Author: Taylor

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First Class Riot: Crushing Boners with Aunty Panty


Photo of Aunty Panty by Taylor Burgess in Calgary, Alberta.

By Taylor Burgess

For their only show of Sled Island, thru-and-thru riotgrrrls Aunty Panty sauntered onto the stage and they started pulling their white dresses over their heads. They exposed themselves to the crowd in nude-coloured bras and merkins over their pantyhose. There was a space of metres between them and the crowd, which was maintained while Aunty Panty burst out their alarmingly stripped-down blend of post-punk and  riotgrrrl. To get into the heads of one of the more political bands at the festival, I sat down with them in the parking lot of the Palamino. Continue reading “First Class Riot: Crushing Boners with Aunty Panty”

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FIRST CLASS RIOT: Q’n’A with Nü Sensae


Photo of Nü Sensae by Taylor Burgess in Calgary, Alberta.

By Taylor Burgess

Bubbling out of Vancouver’s fertile and molting noise/punk/hardcore/etc. scene, Nü Sensae are one of loudest onslaughts which reaffirm doom and gloom exists in these optimistic times. Core duo Daniel Pitout and Andrea Lukic were joined late last year by guitarist Brody McKnight, former Mutator, and they all joined forces to make their new record, Sundowning, which is looming to drop on Suicide Squeeze records for August 7. (“I know,” Brody McKnight says, “it’s a big deal.”) Here’s a track from that album, and then after the jump there’s an interview from the back alley of the Ship and Anchor after their last show of Sled Island Festival.

Nü Sensae – Swim
Continue reading “FIRST CLASS RIOT: Q’n’A with Nü Sensae”

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FIRST CLASS RIOT: Arriving in Style at Sled Island Festival


Photo of Bloodhouse by Taylor Burgess in Calgary, Alberta.

By Taylor Burgess

After driving to Calgary straight from Winnipeg, what better way to acclimatize myself to the Sled Island festival than head the Royal Canadian Legion #1? It served as two venues in one, had the Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet reunion show, and offered the nobility and decency of a legion so many of us have ironically or unironically come to know.

Continue reading “FIRST CLASS RIOT: Arriving in Style at Sled Island Festival”

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First Class Riot: To Pip, People are the Worst


Manitoba rapper Patrick Skene has been around for a number of years now, making hip-hop for the backpackers and the heads, like 2010’s mondo-catchy yet conscious“Tens of Dollars” off his album Skid Row.
Tomorrow, Thursday, Feb 2, he’ll be releasing People are the Worst at the Lo Pub with the Greg MacPherson band and DJ Co-op in tow. Given that the album is already out on Marathon of Dope and is killer (incl. a Monks sample, wtf!?) it should be one hell of a show.
Continue reading “First Class Riot: To Pip, People are the Worst”

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First Class Riot; Big Fun Nearly Under the Sun

As we’ve mentioned at Stylus, Big Fun Festival is approaching quickly. The last weekend of January is when it’s happening, venues all over the Exchange is where it’s happening. Exciting times if you’re in that whole indie/folk scene here, or if you’re curious to check any of it out. Continue reading “First Class Riot; Big Fun Nearly Under the Sun”

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STYLUS’ FAV SHOWS of 2011


If you hadn’t noticed, we at Stylus like to get out, go to shows, and sometimes even take pics for you wonderful readers.
Now that the year is done, as is the tradition, a handful of our writers picked their favourites, and some even wrote about their very favourites. This is our way to let you know what’s been hip in the indie world, big arena world, and which holes-in-the-walls we’re frequenting, but this is all subjective of course and you’re always more than welcome to volunteer for Stylus yourself.
Stay tuned tomorrow for everybody’s top albums!

Continue reading “STYLUS’ FAV SHOWS of 2011”

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Far Less than 99% of the Protestors


Photo manip by Taylor Burgess
By Conrad Sweatman

On November 17, a forum on downtown safety organized by the Downtown BIZ was scheduled to take place at the Lo Pub. Panelists consisted of a University of Manitoba sociologist, a Winnipeg Free Press crime reporter, and reps from the Winnipeg Police Service, the BIZ, and Portage Place. Given some of the things that went down at the BIZ’s recent CEO Sleepout – costumed protestors crashing the stage, swarming CEOs, handing out pamphlets – I suppose I should’ve been less surprised by the spectacle that the event quickly devolved into, rallied by a handful of people in opposition to the BIZ. Continue reading “Far Less than 99% of the Protestors”

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Krafty Kuts // 11-25-11 // Wheelies

By DJ Stone
Instead of blasting music at my house last Friday night I decided to go to Totally AWESOME! BASS!! featuring Krafty Kuts. It was on Friday, November 25th at Wheelies Roller Park.  I was kind of amazed that we got a big-time DJ/producer on a Friday night in Winnipeg.
It was the same crew that brought Dieselboy for the epic Zombie Apocalypse, Jsquared Entertainment and DV8 Audio/Visual. It ran from 9-6am and was a 16+ event. It was nice to finally go to a party where you don’t have to go home at 2 a.m. because the bar was closing.
A little background on Krafty Kuts; like most killer DJs, he is from the UK and has been spinning since the late ’80s. He also has his own record label Finger Licken’ Funk, was voted by DJ Magazine as one of the top 100 DJs in the world and voted #1 breaks DJ in the world!  When I arrived Coda & Pucona (Pantohms Sound System) where playing some old-skool speed garage, with some nice rolling bass lines that brought me back to old days. There were lots of people dancing on the dark fogged up dance floor, where people had their glow sticks and hula hoops and fun fur pants, lol.
Next up to the decks were The Funk Hunters, based out Vancouver, BC, who mashed up funky disco, drum n bass and pretty much everything in between. They were very energetic and got the crowd moving.
Around 2 a.m. Krafty Kuts went on. He started off with some heavier drum and bass. He seamlessly mixed in some Red Hot Chili Peppers, and my personal favorite was the DnB mix of Wu Tang Clan’s “Bring da Ruckus,” which was just deadly.  He even did a House of Pain remix, and a remix of Flux Pavilion’s “Bass Cannon,” which I thought was going to blow up the speakers.  Oh yeah and did I mention he was mixing on four decks (yes, I said FOUR) the whole time? To top it all off, Mr. Krafty Kuts played us a new unreleased, never-before-heard dubstep track, which was pretty sick.
Overall, a pretty good show, I give it 7 out 10 dubs. I think the sound could have been better if it was at a smaller venue and it would have been nice if there was a licensed area for the 18+ crowd.  The next time Krafty Kuts comes back I recommend going to see him, amazing scratch artist.

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Tasseomancy – More than Just Music

By Jesse Blackman

Question: What do you get when you creatively combine the linguistic genius of one sister with the visual genius of another sister? Answer: a musical experience unlike any other.

Tasseomancy refers to the Lightmans’ great-great-grandmother who was a Russian Jew who lost her entire family in pogroms and fled to Canada; to help make ends meet during the Great Depression, she read tea leaves. Tasseomancy is a fancy name for that gift. Romy relates this to seven generations of mysticism in both First Nations and Jewish traditions–these ideas mirror the belief that “your actions will affect seven generations ahead” and “with every accomplishment you are looking back seven generations in order to” understand “the sacrifices” that were made. The sisters are “fans of tea and also anything else that can kind of bring people together… It’s less about stuff weighted by fate, and more so about maybe being honest with yourself in a certain situation–what would you see?”

Tasseomancy, the band, was born out of the desire of sisters Romy and Sari Lightman’s to expand the range of sound they could produce.  “There’s like always threads,” Romy explained. “It’s a continuation of where we started with Ghost Bees,” but the sisters realized that when they only “play an acoustic guitar and a mandolin there is only so much tonality – and you can only be so dynamic.  That music was really contained.”

Ghost Bees came out of the sisters’ time living out in Nova Scotia but when they moved home to the urban environment of Toronto the writing of folk songs felt “insincere.” Romy couldn’t “write songs on [her] guitar by the ocean anymore, living in downtown Toronto.” Before adding amplification, Ghost Bees could play anywhere, even on “lakes and haunted basements.” Romy feels that they cannot play in as many places anymore “because they aren’t as mobile now. Before we had a real nomadic spirit of like picking up an instrument and playing acoustic with no microphones, and like the sky’s the limit.” Continue reading “Tasseomancy – More than Just Music”