Verb Issue S228 (Feb. 22-28, 2013)

Issue #228 – February 22 to February 28

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idle no more Catching up with the movement’s founders The soul singer Q+A with Shakura S’Aida snitch + Hyde park on hudson Films reviewed­

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Q + A with Shakura S’aida

listings Local music listings for February 22 through March 2. 18 / listings

The soul singer tells all. 12 / Q + A

Don’t let me be misunderstood

Artists by artists Zachari Logan + Humboldt Magnussen examine outsiders. 13 / Arts

Idle No More’s (grass) roots. 4 / Local

Snitch + Hyde Park on Hudson The latest movie reviews. 20 / Film

Nightlife Photos

Zachary lucky’s saskatchewan

We visit 6Twelve Lounge and Crown + Rok. 22-25 / Nightlife

Some things never change. 13 / Arts

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Editorial Publisher / Parity Publishing Editor in Chief / Ryan Allan Managing Editor / Jessica Patrucco staff Writers / Adam Hawboldt + Alex J MacPherson

ART & Production

Fast and Flirty

Design Lead / Roberta Barrington Design & Production / Brittney Graham Contributing Photographers / Patrick Carley, Adam Hawboldt + Ishtiaq Opal

Speed dating, and a Valentine’s Day to remember. 6 / Local

Business & Operations

On the cover:

Martha Wainright

On closing one door and opening another. 14 / cover

All Hail…

soccer and snacks

on the bus

Our thoughts on deregulating taxi industry. 8 / Editorial

This week we visit the Pleasure Way Pub. 16 / Food + Drink

Weekly original comic illustrations

by Elaine M. Will. 26 / comics

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Here’s what you had to say about changing the STC. 10 / comments

The Karpinka Brothers, Gunner and Smith, + Flying Fox and the Hunter Gatherers. 17 / music

Canadian criss-cross puzzle, horoscopes, and Sudoku. 27 / timeout

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Don’t let me be misunderstood

Idle No More founder sets the record straight by adam hawboldt

N

ame: Arctic Ocean.

Approximate location: 80(d)00’00” N, 140(d)00’00” W. Description: All waters from the outer limit of the territorial sea up to the higher water mean tide water level and includes all connecting waters up to an elevation intersecting with that level.

Did all of that make sense to you?

If not, don’t worry. You’re not alone.

The above is a section of the Navigable Waters Protection Act in Bill C-45, and unless you’re well versed in jargon (and possibly geography), chances are it may confuse you a tad.

That confusion is one of the main reasons the Idle No More movement began. “When we first started talking about the bill, one of the things that concerned us — and should concern all Canadians —was that the whole thing is written in legalese,” says Sheelah McLean, one of the movement’s founders. “It’s hard for, say, the average Canadian to read and understand. And a lot of our members of parliament don’t have a background in law. So one of the things we wanted to point out at our first teach-in was that a lot of these MPs are probably passing these giant bills without really understanding what’s going on in them.”

And that’s not the only thing the founders of Idle No More wanted to point out during their first rally.

See, along with being written in jargon, The Navigable Waters part of Bill C-45 essentially scrapped the old Navigable Waters Protection Act and loosened environmental protection to the point that only three oceans, 97 lakes and 62 rivers are protected in our coun-

From the get-go, the Idle No More movement was a grassroots campaign aimed at all Canadians. A campaign aimed to protect the environment, educate the vox populi, prevent Canada from becoming a corporate state, and to fight what was deemed to be the illegal privatization of aboriginal lands.

That was the original message, the initial ethos of the movement.

The heart of this movement is grassroots people working day and night, organizing and sharing information…

Sheelah McLean

try. In case you’re wondering, that’s less than one percent of Canada’s waterways protected under environmental law.

“Bill C-45 is supposed to be a budget bill,” says McLean, “but early on we noticed that water protection and the privatization of indigenous lands were hidden and embedded in the 400-page bill.

We felt that was on purpose, so we wanted to raise the consciousness of Canadians about these issues.”

But there’s many a slip betwixt the cup and the lip, and somewhere along the way the message got yanked up one side of spin alley and down the other — much to the chagrin of its founders.

The very first Idle No More rally took place on a cold and snowy day in November.

More than 150 people braved the elements and packed into Station Continued on next page »

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Photo: Courtesy of Sheelah Mclean

20 West in Saskatoon to hear what the movement’s founders — Jessica Gordon, Nina Wilson, Sylvia McAdam and Sheelah McLean — had to say.

“We had about 400 people on our Facebook page at the time,” says McLean, “but the snowstorm that day was terrible, so not everyone could attend. It was freezing and dumping snow. The driving was so dangerous I wasn’t sure I was going to make it. So we were certainly surprised that so many people showed up.”

The following week they held a teach-in in Regina, followed quickly by similar events in North Battleford, Prince Albert, Winnipeg and Edmonton. Pretty soon the movement built up steam at the grassroots level all across the nation.

That’s when the serious spin started. Instead of being portrayed as the pro-democracy, pro-environment, prohuman rights movement it was meant to be, media outlets began spinning the story towards indigenous issues.

Towards diamond mine blockades and Theresa Spence’s hunger strike.

“Yes, [the movement] is focused on indigenous rights and led by indigenous peoples. However, everyone should be concerned with this, as our nation to nation relationship is the foundation of this country,” explains

McLean. “We have also focused on environmental issues and the attacks on democracy by this conservative government — why isn’t that story being told in mainstream media? Harper clearly has a hidden agenda and it is to turn Canada into an extraction state for corporate profit. This is dangerous for all of us. Indigenous peoples’ inherent rights to the land are the last line of protection for all of us.”

Not only do the founders of Idle No More feel that many of the movement’s goals have been ignored by the media, but that the heart of the movement has been overlooked as well.

“There’s a spirit to this movement that a lot of people have missed,” explains McLean. “We’re witnessing democracy in action. The heart of this movement is grassroots people working day and night, organizing and sharing information to prevent the government from running roughshod over democracy and collective rights. You never really see any stories about that.”

Same goes for the fact that the Idle No More movement is a predominantly women-led movement, with men playing supporting roles.

“That’s something new, something you don’t see every day,” says McLean. “And that’s something

people should be excited about. But it’s not being captured or really mentioned by the media, either.”

And the spin and misconception of the movement don’t stop there.

In recent weeks, reports of Idle No More fading from importance and losing steam have cropped up, with some claiming that the movement’s online presence has dwindled, that it’s being run poorly and that it’s losing momentum.

But according to McLean, the reports of the movement’s demise have been greatly exaggerated.

“I read somewhere that Idle No More was fizzling,” she says, “But just because we’re not on CTV every day doesn’t mean we’re fizzling. If anything, we’re getting stronger. There’s so much invisible activity going on, so many people taking leadership, doing teach-ins, starting petitions, helping us promote this cause. Lawyers are working behind the scenes on bringing Bill C-45 to court, activist groups and unions are contacting us, wanting to work together.”

And all this behind-the-scenes activity is what has helped Idle No More expand from a few teach-ins in Saskatchewan to a movement

of global recognition, with rallies sprouting up everywhere from Texas to Norway, Palestine to South Africa.

“There’s a growing global support,” says McLean, “And we’ll continue to work very hard to get more support. We’ll also be very patient as we continue to grow and as communities continue to take leadership on these issues. Eventually, the government will see they have no other choice but to listen.”

So what makes McLean so certain democracy will win the day?

“We have bold-face truth and right on our side,” she explains. “Also, a lot of people don’t understand how strong a social movement like this

is. Just last year a social movement brought down the Egyptian government. In Bolivia, a social movement kicked out a giant multi-national corporation that was trying to privatize their water. Look back to the Vietnam War, we all know how a social movement put an end to that.”

And if Idle No More has its way, soon it will join the ranks of these social movements that affected change — for the better.

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Fast And flirty

Speed dating and a Valentine’s Day to remember by adam hawboldt

I

magine a pathetic, 30-something man whose most intimate conversations take place at work, over cash registers, via text messages, or on Internet dating sites.

Imagine him sitting at a bar.

Alone. Three shots of whiskey and a vodka soda lined up in front of him.

Maybe this will help: this guy, he has messy brown hair. He’s wearing a grey cardigan sweater over a brown v-neck T-shirt. And he’s nervous as hell, because in 15 minutes he has to do something he’s never done before.

He has to go speed dating.

Can you picture him yet? Hopefully so. Because that guy was me last week on Valentine’s Day. Yes, you read that right. I went speed dating on Valentine’s Day. Why, you may ask, in the name of all things sacred, would someone do something like that?

Well, as much as I’d like to gain your pity by admitting it was an overwhelming sense of loneliness that drove me to speed dating on the most romantic day of the year, I can’t.

Truth of the matter is, I went speed dating for the same reason most people go speed dating — because it’s quick and efficient.

See, we here in the Western world like things fast. Fast food, speedy service, quick stops, rapid transit. So why shouldn’t dating be the same?

(or drink too much) and you might miss a lot.

Whether you want to admit it to yourself or not, dating is all about making snap judgements.

The first time you meet someone, chances are within a few

Whether you want to admit it…or not, dating is all about making snap judgements.

Adam hawboldt

Mind you, that wasn’t Rabbi Yaacov Deyo’s sole intention when he set up the first event in California, back in the late 1990s.

No, he was also trying to figure out a fun way for singles in his congregation to meet. Still, at the heart of it all, since the very beginning, was the concept of speed.

And if you’ve never been to a speed dating event, trust me, it all happens really fast. Blink

seconds you’ll know whether you would go out on a date with that person or not.

Don’t believe me?

Recent research out of Trinity College suggest the instant you meet someone there’s activity in your brain — in two sections of your prefrontal cortex, to be precise. In your paracingulate cortex, you instantaneously calculate a person’s attractiveness while your rostromedial prefrontal cortex is Continued on next page »

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busy calculating whether this person is right for you.

And just because the paracingulate cortex tells you someone’s hot, that doesn’t mean the rostromedial part of the cortex will tell you to pursue that person.

Case in point: on Valentine’s Day, the moment I sat down to chat with one particular speed dater, my thought process went something like this: “Okay, this girl is kind of cute. Very pretty eyes …

Wait a second, why is she responding to me only with monosyllabic answers? … Why is she staring at me like that? … Did she just touch my knee? … This is getting kind of creepy … I bet she lives with a lot of cats … Is it copacetic to ask her something like that?”

Before I get the chance, though, the whistle blows and it’s off to the next person.

And therein lies one of the biggest advantages of speed dating: if your “date” isn’t going well, don’t worry. It won’t last long.

Unlike traditional dates, where you can get stuck for hours with someone who is obnoxious or freaks you the hell out, in speed dating

you’re only interacting with that person for five minutes.

But that’s just one advantage.

Another thing speed dating has going for it is variety. Yes, going out to bars in search of love offers variety, but it also offers hangovers and mornings filled with self-loathing and regret. And yes, online dating sites attract hundreds of singles looking for Mr./Ms. Right.

But anyone who has ever done the online dating thing knows you should trust the pictures people post about as much as — well, just don’t trust them.

But in speed dating, you don’t have to worry about any of that.

No hangovers (unless you’re like me), no fake photos. Just a bunch of real, sober(ish) people looking for a connection.

Oh, and another virtue of an event like this: you can ask direct, to-the-point questions that we sometimes tip toe around while on more traditional first dates.

For instance, when I sat down to chat with another lady on Valentine’s Day, she treated the whole thing like an interview for a midlevel management position.

“What do you do for a living?” she asked. That was her first question. And after that one, the rest of them came hard and fast.

“What are your career goals? …

Do you have kids? Want kids? …

Have you ever been incarcerated? …

What are your three best and worst qualities? … On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate yourself as a lover?”

And while this bombardment caught me off guard, I bet that woman got enough answers to know she wouldn’t/shouldn’t touch me with a 10-foot pole. Which is a good thing (I think).

But that’s not to say speed dating is all good. It can also be intimidating and loud and nerve-wracking.

You jump from one conversation to the next, always sitting in the hot seat, trying to think of things to say and how to say them.

Then there’s the outside chance you meet someone and you don’t want your “date” to end in five minutes. It happened to me. I was paired up with this cool girl, chatting breezily about travel and life.

Things were going well, then the damn whistle blew and I had to switch seats.

Now, I’m not saying she’s my soul mate or anything. It was just the first time that night I didn’t feel frazzled or pressured or longed for another stiff shot of whiskey.

That’s a good thing, right?

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All Hail…

… a new taxi system

I

t’s Saturday night and you’re getting ready to meet your friends at a bar downtown. You call a taxi company to arrange a ride, get put on hold and you wait.

You wait and wait and you wait some more. Finally you get a dispatcher and by the time the cab arrives you’re already an hour late for your rendezvous downtown.

Sound like a familiar situation?

Of course it does. That’s because there is a gross shortage of taxis in Saskatoon. We believe it’s high time something was done about this. And it’s not simply because we have problems getting to and from bars. No, everything from getting downtown at lunch hour to trying to get to the airport before your plane leaves without calling well ahead of time is inconvenient, and, to be frank, rather expensive.

So maybe it’s time we do the sensible thing and deregulate the taxi industry. Why? Well, in case

you haven’t noticed Saskatchewan is kind of booming as of late and Saskatoon has the highest growth rate in the country. Yet for all this growth, the taxi industry, which is currently regulated by

katoon city council hired outside consultants to see if deregulation of the industry would be a good idea. And yes, we know the final report said that deregulation of the taxi industry would lead to worse

Better still, those of us trying to get around Saskatoon would have more taxis and better fares at our disposal… verb magazine

the municipal government, hasn’t been growing in lockstep. In fact, the number of taxis allowed to operate in this city remains fixed.

This, simply, has got to change.

It’s time to deregulate the industry and get rid of the limit on how many cabs can be on the road.

Yes, we know that in 2009 Sas-

service, higher fares and an exit of veteran drivers form the industry.

But here’s the thing, the final report wasn’t entirely consistent in its findings. Despite their doom-and-gloom predictions, the consultants also forecast that under a deregulated approach “taxi availability is improved for evening bar Continued on next page »

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services, hotel or airport stands”, which sounds like the definition of better service to us. And they mention that drivers would need to “work much longer hours to make a living,” but doesn’t that imply rates would go down, not up?

And then there’s the matter of how they arrived at their pessimistic outlook in the first place. If they had examined, say, Ireland or New Zealand, they may have ended up with a more optimistic perspective.

Back in 2000, the year Ireland deregulated its taxi industry, the Emerald Isle was very much like Saskatchewan — it boasted a booming economy and had tremendous population growth in its major centres. And contrary to what the consultant for our city council concluded, when Ireland opened its industry, allowing any number of cabs to provide service to citizens, good things began to happen. Waiting times decreased from 11.5 minutes in 1997 to 6.2 minutes in 2008 (an estimated

value of times savings of more than $400 million annually for customers). Not only that, but in a study conducted after deregulation a majority of respondents said the service improved.

Oh, and the price also went down.

A similar tale of success unfolded in New Zealand, more specifically Wellington, where the number of taxis more than doubled after deregulation and prices decreased as well.

So why not take a page from their book? Stop limiting the number of taxis allowed to operate in Saskatoon. Perhaps it’s true that throwing the doors open all at once might be too much change too quickly, so why don’t we phase it in gradually? Say a 20% increase in the number of cabs every year for five years, and then open it up entirely.

But in the end, deregulation is the answer. After all, local government doesn’t limit the number of

restaurants or grocery stores a city can have, so why should they put artificial limits on how many taxis we can have? Think about it: in a free market, the number of taxis would grow to meet the demand, competition would breed better service (since any companies providing poor service would quickly go out of business, just as in any other industry) and eventually, if New Zealand and

Ireland are any indication, prices would adjust to the market. Oh, and individual taxi drivers would eventually find their niche, whether it be airport transport, high-end taxis or economy cabs.

Better still, those of us trying to get around Saskatoon would have more taxis and better fares at our disposal, and we wouldn’t have to wait around twiddling our thumbs and cursing the current system.

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

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On Topic: Last week we asked what you thought about changing bus service in Saskatchewan. Here's what you had to say: – You mention the problem of non-profitable rural routes. If the bus system was privatized and deregulated, those routes would likely disappear. Therefore, yes to privatization, no to deregulation - force the companies to offer service on some non-profitable routes as long as they make a net profit with the other routes.

– I read the paper, and I understand how the bus fairs are going up. But if we didn’t have the bus system in Saskatchewan we would still be screwed. For every pro there is a com and we have to worry about the people who don’t have the money to take anything but the bus services.

– Take a look at what other provinces are doing with bus service and find out what works for them and try to improve our service here.

– Issue #227 when you comment on STC did you take a look at the top management position that could be cut so save !! Crown corp top heavy !

– Scrapping bus system is well and good if you live in a city and/or have a way of getting from place to place (like a car). But many people don’t have that. Many people rely on the STC to move around the province. Many people DO live in rural communities, not in the big cities. So go ahead and claim that getting rid of the STC is good because it costs money but you condemn all those people who rely on it, who have no other way to get around, to be imprisoned in their homes.

Text yo thoughtsur to 881 vE R b 8372

– Can’t believe the provincial government has dropped so much freaking $$ into a losing enterprise. All those funds could have gone towards restructuring a viable and sustainable option.

– If even the minister for the STC is saying this isn’t sustainable we need to cut ties ASAP and fix this. It’s embarassing it’s gone on this long.

– If Saskatchewan is supposedly a have province, why do we persist in this things that show our havenot past. We have money rolling in, we need to take care of the people here with projects like good inter-provincial transportation, more environmental initiatives, etc. NOT a stupid new stadium or enormous money-grabbing initiatives that hurt those who live and work here.

OFF TOPIC – Good article about Stobbe in jail. I think the book will bring to light more of the problems with the justice system. Its not working! Jail is overused on abos, has little meaning anymore. Criminals aren’t rehabilitated. The whole crime and punishment paradigm needs to be examined rethought and changed.

In response to “Lessons from remand,” Local page, #227 (February 15, 2013)

sound off Spin defense. Very good for women smaller people. If someone is choking you raise both arms straight above your head. Spin whole body hard fast. Same for

stabbing with instrument or pummelling with fists. Cover face with hands ribs with arms. Works well with heavy clothes. Spin and move away at same time.

– Massive U.S. corn subsidies distort the whole food economy.

Corn feeds the pigs and chickens.

Corn starch and oil in the french fries. Corn syrup in the pop bread and cheese. A myriad of other corn derivatives in the food.

Now with corn ethanol blended gasoline the food industry has been chained to the oil industry.

We pay high prices for our food while local producers go broke.

Its not sustainable!

– Something to think about: our diminishing water supplies. It’s important not to blissfully blast through this resource and think that it won’t ever affect us.

– ENJOY YOUR ANNIVSARY AT BURGER KING JC95

– Abolish the Senate!!! Talk About Political Servitude Hands in the tax payers Pockets Harperism!

– Harper has become such an embarassment internationally. Our country, which was once seen as progressive, is being lambasted in the international media for continuing to try to get this Keystone XL pipeline to go through Sure it’d be good money but it’s so wildly irresponsible environmentally. People will look back on us as the generation that irrevocably did the earth in.

And you may deny that the enviornment is worse off now than ever before, but the great thing about science is that even if you don’t believe in something it’s still true. We NEED to change things NOW!!!

– Steven Harper Is giving the Golden Handshake Problem is People I’ts Your Gold TAX’s

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– Suspended From Harpers Senate It means they get paid for not showing up. S0! N0 change at all !!

– I have a message for police and social workers. Of course you can’t tell good from bad, who’s a cheat and who isn’t, who’s a threat and who isn’t when you paint everybody with the same brush. That’s a perceptual trap of prejudice and bigotry. You start by seeing everyone as your equal treating them as equal. Then it becomes obvious who’s stand up and who isn’t.

– Canada has a new Office of Religious Freedom. Run by a Christian.

And religious freedom includes freedom from religion (atheists, agnostics, etc) yet none of those groups were consulted in this.

Riiiiight. Good one, Harper!

– Sometimes I get so furious about things in the middle of the night and I can’t sleep, and I need to vent somewhere so I text the Verb lol.

It’s funny reading back my sleepinduced rage texts every week :D

– Best movie of all time is Sleepless in Seattle. LOVE ITTTTT lol

– Love that all our taxes are going to skyrocket to pay for yet another bum bridge in this city, yet Atch neglected to mention this pre election why aren’t more people angry about this

– Drug experimentation was an enormous part of the 60s and 70s, and also fuelled some of the most creative outbursts ever. Drugs today = cell phones, internet, individual minded people who don’t consider the greater collective.

We are not getting smarter thats for sure

– I think about 60 and 70s and how free people seemed back then and how trapped we all appear now.

How to change this? Even general acts of political difference (occupy/idle No More) are treated as jokes by the media. We should be celebrating the fact we live somewhere where different opinions can exist, and are not crushed.

– The farmers around here don’t really grow our food. The food’s been globalized. We pay the global price not local for global food not local.

– I think it’s great that people really advocate for local and organic food, but you know what: that costs money I don’t have to spare.

So Im going to eat my tomatoes from who the hell knows where and whatever chicken sobeys has on sale and say f*** it. Cuz really.

– Jail is not a deterent when all of your group is getting jail time. Its just an inevitable part of life. Your culture adapts to accomodate this.

– Finally that pope resigned! The Catholic church is particularly horrible, but he was a special kind of ultra conservative Catholic

– Even though you’re a million miles away when you see the Canucks play do you relive those glory days from so long ago???

– V0TE FIRST NATIONS PARTY

– Fires at Federated Co-op Oil Refinery all the time. 40 years of hiring just smart enough comes home as the place grows. Big bad fire only a matter of time!

Next week: What do you think about changing taxi service in Saskatchewan? Pick up a copy of Verb to get in on the conversation:

– I wish religion wouldn’t taint so many things. I think being a believer is wonderful, but don’t bring it into the public sphere. It’s a personal and private relationship with God that matters.

We print your texts verbatim each week. Text in your thoughts and reactions to our stories and content, or anything else on your mind.

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The Soul Singer

Photos: courtesy of the artist

Shakura S’Aida on her new record and expectations by Alex J MacPherson

L

ast year, Shakura S’Aida released Time, the biggest and most ambitious project she had ever undertaken. Conceived as a pair of records packaged together, one channeling her love of rock and soul, the other her penchant for the blues, Time emerged as a showcase for S’Aida’s towering voice, still strong after more than two decades on the road. Born in Brooklyn and a longtime Toronto resident, S’Aida had cultivated a reputation for writing and releasing songs that transport listeners back to the beginning of R&B, rock, and soul. Split down the middle, Time captures not only her expansive musical vision, but also the paradox facing every human being who makes music. I caught up with S’Aida to talk about double records, split personalities, and the pressure of expectation.

Alex J MacPherson: Why make a double album this time around?

SS: I don’t make the distinction when I’m writing it. When I’m writing it, I just try to write, and I think that’s what [guitarist] Donna [Grantis] and I were really conscious of. It was just writing, just what it is. Where it came down to it, I was very clear on who I wanted to use, musically.

Shakura S’Aida: I started thinking about doing a double record about a year beforehand. I knew I had this sort of rocky soul side to me, and I knew I had a blues side. I think one of the biggest struggles we sometimes face as an artist lately is

professionally and personally, have brought me to this point. I would not have had the courage to split up these songs. I didn’t get that people really do not have the ability to separate it in their minds.

They end up getting confused.

Being clichéd, this album is timely.

That what it’s about.

AJM: Do you continue that split through your live performances, maybe by playing a rock set and a blues set?

I knew I had this sort of rocky soul side to me, and I knew I had a blues side.

that we don’t know how to mix the two together, because in order to make it sound cohesive we end up compromising one type of music or the other.

AJM: Time is two distinct records, but both of them feel like the culmination of your experiences. Could you have made something so expansive ten or fifteen years ago?

SS: No, I don’t. I mix them up. We’ve got certain sets that we’ve worked out that work for us as a band. Most of the time I start with “Queen of Rock ’n Soul” or I’ll go to one of my older songs. But there are some gigs where I play more rock than I do blues, and some gigs where I play more blues than I do rock.

AJM: Is it difficult for you to make that clear distinction? Our personalities aren’t neatly split in two.

SS: Absolutely not. I wasn’t who I am now fifteen, twenty years ago.

The experiences that I’ve had, both

AJM: You have spoken about disliking expectations. Isn’t that something all artists must reconcile,

Shakura S’Aida

particularly as their careers grow and expand?

SS: I’ve accepted that that’s the way it is. I’ve accepted the pressure that comes with that. What I need to reconcile for myself is to not put that on me, and to remember to be in the moment that’s there, as opposed to the moment that came before. Not to rest on my accolades.

Not to rest on anyone’s expectations but my own, and to actually try not to have any expectations.

Just to go out there and do the best that I can do in that moment. Give everyone the best that I can.

Shakura S’Aida March 1 @ The Odeon $30 @ Odeon Box Office

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Artists by Artists

Zachari Logan and Humboldt Magnussen

I

t made sense for Zachari Logan and Humboldt Magnussen to work together. The latest installment of the Mendel Art Gallery’s Artists by Artists series, which pairs an emerging artist with an established mentor, delves into the difficult relationship between the stranger and the crowd. Outsiders includes drawings, sculptures, and a stunning stop-motion animation — “variations on drawing,” Magnussen says — all of which put the outsider on the inside.

Both men have explored similar themes in their own practices.

Logan’s drawings mine identity and queer culture; his works question the social mores many people take for granted. Magnussen makes elaborate and nuanced works, on paper and in other media. His work, centered on fantastical narratives that investigate our most basic needs and desires, dovetails nicely with Logan’s more pointed expressions of self.

by alex J MacPherson

“It evolved toward creating my own folk talk,” Magnussen, who is currently studying at Ontario College of Art and Design, says of Outsiders, “and leaving it as an open-ended folk tale, so people can kind of make up their own narratives. It’s really about letting people get lost in the image, letting their imagination go crazy and seeing where it ends up.”

“It’s important, first of all, that the viewers have a stage on which to engage, but not necessarily finish the story” agrees Logan, speaking over a garbled Skype connection from Vienna, where he is completing a residency at the Museum of Modern Art. “Especially when you’re talking about issues of identity, the idea of otherness, you certainly don’t want to close the conversation.”

The most interesting piece in the show is “Cross-Eyed Albino Chrysanthemumalo Helmet,” an ornate multimedia creation that doubles as a mask for Magnussen’s performances.

He describes it as a “variation on

Photo: courtesy of the mendel art gallery

the closeted person,” a reference to his position as a queer artist, and an exploration of themes that transcend gender, race, and orientation — the outsider in profile.

The intricately detailed helmet establishes a theme that runs through the exhibition: the importance of reflection and self-reflection. With Logan’s guidance, Magnussen created work that, as his mentor puts it, “plays with everything” –—art that mines both history and its creator’s emotions, while offering viewers a chance to experience, if only briefly, walking in the shoes of another.

Artists by Artists Through March 10 @ Mendel Art Gallery

Zachary Lucky’s Saskatchewan

Some things never change

Z

by alex J MacPherson

achary Lucky’s Saskatchewan has changed. What was once a bleak and unforgiving place, a parched backwater scoured by the wind and pummeled by the drifting snow, has become a vibrant hub of commerce, lit by the bright lights of the big city.

“Saskatoon isn’t the same city I grew up in,” Lucky recalls, a hint of regret edging into his soft voice.

“Every time I leave and come home, there’s another building in downtown Saskatoon. Things are getting busier and busier.” His new album, Saskatchewan, is a collage of his feelings about the province, a series of snapshots that conjure up idyllic memories and a profound sense of longing.

Lucky had no plans to write a record about Saskatchewan; the songs that poured out of him slowly coalesced into a body of work, a road leading from his temporary home on the East Coast straight back here.

“Sometimes,” he muses, “you just run into songs like a brick wall. I’ve taken the approach to just be prepared for when a song comes. If your hand isn’t up there to catch it, it’ll keep going.

Somebody else will find it.”

In a sense, Saskatchewan chose Lucky. Unlike his last record, Come & Go, Saskatchewan dispenses with elaborate arrangements, replacing drums and violins and pianos with sparse guitar chords and the mournful swell of a pedal steel. The songs themselves echo the arrangements;

Lucky skirts shades of grey and deals in black and white — open questions about past and present, leaving and staying, living and dying.

Saskatchewan may be a record about change, but the last two songs show that some things stay the same.

“Saskatchewan” is his ode to the province; “Saskatchewan (Eleanor’s)” is his grandmother’s.

“My grandparents were country musicians,” he says. “Growing up, I never really got to know them or got to know the music. The older I get, the more and more I was intrigued by it. When I was putting together Saskatchewan, I knew my grandmother had a song called “Saskatchewan.”

After listening to it and looking at the set of songs I had, there was no

way that song couldn’t be on there. It needed to be on there.”

Like Lucky’s Saskatchewan, his grandmother’s Saskatchewan captures themes familiar to anyone who grew up in this province, a place where love changes to despair as quickly as summer fades into fall. But, he sings, Saskatchewan is “the home I will always call mine.”

Zachary Lucky March 1 @ The Bassment $15/20

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Come Home To Mama

Martha Wainwright closes one door and opens another by Alex J M

I

was watching the Grammys last night, and there’s a lot of personal disappointment,” admits Martha Wainwright.

After emerging from the offbeat Montreal music scene, Wainwright, who is known for her beguiling protopop and impressive pedigree, revealed herself to be a singer and songwriter of considerable talent. Mainstream success, however, has eluded the sultry-voiced songstress. “Obviously, I wish I were more successful, but I’m in a situation where you have to just keep going,” she muses. “It’s a difficult time, no one’s buying records, but I have to find a way to keep going.”

Wainwright is hinting at the problem many artists face. Art is about moving beyond the emotional and intellectual horizon. Art also makes awards problematic. Awards provide artists with the means to continue working in a barren industry, but to have even the slightest chance of winning them, creative people must conform to whatever trends happen to be in place. The upshot is that few great artists are lauded in their time, and those who reject the status quo are labeled outsiders. Like Wainwright, they watch the Grammys on television.

Her disappointment seems genuine enough. After all, who couldn’t do with the surge of publicity generated by a major nomination? But Wainwright seems to understand that pushing boundaries is what she does best. “It’s not that I get bored easily, but I have a chameleon side to me,” she explains.

“People like things that are quite

defined, they like things that are quite specific. I’ve never done it that way.”

What she has done is embrace risky and innovative projects that reveal her as both a talented artist and profoundly self-aware human being.

Late last year she released Come Home To Mama, her fourth album, and she is currently interpreting French songs for a Quebec television drama called Trauma. “It’s interesting to do things like this,” she muses, “to open it up a little bit to different kinds of projects, because I can see that’s going to be an important part of making a living.”

something that I can’t escape — and I realize now it’s something I would never have wanted to escape.”

Comfortable with her lot in life, Wainwright has, since 2005, released four charmingly eccentric albums, including a tribute to Édith Piaf. Her latest, Come Home To Mama, comes at a critical juncture. “It’s very much a new beginning,” she says, referring to the death of her mother and the difficult birth of her son. “My reality has changed deeply in the sense of becoming a mother, but also being a motherless person, which I certainly

…I kept on singing with my parents, singing their songs, listening to their music. It’s something that I can’t escape…

Martha wainwright

That Wainwright would choose to make a living playing music surprised no one. Born to Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle, she grew up immersed in music. Her older brother, Rufus, is also a successful musician, composer, and performer. For years Wainwright struggled to accept her reality. “You want to think you’re responsible for all of your success, and that you’re doing it on your own,” she says after a brief pause. “But then I realized I kept on returning to it, I kept on singing with my parents, singing their songs, listening to their music. It’s

didn’t expect to be this young. I have a clearer view of what I need to do and what I want to do moving forward, and also a stronger sense of time.”

The emotional heart of Come Home To Mama is the one song Wainwright didn’t write. McGarrigle penned “Proserpina” a few months before she died, as the cancer was draining her life away. A haunting piano ballad, the song rises and falls to the sound of a violin and Wainwright’s ethereal voice. “Proserpina,” Latin for Persephone, is a loose interpretation of ancient myth, Continued on next page »

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Photo: courtesy Photo: of courtesy martin girard of Ph

MacPherson Wainwright explains, written “by someone who is very much in a different stage, in the sense of knowing full well where she was heading, one foot in this life and the next one in the next life.”

Daughter of Zeus and Demeter, Persephone was spirited away to the underworld by Hades, who had fallen in love with her. Furious, Zeus sent Hermes to retrieve her. But before the conductor of souls arrived, Hades tricked Persephone into eating a handful of pomegranate seeds, which damned her to spend part of each year

Photo: courtesy of the artist

with him in the underworld. “With the songs on this record, I’m trying to talk about my mother’s death, and moving forward as well, in the sort of sloppy, very human way that I write songs,” Wainwright says, hinting at the pain of separation. “I find that “Proserpina” was able to take that concept and sum it up in a very elegant and simple way.”

The other songs on the record steer clear of the stripped-down sound that makes “Proserpina” so powerful, returning instead to the subtly textured pop aesthetic that has become Wainwright’s trademark. She wrote the songs

on an acoustic guitar, but the arrangements on the record have been shaped into something that transcends the singer-songwriter mould. “Is it folk? Not really. Is it pop? Not really,” Wainwright laughs. “At this point, after a few years of doing this and making records, I can say that it’s Martha Wainwright-esque.”

Come Home To Mama was produced by Yuka Honda, who founded Cibo Matto with Miho Hatori and Sean Lennon. Wainwright gives credit where credit is due, explaining that the soundscapes and flourishes on the record were conceived and created by Honda. “They are honest and open and revealing,” Wainwright says of her songs, “but I think what [Honda] was able to do by creating these worlds around them, these sonic worlds, also makes them more interesting than me just vomiting up all this information and stuff.”

Come Home To Mama covers a lot of territory, sonically as well as lyrically.

The album includes sparse ballads and gritty rock songs, introspective meditations and at least one cheerful “f**k you” to the world at large. The songs are linked, however, by a common theme, one that Wainwright keeps coming back to. “There’s a bit of an anger, there’s a rawness that is there, and also a questioning of how things are — a frustration and a general sort of feeling that something is wrong, and a want to make it right,” she says, dancing around the point before deciding to say it: “I wanted to make a record of upbeat songs, but it’s about Kate dying, it’s about wanting to stop time.”

The songs that comprise Trauma, on the other hand, represent a completely different facet of Wainwright’s career. Because they need to amplify the emotional arc of a single episode, they were chosen in advance. Wainwright says the project was difficult to turn down, and not just because she enjoys covering songs written by other people. “After singing so many personal ones … it’s always nice to be able to take on the different role

of interpreter, and focus more on the voice and things like that.”

Come Home To Mama and Trauma represent two poles of Wainwright’s career: the accessible rock record and the quirky side project. But she has plenty more to do before calling it quits, including a long stint on the road and a plan to produce a musical based on the life of notorious con artist Cassie Chadwick. Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised. After all,

Grammy or not, she wrote Come Home To Mama as a new beginning.

Martha Wainwright March 4 @ The Bassment $25/30 Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

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Soccer and snacks Photos courtesy of Adam Hawboldt.

The Pleasure Way Pub offers good eats and sporting treats by adam hawboldt

T

he Arsenal F.C. soccer team played its first game in 1886 in South London. Since then, they have won 13 League Championships, 10 FA Cups, had an unbeaten Premiere League season in 200304, and pumped out marquee players like Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp, Ian Wright and Tony Adams.

Oh, and they’re also one of the richest soccer clubs on earth — valued somewhere in the neighbourhood of $1.3 billion.

The only reason I mention any of this is because, as I sat down for supper last week on a snowy February night, there was a huge Arsenal flag hanging on the wall behind me. Outside the window to my left, down on the pitch, young girls in blue and white team uniforms are playing soccer. The walls all

bling down the evening special, other things on the menu caught my eye.

The first item was something called the Arsenal Platter. The reason it jumped out at me was twofold. First, Arsenal is my favourite club. Second, the platter consisted of potato skins,

around me are adorned with framed pictures of famous soccer players, mounted soccer balls and team scarfs.

This is what to expect when you go to Pleasure Way Pub (located in the Saskatoon Soccer Centre). The other thing to expect, if it’s a Wednesday

…the platter consisted of potato skins, nachos, dry ribs, wings and onion rings…

Adam Hawboldt

nachos, dry ribs, wings and onion rings — all the finger-pickin’ goodies a pub should have.

And to be honest, I was going to go with the platter, but once I realized it was probably intended for a group of people I went with something, umm, less hazardous to my waistline. Enter the blackened chicken sandwich.

Served with a heaping side of fries, the sandwich came on a bun and featured lettuce, tomatoes, diced red onions, mayo and jalapeño jack cheese. Put all that on top of a juicy piece of blackened chicken breast and you have yourself a darn fine sandwich. The charred chicken was cooked perfectly, and the jalapeño cheese added a subtle yet nice kick.

I washed it all down with a few pints of barley pop and left the Pleasure Way Pub a happy guy.

night, is a lot of people sitting around drinking beer and eating wings. After all, it is wing night.

And while I was tempted to order myself a pint and a basket (they looked and smelled delicious!) and join most of the other patrons in gob-

let’s go drinkin’ Verb’s mixology guide BLACK CHERRY COLLINS

Ingredients

Inspired by England’s love of gin, this drink is a jazzed up version of the classic Collins.

It’s colorful, fruity and goes down smooth.

6 fresh cherries (save 1 for garnish) 3 fresh Bblackberries 1-1/2 ounce gin 3/4 ounce Simple Syrup 3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice club soda

Directions

Muddle cherries and blackberries in the bottom of a mixing glass. Add gin, simple syrup and lemon juice with ice. Shake to blend and chill, then strain into a tall glass. Top with a splash of club soda, and garnish with the remaining fresh cherry.

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372 Pleasure Way Pub 150 Nelson Road | 657 5740

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Next Week

coming up

the Karpinka Gunner and Brothers Smith

Flying Fox and the Hunter Gatherers

@ The Bassment Friday, March 1 – $15/20

@ Amigos Cantina saturday, March 2 – $15+

@ Vangelis Thursday, May 30 – $TBD

The music industry is full of people looking to be your typical rock star.

You know the kind: hard partying, long nights, drugs, groupies, etc. But there are also people like the Karpinka Brothers, musicians with warm and caring personalities who put on shows everywhere from local bars to care homes in the city. Playing a brotherly band of pop-folk music, the Karpinka Brothers — Shawn (vocals, guitar, banjo) and Aaron (harmony vocals, guitar, mandolin, dobro, pedal steel guitar) — have worked hard at their craft and, in doing so, won the heart of music lovers in this city with their light, bright, effervescent sound. They have become fixtures on our city’s indie rock scene and if their latest album, There’s a Light, is any indication, they’ll remain a fixture for years to come.

It all began with Geoff Smith. Back in 2010, the local folk musician was primarily a solo artist. But after releasing his 2011 EP Letter of Marque, that all changed. Smith enlisted the help of Nick Dueck (bass), Jordan Bechtel (drums), Olya Kutsiuruba (vocalist), Tyson Goodyear (drums) and Lance Brown (guitar). Together, they make folk songs that really stand out.

Tinted with a hint of jazz and a touch of blues, Gunner and Smith never fails to impress whenever they take the stage. Their music is the kind of laidback, lush, hard-hitting tunes that really resonate with audiences. They recently finished recording a six-song EP called Compromise is a Loaded Gun. They’ll be performing as a part of Omfest 2 at Amigos; tickets available at www.picatic.com

To describe Flying Fox and the Hunter Gatherers’ music with words almost doesn’t do it justice. Playing everything from horns and guitar to bass and accordion, this Winnipeg act offers up a brand of gypsy-jazz-orchestral rock that’s at once folky and pop.

Clear as mud? Good. To get a better idea of what these guys are all about (which is pure awesome, by the way) you should check out their live show when they come to town. You won’t be disappointed. Not only are they all terrific musicians, not only is their sound blow-your-hair-back infectious, but Flying Fox and the Hunter Gatherers also put on one helluva live show. A show that, since releasing their debut LP, Hans My Lion, in 2011, has been honed by playing hundreds of venues across Canada.

– By Adam Hawboldt

Photos courtesy of: Shannon Heather / Mike Morien / Cheyenne Rae

Sask music Preview

Photo: courtesy of emma mcintyre

The 2013 JUNO nominees have been announced, and Saskatchewan has been well-represented. SaskMusic would like to congratulate The Sheepdogs on their three nominations — for Single of the Year, Group of the Year and Rock Album of the Year — as well as Donny Parenteau, who has been nominated for Aboriginal Album of the Year. The 2013 JUNO Awards and festivities will be hosted in Regina April 15-21, 2013.

Keep up with Saskatchewan music. saskmusic.org

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FEBRUARY 22 » March 2 The most complete live music listings for Saskatoon.

S

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T

W

T

24 25 26 27 28

Friday 22

22 23 1

2

House DJs / 6Twelve Lounge — Funk, soul & lounge DJs liven up the atmosphere at 6Twelve. 9pm / No cover The Pharcyde / Amigos Cantina — Don’t let the opportunity to see this legendary rap act pass you by. Also appearing will

DJ Sugar Daddy / Jax Niteclub — Able to rock any party, this local crowd favourite has always been known to break the latest and greatest tracks in multiple genres. He Is sure to have you on the dance floor in no time. 9pm / $5 cover Tim Vaughn / Lydia’s Pub — A guitarslinger with a soulful voice. 10pm / $5 In Flames / The Odeon Events Centre — Kickass metal all the way from Sweden.

6:30pm / $37.50 (www.theodeon.ca) DJ Big Ayyy & DJ HENCHMAN / Outlaws Country Rock Bar — Round up your friends ‘cause there’s no better country rock party around. 8pm / $5; ladies in free before 11pm It’s Too Late, Baby / Prairie Ink — Bringing to life the music of Carole King and James Taylor. 8pm / No cover The 11th Octave (L.O.R.D Funk) / Somewhere Else Pub and Grill — Come out for a night of funky music. 9pm / No cover Jomama / Stan’s Place — Come out for a night of rocking tunes. 9pm / No cover Dueling Pianos / Staqatto Piano Lounge — Terry Hoknes, Neil Currie and Brad King belt out classic tunes and audience requests. 10pm / $5 DVBBS / Tequila Nightclub — This electronic act was named “One To Watch 2013” at the Canadian Urban Music Awards. 8pm / $5 Fortunate Isles / Vangelis Tavern — Indie dance rock done right. 10pm / $5

be Hustle & Thrive, The Lost Kings, and Deep Cave. 10pm / $25 (www.ticketedge. ca) Piano Fridays: Rick Friend / The Bassment — Come check out some smooth jazz stylings. 4:30pm / No cover Mardi Gras Fest: Absofunkinlutley / The Bassment — Saskatoon’s favourite disco-party band. 9pm / $12/16 DJ Aash Money / Béily’s — DJ Aash Money throws it down. 9pm / $5 cover Screamlyne / Buds On Broadway — Oh buddy, this show is gonna rock. 9pm / $6 Rory Borealis and the Northern Lights, Funksmiths, Forever Land, Bastard Poetry / The Fez on Broadway — Don’t miss this stellar line up of bands.

9pm / Cover TBD DJ Eclectic / The Hose & Hydrant — Local turntable whiz DJ Eclectic pumps snappy electronic beats. 8pm / No cover

Saturday 23

House DJs / 6Twelve — Resident DJs spin deep and soulful tunes all night. 9pm / No cover Jay Tripwire / Amigos Cantina — A DJ act out of Vancouver. Also appearing will be Dr. J and John Stone. 10pm / Cover TBD Mardi Gras Fest: Dr. Don and The Black Mambas, Zyde-gogo, The Crawdaddios / The Bassment — Night #2 of Mardi Gras Fest threatens to be a rollicking good time. 9pm / $15/20 DJ CTRL + Austen Roadz / Béily’s UltraLounge — DJ CTRL throws down a high-energy top 40 dance party along with Austen Roadz every Saturday night.

9pm / $5 cover Sarah Slean / Broadway Theatre — A Juno-nominated singer/songwriter that’s too good to miss. 8pm / $30 (advance), $35 (day of) Screamlyne / Buds On Broadway — Oh buddy, this show is gonna rock. 9pm / $6 Caught in a Dream / The Fez on Broadway — An Alice Cooper tribute act. 10pm / Cover TBD DJ Kade / The Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon’s own DJ lights it up with hot tunes.

8pm / No cover DJ Sugar Daddy / Jax Niteclub — Able to rock any party, this local crowd favourite has always been known to break the latest and greatest tracks in multiple genres. 9pm / $5 cover

Noble Thiefs / Lydia’s Pub — If you want to party properly, don’t miss this soul/rock band from Winnipeg. 10pm / $5 DJ Big Ayyy & DJ Henchman / Outlaws Country Rock Bar — Round up your friends ‘cause there’s no better country rock party around. 8pm / $5 Wyndham Thiessen / Prairie Ink — Some folk music to sooth your soul. 8pm / No cover The 11th Octave (L.O.R.D Funk) / Somewhere Else Pub and Grill — Come out for a night of funky music. 9pm / No cover.

Jomama / Stan’s Place — Come out for a night of rocking tunes. 9pm / No cover Dueling Pianos / Staqatto Piano Lounge — Terry Hoknes, Neil Currie and Brad King belt out classic tunes and audience requests. 10pm / $5 Seahags, Down Home Boys, The Wildmen / Vangelis Tavern — What better way to spend a Saturday than listening to these three sweet bands? 10pm / $7

Sunday 24

So You Think You Can DJ / Béily’s UltraLounge — Come out and enjoy some of the best DJing around. 8pm / No cover.

DJ KADE / The Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover Ness Creek Auditions / Lydia’s Pub — Come on out and show your stuff. 2pm / No cover

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SUNDAY JAM / Vangelis Tavern — The Vangelis Sunday Jam is an institution, offering great tunes from blues to rock and beyond. 7:30pm / No cover

Monday 25

Metal Mondays / Lydia’s Pub — If hard, heavy awesomeness is your thing, swing by, listen to some killer music and get in on some concert giveaways. 9pm

Tuesday 26

Grady Champion / Buds — A Mississippi bluesman, bringing the sound of the south to the prairies. 9pm / $6 DJ SUGAR DADDY / The Double Deuce — This crowd favourite is able to rock any party. 9:30pm / $4 cover VERB PRESENTS OPEN STAGE / Lydia’s — The open stage at Lydia’s has hosted many fine performers. 9pm / No cover Open Mic / Somewhere Else Pub — Come out to show your talent. 7pm / No cover

Wednesday 27

HUMP WEDNESDAYS / 302 Lounge & Discotheque — Resident DJ Chris Knorr will be spinning all of your favourite songs and requests, every Wednesday night.

9pm / No cover until 10pm; $3 thereafter Grady Champion / Buds — A Mississippi bluesman, bringing the sound of the south to the prairies. 9pm / $6 The Avenue Recording Company presents Open Mic / The Fez on Broadway — Hosted by Chad Reynolds. Sign up and play at this weekly event. 10pm / No cover DJ Kade / the Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover Dr. J ‘Souled Out’ / Lydia’s Pub — Dr. J spins hot funk and soul every Wednesday night. 9pm / No cover WILD WEST WEDNESDAY / Outlaws — This is Saskatoon’s top industry night.

9pm / $4; no cover for industry staff Sask Blues Fest / Spadina Freehouse — Come out and listen to some blues music.

8pm / No cover Dueling Pianos / Staqatto Piano Lounge — Terry Hoknes, Neil Currie and Brad King belt out classic tunes and audience requests. 10pm / No cover

Thursday 28

Apollo Cruz / Buds — A local highoctane power blues trio. 9pm / $6 Throwback Thursdays / Earls — Come experience the best in retro funk, soul, reggae and rock provided by Dr. J. 8pm / No cover

Thunder Riot w/Conky Showpony / The Fez — Come dance the night away as this local DJ plays the kind of music that’ll get your feet moving. 9pm / $5 DJ Kade / The Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover DJ Sugar Daddy / Jax Niteclub — Local DJ Sugar Daddy will be rocking the turntables to get you dancing on the dance floor! 8pm / $5; free cover with student ID before 11pm Sask Blues Fest / The Odeon Events Centre — Featuring Albert Castiglia, The Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer, and Apollo Cruz. 8pm / $30 (www.saskatoonbluessociety.ca) Gabe Penna and the Rising / Tish Cafe — Folk-rock from a local act. 8pm / Cover TBD Arms Up / Vangelis Tavern — A local band playing psychedelic alt rock.

10pm / $5

Friday 1

House DJs / 6Twelve Lounge — Funk, soul & lounge DJs liven up the atmosphere at 6Twelve. 9pm / No cover Trust / Amigos Cantina — A synthpop music group from the Big Smoke, these guys’ll have you getting your groove on all night long. 10pm / $12 cover (www.ticketedge.ca) Piano Fridays: Neil Currie / The Bassment — Feel like taking in some smooth jazz stylings? 4:30pm / No cover Roots Series: Zachary Lucky, The Karpinka Brothers / The Bassment — A night full of fantastic folk music, courtesy of these wildly talented gentlemen. 9pm / $15/20 DJ Aash Money / Béily’s UltraLounge — DJ Aash Money throws down a high-energy top 40 dance party every Friday night.

9pm / $5 cover Penny Reign / Buds On Broadway — Hard-hitting power pop music. 9pm / $6 Mo’ Love / The Fez on Broadway — A tribute to Motown. Also appearing will be The Shoeless Joes. 10pm / Cover TBD Sask Blues Fest / Hilton Garden Inn — Featuring David Boxcar Gates, Steve James. 8pm / $30 (www.saskatoonbluessociety.ca) DJ Eclectic / The Hose & Hydrant — Local turntable whiz DJ Eclectic pumps snappy electronic beats. 8pm / No cover DJ Sugar Daddy / Jax Niteclub — This local crowd favourite has always been known to break the latest and greatest tracks. 9pm / $5 cover

Banjo Van / Lydia’s Pub — Any band that features a banjo as the lead instrument is good enough for us. 10pm / $5 Drew Tofin Band / Louis — It’s going to a proper, jazzy party. 9pm / Cover TBD Sask Blues Fest / The Odeon Events Centre — Featuring Steve Strongman, Shakura S’Aida, and the Transcontinental Blues Band. 7:30pm / $30 (www.saskatoonbluessociety.ca) DJ Big Ayyy & DJ HENCHMAN / Outlaws Country Rock Bar — Round up your friends ‘cause there’s no better country rock party around. 8pm / $5; ladies in free before 11pm Glenn Sutter / Prairie Ink — Roots music for the mind and soul. 8pm / No cover Just the Boys / Stan’s Place — Come out for some rocking tunes. 9pm / No cover Dueling Pianos / Staqatto Piano Lounge — Terry Hoknes, Neil Currie and Brad King belt out classic tunes and audience requests. 10pm / $5 Nick Thayer / Tequila Nightclub — Come cut loose with this eclectic DJ/producer.

7pm / $5 Blues Fest / Vangelis Tavern — Feeling blue, or just like listening to good music?

Come on down. 10pm / $5

Saturday 2

House DJs / 6Twelve — Resident DJs spin deep and soulful tunes all night. 9pm / No cover Omfest 2 / Amigo’s Cantina — Featuring Robot Hive, The Spoils, Ones, Gunner & Smith, Ryan Stinson, and Charly Hustle.

Come out and celebrate Ominocity’s 2nd birthday! 10pm / Cover TBD Guitar Series: The Alex Goodman Chamber Quartet w/ Bassavoce / The Bassment — A sound that falls somewhere between jazz, chamber and acoustic music. 9pm / $15/20 Gong show / Béily’s UltraLounge — The first Saturday of every month, come on out to get your party on with this great band. 9pm / $5 cover Penny Reign / Buds On Broadway — Hard-hitting power pop music. 9pm / $6 Platinum Blonde / Dakota Dunes — This platinum-selling group from Toronto is back to rock you. 8pm / $35 (www. tickets.siga.sk.ca) Sask Blues Fest / Hilton Garden Inn — Featuring Blind Boy Paxton and Ross Neilsen. 8pm / $30 (www.saskatoonbluessociety.ca) DJ Kade / The Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon’s own DJ lights it up with hot tunes.

8pm / No cover

DJ Sugar Daddy / Jax Niteclub — Featuring this local crowd favourite. 9pm / $5 cover Cowpuncher / Lydia’s Pub — A blend of rock, honky tonk, country and psychedelica. 10pm / $5 Skylab / Lydia’s Loft — Hit up Lydia’s to enjoy a chill and cosmic DJ night. No cover before 10pm Legacy Arcade / Louis’ — A Daft Punk tribute. 8pm / Cover TBD Sask Blues Fest / The Odeon — Featuring Bill Durst, Marcia Ball, and the BC Read Big Band. 8pm / $30 (www.saskatoonbluessociety.ca) DJ Big Ayyy & DJ Henchman / Outlaws — There’s no better country rock party around. 8pm / $5 Roger Dorey / Prairie Ink — Acoustic blues and roots music. 8pm / No cover

Just the Boys / Stan’s Place — Come out for a night of rocking tunes. 9pm / No cover Dueling Pianos / Staqatto Piano Lounge — Terry Hoknes, Neil Currie and Brad King belt out classic tunes and audience requests, from Sinatra to Lady Gaga.

10pm / $5 Sask Blues Fest Windup Party / Vangelis Tavern — Send the Blues Fest off in style. 1pm / $10

Get listed Have a live show you'd like to promote? Let us know! layout@verbnews.com

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Expect the unexpected

Photo: Courtesy of summit entertainment

Snitch, the new Dwayne Johnson movie, pleasantly surprises by adam hawboldt

S

nitch is not the movie you think it is.

Or maybe I should say, it isn’t the movie I thought it was going to be. When I first saw the trailer — which features clips of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson going undercover to take down a drug lord — my first thought was, “This is gonna be one of those movies where the Rock kicks ass now, takes names later. Explosions. Quickwitted one-liners. The standard action fare.”

Boy, was I wrong.

And the first hint of just how wrong I was came in a scene when The Rock squares off against a couple of street thugs. Normally, in most of his movies, you’d see The Rock throttle these ruffians.

Not this time.

This time the thugs lay the smack down on the ex-wrestler’s “roody-poo candy ass,” as he would say, leaving him face-down on the ground, bloodied, without a wallet.

out for leniency, Jason is up that proverbial crappy creek without a paddle.

The prosecutor for the case (Susan Sarandon) is a hardass with an eye on a Congressional seat.

So Jason’s dad, John (Dwayne Johnson), strikes a deal with her:

Needless to say, Snitch is not your usual Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson film.

Inspired by true events, Snitch tells the story of an 18-year-old guy named Jason (Rafi Gavron) who gets strong-armed into letting a friend mail him a package of Ec-

Snitch is much more of a dramatic thriller than it is a smash-’em-up action flick.

Adam Hawboldt

he’ll go undercover in the drug trade, help take down some big time dealers (which will look good on the prosecutor’s résumé), in exchange for leniency for his son.

How is he going to do that?

Well, John owns a construction supply business, which means he has access to big rigs, which means

stasy. The pair gets caught, and the friend rolls over on Jason— leaving him to take the whole blame.

Facing a mandatory 10 years in prison (few American laws are more preposterous and unforgiving than drug-related mandatory minimum sentences), and without anyone for him to rat

he can offer drug dealers a means of procuring clandestine transportation for their product.

He gains access to the underworld via one of his employees, an ex-con named Daniel Cruz (The Walking Dead’s Jon Bernthal).

The stage is set, and things rapidly begin to take off.

Naturally, in a movie like this there are bound to be action sequences, but there aren’t as many as you’d think, because what it boils down to is this: Snitch is much more of a dramatic thriller than it is a smash-’em-up action flick. More of a condemnation of America’s absurd drug laws than a mindless romp.

And for the most part, this works. The acting is excellent.

Bernthal absolutely kills it as an ex-con, Michael Kenneth Williams (The Wire’s Omar) is positively stellar as a drug dealer, Barry Pepper (playing an undercover Fed) is good as always, and The Rock plays John with a certain amount of weight and nary an eyebrow raise!

Snitch Ric Roman Waugh Dwayne Johnson, Susan Sarandon, Jon Bernthal, Rafi Gavron + Barry Pepper Directed by Starring

113 minutes | PG

Now, this isn’t to say that Snitch is fantastic. The first hour of the film crawls along at a snail’s pace, the script isn’t exactly what you’d call first-class, and there’s a scene near the end involving The Rock and a semi that’ll make you do a double take.

But, overall — and much to my surprise — Snitch was far better than I expected.

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@AdamHawboldt ahawboldt@verbnews.com

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A Murray-aculous Evolution

Star of Hyde Park on Hudson makes the best of a bad situation by adam hawboldt

W

hen I think of Bill Murray, there’s one word that comes to mind — evolution.

Think about it. Go back, way back, to when big Bill first made a name for himself in Hollywood.

In his early movies like Meatballs, Caddyshack, Stripes and Ghostbusters, Murray was insanely hilarious, but kind of smug. As though he was privy to something (an inside joke, secret information) the rest of us weren’t.

That was in the ‘80s. When the ‘90s rolled around he evolved into a more subtle comedic actor, whose characters’ egos were softer, more subdued. Think What About Bob, Groundhog Day, Kingpin.

Then in the late ‘90s something happened. That something was a role in Wes Anderson’s Rushmore. Again Murray evolved, this time into an actor capable of playing characters with great complexity, weight and charm. Think Lost In Translation, Broken Flowers, every other Wes Anderson movie he was in.

Photo: Courtesy of walmark films

persuade FDR to engage in the business of war against Nazi Germany.

But that’s only part of Hyde Park on Hudson. The other storyline involves FDR’s courtship of his distant cousin, Daisy (Laura Linney), long drives and hand jobs.

Sounds like a decent premise for a movie, right?

…somehow the character of Daisy never comes to life in [Laura Linney’s] ever-so-capable hands.

Adam Hawboldt

And Murray’s newest film, Hyde Park on Hudson?

Well, it fits firmly in the last stage of Murray’s evolution.

In it he plays Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States. The year is 1939. Europe is on the brink of war, so King George VI (Samuel West) and Queen Elizabeth (Olivia Colman) come from England to

Yeah … well, too bad the two parts never really gel together to form a cohesive whole. The diplomatic portion of the movie is good.

There’s lots of talk about hot dogs, some interesting (yet fictionalized) historical moments, and a whole lot of good acting. Particularly from Olivia Colman, who plays the hell out of her role as Queen Elizabeth.

Hyde Park on Hudson Roger Mitchell Starring Bill Murray, Laura Linney, Olivia Williams + Samuel West Directed by

95 minutes | PG

Thing is, though, the whole extramarital-affair-with-your-cousin part of the movie falls flat. And it’s all because of Daisy (who also narrates the movie.)

Okay. Let me preface this next paragraph by saying Laura Linney is a fine, fine actress. One of the better ones working today. Yet somehow the character of Daisy never comes to life in her ever-so-capable hands.

We never really get to see what FDR saw in Daisy, why he was so attracted to her, because for the most part the character of Daisy is portrayed as bland, blah. Meh, even.

And that’s a disappointment.

What doesn’t disappoint, however, is Murray’s portrayal of FDR. To be honest, when I first heard he’d be playing the 32nd president I wasn’t sure what to expect. But within five or 10 minutes of seeing him on screen, I was sold. Murray plays FDR with a roguish charm and a twinkle

in his eye. And, as he’s been doing in many roles lately, Murray is able to take a complex character, stuck in a complex situation, and fill him full of wit, charm and poignancy.

No surprise there.

Hyde Park on Hudson is being screened at Broadway Theatre.

Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372

@AdamHawboldt ahawboldt@verbnews.com

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Friday, February 15 @

6Twelve Lounge 6Twelve Lounge 612 Spadina Crescent (306) 652 6770 Music vibe / Lots of techno,

and live DJs Drink of Choice / A Manhattan

(bourbon, vermouth and bitters), or a French 75 (gin, cherry brandy, Benedictine, pineapple, lime and bitters) top eats / Lamb and bison lollies, a braised pork belly, or a wild mushroom quesadilla coming up / Live DJs every weekend

Photography by Ishtiaq Opal

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Check out our Facebook page!

These photos will be uploaded to Facebook on Friday, March 1. facebook.com/verbsaskatoon

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Check out our Facebook page!

These photos will be uploaded to Facebook on Friday, March 1. facebook.com/verbsaskatoon

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saturday, february 16 @

crown & rok Crown + Rok 1527 Idylwyld Dr N (306) 249 4700 Music vibe / Country and rock Featured deals / $4 for Bud or

Bud Light Drink of Choice / Bottles of Bud top eats / The platter, with

chicken fingers, ribs and nachos coming up / UFC on March

16, with Georges St-Pierre headlining

Photography by Patrick Carley

25 Feb 22 – Feb 28 @verbsaskatoon

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Š Elaine M. Will | blog.E2W-Illustration.com | Check onthebus.webcomic.ws/ for previous editions!

26 Feb 22 – Feb 28 entertainment

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timeout

crossword canadian criss-cross 1. Group which shares a business interest 2. Gobbled up 3. Range of vision 4. Playful prank 5. Big beer mug 6. Without further ___ 7. Block gradually 8. Take hostage 9. Detachable rocket unit 11. Skate part 12. Hurt with a knife 14. Large jug with a wide spout 17. Exclusive group 20. Malleable

22. Horn sound 25. Accompanying 27. Monster in fairy tales 29. Go back in 30. Match up 31. Like notebook paper 32. Three-petalled flower 34. Hindu retreat 35. Drive fast 36. Song sung in church 39. Leader of a Jewish congregation 42. Long sandwich 44. Not all 47. Gone by 49. Fish eggs

sudoku answer key

A

B

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

DOWN 30. Member of a cabal 33. Worthless stuff 37. You can’t live without it 38. One named in a will 40. Catch sight of 41. Move little by little 43. Lowest high tide 45. Bottom of a dress 46. Warm up again 48. Having no vegetation 50. Funeral song 51. All-encompassing 52. Place for a peephole 53. Newspaper piece

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

ACROSS 1. Spanish sparkling wine 5. Temporary stitch 9. Glossy fabric 10. Make up on the spot 12. Address part 13. Piece of pasta 15. Make lace 16. Candle part 18. Bite on persistently 19. Advances in years 21. Garment worn outdoors 23. Fruit drink 24. In a lower place 26. Juno Award winning Canadian rock band 28. Andiron © walter D. Feener 2012

Horoscopes February 22 – February 28 Aries March 21–April 19

Leo July 23–August 22

Sagittarius November 23–December 21

Time to get aggressive, Aries. Now, we’re not talking about punching the next person who ticks you off. But this week: go for what you want with gusto.

Time for a little isolation, Leo. We know you’re a social butterfly and all, but this week take a timeout to recharge the old battery. You’ll be happy you did.

You will have ants in your pants this week, Sagittarius. Not literally. But you might find yourself so restless at times you won’t know what to do with yourself.

Taurus April 20–May 20

Virgo August 23–September 22

Capricorn December 22–January 19

One of the biggest parts of communication is effective listening, Taurus. Be sure to keep your ears on high alert this week. Be an active listener.

Confusion, confusion, everywhere.

Confusion, confusion, but you shouldn’t care. If things get complex, keep on truckin’. Life will chill out soon.

Be wary of strangers this week, Capricorn. No, they aren’t out to kidnap you or anything, but they may not operate with your best interests in mind.

Gemini May 21–June 20

Libra September 23–October 23

Aquarius January 20–February 19

Don’t try to force square pegs into round holes this week, Gemini.

Do what comes naturally. Do what makes logical sense. Or else.

Make sure you have stabilized your emotions before acting this week, Libra. If not, you may find yourself knee deep in fecal matter — so to speak.

Some weeks are awesome, other weeks are terrible. This week, well, it’s going to be neither. Expect a lot of ho-hum days on the horizon.

Cancer June 21–July 22

Scorpio October 24–November 22

Pisces February 20–March 20

Somebody close to you may come to you for help this week, Cancer.

If so, tell them to bugger off. Just kidding!

You should probably give them a hand.

Sheesh! Are you always this moody, Scorpio? Try to breathe more this week and put things into proper perspective. Not everything is such a big deal.

If you have a rash and it smells like bacon, you should probably seek help. If it doesn’t itch, don’t worry.

Proceed with your week as usual.

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

crossword answer key

A

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

B

27 Feb 22 – Feb 28 /verbsaskatoon

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