Most of the audience members seated in the Ukrainian Federation on Sept. 17 were well aware that the upcoming performance would mark an important tour date for Phil Elverum. The musician, who records under the moniker Mount Eerie, would have arrived at the venue with ambivalent anticipation. On July 9[Read More…]
Music
Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA live-scores classic kung fu film
At the Rialto Theatre, on Friday, Sept. 15, Wu-Tang Clan frontman RZA hovered over his computer, smiling and quietly conversing with the DJ beside him. The two were positioned almost offstage that afternoon, preparing to provide a live-scoring of the 1978 kung fu movie The 36th Chamber of Shaolin. The[Read More…]
Landing softly: A conversation with Japanese Breakfast at Bar Le Ritz
Japanese Breakfast–Brooklyn-based singer and guitarist Michelle Zauner’s solo project–released their sophomore album Soft Sounds From Another Planet (Soft Sounds) on July 14. Zauner was once the frontman of the emo indie band Little Big League, where her yelping vocals and decisive lyrics earned the Philadelphia band the designation of “underrated.”[Read More…]
Banks speaks to all the senses at Le Metropolis
It didn’t take long for listeners to latch onto Jillian Banks, better known simply by her last name: Banks. Her sound is an amalgamation of pop and R&B with a spooky techno-alternative twist; her visuals are dark and laden with metaphors; her style is sleek, seductive, and minimalist. After releasing[Read More…]
Performing without conforming: Pianist Jan Lisiecki on why classical music isn’t dead
Twenty-two-year-old Calgary pianist Jan Lisiecki is far from being a slacker. After making his orchestral debut at age nine, the musician rose to international fame once The Fryderyk Chopin Institute released a recording of his live renditions of Chopin’s piano concertos. Four albums later, he now performs roughly 80 times[Read More…]
Vince Staples dazzles with Life Aquatic Tour at the Corona Theatre
It hasn’t taken long for Vince Staples to carve out his lane in the West Coast gangsta rap scene. After a slew of teenage mixtapes, as well as a few features on early Odd Future releases, Staples broke through to the mainstream hip-hop consciousness with his 2014 EP, Hell Can[Read More…]
A roundtable discussion on Kendrick Lamar’s new album
Kendrick Lamar shook the hip-hop world to its core last week with the release of new single “The Heart Pt. 4,” which hinted at a release date of April 7 for the rap regent’s forthcoming new album. With rumours swirling of a new single to be released that very night[Read More…]
Staff roundup: Drake – ‘More Life’
In More Life, Drake’s propensity for picking up Caribbean sound and slang is strong, and his growing paranoia of the people around him is stronger. Still, Drake’s talent lies in his humour and humility, and a few moments on More Life demonstrate that he hasn’t fully lost that yet. Drake[Read More…]
Where do I begin?: K-pop
Ever heard of K-pop? How about a singer named PSY? There is much more to the Korean pop phenomenon than the famous “Gangnam Style” singer. There are a plethora of girl and boy groups, all of which have different styles. Each group and every performance has a different aesthetic, as[Read More…]
Album Review: Jay Som – ‘Everybody Works’
It’s hard to make an indie-rock record in 2017. With rock’s virtually non-existent commercial clout and alternative music’s critical supremacy all but sapped, the genre has been bogged down in a midlife crisis for the past few years. Those who have managed to hang around—Mitski, Car Seat Headrest—have done so[Read More…]
