THE JUNOS WERE AMAAAAZING! So great to see our province host such a spectacular event.

Congrats to everyone who was involved :D

7 APR 26 – MAY 2 /VERBREGINA

CONTENTS

LOCAL

EDITORIAL

COMMENTS

Q+A

ARTS

COVER

FOOD + DRINK

MUSIC

LISTINGS

NIGHTLIFE

FILM

COMICS

TIMEOUT

NEWS + OPINION

Q+A

ALL OF OUR DREAMING PHOTOS: COURTESY OF HEATHER POLLACK

Skydiggers on the release of concert tapes old and new

BY ALEX J MACPHERSON

L

ongtime fans of the Skydiggers will dive into All Of Our Dreaming with the words and the melodies already fixed in their minds. All Of Our Dreaming contains three concerts, each recorded at a pivotal moment in the band’s career: 1988, 2000, and 2012. But it is more than a series of rock concerts; it is the starting point for stories that begin with the band but branch off, working their way into every fibre in the fabric of Canadian music. I caught up with the band’s guitar player, Josh Finlayson, to talk about All Of Our Dreaming.

Alex J MacPherson: When you recorded the first concert at the Beverage Room in Toronto, were you thinking that it would be important?

Josh Finlayson: Truthfully, someone that we knew asked if he could record it.

He was just interested in recording, so we said by all means.

It’s probably within about six months of us forming as a band. I mean, Andy Maize and I had been playing together for a few years prior to that, but it was really the initial foray — and the first document — of the band.

We did these weekly concerts at the Spadina Hotel, the Beverage Room, which is where it was recorded, and every week we’d have to learn new material. It was us … finding our sound together.

AJM: It might be a surprise for newer fans of the band to hear how much you relied on vocals, how they were the most important part of the band’s sound.

JF: We started really as a vocal group.

Our big influences were the Beatles, the Byrds, the Hollies. R.E.M. was an obvious influence as well. We were always very much a vocal group, and you can tell that from the first recording. The vocal group element of what we do was a big part of our sound.

the kiss of death. It’s like patting yourself on the back and giving yourself a gold watch. In any creative endeavour, you want to feel like your latest idea is your best idea. Every songwriter is like that: the last song they wrote is the best thing they’ll do. That’s why they keep going. I think for us, when we do look back, it’s so interesting to hear how we did evolve.

AJM: And then, 12 years later, Skydiggers has become a rock band. Looking back, was that shift intentional?

AJM: The other aspect to this package is that it feels like both a look back at the band, but also a document of society at the time — what people were talking about and listening to.

JF: I think a lot of it was out of necessity. The Beverage Room was a 50- or 75-seat venue. When we graduated from there we started playing slightly bigger rooms, then we moved into rooms like the Horseshoe Tavern.

Eventually, we’re going on at 11:30 at

JF: Certainly for Andy, a lot of the banter was very topical: what was going on at the time, stories. That gives

…when we do look back, it’s so interesting to hear how we did evolve.

JOSH FINLAYSON

night and playing bars: we’d evolved into a bar band by the time our first record came out. Volume just became a reality because of the numbers of people. Really, out of necessity I started playing more electric guitar, and we just really started changing into more of a rock band. It had to evolve. And it always does have to evolve.

it that element of looking like an old photograph. And part of you goes, ‘Oh my god, not that story again.’ But in a certain context, it’s exactly what it was.

And it was a document, and documents have their value.

Skydiggers May 10 @ Exchange $22 (ticketedge.ca)

AJM: Was putting All Of Our Dreaming together, with all the reflection that entails, an odd experience?

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

JF: I think typically when you’re in a band and looking back there’s this kind of feeling of looking back being

@MacPhersonA amacpherson@verbnews.com

8 APR 26 – MAY 2 CULTURE

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LOCAL

EDITORIAL

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COVER

FOOD + DRINK

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LISTINGS

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TIMEOUT

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ARTS

ITALIANISSIMO

Quartetto Gelato join the RSO for a night of pyrotechnical playing

Q

uartetto Gelato is a group of classically trained musicians whose love of Italian music is eclipsed only by their flair for fiery live performances. Italianissimo, a collaboration with the Regina Symphony Orchestra, includes selections by a range of Italian composers, such as Gioacchino Rossini and Ennio Morricone — and Quartetto Gelato’s signature antics.

Although the group frequently performs alone, violinist and tenor Peter De Sotto says working with an orchestra is a treat.

“It’s really nice to ride on this sick bed of sound,” says De Sotto, who has also performed in opera and theatre, and as a member of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. “It gives the group a little bit more room to stretch out on our own, as soloists, than we would in a recital situation. And it also gives the audience much more variety with the sound and the textures.”

Quartetto Gelato consists of cellist Elizabeth McLellan, oboist Colin Maier, accordionist Alexander Sevastian, and De Sotto. Their repertoire includes selections from the classical and operatic canon alongside the sounds of gypsy jazz and folk. And while the group’s lineup has changed over the past decade, their commitment to sizzling live performances and blazing solos has not.

And Italianissimo will be a homecoming for McLellan, who grew up in the Queen City. “[She is] a fabulous soloist, and she’s beautiful to the point of it being guilty,” says De Sotto, pointing out that McLellan’s father and sister are also accomplished musicians.

“The whole family just stinks of talent and creativity.”

Italianissimo also features Sevastian performing virtuosic solos and Maier playing a showstopper

by Antonio Pasculli in one breath, while doing the splits between two

BY ALEX J MACPHERSON

chairs. “Colin plays 14 different instruments, but he’s also a trained acrobat and he’s a trained actor,” De Sotto says with a laugh. “There’s nothing this guy can’t do. He’s quite a remarkable performer.”

According to De Sotto, the group’s explosive performances are a reflection of the raw talent present on stage.

“If you have a certain amount of pyrotechnical skills, and if it’s easy for you, than you have no choice but to do something else to try and pass the time,” he says with a laugh. “It’s really a lot of fun, and we’ve really upped the ante quite a bit. I’ve been through many incarnations of Quartetto Gelato and loved them all, but this one is possibly the most unique — and the most talented.”

Italianissimo May 9 @ Conexus Arts Centre $39+ @ reginasymphony.com, RSO Box Office

BACKSEAT HEROINE

Emma-Lee’s latest album pushes her to the forefront of alt-country BY ALEX J MACPHERSON

PHOTO: COURTESY OF PAUL STEWART

E

mma-Lee isn’t interested in limits or boundaries. She wanted to make a record that reflected her personality, her taste in music, and the creative tension she feels every day. And she succeeded Backseat Heroine, which was released last year, is a tour de force.

Landing in the space where pop and rock and country collide, the album feels like an autobiography, with chapters on shocking routs at the local

bar alongside tender stories of love and loss. It is, more than anything else, a reflection of its creator, a young woman from Toronto with a cannon of a voice.

“What I have to keep reminding myself is that there’s only one me, and I’m the only person that can do me,” says Emma-Lee, who prefers that her last name not be used in print. “And that’s what I’m going to do, because if I try to be anything else it just isn’t going to work.”

The best songs on Backseat Heroine close out the album. “Shadow Of A Ghost” is a raucous barroom anthem, a sizzling collection of twangy guitar licks and lyrics aimed at an absent lover. “I Could Live With Dying Tonight,” on the other hand, is a silky piano ballad featuring a crescendo of strings and a devastating vocal performance.

“I think every artist has all those sides within them, but it can be a bit

nerve-wracking to pull them off in one [record],” Emma-Lee admits. “But that’s just who I am. I like to change it up.” And change it up she does.

“Backseat Heroine” is reminiscent of Stevie Nicks’s best moments with Fleetwood Mac, while “Phoenix” evokes a generation of powerful female country singers.

The sheer variety of sounds on Backseat Heroine is daunting, but the songs are tied together by an extremely tight band recorded live off the floor, and Emma-Lee’s powerful vocals. And while she wrote most of the songs alone, the album also benefits from a few prominent co-writers, including Jill Barber, Nicole Atkins, and Luke Doucet.

“It was scary the first few times,” Emma-Lee says. “Writing lyrics especially is such a personal thing. In many cases I hadn’t met a lot of the people

until the moment we sat down to write.

And suddenly it’s like you’re on a date: it’s awkward, you’re shy.”

But Backseat Heroine is anything but awkward and shy. It is a collection of solid songs and powerful performances from a young artist whose dream of writing a big hit and selling out venues across Canada becomes more real with each passing day.

Emma Lee w/ Peter Katz May 8 @ Artful Dodger $TBD

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@MacPhersonA amacpherson@verbnews.com

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EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING

PHOTO: COURTESY OF KEVIN BERTRAM

Shotgun Jimmie, a cabin in the woods, and a stunning portrait of life BY ALEX J MACPHERSON

O

ne of the most durable clichés in popular music is the story of the guy who recorded an album in the wilderness. These stories exist because they are compelling. People want to escape their lives; they want to cut off the static, the relentless flow of information. Artists who retreat to the woods in search of truth and authenticity are regarded as saviours: bearded and flanneled messiahs whose commitment to honest creation is a counterpoint to the dissonance of the twenty-first century.

The latest incarnation of this story is Everything, Everything, an album

by Jim Kilpatrick, a songwriter from New Brunswick who performs as Shotgun Jimmie.

“I think it’s a natural instinct of the musician to want to be focused and put yourself in a situation where there’s less distractions,” Kilpatrick says from Sackville, New Brunswick, where he is taking a break after a string of successful shows in Ontario. “You have the freedom to just work on whatever it is — making paintings or making rock albums or whatever.” Last winter Kilpatrick retreated to a cabin in Mani-

toba. He brought a bunch of instruments, a batch of inveterately upbeat pop songs, and his favourite four-track recorder. “I knew that it was a cliché.

But I also knew that it would be really, really rewarding — and really fun. And

to put on the palette,” he says. “I had to decide what ingredients I was going to put in the soup before I knew what kind of soup I was going to make.”

Besides his usual arsenal of guitars, one of the most important ingredients

I knew that it was a cliché. But I also knew that it would be really, really rewarding — and really fun.

JIM KILPATRICK

maybe the experience of a lifetime.”

He also knew that the wake left by cliché leads inevitably to truth.

Kilpatrick recorded virtually every sound on Everything, Everything himself. Most recording studios are in cities, or close to them, and extra instruments can be acquired on short notice. Kilpatrick did not have this luxury in rural Manitoba; he had to bring everything with him, to map out the sound of the album before the tape began to roll. “I had to pick the colours

was a Korg synthesizer. Kilpatrick rented it because he knew synthesizers can produce a wide variety of sounds.

The fact that he had no idea how to play it was not a problem. “I brought it with me to the cabin in the woods because I wanted to learn how to use one of those things,” he says with a laugh.

“And I ended up using it quite a bit.”

Unusual as it may be for Kilpatrick to use a synthesizer — his records tend to feature strong guitars and percussion wrapped up in tight pop structures CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE »

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— the Korg is far from the strangest instrument on Everything, Everything.

The guitar solo that opens “I Will Climb Mountains,” the only song on the album that sprawls past the five-minute mark, features more than just an overdriven tube amp. Half the sound is a dumpster lid, played by Kilpatrick’s brother. “I took a break from the recording to go do some flooring at my parents’ house, and we rented this dumpster to throw all the old carpet and stuff in,” he says. “My brother noticed that this door was really musical.

He got me out there and we recorded it.” Kilpatrick was surprised by how well the frequencies produced by the dumpster lid meshed with the frequencies produced by a screaming electric guitar. “It might sound like two guitars, or one guitar really going wild, but there’s actually quite a bit of dumpster in there,” he says. “They get all mixed up together, but you can hear the low sounds of the door. And the chains that were hanging on the door.”

Kilpatrick also spent hours trying to record the sound of the ice on a nearby lake. “It was freezing and cracking and making these strange martian sounds,” he says. “I’d hear it in the middle of the night, drag myself out of bed, and put a microphone in the window. I tried putting a microphone outside. I tried everything to capture this sound of ice making this alien whale music, and I just couldn’t get it.”

PHOTO: COURTESY OF KEVIN BERTRAM

These experiments with kitchen wares, industrial containers, and frozen lakes illustrate Kilpatrick’s commitment to sonic exploration, but they only tell half the story. Most people expect albums recorded on the fringes of society to be ruminative, if not downright gloomy. Everything, Everything is the exact opposite. Its 16 tracks, only three of which run past three minutes, are short and intense and chronically cheerful. “I think this record is not the sad guy going into

the woods,” Kilpatrick says. “This album ended up being extremely positive in nature.”

The songs on Everything, Everything cover a lot of territory, from rolling acoustic pop to ‘50s-vintage rock and roll to lo-fi proto-punk. But they all follow a similar pattern. Rather than develop a riff over the course of several minutes, Kilpatrick leaves audiences wanting more. His songs present an infectious idea once, or maybe twice, before crashing to a halt.

“I wanted to have short musical ideas and hooks that don’t necessarily reoccur, but maybe just happen once,” he says, adding that he considered titling the album Verse Chorus Verse Chorus Peace. “I really enjoy that on other people’s albums: when they have an incredible hook and you wait for it to come around again in the song cycle, and it just isn’t there.”

Besides keeping audiences interested, the songs on Everything, Everything — like the songs on its critically acclaimed predecessor, Transistor Sister — reflect Kilpatrick’s reality, the bulk of which is spent on the road. “I went into writing the songs realizing that regardless of how they were recorded I was going to have to perform them,” he says, referring to the fact that most of his shows are solo, with little more than a guitar, a suitcase kick drum, and some effects for support. “And I know from performing that short songs suit people’s fancy. It’s easier to hit an audience with a bunch of short songs, and have all of them have a quick story or some sort of lyrical hook or melodic hook. I don’t want people to get bored.” After a brief pause he adds, “I would get bored.”

What separates Everything, Everything from the pop albums it borrows ideas from is Kilpatrick’s songwriting. Rather than write about big ideas like love and loss, he sings about the things we take for granted.

The songs on Everything, Everything chronicle the minutiae of everyday life: the ordinary, the uninteresting, and the banal. What makes the record so strong is how it unfolds much like the moments that make up our own lives — sometimes pleasing, sometimes infuriating, always chaotic, always engaging. The theme of the record is captured on “Growing Like A Garden,” which is reminiscent of

the Shins: “An excellent example / Of the things you just can’t plan for / That just turned out to be true.”

Most people listen to music to forget their reality, if only for a few minutes. This is why stories about guys who record albums in the woods are so popular. But instead of producing a record that fuses big ideas to an expansive musical vision, Kilpatrick’s wilderness retreat spawned a picture of the life he sought to escape. There are stories about waiting in line, getting day drunk, going to Sappyfest, worrying about Skype dates — stories about the things we never think of presented

in wrenching detail. In the same way John K. Samson’s “Sun In An Empty Room” devastates with its simple description of sunbeams arcing across the floor of an empty apartment, the songs on Everything, Everything cast new light on the most mundane moments.

Our lives do not follow a continuous arc. They are confused and messy, agglomerations of thousands of disparate events and interactions. Everything, Everything attempts to find order in chaos, to extract meaning from the shards of memory and experience. By drawing on all of his own recollections and memories, in music and in life,

Kilpatrick created a mirror — a reflection of himself and of everybody else.

Escaping the city to record an album in the woods might be a cliché, but finding art that casts new light on our own lives is not — and never will be.

Shotgun Jimmie May 9 @ The Artful Dodger Tickets at the door Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@MacPhersonA amacpherson@verbnews.com

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AU NATUREL Photo courtesy of Maxton Priebe

Naked Bean sources the best coffee, and serves it up with a smile BY JESSICA BICKFORD

L

eanne and Darcy Bohay opened Naked Bean Espresso Bar and Cafe this past October with “a focus on bringing Regina a really different coffee culture.” The high ceilings and big windows in their location give the venue a bright and airy feel when you walk in, and their staff are not only cheerful, but knowledgeable about the coffee they serve.

This attitude is a direct result of Leanne and Darcy’s passion for coffee, but one that comes without any

pretensions. Leanne says that they strive for a relaxed atmosphere, but will take opportunities to educate their customers about coffee and

ity beans, including getting their espresso from Italy.

I started with what else — an espresso. This espresso had an

This espresso had an incredibly thick and enduring crema…

JESSICA BICKFORD

love to answer questions. They focus on sourcing the best qual-

incredibly thick and enduring crema in a beautiful caramel colour. The rich aroma that floated out of the cup was accompanied by a lovely, deep flavour and followed by a clean aftertaste. With a wonderful, slightly thick texture, this espresso hit the spot.

For coffee lovers who like their caffeine tempered with a bit of milk, there’s always the traditional latte.

Mine arrived topped with some very pretty latte art made by one of Naked Bean’s talented employees. And this beverage wasn’t just pretty to look at: the super thick and creamy espresso tasted lovely with the milk, and the foam (my favourite part) was almost like whipped cream, it was so thick.

LET’S GO DRINKIN’ VERB’S MIXOLOGY GUIDE CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT COFFEE

INGREDIENTS

This dark, creamy and warm cocktail is perfect for a cozy night in. Grab a book or a movie, snuggle up with your loved ones, and enjoy this delicious drink.

10 ozs hot, brewed coffee 1 oz chocolate liqueur (like creme de cacao) 1 oz hazelnut liqueur (like Frangelico) whipped cream and cocoa powder for garnish

DIRECTIONS

In a mug mix together the coffee and two liqueurs. Top with the whipped cream and cocoa powder for extra indulgence.

Turning away from coffee, I moved on to a cup of sencha green tea with a matcha leaf cookie. Sencha is one of my favourite teas, and its beautiful colour was set off by the wide, white cup it was served in. The cookie was a sweet sugar cookie with a hint of matcha flavour and colour that made it a pleasing light green. It had a bit of crunch, a nice amount of sweetness, and was a really great little treat that wasn’t too rich or heavy.

A rooibos tisane latte was my last drink selection and it had a great red colour coming through the foam. Rooibos is a naturally caffeine-free, antioxidant-rich substitute for black tea, and the flavour is similar but a bit more

herbaceous. In the latte it was rich, subtle, and certainly tasty.

Leanne says that they really want Naked Bean to be a part of the community, a place that offers a warm and personal atmosphere that people want to come back to. With their focus on both quality and customer service, I don’t think it will take them too long to become exactly that.

Naked Bean Espresso Bar & Cafe 2505 Broad St. | 306 352 4404 Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@TheGeekCooks jbickford@verbnews.com

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NEXT WEEK

COMING UP

ANDERSON BURKO

THE F-HOLES

KISS

@ ARTESIAN ON 13TH SATURDAY, MAY 4 – $20

@ O’HANLON’S PUB TUESDAY, MAY 7 – FREE

@ BRANDT CENTRE — EVRAZ PLACE TUESDAY, JULY 16 – $95.25+

In 2011 this local duo released their album Mitch’s Garage, and by all accounts it was one heckuva folk-roots record. With songs about broken hearts, bumbling lovers and prairie lives, the album was critically acclaimed and showed a real maturation in the duo’s sound. The two frontmen are Roy Anderson and Darrell Burko, but they’re not alone. Joined by Daryl Pierce, Mike Pierce, George Schumacher, Jody Giesbrecht, Randy Woods and Don Griffith, Anderson Burko puts on a show you don’t want to miss. With a ton of instruments, a briefcase full of original songs and an engaging, entertaining command of the stage, this local act puts on a terrific show.

Head down to the Artesian on 13th and check ‘em out next week.

No matter how the name of this band may sound to you, it’s probably not what you think. See, not so long ago, members of this five-piece from Winnipeg were playing instruments with a lot of f-holes in them, thought it would make a cool band name, and The F-Holes was borne.

Oh, and speaking of cool, these guys — James Mckee (trumpet/ cornet, vocals), Patrick Alexandre Leclerc (vocals, upright bass), Eric Lemoine (banjo, pedal steel, electric bass, vocals), Blake Thompson (guitar, sax, vocals) and Evan Friesen (drums) — combine rockabilly, country and Dixieland into a highenergy roots-type sound that’s sure to get you out of your seat and moving your feet. What better way to spend a spring evening?

When Kiss burst onto the music scene in 1973, people hadn’t seen anything like them before. With their painted faces, outlandish outfits and flamboyant stage antics (which ranged from breathing fire to spitting blood to shooting rockets), this hard-rocking quartet from New York certainly grabbed peoples’ attention.

Fast forward 40 years and 40+ million records sold, and Kiss is still a hot act to see. Whether playing their hard rock from the ‘70s, glam metal of the ‘80s or their grittier stuff from the ‘90s, this band — led by Paul Stanley (rhythm guitar/lead vocals) and Gene Simmons (bass/vocals) — never fails to deliver. Especially for the loyal members of the Kiss Army. They’ll be in Regina this summer. Tickets available through Ticketmaster.

– By Adam Hawboldt

PHOTOS COURTESY OF: THE ARTIST / THE ARTIST / AKTIVIOSLO

SASK MUSIC PREVIEW SaskMusic is excited to launch Music2Media, an innovative pilot project that allows Saskatchewan artists to upload their releases, high quality photos, bios and more, and choose which user groups they wish to allow access. Media and industry professionals, including community radio, provincial and national print media, major music bloggers and more will be able to login as needed to download or preview material. Further details will be posted on www.saskmusic.org > How To. Keep up with Saskatchewan music. saskmusic.org

13 APR 26 – MAY 2 @VERBREGINA

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LISTINGS

APRIL 26 » MAY 4 The most complete live music listings for Regina.

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28 29 30

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1

FRIDAY 26

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26 27 3

4

RUTH MOODY, ROSIE AND THE RIVETERS / Artful Dodger — A night of fantastic female music. 8pm / Cover TBD POLKAFEST / Casino Regina — Featuring Walter Ostanek and the Western Senators, Jordan Rody, Ken Runge and the Polka Pals.

5pm / $35 ($50 for weekend pass) POOR NAMELESS BOY / Creative City Centre — The Activity Book CD release party.

7:30pm / $10 (advance) or $15 (door) DJ JUAN LOPEZ / Envy Nightclub — This DJ loves requests. 10pm / $5 CAULDRON, INTO ETERNITY, STU BLOCK / The Exchange — A hard rockin’ metal show.

7:30pm / $15 (ticketedge.ca) DJ PAT & DJ KIM / Habano’s Martini & Cocktail Club — Local DJs spin top 40 hits every Friday night that are sure to get you on the dance floor. 9pm / $5 cover

BIG CHILL FRIDAYS / Lancaster Taphouse — Come out and get your weekend started with DJ Fatbot, who’ll be doing his spinning thing every Friday night. 10pm / Cover TBD WONDERLAND / McNally’s Tavern — Onehit wonders and classic rock. 10pm / $5 MARC LABOSSIERE / The Pump Roadhouse — A talented singer/songwriter from Winnipeg. 9pm / Cover TBD BILLY GRIND / The Sip Nightclub — Alt. country from Queen City, featuring Conrad Bigknife. 9pm / Cover TBD CHRIS HENDERSON / Whiskey Saloon — Country music done right. 8pm / $10 DJ LONGHORN / Whiskey Saloon — Come check out one of Regina’s most interactive DJs as he drops some of the best country beats around. 8pm / Cover TBD

WONDERLAND / McNally’s Tavern — Onehit wonders and classic rock. 10pm / $5 MARC LABOSSIERE / The Pump Roadhouse — A talented singer/songwriter from Winnipeg. 9pm / Cover TBD BILLY GRIND / The Sip Nightclub — Alt. country from Queen City, featuring Conrad Bigknife. 9pm / Cover TBD JAM SESSIONS / Smokin’ Okies — Promoting blues and country blues, come in and play or simply listen. 2pm / No cover CHRIS HENDERSON / Whiskey Saloon — Country music done right. 8pm / $10

SUNDAY 28

LEONARD COHEN / Brandt Centre — Check out the Canadian icon on his Old Ideas World Tour. 8pm / $55-275 (ticketmaster.ca) IRENE TORRES AND THE SUGAR DEVILS / The Club (Exchange) — Jazz, R&B, and anything that swings — their live show is out of this world! 7:30pm / Cover TBD

SATURDAY 27

POLKAFEST / Casino Regina — Featuring Walter Ostanek and the Western Senators, Jordan Rody, Ken Runge and the Polka Pals.

5pm / $35 ($50 for weekend pass) DJ JUAN LOPEZ / Envy Nightclub — This DJ loves requests. 10pm / $5 HARRY MANX / The Exchange — One of the best musicians working today! 8pm / Advance tickets available at Bach and Beyond, or X-Ray Records DAN SILLJER / Lancaster Taphouse — A left-handed guitar whiz from Queen City.

9pm / No cover

MONDAY 29

CHRISTINA MARTIN / The Artful Dodger — A terrific, award-winning singer/songwriter from Nova Scotia. 8pm / Cover TBD MONDAY NIGHT JAZZ / Bushwakker Brewpub — Featuring Uptown Jazz, Bushwakker’s jazz pioneers. 8pm / No cover TAPING OF POLKAFEST / Casino Regina — Featuring Walter Ostanek and the Western Senators. 5pm-11pm

AMY NELSON / King’s Head Tavern — A songstress from right here on the prairies.

9pm / Cover TBD

TUESDAY 30

TROUBADOUR TUESDAYS / Bocados — Come check out some live tunes from local talents every week, then bring an instrument and partake in the open mic/jam night. 8pm / No cover TAPING OF POLKAFEST / Casino Regina — Featuring Walter Ostanek and the Western Senators. 5pm-11pm

WEDNESDAY 1

NUELA CHARLES / The Artful Dodger — Retro-fitted soul, funk, hip-hip, R&B. Also appearing: Fur Eeel. 8pm / Cover TBD WEDNESDAY NIGHT FOLK / Bushwakker Brewpub — Featuring the Last Mountain Breakdown, a folk and bluegrass act from right here in the Queen City. 8pm / No cover CHARLEY PRIDE / Conexus Arts Centre — An American country legend. 7:30pm / $66.50-71.50 (conexusticket.com) JAM NIGHT AND OPEN STAGE / McNally’s Tavern — Come on down and enjoy some local talent. 9pm / No cover

THURSDAY 2

RAMSES CALDERON / Artesian on 13th — Classical guitar done right! 8pm / $15(advance), $20 (at the door) THURSDAY FUNK / Artful Dodger — Let’s get funky! 7pm / $5 in advance or at the door BEACH BOYS / Casino Regina — American rock royalty. 8pm / SOLD OUT 100 MILE HOUSE / The Club — Alt. folk music straight from Edmonton. 8pm / $15 DECIBEL FREQUENCY / Gabbo’s Nightclub — A night of electronic fun. 10pm / Cover $5 PS FRESH / The Hookah Lounge — DJ Ageless started spinning in Montreal, DJ Drewski started in Saskatoon. They both landed in Regina and have come together to sling some bomb beats. 7pm / No cover OPEN MIC NIGHT / King’s Head Tavern — Come out, play some tunes, sing some songs, and show Regina what you got. 8pm / No cover CRAIG MORITZ / The Pump Roadhouse — A talented country musician from Alberta.

9pm / Cover TBD J.J. VOSS / Whiskey Saloon — Outlaw country music from Queen City. 8pm / $5 DJ LONGHORN / Whiskey Saloon — Come check out one of Regina’s most interactive DJs. 8pm / Cover TBD

MAYDAY 2013 / The Exchange — Featuring Dayglo Abortions, Bogue Brigade, and more. 7pm / $20 (at X-Ray Records and Vintage Vinyl) DJ PAT & DJ KIM / Habano’s Martini & Cocktail Club — Local DJs spin top 40 hits every Friday night. 9pm / $5 cover BIG CHILL FRIDAYS / Lancaster Taphouse — Come out and get your weekend started with DJ Fatbot. 10pm / Cover TBD BC READ BIG BAND W/ REGINA RIOT HORNS / McNally’s Tavern — Rock, roots and blues. 10pm / $5 CRAIG MORITZ / The Pump Roadhouse — A talented country musician from Alberta.

9pm / Cover TBD NIGHTRAIN / Rocks Bar + Grill / Guns ‘n Roses tributes done right! 8pm / $10 J.J. VOSS / Whiskey Saloon — Outlaw country music from Queen City. 8pm / $10 DJ LONGHORN / Whiskey Saloon — Come check out one of Regina’s most interactive DJs as he drops some of the best country beats around. 8pm / Cover TBD

SATURDAY 4

ANDERSON BURKO / Artesian on 13th — A folk/roots duo that totally rocks. 8pm / $20 THE OCCUPATIONAL SIDE EFFECTS / Artful Dodger — Catchy rock n’ roll. 8pm / Cover TBD RSO MASTERWORKS: JOURNEY IN TIME / Conexus Arts Centre — Mahler’s First Symphony. 8pm / $33-63 (tickets.reginasymphony.com) DJ JUAN LOPEZ / Envy Nightclub — This DJ loves requests, nothing is off limits.

10pm / $5 THE SPOILS, THE MACEVOYS, ROBOT HIVE, THE OIL FITTERS / The Exchange — A night full of rock, from post hardcore to tech.

7pm / $10 THE PROJECT / Lancaster Taphouse — A night of sweet tunes. 9pm / No cover EXIT ELEVEN / McNally’s Tavern — Classic rock covers. 10pm / $5 CRAIG MORITZ / The Pump Roadhouse — A talented country musician from Alberta.

9pm / Cover TBD JAM SESSIONS / Smokin’ Okies BBQ — Promoting blues and country blues, come in and play or listen and be entertained. 2pm / No cover J.J. VOSS / Whiskey Saloon — Outlaw country music from Queen City. 8pm / $10

GET LISTED Have a live show you'd like to promote? Let us know!

FRIDAY 3

DJ JUAN LOPEZ / Envy Nightclub — This DJ loves requests. 10pm / $5

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SATURDAY, APRIL 20 @

THE OWL

The Owl, for JUNOfest 3737 Wascana Parkway (306) 586 8811 MUSIC VIBE / Popular, techno

and DJs SPONSORED DRINKS / JUNOfest was

sponsored by Great West beer DRINK OF CHOICE / Vodka and Guinness TOP EATS / Student beef dip

CHECK OUT OUR FACEBOOK PAGE! These photos will be uploaded to Facebook on Friday, May 3. facebook.com/verbregina

Photography by Bebzphoto

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THIS AIN’T NO TRANSFORMERS

PHOTO: COURTESY OF PARAMOUNT PICTURES

Uber-action director Michael Bay tries his hand at something different and succeeds with Pain & Gain BY ADAM HAWBOLDT

W

hat’s your favourite Michael Bay movie?

Seriously. Even if you loathe the guy and think he’s responsible for everything wrong and rotten in Hollywood these days, there must be one of his movies that you like — at least a little.

Is it The Rock? Bad Boys? Transformers? Pearl Harbour? Whatever it is, it’s not as good as Pain & Gain, Bay’s new low-budget (well, low-budget for Bay —$25 million) caper movie.

Based on a series of articles that ran in the Miami New Times in the late ‘90s, Pain & Gain is the stranger-than-fiction story of three dimwitted bodybuilders from Florida who stop pumping iron long enough to hatch a birdbrained plot that involves kidnapping, torture and extortion.

The ringleader of the group is this guy named Daniel Lugo (Mark Wahlberg), a muscle-bound, fasttalking gym manager who wants to live the American Dream. He wants to be rich. He wants to be famous. He wants power.

Problem is, Daniel doesn’t really want to work for it. So he comes up with a scheme to kidnap a wealthy client of his (the terrific Tony Shalhoub) and convince him by hook or bycrook (by that, I totally mean torture) to give him everything he has.

To do this he enlists the help of fellow dumbbells Adrian (Anthony Mackie), who isn’t exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer, and Paul (Dwayne Johnson) an ex-con with a

newfound love of God and a serious coke addiction.

As you’d expect, their plan has a few holes in it and things go wildly awry. Hilarity ensues.

Well, maybe not “hilarity,” but Pain & Gain is a pretty damn funny movie.

Surprising, right? I mean, the words Michael Bay and funny aren’t what you’d call synonymous. But the overblown nature of the characters, the inclusion of funny folk Ken Jeong, Rob Corddry and Rebel Wilson in the film,

PAIN & GAIN Michael Bay STARRING Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson + Anthony Mackie DIRECTED BY

130 MINUTES | 14A

viewpoint and voice-over narration, the movie has a cool, kinetic energy that sucks you in. Then there’s the moment when the movie is reaching its apex of absurdity and the words “This is still a true story” flash on the screen.

[Pain & Gain has] suspense, comedy, and decently realized characters.

ADAM HAWBOLDT

and the circular bickering between Daniel, Adrian and Paul all add up to a movie that’ll make you laugh.

At least until the final act, when Michael Bay suddenly realizes, “Oh crap, this is a real story about violent dudes who torture people,” and decides to take the movie to darker, more serious areas.

Right. And remember when I said this is Michael Bay’s best movie? Well, I meant it. Sure, there are explosions and T&A (wouldn’t be a Bay film without those), but there is also suspense, comedy, and decently realized characters.

There’s also a modicum of hipness to Pain & Gain. With its ever-shifting

Yet for all this you have to remember one thing: no matter how much this movie has going for it, it’s still unmistakably a Michael Bay film.

And that leaves you to wonder what a more subtle, nuanced director would’ve/could’ve done with this story. A whole lot, I bet.

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@AdamHawboldt ahawboldt@verbnews.com

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CANARY IN THE COAL MINE?

New documentary Chasing Ice tackles the topic of climate change BY ADAM HAWBOLDT

A

re you an eco-skeptic?

A climate change denier?

Do you agree with the pundits on, say, Fox News when it comes to the climate? Did Rush Limbaugh’s claim that climate change was based on fake and flawed “garbage science” ring true to you?

If so, that’s cool. We’re all entitled to our own opinions.

But before you draw that final line in the wet concrete and unequivocally proclaim that climate change is phooey, bunk, or mere poppycock, do yourself a favour and watch the new documentary Chasing Ice. Why? Well, because it’s easy to discount things you read about climate change being real. After all, they’re only words and numbers, right? And it’s easy to brush off all the rhetoric you hear about the subject as noise, or biased, lefty opinions.

But what if you actually saw the climate change with your very own eyes? Would that change anything?

Directed by Jeff Orlowski, Chasing Ice is based on one simple premise: seeing is believing.

The documentary stars James Balog, an acclaimed photographer

PHOTO: COURTESY OF JAMES BALOG / SUMARINE DELUXE

land, Iceland and Alaska. Their goal: to capture a three-year record of changes in glacial formations.

It was by no means an easy venture. The team had to climb over seemingly bottomless abysses and scale down ice walls on the verge

In the end, the footage Balog’s team captured was beautiful, extraordinary and terrifying.

ADAM HAWBOLDT

and former climate change skeptic on a mission to find “tangible, visual evidence of the immediacy of climate change.”

How did he do that?

Well, Balog and his team placed 25 time-lapse cameras in Green-

of collapsing to get their cameras in the proper places. And even when the time-lapse cameras were set up, everything wasn’t hunky dory.

They were battered by animals, pummeled by high winds, and damaged by the extreme cold.

CHASING ICE Jeff Orlowski STARRING James Balog DIRECTED BY

76 MINUTES | PG

But all the danger, hardships and setbacks were worth it. In the end, the footage Balog’s team captured was beautiful, extraordinary and terrifying.

Beautiful, because the landscape is stark, stunning and quite rare. Very few people have ever been where these cameras were placed. It’s almost like watching a movie set on an alien ice planet or something. And as for extraordinary, well, there’s nothing ordinary about an enormous block of ice cracking off from a glacier so violently and suddenly that Balog had to quickly pivot the camera just to film the ice before it retreated completely.

And that brings us to terrifying.

Oh man, where to start? How about with an ice shelf the size of Lower Manhattan collapsing into the ocean? Stop and think about that for a moment, think about what a constant melting of glaciers will mean for water levels — for the millions of people who live in low-lying coastal areas. Yikes!

Maybe Balog is right. Maybe glaciers are indeed “the canary in the global coal mine,” and humans (what with our fossil fuel burning and all) are responsible for climate change. Or maybe we’re not. Or maybe Rush Limbaugh and his “garbage science” have a point.

I don’t know for sure. All I know is that if you check your political leanings at the door, Chasing Ice will blow your hair back.

It may even change the way you look at things.

Chasing Ice will be opening at the Regina Public Library on May 2.

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@AdamHawboldt ahawboldt@verbnews.com

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18 APR 26 – MAY 2 ENTERTAINMENT

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CROSSWORD CANADIAN CRISS-CROSS 25. Blissfully peaceful and happy 27. Disgrace 30. Slacken gradually 34. Toothpaste container 35. Summit 36. Adversary 37. Be inaccurate 38. Make a reference to 39. Very much 40. Showy feathers 42. Nullify 44. Say the letters of a word in order 45. Runs, but not fast 46. Narrative 47. Wise man

DOWN 1. It’s used on circuit boards 2. Signs a contract 3. Lawyer’s charge 4. Cruel use of power 5. Deliver a punch 6. Water falling from clouds 7. Assistance 8. Having existed from the beginning 9. Obsession 11. Tangle 12. Fuse metal together 14. Heavily overcast 17. Not care for properly 20. ___-de-camp 21. Contest between rivals 23. Calcium oxide

24. Get out of bed SUDOKU ANSWER KEY 26. Grieves over A 27. Unit of movement in dancing 28. Pitches a baseball 29. Sudden and unexpected 31. Recently 32. ___ the bill (pays) 33. Elaborate outdoor party 35. Passage between B rows of shelves in a supermarket 38. Honeycomb compartment 39. In excited eagerness 41. ___ culpa 43. Baseball abbreviation

5 9 6 2 3 1 7 8 4 1 3 8 7 4 5 6 2 9 4 7 2 8 6 9 5 1 3 7 8 1 6 9 4 2 3 5 3 6 4 5 2 8 1 9 7 9 2 5 3 1 7 8 4 6 6 4 7 1 8 3 9 5 2 8 5 3 9 7 2 4 6 1 2 1 9 4 5 6 3 7 8

ACROSS 1. Put through a sieve 5. Prevent from getting away 9. Medium of exchange 10. Split ___ (worry about minutiae) 12. Former right fielder for the Expos 13. Canadian constituency 15. A rope has two 16. In a short time 18. Impair the perfection of 19. Make up a story 20. Once again 21. Few and far between 22. Lovable person 24. Assemble in a mass meeting

8 9 2 5 6 1 3 4 7 5 4 7 9 8 3 1 2 6 6 3 1 7 4 2 5 8 9 7 2 4 8 1 9 6 5 3 3 1 5 6 2 7 8 9 4 9 8 6 4 3 5 2 7 1 1 6 8 2 9 4 7 3 5 2 5 9 3 7 6 4 1 8 4 7 3 1 5 8 9 6 2

TIMEOUT

© WALTER D. FEENER 2013

HOROSCOPES APRIL 26 – MAY 2 ARIES March 21–April 19

LEO July 23–August 22

SAGITTARIUS November 23–December 21

If you find yourself getting frustrated this week, Aries, don’t get bent out of shape. Don’t freak out. Just take a step back and chill the hell out.

Feeling creative lately, Leo? If so, focus all that energy on one project this week. The end result be better than you expect.

Have you been striving toward a goal, Sagittarius? If so, keep striving. Good things are just around the corner. If not, get your act together.

TAURUS April 20–May 20

VIRGO August 23–September 22

CAPRICORN December 22–January 19

Your energy is going to be low the next little while, Taurus. Try not to overexert yourself early in the week.

You’ll regret it later.

Has your perfectionism been getting the best of you, Virgo? Don’t let it. Remember: no one has all the answers.

Sometimes you are passive and let people walk over you, Capricorn.

Not anymore — something may be asked of you this week. Make your thoughts known.

GEMINI May 21–June 20

LIBRA September 23–October 23

AQUARIUS January 20–February 19

Don’t be afraid to challenge yourself. Push your boundaries this week, Gemini. You’ll be surprised what will come of it.

Whoa buddy! If you don’t watch what you say or do, this week is going to be full of conflict, Libra.

Tread carefully.

Your ethics and values will be put to the test this week, Aquarius.

Stand strong. Don’t change your beliefs in the face of adversity.

CANCER June 21–July 22

SCORPIO October 24–November 22

PISCES February 20–March 20

Romance is in the air this week, Cancer. Unfortunately, not for you.

Don’t worry, though. Your time will come soon enough.

Sometimes our self-confidence ebbs and wanes, Scorpio. It happens to the best of us. Be prepared for some fluctuation this week.

Try not to care if people judge you this week, Pisces. Sometimes a person just needs to be alone with their inner crawlspace.

SUDOKU 9 7 5 4 7 9 3 6 4 2 8 9 7 4 8 1 6 5 3 5 2 9 3 1 1 6 8 2 4 7 1 8 3 5 6 2

CROSSWORD ANSWER KEY

A

9 3 4 8 5 6 2 9 7 2 6 9 7 1 4 3 5 6 2 8 1 5 7 8 6 7 1 8 5 3 9 4 1 2 4 3

B

19 APR 26 – MAY 2 /VERBREGINA

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