Space Jam: Living Hour

The jam space. Instruments everywhere, cute carpet and sound pannels on the wall with gauzy curtains

by Steph Kolodka

Living Hour is a Winnipeg-based indie band that has been around for almost a decade, and with the group having been in various jam spaces over the years, it was a pleasure to see their current setup in a beautiful living room in the heart of Osborne, filled with natural sunlight. Living Hour consists of members Sam Sarty, Gilad Carroll, Adam Soloway, and Brett Ticzon. It was through his links in the music scene that Carroll found Sam Sarty, who became the singer for Living Hour. Other members of the band, Adam Soloway and Brett Ticzon, were long-time friends with Carroll and visit the space regularly to write songs and jam.

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Artist Interview: BELLA WHITE

Bella White sings into mic while playing electric acoustic guitar at Winnipeg Folk Fest.

by Mike Thiessen

“You’re all so attentive!” Bella White exclaimed to her quietly captivated audience halfway through her Sunday afternoon concert at Folk Fest’s Spruce Hollow stage. It’s hard not to be  – White’s viscerally relatable lyricism and sweet and powerful vocals doused in a healthy amount of classic old-time country twang get at listeners in a way that not much else does. 

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Artist Interview: Cadence Weapon

*Article and photo from last year*

Words by Isabella Soares
Photo by Myles Tiessen

It has been quite a year for Edmonton-born hip hop superstar Cadence Weapon. Following the deluxe edition release of his latest studio album, Parallel Words, he is not only heading back to live events, but also promoting his memoir, Bedroom Rapper. Stylus Magazine had the chance to catch up with Weapon ahead of his performance at the Big Blue @ Night stage at the 2022 Winnipeg Folk Festival. 

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Interview :: Taylor Janzen

Supplied photo

by Myles Tiessen

The music video for “Designated Driver,” one of the leading singles from Taylor Janzen’s debut LP, I Live In Patterns, sees Janzen behind the wheel driving an old 60s-era motorcar. Artistically shot using a conspicuous green screen, Janzen traverses various landscapes, supermarkets, and cattle pastures, driving with no clear destination. As the chorus builds and melodies intensify, so too does the speed of her travels. Like a bullet through a desolate purgatory with nothing to arrest her motion, Janzen cycles and flips through the pain and regret in her mind. “I swear to God I’m trying/ Not to ruin our plans/ I made myself a martyr with the holes in my hands,” she sings. 

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Interview :: Matt Foster :: True Needs

Photo of Matt Foster, lying on their back? smiling

by Jesse Popeski

Stylus: You have your take on “Billy in the Low Ground” on the album and fingerpicking guitar on songs like “Don’t Lie About Your Dreams. How does folk music fit into the picture?

Matt Foster: Protest music would’ve been how I found folk music. The power of bringing people together, politically throwing a wrench in the gears. There are all kinds of things in folk music that I love, how you don’t have to be good in terms of playing to get up on the stage; it’s very equalizing; it’s everyone’s music. In terms of direct influences, I don’t pull on it directly. Live, I’ll slow “Billy in the Low Ground” down and play a crooked version. I’ll reference the tune, but I’ll play the B section first, I’ll play it super slow. No one plays fiddle music really slow; everyone’s racing to be that athlete. But if I just let the strings ring, let them create chords in the sustained spots, there’s a beautiful harmonic sadness. I try hard not to define anything lyrically, harmonically, I try not to let anything get boxed in, so the ear settles – I like this sense of the unsettled.

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