New Music Revue: Jesse Roper’s Red Bird misses the markJesse Roper Red Bird (Warner/Blue Heron Music) 1/5 Despite Victoria songwriter Jesse Roper’s obvious instrumental and vocal talent, his self-indulgent music on Red Bird reminds me of a cover band you might find at a backyard BBQ celebrating an over-the-hill birthday. Red Bird starts off with a folk sound, moves into a soft-rock lull, briefly […] Continue Reading |
New Music Revue: Gabrielle Papillon’s The Tempest of Old transports imaginationsGabrielle Papillon The Tempest of Old (Independent) 4/5 Just as The Civil Wars’ self-titled album gave me a taste for their rendition of the country genre, Garbrielle Papillon’s fifth album, The Tempest of Old, became an exception for my disinterest in indie rock. With haunting beats, banjos, and a wicked fiddle, the first track, “Got […] Continue Reading |
The Prodigal Planeswalker: Embracing the Two-Headed GiantTwo heads are better than one. This is true for Magic: The Gathering as well. While most players rely on a well built, 60-card deck and a bit of luck to pull out a win, one of the newer formats in recent memory that has found a foothold on the competitive scene is Two-Headed Giant, […] Continue Reading |
Ability’s Muse: Men’s discussion needed on violence against womenWhy should men be talking about men’s violence toward women? Because, men hearing stories of women suffering domestic violence doesn’t actually change the lived-in reality that women face. In fact, it’s a process of re-victimization having to share a story of abuse or violence, often knowing that the perpetrators are likely to be never charged […] Continue Reading |
Bite Me: Lacey-Lou more than the sum of its partsLacey-Lou Tapas Bar is a quirky, distinctive restaurant located at 1320 Broad Street. Lacey-Lou has a fine balance of art, food, and entertainment. Lacey-Lou considers itself an art lounge, tapas bar, and an entertainment venue. It’s a one-stop shop. The red brick walls showcase local artistic talent, displaying graffiti, comics, tattoo art, pop surrealism, and […] Continue Reading |
Lit Matters: Joseph Campbell and the rapture of being alive“The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are,” said Joseph Campbell, an American philosopher, lecturer, and writer best known for his work in comparative mythology. Campbell’s books about mythology, like The Hero with a Thousand Faces and The Masks of God, have had a large popular influence on artists, writers, philosophers, and even […] Continue Reading |
What’s Going On: March 18 to 31, 2015Tuesday Evenings Weekly drop-in sports at Interurban Interurban students are on a mission to spread health and wellness. The idea is to give Camosun students opportunities to participate in free/drop-in activities in a safe, inclusive, and social environment. The drop-in sports take place on Tuesdays from 8:30 to 9:30 pm at the PISE Gym at the […] Continue Reading |
Breaking isolation: Victoria’s gaming community is no longer hidingWalking into the recent GottaCon gamer convention held at the Victoria Conference Center, I’m immediately shocked by the severe volume and variety of people. Moms and dads with tiny babies, women in full body armour, teens, tweens, adults, seniors, children, a woman dressed as Sailor Moon… and everybody has a gaming device of some kind […] Continue Reading |
Voice++ 2015 Festival highlights the power of human voiceIt isn’t uncommon in Victoria: a dozen flannel-clad buskers perched along Government Street, amusing shiny cedar acoustic guitars, singing folk renditions of Billboard Top 100 pop singles. Elderly gentlemen romance nostalgic tunes on trumpets and trombones alongside overly formal pre-teens mastering their violins. Indeed, Victoria is fond of its eclectic music community. A selection of […] Continue Reading |
Viet Cong bring intricate indie rock to VictoriaCalgary post-punk outfit Viet Cong is making their way to Victoria, a city they are no strangers to. In fact, their old band, Women, actually broke up in Lucky Bar in 2010. But the indie rockers will be steering clear of Lucky Bar this time, performing at the Upstairs Cabaret on March 29. “We all […] Continue Reading |
