'I i^Nv- *
ROCOCODE
REDRICK SULTlH^
SLEUTH
TYRANAHORSE
FROM BIRCH TO YEW
SIZZLE TEEN RECORDS
ERIK OLSON
GRIMES EDITOR'S NOTE
This note's going to be a little weird as it's not quite ray last issue at Discorder,
but for all intents and purposes, this is goodbye. That sounds way too serious,
but it's the truth. My time here at the magazine is nearly done, so I give you
this as my sendofF.
Back in 1997, on my birthday, in fact, my friend Nick gave me a copy of His
Hero Is Gone's Monuments to Thieves—it's probably the Memphis-bred crust
band's best (unless you count their first seven-inch... or their first album. Let's
just say I'm still a fan). I was obsessed with them, and was extremely stoked
Nick picked it up for me. Upon that first listen, though, I noticed there was
something extra crammed inside the record jacket: a makeshift birthday card
he had written on a tattered piece of computer paper.
The year before, we had celebrated my birthday stumbling around Point
Grey, drinking Mike's Hard Lemonades that were gift-wrapped in cheap, thin
towels. The following year, we were out in Whalley at another friend's place
and I was a pretty sullen, judgmental straight-edge kid. Mind you, he wasn't.
The note reflected the distance between us: "Times change, people change;
underwear doesn't change." All three are compelling points (though the last
one is kind of gross), and kind of tie to an ironically consistent topic ofthe
last year of Editor's Notes. Life is always in such a state of flux, and while
sometimes it puts me in a state of panic, I totally embrace it. I know I had a
blast putting together Discorder, and I'll hang on to memories of loading up
on fries during production, meeting the cast of volunteers that come through
the doors of CiTR, and actually watching a group young writers develop with
each article they contribute. Some of you have made some incredible leaps
from where you were lastyear! But, it's time for me to make a jump of my own,.
and I wish you all the best.
So, yeah, change is everywhere. Cover star Grimes (a.k.a. Claire Boucher)
was raised in B.C., but she didn't really start making her exciting brand of
onomatopoeic new age electro until she moved out East. With the next year
of her life dedicated to supporting her stellar new Visions LP, she's temporarily
relocated to the West Coast. Though judging by Sarah Berman's feature, she
might be looking for a new locale in the near future.
Though having spent some time playing in Said the Whale and supporting
Tegan & Sara, the guys and gal in Rococode are currently undergoing a spotlight
shift of their own. The band's debut LP Guns, Sex & Glory is proof enough that
they're ready to do their own thing.
As for Sleuth, Tyranahorse and From Birch to Yew, 2012 should have each
act discovering what life's like after winning their respective prizes at our
annual SHiNDiG competition.
My comprehension ofthe Chinese Zodiac is pretty lacking, but from what
I've been told, the year ofthe Dragon is known for shaking up people's lives,
and damned if it doesn't feel that way. It's an incredible feeling, though.
On to some station news, February is Black History Month, and CiTR is
celebrating in style. All throughout the month we'll be running a number of
on-air PSAs highlighting a number of local community members with compelling stories. There will also be some special blocks of programming, inlcuding
documentaries and lectures, and films will be screened across town. You can
check out our calendar for some date-specific info!
In conclusion, it's been a wild ride, Discorder. I hope you enjoyed the last
year's worth of issues as much as I did, and I can't wait to see what the next
editor has in store (frankly, I'll be teaching them the ropes next issue, so I'll
be the first to find out!)
(In spirit forever, but officially for one last time) Discorderly yours,
Gregory Adams
EDITOR
'. WRITERS
• ©Discorder 2012 by the Student Radio Society ofthe Uni-
Gregory Adams
* Chris Adams / Sarah Berman / Slavko Bucifal / Josefa
• versify of British Columbia. All rights reserved. Circulation
ART DIRECTOR
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', 8,000. Discorder is published almost monthly by CiTR
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\ which can be heard at 101.9 FM, online at www.citr.ca, as well
COPY EDITORS
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• as through all major cable systems in the Lower Mainland,
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• visit www.citr.ca/
» • donate. FEATURES
08 / Grimes
Whether Dexedrined-up while crafting a new
cut, or taking her tunes across the globe, Grimes
(a.k.a. Claire Boucher) is ready to share her
experimental electro-pop Visions with the world.
11 / Rococode
Rococode's debut disc Guns, Sex & Glory has been
a longtime coming, but the Vancouver scene vets
are more than ready to push their own music for
the first time.
13 / Redrick Sultan
Considering their latest album jumps from
skronking saxes to supple string swells at the
drop ofa hat, we're still Trolling For Answers on
how to categorize the stubbornly unclassifiable
Redrick Sultan.
14 / Sleuth
Local dream-pop upstarts Sleuth kicked off their
career on the tape circuit, but the SHiNDiG winners have bigger and bolder plans for 2012.
16" / Tyranahorse
Eclectic second place SHiNDiG winners Tyrana-
horse admit that there's a place for everything in
our local scene...includingNickelback.
17 / From Birch To Yeu;
Norika Yue knows he's living in a digital world,
but his folky From Birch to Yew project hopes to
keep things rustic just a little bit longer.
18/Sizzle Teen Records
Diamond Dancer member Richie Fudalewski
summarizes the vinyl-only aesthetic 6fhis new
formed VanoiipiE imprint.
341 Are You That DJ>
Discorder speaks with CiTRDJ competition winner Tim Fernandes.
REGULARS
04 / The Ouereducated
Grumbler
06"/Textually Active
20 I Calendar / AlexStursber5
22 / Program Guide
25 /ArtProject/Enkoison
28/Under Reuietu
^2 j Real Live Action
38 I Olil The Air / TheBassment
39 / Charts THE GRUMBLER
GETS CLASSY AT THE
ARCTIC AIR PREMIERE
by TERRIS WlM
SCHNEIDER
Peeling myself out of my overpriced sweatpants,
I put on some human people clothes on a Tuesday night to go to the CBC premiere of Arctic Air
at The Vogue Theatre. What was I expecting? Not
much. I would have much rather watched Kevin
O'Leary (a.k.a. Canada's Donald Trump) and his
new, ridiculous-yet-I-can't-take-my-eyes-off-it-
because-O'Leary-is-a-total-sociopath program
Redemption Inc. Instead, I couldn't pass up the
Opportunity to go with my friends and mock this
new CBC shitstorm about "a maverick airline and
the unconventionaTfamily who runs it." I expect
it to last a total of three episodes tops. From
Arctic Air's trailer, it looked like the show would
be riddledwih terrible cliches and cheesy dialogue—and the pilot did not disappoint.
As soon as my friends and I arrived at the
Vogue Theatre, our wrists were ordained with red
wristbands. We got to walk on not one, but two
very fancy red carpets and although I didn't see
any, apparently the venue was overflowing with
Canadian celebrities. We were also given free
popcorn and diet sodas! This was some pretty
classy shit.
After hearing some gushy speeches from
CBC weather presenter Claire Martin and contributors to the show, I started to feel guilty for
my poor attitude towards this television premiere. I was clearly being a bad Canadian with
my pessimistic attitude and sarcastic wits. I am
illustration by
ERIK OLSON
aP
Ar\ peAC
supposed to be much more polite than this. "
However, as soon as the show started, my plan
to not criticize the fuck out of it flew right out
the window (airplane pun!).
The problem with this first episode was the
terrible writing. All the names they picked for
the characters were mondo Canadian and I could
not take it seriously: Jim McAlister, Bobby Mar-
tel, Ronnie Dearman, and a slutty mcslut named
Candi Lussier. I'm also pretty sure the terrible
acting was a side effect ofthe horrible script.
First of all, nothing exciting happens for at least
half an hour. When you think about a world-class
TV show, like, say, Breaking Bad, the show starts
with a bang every single episode andends with a
way to get the audience hooked.
This is how Arctic Air starts off: Martel (played
by Adam Beach, an attractive man that looks
as if Taylor Lautner and David Duchovny had a
love child) comes to Yellowknife and we find out
some uninteresting things about him, like how
he was a ladies man in high school but never
sealed the deal with his obvious upcoming love
interest, Krista. Insert cheesy, cliche'd dialogue
["And the prodigal son returns!"]. Insert horrible flirting with Candi ["You know which room
to find me in." *WINK*]. Insert climactic point
where there's a storm, but a baby needs to get
delivered so they need to fly into dangerous conditions. InsjEfcTerris' thoughts of not caring if
any ofthe characters die. Then, within minutes
the conflict is easily resolved, the baby gets delivered safely in a cabin, and then everyone goes to
a wedding for some characters I was too bored to
pay attention to.
There yfcisil't even a cliffhanger at the end of
the episode! The episode ends all neat and tidy.
I'm pretty sure the writer-producer Ian Weir
does not understand how TV works. What reason could we possibly have for wanting to keep
watching this show after everything has been
resolved? It felt like I was watching a movie created by the slackers that were in my grade 12
video production class.
Then to make matters worse, we were forced
to sit through the most tedious Q&A of all time.
Beach is either the most relaxed person alive, or
he was completely stoned. Every single one of his
answers ended with "man" or "yeah, man." Then
again, I'd have to be pretty baked if I had anything to do with the production of Arctic Air. msNii runoAY
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PRIZES FOR BEST CANDY THEME OUTFTiS CHRIS WALTERS:
WRITING AS HEALING
by MIKE jlKtt
DONALDSON
If punk is not dead, then it lives on through the
likes of Vancouver writer Chris Walter.
A former drug addict and seventeen-year resident of East Vancouver, Walter's embedded punk
spirit maintains its discourse with anger and revolt
through his self-created publishing company,
Gofuckyerself Press. Over the past eleven years he
has published over twenty tides, including more
than a dozen fictional narratives such as Up and
Down on the Doumtoum Eastside (2011), Punch the Boss
(2009) and East Van (2004). He has also written and
published a three-part autobiography, several collections of short stories, and Ar^h Fuck Kill (2010),
the biography of Canadian punk rock legends Dayglo Abortions. A similar biography on SNFU is due
to hit shelves this summer.
More often than not, his fictional characters
are working class or unemployed mavericks and
heroines: ravaged junkies, prostitutes on the prowl,
heartless drug peddlers, debaucherous rock 'n'
rollers. His settings frequently portray the dark
realities of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside and
the ravenous punk scene in Winnipeg, MB, where
a youthful Walter first donned a leather jacket and
sculpted a Mohawk. His stories of drug-addled
desperation, stage diving gone wrong, and the
agony involved with relating to the status quo, are
heartfelt accounts not to be taken lightly. Yet, it is
no wonder that he leans his plots against a ragged
narrative style steeped in the comedic dark side.
On a recent, crisp afternoon, Walter invited me
to his modest, two bedroom East Van apartment
for a one-on-one discussion. Despite the imposing,
fully-tattooed figure that sat across from me at
the kitchen table, I couldn't help but feel at home
because of his honesty, his bravery, and his passion
for all things punk, (interview has been condensed)
What have you been up to recently?
I have a few projects on at the moment. First, I'm
wrapping up a book of short stories that's going to
the printer on Monday. It's just a small collection of
stories to keep some money coming in while I finish
this SNFU biography that should come out in the
late spring or early summer. I started it in August
and usually it only takes me—well, I put out about
two books a year—but if I do a music biography
then it takes me a whole year to complete it.
Tell me about the process of putting a rock
biography together. What do you include? What
don't you include?
I collect phone numbers, make calls, and write
chronologically, never knowing what I might
uncover. Every band has at least one skeleton in
the closet, and they must be handled carefully. You
can't leave it all out, but you don't want to hurt the
band too much. It's always a judgement call.
You were there during SNFU's rise to prominence during the '80s and '90s. You were
living it, so describe the scene.
Beer, freedom, and loud groundbreaking music that
soon gave way to hard drugs and general violence. A
good time... and SNFU showed the rest of Canada
that even a scummy punk band from Edmonton can
rise up and tour the world.
Can you explain the connection you share with
SNFU—either your connection to their music,
or connections you've had with the varied band
members, or both?
I've known Ken Chinn [a.k.a. singer Chi Pig] and
some ofthe other band members, including [drummer] Jon Card, for thirty-odd years. We share a
mutual punk history and an unfortunate appetite
for mind-altering substances.
Has your distribution morphed through Gofuckyerself Press, as though each successful publication means more independent book shops or
more music shops become interested in carrying
your next publication?
It's all one step forward, one step back. I get a new
book store and then another one closes. I get a new
music store and then another of them closes. It's
a constant battle. Online sales are up and down,
though they're generally improving. And now I'm
even going into e-books, but that's starting off
slowly too.
Would you say the majority of your sales are
online through your website (punkbooks.com)
or through physical book stores and music
shops?
I'd say it's about half and half. Well, actually, I have
book stores all over Canada now, so maybe I am
selling a few more through those retail shops.
It was 1991 when you first arrived in Vancouver,
and you got off drugs in 2001. How have you seen
the Downtown Eastside change over time?
Well, it hasn't really changed that much at all, except
that it's becoming more and more squeezed by
gentrification. But the reality hasn't changed for the
residents that are living there—the addiction and
the desperation are still the same. I've never lived
right there, I've always lived in this building—been photo: SNFU
(courtesy: snfu.com)
here for 17 years—but I'm within walking distance,
so I'd be down there hanging out for days. The biggest change for me is that now, instead of walking
down to get high, I go down there to volunteer at
a shelter on Friday nights. Now I'm on the other
side ofthe glass.
How easy was it for you to get help down there
ten years ago?
It's about the same as it is now, I guess. The First
United Church buUding is that kind of shelter-
from-the-storm thatyou can go in to no matter how
messed up you are. At one point I needed new teeth,
another time I needed help because I was being cut
off of welfare, and then they were trying to throw
me out of this place here and I needed arbitration.
As an addict, my life was always in constant drama
and every time I found myself in the real shit I'd
go down there and I'd get an advocate to take care
of it for me.
What sort of hope do you have for the DTES
these days?
To be honest, we're not going to see an end to drug
prohibition, butifwe could then thatwould be my
hope. Realistically we need more housing, and if
drug prohibition is going to continue then there's
always going to have to be a place for addicts in
any city. As bad as the DTES is, at least there's a
lot resources there for them. If the city decides to
spread them [the addicts] all over the city then they
won't have those resources available to them and
it will be even worse if everyone gets kicked out
and moved farther east....They actually advertise
these new condo complexes in the DTES and I
remember one that said, "get a loft in the real world
[chuckles]." I imagine the people coming down
to have a look while stepping over piles of human
shit. Their cars would get broken in to three times
a week and I guess they would say, "Oh, this is the
real world."
It's that real world that attracts myself and others to you, or Bukowski, or to George Orwell's
Down and Out in Paris and London. The rest of the
world seems so contrived, so fake on so many
different levels that the agony, the pain, and the
loneliness that openly exists in a place like the
DTES is a fading glimmer of what is real.
Yeah, and another thing about the DTES is that
everybody knows everybody. Everyone knows your
name and your game. It's like a tight small town.
I still see that when I go to volunteer at that low-
barrier shelter.
What's your feeling about the police officers
that are working the beat down there?
The cops we see are generally a pretty decent bunch.
There are cops I know that are assholes, just abusing
their authority, but most of them are okay. Of course
some of them don't really have a brain —those are
the assholes. But the ones with half a brain can see
that this is an example of how drug prohibition
doesn't work. They know that if they actually took
everyone into booking for all that shit then the
system would be so jammed up. They realize the
logistics of it, like busting people for pot —isn't
that insane!
Yeah, it really surprises me that a lot of people
still don't understand that.
The general public doesn't have a clue about what
it's like down there, about what addiction is actually like. The only time they ever get the smallest
glimpse is if a friend or family member becomes
addicted. And while they might not catch on at
first, then things start going missing, and then
comes the weird behaviour, and then the person
either OD's or goes to jail, or becomes homeless,
and then the family realizes, "Holy fuck, so that's
addiction."
How was your party scene and your drug abuse
connected to music?
Well, there are a lot of punk rock junkies and a lot
of them come from a place where they want to be a
rebel and break rules. Of course some of their idols
were addicts that used all that stuff. I mean, if you
use Sid Vicious as a role model then you're going
to wind up in trouble.
Have relationships with your friends changed
because of how you've portrayed them in your
narratives?
I don't really take one person and put them in a
book. I think all my characters are an amalgamation
—a bit of this person, a bit of that person. None of
my friends or my ex-friends would be able to recognize themselves. I wouldn't do that to them; it just
wouldn't be cool. And anyways, a lot ofthe people
that I used to use drugs with have either cleaned
up or are dead. Some of them are on methadone
and just coasting along. Very few of them are still
in pieces when I see them down at the shelter, but
they really are in terrible shape. And that's such a
strong motivation for me to not get high because
then I'd be on the other side of that window, with
shoes that ate falling apart in November, and looking and smelling like shit
What about writing as therapy?
Oh, for sure! It keeps me busy, it makes me happy,
and it provides money too [laughs]. I did start writing just before I cleaned up and I even used my first
laptop as collateral with the dealer. I'd say "keep
this and when I get some money then I'll come
back and get it"
Chris Walter's publications can be jbund on shelues in
independent music and book stores across Canada, or they
can be ordered through his website, punkbooks.com GRIMES
JiJ^r %
m
\. ■■,--,..■■-. #
^<r223»- by SARAH
BERMAN
photos by
MICHELLE FORD
It wasn't so long ago that Claire Boucher—a.k.a. Grimes—released
a miniscule run of 30 cassettes for her breezy electro-goth debut
Geidi Primes.
Just over a year ago, the Vancouver-born, but then Montreal-based
artist played to a modest crowd at the Astoria with the help of local
jack-of-most-trades, Cameron Reed.
"Cam set up my first show in Vancouver, which was really nice
of him," Boucher recalls ofthe de facto show promoter, who also
crafts glitchy atmospherics under the banner Babe Rainbow. On the
line from her parents' place in town, Boucher reflects on how far
she's come. "I think it was last Christmas—sometime back in the
day before I was a real musician, or something."
Since then, the "realness" of Boucher's career has undeniably
rocketed skyward. For starters, she recendy signed with the esteemed
English imprint 4AD. Though she'll stay on Montreal's Arbutus
Records within Canada, the international distribution deal places her
in the past and present ranks of St. Vincent and the Cocteau Twins.
Boucher's also coming off a well-received tour with Lykke Li, and
her upcoming record, Visions, is enjoying critical adoration from all
comers ofthe indie music blogosphere. And with good reason. The
album's airtight production allows Boucher's signature falsetto to
soar over each curious arrangement of vintage hip-hop loops, dancing Casio synths, occasional Nintendo chimes, and ever-breathy harmonies. As her third solo release, Visions marks a graduation from
bedroom composing into the world of avant-pop tastemaking. It's
realer than real, you might say.
Since her return to Lotusland in November, Grimes has immersed
herself in the sushi and musical scenery she left behind in 2006.
Reached a few days before playing a collaborative DJ set with Reed
at the Waldorf, Boucher reflected on the hippy vibes, potential alien
correspondence and chemically-induced all-nighters she's experienced on the West Coast —► »-**"^
,mgmms
■■■
—
:jflflHN
"We did a bunch ofDexedrine and drank a bunch of gin and made
the sleaziest pop song of all time," Boucher recalls ofa very recent
collaboration with Blood Diamonds' Mike Tucker. The resulting
track, "Phone Sex," will be released later this year.
"It's like a K-pop version of'We Found Love' by Rihanna," Grimes
says, adding that the all-night creative burst escalated into absurdity
pretty quickly: "It's kinda psychedelic and has really weird lyrics that
maybe imply an incestuous relationship, or something."
It's with this tongue-in-cheek deadpan that Boucher seems to chide
all of her accomplishments and tastes. Whether we're discussing a
teenage obsession with Tool or her skyscraping vocal range, Boucher
bookends her replies in self-deprecating humour.
"I think people think I'm much more serious than I am," she
muses. "Most ofthe music I've ever made, I've been so baked when
I made it Like, really stoned."
Perhaps for similar self-preserving reasons, Boucher doesn't get
too personal in her song lyrics. While a spare few phrases can be
deciphered, most Grimes songs are comprised of wordless flowing vocal hooks.
"I just don't listen to lyrics much myself," she explains.
Instead, Boucher finds herself emulating TLC andMariah Carey-
style R&B singing techniques ("Maybe that's totally taboo or not cool,
but the idea of combining R&B and goth is like everything I could ever
want" the vocalist gushes), butwithoutthe straightforward romantic
plodines. "I don't want to evoke anything super specific," she says.
"If I'm writing about something sensitive to myself, I don't want it
to be cheesy, or something. I feel like being abstract is a little more
tasteful and less embarrassing."
Without earthly lyrics to pin down, Grimes tunes are repeatedly branded "ethereal" and "spacey"—the latter being a descriptor
Boucher both enjoys and embraces. "I'm really into sci-fi; I'm really
into space," the musician exults. "I believe in aliens."
One might even guess her otherworldly style of art-pop is an
attempt to connect with other planets. "Circumambient" begins with
spacey digital transmission, and album closer "know the way" offers
another round of buoyant, celestial echoes.
"I would send this record to aliens," she says. "But I don't know
if I was trying to speak to aliens on this record."
Conversely, Boucher says Vancouver has also brought out her
grounded, nature-loving side. "It's a little weird but kind of refreshing," she says ofthe familiar landscape. "I think I've become more
ofa hippy since I've returned. I'm appreciating nature I think for
the first time."
In her formative years, Boucher says she wasn't too concerned with
Vancouver's natural assets. "I feel like I never looked at the mountains and felt like 'those are really beautiful' or anything. As a kid, I
was just like 'oh, I hate my parents' or something."
If you missed Grimes' DJ set at the Waldorf in January, fret not.
Before she embarks on a solid year of touring, Grimes will headline
the Fortune Sound Club later this month. But when asked if the West
Coast will be her creative destination once the promotion cycle for
Visions winds down, Boucher was quick to suggest otherwise.
"I think I want to move to Berlin or Shanghai," she says, describing
the latter as "the Montreal of Europe." The German capital has swiftly
become a mecca for creative Canadian ex-pats looking to escape the
real estate market: "Super cheap equals a lot of art," Boucher says,
"because people can actually do shit and not work all the time."
Though 2012 looks to be booked solid, it's only a matter of time
before we see Grimes' next vision. Or something.
Grimes kicks ojfa world tour at Fortune Sound Club on February 18. ROCOCODE
GUNS, SEX & GLORY
by JENNESIA
PEDRI
photos by
ROBYN JAMIESON
About 10:02 a.m., Andrew Braun answers his '
phone: "Hello?" He's sitting on the couc&iiRHs:j
his North Van living room wearing a Protest the
Hero t-shirt, a pair of black jeans, and a cardigan. A few blocks away, I'm sitting in my living
room with Braun on speaker phone-until now ,
we hadn't realized we're practically neighbours.
We make Smalltalk about the neighbourhood,
compare experiences commuting and laugh
about the number of times we've been stranded
at Phibbs Exchange waiting forjthe #212. Then I
say, "So you must be excited about the album."
Rococode does not seem the least bit nervous about their anticipated debut LP, Guns, Sex
& Glory. "It's been a long time coming," guitarist/vocalist Braun admits. The album, which
comes out February 7, has been ready for a year,
but the group;—Braun, vocalist/keyboardist Laura
Smith, bassist Shaun Huberts and drummer Johnny
Andrews—have been waiting for the right time, he
explains, waiting diligently for their hard work to
pay off.
Throughout the lastyear, the indie pop-rock
quartet have toured almost all of Canada, including
a week's worth of dates opening for Mother Mother.
But their list of accolades doesn't stop there—the
four are like the dream-team ofthe Vancouver music
scene. Havingspent years performing with Tegan
& Sara, Hannah Georgas, Said the Whale and Dan
Mangan, their resumes collectively read like a who's
who ofthe Canadian music scene. Clearly, the
foursome are no strangers to being on the road and
performing live; this time though, the stage will be
all theirs. —► a
Smith, Braun, Huberts and Andrews came
together as Rococode over a year ago, but there
was one last person that came in to complete the
equation: Mother Mother frontman Ryan Guldemond. A chance encounter with the fellow
scene vet outside a Vancouver recording studio
had Guldemond jump on board as co-producer,
helping re-build the existing tracks. Braun graciously credits Guldemond for helping tweak the
group's sound, "I think a lot of people can hear
that for sure; the Mother Mother comparison
comes up a lot"
Certainly lines can be drawn between the uptempo tracks, quirky hooks and layered vocals
characteristic of Mother Mother's most recent
album Eureka. Influences aside, the mission for
Guns, Sex & Glory was to take traditional ideas and
mess with those templates. The resulting songs
are essentially very simple, with "the occasional
music school nerd moment"
"We took every opportunity to bend something or add a weird sounding guitar instead of
conventional sounds," Braun allows. "I hope that
was a mission we accomplished."
L
The group masterfully challenges expectations by juxtaposing sweet melodies and up-beat
tempos with oddities, including a subde drum
beat that sounds like a door knock, the unusual
sounding guitar chords that flood "Empire,"
and the transition from soft cello to gunfire that
appears on the album's tide track. Meanwhile,
the dueling boy-girl vocals throughout give the
full-length its rock/pop split-personality.
Of his bandmates, Braun says Smith is exceptionally great at being the business person in
the band. When Braun was writing songs in his
basement Smith was making calls and booking
studios. Huberts is the creative jack-of-all-trades,
"writing books, making videos, taking photos,
playing bass." Braun describes Andrews as the
quintessential drummer, known for playing only
in flip-flops and "keeping a monkey in his bass
drum." "He's a quirky guy and a fantastic drummer," the guitarist confirms.
"What about you??I ask. "I'm kind of
umm....I don't know..." I hear a small voice offer
a suggestion in the background, then Braun tries
again. "I'm sort ofthe director of this project I
run the rehearsals, I make sure people are doing
things they should be doing."
It's quiet for a moment, then I hear the tiny
voice again, "Hi," Smith says. Her voice is so
sweet it's hard to believe it's the same sultry
voice that belts the powerful chorus on highlight
"Death ofa Payphone." After a quick chat and a
"Nice to talk to you!" her voice quickly vanishes.
It's now 11:08 am. The whole of Guns, Sex &
Glory, which quitely scored the conversation,
has now officially reached an impressive 25 full
cycles on my iTunes play count Braun is now
telling me that Rococode is ready to head back
out on tour, which kicks off next month with two
Vancouver shows. It's been a year of careful preparation, but with the LP's release date and a tour
schedule looming, the group is ready to wrap
up the waiting game. "Playing music together is
kind of like the therapy at the end of all the other
crap," he says.
Rococode plays both Cafe Deux Soleils and the CBC
Toque Sessions on February 17th. REDRICK
SULTAN
by |
JACEY
GIBB
Most bands are reluctant to slap a generic label on
their sound, opting instead for a genre-defying tide
like "experimental" or "progressive." But Redrick
Sultan's lead singer Spencer Hargreaves is even
cautious to file his band's music under the vaguest
of categories. "They're weird labels to me," he tells
Discorder from the comfort of Cafe Deux Soleils,
where he's seated with bassistNoah Jordan. "IfI'm
looking online for bands and it says experimental,
it'll often mean something like awful static sounds
or just noises. Once that's been done, it's not really
an experiment anymore. And progressive usually
means, like, an overblown fairytale story with long
boring instrumental sections. Nowadays, progressive rock means copying those ['70s bands] sound.
It's not progressive at all; it's regressive."
Formed in Port Coquidam eight years ago,
Redrick Sultan have endured coundess personnel
shakeups and more name changes than a conman.
Now, with a lineup that also includes Jarrad Lajeu-
nesse smashing drum skins and Mike Spindloe
on saxophone, the transition from high school
prog-metal purists to adventurous sonic sailors
seems complete.
So what happens when you have a band eager to
defy any pre-existing genre tag? You get an album
like Trolling jbr Answers, Redrick Sultan's second LP
and follow-up to 2010's self-tided debut "When
we first started recording it" Hargreaves explains,
"I said 'Let's do an album where we'll just record
anything we can think of. We won't think about how
we'll play it live at all, so that won't be an issue. We'll
just record anything.' So we did just that." What
resulted from said mindset is a chaotic cauldron
of an album, with everything from space synths to
sing-alongs stirred in, making for a more ambitious
and broader album than their first
The band recruited 14 different musicians to
collaborate with them on Trolling jbr Answers, includ-
illustration by TYLER CRICH
ing local rapper Panax, whom the members met in
high school. Panax's presence undoubtedly changes
the feel of several of Redrick Sultan's songs, spicing up longtime live number "Giraffe Food" with
rhymed verses that would have otherwise been
left as instrumental passages. The rapping works
as a wonderful change of pace from Hargreave's
otherwise dominating vocals.
To say there's diversity on the album would be
like saying the sun is kind of hot. From dreamy
instrumentals on "The Minckler" and "Clouds" to
the seven-years-in-the-making gypsy jingle "Three
Rabbis Walk into a Bar," Trolling for Answers allows
for the senses to depart into a realm of disorientating confusion. But Redrick's chaos has a formula to
it: the songs follow a chronological older. Jordan
justifies the album's hectic layout by describing it
as "more ofa movie that's going from the beginning to the end. It makes more sense as a story
or a complete work, as opposed to just a series of
songs." To which Hargreaves adds: "It just kind pf
developed that way."
The band's maturing sound can also be attributed to the recent changes within their ranks. Spindloe is new to the lineup, having just joined last
October after original sax player Angus McKee,
who had been with the band since high school, quit
It's no wonder the album took almost 15 months
to record, with the endless re-dubbing driving the
already inherendy insane group even more crazy.
"We were going to call the album For Fuck's Sake
because it seemed to sum up everything," Hargreaves says. "We were just about the finish the
album and then, fop fuck's sake, [our saxophone
player] leaves the band. But we realized the music
wasn't angry enough to justify that tide."
But that doesn't mean Redrick Sultan are hanging up their crazy pants just yet "King Song" and
"Trolling for Answers" have both recendy spawned
music videos oozing with the band's signature
zaniness, with the former featuring shots ofthe
band dressed as jesters and the latter focusing on
a troll struggling with the frustrating art of fishing.
A video for "Morningwood," an organ-heavy song
rich with sexual innuendo delivered courtesy of
Panax, was also recendy filmed. An animated video
for "Dinosaurs" is also on the horizon.
So whaf s next for these sultans of swank? Well,
the year is off to a promising start as the group was
just named one ofVdnMusic's Bands to watch in 2012.
And with Trolling Jbr Answers' recent release party at
The Railway Club finally out ofthe way, the group
are looking to take off and tour throughout the
U.S. "We'd like to travel and gather inspiration for
our next project" Hargreaves predicts. "Hopefully
we'll get to share our music with as many people
along the way."
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by FRASER
DOBBS
As I'm sitting in the Brickhouse with Sleuth on an early
Saturday night, patrons waiting in line give us and the
three tables we've occupied dirty looks from time to time.
Regardless, we and the microphone plantain the centre
table are left largely to our own devices. Fish swirl in a
tank next to where I meet the band: Julian Bowers (drums,
guitar), Oliver McTavish (keyboards), Jesse Easter (bass),
and Jainy Lastoria (guitar), who refers to herself as 'The
Lion In Love." Their names, staged or otherwise, are pretty
indicative of the wealth of personality that lies bubbling on
the surface ofthe rookie ensemble. The band, a distinctively
jangly affair, have been floating in Vancouver's music scene
since 2010, but they speak with an outsider's perspective.
The emotions and energy that keep our conversation going
into the night are things that I can sometimes forget live
inside of most musicians—a genuine sense of innocence,
like new skin being exposed to cold air, is a refreshing thing
to feel during our interview.
The group is still reeling from their recent victory in
CiTR's annual battle-of-the-bands, SHiNDiG. Though they
took the top spot from Tyranahorse and From Birch To Yew,
the indie-popists didn't enter SHiNDiG to win it. As McTavish
explains, "We never expected to make it past the first round.
A chance to pick up a fan or two, that's it." The friends still
sound overwhelmed and I can tell that the memory of their
name being called by the judges is framed in their collective consciousness like a still from Rocky III.
Despite the win, the group took some flack post-SHiNDiG
from critics who were unimpressed with their performance.
"I'm not sure how receptive Vancouver is to our kind of
music. I think we're more inside the indie-pop realm, which
I don't think [is very popular] here," Lastoria muses. She
speaks with a quavering confidence that the rest of her
band doesn't emulate, which isn't to say that their sudden exposure has swelled their egos.
Easter, who speaks with level-headed sincerity, tries
to elaborate on the last SHiNDiG performance: "If you were
going to plan a gig with those three bands, you wouldn't
put them in that order [with Sleuth playing last, after Tyranahorse]. If our job was to take what Tyranahorse offered
and expand upon it, to be as high-energy, as aggressive, to take their direction and move it further... if that's
14 what we'd needed to do in order to win, then anybody that
believes we failed in that would be justified in thinking
we shouldn't have won. The criteria [for the judges] was
a bit different."
"The whole idea of a battle-of-the-bands is really
uncomfortable anyways, because you get hostile towards
each other," Lastoria adds. "I'm more interested in a musical community, where you have shows together and you
can be friends with people, but during a competition you
get into that spirit and people become jerks."
Sleuth's %st EP, Brave Knew Nothing, is an interesting
outing. Packed with a respectable six songs and filled to
the brim with jangle-pop and shoegaze hooks, the instrumentation stands in stark contrast with most of the lyrical content, delivered alternately by Lastoria and Bowers.
"Apocalypse, Please Sign The Release Form First" couples
a cutesy hummed pre-chorus with dark talk about the
end of the world, while "We're Not Friends Yet" delivers
bright, twangy guitar-plucking and a cautionary ode to
new acquaintances.
"Brit-pop has a lot of melancholy—sad lyrics alongside bright, unapologetically happy instrumentation. It's
a good juxtaposition," Easter says of Sleuth's influences,
while Lastoria adds, "It's one of those specifically British
pop tropes. It's just what I grew up listening to."
Brave Knew Nothing is a smirk of an album, with The
Lion In Love's beautiful voice dealing equally in cute doo-
wop choruses and dour apocalyptic prophecies. The mixed
messages are definitely intentional, and tend to leave listeners stuck somewhere between swing-dance and moody
contemplation.
While available on their Bandcamp page, the EP also
lettering by
DANAKEARLEY
illustrations by
MARK HALL-PATCH
photo by
VICTORIA JOHNSON
came out on cassette tapes. "It's admittedly an odd decision because not many people have tape players, but
they're neat little objects." relates McTavish, and neat
little objects they are. Ofthe 66 copies printed (including
a 16-copy reissue), each one is hand-crafted with love and
attention to detail. Copies of Brave Knew Nothing come
with a hand-coloured sleeve, are individually numbered
and worded and (according to their Bandcamp, anyway)
include "a drawing of some kind."
"We want to refer to ourselves as an art collective as
much as a band," McTavish continues. "We wanted to
make each cassette tape be individual so listeners would
have a more personal connection to the item itself, as a
work of art, as well as an EP."
"And," Easter pipes in happily, "as long as they come
with download codes, there's no risk of it seeming contrived! In a culture of copying, personalizing the experience is really important. There's something really nice
about creating something so personal."
Part of Sleuth's band-battle plunder is 20 hours of
recording time, and the group wants to waste no time getting into a local studio. "We're probably going to do a single.
I've already contacted Colin Stewart at the Hive," Lastoria
explains, but putting tracks down isn't the only thing keeping these young pop artists busy in the new year.
A potential shot at the North By Northeast music festival in Toronto, as well as a confirmed spot at the NYC
Popfest, are big gigs for a band that have only released
one cassette. That said, those tapes have been shipped all
around the globe, according to The Lion InLove. "Ourini-
tial run of cassettes sold mostly outside of Canada.- Japan,
Germany, a couple in England. We even sold a tape to Singapore. Longest address line I've ever seen!"
Leaving the now-crowded bar to say our farewells, I feel
like I've glimpsed exactly what the judges liked so much
about Sleuth: a strong, charismatic yet oddball group of
musicians with a growing idea of what they're doing and
how to go about doing it. As Easter told me in parting, "a
band is a cross between a polygamist relationship and a
sports-team: it's goal-oriented but very emotionally volatile. Learning how to run a business, and setting aside your
egos, is hard. But we have what it takes to prioritize. Being
your own harshest critic is bad for your stress level, but
really good for your creative output." White I don't think this
description suits all bands, it fits Sleuth like a glove.
15 2011 was a big year for Tyranahorse. Though online copies
of their debut album, ghostwolfmotherhawkprairieunico
mlionlioness, surfaced in late 2010, the full-length was
officially released last June. Since then, the set has experienced chart love on college radio across Canada, and helped
earn the band—singer Prophecy Sun, bassist Jero Welz,
drummer Brent Glasgow Brown, guitarist/vocalist Darren
Fleet and keyboardist/guitarist Max Stockholder—a spot
in VanMusic.ca's Best 10 Indie Vancouver Bands of 2011
list. Tyranahorse also shot and released four quirky and
fun videos that suited their experimental art-punk sound,
including the planking-heavy video for "Keep It Together"
that hit right at the height of the fad last summer.
All the while, they built their local following playing
lots and lots of shows, particularly in the fall. Three of
those were for CiTR's SHiNDiG, where Tyranahorse eventually placed second (behind Sleuth and ahead of From
Birch To Yew).
The placing was a shock for some in attendance at
the Railway Club who felt Tyranahorse should have won.
When Discorder met up with the band a few weeks after
the finals around Glasgow Brown's dining room table, they
admitted their surprise as well. "It was tough to finish second," Fleet explains. "You try not to take it too seriously,
and then you're in the final so you start taking it seriously,
but obviously only one can win."
Not that anyone begrudges Sleuth their win. "Sleuth
played a really great set," Glasgow Brown said.
"SHiNDiG was a crazy experience but it was also really
rad," frontwoman Sun offered ofthe contest. "Each night
we'd end upl^pS^^jbandslttwe'd love to run into
again. Like From Birclf WYew [a.kfa. Norika Yue]—what
a great guy! Total sweetheart. He was helping us with
amps and set-up."
In the midst ofthe competition, the quintet headed into
the studio to record a new four-song EP they'll be releasing
this spring called Garbage Bears. According to Fleet, "The
name comes from one ofthe songs ["Alice"] which traces
the philosophy of a series of fairytales and blends in modern
concepts: 'Alice is feeding the garbage bears.'"
"Alice" is a brooding piece that ebbs and flows in three
main sections, bursting out into punkish defiance at some
points while settling down upon layers of delayed whistling, evoking a forest full of chirping birds, on others. It
even paraphrases one of Friedrich Nietzsche's more obscure
poems with the line "Go on and let the stupid people go on
screaming." Fleet feels the message can be summed up as
"Don't allow people to make you afraid of discovery."
The songs on the new EP arose out of jamming together
and capture the energy Tyranahorse brings to their live
shows. "I think our best songs have come out of jams,
because it cannot help but have an authentic feel," says
Fleet. The goal was to have a more organic flow and get
away from tired "verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus" structures.
"Everyone comes from such different music backgrounds,' Glasgow Brown offers of the band's make up.
"People are hearing things that are totally different from
one another. Which is fascinating, the way it always
works out."
by PYRA
Iraculea
^'jiparprisingly, Tyranahorse are involved in many side
{jfojeits. Sun has her hand in many different avant garde
and experimental ventures, from her electroacoustic solo
project to playing with the Vancouver Electronic Ensemble,
Her Jazz Noise Collective and more. Fleet used to be "that
guy in the coffee house" with a folk-rock singer-songwriter
vibe and he also plays in The Adulthood with Sun. He's also
"done the hardcore thing," as has Glasgow Brown, who currently plays with punk rockers Vacant State.
. Somehow, chatting about Vancouver's varied music
scene brought up mention of that local band everyone loves
to hate, Nickelback; Welz sarcastically said they were the
best thing to ever come out of the city. After everyone had
a good laugh, Stockholder admitted that he's on board with
the Brothers Kroeger these days. "I used to hate 'em but
now I think Chad Kroeger is kinda coolest guy in Vancouver
and you can quote me on that!" the keyboardist chuckles.
"I also react to the fact that there's this holier than thou
attitude against them now, which is ridiculous."
While the debate on the 'Back rages on, Tyranahorse
agreed that Vancouver's indie scene is overwhelmingly supportive and positive. "It's thriving here!" Sun says excitedely.
"I feel like there are so many bands, it's a realty active music
scene. It's pretty cool that people are exploring the music
scene and people go out to other people's shows."
16 by ANGELA
YEN
Norika Yue is the one-man band behind SHiNDiG 2011'$
third place act, From Birch to Yew. Though just 18-years-
old, it was surprising to observe how grounded and confident Yue is in his music, despite feeling like he doesn't
deliver what people may initially expect from him. Due to
his young age, being a one-man band, and playing soft
indie-folk tunes while in the midst ofthe music scene's tilt
towards electronic/dance music, Yue finds himself head on
with a few extra hurdles that other artists may not have to
deal with. He's an artist against the odds. But, after talking
to Yue for a couple of hours at Mink Cafe, it was obvious
that this was exactly what makes him unique.
Yue goes to school in Calgary but constantly travels
back to Vancouver to visit family, friends, and to promote
his music. He missed two weeks of class just so that he
could participate at SHiNDiG. While it may feel like a hassle to most, Yue said it was fun. It's a perfect example of
his optimism and charisma. However, when asked about
the competition he said he felt like his chances weren't
so good. Yue reveals that he almost didn't even make the
cut to be a competitor.
"I came into SHiNDiG as an underdog because I was
a replacement," he explains. "Another artist dropped out
and that's why they contacted me late."
He also felt uneasy being a one-man band up against
full groups that played upbeat rock and dance numbers
that easily gal the crowd $ovtf& That's something he
feels is more $ip^% for a guy who plays simple and
low-key indt&^^g§««'
"I really want a band though," Yue confesses. "But all
the people I've played with wanted to change the sound...
make things way more poppy or make it, like, electro pop!
And that's something I really don't want to do."
Yet, from listening to From Birch to Yew's tracks you
would never guess there was only one member in the band.
The multi-instrumentalist blends a soundscape of piano,
harmonica, acoustic guitars and soft tambourines all on
his own. The track "Dear Zoe" demonstrates the seamless layering and transition from soothing vocals and
slide guitar to a gentle build up of harmonica and handclaps. It's no wonder that playing the tracks live would
be a whole lot easier with a band. Still, Yue handles the
different parts with ease. He make excellent use of a loop
pedal and even straps a tambourine to his foot to get all
the desired results. Though disguised as a problem, part
ofthe bonus of being a one-man band is showcasing how
one guy can accomplish all those different layers. It's mesmerizing to watch, in the tradition of solo artists like Owen
Pailett and Andrew Bird.
There is something old school and organic about the
way Yue approaches music. There are no filters, vocoders
or simulated beats to gloss over the raw sounds of his
guitar picking or husky vocals. *l guess music to me has
always been about the aeauslic essence, fujust «oi a
fan of synth seuHrfts of whatever" Yue offers ftrrd thwgfr,-
he feels this works against him since it's what is popular
nowadays, Yue's sort of "anti-technology" view is refreshing. He even admits that he sucks at just using social media
to promote his music.
"It moves so quickly!" he raughs, "I feel really old
and out of the loop, even though I'rn, like, 18!" He grins
and just sort of shrugs. Yue knows the genre he wants to
make without being effected by what sounds are trendy.
And thankfully, his persona isn't convoluted by tweets,
status updates, and profile pics. It's what stood him apart
at SHiNDiG—so perhaps being "out of the loop" isn't so
bad alter all.
From Birch to Yew will be back in Vancouver in February and we'll be sure to keep you posted on upcoming shows!
17 New local record label Sizzle Teen Records will
be celebrating their launch with a show at the
Railway Club on Saturday, February n.
Started up by indie musician Richie
Fudalewski (Diamond Dancer), Sizzle Teen
Records evolved out of his dislike for the greedy
nature of major record labels. "Being a touring musician that had been signed in the past to
some pretty big indie labels, I learned a lot about
what I disliked about labels," Fudalewski said,
oudining experiences with his old bands Jakar-
tah and Yell at Birds. "After hearing these same
types of stories from my friends in bands about
record labels they were signed to, I realized that
this wasn't an isolated incident. This was a general problem that was ongoing. Labels becoming
out of touch, desperate and greedy."
Before Fudalewski moved to the West Coast
in 2006, he spent time working at Sonic Unyon
Records as an assistant marketing manager.
Itwas here that he saw how significant it was
to build a fan base by promoting their bands
throughout high schools and colleges, and
how much this market helped the bands. Major
by TERRIS
SCHNEIDER
illustration by PRISCILLAYU
labels tend to neglect bands unless they are
meeting their sales quota, and Sizzle Teen wants
to give local bands the attention and promotion
they deserve.
Another focus ofthe new label is to keep up
with ±e ever-evolving record industry and to put
out LPs and digital releases—Sizzle Teen will not
be putting out any CDs, considering sales are
declining as time goes on.
So far only two bands are currently signed to
the label, Previous Tenants (ex d.b.s., Operation
Makeout, the Doers) and Fudalewski's own Diamond Dancer, but Sizzle Teen aims to put out four
brand new LP's by the end of 2012.
Fittingly, the Railway Club event will feature
sets from Diamond Dancer and Previous Tenants,
as well as Man Your Horse and We Are Gaze.
TWlrfCUB would like totaklll 20
41st and Home,Real Boys,30 Stone J, <2?>
Diamond Dancer,The Killed Spirits,SR JONES
Blondewich.Mercy Years.Tyranahorse
Franatricks, sleuth, weekday Yardsale
Fist Full 0f $feacks,The Radii,Tassels
The Godspot,Honourary MD,Philoceraptor thorns,From Birch to Yew,Rec Cent
U ov^er The Harshies,Man Hands
oee^p , Conspiracy Farm,The Population Drops,Synthcake
Real Boys,The Killed Spirits,Tyranahorse
Sleuth,Man Hands,Philoceraptor
From Birch to Yew,Fist Full G'SnackSjThe Population Drops
www.theraHwayclub.com
re
18 t# (or, free for station membersl 1
212 Productions
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Devil May Wear
604-733-1159
3957 Main St.
People's Co-op
Vinyl Records
Audiopile
604-216-2515
Gumdrops
Bookstore
319 W Hastings St.
2016 Commercial Dr.
2029 W 4th Ave.
1391 Commercial Dr.
604-488-1234
604-253-7453
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen
Chinese Garden
604-733-1037
604-253-6422
The Wallflower
Band Merch Canada
578 Carrall St.
Hart and Sole
Prussin Music
Modern Diner
www.bandmerch.ca
604-662-3207
Clothing Inc
3607 W Broadway
2420 Main St.
843 Granville St.
604-736-3036
604-568-7554
Banyen Books
Dream Apparel
604-630-9151
3608 W 4th Ave.
311 W Cordova St.
Red Cat Records
UBC Bookstore
604-732-7912
604-683-7326
Highlife Records
4332 Main St.
6200 University Blvd
1317 Commrecial Dr.
604-708-9422
604-822-2665
Baru Cafe
The Eatery
604-251-6964
2535 Alma St.
3431 W Broadway
The Regional
Woo Vintage
604-222-9171
604-738-5298
Hitz Boutique
Assembly of Text
Clothing
316 W Cordova St.
3934 Main St.
4366 Main St.
Beatstreet Records
The Fall Tattooing
604-662-3334
604-877-2247
604-687-8200
439 W Hastings St.
644 Seymour St.
604-683-3344
604-676-3066
R/X Comics
2418 Main St.
604-454-5099
Zoo Zhop
223 Main St.
604-875-9958
A friends of CiTR Card
scores you sweet deals at
Vancouver's finest small
merchants and supports
CiTR Radio 101.9 FM.
Show it when you shop!
www.citr.ca
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DISCORDER SUGGESTS LISTENING TO CiTR ONLINE AT WWW.CiTR.CA EVERY DAY.
SUN
MON
TUES
WED
THURS
FRI
SAT
^KftIfe-1
CiTRGhostMix
Pacific Pickin' (Roots)
CiTRGhostMix
QTR Ghost Mix
CiTRGhostMix
CiTRGhostMix
CiTRGhostMix
Friday Sunrise
(Eclectic)
Breakfast With The
Browns (Eclectic)
Sounds of Africa
(World)
Suburban Jungle
(Eclectic)
End of the World
News (Talk)
The Saturday Edge
(Roots)
1 Classical Chaos
Alternative Radio
(Talk)
(Classical)
Queer FM Arts Xtra
(Talk)
Pop Drones
(Eclectic)
Student
Fill-In
Sounds ofthe City
(Eclectic)
Shookshookta (Talk)
Sup World?
(Eclectic)
Ska-T's Scenic Drive
Student Fill-In
Morning After Show
(Eclectic)
Student Special Hour
(Eclectic)
The Rockers Show
Synchronieity
(Talk)
. Duncan's Donuts
(Eclectic)
It Ain't Easy Being
Green (Eclectic)
Generation Annihilation
' (Punk)
(Reggae)
Parts Unknown (Pop)
What Pink Sounds
Like (eclectic)
Terry Ptoject Democracy
Rxlcast Now (Talk)
(Talk) 1
We All Fall Down
(Punk)
Hugo
(Eclectic)
Student
Fill-in
Power Chapd^-^
(Metal)
Give 'Em the Boot
(World)
Extraenvironmentalist
(Talk)
InkSwds (Talk)
Radio Zero (Dance)
Shake
A Tail
Feather
(Soul/
R&B)
Student Fill-in slot
ProfTalk
Student Fill-in slot
Mantis Cabinet
(Eclectic)
Programming Training
Code Blue (Roots) :i
Radio Freethinker
(Talk)
Thunderbird Eye
Nardwuar Presents
(Nardwuar)
(Roots)
The Rib (Eclectic)
Mantra
(Eclectic)
Programming Training
Chips
1 (fc>P)
Queer FM
QMUNTTY
News ioi (Talk)
Student Fill-in slot
Arts Report (Talk)
Butta on the Bread
(Eclectic)
News 101 (Talk)
The Leo Ramirez Show
(World)
Sore Throats, Clapping Hands (Rogue
Folk, Indie S/S)
Flex Your Head
(Hardcore)
RT.R,
Discorder
Are You
Aware
(Eclectic)
Peanut
Butter 'n'
Jams
(Eclectic)
Stranded
(Eclectic)
NashaVolna (World)
Sam-
squantch
Shameless
Queer FM (Talk)
Student
Fill-in
Exploding Head
Movies
(Cinematic)
USC1J
1
Stereoscopic Redoubt
(Experimental)
African Rhythms
J Rhythms
(World)
Techno
Progressivo
Inside Out
(Dance)
Folk Oasis (Roots)
1 Bootlegs & B-Sides
(Dance/Electronic)
. The Jaaz Show (Jazz)
CfimggAnd Treasons
(Hip-hop)
Live From Thunderbird
Radio Hell (live}
The Bassment
(Dance/Electronic)
Synaptic Sandwich
(Dance/Electronic/
ScIectkS
Sexy In Van City
(Talk)
Transcendance
Student
Fill-In
(Dance)
CabaRadio (Talk)
Hans Kloss Misery
Hour (Hans Kloss)
Funk My Life
(Soul/Dance)
Randophonic
(Eclectic)
Canada Post-Rock
(Rock)
Aural Tentacles
(Eclectic)
The Vampire's Ball
(Industrial)
CiTRGhostMix
CiTRGhostMix
CiTRGhostMix
CiTRGhostMix
CiTRGhostMix
]■
CiTRGhostMix
6am
7
111
1
■
in
■
22 SUNDAY
CLASSICAL CHAOS
(Classical) 9-ioam
From the Ancient World to
the 21st century, join host
Marguerite in exploring and
celebrating classical music
from around the world.
SH00KSH00KTA
(Talk) ioam-i2pm
1 A program targeted to
\ Ethiopian people that
encourages education and
\ personal development.
THE ROCKERS SHOW
:) i2-3pm
e inna all styles and
fashion.
BLOOD ON THE SADDLE
(Roots) 3-5pm
Alternatina Sundays
Real cowshit-caught-in-yer-
boots country.
SHAKE A TAIL FEATHER
(Soul/R&B) 3-spm
Alternatina Sundays
I The finest in classic soul
and rhythm & blues from
the late '50s to the early
1 '70s, including lesser
j known artists, regional hits
j and lost soul gems.
CHIPS WITH EVERYTHING
(Pop) 5-6pm
\ Alternatina Sundays
'■ British pop music from all
decades. International pop
I (Japanese, French, Swedish, British, US, etc.), '60s
: soundtracks and lounge.
QUEER FM QMUNITY (TALK)
(Talk) 5-6pm
i Alternatina Sundays
An expose of ±e arts &
culture scene in the LGBTQ
community.
QUEER FM ARTS XTRA
fTalk) 6-8pm
Dedicated to the gay,
lesbian, bisexual and
transexual communities of
Vancouver. Lots of human
■ interest features, background on current issues
and great music.
queerfmradio(a)gmail.com
RHYTHMSINDIA
(World) 8-9pm
Alternating Sundays
Featuring a wide range of
music from India, including
popular music from the
1930s to the present; Ghazr
als and Bhajans, Qawwalis,
pop and regional language
numbers.
TECHNO PROGRESSIVO
(Dance) 8-9pm
Alternatina Sundays
A mix ofthe latest house
music, tech-house, prog-
house and techno.
BOOTLEGS & B-SIDES
(Dance/Electronic) 9-iopm
TRANCENDANCE
(Dance) iopm-i2am
Join us in practicing the
ancient art of rising above
common ideas as your host
DJ Smiley Mike lays down the
latest trance cuts.
trancendance@
hotmail.com
MONDAY BB
BREAKFAST WITH THE BROWNS
(Eclectic) 8-nam
Your favourite Brownsters,
James and Peter, offer a
savoury blend ofthe familiar and exotic in a blend of
aural delights.
breakfastwiththebrowns@
hotmail.com
SKA-T'S SCENIC DRIVE
(Ska) nam-i2pm
SYNCHRONICS
(Talk) i2-i:oopm
Join host Marie B and
discuss spirituality, health
and feeling good. Tune in
and tap into good vibrations
that help you remember
why you're here: to have
fun!
PARTS UNKNOWN
(Pop) i-3pm
An indie pop show since
1999, it's like a marshmal-
low sandwich: soft and
sweet and best enjoyed
when poked with a stick
and held close to a fire.
THE RIB
(Eclectic) 4-5pm
Explore the avant-garde
world of music with host
Robyn Jacob on the Rib.
From new electronic and
experimental music to
improvised jazz and new
classical! So weird it will
blow your mindl
NEWS 101
(Talk) 5-6pm
Vancouver's only live,
volunteer-produced,
student and community
newscast. Every week, we
take a look back at the
week's local, national and
international news, as seen
from a fully independent
media perspective.
SORE THROATS, CLAPPING
HANDS
(Roaue Folk, Indie S/S)
6-7:3opm
Lyric Driven Campfire
Inspired: new and old tunes
from singer / songwriters
with an emphasis on Canadian music.
Find us on Facebook!
EXPLODING HEAD MOVIES
(Cinematic) 7:30-9pm
Join gak as he explores
music from the movies,
tunes from television and
any other cinematic source,
along with atmospheric
pieces, cutting edge new
tracks and strange old
goodies that could be used
in a soundtrack to be.
THE JAZZ SHOW
(Jazz) 9pm-i2am
Vancouver's longest
running prime-time jazz
program. Hosted by Gavin
Walker. Features at npm.
Feb. 6: "Jazz with John
Handy 111." The great alto
saxophonist, playing mostly
original compositions with
a solid rhythm section.
Feb. 13: Vibraphone and
marimba master Bobby
Hutcherson and his great
band and a classic,
"Waiting."
Feb. 20: Ofthe many
albums by the tenor
saxophone master, one
recording stands tall: "Joe
Henderson in Japan."
Feb. 27: TBA.
CANADA POST-ROCK
(Rock) i2-i:ooam
Formerly on CKXU, Canada
Post-Rock now resides on
the west coast but it's still
committed to the best in ,v ■'[
post-rock, drone, ambient,
experimental, noise and
basically anything your host
Pbone can put the word
"post" in front of.
TUESDAY
PACIFIC PICKIN'
(Roots) 6-8am
Bluegrass, old-time music,
and its derivatives with
Arthur and the lovely Andrea Berman.
pacificpickin@yahoo.com
SOUNDS OF AFRICA
(World) 8-9:3oam
Showcasing music, current
affairs & news from across
the African continent and
the diaspora, you will learn
all about beat and rhythm
and it will certainly kick-
start your day.
QUEER FM ARTS XTRA
(Talk) 9:3o-io:3oam
SUP WORLD?
(Eclectic) io:30-n:3oam
Fuzzy and sweet, a total
treat! Tune in to hear the
latest and greatest tracks
from independent and
Vancouver bands.
MORNING AFTER SHOW
(Eclectic) n:3oam-ipm
An eclectic mix of Canadian
indie wijh rock, experimental, world, reggae,
punk and ska from Canada,
Latin America and Europe.
Hosted by Oswaldo Perez
Cabrera.
WHAT PINK SOUNDS LIKE
(edectic) i-2pm
Celebrating women in
music and media who truly
kick ass. Join host Ashly
Kissman as she increases
feminist content on the airwaves one song at a time'.
GIVE'EM THE BOOT
(World) 2-3pm
Sample the various flavours
of Italian folk music from
north to south, traditional
to modern on this bilingual
show.
givetheboot@gmail.com
http://giveemtheboot.
wordpress.com
PROF TALK
fTalk) 3-3:3opm
Bringing UBC's professors
on air to talk about current/
past events at the local
and international level.
Aiming to provide a space
for faculty and doctoral
level students to engage in
dialogue and share their
current research.http://ubc-
proftalk.wordpress.com
proftalk@gmail.com
RADIO FREETHINKER
(Talk) 3:30-4:3opm
Promoting skepticism, critical thinking and science, we
examine popular extraordinary claims and subject
them to critical analysis.
FLEX YOUR HEAD
(Hardcore) 6-8pm
Punk rock and hardcore
since 1989. Bands and guests
from around the world.
INSIDE OUT
(Dance) 8-gpm
CRIMES & TREASONS
(Hip-hop) 9-npm
crimesandtreasons@gmail.
CABARADIO
(Talk) npm-i2:3oam
For the world of Cabaret
Tune in for interviews, •
skits, musical guests and
more. It's Radio with sass!
WEDNESDAY
SUBURBAN JUNGLE
(Eclectic) 8-ioam
Live from the Jungle Room,
join radio host Jack Velvet
for an eclectic mix of music,
sound bites, information and
inanity, dj@jackvelvet.net
POP DRONES
(Eclectic) io-n:3oam
STUDENT SPECIAL HOUR
(Eclectic) ii:30-ipm
Various members ofthe
CiTR's student-executive'
sit in and host this blend
of music and banter about
campus and community
news, arts and pop culture.
Drop ins welcome!
TERRY PROJECT PODCAST
fTalk) 1-2 pm
Alternatina Wednesdays
There once was a project
named Terry, That wanted
to make people wary, Of
things going on In the
world that are wrong
Without-making it all seem
too scary.
23 I DEMOCRACY NOW
| (Ta!k)i-2pm
I Alternatina Wednesdays
| EXTRAENVIRONMENTALIST
| (Talk) 2-3pni:.^
I Exploring the mindset of
an outsider looking in on
Earth. Featuring interviews
! with leading thinkers in
! the area of sustainable
I economics and our global
I ecological crisis.
MANTIS CABINET
(Eclectic) 4-5pm
ARTS REPORT
(Talk) 5-6pm
REEL TO REAL
(Talk) 6-6:3opm
Alternatina Wednesdays
Movie reviews and criti-
| DISCORDER RADIO
| (Talk) 6-6:3opm
| Alternating Wednesdays
! Discorder Magazine now
' has its own radio show! Join
I us to hear excerpts of inter-
L views, reviews and more!
\ SAMSQUANTCH'S
HIDEAWAY
j (Eclectic) 6:30-8pm
Alternating Wednesdays
All-Canadian music with a
focus on indie-rock/pop.
anitabinder@hotmail.com
SHAMELESS
(Eclectic) 6:30-8pm
Alternatina Wednesdays
Dedicated to giving local
music acts a crack at some
airplay. When not playing
the PR shtick, you can
hear some faves you never
knew you liked.
FOLK OASIS
(Roots) 8-iopm
Two hours of eclectic folk/
roots music, with a big
emphasis on our local
scene. C'mon in! A kum-
baya-free zone since 1997.
folkoasis@gmail.com
SEXY IN VAN CITY
fTalk) 10-npm
Your weekly dose of education and entertainment in
the realm of relationships
and sexuality.
sexyinvancity.com/category/
sexy-in-vancity-radio
HANS KLOSS* MISERY HOUR
(Hans Kloss) npm-iam
Pretty much the best thing
on radio.
THURSDAY
END OF THE WORLD NEWS
(Talk) 8-ioam
DUNCAN'S DONUTS
(Eclectic) 12-ipm
Sweet treats from the pop
underground. Hostedhy „
Duncan, sponsored by
donuts.
duncansdonuts.
wordpress.com
WE ALL FALL DOWN
(Punk) i-2pm
Punk rock, indie pop and
whatever else I deem worthy. Hosted by a closet nerd,
www.weallfalldowncitr.
INK STUDS
(Talk)2-3pm
Underground and indie
comix. Each week, we interview a.different creator to
get their unique perspective
on comix and discuss their
upcoming works.
THUNDERBIRD EYE
(Sports) 3:30-4pm
^Sjj^a&ekly roundup of UBC
Thunderbird sports action
from on campus and off with j
your host Wilson Wong.
MANTRA
(Eclectic) 4-5 pm
Playing various Mantra
music, this show is about
personal and global transformation through chanting
and utilizing sound vibration for the development
of higher consciousness.
Hosted by Raghunath with
special guests.
BUTTA ON THE BREAD
(Eclectic) 5-5 pm
It's like mixing unicorn
blood with Christopher
Walken's tears, and then
pouring it into your ears.
ARE YOU AWARE
(Eclectic) Alternating Thursdays 6-7:3opm
Celebrating the message
behind the music: Profiling
music and musicians that
take the route of positive
action over apathy.
PEANUT BUTTER'N' JAMS
(Eclectic) Alternating Thursdays 6-7:3opm
Explore local music and
food with your hosts,
Brenda and Jordie. You'll
hear interviews and reviews
on eats and tunes from
your neighbourhood, and a
weekly pairing for your date
calendar.
STEREOSCOPIC REDOUBT
(Experimental) 7:30-9pm
LIVE FROM THUNDERBIRD
RADIO HELL
(Liue Music) 9-npm
Featuring hWf»and(s) every
week performing ifcifcfe :
CiTR Lounge. Most are
from Vancouver, but sometimes bands from across
the country and around the
world.
FUNK MY LIFE
(Soul/Dance) npm-i2am
Grooving out tunes with a
bit of soul and a lot of funk,
from the birth of rhythm and
blues to the golden age of
motown, to contemporary
dance remixes of classic
soul hits.
AURAL TENTACLES
(Eclectic) i2-6am
It could be global, trance,
spoken word, rock, the
unusual and the weird, or it
could be something different Hosted by DJ Pierre.
auraltentacles@hotmail.com
FRIDAY
FRIDAY SUNRISE
(Eclectic) 7:30-9am
An eclectic mix of indie
rock, hip-hop and reggae to
bring you up with the sun.
ALTERNATIVE RADIO
(Talk) 9-io:ooam
Hosted by David Barsamian.
SOUNDS OF THE CITY
(Eclectic) 10-11 am
Promoting upcominp^d^*'.
concerts and shows in
Vancouver, be they local,
national, or international
acts.
IT AIN'T EASY BEING GREEN
(Eclectic)i2-ipm
CiTR. has revived it's long-
dormant beginner's show
It Ain't Easy Being Green!
With the support of experienced programmers, this
show offers fully-trained
CiTR members, especially
students, the opportunity to
get their feet wet on the air.
HUGO
(Eclecricj i-zpm
Alternatina Fridays
RADIO ZERO
(Dance) 2-3:30pm
An international mix of
super-fresh weekend party
jams from New Wave to
foreign electro, baile, Bollywood and whatever else.
www.radiozero.com
NARDWUAR
(Nardwuar) 3:30-5pm
Join Nardwuar the Human
Serviette for Clam Chowder
flavoured entertainment.
Doot doola doot doo...doot
doo!
[ nardwuar@nardwuar.com
NEWS 101
(Talk) 5-6pm
See Monday for description.
STRANDED
.{E$*eK(J |5-7:3opm
Join your host Matthew for
a weekly mix of exciting
sounds, past and present,
from his Australian homeland. And journey with him
as he features fresh tunes
and explores the alternative
musical heritage of Canada.
AFRICAN RHYHMS
(World) 7:30-9pm
www.africanrhythmsradio.
com
THE BASSMENT
(Dance/Electronic) 9-io:3opm
The Bassment is Vancouver's only bass-driven
radio show, playing Glitch,
Dubstep, Drum and Bass,
Ghetto Funk, Crunk, Breaks
and UK Funky, while focusing on Canadian talent and
highlighting Vancouver DJs,
producers and the parties
they throw.
THE VAMPIRE'S BALL
(Industrial) i2-4am
Industrial, electro, noise,
experimental and synth-
based music, thevampires-
ball@gmail.com thevam-
piresballoncitr.com
SATURDAY
THE SATURDAY EDGE
(Roots) 8am-i2pm
A personal guide to world
and roots music—with
African, Latin and European
music in the first half,
followed by Celtic, blues,
songwriters, Cajun and
whatever else fits!
steveedge3@mac.c0m
GENERATION ANNIHILATION
(Punk) 12-ipm
A fine mix of streetpunk
and old-school hardcore
backed by band interviews,
guest speakers and social
commentary.
crashnbumradio@yahoo.ca
generationannihilation.com
POWER CHORD
(Metal) i-3pm
Vancouver's longest running metal show. If you're
into music that's on the
heavier/darker side of the
spectrum, then you'll like
it. Sonic assault provided by
Geoff, Marcia and Andy.
CODE BLUE
(Roots) 3-5pm
From backwoods delta
low-down slide to urban
harp honks, blues and blues
roots with your hosts Jim,
Andy and Paul.
codeblue@buddy-system.org
THE LEO RAMIREZ SHOW
(World) 5-6pm
The best of mix of Latin
American music.
leoramirez@canada.com
NASHAVOLNA
(World) 6-7pm
News, arts, entertainment
and music for the Russian
community, local and
abroad.
nashavolna.ca
SYNAPTIC SANDWICH
(Dance/Electronic) 9-npm
If you like everything from
electro/techno/trance/8-bit
music/retro '80s this is the
show for you!
www.synapticsandwich.net j
RANDOPHONIC
(Eclectic) npm-iam
Randophonic is best
thought of as an in traversal
jukebox programmed by a
vast alien living intelligence
system which has no concept of genre, style, nation
states or even space-time
relevance. Holy Ghost (Nebula) mi)
6"x4"
oil on panel
mm
ART
PROJECT
Erik Olson is a graduate of the Emily
Carr University of Art and Design (2007).
He has participated in residencies at
the Banff Centre, Emma Lake and the
Sanskriti Centre in New Delhi, India.
His work has been exhibited at the
Art Gallery of Calgary, The Skew Gallery,
The Cheaper Show and the University
Of Milwaukee. ->erikolson.ca
t
Earth (2QU)
72" x 84"
oil on canvas t ERIK OLSON
P
ERIK OLSON
Love Space (2011)
Neptune (2011)
48"x36"
48"x36"
oil on panel
oil on panel ANIMAL BODIES
(Sweatina Tapes)
The duo behind Animal Bodies' latest album couldn't have come into
being anywhere other than Vancouver's DTES. The six-song 12" pervades
with the semi-lucid noise of addicts
and wanderers.
Kiss OfThe Fana plays largely within
the darkwave genre, mixing cold post-
punk synths and cakey '80s drum
machine repetition, but these tropes
are only responsible for the base layer
of each track. Bleak field recordings
mix up the colour palette by injecting
the unfriendly kind of East Van sounds
into each track— heavily distorted
seagulls squawking, and a woman
smoking crack in the rain are more
thematic touches than musical ones,
but add a much-needed dimension.
Even though much ofthe content
is harsh, the delivery is usually spot-
on enough to make it work. "Jungle
Cathedral" combines a remarkably
catchy, dirty bass line with ethereal,
haunting chanting that scratches the
inside of your head like a bad drug
trip must do. Some ofthe synth work,
especially on the last three tracks, can
get repetitive, but the chilly guitar riffs
sprinkled throughout the album give
a good Joy Division head-rush. If you
already live on Hastings, this record
might be a little much, but if you've
never had it rough these dirty songs
might be a good way to grime yourself up.
—Fraser Dobbs
ASTROLOGICAL
(Jellyfish)
Can you imagine a calm night being
preyed upon by an overwhelming and
particularly glistening sky? If you can,
you already know the deal; if you can't,
listen to AstroLogical's (a.k.a Nate
Drobner) Flux, and you will understand. The Vancouver-based multi-
instrumentalist/producer dreamy
eight-track album diffuses a manifesto
through retro spoken vocals fused
with a chillwave-jazz feel and psychedelic beats, as on opener "Delirium."
As the album continues, tracks dive
into deep textures and heavy drums
with the use of an open high-hat The
softness of "Why?" has the ability to
put one into a relaxing trance with a
sleepy and mesmerizingly progressive
sound. The album takes the listener
through a circling saunter, much like
a trip-hop version of Ratatat (minus
the guitars) and closes with my personal favourite, "Diamonds In Your
Eyes." All tracks were produced by
Astro himself and mastered by the
genius Patrick Haggart. After listening to Flux, it's apparent that Vancouver's instrumental lovers are in
store for a unique and inspirational
experience.
—Josefa Cameron
THE BALLANTYNES
(La-Ti-Da)
If you want to get those dancing shoes
on then look no further. East Vancouver's Ballantynes have released
their first seven-inch single, featuring the incredibly addictive songs
"The Message" and "The Railtown
Abbey." Considering it was recorded
at Little Red Sounds Studio—which
recently brought you the retro magic
of Chains of Love—it's no surprise
that the Ballantynes tout a similar
blend of mid-sixties beat, soul and
garage rock. But rather than pulling
from the charming girl groups ofthe
era, you get influences from blue-eyed
soul groups like the Young Rascals or
the Animals.
"The Message" features Jarrod
Odell on lead vocals, not to mention
a delicious Hammond organ. The
vocalist's deep and bluesy pipes are
drenched in echo, contrasting the
light female backup vocals that provide breezy call-backs. The thumping
beat and fun stops and starts will have
you bobbingyour head whetheryou're
conscious of it or not
B-side "The Railtown Abbey" is
just as impressive. Its explosive intro,
which has Vanessa Dandurand belting
out its opening lyrics, is reminiscent
ofthe Shangri-Las version of "Shout"
Once drums and handclaps kick in,
; you start to imagine an entire gospel
choir working their way onstage. Odell
takes the second verse and from there
it becomes an exhilarating duet. What
1 a treat to have a band that consists of
two show-stopping vocalists.
The Ballantynes have a whopping
seven members. They're a big band,
but they sure have the big sound to
back it up.
j —Angela Yen
BEHIND SAPPHIRE
(Independent)
After a big year of overseas touring,
and garnering much acclaim (including being selected as one of B.C.'s top
20 artists in the Peak Performance
Project and receiving video spins on
Much Music), Vancouver's Behind
Sapphire are set to take their success
even further with the release ofthe
Diamonds EP and a soon-to-be-released
full-length follow up.
At first listen, what grabs my
attention most is Grant CasselPs
voice, which is strong, clean and lilting, at times bringing a bit of Patrick
Watson's croon to mind. And then
there is the music, which is rife with
warm string arrangements, chiming
bells and chug-along rhythms. Diamonds starts off wonderfully with its
title track and then it's on to "Black
Ties," a sweet, straight ahead pop
song that makes some good use of
auto-tune, despite Cassell sounding
as if he'd been possessed by a dirty
old singer from a twisted '40s jazz
bar in New Orleans.
There's an ode to our fair city
called "Vancouver, Baby!" complete
with shout-out gang vocals and some
inspired name-dropping that would
make any local proud. The inspirations of living well, relationships and
marriage steam this ship, and the rich
melodies reverberating throughout
keep energy high. Between the punchy
and immediate music with cool singing, interesting time changes and
the production to back it up, it's no
wonder this band has been having so
much luck as of late.
—Nathan Pike
28 CHAINS OF LOVE
(Dine Alone)
Chains of Love, the brainchild of local
producer Felix Fung, is a five-piece
of talented musicians that celebrate
the soul singers ofthe '70s with a
modern garage feel. Following last
spring's "You Got It" / "Black Hearts"
single, the band has given us another
two-song EP that continues their tradition of crafting super catchy melodies. Their sound teeters on the edge
of nostalgia, while still producing a
modern lo-fi groove that satisfies both
the bedlam palette and the tooth constantly in search of sugary hooks.
"In Between" steals the show
with an ultra-catchy chorus and a
crescendo of ha da da das that incite a
spontaneous sing-along opportunity,
which is a bit surprising considering
the song speaks of heartbreak and
loss. Regardless ofthe lyrical content,
the rather cheerful mood ofthe band
is simply contagious as they forge a
soul-sister-meets-surf-sex vibe. The
urge to include this track on every
playlist is hard to resist
"Breaking My Heart" is another
stellar track. While it shares a similar
lyrical theme, the song explores different musical territory, conjuring images
of great spy movies from the '70s with
its groovy bass line that is played on
a seemingly endless loop. The vocal
treatments by Nathalia Pizzaro and
Rebecca Marie Law Grey leave a welcomed smokey-sugary residue and
the whole package comes together
in a seemingly effortless manner.
There is one major complaint with
this latest release and their previous
two songs (which are equally impressive); enough with the teasers, when
does the full-length come out?
—Slavko Bucifal
COEUR DE PIRATE
; (GrosseBotte)
j Coeurde Pirate is the musical alias of I
i 22-year-old Montreal-based chanteuse !
and piano prodigy Beatrice Martin, j
Blonde is her second album as a solo
artist. One must admit that on first !
listen, the extremely polished, saccha- j
rine pop is almost too much to bear, j
It feels like drinking a pint of maple
syrup. This is unabashedly CBC-ready, j
foot-tapping CanCon, sounding like a
less-snotty Quebecois version of Amy j
Winehousejitwillbegobbledupbya !
large number of people who are into i
that kind of thing, as the millions of
hits on her YouTube videos will attest. !
Whatever makes pop music popular, I
Blonde is totally full of it
Blonde is predominantly a break- I
up album. Martin has not-so-subtly j
hinted that the album's creation was
largely fueled by the disintegration of j
her short-lived and well-publicized j
relationship with Bedouin Sound-
clash's Jay Malinowski. The lyrics
(all in French) come across like a
personal folded-up note from Martin j
to Malinowski that the teacher reads
to the whole classroom. There are a !
lot of vague references to other girls, I
being lied to, and so on. The lyrics are ;
best when exhibiting Martin's canine ]
teeth, as in the pricelessly brutal line j
from the single, "Adieu": "You make j
love in two thrusts."
Martin is undeniably a skilled (and j
extremely photogenic) songwriter and
performer, but her performance on I
Blonde feels restrained and pent up
like a fake smile. One wonders how
she would sound if she delved into
the raw nerve-endings of her heart-
ache and anger and unapologetically
released it upon her unsuspecting pop !
audience.
—Andrew Reeves
DON LORANGE
(VidKid)
If you grew up in the time of analog
radio, you'll remember those long,
late night road trips caught in a dead
zone filled with static and incoherent off-air messages interspersed
between frequencies. You knew if
you searched long enough, you'd
find some cheesy country ballad or
an apocryphal backwoods broadcast
discussing the importance of metallic
hats the Devil's frequency can't penetrate. Don L'Orange's
experimental album
release on VidKid Tapes
brought me right back
to that place.
Explaining this
album away in an
attempt to analyze its
worth would be a nightmare. I can't listen to
it without being thrust
into a state of unease.
Throughout the seamless soundscape, you're
enamoured with a frantic struggle in search for
the proper frequency
that never quite comes
infuU.
Side B nearly gets
you there with an
increased use of percussion that gives a sense
that you've found what
you've been searching
-for, but the frequency
coaster continues as
the sound plunges into
a low-end synth before
the percussion once
again takes hold in the
final track.
There's no romanticized sense
of wonder that keeps you awestruck
the whole way through. Some ofthe
tracks are genuinely hard to listen
to from start to finish. But the goal
of an experimental album is to put
out tunes that spark something in
the listener, and Deon L'Orange has
certainly accomplished that
Whether the entire analog frequency spectrum that has been
fazed out with modern digitization
has decided to take the form of Don
L'Orange to remind us all of what
we've given up, is yet to be seen.
—Chris Adams
BVSr DOING NOTHING!
iv»*$ 54CI FRAKCtS Jill lAMftflt EVAPOMTORS
lityl conspila
Record Release Weekend!
today March 3 (aftemoon-2pm) - Neptoon Records (351 .
The Evaporators ptay a Free ALIASES Record Release Party
for tte "Busy Doing Nothing" LP!
29 JUVENILE HALL
(Independent)
Juvenile Hall Got Caught first entered
the CiTR charts in the number z
position—and for good reason. The
second release from the Vancouver
trio picks up where their debut seven-
inch left off, making for a hard hitting affair with some serious attitude.
When Juvenile Hall first tested the
relationship between amps and speakers, the girls suggested we should "Eat
Shit and Die," all the while loosely
interpreting the idea of musical timing. Their raw energy and spirit was
instantly endearing. On their second EP, Juvie successfully compete
with any other tunes that might be
vying for air time in your inner ethos.
Maintaining some of that gorgeous
in-your-face energy with a healthy
dose of refinement, the group have
crafted three songs which are absolute
diamonds in the rough.
From the opening seconds of Got
Cauaht, it is clear the girls like it fast,
heavy and catchy. There is nothing
innately difficult with their songs.
The band prefers to use a minimum
amount of chords to convey their
punk poetry, and they do it well. "Doctor Says" flirts with substance abuse—
or is it substance under-use?— but
the frantic jabs of Sadie Olchewski's
guitar, not to mention its great chorus hook, make it a highlight. The
girls invite us all to a "House Party"
on the second track, continuing their
tradition of letting loose and making
music suitable for any. get together
involving a potential whiplash. "Magazine Collage" offers a social commentary on fake women created by
the fashion media while Juvenile Hall
demonstrates an unorthodox beauty
themselves by smashing their cymbals
with relentless passion. Hurried, raw
and minimal, Got Cauaht's growth is
obvious.
—Slavko Bucifal
(Independent)
The chainsaw guitar tone and
demonic back up vocals of "Lineage"
thrust up through the mud like an
undead hand, gripping your ankle
and pulling down into a sludgy, :
dark underworld where "Bone Tribunal" is waiting to crush your ears \
with primitive beats and desperate
vocals. You try and gasp for breath, j
but "Recognition Blues" swarms \
in and smothers you in a stinging
cloud, leaving you swollen and bat- !
tered but just conscious enough for i
the taunting "Dredge" to penetrate !
your skin. Sweat drenched and panicked, you look at your watch, and
shockingly, barely eight minutes have
passed. Finally, the brazen "Straight
Laced" comes in, claws bared, ready
to finish you off, but takes mercy !
mid-mulling and thrusts you out of j
the darkness, sending you drifting I
back into consciousness.
Was it a horrible dream or an i
exhilarating nightmare? Possessed, j
you turn up the volume, press play j
again and eagerly wait for Nun Un II |
drag you back into the frantic void j
between no wave and hardcore.
—MarkPaulHus
PANTHER &
THE SUPAFLY
(Independent)
If you're a regular on the Vancouver ]
live music circuit y0^k$^ recognize
a few faces in Panther & the Supafly, j
Panther (real name Josh Matumona)
has been playing guitar locally for
years, and the Supafly is built up of ■
several talented musicians who have i
also been plying their trade all over
town. A hard working group for I
sure, and it shows in this surpris- i
ingly solid, if sometimes lackluster,
debut EPNkazi.
Everything from the thumping
bass and power chords ofthe opening song "Swaggapuff" to the '70s
funk influence ofthe Mary Jane love
song "Chronicles" and the thoughtful "Diamond in the Africa Rough"
are well crafted and show that they
can run the gambit of genres without l
trouble. In fact, none ofthe songs
really resemble each other, perhaps
showing that Panther & the Supafly
are going out oftheir«H(ftoIreep from j
being pigeoned holed into one genre j
or another. The group's sound seems *
built around mashing together genres
to create something that sets them
apart, but in the process of showing
off their range they fail to build any
sort of consistent sound that would
hold together a full album.
Nothing about Nkazi is groundbreaking, and the unfortunate part
about having a rapper as the frontman
is that the band can go underappreciated on the recording. Still, the choice
of live performers rather then endless sampling is novel at least, and
is a good compliment to Panther's
creative and smart lyrics. The result
is an EP that sets the stage for a lot
of future success once they find their
own groove.
—Tristan Koster
VINCENT PARKER
RESPECANIZE PART ONE
(Independent)
This album is dirty. Proverbially
dirty, of course—Vincent Parker's
newest release is oozing with style,
substance, and sheer electronic filth.
RESPECANIZE part one is a haunting and volatile journey through
some perverted ethereal synthetic
machine, twisting and churning
the ears of any listener into a fuzzy,
discordant mess.
Parker makes some dark, deep,
ambient techno that screeches and
burns yet soothes and sings. It's an
interesting clash of nonsense and fantastic rhythm—a successful tour de
musique—without forming a "niche"
group oflisteners. The album's opener
"Cyrilian" may deter certain listeners
with its initial fluctuation of heavy
bass and perfect percussion, but those
who venture further into RESPECANIZE
and its mysterious nature will surely
be pleased by the sheer variety of tones
and arrangements Parker puts out in
his step sequencer of choice.
The album's final two tracks,
"Slither" and "Live No Lie," are the
album's high point, perfectly closing
the effort with an undeniable catchi-
ness. Despite being generally slower
on the front-half of the release, Parker
packs a punch for the last stretch of
the album with a far more satisfying
array of synthetic squeals.
Parker's outdone himself wi± this
RESPECANIZE part one. For those looking to grind their ears with assaulting bass, or those simply wanting
to dance and transcend into an electronic abyss, it's a fantastic example
of ambient and experimental techno
done right.
—Kamil Krawczyk
THE PASSENGER
(Independent)
Not to be confused with the English ;
hardcore act, Vancouver's version
ofthe Passenger subscribes to a j
chill electronic vibe that, for a brief
moment, delivers Eno-esque sounds;
the key word is brief The album, I
awkwardly named |_| (not sure how
you even begin to say that), rotates |
between electro-spasms and ambient unconsciousness resulting in a
sort-of restlessness throughout the
ten-song affair.
\_| lacks unity, but it makes up
for it with some interesting impres- :
sions—though you might have to
skip the first track to get there. The
opening seconds ofthe album are
announced with a lazy but brash
synth horn similar to something you ;
might hear in a sci-fi movie filmed in
the early '70s. Before boredom sets j
in, "Mr. Similar" presents us with a j
series of rather random bits, bytes :
and beat pops before re-connecting
with the original theme, which feels I
a bit worn by the time it makes a !
reappearance.
The awkward start might otherwise cast a shadow on the rest ofthe
album; however, what follows are two
tracks that are in complete contrast
to each other, yet represent the best
elements ofthe album.
"Planetarium" is a warm excur- i
sion into space travel, with its big ;
square-waves and consistent groove
lines making this track very acces- j
sible. "Rainy" relieves the crisp synth j
edges and replaces them with piano j
sounds subtly blurred together to ere- I
ate a gorgeous, downtrodden tone !
perfect for commiseration during the i
rainy season.
The Passenger gives us randomness, danceable moments and ambi- ;
ent musings all in the first three j
30 pieces. Unfortunately, this triumvirate continues for the duration ofthe
album and even surfaces in a single
track. There are moments on "Shirt"
that are reminiscent of Eno's Musicfor
Airports, which are combined with the
classic sound of an Electro Harmonix
pedal (or something similar) providing an ultra fast delay effect. While
this is usually a good recipe for ear
candy, the song—like the album—
loses in its hyperactivity or inability
to settle.
—Slavko Bucifal
SEAN NICHOLAS SAVAGE
(Arbutus)
Composing and recording music for
most of his young life, gathering a
rather diverse songbook, Montreal
resident Sean Nicholas Savage averages about three albums a year.
Flaminao is his latest and continues
in the flow of simple songs that
sometimes borrow from the Motown
handbook of smooth romance, hippie
freak-folk and '80s disco beats, but
with a more eccentric bent. If this is
your first foray into Savage's strange
musical world, it is suggested thatyou
dig up a few of his previous albums
like Movin' Up in Society, Won Ton Jaz or
Trippple Midniaht Karma before holding
judgment They may offer a broader
idea of what this kid is up to and might
make it easier to appreciate this latest
output of oddball tunage.
Throughout Flaminao there is a
continuous crackle and warp in the
mix, giving these already old-school
sounding songs more authenticity
and intrigue, as if you're listening
to some old vinyl or a ratty cassette
tape. Tunes like "Spotted Brown" and
"Days Go By" have an easy listening,
almost disco-funk feel while "Catch
the Quick Fish" is like an old Dylan
tune with a Cat Stevens-like essence.
Boyishly charming without being
naive and unapologetically sincere,
Sean Nicholas Savage has a sound and
delivery like no other and if you're a
fan of d.i.y. folk and cheap-sounding
Casio beats played with style, then this
music ought to tickle your fancy.N
—Nathan Pike
VARIOUS ARTISTS
MITE PRISON: STUDIO OUTTAKES
(Independent)
When the phrase "outtakes and j
demos" comes to mind, it tends to
favour the connotations "less than ;
desirable" or "not good enough for
the album." But Jesse Taylor, producer, engineer, and founder of Nite ;
Prison recording studio, denies these
stereotypes and gives these orphaned ;
tracks a home on his latest release j
Nite Prison: Studio Outtakes and Demos. \
A diverse sampling of his work since
early 2010, the 18 tracks clamber in at I
just over 40 minutes to showcase an I
assortment of Vancouver punk, no- ^
wave, lo-fi, and noise musicians.
Taylor's impressive technical abilities allow him to seamlessly transfer
the stage energy of bands that have
earned a reputation for their deafening
and sweaty five performances, such
as White Lung, whose opening track ;
"Rats" summons ah unrestrained
fury found only at a d.i.y. punk show.
Continuing on fierce and relentless, |
the record pummels listeners with
a diverse selection of tracks, from
trashy skateboard anthems by all-girl.
No L.A. Kill to Anna's murky crust
And of course, this collection
wouldn't be complete without the
disaffected abrasion of local favourites like Nu Sensae and Shearing
Pinx. However it's the more accessible side of Vancouver's scene
that stands out on this recording.
Rendering '90s nostalgia, the three-
chord "Landlines" by Hari Legs is a
return to simplicity that would fit
just as easily on an early Punk-O-Rama
compilation, while the punk ballad
"California Cutoffs" by Juvenile Hall
is a biting and sarcastic dream about
easylivin'.
Studio Outtakes and Demos displays
the diversity at Nite Prison and will
be appreciated not only by collectors and punk enthusiasts but also
those looking for an introduction
to Vancouver's punk scene.
—Robert Catherall
(Camobear)
ZZBRA: The Original Motion Picture
Soundtrack is the latest conceptual
release from Vancouver rap duo
Moka Only and Evil Ebenezer. The
inside cover ofthe album contains a
note from the "director" (producer)
of ZZBRA, Stuey Kubrick telling how
he dumped the film deep into the
jungle following its completion. This
tongue-and-cheek, playful attitude—
aided by the goofy sleeve artwork portraying the two rappers running from
animated jungle creatures—pervades
the music itself. This works towards
the group's detriment; I had difficulty
taking anything on ±e record seriously enough, and could not respect
it as a genuine hip-hop effort
The mood is set quickly in the
"Intro," a medley of sounds interspersed with meta comments such
as "a good intro needs..." so and so.
"Green," the first real song, whose
title seems to hint at the two primary
inspirations of hip-hop - money and
marijuana - is instead taken in the
direction of listing various eclectic
green objects such as the jungle or
extra-terrestrials, with only one reference to "ganja" and none to money.
"Raisins" promotes some sort of
inside joke which the listener is unfortunately not let in on. The repetitive
chorus: "Did you get the 'effing raisins I sent you?" leaves the listener
frustrated with the rappers' insistent
stupidity rather than laughing along
with the joke. These factors combine
to undermine several other tracks on
the album which aren't so blatantly
absurd, such as "Number One," a
song about losing a girl.
The rest ofthe album flows by
without much standing apart. Itwas
challenging to remain focused upon
subtle differences,, unique rhymes
or beats.
Instead of being comic and clever,
the album is amateurish and infantile at points. The ability is nascent
but before it will be able to develop,
this duo needs to become something
genuine rather than an act
—Andy Resto
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31 MAN YOUR HORSE /
THE BARCELONA CHAIR
The Biltmore /January 11
I get the feeling from talking to Vancouver natives that the Barcelona
Chair don't exactly maintain a consistent lineup—the last time I'd seen
them was as a four-piece, so it was
an initial disappointment to learn
that their violinist had moved back
to Hamilton, ON. I was skeptical that
their brand of mathy post-rock could
survive as a trio, but I was blown away
by the sounds that persevered. Their
guitarist can seriously shred, and the
rhythmic convulsions of his body as
he played was like a weird conductor's
. dance. The trio conjured a lot ofjapa-
nese shoegaze like Sgt. and Mass Of
The Fermenting Dregs, but the overall
sound was rooted firmly in atypical
time signatures, stop-start rhythms
and dissonant chord structures. The
dozens of pedals strewn about the
stage made each song stand clearly on
its own with thick delays leading into
heady fuzz-based jams, and not once
did my head stop to think about the
fact that they were "down" a man.
Man Your Horse didn't waste
much time between songs, rarely
stopping for more than a moment
before launching into yet another
high-energy tune. Their tracks didn't
really feel like complete, thought-out
structures—more like loose jams
organized around a batch of complicated riffs. Guitarist Julian Marrs
gets bonus points for playing through
both guitar and bass amps, creating a
funky low-end harmonic that helped
provide substance to his performance
alongside bandmate and skinsman
Scott Petrie. Rarely have I seen someone as excited as Marrs to be behind
a six-stringed instrument, so I felt a
little disappointed whenever he let
his hands fall to deliver uninteresting
lyrics caked in echo.
On the advice ofa friend, who
described closers Bel Riose as coming
across "like icicles being driven into
your eardrums by sheer volume" (in
a good way), I took a defensive stance
half-way to the back ofthe cabaret
before they began. I was a little let
down, then, when my ears didn't start
to bleed half-way through their "rock
concert" I really, really wanted to like
Bel Riose, who are an unapologetically
straight-forward rock 'n' roll duo, but
I just couldn't get into the traditional
verse-chorus-bridge structure that all
of their songs adopted. After the previous guitar-wizard-driven bands, seeing frontman Ryan Dolejsi pound out
relatively simple songs on a supremely
overdriven bass guitar was somewhat
of an anti-climax. The brother outfit (sibling Geof plays drums) were
sweating bullets by the end of their
set, but I was still left scratching my
head as to why they were playing with
bands that had such a strong focus on
technicality. I'd love to see Bel Riose
again, but on a bill better-suited to
their hard-up crunchy tones.
—Fraser Dobbs
32 BLOUSE/MODE MODERNE/
STUDENT TEACHER
The Waldorf/ January 13
Student Teacher's knack for folding
distorted, heavy guitars drenched in
reverb was noticeable at their opening
set at the Waldorf Hotel. The band's ;
penchant for underground echoes was
apparent in "Left For Dead", a ten-
minute dirge blending solid drums
and gritty guitars. Needless to say, j
the set felt as if it should have been
performed in a basement, as the room
didn't lend itself to the band's thick
rumble and fuzz. Despite this, a cover
of Black Tambourine's "Throw Aggi
Off the Bridge" was without a doubt
one ofthe highlights ofthe night.
Steeped in new wave signifiers,
Mode Moderne were next to take
the stage. Their performance com- j
municated gloomy and melancholic
tones while Clint Lofkrantz's pacing >
bass and Rebecca Law Gray's synths
led the crowd into an absorbed and
drifting state. Though for the first few
songs, Mode Moderne seemed to lack
solidity, "Radio Heartbeat" eventually
showcased the outfit's echo-driven ;
sound. Singer Phillip Intile, sporting a 1
black, short-sleeved shirt, blended the
focus of his deep, commanding voice j
with the bleak gothic undertones of
the band. Between the retro-futurist j
currents of their sounds, Mode Mod- !
erne's set became one of sincerity and
surreality.
Recent Captured Tracks signees
Blouse took the stage while snow
fell outside. Like labelmates Soft
Metals and Cosmetics, Blouse balances soft-focus synths sounds from
the '80s wi± a ghostly modernism. \
Charlie Hilton's vocals were intimate
and haunting atop the group's heavy |
dusting of drums and pulsing bass
lines. The Waldorf's deep red cur- j
tain backdrop somehow lent itself to
the heavy tonal landscapes of "Time j
Travel." "I was in the future yesterday/ But now I'm in the past," Hilton
sung on the atmospheric track. Other
highlights included "Firestarter" and
"Into Black," two tracks that spiralled
outwards from the band, swathing the
room in a gentle blanket of fuzz.
That said, Blouse's set occasionally
seemed tense and rushed, especially
during "Videotapes," but despite this,
their music evoked a trance-like state
within the audience.
—Dorothy Neufeld
SYNTHCAKE /THEE AHS/
THE LASER LOVE CATS CULT
The Zoo Zhop /January 14
By the time the Laser Love Cats Cult
burst into their first song, at least 30
people were already crowded into
the cozy, dark room of Vancouver's
favourite d.i.y. venue, the Zoo Zhop.
The five-piece have roaring guitar
solos and sweetie pie lyrics (including one song where lead singer, Peter
Volbek, professes his love the way only
an awkward poet could: "If I was a
vampire, I'd suck all your blood").
Accompanied by, ahem, laser projections, L.L.C.C played grungy, mid-
tempo psych rock songs that were
either driving instrumentals or tunes
with catchy, though often indecipherable, vocal melodies.
When the next band, Thee Ahs,
took the stage, the venue was almost
jam-packed. Though probably too often described as "cutesy", it's impossible to not understand why—Thee
Ahs have been gaining a reputation as
one of Vancouver's best bubblegum
pop bands.
Singer Sarah Lowenbot's delicate
voice is reminiscent of songbirds
like Leslie Gore or Peggy Lee, and
she engaged the audience full of fans
between every song. Before breaking into a brand new number, later
revealed as "Hockey," the vocalist
implored, "See if you can hear the
lyrics and try to guess what it's about"
Thee Ahs' endearing slow-paced
songs often gained momentum plying
spooky harmonies with simple song
structures, and despite a few technical difficulties, the outfit was well
received. When the band announced,
"Alright, this song goes out to everyone" and started into "To Laugh at
Being Lonely", more than one person
was singing along in the audience,
which was pretty impressive.
The sounds in the Zoo Zhop shifted from sweet melodies to psychotic
circus music once Synthcake's set be
gan. Using synths (obviously), live
drums and a trumpet, the quartet's
performance felt like a frenzied video
game competition. After one particularly zippy, drum-heavy song that had
the crowd losing their shit, the group
started offering free download cards,
which had people pushing to the front
to grab theirs.
Synthcake's dynamic sounds
comes across like Amy Winehouse
fronting a funhouse band, and singer
Lana Pitre's sultry, velvety voice can
make you forget all about that deranged clown that's after you. Perhaps in reference to the band's latest
album, Musicophilia, Pitre asked, "Is
anyone obsessed with music so much
that it's, like, not a good thing?" The
final number ofthe night, with its
strange sound effects, vocal loops,
haunting harmonies and a driving
climax, had even the most jaded person in the crowd dancing. Despite
Synthcake's bizarre Big Top vibe, they
seemed to be exactly what everyone in
the cold, wet little room needed. And
nobody went home disappointed.
—Mel Zee
THE TRANZMITORS /
MANIC ATTRACTS/
THE WILD ONES
Pat's Pub /January 14
Those who braved the first snowfall of
winter and made their way to Pat's Pub
treated themselves to three groups
that each put their spin on some good
ol' fashion punk rock. The Wild Ones
kicked off the night and won over the
crowd with their girl-group charm.
Sporting matching gold dresses, tattoos and Marianne Faithfull hairdos,
the Wild Ones proved you can look
good and rock out without sacrificing
one for the other. California surf and
'60s rock/pop influences seeped their
way into the Santa Cruz band's sound,
but the Wild Ones have a punk rock
edge to them.
The haphazard vocals and crunchy
distortion made the otherwise gentle
"oohs" and "sha la las" a bit more
unkempt and unpolished. Guitarist
Rachael Chavez can really rip it up
and played some sweet but brief, surfy
guitar solos. A fun little cover of April
March's "Chick Habit" (itself a cover |
of France Gall's "Laisse Tomber Les
Filles") ended the set and got the night
off to a pretty good start
Vancouver locals Manic Attracts
were up next The trio was a bit one-
note, with little dynamic variation in
their set list. Lead singer/guitarist
Clint Lofkrantz delivered some rough j
vocals that were a tad off, even for a
punk band—his vocals were borderline screamo. Luckily, the group had
so much infectious energy that by the
end ofa song you actually didn't really
give a shit about how bad the singing
was. They were one-note, but that one
note was a burst of energy and badass.
Case in point, Lofkrantz rocked out so
hard his guitar strap broke.
Lastly came Vancouver's best
dressed group, the Tranzmitors. The
band jumped right into "Glamour
Girls" and immediately, you could,
tell this group has been together for a
while. The act was tight and everything .
about their performance screamed
precision. Since the Tranzmitors were
promoting their new seven-inch on
React! records, the crowd got a taste of
some fresh material. The new songs
still give the same nods to groups like
the Jam, the Buzzcocks and other
mod/punk revival groups.
But, to be honest, the audience
was craving the tracks they already
knew and could sing along to. During the encore, the already bouncing
crowd became more jumpy once the
band broke into "Dancing in the Front
Row." As you may have guessed, the
audience started dancing in the front
row. And, with the catchy "Look What
You're Doing to Me" closing off the
night, Pat's Pub successfully broke out
into a mini mosh pit A clear sign ofa
good rock show.
—Angela Yen
33 ARE YOU THAT DJ?
by HANNA
FAZIO
Discorder Talks To CiTR's
DJ Competition Winner
Tim Fernandes
Are you that DJ? It turns out 23-year-old UBC student
Tim Fernandes (a.k.a. Autonomy) is, as proved when
he took the title in last November's Are You ThatDJ
competition. The event occurs annually during CiTR's
Fundrive and gives up-and-coming UBC students
a platform to show off their skills at the Pit Pub in
the SUB. The 2011 edition started off with a bang,
raising 400 dollars while showcasing eight eclectic,
unknown DJs whose tastes ranged from Motown to
trance. What's great about the competition is its
availability to any type of DJ, not just in musical
preferences but in experience as well. Several of
the DJs that competed this year came straight from
CiTR's new DJ school with only two months of DJing
experience. Yet for Fernandes, mixing and performing in front of a crowd was not something new. His
first live gig was actually at last years competition,
and since then he's been performing at numerous
campus events. With a year of experience behind
him, he was eager to get a second chance and win
a paid gig with the AMS.
That said, Fernandes describes a mishap that
successfully erased any sense of ease a veteran
may have had. He was DJing earlier in the night on
campus where the following DJ forgot his equipment,
and he needed to use Fernandes' gear. "I had to run
I'M
photo by
JOSEFA CAMERON
with only my laptop and headphones to the Pit and
frantically figure out a way to perform my set," he
told Discorder. "Luckily, a couple of the guys were
kind enough to let me use their S4.1 spent about 10
minutes figuring out how it worked before stepping
up and performing my set."
Besides having an ability to act quickly, Fernandes has a bass driven style and frequently mixes
artists like Brenmar and Starkley in his sets, though
he likes "to see where the mix takes [him]." "I love
DJing because it's a combination of technical and
artistic skill," he said. For Fernandes, its all about
finding that balance and "jumping behind the decks"
to have a good time.
m mwmr- RIACK
THREE CATEGORIES • THREE GASH PRIZES • ONE DEADLINE
CiTR commemorates Black History Month all February long with specialized programming, from PSA's on countless compelling members
of our local community, to airing music documentaries and campus
lecture series. Stay tuned to 101.9 FM all month long to join in on the
cultural celebration.
Also, be sure to check out other Black History Month events, from
film screenings to live concerts, that will be running across town. Check
our calendar listings for more info.
Image: film still from The Godmother of Rock & Roll-. Sister Rosetta Tharpe,
screening at 7pm, Thursday February 9 at Vancity Theatre.
PRIZES
srram
TRIUMPHANT
Literary Awards Competition
MAXIMUM 3,000 WORDS
JHHETRY 8
A SUITE OF 5 RELATED POEMS
(MAXIMUM 15 PACES)
CREATIVE NON-FICTION
(Based on fact, adorned w/flctiot
DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES:
MAY15,2012
www.subterrain.ca
AlIAges
recording
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DEBUTING THEIR NEW LIVE VISUAL SHOWS!
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36
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TIX AVAILABLE AT ALL ticketmaster
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l^XlcST
;ve Aoki's debut album "Wonderland" in stores Jan 17 on
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^JDats«fe^4>ut album coming out April 2012 on Dim Mak Reli|rik
WWW.BLUEPRINTEVENTS.CA
m II
it 1 by CHIRAG illustration by
MAHAJAN ALEXSTURSBERG
photo by
CHIRAG MAHAJAN
For some of us, there is no better time than the end
ofthe week to turn up our untouched subwoofers
and let loose a raging river of bass. Tune in to CiTR
on a Friday night and you'll enter The Bassment,
where Rhett Ohlsen lays down a playlist filled with
the latest in local bass beats that give this radio river
some mad flow.
Ohlsen started The Bassment, in August of
2011, and has since been exposing our listeners to
many talented local DJs and new record labels—
some of whom would otherwise be heard only at
underground events, or be found lingering in the
back alleys of our search results. It takes a lot of
patience to search for these artists and to find the
right vibe for a show, but with the way bass music
is booming (pun intended) on the Web these days,
Ohlsen must have a whole lot of love for the music
and the community to give us a fresh playlist with
such good vibes every week.
And as far as anyone can tell from Ohlsen's
work with the Vancity Drop podcast, along with
promoting local crews and labels, he will definitely
be wherever the bass drops.
Discorder: What kind of music do you play on
The Bassment?
Rhett Ohlsen: I play bass music. For those unfamiliar with that term, it's a fairly young label placed
on the West Coast's unique style and approach to
electronic dance music. Bass music can also be a
blanket term that can encompass EDM sub-genres
like dubstep, glitch, drum and bass, UK funky,
electro, juke, future garage, breakbeat, or dub. It's
music that's fast in tempo and beats per minute,
and explores sub bass frequencies not generally
heard in other dance music.
What made you want to have a radio show?
I've always been told I had a face for radio [laughs].
But seriously, I love how unique this music is and
the energy it inspires in listeners. I especially love
the community that's forming around this music.
By hosting a radio show, I'm given the opportunity to share the future of music and bring light to
what's happening in our city for others to find it
and experience it themselves.
What has been your most memorable on-air
moment?
I had two buddies of mine visit and say a few words
on-air. I figured they'd have a lot to contribute because of their experience, not only as frequently-
booked DJs, but as supporters ofthe scene. After
the conversation, I addressed the mic alone, and,
as I'm talking, one of my buddies threw a ball of
paper at me. I completely lost my train of thought
and froze for almost a minute. There was a patch of
dead air until I zoned back in and turned on some
music. It was a litde embarrassing.
Do you also collaborate with local DJs
and bass music promoters?
I'm involved with another music project
called the Vancity Drop, which is a podcast
that involves me and a DJ from the Suave
Assassins [a crew supporting local and international dubstep and drum and bass].
Together, we contact emerging and unheard
music producers and labels worldwide to
gather forward-thinking music. At the end
of each episode we have a DJ mix from a new
artist. I'm also involved with the SHAH-
djs [a drum and bass crew that organizes
large-scale monthly events to showcase local talent and international artists] to spread
word of their events, build support, and
distribute tickets.
If you could only bring one album to a
deserted island, which one album would it be?
I would bring Bigger Fish Frying by Longwalkshortdock. LWSD has found a unique style that combines
the analog sounds in techno and video games with .
the heavy bass drums, synths, and horns of bass
music in a way that makes it impossible not to stay
still. He has surpassed any boundaries of EDM and
has taken music production past the software by
incorporating numerous pieces of hardware to
manipulate the sounds.
What is your favourite CiTR radio show,
besides your own?
I like [DJ Cyber's] Synaptic Sandwich. Very unique
style of show, and I love the tune selections.
What does the future hold for The Bassment?
I eventually want to create a blog-style webpage or
join forces with a current heavy-traffic bass music blog in the country to have a central spot for
resources, must-hears, local events, and a place
to show support, interesting news, and so forth.
I also want to start having a guest come in for 20
minutes of live mixing, and possibly start hosting
interviews with international talents who frequent
our city. Our local talent specifically is exceeding
all of my expectations with new tunes forthcoming
on national and international labels.
The Bassment airs Fridays from 9-10:30 p.m.
38 //CiTR 101.9 FM CHARTS
STRICTLY THE DOPEST HITZ OF JANUARY
....#_.
ARTIST
ALBUM
LABEL
#
ARTIST
ALBUM
LABEL
i
Dixie's Death Pool*+
The Man With
Flowering Hands
Drip Audio
26
Hospitality
Hospitality
Merge
2
Animal Bodies*+
Kiss of the Fang
Sweating Tapes
27
Portage & Main*+
PortageS Main
Independent
3
Great Aunt Ida*
Nudearize Me
Zunior
28
Redrick Sultan*+
Trolling for Answers
Independent
4
Coeur de Pirate*
Blonde
Grosse Boite
29
Sleuth*+
Brave Knew Nothing
Independent
5
Phonecalls*+
Regrets
Independent
30
Grass Widow
Milo Minute
HLR
6
Grimes*
Visions
Arbutus
31
Honheehonhee*
Shouts
Independent
7
Summer Camp
Welcome to
Condale
Moshi Moshi
32
Juvenile Hall*+
Got Caught
Independent
8
Moist
Temporary
Arrangements
10
33
Psychic Ills
Hazed Dreams
Sacred Bones
IPfll
Yamantaka //
Sonic Titan*
YT//ST
Psychic Handshake
34
Said the Whale*
New Brighton
Hidden Pony
10
Bleeding Knees Club
Virginity
lamsound
35
Scars & Scarves*
Chimes At Midnight
Independent
11
Charlotte Gainsbourg
Stage Whisper
Because Music
36
Schomberg Fair
Mercy
Independent
12
Kate Bush
50 Words for Snow
Noble & Brite
37
Skj0lbrot
Maersk
Independent
13
Duchess Says*
In A Fung Day T!
AlienS
38
Talkdemonic
Ruins
Glacial Pace
14
Gross Magic
Teen Jamz
Fat Possum
39
Various*+
Nite Prison
Independent
15
Hindi Zahra
Handmade
EMI
40
Various*
Folk Songs of
Canada Now
Label Fantastic
16
John Cale
EP: Extra Playful
Double Six
41
Zola Jesus
Conatus
Sacred Bones
17
Thee Ahs*+
Ahs Nation
Independent
42
Adeline*
Modern Romantics
Light Organ
18
Rae Spoon*
1 Can't Keep All
Your Secrets
Saved By Radio
43
Atlas Sound
Parallax
4AD
19
Brian Eno and
Rick Holland
Panic of Looking
Warp
44
D.0.A.*+
Hardcore 81
Sudden Death
20
Kathryn Calder*
Bright and Vivid
File Under: Music
45
Exitmusic
From Silence
Secretly Canadian
21
Elizabeth*+
Hazards, Horrors &
Liabilities
Independent
46
Florence &
the Machine
Ceremonials
Island
22
Lost Lovers
Brigade**
Little Skeletons
Independent
47
Ivardensphere
Apok
Metropolist
23
Barmitzvah
Brothers*
Growing Branches
Label Fantastic
48
Mundo Muerto
Entre El Kaos
Charged//Distorted
24
Crystal Stilts
Radiant Door
Slumberland
49
Silver Dapple*
English Girlfriend
Independent
25
David Lynch
Crazy Clown Time
Sunday Best
50
Slight Birching*
Apostrophe
Independent
CiTR's charts reflect what's been played on the air by CiTR's lovely DJs last month. Records with asterisks (*) are Canadian and those marked (+) are local.
Most of these excellent albums can be found at fine independent music stores across Vancouver. If you can't find them, give CiTR's music coordinator a shout
at (604) 822-8733. Her name is Sarah Cordingley. If you ask nicely she'll tell you how to find them. Check out other great campus/community radio charts at
www.earshot-online.com. SWEET DEALS FOR SWEETHEARTS
It may be wet and cold, but Zulu knows February is
strictly for Lovers... Music Lovers that is!
CLIP AND SAVE
2 for 1 USED CDSP
We are overstocked on so many premium titles - swing by and score!
==_3P Valid SAT. FEB. 4th and SUN. FEB. 5th Only.
CUP AND SAVE
20%"OFF ALL NEW VINYL!
Tons of new releases will be in stock!
Valid SAT. FEB. 11* and SUN. FEB. 12th
CUP AND SAVE
20% OFF ALL NEW CDS
All our Wall, Booth, Display Racks, and Quality Catalog Titles -
a.k.a. the best new music on the planet!
Valid SAT. FEB. 18th and SUN. FEB. 19th
30% OFF
CUP AND SAVE
A deep discount at the end off the month for all super rare LPS!
We have tons of out of print, first editions, boots,
and essential LPS for your collection.
Valid SAT. FEB. 25th and SUN. FEB. 26th
* twitter.com/zulurecords i
■MM.
mmm
^Biilllllll^^
"*■
► li^^gf
r
ft,
Zulu Records
1972-1976 WAth Ave
Vancouver, BC
tel 604738.3232
www.zulurecdrds.com
STORE HOURS
Mon to Wed 10:30-7:00
Thurs and Fri 10:30-9:00
Sit 9:30-6:30
Sun 12:00-6:00
fdcebook.com/people/
ZuluRecords-Store/680210042
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Discorder
Discorder CITR-FM (Radio station : Vancouver, B.C.) 2012-02-01
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