LAUGH TRACK: Vancouver comedian punches up with her show Rape is Real and Everywhere

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May 9, 2016

Three years ago, Heather Jordan Ross made the jump from being “one of, like, two female stand-up comedians on Prince Edward Island” to part of the burgeoning Vancouver comedy scene. Since then, she’s co-founded several local shows (Poke the Bear, Comedy Deux Soleils), but none as resounding as her latest project: the show Rape is Real and Everywhere (RIR&E). A brainchild between Ross and fellow comedian Emma Cooper, Rape is Real and Everywhere is a stand-up comedy show where survivors tell jokes about their rape and discuss the humour in an otherwise traumatic experience. Read on to learn more about how telling rape jokes is like “free therapy” for Ross and how she feels about taking RIR&E on a national tour starting later this month.

The Peak: Where does the idea for a comedy show about rape come from?

Heather Jordan Ross: I was raped and I reported it, and then immediately after reporting it I went onstage and did a set, and it was terrible. But I realized that a) I wanted to make rape jokes, because I wanted to joke about it, and b) I never wanted to hear rape jokes again. So it was a really weird place to be in. I was talking to Emma Cooper over beers, and said, “Wouldn’t it be great if we did a comedy show about rape jokes, but only by survivors?” and Emma said, “Yes, it would. We’re going to call Hot Art Wet City, I have five people we can do this with,” and she just went with it.

P: Historically, rape jokes have been at best controversial. How are the performers with RIR&E changing that standard?

HJR: When it comes to writing a joke, you have to think about why you’re writing it, and who you’re supporting when telling it. Always be punching up. If you make a rape joke and the person who laughs are the rapists, and the person who cringes are victims, you kind of suck. If you can tell a rape joke and you make me laugh, then you’ve done your homework. People doing this show, it’s great for them because they’re parsing through the experience and they’re making jokes about it, which is super cathartic. It’s been amazing for me, like free therapy where I technically get paid.

Funny shit still happens throughout your whole life, through the best parts and the worst parts. So it’s great to be able to talk about it. We want people to be able to talk about their rapes, but also talk about the funny parts. The fact that I got raped in Burnaby is the funniest thing in the world. The only thing worse than being raped is being raped in Burnaby.

P: All three RIR&E shows in Vancouver sold out. How does it feel to have found a topic that’s clearly resonating with people?

HJR: Really, really wonderful. It’s something that’s always been close to my heart, even before what happened two years ago. There’s this conversation not happening, in schools or in the workplace, it’s not happening fucking anywhere. So we’re just living in this epidemic, where we’re casually not acknowledging that one in four of the women and one in every 33 men you know has been sexually assaulted, and for some reason we’re all just cool with it. We’re just pretending this isn’t a thing where clearly, if there was a little bit more conversation, it wouldn’t be such an epidemic.

P: Has there been any negative feedback to the show, or people who struggle with the concept of finding humour in a systemic issue like sexual assault?

HJR: Mostly no. People have been very supportive, even survivors who’ve said they would never come to it themselves. The only negative things I’ve had have been guys I know sending me messages; I don’t even know how to articulate it, sending me messages saying, “I don’t know if I agree with the fact that you call it real and everywhere, and I feel like consent is a very grey area, and I also feel that women are liars.” It’s been really weird. I’ve deleted three people from Facebook who’ve been, “Um, actually…”

P: The show is hitting the road later this month for a Canadian tour. What inspired the transition from local show to a national one?

HJR: When we sold out the first show, we had people asking, “Why aren’t you in Toronto?” We encouraged people that if they wanted this show in the city, then they should do it, and then we thought, “Why don’t we just fucking do it?” People were asking across the country, survivors who liked the idea or comedians who wanted us to bring it to their city. The demand was there.

P: Aside from being performed in different cities, how will RIR&E change when it’s on the road?

HJR: We’re going to have local talent, which will be really interesting because we’re going from, “Hey, I’ve talked to you on the Internet,” to, “Hey, let’s talk about the worst thing that’s ever happened to you,” which is going to get pretty weird, but I’m excited for it. I just hope we reach the people we want to reach. Vancouver was much easier because we had a network already; with these different cities, we have to find people. It feels funny to go through my old contacts and be like, “Hey Charlie from university, want to come to my rape show? Hey Diane who I used to be a reporter with, want to come to my rape show?”

P: If there’s one thing you hope people take away from the show, what would that be?

HJR: Let’s talk about it. Let’s laugh about it, let’s talk about it, and let’s kill this epidemic. Rape is real and it’s everywhere, and it shouldn’t be. Let’s talk this out, let’s find out what’s going wrong, and let’s change this.

The Rape is Real and Everywhere: A National Comedy Tour Launch happens on May 15 at the Rickshaw Theatre, where Ross and Cooper will be co-hosting and performing alongside six other local comedians. Tickets are $15 and can be bought online in advance.

An interview with Deepak Sharma, our new SFSS president

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Peak Web

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May 9, 2016

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[dropcap]I[/dropcap] met the newly elected Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) president, Deepak Sharma, on his fourth day of presidency. Outfitted in a suit and tie, the edge of which was taken off by his wide smile, he gave me a firm handshake followed by a soft-spoken introduction. As the interview progressed, I realized that in many ways, Sharma is composed of these two opposing sides: exuding professionalism and experience, but always with a tinge of the astute self-awareness of someone who’s still surprised to find himself in such a position.

Sharma describes his beginnings as humble. “I come from a place called Whalley. . . no, it’s not Surrey Central, no, it’s not Vancouver.” While it was a slip of the tongue that he regrets during a debate, Sharma still identifies with the “inner-city kid” who may find himself out of place in a student body president’s office.

But his experiences growing up in a fairly unknown school in a fairly unknown part of town also led Sharma to one of his greatest passions to date: youth mentorship. Sharma describes how he sometimes felt sitting next to classmates in his small-town public school who perhaps “. . . [weren’t] able to eat breakfast, or [got] involved in questionable activities after school just so [they didn’t] have to go home due to abuse or neglect. . . ” This experience inspired Sharma to return to his community as a mentor. “It’s easier for students to sometimes connect with someone they’re aspiring to be like in a couple of years. . . who won’t judge them,” Sharma says.

In addition to youth mentorship, the new president has experience volunteering in hospitals and homeless shelters, playing and then refereeing community-based football, and being a general ambassador for TEDxSFU.

“I’ve just got to make sure my actions speak louder than my words.” – Deepak Sharma

Despite an impressive level of community involvement — which led Sharma to be named one of the Surrey Board of Trade’s Top 25 Under 25 in 2015 — it was a lack of SFU-specific involvement that led him to student politics. Sharma’s political career began as a science rep, followed by VP Student Life, and now president of the SFSS.

Sharma’s disconnect with SFU’s extracurriculars stemmed in part from the fact that his early university experience was based on SFU’s Surrey campus, which he maintains has yet to have a complete sense of unity with the Burnaby and Vancouver campuses. Recognizing and embracing SFU as a tri-campus institution was a prominent topic in Sharma’s debates leading up to the election.

In Sharma’s opinion, SFU’s reputation as a “commuter campus” pre-empts students from being proud of their SFU identity and getting involved on campus. But Sharma envisions using SFU’s commuter culture as an advantage: “If we don’t address the fact that we’re a commuter campus, how are we going to have a presence at Vancouver and Surrey?” Sharma asks. “There needs to be a way to work alongside the [three campuses] instead of just being Burnaby-based.”

Sharma himself embodies the advantages SFU has gained due to its unique multi-campus organization. “SFU Surrey has allowed me to be involved further in the community I grew up in. . . because one of the campuses I attend directly affects my community,” Sharma says.

Sharma’s focus on providing an equal student experience to membership attending all three campuses seems to contradict his support for Build SFU, a project to build a student union building (SUB) and stadium that could cost the university, and thus students, up to $65 million. One of the major arguments against this controversial project has been that it unequally benefits Burnaby-based students, but students in Surrey or Vancouver will experience the same increase in tuition fees to fund it.

Sharma doesn’t deny the lower appeal of the project to non-Burnaby students. From his perspective though, the building’s potential to unify the student body would percolate out of the Burnaby campus to benefit all SFU students. “We [are trying] to say we’re all part of one community. . . . [the SUB] is [a step] towards building that community instead of further dividing it.”

Sharma seems the most at ease when discussing policy, rattling off the three main goals of his board: governance reform, enhanced communication among students and between students and their elected officials, and efficient reimbursement programs.

Sharma reports that reimbursement would begin increasing in efficiency as quickly as next week.

The SFSS supports over 400 active student groups in multiple ways, one of which is funding. “Due to the SFSS structure made a long time ago, we can’t accommodate the number of active clubs efficiently anymore,” says Sharma. “Some clubs get approved, but reimbursement doesn’t occur in a timely manner, and that’s not us supporting the students effectively.”

“SFU Surrey has allowed me to be involved further in the community I grew up in” – Deepak Sharma

Increasing reimbursement speed and efficiency is one of the major points listed in the three-year strategic plan laid out by the board under his predecessor, Enoch Weng. Sharma cites the plan as one of his motivators to run for president: “I felt I was in a good position to continue the work that had been done last year.” It’s also a much-needed tool to give his board direction and “keep everyone on the same page to reduce redundancies and increase efficiency.”

When Sharma is confronted with specific questions that his rehearsed rhetoric can’t adequately answer, his hesitance seeps to the surface. His shortcomings in addressing concerns spontaneously garnered the new president criticism during the debates leading up to the election, some of which came directly from his own board members.

Sharma admits that his debating skills often fall short and a personal challenge he already anticipates for himself is effectively communicating the work that is being done by the SFSS.

“If my board and the rest of the membership doesn’t know what I’m doing, that’ll be a poor reflection [of our work] and will limit the momentum we have,” Sharma states.

When asked for his opinion on additional criticism directed at the personal projects that dominated his trimester as VP Student Life, Sharma concedes that his agenda has thus far been portrayed as highly focused on social aspects, but that it is not an accurate representation of what he hopes to accomplish as president.

Specifically, Sharma mentions four values that his board aims to address in the next year: along with student life, he lists student finances, academics, and (mental) health and welfare.

Sharma abandons both his rehearsed plugs and self-aware hesitance in excitement as he describes a specific initiative he hopes will shift the “skewed perception of [himself] as being focused on just social aspects.” It’s a cause that the SFSS previously has not played a large role in: the provincial elections occurring in 2017.

Sharma admitted that a personal challenge he already anticipates for himself is effectively communicating the work that is being done by the SFSS

By honing in on the fact that youth voter turnouts in elections have been following an upwards trend, Sharma paints a picture in which the SFSS uses the collective student voice to communicate student needs to government officials on a much larger scale. To this end, the SFSS aims to facilitate dialogue between the membership and their elected student body officials about what they expect from their local and provincial governments.

The board under Sharma is looking forward to beginning their lobbying efforts as soon as possible so that they can engage with political leaders as these officials are still creating their platform.

“There are so many things about our lobbying efforts that will affect students,” Sharma affirms.

“Does the membership know that we are not able to build more residences because the current government doesn’t want to provide us with a loan? Maintenance is another huge problem. . . the current government is unable to provide the school with more capital.”

Sharma also brings up the fact that, while current loans taken by the university have a six-month “grace period,” interest is still charged on the loans. Furthermore, “we’re the only province that is charged an additional 2.5 percent interest on loans in addition to the federal interest,” he adds.

Despite all the bold promises Sharma makes throughout the interview, he concludes in a manner I had come to expect: by acknowledging the other possible outcome of his term as president. “Of course, you may come back next April and ask me, ‘Deepak, what about this, this, and this that you promised to do but never did.’ That wouldn’t be very good,” he chuckles.

“I’ve just got to make sure my actions speak louder than my words.”

COLUMN | THE POLITICAL EYE: Alberta Health Services wrongfully blames ‘hookup apps’ for STI outbreak

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EIC

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May 9, 2016

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The Political Eye is a new column by Tatum Miller, on BC and inter-provincial politics. Check back weekly for new content!

[dropcap]O[/dropcap]h, hookup apps. Never before has it been so easy to communicate sexual interest. A simple swipe to the right on a screen unlocks access to a wide market of potential mates. But can we really blame Tinder or Grindr for an STI outbreak?

Alberta Health Services certainly thinks so.

“To the extent that social media could be enabling these hookups to occur more often/frequently, social media would also be contributing to the STI rate increases we are seeing,” Dr. Gerry Predy, Alberta Health Services medical officer of health, told CBC News. Alberta does have a crisis: there were 3,400 reported cases of gonorrhea in 2015. This represents an 80 percent increase from 2014.

There isn’t any doubt that Tinder and Grindr facilitate hookups without the strings. However, a few issues arise with placing sole blame on ‘hookup apps.’ These apps only make it easier to meet new people, while the nature of the relationships is left to the users. It seems much more prudent to blame our culture of independence and aversion to commitment on this issue.

Admittedly, I have Tinder. So do many of my friends. It is a stereotype to say that Tinder is purely for hookups. The majority of people I’ve spoken to on Tinder say they aren’t looking to hook up (or maybe they just deny it). Many are innocently searching for platonic relationships, and many others are looking for long-term commitment. In fact, the CBC reported last year that a study by UBC instructor Jocelyn Wentland found most Tinder users are primarily looking for relationships over sex.

A Tinder match doesn’t confirm one’s interest in hooking up. I swipe right any time I see a profile from SFU. It’s a wonderful platform for breaking the ice and meeting new people. In fact, I had three Tinder matches from one of my classes this year, and it was great for sharing notes.

Tinder is just a new player in the already-existing hookup market. Clubs, bars, and parties were, and still are, notorious for sexual encounters. At least on Tinder you can view pictures and talk to somebody before deciding to hit third base. At a club, the lights are too low and the music’s too loud to properly meet somebody. On Tinder you can find out if somebody knows the difference between ‘their,’ ‘there,’ and ‘they’re.’

We live in a culture of non-commitment. I look at my circle of friends and good, healthy relationships are few and far between. They exist, but I’d imagine less than five percent of my friends are in committed relationships. How many excuses have I made to justify my avoidance of commitment? “I don’t know where I’ll be next year.” “What if I find somebody better?” “Every relationship ends in a breakup or marriage, so why bother right now?” “I’m too busy.”

Maybe I try too hard to convince myself to avoid the long-term. I’m young, have a decent job, and my education hopefully promises me a good future. Why stay single? Will there come a time when it’ll just ‘feel right,’ or is it a conscious decision to pursue something real?

Tinder reinforces the single life by exposing a wide world within the dating market. But I blame our culture and not our apps for the STI increase. Albertan authorities should stop making blanket statements about causations for sexual infections that they don’t have any data to support.

What I do know is that I’m scared of hookups now. Gonorrhea is the last thing I want.

Give science more credit and put away natural remedies

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EIC

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May 9, 2016

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[dropcap]O[/dropcap]n April 26, Albertan couple David and Collet Stephan were found guilty of neglecting their 19-month-old son, Ezekiel Stephan, who died of meningitis in 2012. The defence argued that the parents, who attempted to heal Ezekiel through natural remedies rather than by seeking professional medical help, believed he simply had the flu.

Prosecutor Lisa Weich noted the Stephans had been warned by a registered nurse that Ezekiel likely had meningitis, and additionally that they should have been able to interpret their son’s symptoms as something more serious.

Having been born and raised in Eugene, Oregon, a city known for its Birkenstock-wearing, organic garden-planting, and vegan-eating residents, I’m familiar with the type of people who swear by their home remedies. My own family exists in this circle. For Christmas, my sister once gave me an awful serum that supposedly reduces anxiety, and my mother keeps a bottle of echinacea to treat colds and the flu — the same medicinal mixture that the Stephan parents used — stocked in the medicine cabinet at all times.

I’ve never complained about my family’s alternative health practices because, if need be, we seek professional advice. We have healthy diets, exercise, and yes, take echinacea. When that isn’t enough, we pay the doctor a visit. This is what the Stephan family should have done.

Ultimately doctors are here to treat us, to cure us, and to save us. Why would they want to do anything else?

I have plenty of qualms with the population that favours alternative medicine. Scientists have developed amazing medicines, remedies, and cures, so why do some of us refuse to use them? I understand the distrust in big pharmaceutical companies, and I understand the anger toward powerful higher-ups who care more about their bank accounts than patients (looking at you, Martin Shkreli). Ultimately though, doctors are here to treat us, to cure us, and to save us. Why would they want to do anything else?

It’s foolish to believe otherwise. Dr. Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, says turning to unproven alternative medicine is not the answer to our cynicism about conventional medicine.

Alternative medicines are considered inherently less harmful because they are perceived to be more natural. However, alternative medicine lacks testing. According to doctors Phil Fontanarosa and George Lundberg, in the Journal of the American Medical Association, “there is no alternative medicine. There is only scientifically proven, evidence-based medicine supported by solid data or unproven medicine, for which scientific evidence is lacking.”

At worst, these medicines can hurt us. At best, they heal us. Often, they simply do nothing. Such was the case with Ezekiel Stephan.

The world of ‘unproven’ medicine extends beyond one tragic case with a sick child. This is about a generation of children raised without vaccines that have worked for decades because ignorant parents are worried they may cause autism.

This is about children dying of suffocation because parents no longer trust the chemicals in inhalers long-known to treat asthma. We now live in a world where germs, viruses, and bacteria have become increasingly dangerous, and now there’s an entire generation of children whose immune systems are perfect targets.

There is no doubt that David and Collet Stephan loved Ezekiel, but as Weich put it, “sometimes love just isn’t enough.” Ultimately, had the Stephan family sought medical help for their son earlier, he would probably still be alive today.

Peak Comics: Creator’s Pet

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EIC

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May 9, 2016

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Student-faculty romance. Sorry, where’s the problem?

By

EIC

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May 9, 2016

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[dropcap]L[/dropcap]eave it to the UBC administration to consider a means for sexual assault control that’s so shortsighted it’ll leave you questioning the professional competency of the institution. The Globe is currently frolicking in a sticky story that involves potentially ‘legislating love’ between students and faculty members at the university.

UBC faculty say they’re “‘absolutely’ willing to consider a ban” on consensual relationships between these two parties, The Globe reports. This is primarily as a means to avoid the coercive power dynamics involved in any sexual assaults on students. The school’s interim president Martha Piper alludes that such a ban may be necessary to stop such troubling behaviour — a ban akin to that between a doctor and patient.

Of course, all the hoopla surrounding sexual assaults on school grounds has Canadian universities frantically ensuring that assault policies are given a thumbs-up from their politically correct patronage. But sadly, this is a case in which executive action may be taking measures that are more invasive than needed to secure everyone’s safety on campus. Dr. Piper openly admits that she is unaware of any other Canadian university to have implemented this kind of ban.

Wake up, Piper: it’s because every other university realizes that such a ban defies the natural sexual attractions that occur between two consenting adult humans.

Now, the same could be said for the school’s current conflict-of-interest policy requiring that faculty do not formally assess any student-lover with whom they have current classroom connections. But the ban UBC is proposing would be a trivial restriction on freedom of choice outside the classroom.

Every other university realizes that such a ban defies the natural sexual attractions that occur between two consenting adult humans.

While The Globe references one incident of alleged assault by a former PhD candidate at UBC to explain the school’s willingness to implement a campus-wide ban, Dr. Piper doesn’t use any evidence to prove that all ‘academic love’ is dangerous. So maybe she should draw upon actual data, or conduct some proper research to prove that this dirty romance epidemic propels unrelenting assaults — as if that’s the only thing faculty members want to do.

If this is the case, we might as well ban people from consensual relationships altogether. Yes, sexual assault occurs, but because student-faculty romances are so rare, it’s safe to say that non-consensual encounters happen far more often outside the academic world than within it.

Further, to liken this kind of ban to a patient-doctor relationship couldn’t be more misguided. It insinuates that patients can’t date doctors from a hospital they visit, even one who isn’t registered as their doctor. It simply doesn’t make sense.

I hope never to see the day when school executives power trip so much that they start blindly pulling Orwellian policies out of their rears to restrict who we sleep with when there are no professional connections involved. While we’re at it, how about they restrict with whom students and faculty marry and have children?

Cite your sources, Dr. Piper. Sure, it might be a little weird to see second-year Sally from psych class necking with a 65-year-old, nearly retired Nobel winner, but in the end our choices are ours to make as consenting adults, regardless of your opinion.

Pentatonix returns to Vancouver for an impressive show

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EIC

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May 6, 2016

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Three years ago, Pentatonix was still relatively new, performing an intimate concert at the Vogue. On April 28, they returned to Vancouver performing in front of a packed Pacific Coliseum. The a cappella quintet used their voices exclusively, and brought the Vancouver audience an incredible show.

Pentatonix, which won the NBC music competition The Sing Off in 2011, opened their performance with their original songs “Cracked” and “Na Na Na.” At one point, vocalist Scott Hoying remarked to the crowd, “This is incredible, seeing so many people come out to an a cappella concert.”

His surprise comes on the heels of the rise in popularity of a cappella in mainstream music. With the advent of TV shows and movies like Glee and Pitch Perfect, it created the perfect conditions for Pentatonix to break on to the charts. After a brief stint with Sony, Pentatonix began releasing music to their YouTube account, which boasts over 10 million subscribers and over one billion views.

Highlights of the concert included their covers of Jack Ü and Justin Bieber’s “Where Are Ü Now” and Megan Trainor’s “No,” a Michael Jackson-inspired powerhouse medley, and performances of original songs off their 2015 self-titled album such as “Can’t Sleep Love,” “Rose Gold,” and “Water.” The show demonstrated the diverse and unique talents of its individual members as well, such as bass singer Avi Kaplan’s operatic training. Beatboxer Kevin Olusola’s also performed Bach’s “Prelude No. 1” on the cello with a beatboxing twist. There was a brief moment where Pentatonix invited up some audience members and serenaded them, making everyone else slightly envious.

Pentatonix was joined in concert by New York native AJ Lehrman and YouTube sensation Us the Duo. Both acts performed high-energy sets before Pentatonix stepped onto the stage. From the beginning to the end, the energy never stopped and Vancouver audiences were treated to an extra-special night; even more special when it was noted that so far, Vancouver is the only Canadian stop on their World Tour.

In all, the concert ran seamlessly and showed just how cool and popular a cappella has become. From the powerhouse vocals to the light-hearted jokes in between songs to the incredible visuals that were projected in the background, Pentatonix brought something special to Vancouver on Thursday night. It was clearly evident in the enthusiastic cheering and singing in the audience — and on the transit ride home that followed.

NEW MUSIC FRIDAY

By

Peak Web

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May 6, 2016

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By: Sarah Finley, Courtney Miller, Nathan Ross, and Jessica Whitesel

Follow The Peak on Spotify to stay up to date on New Music Friday.

“Can’t Stop the Feeling” – Justin Timberlake

Jessica Whitesel: This is probably going to be the song of the summer and I don’t really know how to feel about that. I mean, it’s not the best song, but it’s also not the worst. You can dance to it, which is cool, but it’s pretty average and repetitive.

Sarah Finley: Definitely a catchy summery song that could easily be listened to on road trips. I’ve never really been a huge JT fan, but I can dig this one.

Courtney Miller: It’s fine. It’s very rhythmic with catchy lyrics, but I’m turned off by the random electronic alterations to his voice.

Nathan Ross: “Can’t Stop the Feeling” continues the unfortunate trend of bland, rhythmically repetitive songs where a singer declares how much they’re really feeling it, à la “Happy” by Pharrell Williams. I’m happy for Justin, but this isn’t his best work, and it’s too tailormade to be a flirty summer single. (For the record, the best “Happy” song belongs to C2C)

“Dark Necessities” – Red Hot Chili Peppers

JW: As always Flea’s bass playing is 10/10, but I wish they would ditch the Stadium Arcadium sound and go back to their earlier style. It’s not as bad as some of the songs that were on Stadium Arcadium, but it doesn’t really compare to songs like “Californication” and “Under the Bridge.”

SF: It’s truly impressive to me that Red Hot Chili Peppers are still cranking out music, but unfortunately this track is just kind of. . . dull. Subdued vocals and guitar scales don’t keep this listener’s interest.

CM: I feel like this isn’t their best song. Yes, the musicality is still there, but is doing weird electronic things with the sound a new trend? I find it makes the song discordant.

NR: It’s always tough to compare the Red Hot Chili Peppers to their old music as their roster keeps changing, and guitarist Josh Klinghoffer isn’t John Frusciante who wasn’t Hillel Slovak — depending on which fan you ask. It’s an okay, if a little broody, song from the Peppers. Flea is given maybe a bit too much prominence, as if to show off that this song still has some of what has made RHCP successful in the past.

“Figure it Out” French Montana feat. Kanye West and Nas

JW: This is interesting. It doesn’t sound like a song that would be released in 2016 with all the autotune and the rapping over a repetitive sung line. If that got toned down and the focus was placed more on their rapping — since they all are talented — this would have been a better song.

SF: Melancholic, light vocals begin the track, segueing into Kanye’s classic digitized voice — which quickly dies out. Ordinarily I love when Kanye collabs with other artists, but this time he’s overpowered by Nas and French Montana.

CM: What is the point of auto-tuning rap-or anything? This song would be much improved by cutting back on the effects.

NR: I agree with Jess that this song sounds like it should have come out years ago. Some of the verses are pretty uninspired (looking at you, Kanye), and the repetition gets old. Fast. (Side note: I know this is on Spotify, but watch the music video. Male power fantasies flying around everywhere like there’s no tomorrow)

“I Need A Forest Fire” – James Blake feat. Bon Iver

JW: I don’t really know what is happening with this song, but I don’t hate it. It reminds me of a lot of Bon Iver’s other music so maybe that is why I don’t find it too weird or discordant. I wouldn’t necessarily seek this song out but I wouldn’t skip it if it came on either.

SF: Two of my favourite artists in the world in one track? Yes, please. Calming and meditative, Bon Iver’s uniquely high voice excels here, meshing seamlessly with slow percussion and James Blake’s signature sound. My heart is so full.

CM: The song didn’t go anywhere until halfway through and I’m still not sure why they need a forest fire. It was really monotonous, and like 90 percent of the lyrics were “[something unintelligible] I need a forest fire.”

NR: This song won’t be for everyone, but you can count me in the group of people it works for. The looping works, and it is a good example of how to repeat sounds in your pieces while continually adding on to them, while allowing this song to grow, like a forest fire if that symbolism isn’t too on the nose for you.

“Explode” – Charli XCX

JW: It’s Charli XCX so it’s a pretty solid track, but it’s not like it will become an instant classic or anything. But what I find impressive is that it is from The Angry Birds Movie, so I am expecting this to be the best part of that whole disaster.

SF: My initial cringe at realizing this song is from the Angry Birds soundtrack is dedicated to our Arts Editor. Anyway, Charlie XCX’s classic I-don’t-give-a-fuck vibe that she introduced to the world at large in her feature of “I Love It” by Icona Pop is ever present and lovely in her newest track.

CM: It’s fun and lighthearted but seriously all of the electronic sound edits just detract and distract from the song. Stop this ridiculous trend! Otherwise it’d be a great pump-up song to dance to.

NR: Putting myself in the mindset of one of the Angry Birds from the movie this song is on the soundtrack for, I would listen to this on my way to go blow up somewhere in a fit of unhinged lunacy. I’d probably have some (lots of) alcohol in my system though, and I’d have to deal with the aftermath instead of exploding into nothingness. This track took me to some dark places. It’s catchy, though.

“True Sadness” – The Avett Brothers

JW: This song continues what The Avett Brothers do best which is making good music. Sometimes the lyrics get a little too relatable but that’s not a bad thing. I will probably listen to this song more than once and stick it into my regular rotation.

SF: My guilty pleasure in music is a well played banjo. The Avett Brothers miraculously make a song called “True Sadness” sound, for the most part, upbeat and happy through major guitar chords and optimistic vocals.

CM: A country/folk song that’s high-tempo, is musically fun and positive, but that lyrically is kind of depressing. I also find the vocalist is decent, but does weird roaming key changes.

NR: This is a solid, if a little humdrum, diddy from The Avett Brothers. It’s a lot more upbeat than a song called “True Sadness” would suggest, but it does line up with how this group usually sounds. It works well as a reflection piece, and teases for a bigger album which will definitely be one that grows on you.

“Burn the Witch” – Radiohead

JW: I will admit I am not a huge Radiohead fan BUT this isn’t the worst song ever. It feels more like is should be a song from the ’90s which is ok, I grew up in the ’90s and listened to a lot of Radiohead when they were newer. So it felt like I was six again, which was cool.

SF: Radiohead is one of those generally overrated bands that you brag about seeing live to all your hipster friends. This track combines fast-paced strings, slow vocals, and percussion that can’t make up its mind.

CM: The music really seems to overpower the vocalist, and it’s not very harmonious at all. There is improvement in the relationship between the vocals and the music about halfway through, but it doesn’t last. I’m also not sure why the singer sounds high on acid, but it’s not working for me.

NR: I’ll admit that King of Limbs didn’t do it for me, but if “Burn The Witch” is a taste of what their as-of-yet untitled album will be, I’m back on the Radiohead train. It evokes everything that I like about Radiohead, namely Thom Yorke’s voice dancing overtop a beautiful, haunting melody. This is my pick for track of the week.

“Complicated” – Fitz and the Tantrums

JW: I am really not a huge fan this song. I’ve listened to some of their other tracks, and I liked those ones better. This is like a weird mix of post pop-punk and DNCE with some cheerleaders. It’s kind of a hot mess but I can see why people would like it, but it’s not for me.

SF: God bless Fitz and the Tantrums. This track epitomizes the sexual tension and miscommunication that revolves around FWB and one night stand relationships. Relevant to uni students everywhere.

CM: Love the minimalistic keys opening and the melody that asks for people to sing along. The repetitiveness helps that goal, but not the song overall. It gets dull after a couple of minutes.

NR:I liked Fitz and the Tantrum’s earlier stuff, but this is a huge turn off for me. It sounds too overproduced for my tastes, and Michael “Fitz” Fitzpatrick comes off as whiny in his lyrics, and I just don’t care for what he has to say.

“In the Arms of a Stranger” – Mike Posner

JW: The intro sounds like a warm up in Pitch Perfect, so that was kind of weird. But that being said, I kind of like sad Mike. You get this mix of I’m sad and my life kind of sucks, but that’s ok because I am going to make the best of it. You also get some pretty decent tracks out of sad Mike.

SF: Once I get over my initial shock that Mike Posner is back in the game, this song is catchy as hell. I’m a sucker for a singer with a backup choir, and this is no exception.

CM: I really like how the intro builds upon itself. It doesn’t fall into a rut. The vocals seem at half-strength for most of the song, so more of them would’ve been great, but overall I love the construction of this song.

NR: The first thing I thought when listening to this song was that it was a promo for the next season of Glee. Then I remembered that Glee hasn’t been a thing for over a year, and was thankful for that. Still, this track isn’t the worst that could come out of Glee, like in the first half of the first season when there was hope and a good storyline and a showrunner that didn’t jump ship.

“Hotter Than Hell” – Dua Lipa

JW: I swear I have heard this exact song before. More than once, and by multiple artists. Please stop making the same fucking song over and over. It makes no sense whatsoever to sound exactly like every other artist out there. Please for the love of God come up with an original idea at least once. It would be nice for a change.

SF: Female singers with deep voices will truly be the death of me. Seductive and dancey, Dua Lipa will definitely be on my to-watch-for list.

CM: The vocals are well-showcased, with great range which is fantastic. It’s not repetitive, which is a blessing, and the great steady beat makes it a toe-tapper at least.

NR: What exactly is hotter than hell? Isn’t hell supposed to be the hottest? That’s why it is the worst, right? Does the devil have a secret hideaway that is even hotter? Is it too hot for him, and he sends the worst people there? Isn’t the devil a good person if he traps and punishes all evildoers? Anyway, this song is boring and generic and these are all things more interesting to think about than this song.

“100x” – Tegan and Sara

JW: I really, really, really want to consistently like Tegan and Sara but I just can’t. This is just one of those songs that I can’t get behind. It might be because it is slower and sad or that I just don’t like Tegan and Sara as much as I feel I should.

SF: Tegan and Sara are the loves of my life. Warning: Anyone who’s gone through a long drawn-out breakup should avoid this track as it will hit way too close to home.

CM: It’s a sweet slow song and I can imagine a great interpretative dance going with it. Classic Tegan and Sara vocals, but there’s a maturity in this song that’s greatly enjoyable.

NR: This will be a nice rallying cry for people who need to leave their partners but can’t because emotions are tough and sticky and people are weird. It’s a slow jam, and feels like it is holding back a little bit, but it comes through rather pleasantly. Too many break up jams feel like a conquering song, this acknowledges the ugly emotional complexity that breaking up brings.

“Hurts So Good” – Astrid S

JW: She has a nice voice, but she isn’t really doing herself any favours by sounding like the weird bastard child of Ariana Grande and Fifth Harmony. If she did something that was a little more unique she would be able to stand out in a music scene that is reaching its saturation point with female singers since she will get lost in the shuffle. It’s too bad really since she is better than they are.

SF: Toxic relationships provide great lyric material and musical inspiration, evidently. Fairly simplistic in vocals, instrumentals, and lyrics, I listened to this track probably three times trying to come up with something to say. So, there’s that, I guess.

CM: I like her voice, and the way it conveys emotions in a very real, believable way. The minimal accompanying music to her voice makes her voice stand out much more than I expected. Overall it’s worth at least a third listen.

NR: “Hurts So Good” isn’t anything new, but Astrid S is a good enough singer to make this work as a radio hit. Nothing innovative or creative here, which is disappointing from someone trying to make it on their debut album, so hopefully this isn’t a sign of things to come.

okay.odd.

By

EIC

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May 6, 2016

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okay.odd. explores the construction of curiosity, and the space between thought and perception — inviting the audience to “encounter a version of themselves that they feel, but do not know.”

This “multimedia meditation session” was created by Hong Kong Exile — an interdisciplinary arts company led by artists Milton Lim (theatre), Natalie Tin Yin Gan (dance), and Remy Siu (new music).

As projection and sound become the core of the meditation, the performer, Aryo Khakpour, serves as the constant presence that grounds the audience in the space of contemplation.

The Peak was able to chat with lead artist Milton Lim ahead of the production’s full-length rEvolver debut.

The Peak: Can you describe the performance and how it is being presented?

Milton Lim: okay.odd. is a multimedia meditation session where I lead the audience through a process of word association. Through projected text and image, you are encouraged to follow your mind’s curiosity, your tangential thoughts, and potential unconscious beliefs.

P: What do you mean by “multimedia meditation session”?

ML: My combining of multimedia and meditation started as a small joke, pairing two things that otherwise seem contrary. It has since become an earnest attempt at creating a space for personal introspection and centredness, using digital media as the medium by which we come to understand this particular type of meditation.

P: How is this piece different from other productions that Hong Kong Exile has done in the past?

ML: Each of Hong Kong Exile’s projects has been different. We take turns as project leads, so I have been the primary artist behind okay.odd. This piece has also been a testing ground as I move into designing my own visual media and sound design, which will continue to serve me as a director/creator of original works.

P: How close did you come to what you described as “constructing curiosity” and “allowing curiosity in all directions”?

ML: I can only go off feedback of the people who have spoken to me after the piece, but I would say: we’ve come very close.

P: In your artist statement, you mentioned being “fascinated by our societal adherence to exist in environments surrounded by screens and moving images”; and how, “we are continually shaped by our relationship with these materials.” Can you explain what you meant and how it relates to the performance?

ML: When I was doing my psychology degree at SFU, I was fascinated by social systems and how many lived experiences and identities we can subscribe to at once.

I’m interested in how our identities are becoming (for better or for worse) increasingly framed and sometimes hidden away by emergent technologies. Especially considering the psychology of marketing; design of user interfaces; game-like reward-based interactivity; and our proximity to a screen/content at any given moment.

Most of okay.odd. takes place on a flat 2-dimensional screen and I’m attempting to distill some of these processes to make visible some thought-patterning that we may or may not be conscious of.

After presenting multiple excerpts, the full-length version officially premieres at The Cultch, from May 12–21.

Beowulf

By

EIC

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May 6, 2016

0

Marc Castellini was in his final semester at SFU studying Beowulf in an Old English course and completing a directed studies course in playwriting when he thought of combining those two interests by writing a play about Beowulf. Now a graduate of SFU’s theatre program, Castellini has brought former classmate and fellow graduate Kaylin Metchie on board to direct the production that will be shown as a site-specific work at The Cultch during this year’s rEvolver Festival.

“It seems like there are lots of voices and different moral ideologies represented in Beowulf,” explained Castellini. While there were likely many versions of Beowulf told, only one written version survives and it seems full of ambiguities with erasures and overwriting that suggests there were competing versions. The competing voices telling the story in this play grew out of the voices and opposing perspectives that Castellini perceived to be within the Beowulf text.

At an outdoor location the show will begin at dusk, as five competing storytellers address the audience to share their version of the events of Beowulf before nightfall. The play is meant to leave us wondering about how history is recorded, how stories are passed down, and how the written word can give authority to a certain version of events and preserve it for posterity.

While the starting point for the play is the oldest piece of written literature in the English language, the themes that Castellini and Metchie put forth are relevant today and the play requires no prior knowledge of Beowulf. “We’re still writing stories, but not everyone has a voice,” said Metchie explaining that this applies to many areas of our lives including politics, journalism, historical documentation, and the way dominant cultural voices can wipe out others.

“The story ends up being about the difficulty of figuring out the truth of the past and the power dynamics of storytelling,” said Castellini. In the end, one of the five voices does seem to dominate and win out, but Metchie explained that the play then questions how authoritative any story can be when based on memory and the way our personal interpretations can further affect the truth.

A good story about storytelling, this show will remind you of the world of the monsters, warriors, and heroes from Beowulf’s time and make you think about the way we construct and preserve narratives for all time.