Yuri’s Night – To Infinity and Beyond!

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“Circling the Earth in my orbital spaceship I marveled at the beauty of our planet. People of the world, let us safeguard and enhance this beauty — not destroy it!”
Yuri Gagarin

Humans have achieved a lot in the last few millennia. The mighty Ancient Egyptians constructed the pyramids. The Chinese invented (and Gutenberg popularized) the printing press. Obama actually managed to pass a health care reform bill in the US.

But few feats match the challenge of sending human beings off our planet and into space. The first human in the rarefied class of “spacegoer” was Yuri Gargarin, the Soviet cosmonaut who on April 12, 1961 traveled into space and orbited our planet aboard the Vostok 1.

And for the first time, Winnipeg is joining in a worldwide party to celebrate this human achievement. On Yuri’s Night, “people from all over the world come together to celebrate humankind’s first flight into space and shape our future as a species.”

Who exactly is bringing “The World Space Party” to Winnipeg? Quite unsurprisingly, Eve “DJ Beekeeni/Vav Jungle” Rice and some of her friends, including the Shake (DJs Lotek and Manalogue), DJ Cyclist and DJ King Kobra.

Return to the science education haunt of your youth, the Planetarium, now licensed for the occasion (i.e. this time you’ll be drinking something stronger than a juice box). Wear a space-themed costume. Check out a science exhibit or video installation. Dance your ass into outer space.

“Winnipeg is now charted on the interplanetary map as ‘The Dance Capital of the Milky Way,” says Rice. Make it happen, astronauts!

>>> Yuri’s Night Worldwide Website

>>> Yuri’s Night Winnipeg on Facebook

Boats’ Cannonball Run

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No doubt Mat Klachefsky and the rest of Boats are having a time at SXSW right now. (Can you smell my jealousy, even despite this above zero weather?) And no doubt the band is playing a boatload of new songs from the upcoming album Cannonballs, Cannonballs. And though we don’t have barbecues accompanied by bands from all over the world, Klachefsky and gang have three new songs up on their MySpace. Klachefsky’s singing in his trademark falsetto on the indie ballad “Smokestack & Lucy’s Magnificent Cabaret” and “Drinking the Lake” is a happy, sunny afternoon kind of track.

And after Boats tour their way back to Winnipeg, they will be releasing Cannonballs, Cannonballs on May 1 at the West End Cultural Centre.

New Music Tuesday Review: Elizabeth Shepherd, Heavy Falls the Night

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ELIZABETH SHEPHERD

Heavy Falls the Night

Elizabeth Shepherd manages to make music that’s eminently listenable without ever verging into easy-listening territory. Mixing pop sensibility in with strong jazz roots often leads to that land of watered-down sound, but Shepherd’s latest takes us along for the ride to a new, undiscovered country. Album opener “What Else” starts out percussive and bright, giving way to smooth vocal bridges. Title track “Heavy Falls the Night,” with it’s thrumming double bass, is a showcase for Shepherd’s vocal prowess—her voice is equally sure in a throaty, low register as it is scatting octaves higher. “High” loops vocals over electronics and compelling electric guitar, ending with Shepherd’s spritely piano. And then there’s her slowed-down, fresh take on the Anne Murray classic “Danny’s Song.” When she sings, “Even though we ain’t got money/I’m so in love with you honey,” it feels like the first time you ever heard that easy rhyme. The record is eclectic but completely cohesive. Spring’s arriving early in Winnipeg, and despite the title, this record is a perfect accompaniment for any and all seasonally-induced exuberance. Mark your calendars: Elizabeth Shepherd rolls into our town on Wednesday, May 26 at the Park Theatre. (Do Right Music, www.dorightmusic.com) Jenny Henkelman

Review: Besnard Lakes are the Roaring Night

THE BESNARD LAKES
Are the Roaring Night

Three years was maybe a little too long for one of Montreal’s grandest rock bands to follow up their magnificent Are the Dark Horse, but Are the Roaring Night still has all of the touchstones that made the Besnard Lakes’ last album stand out—dreamy harmonies, My Bloody Valentinesque vocals, catchy choruses, and mind-blowing walls of sound. The core of the band is guitarist Jace Lasek and bassist Olga Goreas, a married couple who supply all of the wonderfully interweaving melodies. They own a recording studio in Montreal, and no doubt they’ve used the studio as integral part of Are the Roaring Night. There’s the constant harmonic feedback in “And This is What we Call Progress;” the soundscapes that are “Like The Ocean, Like The Innocent Pt. 1” and “Land of Living Skies Pt. 1;” and the pristine reverb of “Light Up The Night.” Because of its front and centre vocals, and its thundering conclusion, the lead single “Albatross” is a standout track, but only one of few. However, taken as a whole, Are the Roaring Night is a platter of sounds for your ears, because that’s what the Besnard Lakes designed with in mind. (Jagjaguwar, www.jagjaguwar.com) Taylor Benjamin Burgess

Basia Bulat: Breaking Hearts and Autoharp Strings

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Watching Basia Bulat onstage, you can’t help but feel that her throaty alto was made for the resonance of the West End. She has this energy, present and exuberant that’s perfect for this sort of listening room.

On this tour, supporting her second album Heart of My Own, she’s accompanied by her brother, Bobby, on percussion and Allison Stewart on backing vocals and viola. (Sadly absent was Holly Rancher. Where in the world is Holly Rancher? Better check her blog to find out.)

Bobby matched his sister’s exuberance and Alison provided the stoic reserve that both  she and Holly are known for (some people find this off-putting, but I’ve always felt it balances out Basia’s energy perfectly).

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Joanna Newsom Day

newsomShe’s the oft-misunderstood, oft-hyperbolized neo-folk darling who defies categorization due to her unconventional instrumentation (harp), more unconventional voice (squeaky) and still more unconventional disregard for standard pop/rock song structure and subject matter. Her first album, The Milk-Eyed Mender, was a compendium of short songs about yarn, seashells, devotion, regret, and imagination. Her second album, Ys, was a five-song collection where the shortest track clocked in at 7:17 and the longest at 16:53, each of them reveling in a rich orchestral background produced by Townes Van Zandt, each of them long enough to fully develop Newsom’s poetic ideas, against a landscape of leafless trees, talking circus animals, and astronomy lessons.

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Eve Rice – From Vav Jungle to DJ Beekeeni

By Cindy Doyle

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Eve Rice is no stranger to Winnipeg’s music scene. Whether you know her as the electro-charged, sex kitten Vav Jungle or as DJ Beekeeni, if you’ve been to dance parties, various openings or even fundraisers around the city this past year, it is likely that Rice has made you dance at least once. Rice was part of the lineup for Stylus’ 20th birthday bash this past October; this January, Stylus sat down and talked to one of Winnipeg’s most renowned music veterans about her plans for the future and her ideas about making and loving music as we embark on a new decade.

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The Pack A.D. – The Pack is Back

By Kent Davies

packad

Maya Miller + Becky Black = the Pack A.D. Much has been said about this bad-ass East Van duo. Their brand of gritty, bluesy garage punk has captivated most critics and scored them legions of fans throughout the world. Beyond a doubt, Becky Black has one of the best voices in Canadian indie rock; her teetering, earth-shattering cries coupled with Maya Miller’s thunderous drumming contains all the emotional punch of a hellfire sermon given by King Kong. Those who were fortunate enough to catch their live show at the Albert on their last tour can attest to the spiritually jarring effect you get when witnessing these women in action. Stylus caught up with the pair as they finished up their latest album in Vancouver.

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