Steel Rail Blues Artist: Gordon Lightfoot Album: Lightfoot! Released: January 1966 Gordon Lightfoot is Canada’s preeminent folk musician, and he demonstrates it on this song from his first album, crafting a melodious chord progression that hums along like a relaxing first-class train ride while the lyrics carry the weight of[Read More…]
Arts & Entertainment
Keep up to date on local art, new albums, and everything entertainment-related.
Pop Dialectic: The return of Twin Peaks and the “cult” TV phenomenon
Last week, TV show Twin Peaks’ cult following created an enormous internet buzz when it was announced that the show would be returning in 2016 for a nine-episode season after an unprecedented 25-year cancellation period. Two of our writers weigh in on the potential benefits and consequences of bringing a[Read More…]
Album Review: Shakey Graves – And the War Came
Quirky one-man band Shakey Graves (Alejandro Rose Garcia) made headlines throughout 2012 and 2013 in the Austin, Texas alt-country scene. His impressive act—complete with a hand-made suitcase kick drum and a slide guitar—made an impression with its angsty, bouncing, lo-fi Americana vibe. He attracted waves of online attention with his[Read More…]
Album Review: Ella Henderson – Chapter One
After gaining worldwide attention during the 2012 season of X Factor UK, 16-year-old Ella Henderson rose to prominence due to her incredibly mature vocals, songwriting ability, and loveable personality. It is upon this supremely elevated platform that Henderson releases her debut album, Chapter One. Despite lofty expectations, it does not[Read More…]
Album Review: Hozier – Hozier
Twenty-four-year-old Irish singer-songwriter Hozier arguably could have dug himself into a premature one-hit wonder grave long before his eponymous first album came out on Oct. 7. His single “Take Me to Church” was released Sept. 13, 2013 and its accompanying music video came out less than two weeks later, quickly[Read More…]
Gangs of Tokyo: Not your typical mobster movie
The threshold for widespread shock or novelty has increased exponentially due to the sheer breadth of available internet content. That being said, Tokyo Tribe is a film unlike anything anybody has ever seen before. Hilarious, gross, sexist, confusing, and silly, it’s not the easiest film to boil down to a[Read More…]
I like it better when we’re not wasted
The Drunken Show is exactly what it sounds like: A group of comedians who get inebriated and go on stage to perform their acts, with the audience heavily encouraged to get drunk as well. So naturally, with the aim of getting the ‘full’ experience, that’s exactly what I did—for artistic[Read More…]
Pop Rhetoric: Bound 2 falling out of love: The plight of celebrity romance
On Sept. 21, news broke that Wiz Khalifa and Amber Rose were getting divorced after 14 months of marriage, citing “irreconcilable differences” as cause for their separation. Since the announcement, the web has been abuzz with rumours of cheating and betrayal on both sides, while internet forums are reveling in[Read More…]
Post-modernism emerges in a new light
For post-modernist painter David Simpson, light is both a pastiche of past artistic traditions and a peek into the future of its essential nature. The monochromatic paintings that greet you upon walking into his current exhibit at the Parisian Laundry gallery are defined by light, as the interference pigments of[Read More…]
Mile End thrift shop gets a natural makeover
When I turned into the open doorway of Citizen Vintage, the well-known Mile End boutique, I was greeted by a warm light and the cozy hum of French female artist Cgo’s intimate exhibition, “Enfants Sauvages” (which translates to “Wild Child”). Complimentary craft beer and vegetarian snacks welcomed all guests and[Read More…]
