Monthly Archives: May 2010

Film Stripped

Year of the Carnivore - A film by Sook-Yin Lee

By Tamara Lee

Year of the Carnivore

Year of the Carnivore

Sook Yin Lee’s debut film as a writer-director, Year of the Carnivore, is a quirky—even squirm-inducing—coming of age story. This romantic comedy can be cute and cheeky, but doesn’t shy away from hard truths, with characters colliding in unredeeming experiences at regular intervals. But if you can endure the uncomfortable parts (possibly viewing it through a couple of fingers), you’ll notice that what resonates is a story filled with beautiful and relatable human emotion.

The film is the next installment in the eventful career of Canadian hero Sook-Yin Lee. Originally from North Vancouver, she has hosted a CBC Radio show, VJed at Much Music, led a band (Bob’s Your Uncle), and acted (in the controversial Short Bus). Read More »

Textually Active

Canuck Rock: A History of Canadian Popular Music

Review By Andy Hudson

Canuck Rock by Ryan Edwardson

Canuck Rock by Ryan Edwardson

Canuck Rock is not what it looks like—an “A” for Paul Anka to “Z” for the Zolas catalog of Canadian rock musicians.

Blame the publisher, University of Toronto Press, for whiffing on the subtitle and packaging the book like a popular history. The truth is that Ryan Edwardson, a rock fan with a PhD in history, wrote a scholarly book.

Funded by a federal research grant, centered on the 1971 Canadian radio quotas (Cancon), and graced with a nod from the CBC’s Jian Ghomeshi, Canuck Rock is “a critical look at the cultural and commercial supports backing Canada’s rock music industry”—or something like that. Read More »

Editor’s Note

That kinda funny magazine from CitR 101.9 FM

By Jordie Yow

Dear Discorder:

About a month or two ago I was chatting with Lindsey Hampton, Discorder’s art director. She had just returned from touring with her band the Friendship & the Fawn and had an interesting story to tell. While on tour she had mentioned how everyone involved in Vancouver’s music scene knew a bunch of comedians and that they were pretty much interchangeable with the musicians in our scene. Whoever she was talking to remarked that this was unusual and didn’t happen wherever they were from. This got our respective brains percolating. Though we’ve mentioned some comedy in Discorder the past, there’s a lot going on in town.

We felt that Vancouver’s comedy scene is big and cool and awesome enough that we could devote an entire issue to it, and pretty much all of our features this month tie to the theme of humour and comedy in some way. Take a look at the hardest working comedian in town, Graham Clark, on page eight, explore Vancouver’s vibrant improv scene with an article from one of its key players, Kaitlin Fontana, on page 16; then take a look at all the other players we had space to cover in our short profiles on funny people, starting on page 12. When you’re done with that, take a look at the interview with the host of CiTR’s Laugh Tracks on page 38. Even the one “normal” band interview we did (the SSRIs on page 36) surprisingly worked out to be on the lighter jokey side of things.

Another organization in town that recognizes the talent and wonderfulness of our local comedians is Music Waste. They have an entire segment called Comedy Waste in which many of the people we talk about will be performing. We love Music Waste so much that we really, really wanted to print their program guide, which you can find in the middle of our magazine (page 19) in an easy-to-rip-out segment. Rip it out, consult the map, make your plans and enjoy Music Waste, Art Waste and Comedy Waste. It’s put together by and will feature our favourite people in town.

Until next month,
Jordie Yow

The Dø

A Mouthful (Six Degrees)

Review By Susanne Dewein

The Dø’s music is not easily pigeonholed. Different genres are interwoven in their new album A Mouthful. Anything is possible: lively pop, Finnish folk, love ballads and rap. The French-Finnish duo’s first album was released in 2008 in Europe, but Canadians had to wait two years for it. Apart from one song with Finnish lyrics, their music sounds more like a passionate French lover than a shy northern European. The use of many different instruments and the mixture of genres has resulted in a colourful and playful work of art, but at times it sounds glutted. Olivia Merilahti’s breathy yet girlish voice adds a melancholic and wistful touch to many of their songs, and this is probably what rescues A Mouthful from being overly florid. The first track “Playground Hustle” resembles a marching band of primary school kids, equipped with flutes and drums, eager to defend their sandbox. “Queen Dot Kong” is a rap song that sounds like a collaboration between Eminem and M.I.A., whereas “Travel Light” very strongly calls to mind the Dresden Dolls. Another unusual highlight is “Tammie,” which evokes images of Merilahti and Dan Levy, the other half of the duo, standing on a Carribean beach, accompanied by a hand clapping gospel choir. Their epic sounding melodies are probably due to Levy’s previous experience as a film composer. All in all this CD offers a whole mouthful of sweet, sparkling and refreshing music, a feast for the senses!

Gogol Bordello

Trans-Continental Hustle (Columbia Records)

Review By Sarah Charrouf

Gogol Bordello - Trans-Continental Hustle

Gogol Bordello - Trans-Continental Hustle

If you’ve never listened to Gogol Bordello before (incidentally, I wonder where you’ve been hiding) the first thing you’ll notice is the band’s catchy gypsy-folk rhythms and lead singer Eugene Hutz’s enchanting Ukrainian accent. Trans-Continental Hustle, produced by Rick Rubin, is the newly released LP by the New York-based band. Like all of Gogol Bordello’s music, the assembly of violin, accordion and the conglomeration of percussion have the power of displacing anyone within earshot to an altogether different time and culture. You’ll be overcome by images of street vendors and dirt road block parties.

Gogol Bordello is known for their captivating live shows, but even without all the performative theatrics, Trans-Continental Hustle is certainly capable of arousing its listener from their daily slumber. In it’s entirety, the album is impassioned, enlivening and exotic. Still, the band has achieved a balance between upbeat songs like “Break The Spell” and slower jams like “Sun On My Side.” The arrangement of the album is practically flawless as it bounces between tempos and instrumentation. It’s hard not to crack a smile listening to this newest treasure released by the nine-piece band.

Bison B.C.

Dark Ages (Metal Blade)

Review By Mark PaulHus

Vancouver thrash masters Bison B.C. somehow managed to take time out of their relentless tour schedule to hole themselves up in the Hive with local wizard Jesse Gander and pound out some metal. The end result is seven massive tracks of Bison B.C.’s signature epic thrash that dwarf their two phenomenal previous releases. Dark Ages is laden with huge riffs, punishing beats, airtight rhythms and demonic howls and growls. Each track is a dark, ugly and bloody fun journey, none clocking in less than five minutes and many going over six. “Stressed Elephant” slowly eases you into the darkness, and then tears your head off at the bridge, while “Fear Cave” blasts off immediately into the abyss where Dan And is waiting to grind his voice into your nightmares. The pace of the album rises and falls flawlessly, weaving through generations of metal. Dark Ages will hammer itself into your head as the masterful production consumes the room while vocalist James Farwell wails, “make it go louder!” Once again, Bison B.C. have managed to make a serious metal album without taking themselves too seriously. The road has made men of these punks from East Van and this album is sure to gain even more respect in the metal community.

The Apples in Stereo

Travellers in Space and Time (Yeproc)

Review By Slavko Bucifal

The Apples in Stereo - Travellers in Space and Time

The Apples in Stereo - Travellers in Space and Time

The quest for the perfect pop song is the Apples in Stereo’s motivation. Their latest offering provides a plethora of melodies that will be stuck inside your head like a late night television jingle. Travellers in Space and Time makes use of all of the clichés and pop motifs available in the stratosphere, and, for the most part, there are a lot of excellent moments. However, parts of the album are plagued by problems. First is the overuse of a vocoder. A few tracks extensively use the harmonized robot voice effect distracting the listener from the otherwise infectious background sounds. The second problem is that at times, Robert Schneider’s voice sounds like it has yet to hit puberty—and there is something about listening to a 10-year-old sing about love and dancing that makes one want to shiver (especially considering that adult is bald, rather burly and has a beard). Thankfully, Schneider’s voice magically matures throughout the album sounding more like a Davie Jones sort of thing. Barring those two somewhat minor details, there is definitely perfect pop to be found here. Look no further than “No One in the World” for a catchy horn section and a great pop melody. “Dignified Dignitary” is a great example on the appropriate uses of a cow bell and the correct placement of “ooh ooh ooh ooh.” Just try and listen to that one once without humming it for the rest of the day. Truth be told, tracks seven through 15 (out of a possible 16) are as perfectly pop driven as one can get. Though there are a few abnormalities with the various voices and effects, overall, Travellers in Space and Time is a fun album and a must purchase for the retro-pop loving people—just have the skip button handy.

Riff Raff

"...a rock ‘n’ roll path of good times."

By Bryce Dunn

Oh what a difference a month makes. Truth be told, it was a busy time for yours truly as I spent April venturing south of the border on a rock ‘n’ roll path of good times. But having returned road-worn and weary, I am armed with a stack of goodies to share. Let us begin with our hometown heroes and road warriors themselves, the Jolts and their newest slab, set to stun on creamy yellow wax. Side A kicks off with “Kaminari Lover,” and if you keep up on Japanese mythology as much as the Jolts do, you know you don’t wanna mess with this weather goddess. She controls thunder and lightning. So needless to say, these boys bow to her altar, offering a surging mid-tempo storm of their own rock fury with swelling guitar breaks and lumbering bass to keep her at bay. Seeming unconvinced, she steps up her game and the boys follow suit with “Loser (Baby I’m A),” which barrels full-steam like the howling winds of Kaminari’s sister, Kamikazi. But the Jolts are on no suicide mission here—only victory is in their sights and they live to see and rock the hell out for another day, and you get to enjoy this for even longer. Read More »

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