It Made Me Stop & Grin

I recently traded in my lenses to get my hands on a set 50mm f1.8, and I finally put it to some use on a short trip through B.C this last week. Here are some of the shots I was most happy with.

Courthouse, Nelson, B.C

Nelson, B.C

Well, after months of anticipation, it finally dropped. Bushcraft, by Vancouver's Baptists, is an unrelenting wrecking ball of an album. It's eleven songs, and every one of them is angry. The guitar riffs are heavy, chord driven beasts, that are harnessed by drummer Nick Yacyshyn's incredible percussion work. Andrew Drury's haggard screams take the reigns of the whole ensemble and bring out every drop of malice that the instruments put forth. 

I spent this past Saturday wandering the streets of Banff aimlessly with my friends, Ben and Eric, from Broken Down Suitcase. The Golden, B.C folk duo was in Banff for a three night stint, which had them playing St. James Gate on both Friday and Saturday evening, and, with my unemployment rampant as ever, I opportunistically took advantage of their presence to rid my day of any boredom.  We spent the day perusing shops, relentlessly quoting The Simpsons, and discussing hard hitting issues such as "If you were to take the world hostage, how would you go about doing so?", as well as the viability of the food truck industry.  We took a brief intermission from each other’s company for naps and dinner, after which I returned to Banff just after they finished their first set. After a quick beer with Eric, my girlfriend and a friend of ours, Broken Down Suitcase was back on stage for their second of three sets. The two young musicians alternated between originals and covers, and were excellent at keeping the mood right for the evening, as mandolins, banjos, guitars and harmonicas were all masterfully played throughout the night. Having the odd set up for a venue that St. James Gate has, it often seemed that for many in the bar, Broken Down Suitcase was simply background music to the clinking of their beer bottles. However, Eric grabbed the crowd's full attention when he ripped an epic harmonica solo while Ben led the crowd's clapping in a metronomic fashion. The gentlemen then had many up from their seats, and the entirety of the bar singing along when they covered Stan Rogers' Barret's Privateers. The sets from Broken Down Suitcase were played without a flaw, and the crowd became more and more enamored with them as the performance went on. After the show, we continued to hang out and drink, but unlike prior to, we were unable to do so without interruption. Bar goers came by our table to offer praise to Ben and Eric, inquire about their show schedule, or ask for a copy of their self-titled album that they released last year.

I could have pushed and done a top ten list, but that would have been insincere. Or I could have tried to axe one album and do my top five, but that didn't feel right either. So here are the six albums that blew my socks off in 2012:

Converge - All We Love We Leave Behind

It's fourteen tracks, it's just under forty minutes, and it's angry. But that's not to say that the band's eighth album isn't wonderfully balanced. Ben Koller's percussive hits shift from machine gun blasts to sledgehammer-heavy crashes, taking the tempo of the record on a path that resembles a city skyline, while Kurt Ballou blurs the view with his grungy, screeching guitar riffs. Jacob Bannon's vocals remain harsh as ever: ranging from ominous, distant spoken segments, to screams that sound as if a rat is clawing at his throat from the inside out while it smokes a bottle of whisky. Sounds good, no?

Converge - Trespasses

Between The Buried And Me - The Parallax II: Future Sequence

Another album by Between The Buried And Me that makes you want to give up whatever instrument you're feebly attempting to play, and take up oragami or something. And, as usual, the members of BTBAM display their remarkable musicianship via a musical epic. The Parallax II: Future Sequence is twelve songs (really just one continuous track) and will take you the same amount of time to complete listening to it as it does for you to take two coffee breaks, a half hour lunch break, and a few smoke breaks in your average work day (it's about 72 minutes). Albeit, there's a strong chance you'd forget to chew your food, drink your coffee, or suck on your cigarette while listening to this musical masterpiece, as the album clenches the aural senses of the listener with an abundance of progressive style changes, ranging from acoustic melodies, to blasting metal riffs, to bizarre polka infused-rhythms. Tommy Rogers’ vocals are just as eclectic as the instrumentation, transforming from soft, soothing vocals, to his trademark beastly roar. Anyways, I could go on and on about little aspects of this album that I love, but if I did that, this review would rival the album in length. So if you have ten minutes or so to spare, check out Telos off of The Parallax II for some metal wizardry.

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - The Heist

I just started listening to Macklemore & Ryan Lewis within the last month or so, but god dammit it’s infectious. The Heist is produced wonderfully, lyrically purposeful, and is emotionally satisfying. Simply put, it’s smart rap with great production. Macklemore goes beyond the usual “bitches n’ hos” mentality of most rappers, and writes his rhymes about issues like same-sex marriage equality, writing music for the love of it, and how consumerism controls societal opinions. Macklemore proves his lyrical versatility on this record, and he makes it look easy. To compliment the socially conscious lyrical content of most songs, he proves he has a light hearted side to him, with songs like Thrift Shop (which has birthed a great music video to go with it), that are concerned with the thrill of finding great clothes for next to no money at second-hand stores.

Purity Ring - Shrines

Probably not to anyone’s surprise, as this album has been hyped, praised upon it’s release, then re-praised by being put on countless Top Album lists, is the ghostly, Shrines, by Purity Ring. In fact, I don’t really think that there’s a point to write much about this album, just because every review I’ve read has said nothing but good things about it. I would be beating a dead horse. What I will say, is that quickly speaking with Corin, (the man behind Purity Ring’s glitchy beats) when they played Edmonton this year, showed me that he is the same humble, chill dude he was when I worked with him years back. He’s doing our city proud, and I’m stoked on Purity Ring’s amazing success.

Purity Ring - Fineshrine 

Japandroids - Celebration Rock

If someone can think of a more appropriate name than Celebration Rock for Japandroids' 2012 release, I’d love to hear it. I’d then proceed to smack them and tell them that they are wrong and that they should feel bad for their suggestion. This album screams party, and should be a staple at any event that has a house packed full of people spilling copious amounts of alcohol on themselves from their red solo cups. It’s loud, it’s grungy, and it’s fun. There have been a lot of great words written about this album this year, and Japandroids deserve every last one of them.

Japandroids - The House That Heaven Built

The Armed - Spreading Joy

Joy is not what most people would associate The Armed’s Spreading Joy with.  Rage, chaos, and destruction are likely more suiting when you give this five song, 8 minute EP a listen. If you put the thickness of Converge, the spasticity of The Dillinger Escape Plan, and the feel good party attitude of Every Time I Die in the same room, you get the sound that The Armed are creating with their instruments. This album is short and it breeds mayhem, which means that it spread joy to me this holiday season. Lots of joy.

The Armed - No Rest Until Ruin

A Modern Day Hipster Al Bundy.

I've recently taken to spending time on photoshop, and drawing over photos to give them a different feel. Here are my favourite few so far:

Mouse Trap

ft. Caleigh Leighton

Original photo taken by Bianca Bocancea

Possessed 

Ft. Kristin Olinyk

Original photo taken by Kristin Olinyk

Do Not Swim

ft. Nick Brownoff

Original photo taken by myself

Ghosts of the Great Yellow Brick Road

ft. Jessica Knowler

I've got some really good friends that are doing some amazing work for the communities that they have involved themselves in, and I think they deserve as much exposure and credit they can get.

Alex Smith is one of these people.

I have been friends with Alex for several years now, and he just happens to be one of those guys that seems to be good at whatever the hell he tries to do. So it really didn't surprise me when he quickly mastered a little, wooden, Japanese toy, called a kendama. The other night I got together with Alex, and between squeals of the drill press, he told me a bit about his venture into the kendama world.

It now seems that Alex's name is synonymous with the word kendama in Edmonton, and likely, the rest of Alberta. This is thanks to his part in starting up Kendama Edmonton and the University Kendama Association, which are not-for-profit groups dedicated to getting more kids playing kendama in the area. In the past, Kendama Edmonton has hosted casual kendama sessions, online competitions, and they even threw a rowdy competition/kegger last summer. On top of holding competitions and the like, Kendama Edmonton has put out ten "mini-edits" (or videos) and a run of custom t-shirts.

But it seems that his name is not to be contained solely to our prairie province. Within the last year, Alex has started his own kendama company by the name of Terra Kendamas, and is now considered a professional kendama player after being awarded a spot on the KendamaUSA team. This new found label was described as a "pretty sweet deal" by Alex. "I get to kendama, hang out, and travel a bit – KendamaUSA hooks me up good!" he says with a grin.

Terra Kendamas started up last summer in Alex's garage, and was dedicated to figuring out specs and getting the hang of crafting the toys. "Depending on the wood and complexity of the job, It usually takes me about six to eight hours to make a kendama from start to finish." says Alex. Of course, he's a smart man, and doesn't do one at a time, and he tries his best to be as efficient as possible.

With the use of such exotic woods as purple-heart, cocobolo, and padauk, Terra Kendamas tends to break the mould when it comes to the wooden toy. Using such unique woods also gives Terra the option of creating kendamas with aesthetic appearances that are entirely their own. Kendamas ranging from Yellow-Heart/Ebony striped, to Purple-Heart/Yellow-Heart split can be found in the Terra web-store. 

Alex remembers when Terra put their first run of kendamas for sale: "First time we ever put stuff up, most of it sold out pretty quick. There were a few that stuck around for a little while, like the maple ones, likely because maple doesn't look as crazy as purple heart." But those couple slow sellers proved to be an exception. "The next time we put stuff up," Alex recalls, "we put five kendamas up, and they sold out in twenty minutes."

Along with their unique kendamas, Terra has come up with their own toy: The Pill. The toy gets its name from its shape, but you'll have to check out the Terra website to get a full idea of what exactly The Pill is. And according to Alex, it is likely their most sought after product. With such interest in this little toy, Alex is hiring on a friend to focus entirely on the production of The Pill. "The problem is our supply is so low and it takes so long to make each product by hand" Alex laments. But for those who are interested in adding The Pill to their collection, never fear. He is looking to have some back in stock right away, and has plans to make them more widely available soon.

For someone who is essentially a one-man operation, Alex has very few complaints: "The worst part about running this business is competing with American stores, because their shipping is half the price and they offer tracking numbers with their stuff." Considering that shipping costs are entirely in the hands of Canada Post, and in no way Alex's fault, his business model appears to be treating him well. "The hardest part is figuring out what to charge." he says. In fact, Alex thinks that rather than set prices on some of the upcoming items, he may resort to auctioning them off. 

Luckily, for kendama lovers, now that he has his foot in the door and his name with a professional tag on it, Alex plans on working exclusively in the Terra shop this summer. But the young entrepreneur has a lot on his plate: he is leaving for a brief period to Seattle with the KendamaUSA team, likely with some Terra products in hand; and then, in July, he heads off to Europe for a month. However, while in Europe, he will be making an appearance at the European Juggling Convention in Poland, and he’ll probably be bringing Terra products to this event as well. But he seems more stoked to just hang out with a bunch of new kendama players and seeing new products, than he is about promoting his own gear. "I'm sure I'll come home with yoyos, diablos, and who knows what else." jokes Alex. 

But until those trips commence, Alex will be juggling his time between finishing his chemistry major, doing work in the lab, and cranking out some new 'damas in his dusty, little shop. Alex has hinted that we can expect to see some new designs coming out of the Terra store soon, and, quite possibly, some larger scale kendamas.

Terra will also attempt to continue making custom ordered kendamas. However, due to such demand, Alex says that he may need to resort to auctioning that option off. Make your bid, and if it wins, you'll get to tell Alex what you want for your custom kendama. 

Keep your eyes on these websites for updates on Terra products, future competitions, and whatever else Alex gets himself involved in! Terra Kendamas on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/TerraKendamas?ref=ts).

Terra Kendamas Online shop (http://terrakendamas.bigcartel.com/)

Kendama Edmonton on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/KendamaEdmonton)

  Chances are, this blog entry will in no way provide you with information on what to do, what to eat, or where to stay in Sri Lanka. Hopefully it'll just shed some light on how amazing it is to venture across a foreign country with five of your best friends.

February, 2012 is when the six of us reunited in Negombo after travelling in separate parts of the world: Dave and I had done a brief stop in London, a nine day stint in Istanbul, and had completed the Annapurna Base Camp trek in Nepal; Jessica had spent time in Egypt, met Dave and I in London, then spent the majority of January in China with Nick and Breanna; and Frances had spent the previous two months touring around New Zealand and Thailand. Needless to say, meeting up with everyone on the small, tropical island of Sri Lanka was exciting, and simply incredible.

We rented a nine passenger van and decided that the best way for us to explore the country was to drive around it ourselves. At this point, I should mention that Dave deserves a medal for volunteering to drive the entire trip. The "highways" of Hill Country are barely  wide enough for two vehicles to pass each other, they enjoy the use of hairpin turns, and have likely never been introduced to the idea of a guard rail. Combine this with the fact that basic traffic laws aren't applied anywhere, and you've got yourself some hectic, terrifying, and memorable experiences on the road. Numerous times the van would be filled with cries of "Oh my God!", followed by a sigh of relief, a terrified glance at whoever was sitting beside you, then an outburst of laughter. City driving may have been less terrifying as a passenger, as there were no ominous drop-offs from the side of a mountain, but the chaotic nature of the city streets was something Dave never seemed to be too fond of. On the opposite side of the spectrum, the fact that six, young, white tourists were driving themselves through Sri Lanka, proved to be hilariously entertaining for the locals. We were often waved at, stared at, smiled at, or laughed at. And whenever a local asked us about our transportation methods, we were often met with impressed looks and words of encouragement once they found out we were doing it all ourselves.

Despite the dangers of the road, we all agreed that driving ourselves from Negombo, through Hill Country, to the East coast, and then down along the South coast was one of the greatest decisions we made. Since we didn't need to rely on the often inconsistent schedules of public transportation, we were able to have complete control of our agenda. If we liked a place, we'd stay a little longer. If we wanted to stop and see a waterfall, we'd pull over and get out. If someone needed to urgently use the bathroom, we could halt the van and hold up a towel in front of them while they did their business on the side of the road. It was complete freedom, and we wouldn't trade it for anything.

Our trip took us to some incredibly beautiful cities, such as Kandy: a large, bustling hub in Hill Country. And it took us to some other places, such as Ohiya, a spot that could hardly be considered a neighbourhood. Breanna, after we accidentally drove through Ohiya, which was described in our Lonely Planet book as a decent place to stay, summed it up with: "Was that Ohiya!? That place had like, three buildings!!" Needless to say, we passed on the only "guest house" in town once we found dog feces on the floor and an assortment of bugs in the beds. 

We found ourselves on some incredibly beautiful beaches, where we attempted to surf and boogie board on waves that were much too advanced for us. Not only did these waves prove to be too much for us to play in, but they seemed to make it their goal to claim the swimsuits of the unwary and oblivious.

On top of seeing the incredibly diverse wildlife of the island, we were quickly introduced to an onslaught of insects. The usual culprit was either a strange flying bug of sorts, or a sly cockroach, but they would find their attempts to sneak up on us met with a terrified scream and/or someone flipping a chair and running away. Such alarms were usually sounded by Breanna, Nick or Jessica, while the "shooing", or flicking of bugs was taken on by Frances and I. To be fair to our squeamish friends, some of the bees of Sri Lanka sounded like helicopters when they approached, and there was an incident that involved a spider larger than my hand.

To put all of this succinctly: Sri Lanka treated us well. Not only in our accommodations, our meals, and how we were so warmly welcomed by the people, but it provided us all with an experience that we'll never forget. 

People frequently ask me: "What was your favourite part of your two months of travel?". And I always respond with Sri Lanka. But it was because I saw it with five of the most amazing people I've ever had the privilege of knowing, and I consider myself incredibly lucky to have friends as great as them. I can't ever thank them enough for making my trip as memorable as it was.

"Eyemuffs!"  

This blog isn't going to be solely for music, but there will be a LOT of short posts about music that's currently on high rotation in my personal library.

I'm going to use my very first post in the blogging world to do some good, by bringing whoever reads this some unique music for their ears. Recently, a long-time, and great friend of mine, unveiled his new project, BOOSH! (and/or ka-kow), upon the Edmonton music scene/world wide web. Clad in an outrageous outfit consisting of a Luchador mask and a floral cape, BOOSH! took the reigns at a local house party and had the crowd movin'. Between songs, chants of "BOOSH!BOOSH!BOOSH!BOOSH!" kept the volume loud, and the stoke levels high.