In his article in the Oct. 30 edition of the Ottawa Citizen entitled, “Racism, sexism and classism, oh my,” Bruce Bawer attempts to seriously indict the humanities, citing a widespread presence of ideologically-driven pedagogy. The piece points to Guillermo Martínez de Velasco’s recent piece in the McGill Daily, “You are[Read More…]
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On Tar Sands exceptionalism and ‘commodity fetishism’
Now that the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) has taken on a mandate to lobby the McGill Administration to divest from Tar Sands, many of us seem to agree—at least, on the topic of ‘goopy bitumen’ from Alberta. Ultimately, I still have a few questions about our priorities. When[Read More…]
Shakespeare’s masterpiece passes on to good hands
When Gabrielle Soskin founded Persephone Productions in 2000, she intended for the non-profit theatre company to provide work opportunities for young performers. Hamlet—a story of life and death, love and loss, and the epitome of human suffering—may be deemed a rather demanding play for such a young group, but it[Read More…]
Think you’ve heard the world? Think again
Nov. 13 marks the start of the second edition of Mundial Montreal, an annual conference and festival that brings together some of Canada’s finest world music artists. This year’s festival showcases 33 home-grown and international performers, including Canaille, Heavy Soundz, and Delhi 2 Dublin. In addition, the event this year[Read More…]
Defecation, death, detritus: a Catalan artist at work
In February of this year, modern art lost an important figure. Of the hundreds of paintings, drawings, and prints left behind after Antoni Tàpies’ demise, more than 80 have been acquired by Montreal’s Museum of Fine Arts due to the generosity of several donors. In Memoriam: Thirty-Three Prints and a[Read More…]
Inlet Sound: folky, reflective, and romantics at heart
Listening to The Romantics reminds me of hanging out with an old friend. The kind you can go months without seeing, but fall back into familiar rhythm in no time at all; the kind with whom you can tear up the town, or just sit on your bed, and have[Read More…]
Kendrick Lamar: Good Kid m.A.A.d City
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…]
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…]
