Issue #292 – MAY 30 TO June 5
arts
culture
music
saskatoon
+
helen kashap Chasing her dream to the legendary HB Studio hidden stories Q+A with Fiver maleficent + filth Films reviewedÂ
Photo: courtesy of Fish Griwkowsky
contents
On the cover:
wet secrets
Free Candy + existential dread. 16 / feature Photo: courtesy of Max Telzerow
NEWs + Opinion
down with the dairy mafia Our thoughts on dairy laws.
8 / Editorial
chasing a dream
comments
Helen Kashap’s big break. 4 / Local
Here’s your say about implementing the Idaho stop. 10 / comments
culture
Q + A with Fiver Simone Schmidt on the stories that hide in plain sight. 12 / Q + A
end of an era
chicken and beer
The Seahags’ last stand?
We visit Izumi.
14 / Arts
18 / Food + Drink
album reviews
Music
Sharon Van Etten + Chromeo. 15 / reviews
We Are The City, Library Voices + Sarah McLachlan . 19 / music
entertainment
listings Local music listings for May 30 through June 7 20 / listings
maleficent + filth
on the bus Weekly original comic illustrations by Elaine M. Will. 30 / comics
The latest movie reviews. 22 / Film
Nightlife Photos
Games + Horoscopes
We visited Outlaws + Capitol.
Canadian criss-cross puzzle, horoscopes, and Sudoku. 31 / timeout
24 / Nightlife
verbnews.com @verbsaskatoon facebook.com/verbsaskatoon
Editorial
ART & Production
Business & Operations
contact
Publisher / Parity Publishing Editor in Chief / Ryan Allan Managing Editor / Jessica Patrucco staff Writers / Adam Hawboldt + Alex J MacPherson
Design Lead / andrew yanko graphic designer / bryce kirk Contributing Photographers / Patrick Carley, Adam Hawboldt + Dylan Giesbrecht
Office Manager / Stephanie Lipsit account Manager / nathan holowaty sales Manager / Vogeson Paley Financial Manager / Cody Lang
Comments / feedback@verbnews.com / 306 881 8372 advertise / advertise@verbnews.com / 306 979 2253 design / layout@verbnews.com / 306 979 8474 General / info@verbnews.com /
Please recycle after reading & sharing
306 979 2253
2 may 30 – June 5 verb magazine
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
local
Chasing a dream
Photo: Courtesy of facebook
Saskatchewan’s Helen Kashap trades in one stage for another by adam hawboldt
O
ur story begins with a little girl. She’s around nine years old. Olive skin, dark hair, big intelligent eyes. She’s standing at one end of a big warehouse saying a tongue twister; she’s focusing on her voice, trying to project her words to a theatre director at the opposite end of the room. By the end of this story this little girl will be a woman, an accomplished classical pianist on her way to New York City to live out a dream. By the end she’ll have struggled financially, experienced crushing loneliness, spent countless hours in jail-like rooms pecking away at a piano. All that comes later, though. For now she’s still a little girl. Her name is Helen Kashap, and she loves acting, loves rehearsing those tongue twisters as the far end of that warehouse. The rehearsal process at Gateway Theatre is demanding, especially for a nineyear-old. She’s the youngest actor there by a decade, but she’s outspoken and social, likable and attentive, and so she fits in, growing close to the cast members and the directors. She’s also driven, this little girl. After school she comes home, puts in mandatory piano practice times, and then it’s straight to her scripts. She spends the rest of her evenings memorizing her roles, roping her family into reading lines with her.
She’s a very dramatic little girl, too, with a hyper-expressive face and a high degree of sensitivity. These are the attributes that help her excel in the theatre and to win praise for her performances in the local newspaper. Her early success fuels her, drives her even deeper into her craft. She becomes consumed; obsessed with the world of theatre. Eventually, though, she will have to leave it behind.
It’s November 2013. Helen Kashap is seated at a piano at the Cleveland Institute of Music. Her skin is still olive, hair still dark, but you can’t see her eyes. She’s looking down on the piano. Kashap’s arms hang limp by her sides. Silently she lifts them and places her fingers on the piano keys. Her body kind of jumps and shakes when she hits the first note of Beethoven’s Sonata No. 8 in C minor. She slowly raises her head, her fingers dancing gracefully over the keys. Kashap loves this sonata, loves the drama it evokes. “Beethoven was a totally dramatic, tempestuous character,” she says. “And his craziness and the spontaneous outbursts of emotion are what made playing this work so compelling to me. One minute it’s a lyrical fluid line, two seconds later, a violent outburst of discordant clusters.”
In a way, the ebb and flow of the sonata mirrors the rhythms of Kashap’s life. One minute everything is running smoothly, the next she’s struggling — struggling with money, with isolation, with her future and her dreams. The road that led Kashap to that stage at the Cleveland Institute of Music (one of the finest music schools in America) was full of twists and turns, ups and downs. It’s a road that begins in Saskatchewan, where Kashap grew up in a house with her parents and four siblings. “I come from a family that has always struggled financially,” she says. “My parents are both professional musicians, and they made the great decision to have five children. Having five children on a musician’s salary is an incredible feat and it makes for some very challenging circumstances.” They’re the kind of circumstances that build character, that teach you perseverance and determination. The kind of determination that helped Kashap excel as a young actress. But she wasn’t just an actress. Along with acting lessons, Kashap also took piano and theory lessons as a child. Coming from a musical family meant that playing piano became a very natural extension for her mode of expression. She would go to Continued on next page »
4 may 30 – June 5 news + opinion
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
symphony concerts and just sit there, reveling in the space. She thought it was marvelous — live acoustics, the big open stage. For her, the stage was always a place for magic. She enjoyed learning about music — enjoyed learning about anything, really. But by the time she was 15, Kashap was convinced she was going to be a professional stage actress. Then something happened. “I applied to study at the Interlochen Arts Academy — a prestigious arts academy for talented highschool arts students in Michigan, USA,” says Kashap. “I received a bigger scholarship to study music than I did to study theatre. The fact that I didn’t have the money to pursue [acting] was a big deal. I ended up taking the scholarship to study piano, thinking that I would somehow weasel my way into the theatre classes and productions while I was there.” Things didn’t play out exactly as she planned. Sure, she took some theatre course, but at Interlochen she was exposed to a level of playing she’d never experienced before. She met kids from China, South Korea, Russia and Japan that all played so well. Kashap was floored. She holed herself away in a small practice room with a big piano in the middle, and spent hour after hour practicing Bach preludes and fugues, Argentinian music by Alberto Ginastera, Mozart sonatas, Brahms intermezzi. Slowly she became obsessed with music. And by the end of her days at Interlochen, she was torn. Did she want to be a pianist? An actress? A lawyer? Something else? Kashap had no clue. After graduating she went to a small midwestern school called Lawrence University. That experience didn’t last long. Still confused about what to do with her life, Kashap dropped out after her first year, and returned home to Saskatchewan to plan her next move. Where she ended up was at McGill’s Schulich School of Music in Montreal. She became heavily immersed in music again, practiced piano endlessly and strove to be the best pianist she could be. “In preparation for the Knigge piano competition in 2010, I went a little overboard,” remembers Kashap.
“I would go to school at 7:30am and not leave until 11pm, taking only two or three hours a day for eating and school work. The rest of the hours were spent practicing [nine to 11 hours a day] … being in a secluded room alone, with nothing but a metronome and my music sheets. I went a little crazy during this time.” These were hard times for Kashap. Later in her McGill years she would call her mother most days, crying, trying to describe the debilitating sadness of sitting in a practice room all day, alone, isolated. It’s a sadness that followed her around, lingering just over her shoulder like an ever-present shadow. It wasn’t until she went to the Banff Centre in the summer of 2011 that the shadow would disappear. There, practicing piano in her own private studio overlooking the Rocky Mountains, she was happy. The music was more satisfying, she finally felt comfortable. There, she also met the man who would show her a path back to acting.
Photo: Courtesy of Yair Haklai
It’s a cold, wintry Saturday. Helen Kashap has just arrived in New York. She’s sitting in the back of a taxi with a folded up piece of paper and purse full of bottled water and
Continued on next page »
5 may 30 – June 5 @verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
news + opinion
lemon wedges on the seat next to her. Kashap feels a little insane. She should be back practicing piano, working her way towards her Master of Music diploma. But here she is in New York City, on her way to Greenwich Village, getting ready to audition for a spot in the esteemed HB Acting Studio. The same studio where Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Steve McQueen and Anne Bancroft all studied.
She arrives an hour before her audition. Out of the taxi now, Kashap walks around the Village reciting old tongue twisters from her Gateway Theatre days. She does this to massage her tongue and face for vocal rehearsal. At one point she takes out her phone and starts reciting her monologues into dead air. She may feel crazy at the moment, but she doesn’t want to appear crazy to random passersby. What is she doing? She’s in the middle of her Master’s program and
Photo: courtesy of eric mull Continued on next page »
6 may 30 – June 5 news + opinion
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
yet she flies to New York (with money she doesn’t have) for a few hours just to audition? What was she thinking? When she’s ready, Kashap makes her way up a tree-lined street and into the HB Acting Studio. She knows all about this place. Ever since she’d been told about it back in Banff, she’s been doing research. She knows about the studio’s legacy, knows the history and how high the stakes are. But no amount of research prepares her for the feeling she gets when she first walks through the door. “There is a certain amount of intangible magic that comes from just walking into a place like that,” she says. “You walk in and it’s kind of dark. It has this beautiful quality to it. And there’s a reverence for the place. The people that are there, you can tell there’s a respect for the craft and the space. It can’t describe it other than saying it’s just magic.” The spell is put on hold when a handsome young man from Orange County — a guy who went through the program last year — greets Kashap near the entrance and tells her she’s next in line. Kashap goes to the warm-up room and takes out the folded piece of paper she had in the car. On it are hand-written monologues she’s been practicing for weeks now. She unfolds the paper, starts diligently reading and re-reading her lines. Then her name is called.
“You know, you just don’t understand,” Kashap is saying. “You don’t know what it’s like to walk in that room. You know, there’s always some girl on the other side of the desk and she’s got a stack of pictures…” This is part of the monologue Kashap is reciting. From the play The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window, it’s about a young girl who’s speaking about the harrowing prospect of walking into a room and auditioning. Kashap is in tune with the character — how couldn’t she be? She’s in that exact situation at this exact moment. The room she’s in is a mediumsized studio space. There are five or six actor panelists. Earlier, when she walked in the room wide-eyed and curious, they all shook her hand and
introduced themselves. Now they watch Kashap’s every move, listen to her every word. Kashap continues with her monologue, line after line. Then she does another monologue. She’s surprised with what’s coming out of her. By the time she’s halfway through her performance she finds her old theatre stride again, and gets to a place of comfort — a place where she begins connecting with the audience. When she’s finished they give her a small but encouraging round of applause. This is when the interviews begin. “[The interview process is] intense, very epic in scope,” says Kashap. One of the directors of the program asks what Kashap wants to get out of the program. She doesn’t know, has no clue what the program really entails, so how is the supposed to know what she wants from it? Kashap answers anyway, saying something about how she hopes the program will re-immerse her in a world that she loves. A world she left behind for music. Kashap says a lot of things during the interview process, but she doesn’t remember much of it, as most passes in a blur. What she does recall, however, is the feeling she had while being questioned. She felt inspired and excited. She felt like she was finally home. At the end of the audition, one of the actresses in the room looks at her sincerely, and says, “Helen … this program is very, very demanding. It will question everything you know, and it will make you re-think your identity. You must be comfortable living in the unknown … and comfortable sitting with ambiguity.” Helen carries those words back with her.
play shows in places like Toronto and Saskatoon. Then it’s off to New York. “This is a bit of an insane project,” says Kashap. “And it’s an incredible pursuit. For a recent graduate who is consumed in debt from previous educational projects and pursuits, and who grew up with no money and has
never really had any money, it’s really going out on a limb and risking a lot.” But deep down inside, Kashap knows the risk is worth the reward. She knows it’s time to throw caution to the wind, to follow her heart and pursue her dreams. It’s a dream that almost slipped away. A dream she’s had since she was a little girl
standing in that warehouse, her voice echoing strongly through the room. Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372
@VerbSaskatoon ahawboldt@verbnews.com
A letter from the HB Acting Studio arrives a few weeks later. Kashap tears it open and quickly scans it. She’s been accepted; the program starts in September. Between receiving her acceptance letter and September, though, there’s a lot to do. She has to graduate from the Cleveland Institute of Music, and do two recording sessions — one in Montreal, the other in Aspen, Colorado. She also has to
7 may 30 – June 5 /verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
news + opinion
editorial
Down with the dairy mafia Canadian dairy policy hurts everyone, and we should scrap it
H
ave you ever been to the grocery store to pick up a block of cheese or a carton of milk and thought, Egads! This is rather expensive? If so, you’re not alone. The dairy prices in Canada are wildly inflated, especially when you compare them to the prices in, say, America. These high prices in Canada are a result of our archaic and costly policy of dairy supply management. And we think it needs to change. Here’s how it works: the price of dairy products (whether it be milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, etc.) is set by the dairy farmers themselves. Or rather, by a pseudo-cartel called the Canadian Dairy Commission. This regulatory body fixes prices based on cost of production plus what they the producers (and not the market) determines is an appropriate profit. Tariffs are then slapped on top of these fixed prices by the federal government in order to limit competition from other countries. These tariffs range from, oh, 246 percent for cheese to nearly 300 percent for butter. This keeps American dairy producers out of our market because, well, it’s not cost effective for farmers south of the border to pay these tariffs. Then, on top of all this, in order to prevent overproduction the government established quotas. By controlling production through these quotas,
supply management becomes an attractive enterprise because it is very profitable. Currently, each cow is worth roughly 30,000 dollars, which averages to a little over two million per average farm. Clearly, the system benefits a few at the top while gouging consumers. And that’s a problem In a day and age when every cent matters, the average family is paying nearly $300 more a year than they should be for dairy. For low-income, single-parent families with small children, this hits home hard. So much so that many of our more vulnerable consumers will forgo buying milk and instead purchase something more affordable — like pop — which can contribute to things like obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis and a host of other maladies. But it’s not just consumers the supply management system hurts. Manufacturers and exporters take it on the chin because Canada’s insistence on protecting a few farmers at the top sets them at a serious disadvantage when it comes to trade negotiation in international markets. Oh, and don’t forget food processors. Here in Canada, we lose out on potential food processing jobs (cheese, butter, yogurt makers) because those who want to sell on the international market tend to locate their plants — and their jobs — outside of Canada in order to compete because, simply put, our milk is far too expensive.
Now you may be thinking: this sounds pretty bad, but at least the farmers are benefiting from this policy. Unfortunately, that’s not the case, because supply management actually harms most of them. Think about it: because of these artificially inflated prices and tariffs, dairy farmers are losing out on exporting their goods to lucrative, international markets. On top of that, they’re also losing sales to less expensive dairy substitutes, like butteroil/sugar blends. These substitutes are not subject to import tariffs and are brought into Canada by producers of ice cream and other products. It’s estimated this alone results in a $70 million loss to farmers every year. Supply management is a broken system that does more harm than good, and we should scrap it. Check back next week for our thoughts on how we can move past this policy to create a dairy industry that works for producers and consumers. 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
@VerbSaskatoon feedback@verbnews.com
8 may 30 – June 5 news + opinion
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
comments
On Topic: Last week we asked what you thought about allowing the Idaho stop in Saskatchewan. Here’s what you had to say:
– If bikes can just role thru a stop sign if no oncoming traffic than why not cars oh because its dangeorus? Right. What a stupid idea. The rules of the road are the way they are now because they work. So if they work why change?
a vehicle. It is dangerous and confusing when treated otherwise. text yo thoughtsur to 881 ve r B 8372
– Bikes going through red lights when safe good idea cars should b able to do same thing
poor man endured, and I think it was a story that was respectfully told. I had the pleasure of hearing Mr Waisman speak and it is good for his words to get out. We must not forget what the face of war looked like. In response to “Remembrance of things
– Any person or vehicle that just passes through any stop sign is just asking to get hit by another vehicle, especially when you cannot see clearly around the corner Truth Is Power-Try It
– Yes yes! The Idaho stop makes a lot of sense. As an avid cyclist, I always will roll through the stop. Of course we need to be attentive for other cyclists who may be speedily rolling through stops too. Also, drivers should be reminded to treat cyclists at a four-way like
past,” Local #289 (May 9, 2014)
– I pray for the bicyclists who feel the need to use major traffic streets where a sidewalk designated for both pedestrians and bycilists runs prallel.. Example Attridge
– As a biker, the Idaho stop is extremely practical for the safety of bikers and drivers. If drivers are irked by the fact we can continue through a stop sign, maybe the jealousy will transcend and get them to hop on a bike instead! ;)
– The Idaho stop is a great idea for biking in Saskatoon. – YES! I have been using the Idaho stop for years, and it is a practical, safe thing to do for cyclists. I think it would be great if bikers and drivers alike were given a refresher on rules of the road, too — cyclists are like vehicles!
– I agree with your proposal to bring the Idaho Stop here. If executed properly it is extremely safe. And drivers: please remember to give bikes the benefit of the doubt. We aren’t allowed to ride on sidewalks, we know we can’t pedal as fast as you can drive, but we’re conscious of where you are and will do our best to get out of your way and let you pass us, safely, as soon as we’re able.
SOUND OFF – Ha! The new stadium is already in money trouble. The promo was trying to butter us up for the bad news. Weasels always use the incremental sell!
– Climate change is happening, caused by fossil fuel. We’re not going to stop using FF til its all gone. We’ll have just do our best to live in the new climate!
– Turks and Caicos in the Caribbean joining Canada as the 11th province?? Why not?! The Americans have Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean as the 50th state of the USA!! B-)
OFF TOPIC – Excellent piece on Jae Ford. What a brave young man to make himself so vulnerable by sharing an experience that is so personal with you. I really enjoyed it; it was a very well written story. Any chance of a follow-up with him, once he’s out of Dube? Would be wonderful to keep up with such an inspiring young man. Anyway thank you again! In response to “Let’s talk about crazy,” Local #290 (May 16, 2014)
– Hi Verb I’m not sure if you will print this because the story is a little old and it seems like you try to keep things more recent, but you printed a story awhile back about Robbie Waisman, if you remember? Well I just wanted to congratulate your writer on doing such an excellent job. It was very meaningful for me to read about such a horrible experience that
– Spite is the lesser often mirthful brother of hate. Spite crimes. Spite groups. A love spite thing. Ethnic Spite. Certainly work of Heck’s Prince of dim light!
– RIP Maya Angelou, a wise poet whose words meant so much.
Next week: What do you think about changing dairy laws in Canada? Text in your thoughts to 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.
10 may 30 – June 5 news + opinion
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
q+a
Lost The Plot
Photos: courtesy of Jeff Bierk
Fiver’s Simone Schmidt on the stories that hide in plain sight by Alex J MacPherson
F
ollowing the disintegration of the Toronto alt-country outfit One Hundred Dollars, Simone Schmidt embarked on two new musical ventures — and emerged with two of the finest Canadian records of 2013. The Highest Order’s debut, If It’s Real, is a contemporary take on psychedelic country, complete with fuzzed-out guitars and buckets of reverb. Schmidt describes it as an album “you could just drive along to.” Although it was recorded with the same core group of musicians, Fiver’s Lost The Plot is an entirely different type of album. Schmidt conceived Fiver as an outlet for songs that didn’t fit anywhere else. Although the arrangements and musical textures are broadly similar to those of One Hundred Dollars and the Highest Order, Lost The Plot is
the most personal — and the most political — record Schmidt has ever written. Shaped by her urge to empower the voiceless, and anchored by her haunting, brooding alto, Lost The Plot is populated by characters struggling to be heard in a society dominated by louder voices. Most of the songs on the album explore the lives and concerns of women who do not conform to established standards or ideals. Schmidt’s determination to subvert or transform stereotypes about women manifests on songs like the spacey “Smoke & Steam” and the menacing “Rage of Plastics.” It is a moving song cycle — a testament to Schmidt’s raw talent and the weight of stories that hide in plain sight. On the eve of what she describes as her yearly trek out west, I caught up with Schmidt to learn more about
her most intimate — and powerful — songwriting project. Alex J MacPherson: You made Lost The Plot with the members of the Highest Order. At the beginning was there a difference between the two projects? Simone Schmidt: It just happened that the players from the Highest Order played on the Fiver record. That’s who I was playing with at the time. The Highest Order is a collaborative project. We all write the songs together, though Paul and I do most of that. In terms of arranging, we all have a hand in it. With Fiver, it’s just kind of my project for songs I want to hear played in particular ways. This record had to do with the fact that I’d been playing with Kyle and Simone and Paul for a year, and Continued on next page »
12 may 30 – June 5 culture
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
One Hundred Dollars wasn’t working anymore, so I wanted to hear these songs played in a certain way — and I knew that those guys could play.
narratives and not others. Much of the time, just on a lyrical and subject matter level, I’m trying to interject certain missing voices.
AJM: Do you write songs for specific projects, or does choosing which songs fit where come later?
AJM: Can you give me an example from Lost The Plot?
SS: I think I’m always writing songs, but I’m not writing towards records per se. So it’s not a question of Fiver or the Highest Order or whatever. It’s just who will play it the best? I think that Fiver’s a place where I put maybe the more difficult songs that I don’t take as lightly, because certainly coming from One Hundred Dollars I felt like I had a lot of songs that couldn’t be expressed by that unit of players. Fiver first emerged as a place for me to be able to control stuff. And now that I have that control in a project, I don’t so much yearn for it in that way, or I wouldn’t articulate that as the motivating force. Now, because I’ve had that control, I just look forward to playing with different people and being able to explore the songs in different ways. AJM: On Lost The Plot, you’re working in the North American folk and country traditions. What do you hope to contribute to those communities? SS: I’ve had great mentors who work in more traditional capacities within the folk scene. Someone like Chris Coole, who’s a great clawhammer banjo player and was also my guitar teacher when I first decided I had to learn guitar. He has a pretty traditional canon of songs he goes through, and I learned a lot of them. I think what I always hear are the missing voices. Whether it’s in the Appalachian canon or the 1970s country canon, I’m looking at whose voices are being overlooked, or questioning why I’m hearing certain
SS: If you look at “Rage of Plastics,” it’s a pretty dense song — I think of it as the centrepiece of that record. It’s the voice of a woman who’s working at an oil refinery, and she lives downwind of it and her husband’s sick. She gets asked to run for cancer in the middle of her day, during her lunch break, and her response is pretty acerbic and angry: she’s not going to pretend like she’s not herself part of the reason why people have cancer, and surely
about that, but I felt like it needed to be expressed. Culturally, her voice is one that I think goes unheard, and is often forfeited for a more cancer hero sweet narrative of collective grieving through going on the CIBC’s Run for the Cure. AJM: A lot of the characters on Lost The Plot are women. We get to see things from a perspective that, sadly, isn’t as common in popular culture. SS: These are things that I don’t think we tend to talk about too much. Even though rape and murder are definitely spoken abut in the old time tradition, I don’t hear many songs from the perspective of women. The Dixie Chicks did it with that song
…I’m looking at whose voices are being overlooked, or questioning why I’m hearing certain narratives and not others. simone schmidt
she’s going to endure and keep working because there’s no other choice. AJM: Meaning hers is a voice that is overlooked, or marginalized, in contemporary culture, or even the roots music tradition. SS: To me, in contemporary culture dealing with cancer, that voice is missing. I think we have a society that’s very much touched by environmental degradation and exploitation at work, exposure to occupational hazards, and we have a society that refuses to really admit that the way we’re living is causing our own sickness. That the way we’re working is causing our own sickness. It’s not a popular opinion to talk
“Earl.” For me, I’m always looking at the connections — just in life — between women and the land and our own voices not being recognized or heard. So I’m often interjecting from a feminist point of view.
culture where people have been cajoled into silence or distanced from any political action doesn’t mean that simply saying the truth is as good as acting. I think it’s important to do both, but they’re not the same.
AJM: You’ve said before that you don’t expect political music, or any political art, to actually change anything. Do you still believe that?
AJM: But these are still powerful songs. And I’m curious: if it’s not political, what power do songs — these or any other — have over you?
SS: I think that as someone who writes and also just acts in the world, I know that the songs are important insofar as they are of artistic importance. But I don’t think they’re the same as a political action, and I don’t think we should confuse those two things. Just because we live in a
SS: For me, a basic struggle is that of the spirit in this day and age. People are very depressed and people are very alone. Songs have been able to offer me comfort. Great lyricists have been able to take me on a trip, either totally away from my reality or make me feel as if I’m not
alone in the one I’m inhabiting. I’ve always appreciated those musicians who spoke my thoughts in a more eloquent and beautiful way, or were able to open me up to a new way of understanding the truth that I knew. So I think that songs can just be very nourishing for people. And, like any nourishment, provide strength for whatever they have to do. Fiver’s June 13 @ Vangelis Tavern (MoSoFest) $TBA Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372
@VerbSaskatoon amacpherson@verbnews.com
13 may 30 – June 5 @verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
culture
arts
end of an era
The Seahags’ new album could mark the end of the road for the Saskatoon bluegrass group by Alex J MacPherson
F
or most bands, recording a new album signals a new beginning. But for the Seahags, the release of Tarnished Gold might be the end. “Our future is still unknown,” says April Nechvatel, who plays banjo in the Saskatoon-based punk-folk group. “We don’t want to say that we’re splitting up, because that will limit us from playing any future shows. But we can’t play shows without Riki.” Nechvatel is referring to Riki Yandt, the Seahags’ guitarist and lead singer, who moved to Toronto two days after the band finished recording Tarnished Gold. “It was kind of bittersweet,” she adds. “End of an era, you know?” Formed in 2010, the Seahags consists of six women who share a fondness for raucous, bluegrass-inspired party music. Like their outlook on life, their approach to recording albums and playing shows is uninhibited and unrepentant. “I like that our image is kind of haggardly, because there’s less pressure to conform,” Nechvatel says with a laugh. “Especially as female musicians. We don’t dress up for our shows or anything; we can just be as gross as possible, and it’s fine — it’s part of our image.” The Seahags released their debut album, a collection of ten rockinfluenced bluegrass songs, in 2012. Good’n’Greasy was well-received, but it lacked the edge of the group’s notoriously raucous live performances. According to Nechvatel, this was because it was not recorded live off the floor. “We’re a messy band,” she laughs. “We’re a little rough around the edges. We just play.” Unlike its predecessor, Tarnished Gold was recorded live off the floor, meaning the musicians played the songs together in the same room; only the vocals were overdubbed. “It’s less produced, and a lot more raw,” Nechvatel says of the album, which the group recorded with Chad Mason at Sinewave Studios, which is located on
Photos: courtesy of Matt Braden
an acreage near Saskatoon. “I think it’s a lot more authentic to what we sound like. And obviously we’ve become better musicians.” The upshot is that Tarnished Gold sounds much better than its predecessor. The arrangements are more sophisticated, the instruments less compartmentalized. The best performances channel the sort of energy that only exists when a band is playing together in the same room. Perhaps more importantly, Tarnished Gold also reflects a fundamental change in the band’s sound, one Nechvatel characterizes as “a lot more mature.” Unlike most of the songs on Good’n’Greasy, which were played in bright major keys, the tracks that make up Tarnished Gold make frequent use of gloomy, brooding minor keys. “It’s less folk-poppy, if that makes sense,” Nechvatel says. “This one is less poppy, less sweet.” This is apparent on “Texas,” an ominously twangy ballad, and “Seasick,” a Celticinfluenced instrumental carried aloft by Lauren Tastad’s haunting fiddle. Other tracks, like “Those Golden Days,” pair typical Seahags gang vocals and unhinged guitar parts with more ambitious arrangements. The
upshot is a record that captures the band’s exuberant live performances, as well as their ventures into new musical territory. “It was important to us to finish what we started,” Nechvatel says of the record, which she describes as the culmination of the band’s four-year odyssey. “We released our last album in 2012, so we definitely had new songs. We’ve been playing those live, but it was a matter of getting them recorded, getting them out there for people, because our fate is unknown.” Nechvatel is reluctant to confirm or deny the band’s future because she doesn’t know what it will be. No one does. But if the worst should happen, if Yandt stays in Toronto, Nechvatel won’t be devastated: “If that’s what happens, I feel like we’re going out on a high note.” The Seahags June 6 @ Amigos $10 at the door Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372
@VerbSaskatoon amacpherson@verbnews.com
14 may 30 – June 5 culture
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
reviews
album reviews Sharon Van Etten — Are We There Jagjaguwar, May 2014 BY ALEX J MACPHERSON Sharon Van Etten’s remarkable new album, Are We There, explores the slow disintegration of a relationship. It is a catalogue of pain, a directory of anguish: hurt its creator is determined to document yet unable to escape. “Break my legs so I won’t walk to you / Cut my tongue so I can’t feel you,” Van Etten sings on the sprawling, sparsely-decorated “Your Love Is Killing Me,” before confessing: “All that I can do is what I can / With this pain you’ve given me.” Are We There is Van Etten’s fourth album, the follow-up to her 2012 breakthrough, Tramp. Like its predecessor, Are We There is deeply personal. But it is not a breakup record, or an attempt to make sense of the past. On
Are We There, Van Etten is not confessing sins, but telling stories as they unfold around her, inside her. And the album is more powerful for it. “You say I am genuine / I see your back hand again / I’m a sinner. I have sinned / We’re a half-mast flag in wind,” she sings on “Our Love,” a profound description of broken love that unfolds to the gentle pulse of a synthesizer and the snap of a snare drum. The quaking acoustic guitar ballad “Tarifa” finds her contemplating a love she can’t quite leave: “Everyone else hasn’t a chance / Don’t fail me now / Open arms rest.” Van Etten sings most of Are We There with a curious detachment, like she is watching her own tortured relationship unfold from afar, unable to intervene. The forthrightness of her lyrics combined with the soaring, haunting beauty of her alto is intoxicating. This
is echoed by the dense arrangements, which she oversaw alongside veteran producer Stewart Lerman. Are We There was constructed using just a few basic elements — pianos, guitars, synthesizers, muffled drums. Yet it feels heavy, almost claustrophobic. And it is relentless, like the cycle of pain Van Etten can chronicle but never escape. On the closer, a simple rock song titled “Every Time The Sun Comes Up,” she contemplates a future without the renewal of a new dawn: “Yeah, every time the sun comes up I’m in trouble / Imagine every time the sun comes up I see double.” And then she laughs — a throwaway bit of studio banter spliced into the track injects everything that came before with warmth, and maybe even hope.
Chromeo — White Women Last Gang Records, May 2014 BY ALEX J MACPHERSON Chromeo’s new album is a lot of fun. From the summery guitars and rubbery dance groove of “Jealous (I Ain’t With It)” to the flamboyant disco madness of “Fall Back 2U,” White Women is both infectious and eminently danceable. But the Montreal electrofunk duo’s fourth album is more than just a collection of forgettable club tracks. Behind its glossy sheen, underneath its slick textures, lurks a collection of strong, smart pop songs. Chromeo consists of David Macklovitch and Patrick Gemayel — Dave 1 and P-Thugg, respectively. They have described their musical collaboration as “the only successful Arab/Jew partnership since the dawn of human culture.” This is an exaggeration, but it captures the mordant humour and earnest self-examination that char-
acterizes so much of their catalogue — and which they work hard to hide behind layers of rippling synthesizers, sparkling guitars, and fuzzy bass lines. The duo’s ability to write songs that are both immediate and durable is evident on tracks like the anthemic “Jealous (I Ain’t With It)” and the punchy Toro Y Moi collaboration “Come Alive.” Both feature visceral, memorable grooves, and both find the group digging into a few major themes: neuroses, anxiety, and an earnest desire for simple, profound love. White Women is an upbeat record, defined to no small degree by the duo’s ability to craft exciting grooves. But even the more subdued tracks have something to offer. “Ezra’s Interlude,” which features Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig, achieves more with five lines than most pop songs ever will. A soaring, soulful vocal from Solange Knowles transforms “Lost On The Way Home” into one of the album’s highlights, a devastating breakup song
laced with hard truths: “When you’re up all night and you never make a sound / Where I’m not too far if you look around.” But White Women has problems, too. “Sexy Socialite” is an off-putting ode to wealth and excess that conjures up the spectre of L.M.F.A.O.’s onedimensional bro-rock. “Frequent Flyer” opens with a promising synth groove before lapsing into an unsettled series of pop platitudes. And then White Women is redeemed by “Fall Back 2U,” which is tremendously strange — the coda features a vocodor solo and a choir — tremendously entertaining, and captures just how good Chromeo can be.
Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372
@VerbSaskatoon amacpherson@verbnews.com
15 may 30 – June 5 /verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
culture
Feature
Photo: courtesy of the artist Continued on next page Âť
16 may 30 – June 5 culture
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
Dancing While You Wait
The Wet Secrets return with Free Candy and a generous helping of existential dread by Alex J MacPherson
R
eports of the Wet Secrets’ demise have been greatly exaggerated. In fact, the uniformed Edmonton garage pop outfit is more alive than ever. But drummer Trevor Anderson won’t blame you for thinking otherwise. After all, it’s been almost seven years since the band released an album. He and his bandmates occasionally donned their marching band jackets and dusted off their shakos for a night of raucous rock and roll, but most of their time was consumed by other projects. He describes the last few years as “an unofficial pseudo-hiatus.” And then everything changed. Last year, after a doughnut-fuelled meeting, Anderson and bassist and lead singer Lyle Bell, who also plays in the electropop outfit Shout Out Out Out Out, concocted a plan. “He had a cherry cheese danish and I had a honey cruller,” Anderson says with a laugh. “It was us literally making a list on a piece of scrap paper: what do we want the next five years to look like? Well, let’s record an album.” Making plans has always been antithetical to the Wet Secrets. The band was literally formed on a dare, after someone challenged them to write enough material to play a show in just seven days. Their first two records, 2005’s A Whale Of A Cow and 2007’s Rock Fantasy, were recorded in kitchens and basements. Both featured urgent, fuzzy pop songs tinged with a sense of impending disaster. Their conception of the future rarely stretched beyond the next few shows. But instead of attempting to replicate the madness that produced A Whale Of A Cow and Rock Fantasy — Anderson characterizes the latter as “a drunken weekend here, a drunken weekend there” — the Wet Secrets booked time in a professional studio, the Audio Department. Free Candy, which was released in February, reflects the context in which it was created. Whereas A Whale Of A Cow and Rock Fantasy sounded cramped and muffled, Free Candy is expansive and clear. Yet it doesn’t sacrifice the
sonic chaos, the gloriously unhinged pop antics, that made the band’s first records so much fun. The guitars are grimy, the synthesizers scraggly, and the horns punchy. The vocal hooks are bigger and more infectious than ever before. Put simply, Free Candy is a collection of gritty pop songs that juxtapose the Wet Secrets’ natural talent for dreaming up memorable hooks with their obvious fondness for violently loud chaos. “Sunshine” begins with a driving, overdriven bass line before unfolding into a soaring chorus laced with synthesizers and harmonies. “Get Your Sh*t Together” is a strange pastiche of bass and synth that finds Bell trading lines with the rest of the band. The rippling, psychedelic solo that defines “Floating In The Sky” suggests the Wet Secrets are interested in expanding their sound beyond the confines of a suburban basement. Despite its upbeat hooks and propulsive grooves, Free Candy is also the darkest album the Wet Secrets have ever made. Virtually all of the songs address death, most of them directly. “I’m out on my own / I’d rather go outside and die alone,” Bell sings on “Sunshine.” He echoes this sentiment on the funky, syncopated “I Don’t Think So”: Disappointment when you’re young / Sets you up for disappointment now that you’re old / Disenchantment all along? / Yeah I think so.” According to Anderson, the dismal subject matter on Free Candy reflects their outlook on life. “If you face the existential dread head-on,” he says, “you can chill out and dance while you wait.” Alex J MacPherson: Seven years is a long time to be on hiatus. Why did it take so long to make Free Candy? Trevor Anderson: We were busy with other things, and the band wasn’t our first priority. I was making films with my film company, [Dirt City Films]. Lyle was playing in Shout Out Out Out Out. He still is, but they were quite active and touring around. We
would just play shows, for the fun of it. But we weren’t making much of an effort. We had some lineup changes, which kind of slowed us down. And we had some real life to live in the meantime as well. Nothing too heavy, but certainly the band was changing. AJM: Is it true that the record that became Free Candy was actually your second attempt at making a third album? TA: Oh yeah, sure it was. We recorded some songs in Paul [Arnusch]’s basement. It went well, but when you’re doing it yourself and there’s no hard deadline you wind up with a million sessions. And then the files just get away from you. Once we decided we were really going to go for it, we figured the only way to actually not get caught up in that again would be to start from scratch. AJM: Was the experience fundamentally different this time, after seven years? TA: Yes, definitely. The first album was recorded on the fly. It was like, let’s see if we can put together a band and write a bunch of songs in one week. We started recording them because we were working so quickly we couldn’t remember the songs. And then we realized, we’ve got them recorded so we may as well release them. That’s where the kitchen-recorded, very low-res, DIY Whale Of A Cow came from. Rock Fantasy was more of an attempt to make a properly-recorded album, but we were doing it in Calgary when we could get down there. It stretched out over a period of about two years, really. And Nik Kozub, who’s a wonderful musician in his own right, and a terrific producer and recording engineer, did this very organized, wonderful, pro job. AJM: Did you enjoy the more organized, more professional, studio experience? TA: Oh my god. Heaven. Heaven! It was heaven to walk into Audio Department and have wonderfully talented,
organized Nik record us and mix us and send it away for mastering, send it away for manufacturing, and make a strategy to release it, get a team around us, start to build the right village. AJM: Did you have a pretty clear idea of what you wanted to achieve with Free Candy? TA: The goal was to just get ourselves back on the map, to let people know we’re actually here, we’re actually working, we still exist. But we were never officially on hiatus, which is why I describe it the way I do. We would take shows if we felt like it, but we also knew that no one knew what was going on with us. So we wanted to use this album to put ourselves back on the map, and really set ourselves up for the next album. AJM: Aside from the fact that this album sounds much better than Rock Fantasy, it feels like you pushed the boundaries of what this band can be on Free Candy. TA: These are things we definitely want to start exploring more in the next album. You can hear the beginnings of them now [on Free Candy], but we want to amplify them. Also, we put Emma Frazier in the band, on trombone, because Donna [Ball], who we love, fell in love with a Scottish bank fraud detective and so she was romantically absconded with to Glasgow. And sort of at the last minute in the recording process we realized, oh wow, Emma can really sing. We only got her really featured on two tracks, almost as a co-lead, on “Maybe We’ll Make A Plan” and “Sunshine.” But those were the only ones left when we made that discovery. In the future, we also want to write to feature her more. She’s kind of a secret weapon for us. AJM: This is also the darkest record you’ve ever made, even though the songs sound upbeat and poppy. Most of the songs seem to be about death, or at least hint at it.
TA: Yes it is. We say that it’s eleven pop knockouts about death, disappointment, and doing it — that’s the promo line we came up with. But we do certainly want that complex thing, catchy melodies that once you’re singing along to, you realize you’re singing about your own death. Something about Lyle’s and my own personality is that acknowledging it allows us to relax and have a better time. AJM: One track that stands apart from the rest is “What’s The F**king Point (Zenko’s Theme).” What’s the story behind that one? TA: It’s a ballad and it’s a very vulnerable admission. It’s sung from the points of view of two different people who are dying: a young person who knows they’re dying, and then an older person who knows they’re dying — the two verses. But then it breaks out into kind of a barroom singalong, with this kind of Monty Python parades-throughtown celebratory ending. Which is how we figured we could get out of something so bleak. Do you know the show Jubilee, in Vegas? It’s a topless show, but it’s got this innocence to it. They do themed numbers, like “Samson and Delilah” — classic Vegas showgirl kind of stuff. They did the sinking of the Titanic, right after Titanic had come out and it was a big deal. When the Titanic sank, I was like, how are they going to get out of this? All they did is march out in red, white, and blue with sparklers: “I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy!” You know, I admire that! That’s showbiz, kid. When in doubt, have a parade. The Wet Secrets June 7 @ Vangelis Tavern $TBA Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372
@VerbSaskatoon amacpherson@verbnews.com
17 may 30 – June 5 @verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
culture
food + drink
Photo: Courtesy of adam hawboldt
Chicken and beer Izumi offers Korean fried chicken and a host of other dishes from the Land of the Morning Calm by adam hawboldt
A
nyone who has ever been to Korea knows how popular fried chicken is there. It’s everywhere. In every small town there are a handful of fried chicken places that offer delivery. In every city,
each neighborhood is littered with chicken joints. They’re always full of people eating chicken and drinking beer — there’s always beer. And to be honest, it’s one of the things I miss most since moving
to Saskatoon. Why? Well, because Korean fried chicken isn’t like the stuff we get here. It’s fried twice, which results in a skin that’s lighter, crispier and less greasy than we’re accustomed to. It also comes with pickled radish. And there are a bunch of different types of Korean fried chicken to choose from (my personal favorite being a sweet and spicy concoction known as yangnyeom tongdak. Mmmm … yangnyeom tongdak! Up until recently, you couldn’t find this dish anywhere in Saskatoon. But a few months ago Izumi restaurant (which used to serve primarily Japanese cuisine) added a Korean section to their menu. On it was glorious fried chicken! Soon as a friend told me about this, I was on my way to Izumi. And you know what? The fried chicken there is as good as any I’ve ever had in Korea. I got a halfand-half plate (half regular fried chicken, half yangnyeom tongdak), and it was oh so good! The skin was flaky, the chicken moist and the yangnyeom chicken — the sauce of which is made from hot pepper
let’s go drinkin’ Verb’s mixology guide SUBAK SOJU (OR SOJU WATER-
INGREDIENTS
MELON COCKTAIL)
1 small seedless watermelons 1 bottle of soju 1 cup ice cubes
Do you know what the bestselling alcohol in the world was last year? It was soju, the national hooch of South Korea. It’s a clear, colourless, and potent alcohol. Some like to drink it straight, but if you want something a little more tasty, try this light and refreshing recipe. DIRECTIONS
Cut off the top of the watermelon. Scoop the flesh out with a spoon and put it in a blender. Set the watermelon bowl aside, you’ll need it later. Now blend the watermelon until smooth. Put it through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl to discard the pulp. Add soju. Pour the mixture into the watermelon bowl with ice cubes and serve.
paste, syrup, apple vinegar and a whole bunch of other stuff — was incredibly tasty. Toss in a beer or two, and you have yourself a mouth-watering meal, Korean style. It didn’t stop there, though. Since I don’t go out for Korean very often, I decided to have a couple of other dishes, too. The japchae (a delectable dish consisting of sweet potato noodles, sesame seed oil, veggies and beef) was excellent. So too was the tolsot bibimbap, a signature Korean dish of rice topped with veggies, beef and a fried egg served in a steaming hot bowl. Like all Korean meals, the food came served with banchan (side dishes). For that, there was kimchi — there’s always kimchi — and potatoes in a sweet glaze. Oh, and since Izumi is also a Japanese restaurant, I sunk my teeth into a few pieces of scrumptious sushi for desert. All in all, it was a tasty, authentic Korean meal. I might even go back as soon as Friday night. There’s live music there and I suddenly have a hankering for my favorite Korean dish, dakdoritang.
Izumi Japanese and Korean Restaurant 3010 Arlington Avenue | (306) 652-9911
Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372
@VerbSaskatoon ahawboldt@verbnews.com
18 may 30 – June 5 entertainment
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
music
Next Week
coming up
We Are The City
Library Voices
Sarah McLachlan
@ Kinsmen Hall (mosofest) Friday, June 13 – $81.29
@ Kinsmen Hall (mosofest) Saturday, June 14 – $81.29
@ TCU Place Saturday, November 1 – $60+
(for festival pass)
(for festival pass)
We Are The City had barely finished their first album, 2009’s In a Quiet World, when they started making plans to put out their next record. Before they got around to doing that, though, a couple of things happened. First, they won $150,000 in 2010 in the Peak Performance Project. Then, later that same year, guitarist David Menzel quit the band and their second album was put on hiatus. Eventually Menzel reunited with Cayne McKenzie and Andrew Huculiak, and the talented trio from Kelowna got to work on that album they’d already begun to plot. The result was Violent — a swooning, ambitious record that fuses pop-inspired songs with prog-rock tendencies and shoegazing guitar licks. They’ll be performing for MoSoFest; see moso2014. com for more information.
A lot of collective bands don’t work well because, to put it plainly, they sound convoluted — too many competing voices and sounds, not enough cohesion. That isn’t the case with Regina’s Library Voices, whose smoothly edited music full of sweeping guitars, upbeat keyboards and catchy melodies is harmonic. Originally a 10-piece, these days Library Voices have scaled things back a bit. But the longtime prairie-based musicians’ sound hasn’t suffered at all. In fact, some might say these guys are great and getting better all the time. Not to mention that their album, Summer of Lust, has too many good songs to list here. This musical supergroup will be in town soon to perform during MoSoFest; see moso2014.com for more information.
Photo courtesy of: Kirsten Berlie/ the artist/ Simon Fraser University
Did you know that Sarah McLachlan used to be in a rock band? True story. Back when she was a highschool student in Halifax, she fronted a short-lived act called The October Game. Anyway, after playing her last gig with The October Game at Dalhousie University, McLachlan was offered a recording contract in Vancouver, and the rest, as they say, is history. Three Grammys, eight Junos and over 40 million records sold later, and the lady with the unmistakable mezzo-soprano voice is still going strong. Her latest album, Shine On, which was inspired by the death of her father, debuted at #4 on the US Billboard charts. She is about to embark on a North American tour to promote the album, and will roll through Saskatoon in November. Tickets available at tcutickets.com – By Adam Hawboldt
Sask music Preview The Stickman Drum Experience is taking place July 2-6 at Cedar Lodge, Dundurn, Saskatchewan. Stickman provides a one-of-a-kind experience for drummers of a wide range of ages and abilities with educators covering many styles. Players learn, jam, and hang with world-class musicians in a comfortable, non-competitive and creative atmosphere. The Third annual Stickman has confirmed another world-class lineup including Flo Mournier – Montreal (Cryptopsy), Gerald Heyward – New York (Beyonce), Jayson Brinkworth – Regina (Aaron Pritchett), Chis Dimas – Regina (YouTube Sensation), bassist Rob D – Regina (Sound Society) and many more. You will eat, sleep and breathe drums for 3 days and 4 nights! For more information and to register visit www.stickmandrumexperience.com
19 may 30 – June 5 /verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
entertainment
listings
may 30 » june 7 The most complete live music listings for Saskatoon. S
1
M
2
T
3
W
T
4
5
30 31 6
7
Friday 30 House DJs / 6Twelve Lounge — Funk, soul & lounge DJs liven up the atmosphere at 6Twelve. 9pm / No cover Castle River / Amigos Cantina — With The Little Brothers. 10pm / Cover TBD
Kim Salkeld / The Bassment — Feel like taking in some smooth jazz stylings? 4:30pm / No cover Back of the Bus, The Residuals / The Bassment — A pair of local celtic acts. 9pm / $17/$23 Flashback Fridays / Béily’s UltraLounge — The best of the 80’s, 90’s & top 40 hits of today. 9pm / $5 cover Guy and the Fellas / Bon Temps — A local rockabilly/swing band. 9pm / Cover TBD Screamer / Buds — Local band playing classic rock. 9pm / Cover TBD BPM / Diva’s — Resident DJs spin electro/ vocal house music. 10pm / $5 DJ Eclectic / The Hose & Hydrant — Local turntable whiz DJ Eclectic pumps snappy electronic beats. 8pm / No cover 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 Jett Run / Piggy’s — Some good ol’ rock and roll. 9pm / Cover TBD Two Tall Dudes / Prairie Ink — Playing pop/acoustic tunes. 8pm / No cover DJ Stikman / Rain — Come and get your weekend started! 9pm / Cover TBD Where’s My Mullet / Somewhere Else Pub — Playing good, ol’ fashion drinking tunes. 9pm / No cover Red Blaze / Stan’s Place — A rocking good night. 9pm / Cover TBD Life in a Vacuum / Underground Cafe — With Congratulations, Silent Era + more. 8pm / Cover TBD Powder Blue / Vangelis — With Devonian Gardens and Latcho Drom. 10pm / $12 (ticketedge.ca)
Saturday 31 House DJs / 6Twelve — Resident DJs spin deep and soulful tunes all night. 9pm / No cover The Faps / Amigos Cantina — With guests, Old Towns. 10pm / Cover TBD Barrie Redford and Ross Ulmer Quintet / The Bassment -Two of the province’s most notes jazz musicians playing together. 8pm / $15/$20 DJ Aash Money + DJ Sugar Daddy / Béily’s UltraLounge — These two DJs throw down a dance party every Saturday night. 9pm / $5 cover Screamer / Buds — Local band playing classic rock. 9pm / Cover TBD Chad Reynolds / Capitol Music Club — With The Dead South. 9pm / Cover TBD SaturGAY Night / Diva’s — Resident DJs spin exclusive dance remixes every Saturday. 10pm / $5 DJ Kade / The Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon’s own DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover DJ Goodtimes / Longbranch — Playing the hottest country music all night. 8pm / $4 cover Mazzfest / O’Brians Event Centre — Featuring Slumlord, Fall City Fall + many more. 1:30pm / $25+ DJ Big Ayyy & DJ Henchman / Outlaws Country Rock Bar — Round up your friends
‘cause there’s no better country rock party around. 8pm / $5 Jett Run / Piggy’s — Some good ol’ rock and roll. 9pm / Cover TBD Marc Holt Trio / Prairie Ink — Saxinfused jazz music. 8pm / No cover DJ Stikman / Rain — Playing all the ladies’ favourites for girls night out! 9pm / Cover TBD Where’s My Mullet / Somewhere Else Pub — Playing good, ol’ fashion drinking tunes. 9pm / No cover Red Blaze / Stan’s Place — A rocking good night. 9pm / Cover TBD DJ Anchor / Sutherland Bar — It’s the world famous video mix show! 10pm / Cover TBD Silent Sea / Underground Cafe — Local indie rock band with folk/alt roots. 9pm / Cover TBD Towodo / Vangelis — With Subtle Like a T-Rex. 10pm / Cover TBD
Sunday 1
Industry Night / Béily’s UltraLounge — Hosted by DJ Sugar Daddy; this crowd favourite has always been known to break the latest and greatest tracks in multiple genres. 9pm / $4; no cover for industry staff Acoustic Night / Buds — Featuring. 9pm / Cover TBD DJ KADE / The Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover Blues Jam / Vangelis Tavern — The Vangelis Sunday Jam is an institution, offering great tunes from blues to rock and beyond. 7:30pm / No cover
Monday 2
Hot Club / Bon Temps Cafe — Come out for a swinging good time. 7pm / Cover TBD DJ Audio / Dublins — Spinning dope beats. 9pm / Cover TBD Caves / Vangelis — With Fountain, Phalec Baldwin, Heaven for Real. 9pm / Cover TBD
Tuesday 3
DJ SUGAR DADDY / The Double Deuce — Able to rock any party, this crowd favourite has always been known to break the latest and greatest tracks in multiple genres. 9:30pm / $4 cover DJ Nick Ruston / Dublins — Spinning dope beats. 9pm / Cover TBD Verb presents Open Mic / Rock Bottom — Come and rock the stage! 9pm / No cover Open Mic / The Somewhere Else Pub — Come out to show your talent. 7pm / No cover Carmanah / Underground Cafe — With guests, Sonorific. 8pm / Cover TBD Continued on next page »
20 may 30 – June 5 entertainment
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
Wednesday 4 DJ Modus / 302 Lounge & Discotheque — Spinning all your favourite tracks. 9pm / No cover until 10pm; $3 thereafter Salsa Night / Béily’s — Latin music and salsa dance lessons. 8:30pm / Cover TBD DJ Memo / Dublins — Spinning dope beats. 9pm / Cover TBD DJ Night / Flint — Regular and guest DJs spin electronic, rap, indie rock and more. 8:30pm / No cover DJ Kade / The Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover Buck Wild Wednesdays / Outlaws — Come out and ride the mechanical bull! 9pm / $4; no cover for industry staff The Nobles / Rock Creek (Willowgrove) — Great tunes in an inviting environment. 8pm / No cover
DJ Stikman / Rain — Come and get your weekend started! 9pm / Cover TBD Spent Penny / Stan’s Place — Come out for a rockin’ good time. 9pm / No cover The Northern Light / Vangelis — With Doug Hoyer, Jesse and the Dandelions. 10pm / Cover TBD
Saturday 7
House DJs / 6Twelve — Resident DJs spin deep and soulful tunes all night. 9pm / No cover Chad VanGaalen / Amigos Cantina — With Viet Cong. 10pm / $15 (ticketedge.ca) Jazz Singer Fest II / The Bassment — Featuring Sarah Anderson, Grant Currie + more. 8pm / $17+ DJ Aash Money + DJ Sugar Daddy / Béily’s — These two DJs throw down a dance party every Saturday night. 9pm / $5 cover
Le Groove and Phoenix / Bon Temps Cafe — Like good music? Don’t miss this. 9pm / Cover TBD Moka Only / Capitol — Swollen Members rapper headlines a night of DJs! 9pm / $10 SaturGAY Night / Diva’s — Resident DJs spin exclusive dance remixes every Saturday. 10pm / $5 DJ Kade / The Hose & Hydrant — Saskatoon’s own DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover DJ Goodtimes / Longbranch — Playing the hottest country music all night. 8pm / $4 cover DJ Big Ayyy & DJ Henchman / Outlaws Country Rock Bar — Round up your friends ‘cause there’s no better country rock party around. 8pm / $5 Camille and Dale / Prairie Ink — Acoustic soul/blues/R&B. 8pm / No cover
DJ Stikman / Rain — Playing all the ladies’ favourites for girls night out! 9pm / Cover TBD Spent Penny / Stan’s Place — Come out for a rockin’ good time and some great tunes. 9pm / No cover DJ Anchor / Sutherland Bar — It’s the world famous video mix show! 10pm / Cover TBD
The Gay Nineties / Vangelis — With The Wet Secrets. 10pm / Cover TBD
Get listed Have a live show you'd like to promote? Let us know! layout@verbnews.com
Thursday 5
The Pistolwhips / Capitol Music Club — Come out for the annual fundraiser to rebuild schools in the Congo! 6pm / $15+ DJ Kade / The Hose — Saskatoon DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover DJ Goodtimes / Longbranch — Playing the hottest country music. 8pm / $4 cover Tanner James + Sean Hamilton / Underground Cafe — Sweet folk/punk tunes. 9pm / Cover TBD Pop Crimes / Vangelis — With Haunted Souls and Riot Porn. 10pm / Cover TBD Open Stage / The Woods — Hosted by Steven Maier. 9pm / No cover
Friday 6
House DJs / 6Twelve Lounge — Funk, soul & lounge DJs liven it up. 9pm / No cover The Seahags / Amigos — Old-timey country garage music. 10pm / Cover TBD Piano Fridays: Paul Suchan / The Bassment — Feel like taking in some smooth jazz stylings? 4:30pm / No cover Anderson Burko / The Bassment — An engaging roots duo. 9pm / $15+ Flashback Fridays / Béily’s UltraLounge — The best of the 80’s, 90’s & top 40 hits of today. 9pm / $5 cover Blackwater / Capitol Music Club — With the Grove. 9pm / Cover TBD BPM / Diva’s — Resident DJs spin electro/ vocal house music. 10pm / $5 DJ Eclectic / The Hose — Local turntable whiz pumps snappy beats. 8pm / No cover DJ Big Ayyy & DJ HENCHMAN / Outlaws — Round up your friends ‘cause there’s no better country rock party around. 8pm / $5 Barrel and Crate / Prairie Ink — Playing country tunes. 8pm / No cover
21 may 30 – June 5 @verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
entertainment
film
Revising a classic
Photo: Courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Maleficent is a visually arresting, interesting take on Sleeping Beauty by adam hawboldt
W
hat is it with all these revisionist fairy tales? Why is it that people, all of a sudden, want to rehabilitate cartoon villains and update classic stories? I mean, they did it to Elphaba in the Broadway smash hit Wicked and to the Snow Queen in Frozen. Now Disney has decided to revisit Sleeping Beauty and show the world that Maleficent — the dark, evil, green-faced antagonist of that story — isn’t all bad. She’s just misunderstood, a victim of emotion and circumstance. That’s the gist of Angelina Jolie’s new movie, Maleficent. And to be honest, it’s a pretty good flick. Directed by Robert Stromberg, Maleficent begins in a classic way — with a storybook themed narration. A narration that tells the viewer about two realms, two rival kingdoms. There is the realm of the humans, and the realm of the fairies and trolls and wickermen.
Big mistake. Why? Because, without letting the cat out of the bag too much, Stefan ends up betraying Maleficent in a big, bad way! And this stunning betrayal begins to harden Maleficent, turning her into the icyhearted villain we first met in 1959. Let us stop her for a brief moment so I can point something out. While the opening of the film does a good job at
It’s in the latter realm that we first meet Maleficent. She hasn’t yet become the villain we know (and some of us love). No, in the beginning she’s a sweet-natured, magnificent-winged fairy child. She’s so sweet, in fact, that she uses her magical powers to heal a broken twig, and helps keep peace in the land. Then one day she meets a young man from the human world named
…there is no two ways about it: Jolie carries Maleficent, and does so majestically. Adam Hawboldt
world building and character construction, to be honest it’s kind of dull and a bit of a let down.
Stefan. The two form an unlikely bond, and eventually Maleficent falls for the young lad.
But once Maleficent become the Maleficent we know (played wonderfully by Angelina Jolie), the movie really gets rolling. Fueled by bitterness and revenge, the adult Maleficent decides to get her pound of flesh by going after Stefan’s baby daughter, Aurora, and placing that famous curse on her. The one that involves a pricked finger, a spinning wheel, and a whole lot of sleep. After that, the story takes another turn. In the beginning, as previously mentioned, Maleficent was sweet. Then she became bitter and vengeful. Then, as she watches the already cursed Aurora grow older, she becomes fascinated by her innocence and her compassion. Maleficent soon begins to think Aurora may be the perfect person to bring the human and fairy worlds together, and is forced to deal with the repercussion of her actions. Although the film’s momentum lags at times, there is no two ways about
Maleficent Robert Stromberg Starring Angelina Jolie, Sharlto Copley + Elle Fanning Directed by
97 MINUTES | PG
it: Jolie carries Maleficent, and does so majestically. In a movie that is so visually compelling, Jolie holds her own, and easily. Basically, Maleficent peels away the rigid notions of good and evil to show that there’s more to life than just black and white. And it does it in a visually arresting, mostly entertaining style.
Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372
@VerbSaskatoon ahawboldt@verbnews.com
22 may 30 – June 5 entertainment
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
Enter the mind of a monstrous miscreant
Filth introduces filmgoers to an anti-hero they won’t soon forget by adam hawboldt
Photo: Courtesy of Lionsgate
filth Jon S. Baird Starring James McAvoy, Eddie Marsan + Jim Broadbent Directed by
97 minutes | R
T
hey said Filth was an unfilmable novel. They said it couldn’t be made. Many had attempted before, everybody failed. Everyone thought it was a dead project. Hell, even the book’s author — the incomparable Irvine Welsh — thought it was impossible. He went so far as to promise to get a tattoo in honour of the film should it ever get made. What made Filth so unfilmable? Well, anyone who has read the book knows that one of its defining features is a tapeworm that grows inside of the main character. A tapeworm that occasionally interrupts the narrative to ask existential questions and to give the reader insight into the character’s conscience. No one really knew how to work this into the movie … then along came director/screenwriter Jon S. Baird. He had an interesting idea. His plan was to take the tapeworm out and boil the complex book down to its core. The result was terrific. So terrific, in fact,
that Welsh ended up getting that tattoo he’d promised. So what is Filth about? It’s about a Scottish detective named Bruce Robertson. Robertson is a real scumbag, a lying, cheating, corrupt, thieving, racist, misogynistic, drug-and-alcohol-fueled, homophobic son-of-a-bitch. The kind of guy who would trample his own mother (and proceed to kick her teeth down her throat) if she stood in the way of his goals. We first meet Robertson (played here by James McAvoy) in the wake of a grisly murder. I’d like to tell you he’s hellbent on solving this crime, but the truth of the matter is he’s far too busy stepping over and sabotaging colleagues so he can win a promotion. And that, for all intents and purposes, is the plot of Filth. It’s a story about a guy who f*cks over everyone while trying to climb the ladder to the top of the totem pole. Thing is, though, that Filth is about so much more than a plot. As the story progresses — as he has sex with his friends’ wives, indulges in S&M, or blackmails a 14-year-old girl into giving him fellatio — the plot becomes almost secondary to character. A character who we follow through hell and back, on a scabrous journey towards his ultimate mental, physical and emotional breakdown.
Any way you slice it, Robertson is disgusting and despicable. It’s hard to relate to or feel sympathy for a guy like that. But somehow McAvoy makes you laugh at and with Robertson. At times he almost makes you care about the character. The whole movie hinges on McAvoy’s performance, and he doesn’t disappoint. As a result, Filth ends up being a movie any fan of in-your-face cinema should see. No, it isn’t perfect. The scenes featuring Robertson’s psychologist (Jim Broadbent) — scenes which are meant as standins for the tapeworm portions of the novel — never really hit the right pitch. And for some reason Baird left out the chronic hemor-
rhoids and flaky balls that constantly afflict Robertson in the novel. But overall, Filth is a slick, trippy journey into the life and mind of one of the best anti-heroes you’ll ever see on film. Filth is currently being screened at Roxy Theatre.
Feedback? Text it! (306) 881 8372
@VerbSaskatoon ahawboldt@verbnews.com
23 may 30 – June 5 /verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
entertainment
nightlife
saturday, may 24 @
outlaws
Outlaws Country Rock Bar 710 Idylwyld Drive North (306) 978 0808
Check out our Facebook page! These photos will be uploaded to Facebook on Friday, June 6. facebook.com/verbsaskatoon
Photography by Patrick Carley
Continued on next page Âť
24 may 30 – June 5 entertainment
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
Photography by Patrick Carley
26 may 30 – June 5 entertainment
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
saturday, May 24 @
capitol
Capitol Music Club 244 1st Avenue North (306) 244 0772
Check out our Facebook page! These photos will be uploaded to Facebook on Friday, June 6. facebook.com/verbsaskatoon
Photography by DillyBat Productions Continued on next page Âť
27 may 30 – June 5 /verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
entertainment
nightlife
Photography by DillyBat Productions Continued on next page Âť
28 may 30 – June 5 entertainment
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
nightlife
29 may 30 – June 5 @verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
entertainment
comics
Š Elaine M. Will | blog.E2W-Illustration.com | Check onthebus.webcomic.ws/ for previous editions!
30 may 30 – June 5 entertainment
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
VerbNews.com
timeout
crossword canadian criss-cross 28. Moving part in a loom 30. Town on Newfoundland 33. Two-master 37. Baseball stat. 38. Capital of Switzerland 40. Four-legged female 41. New Testament book 43. Without any changes 45. Even the score 46. One who makes and alters clothing 48. Filled with joy 50. Set out 51. Cringe in fear 52. Use acid to make a picture 53. Wide-mouthed pitcher
1. Family who rents an apartment 2. Once owned 3. Historical periods 4. German industrial city 5. Transported goods 6. Computer-sharing setup 7. Muslim ruler 8. Think over so as to understand 9. Hazardous gas 11. Computer messages 12. One of the Three Bears 14. East end of a church 17. Is important 20. Main point 22. Kimono fabric
A
25. Fish of the carp family 27. Appear to be 29. Dig up 30. Achievement 31. Killer whales 32. Any bird with a flat breastbone 34. Turn into a rag B 35. Town employee of yore 36. Pay attention to 39. Daughter of one’s brother 42. Crate component 44. Not happening in a short time 47. Sea monster 49. Feeling of admiration
3 7 9 8 6 4 2 1 5 1 2 8 5 9 3 4 7 6 6 5 4 7 2 1 3 8 9 5 3 7 6 8 2 9 4 1 4 6 2 9 1 7 5 3 8 9 8 1 3 4 5 7 6 2 2 9 3 1 7 8 6 5 4 7 1 6 4 5 9 8 2 3 8 4 5 2 3 6 1 9 7
1. Pronoun in a wedding pledge 5. Escaped from 9. Brings up 10. Fibre similar to flax 12. Animals with eye patches 13. Mystery 15. A programming language 16. Big rig 18. Strip the fields 19. Early video game 21. Reminds constantly 23. Bro’s sibling 24. Playful prank 26. One of the floral emblems on the flag of Montreal
© walter D. Feener 2014
sudoku answer key
DOWN
1 4 5 9 6 8 3 7 2 2 6 9 3 7 4 8 1 5 7 8 3 1 5 2 6 9 4 6 9 1 4 8 7 5 2 3 8 5 2 6 3 1 9 4 7 4 3 7 2 9 5 1 6 8 9 2 6 5 4 3 7 8 1 5 7 4 8 1 9 2 3 6 3 1 8 7 2 6 4 5 9
ACROSS
Horoscopes may 30 - June 5 Aries March 21–April 19
Leo July 23–August 22
Sagittarius November 23–December 21
You spend a lot of your time thinking and analyzing things, Aries. But this week, why not just go with the flow? It could surprise you.
More discipline is necessary if you want to get projects completed, dear Leo, and you do want to get them finished. More focus is needed right now.
This may be one of those weeks that seems like it will never end, Sagittarius. Don’t worry, though, it will — eventually.
Taurus April 20–May 20
Virgo August 23–September 22
Capricorn December 22–January 19
You’ll sail through this week with relative ease, Taurus, so enjoy it while it lasts. There could be some hard winds on the horizon.
You may be about to enter a phase of psychological transformation, Virgo. This week is going to be topsy-turvy, to say the least.
Don’t let a misunderstanding ruin an outing or a friendship, Capricorn. Take a beat and listen to what’s really being said. It could be valuable.
Gemini May 21–June 20
Libra September 23–October 23
Aquarius January 20–February 19
You’ll experience an unanticipated stroke of luck this week, Gemini. It’s not win-the-lottery luck, but it’ll still be good.
Feeling a tad worn out this week, Libra? That’s okay — there will soon be demands on your time, so take a breather while you can.
If you’ve been lacking energy lately, Aquarius, maybe this week is a good time to examine your diet. Freshening things up will be good for you.
Cancer June 21–July 22
Scorpio October 24–November 22
Pisces February 20–March 20
You’ll be filled with vitality and self-assuredness in the coming days, Cancer, and that’s a good thing. Just don’t get too carried away.
Don’t be afraid to be spontaneous this week, Scorpio. A leap of blind faith will take you places that you have only dreamed were possible.
Spend some time this week engaged in a discussion about philosophies and ideas. Open your mind, and you never know where it may take you.
sudoku
crossword answer key
4 9 6 2 6 8 1 5 3 5 2 9 9 1 8 7 2 8 4 3 2 5 1 6 3 7 7 4 1 3 8 7 6 4 5 9
A
7 1 1 2 5 3 4 7 6 4 2 1 5 6 9 6 2 1 7 3 8 9 3 7 2 3 8 6 5 4 5 9 8 8 4 9
B
31 may 30 – June 5 /verbsaskatoon
contents
local
editorial
comments
q+a
arts
Reviews
feature
food + drink
music
listings
film
nightlife
comics
timeout
entertainment
VerbNews.com