Thomas Pashko
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Going it alone
Being in a band is hard. The work involved goes way beyond making music. Through the ubiquity of the Internet and home recording, it’s now easier than ever to form a band and harder than ever to get noticed. Winnipeg is a haven of interconnected music scenes where like-minded musicians and fans create communities of support and exposure for their respective genres of music.
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Cyber-Seniors
To most twenty-somethings, watching a parent or grandparent trying, and failing, to use a computer is a familiar experience. This technological generation gap is often the butt of our jokes. So when two teenage sisters started the Cyber-Seniors program, an educational initiative through which high school students teach the elderly to use the Internet, it served a genuine cultural purpose. Much to my surprise, it also makes for pretty interesting cinema.
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Sagrada: The Mystery of Creation
When the Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí was struck and killed by a tram car in 1926, he had already put over forty years of work into his magnum opus, the colossal Sagrada Família cathedral. Today the Barcelona church still remains unfinished, though a dedicated team of artists and craftspeople continue Gaudí’s work. Sagrada: The Mystery of Creation examines that work and the symbolic importance of the cathedral.
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On the Top Rope
There’s a boom happening in Winnipeg right now. It’s a local scene experiencing the type of renaissance that one rarely sees in action. There’s a good chance you’ve never heard of it, because it receives virtually no coverage from the local press.
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Someone always pays
Terms like “veterans” or “pioneers” get used pretty loosely when describing bands. But they rarely hold truer than when used to describe Napalm Death. The English band, active since 1981, essentially created the grindcore genre, laying the groundwork for much of today’s heavy and extreme music. The group’s current lineup, intact since 1991, just released their sixteenth album, Apex Predator – Easy Meat. It’s a chaotic blast of discordant noise and rabid spontaneity.
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Soothsayers & superheroes
Financing a feature film is no picnic. Pursuing grants from arts organizations like Telefilm Canada can take years and crowdfunding campaigns are a gamble with no guarantee of success. So when O. Corbin Saleken decided to make the leap from short films to features, the Vancouver filmmaker took an approach that few filmmakers dare. His film Patterson’s Wager, which has its world premiere at the 2015 Winnipeg Real to Reel Film Festival, was entirely paid for by Saleken himself.
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Whose House? Matthew’s House.
Clinical psychologist Dr. Matthew Bailly’s affection for Winnipeg runs deep. Originally from Fargo, Bailly fell in love with the city as a kid during weekend trips to Canada. A full-time resident since 2005, Bailly’s condo in the Wellington Crescent neighbourhood is a kind of love letter to the city. With a Salisbury House dining area, a Can-D-Man mural and bus shelter closet, Bailly has created a living space that’s also a genuine work of art.
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Self-love and smoothies
This year marks the 30th anniversary of Eating Disorder Awareness Week. The event, which runs from Feb.1 to 7, was created by the National Eating Disorder Information Centre as a “public awareness campaign that educates, informs and engages Canadians to talk about eating disorders.”
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Life After Death from Above 1979
The 2004 release of You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine, the debut album by Toronto band Death from Above 1979, was a watershed moment for many Canadian music fans.
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Inherent Vice
Writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson (There Will Be Blood, Boogie Nights) has a rare track record. He’s released a mere six films over the past 20 years, but I consider all six to be masterpieces. His seventh film, Inherent Vice, is his first miss.
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Weathering those winter wheelchair woes
Anyone who has ever driven a car in wintery Winnipeg knows that even the most immaculately plowed streets can be treacherous territory for vehicles. But the problem of winter mobility is especially pervasive for Winnipeg’s wheelchair users, who face a unique challenge in conquering the city’s snowy sidewalks.
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Business and pleasure
The role of talent management in music has existed as long as the music industry itself. Bob Dylan’s manager Albert Grossman and unofficial “fifth Beatle” Brian Epstein were essential to the success and influence of those artists.
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Sprechen Sie Somebody?
There are many contradictions at the heart of Somebody Language, the creative musical brainchild of songwriter and frontman Benjiman Figler. This singer-songwriter project is also a huge, sometimes eight-piece band.
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Johan Agebjorn
Swedish electronic artist Johan Agebjörn’s latest album Notes is being labelled as an ambient record, which is a bit of a misnomer.
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Favourite Winnipegger abroad
In her own way, Samantha Hill is taking part in theatre history. The Winnipeg-born actress who cut her teeth starring in Rainbow Stage productions of Peter Pan and Beauty and the Beast has moved on to the Broadway stage. After a successful run as Christine Daae in The Phantom of the Opera (which remains the longest-running show in Broadway history), Hill is now starring as Cossette in the newest revival of Les Misérables at the historic Imperial Theatre.
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Favourite Local Filmmaker
In many ways, seeing Guy Maddin (My Winnipeg, The Saddest Music in the World) voted as favourite local filmmaker isn’t a surprise. The director’s name is as synonymous with Winnipeg as the Golden Boy or the bitter cold of winter. But it’s also a fitting testament to his staying power, with the celebrated auteur nearing 30 years as a major force in world cinema.
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Favourite Place to See Live Music
The topic of music venues was actually a pretty important one for Winnipeg in 2014. New spots like The Good Will and The Handsome Daughter cut ribbons and opened doors.
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A mustache miracle
The whole idea of a “new tradition” is a bit of an oxymoron, and it’s rare for any new festive celebration to become a true holiday staple. Somehow, Winnipeg singer-songwriter JP Hoe has done it. His annual JP Hoe Hoe Hoe Holiday Show has been going on for nearly a decade, and it has grown exponentially in scope and popularity since its humble beginnings at the King’s Head Pub.
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Don’t leave the couch
It’s winter in Winnipeg. “Freezing” doesn’t even begin to describe what’s happening outside. You want to go to the theatre and catch some of the end-of-year prestige pictures, but the roads are icy and it’s so much easier to stay on the couch with your cat. Have no fear! 2014 was a great year for movies, and there are plenty of solid flicks available on DVD or VOD that you probably missed. Here are a few.
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Not your baba’s clothing store
“A lot of the stuff I sell is more casual,” Rachael Poklitar tells me over coffee at The Good Will Social Club. It’s a freezing cold evening and traffic is slipping and sliding all over Portage Avenue. “I personally don’t dress super fancy. I just kind of mish and mash what I like. So I take that approach with the shop, too. Wearing vintage in a modern way.”