Walking the line between mainstream and underground, Kendrick Lamar proudly raises the torch he was passed from West Coast legends Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg. Lamar, also a devoted fan of 2pac, brings these legendary influences together in a novel way in his latest release, Good Kid m.A.A.d. City. Although[Read More…]
Arts & Entertainment
Keep up to date on local art, new albums, and everything entertainment-related.
Trash Talk: 119
With 119, Trash Talk is at a pivotal point in their career, and somewhat of a paradox. The band have reached the top of the pile as far as Hardcore goes, teetering between too much fame to stay underground and just enough notoriety to spread the word. They’re constantly stirring[Read More…]
Jason Lytle: Dept. of Disappearance
“I’ll crawl into the mountains, I’ll fall into obscurity/A phantom on the landscape, a memory of what used to be.” Nostalgia and longing—the voice and lyrics of Jason Lytle can’t be described without invoking these two sentiments. Dept. of Disappearance, his latest album, is full of unknown ‘somewheres’ and ‘someones,’[Read More…]
Lessons from the past
The McCord Museum is showcasing Edward Curtis, an early 20th century photographer, with an exhibit of images from his encyclopedia The North American Indian. Sepia-hued photographs hang delicately on dark blue walls. Images fill the gallery: a young Mohave girl stares directly into the camera; three Apsaroke horseriders recede into[Read More…]
From the sticks to the limelight
After the recent launch of their fourth, full-length album, Vancouver indie band Mother Mother is back, kicking off a nation-wide tour on November 7. While the band has been on and off the road this year, opening for Our Lady Peace, appearing at summer festivals, and headlining shows of their[Read More…]
Dan Deacon on smartphones, classical music, and America
When I finally reach Dan Deacon after a frustrating number of dropped calls, he apologizes for the poor reception, and tells me, in high spirits, that he’s “somewhere rural.” Deacon is currently traversing North America in support of his third album, and Domino Records debut, America. As the title suggests,[Read More…]
Could Be Good
Theatre: Hamlet Is your life short on Shakespeare? Fear not! Over the next week and a half, Persephone Productions will be performing Hamlet, perhaps the bard’s most resonant play. If you miss out, you may have to wait for a few decades—the last time Montreal had an English production of Hamlet[Read More…]
When language fails
As a university student studying English literature, I am a firm believer in the role of language as a mode of cross-cultural and cross-temporal expression. Yet, if there is one thing I have also learned after more than two years of engaging critically with different literary forms, it is the[Read More…]
Move over, Edward Cullen—there’s a new undead in town
The Twelve is the second book in Justin Cronin’s compelling trilogy about a pseudo-vampire apocalypse, brought about by the volatile combination of ambition and stupidity on the part of several rogue scientists. Following The Passage (2010), The Twelve begins in the aftermath of the second uprising of the virals, or[Read More…]
Montreal trio on new beginnings
Montreal’s own Plants and Animals are no strangers to the music scene. The talented trio, consisting of Warren Spicer, Matthew “Woodman” Woodley, and Nicolas Basque, met at Concordia University and took what seemed like the natural step forward to form an indie-rock compilation. In the beginning, the trio was heavily[Read More…]
