Verb Issue S245 (June 21-27, 2013)

Issue #245 – June 21 to June 27

Photo: courtesy of krIstIn barlowe

arts culture music saskatoon

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ComE app mE, bRah! Making mobile game apps on the prairies

aRt Evolution Mendel art Gallery’s Shaping Saskatchewan

woRld waR z +

thE shEEpdogs havE at it films reviewed

FLORIDAGEORGIA LINE their rise to the top

Verbnews.comVerb magazine contents local editorial comments q + a arts feature food + drink music listings film nightlife comics timeout

2June 21 – June 27

EditoRialeditor in chief / ryan allanmanaging editor / JessIca Patruccostaff writers / adaM hawboldt + alex J MacPherson

aRt & pRoduCtionProduction lead / brIttney GrahaM design lead / andrew yankocontributing PhotograPhers / PatrIck carley, adaM hawboldt, alex J MacPherson + chrIstIan cortez

businEss & opERationsoffice manager / stePhanIe lIPsItaccount manager / nathan holowatysales manager / VoGeson Paleyfinancial manager / cody lanG

ContaCtcomments / [email protected] / 306 881 8372

adVertise / [email protected] / 306 979 2253

design / [email protected] / 306 979 8474

general / [email protected] / 306 979 2253

[email protected]/VerbsaskatoonVerb is owned by Parity Publishing inc.

Please recycle after reading & sharing

contentscontents

almost FamousPart two of the making of Jeans Boots. 4 / local

ComE app mE, bRah!Making mobile game apps in the prairies. 6 / local

onE FoR thE RoadOur thoughts on ignition interlock devices. 8 / editorial

CommEntsHere’s what you had to say about safe injection sites. 10 / comments

Q + a with CRowdEd City skylinEEdmonton folk rockers. 12 / q + a

nightliFE photos We visited Sports on Tap and the Yard & Flagon. 22-25 / nightlife

listingsLocal music listings for June 21 through June 28. 18 / listings

woRld waR z+ thE shEEpdogs havE at it 20 / film

on thE bus Weekly original comic illustrations by Elaine M. Will. 26 / comics

aRt EvolutionShaping Saskatchewan explores art on the prairies. 13 / arts

thE luCky buRgERThis week we visit Sports on Tap. 16 / food + drink

musiC in thE paRkIt’s the Canada Day Arts & Culture Festival. 13 / arts

entertainment

news + oPinion

musiCPassion Pit, Larry and His Flask + Eli, For Short. 17 / music

gamEs + hoRosCopEsCanadian criss-cross puzzle, horoscopes, and Sudoku. 27 / timeout

on thE CovER:

FloRida gEoRgia linEThis country duo is taking off. 14 / coVer

Photo: courtesy of adaM taylor

culture

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Continued on next page »

Photo: courtesy of M. kay PhotoGraPhy

This is part two of a two-part series. Find part one in last week’s issue of Verb.

ome bands meditate or pray before they walk onstage. They observe

these rituals to concentrate the mind, or perhaps purify the soul, before the lights and sounds of the stage assault their senses. Jeanette Stewart, who performs as Jeans Boots and is less than an hour away from debuting her new record, Z0RG C1TY, has her own traditions. After scribbling setlists onto pages torn from a notebook, she retreats to the back of the bar to paint her face. This is a relatively new devel-opment, and it appears to coincide with a radical change in the arc of her career. Although she is at Ami-gos to celebrate the release of an energetic rock record, Stewart has spent the last several months dab-bling in electronic music — spacey soundscapes that sacrifice structure for sonic expansion and raw beauty.

Stewart began her career like most songwriters, with an acoustic guitar and a dream. Before long, Jeans Boots had morphed into a rock band. The current lineup features guitar wizard Levi Soulodre; Tyson McShane, who plays in Slow Down, Molasses; and

drummer Aaron Scholz. Along with Stewart, herself a competent guitar player, they created the tapestry of overdriven tube amps and thunderous drums that is Z0RG C1TY. A fifteen minute romp through the history of edgy guitar rock, Z0RG C1TY is the most cohesive and coherent album Stewart has ever made. It is also a turning point. A few weeks before its

release, Stewart invited me to watch her audition for the Ness Creek Music Festival. I expected a blast of searing guitar rock, but when I arrived the band was nowhere in sight. And Stew-art, who has a penchant for outlandish clothes, had exchanged her kaleido-scopic streetwear for a muted palette of black and grey. The sombre clothes set off her face, which was streaked with green and silver paint, and stud-ded with rhinestones.

When she walked onstage, she was accompanied by Duncan Pickard,

who produced Z0RG C1TY and has emerged as her newest musical col-laborator. What followed was a fifteen-minute barrage of spacey electronic music and distorted vocals — a sound completely unlike anything she had produced before. After the show, Stew-art defended her departure.

“Maybe I should have more limits, but I think my favourite musicians

are the people who make music that sounds like the music they like, and I’ve really been getting into this kind of trancey, spooky, electronic synth stuff,” she said. “It’s always been something I wanted to do.” All artists evolve over time, but the shift toward electronic music marks a quantum leap for Stewart. Inspired by the cutting edge of popular music, her sound has shifted away from the concise hooks and predictable structures of rock and roll, and toward expansive soundscapes, pulsating grooves, and dramatic

s

i don’t need to numb myself anymore to my life — i can just be happy.

Jeanette stewart

local

almost Famousthe making of Jeans boots by alex J MacPherson

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@verbsaskatoon

[email protected]

Feedback? text it! (306) 881 8372

changes of tempo and volume. Refer-ring to Claire Boucher, who performs as Grimes, Stewart cited technology as a major influence. “She’s an artist who is pushing barriers. I talk about tech-nology, and she’s an artist who is using the tools available to her. It’s really cool and different.” Stewart’s vision is limited not by what has been done, but by what can be achieved.

But this change is more than just a desire to push the boundaries of popular music. It is also a reflection of the path she has chosen — the harsh realities facing people who jet-tison comfortable careers for a life of unfettered creativity. Earlier this year, Stewart left her job as a reporter at the StarPhoenix to concentrate on making music. She said it felt like the right decision. “For the past couple months, I’d just been getting hammered every night. I was just getting wasted every night and I was a total train wreck. That night I didn’t feel like I needed to f**k myself up. I was happy for the first time. It was like, I don’t need to numb myself anymore to my life — I can just be happy.”

Stewart has for years carried with her an aura of unpredictability. Her life appears to be unscripted, a collection of impulses held together by little more than unshakable conviction in the rightness of her decisions. She describes making music in the same terms other people use to discuss eating and drinking and sleeping. “I have to do it,” she said when I asked why she would choose such a dif-ficult path. “I just have to do it. I keep

booking shows and playing the shows, and people keep asking me to play. Until that ends, I’m not going to stop.” Acutely aware of the difficulties facing young artists who are forced to gamble their savings against the vicissitudes of success, she concedes that returning to the daily grind might be inevitable.

“No one else is going to prioritize my music, and I haven’t found anyone that does, and I think it’s just always the place you’ll be if you start out as a solo artist,” she said, explaining that touring by herself is always going to be cheaper than paying other musicians. “If you want to start a band, then ev-eryone has to start the band together, and you all have to be invested in it. It’s always going to be a challenge, bring-ing someone else into this project.” This is the crux of the problem that emerged with Z0RG C1TY: the record is not an expression of Stewart’s future, but a documentation of her past. As the clock advances on showtime, she inter-rupts her pre-show rituals to explain that her performance will feature both electronic music and straightforward rock and roll — a bridge between two phases of her career.

Stewart’s performances are enter-taining because they are unpredict-able. Her shows are a refreshing coun-terpoint to the unsurprising setlists and canned banter that have become standard fare in the music industry. The chaos that pervades her life, the uncertainty of the future, is reflected in her music. The songs on Z0RG C1TY are fractious and raw, and Stewart plays them with abandon, channel-

ling every ounce of her being into the music. On stage, she is magnetic. This is apparent from the first moments of her performance, which begins with an electronic set. As flashing multico-loured lights illuminate the stage, she moves with the music, her delicate voice slicing through titanic waves of electronic noise.

But the audience seems mystified. The stage is littered with drums and guitars, and many people expected Stewart to appear with a rock band — the only incarnation of Jeans Boots they have ever known. After a few more blasts of atmospheric noise, she stops playing and her bandmates file on stage. Then she counts in “Rock-tober,” the first track on Z0RG C1TY, which opens with a series of frantic power chords. As the guitars kick in, Stewart shoots a tender smile at Soulo-dre. They scrub out the first few chords together. As the waves of sound unfold in front of her, an unbroken ribbon of noise leading somewhere beyond the horizon, Stewart leans back into the music. In the end, it doesn’t matter where she goes or how she chooses to play her songs: she is at home on the stage, any stage, embracing the past and the present, and leaving them both behind in a furious rush of light and sound and joy, full of hope and almost famous.




Honor FigHT promoTionS

Photo: courtesy of adaM hawboldt / Verb MaGazIne

he basement of St. James’ Anglican Church has become a

gaming centre.Normally it’s just a big room

with worn wooden floors, fold-ing chairs, and a fully equipped kitchen used for church meetings and other such functions.

But on this cold, wet day in June, as soon as you begin your descent into the basement you notice the sounds. Electro-music and video game explosions are rising up through the stairwell. The sounds seem strange, out of place in a building like this.

But when you turn the corner and enter the room, you instantly realize where they’re coming from. At the far end of the basement there’s a huge screen set up behind

a table that is piled high with com-puters and controllers and other electronic gadgets. As three men sit at the table, colourful triangles — which look kind of like Atari-era spaceships — zip from side to side on the TV. Thin, gray, horizon-tal walls quickly cascade down the screen. There are openings in

these walls. The object of the game these guys are playing? Dodge the oncoming structures by zipping toward the openings.

“This is just a prototype,” explains Arlin Schaffel, a bald, bearded man who works at Noodlecake Studios.

And Schaffel should know. Employees at Noodlecake Studios — a small, indie game studio in Saskatchewan — are encouraged to spend 10% of their day working on new games. And this one, the game

up on the screen? This is one of Schaffel’s 10% projects.

“I put in a couple of hours on it and now we’re putting it in people’s

t

ComE app mE, bRah!noodlecake studios gives insight into mobile gaming industry during Moso conference by adaM hawboldt

our games have to be fun. if it is, then maybe we’ll keep going with it.

arlIn schaffel

locallocal

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@verbsaskatoon

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hands to see if it’s fun,” he says. “That’s the key. Our games have to be fun. If it is, then maybe we’ll keep go-ing with it.”

Kind of how they did with the other mobile games they have created.

Founded in 2011, Noodlecake Studios’ first game was a hyper-fun, multi-player mobile gaming app called Super Stickman Golf.

“We wanted to call it Stick Golf,” explains Jordan Schidlowsky, co-founder of Noodlecake, “but there was a trademark dispute so we went with Stickman Golf.” That little dispute was by no means the only frustration they experienced trying to get their mobile game into people’s hands. See, after the game was created using Ob-jective-C (an iOS developer language), they had to rewrite the game in C++ in order to compile it on Android. This process, in case you’re wondering, is about as much fun a grinding down your toenails with an electric sander.

“Have you ever ported an objec-tive [like that]?” asks Schaffel. “You shouldn’t do it. It’s a terrible idea, one that gives people [in our indus-try] nightmares.”

Lesson learned. So when Noodlecake’s next game, Lunar Racer, was coming out, the guys decided to make it easier on them-selves. What they did was develop a porting technology that would allow them to run objectives (ie. games) over to Android a lot easier and a lot more smoothly. And it’s because of this technology that Noodlecake soon found itself help-ing other mobile game developers get their games published.

That’s one of the reasons the guys from Noodlecake are here in this basement of the St. James church on this gloomy Friday in June, giving a presentation at MoSo Conference.

There are more than 30 people packed into the church basement. Some are seated, others stand near the back. Pictures are being taken, videos recorded on iPhones, advice furiously being scribbled into notebooks. At the front of the room Ryan Holowaty, Noodlecake’s marketing guru, is explaining how

to succeed in the mobile gaming industry. He tells the audience about leveraging resources, about strategic partnerships, social media, and ad marketing.

The people in the audience listen intently, as well they should. In less than three years this com-pany went from being a tiny, indie game developer to an on-the-rise indie game developer/publisher/consultant that has more than 30 million downloads and just cracked over a billion sessions played — thanks to the help of published titles like Happy Jump, Zombie Road Trip, Trainyard and more. All are highly praised and highly played mobile games.

But that doesn’t mean everyone is a fan of the games Noodlecake puts out. At one point in the pre-sentation, a slide of two pictures appears on the screen behind Holowaty. One of the images is of a family kneeling and praying. This is the icon for the super fan, the kind of people who are devoted to the games Noodlecake publishes. The picture on the other side of the screen is of a troll.

“When you’re in the app game industry, you’re going to run into trolls,” says Holowaty. “You can’t worry too much about them, though. It’s part of the package.”

To drive his point home, some comments from trolls flit across the screen behind him. “Stickman golf can suck a d**k,” says one of them. The audience erupts in laughter. The guys from Noodlecake laugh, too, in part because the comments are ridiculous but also in part because they’ve found a successful foothold in the ever-shifting sands of the mo-bile app game. At least for now.

“Mobile is an ever-changing in-dusty,” says Schidlowsky, to conclude Noodlecake’s MoSo Conference pre-sentation. “It shifts rapidly. This is what we’re doing now to market games. I don’t know how things will work in a year. Everything could flip on its head. Thing change and we adapt. That’s how this works.”



onE FoR thE Road

n

convicted of drinking and driving? then it’s time for an ignition interlock device

ot so long ago Doug Beirness, a policy ana-lyst with the Canadian

Centre on Substance Abuse, recom-mended that Saskatchewan make ignition interlock devices manda-tory for people who are convicted of impaired driving in the province.

And we think that’s a smashing idea.For those who don’t know, an

ignition interlock device is essentially a breathalyzer that’s installed in your vehicle. Before starting your car you have to blow into the device; if your blood alcohol concentration is above a pre-set limit — say, 0.02% — your vehicle won’t start. What’s more, even after your car is started the interlock device can require the driver to give random breath samples at pre-set times — you know, to ensure you don’t start the car, crack a cold one and go zipping through the streets.

Currently, only about seven percent of convicted drunk drivers in Saskatchewan have these devices installed, but that’s not enough. After all, drinking and driving is a serious problem here in our province. In fact, according to Statistics Canada the rate of drunk driving incidents in the prov-ince is 683 per 100,000 people, which is the worst of all provinces and more than double the national rate.

Obviously something has to be done, and that’s why we think mak-ing interlock devices mandatory for people convicted of driving under the influence is a good first step. After all, we know it’s virtually impossible to stop drinking and driving the first time, but here’s the thing: people who drink

and drive tend to be repeat offend-ers. So why not reduce the chances of someone who’s had a few too many getting behind the wheel a few too many times by making a breathalyzer test compulsory?

And we’re not just grasping at straws here and hoping it’ll solve the problem. In fact, interlock devices have been proven to work, and work well. The International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety concluded that “evidence spanning nearly 10 years by eight or more research groups in the U.S. and Canada point toward

40-95% reductions in recidivism while the interlock programs are in effect.” And while interlock devices won’t completely solve the drinking and driving problem here in Saskatchewan, they’re a good first step in abating it.

So what would such a system look like? Well, we think that if you’re convicted you’re subjected to all the fines and suspensions already levied by our Criminal Code. An interlock program would cost money to create and administer, of course, and it would only be fair to have those costs be

covered by the guilty. In Alberta it runs something like this: installation ($150); rental fee per month ($105); applica-tion fee ($63); driver programs ($970); and removal of device ($50). And on top of all this, we think those who must use an interlock device should have this stipulation indicated on their licence — that way, if they get pulled over while driving someone else’s car, they’ll be subject to some serious fines for circumventing the system.

We think these changes would be a great start to addressing the shameful rate of drunk driving in Saskatchewan. And while it might seem harsh, it’s not as bad as some places. At one time, if you are found to be under the influence while driv-ing in south Australia, your car was immediately confiscated. What’s more, once the vehicle was forfeited to the Crown the police commission-er could then choose to either sell it or crush it — which seems more than a little excessive to us.

And that’s why we think installing interlock devices on the vehicles of those who choose to drive while drunk is an even-handed approach that will curb an out of control problem.

These editorials are left unsigned because they represent the opinions of Verb magazine, not those of the indi-vidual writers.

@verbsaskatoon

[email protected]


editorial

[our rate of drunk driving incidents] is the worst of all provinces…

Verb MaGazIne




comments

text your thoughts to881 vERb

8372

on topiC: last week we asked what you thought about safe injection sites. here's what you had to say:

– A safe injection site in Saskatch-ewan may or may not be a good idea. The spread of HIV/AIDS & other diseases could be curbed since people won’t be sharing needles with each other. On the other end greater drug use might be encouraged among junkies & then making their addiction prob-lems worse & their lives & perhaps the lives of others around them more miserable. :-\

– I will support safe injection sites after they provide weed-smoking facilities. Sometimes there is just nowhere to have a puff...not joking

– By encouraging people to use drugs, even if they’re being super-vised, aren’t you still condoning that behaviour? We should be working to get them off drugs not make it easier or more comfortable for them.

– “Safe injection sites” are an oxymoron. Injecting addictive narcotics is bad for you. That said it’s imperative the GOV act now to make injections less deadly

– We are absolutely a perfect location for safe injection site. We desperately need it as our skyrock-eting rates of HIV attest, and it has been such a success in Van. Lower rates of overdose, no increase in crime, cleaner streets. Who wouldn’t want this for their city?

– I would fully support bringing a facility like Insite to Saskatch-ewan. It could do so much good here. It’s important to remember that addiction is a disease, and punishing those who suffer from

it by not doing what we can to ensure everyone has access to a healthy and safe environment is essential.

– Agree with safe injection site. Too bad politicians get to make the calls, instead of you know actual health officials with a knowledge base of injecting drugs.

oFF topiC

– This is the end is great these guys hit it out of the park. Great cast funny movie.

In response to “Apocalyptically Funny,”

Film, #244 (June 14, 2013)

sound oFF

– Finding a half empty bottle of methadone on your sidewalk is DOWNtown.

– DOWNtown guy (Charlie) — I loved the series, great job and thanks to you and your friends (and anonymous contributors)! Keep up the great work :D :D :D

– A school in Nova Scotia had the idea to cancel Mother’s Day and Father’s Day in favour of family day. Are you kidding me??? Kids need to honour their parents.

– Guys when at a loss for or not sure of a pose always fall back on the classic “spear chucker” pose. Everybody looks good doing it!

– Heh Hav ben recycling for years Neighbors put out garbage every week. Us maybe every 4

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powEREd by thE CREw at moga mobilE

or 5 weeks. Now we have to pay because other people don’t care. Pigs/lazy/mentally deficient/don’t care. Ding em/fines for businesses/aptment dwellers, etc. Portable DNATesters available. Need garbage police. Hav more to follow. Cornell

– Despite a so called “boom” there’s still way too many people struggling to meet the basic needs of living in this province.

– I think the new Circle Drive south bridge should be named af-ter Christopher Yorath. After all it was his vision for the roadway. He deserves more recognisition then a one block street in the middle of Avalon that no one has really heard of

– Equality is not about making everyone the same…it is about embracing our differences and treating people with the same respect that we would wish for ourselves.

– Labor leaders of my generation satisifed their middle class aspira-tions nice cars big mortgages and pensions. Labor lost ground big time from this mass sellout!

– I can’t believe Quebec is banning tubans in soccer games! That totally goes against the Charter of Rights and puts a black eye on Canada!

– Maturing sucks! Personality matters more than looks now. Attractive (hot) Personality is way harder to find.

– Sup

nExt wEEk: what do you think of ignition interlock devices? Pick up Verb to get in on the conversation:

We print your texts verbatim each week. Text in your thoughts and reactions to our stories and content, or anything else on your mind.

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q + a

CRowdEd City skylinE

Cedmonton folk rockers hone in on their sound by alex J MacPherson

Photos: courtesy of ben leMPhers

…as we [got] closer to a three-piece, our sound just started to tune in…

Josh barker

rowded City Skyline, an independent folk band from Edmonton,

makes music that is anything but crowded. Using a guitar, a bass and their voices, the trio have spent the last year carving out a minimalistic sound that is as com-pelling as it is spare. Led by broth-ers Josh and Zack Barker, and held aloft by Meredith Weir’s wistful vocal lines, the group channels a wide variety of influences while cleaving to none. Their debut Ep, Awake My Love, is scheduled to be released later this summer. The album promises to be an engag-ing and alluring demonstration of how three musicians can achieve a lot with relatively little. i spoke with bassist Josh Barker about the band’s birth and evolution, as well as their commitment to perfecting powerful three-part harmonies.

Alex J MacPherson: You play with your brother, Zack, in the band. Have you always played music together, or is this a relatively recent development?

Josh Barker: We have been making music together as far back as I can remem-ber. As kids, we used

to cut out guitars from cardboard and rock out to whatever music was on the radio. That’s where it started for us. Jumping forward, we spent quite a bit of time in our late teens just listening to music and really picking

things apart, figuring out what kind of music we liked. Just feeding off each other in that respect.

AJM: Crowded City Skyline hasn’t always been a three-piece, right?

JB: It used to be a bigger band, but some people had to go separate ways for various reasons. We’ve kind of honed in on just the three of us. When we were at our biggest,

we were a six-piece — before we were Crowded City Skyline, even. It was a bunch of people getting to-gether to play music. It seemed like as we narrowed it down, getting closer to a three-piece, our sound just started to tune in and the writ-ing started to get tighter. Every-thing started to fall into place.

AJM: Tell me a little bit about the record. What can people expect?

JB: It should be out this summer. We have a single that might be out before we even play the Saskatoon show. The EP is just a compilation of a few older songs that we’ve done and probably about five new songs. It’s called Awake My Love. It’s essentially

the foundation of us as a three-piece. This is our new sound.

AJM: One thing that stands out is your use of other instruments besides guitars and basses. Is that an attempt to expand your sound without adding more members?

JB: Being a three-piece, the instru-ments we’re using are a lot more diverse. Within the three of us,

mostly me and my brother, there’s your typical bass and guitar, but there’s also keyboards, glocken-spiel, melodica, ukulele, banjitar — a lot of diversity. And these are all instruments we play live; it’s not some prerecorded thing we can never reproduce. But as a trio, I think the biggest thing we’ve got going for us is our harmonies. We do a lot of three-part vocals.

AJM: That’s evident on your early recordings, which feel like attempts to nail down and perfect those harmo-nies. Why do you think three-part harmonies are so powerful?

JB: Why? That’s a loaded question. It just feels good. Because there’s three

of us and we’re so tuned into each other now, we can just get together and spend 40 minutes on a two-min-ute part, and just really lock in the thing. Sometimes we’ll just work on harmonies for a whole evening, just trying to get all the pieces together — where everything sounds just like one piece, you know?

Crowded City Skyline June 28 @ lydia’s$5

@verbsaskatoon

[email protected]


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arts

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musiC in thE paRk the canada day arts & culture festival hopes to open up electronic music to a wider audience by alex J macPherson

haping Saskatchewan is a response to a completely un-

related exhibition. Curator Sandra Fraser was inspired to explore the history of Saskatchewan art after seeing The Automatiste Revolution, which examines one of the most im-portant art movements in Canadian history. “i’m excited by that history and some of the artists working in that period,” she says as she walks through the gallery a few days before the show opens. “i’m new to Saskatchewan, and i thought, ‘i wonder what was happening in Saskatchewan at that time?’ it was kind of an excuse for me to dig into the history.”

The exhibition, which uses works in the gallery’s permanent collection, explores the years between 1936 and 1964. Fraser chose the opening date because it coincided with the estab-lishment of an art department at the University of Saskatchewan, the latter because it marked the creation of the

Mendel Art Gallery. The years in be-tween witnessed the flowering of a Sas-katchewan style — an evolution from the European influences of Henderson and Kenderdine to the hard-edge ab-straction of Bloore and Lochhead.

According to Fraser, Saskatchewan art emerged as a potent and recogniz-able force in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Constrained by the Great De-pression and the Second World War, a generation of artists began depicting local scenes with a fresh perspective, unencumbered by the formal stric-tures of the European schools. “In the ‘30s and ‘40s there’s a real interest all across North America in painting the local, or making art about the local,” she explains. “This group shows a bit of an interest in the industrial land-scape, and there’s a focus in the local not just being pastoral, but looking at some of the grittier aspects.”

The exhibition also tackles abstraction, which began at Emma Lake with artists like Lindner and

Mulcaster, and evolved into the Regina Five — the iconic quintet that included Bloore and Lochhead. Fra-ser uses the term internationalism to describe this period. “Once we get to the ‘50s and ‘60s we have artists who have gone to university and often have graduate degrees, so they’ve traveled either to the United States, Europe, or other parts of Canada,” she says. “Or they have come from the United States or other parts of Canada to Saskatchewan.”

Shaping Saskatchewan is the story of art and artists in the province during a critical time in its history, when the norms of an earlier generation were being shaken off in favour of a new way of thinking. But it also hints at the diversity to come, the blossoming of ideas that have come to define one of the most diverse and vibrant art com-munities in the country.

Shaping Saskatchewan through september 15 @ Mendel art Gallery

@verbsaskatoon

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he Canada Day Arts & Cul-ture Festival is much more

than just a good reason to spend a hot summer afternoon lounging in one of Saskatoon’s vast tracts of green space. it is also an opportuni-ty to experience a side of the city’s arts scene that few people know exist. Featuring a wide array of DJs and electronic music performers, the Arts & Culture Festival offers a window into the world of late-night house and breakbeat music from the comfort of a sunbleached after-noon in the park.

“We’ve been doing this for a few years, but before it was kind of focused on a park party with dancing and DJs,” explains Harley Steinke, operations manager at Pro Plus Production, the local sound and lighting company that is organizing the festival. “This year we’re going to expand it a little bit.”

The Canada Day Arts & Culture Festival has its roots in a similar, though much smaller, event held six years ago. The 2013 iteration is Steinke’s third, and he hopes it will be the biggest to date. To appeal to a broader demo-graphic, he has spearheaded a move beyond DJ culture to live demonstra-tions of visual art and much more. Although he admits that the schedule is not yet finalized, Steinke expects there will be something for everyone in the park on Canada day.

“There are a lot of people that are great, great artists,” he enthuses, “but maybe people don’t know they exist — so there will be a lot of people show-casing their stuff.” More importantly, he adds, the festival organizers are trying to create a family-friendly atmo-sphere. “We’re trying to keep it pretty relaxed,” he says. “It’ll be a dance party, but it’s also going to be relaxing.”

But the central aspect of the festival will be music. Many people are unfamiliar with the city’s vibrant electronic music scene because most events take place late at night and are not well publicized. Steinke wants to change this. And by bringing a slew of talented DJs, including local favourites the Gaff and Dr J, on board, he hopes people will recognize that electronic music is neither exclusive nor difficult — and that the growing scene can take root in as many new places as possible.

The Canada Day Arts & Culture Festival July 1 @ rotary Park

arts

aRt Evolution Shaping Saskatchewan explores the rise of an art scene on the prairies by alex J macPherson




rian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard have come a long way since they

wrote their first songs together, perched on the tailgate of Kel-ley’s Chevrolet Tahoe. over the last twelve months the duo, who perform as Florida georgia Line, have been catapulted from relative obscurity to the top of the country music charts. After meeting through a friend while attending Belmont University in nashville, Kelley and Hubbard discovered that they en-joyed writing songs together. Their musical relationship blossomed, and the pair spent several years on the road and released a pair of Eps. Their second album, It’z Just What We Do, included a song called “Cruise.” it changed their lives. When I spoke with Kelley and Hub-bard earlier this month, the band was hours away from playing the ryman Auditorium, the ancestral home of the grand ole opry and one of country music’s most hal-lowed halls. “We’re pumped, man,” Hubbard says with a laugh. “it’s a crazy, crazy year for us, but we’re enjoying it. Just working hard and doing our thing and having fun.”

Florida Georgia Line connects two states in the American South. Hub-bard grew up in Monroe, a small city nestled in the heart of Georgia, a few miles east of Atlanta. Kelley was born in Ormond Beach, Florida, a town

north of Daytona Beach famous for being the vacation home of industrial-ist John D. Rockefeller. Both men grew up surrounded by music, everything from country and gospel to hip hop and rock. Hubbard sensed that he and Kelley had an affinity for songwriting from their very first meeting. “Man, we knew we had something special from the very first song we wrote,” he says. “We wrote a few songs, and there was just a cool connection — a lot of

similarities in our styles and things like that, just the way we grew up.”

Country music has evolved consid-erably since the golden years, when the Nashville and Bakersfield sounds dominated the charts and maudlin was the default emotion. Since the rise of Garth Brooks, country has moved toward the mainstream, becoming in the process an upbeat alternative to rock and roll for parties, gatherings, and celebrations. Florida Georgia Line’s debut long play, Here’s To The Good Times, pushes country even further

from its roots; its sound transcends the South and appeals to anyone in search of a party. “Our influences are all over the map,” Kelley explains. “We love everything. We just wanted to have an album that sounded fresh and made sense, man.” Producer Joey Moi, who has worked with everyone from Santa-na and Hinder to Faber Drive and Tim McGraw, was instrumental in creating the record. His ability to transform raw songs into powerful, accessible

anthems has become an integral part of Florida Georgia Line’s sound.

“We always picture, when we’re writing our songs, arenas or stadiums full of people singing along — like, how would that sound?” Kelley says. “Joey took that vision and that dream that we had, and he multiplied it by ten.” This is apparent from the opening bars of “Cruise,” which grafts a colos-sal guitar lick to half-spoken verses inspired by the band’s love of hip hop. A hyperactive party anthem about a pretty girl from the South and a big

b

FloRida gEoRgia linE

i think country music is evolving into something really cool that a lot of people are attracted to.

tyler hubbard

brian kelley and tyler hubbard on their meteoric rise by alex J MacPherson

feature

/Verbsaskatoon culturecontents local editorial comments q + a arts feature food + drink music listings film nightlife comics timeout



brian kelley and tyler hubbard on their meteoric rise by alex J MacPherson

@verbsaskatoon

[email protected]


pickup truck, “Cruise” defines the course of the album: towering sounds, limitless energy, and easily relatable lyrics. “Hell Raisin’ Heat Of The Sum-mer,” which features a simple piano lick cast against a wall of electric guitar chords, captures the spirit of the record in just a few lines: “Yeah man, we had some damn good times / And I sure hope everybody’s doing good.”

“We just wanted to record songs about our lives and where we’re at and

what we’ve been through and where we want to be,” Kelley explains. “Right now, that’s writing [about] the good times, chasing dreams, and having fun with your friends, and loving your family.” The songs on Here’s To The Good Times are successful because they are immediately recognizable, focused on the beauty of being young and alive. “It’s a way to let everybody connect,” Hubbard muses, “and that’s what music’s all about.”

Contemporary country music, un-like the heart-wrenching songs written

by Hank Williams and Gram Parsons, is celebratory. But Florida Georgia Line are not in the business of recycling tired clichés. Here’s To The Good Times feels like an attempt to expand the boundaries of what can be achieved under the umbrella of country music. “I think country music is evolving into something really cool that a lot of peo-ple are attracted to,” Hubbard says of the record, which incorporates sounds that would have been inconceivable to popular country musicians ten years ago. “It does expand the fan base and it’s just fun to step out of the box and do different stuff and find a sound that’s your own. And people really dig that, so it’s fun to watch people connect to our music and what we’re doing.”

This desire to draw on influences outside the canon reached its apex when Kelley and Hubbard collaborat-ed with Nelly, a hip hop artist from St. Louis, Missouri, on a remixed version of “Cruise.” Nelly, who rose to promi-nence after releasing Country Gram-mar and won Grammy Awards in 2003 and 2004, brought a different edge to the recording studio; the remixed cut of “Cruise” is a crossover, a track that can be played at a tailgate party or in a nightclub in the city. And according to Hubbard, it was a lot of fun to make. “He’s just a cool guy, man,” he says of Nelly, “laid back, funny as can be, really learned a lot from him for sure. He taught us lots. We had a really good time with it.”’

This is the secret to understanding Florida Georgia Line. Neither Kelley nor Hubbard make any apologies for their fixation on having fun. And it shows. Here’s To The Good Times is exactly what it purports to be. The sense of wonder and amazement at be-ing young cuts through every song on the record. It is an ode to long days and longer nights with good friends and cheap beer. And while Kelley and Hub-bard have spent the last year riding an elevator to success, watching their songs transcend national borders and reaping the benefits of fame, they seem unchanged by the experience.

“It’s pretty simple, man,” Hubbard muses, “We’re just doing what we love and hope people love. And if they don’t, they don’t — we’re still going to do our thing and have fun and try to make a living playing music.” Kelley agrees: “We’re just trying to figure out how to live it up with each moment, each day. There’s a lot of cool things happening right now and you can get soaked up in worrying about what’s coming up or what’s happened. We’re trying to live in the now.” Here’s To The Good Times is the culmination of everything Kelley and Hubbard set out to achieve when all they had were a couple of guitars

and a dream. “We didn’t know we were going to be in a duo or do the artist thing, but we decided … we loved play-ing our songs for people and figured we’d see what happened,” Hubbard recalls. “It worked out, man.”

Florida Georgia LineJune 28 @ tcu Placesold out





food + drink

boston bRuins and thE luCky buRgER

lEt’s go dRinkin’ vERb’s mixology guidE

stanlEy’s Cup

T’is the season to sit back, grab a drink and watch the Stanley Cup finals with friends. So in honour of Lord Stanley, why not give this easy but tasty cocktail a try?

ingREdiEnts

6 oz gin1 oz Grenadine (or to taste)shaved ice1 orange slice

diRECtions

Put all the ingredients in a shaker. Shake well. Pour into a tall glass and garnish with orange slice.

t

sports on tap offers burgers you build yourself — and lots of hockey by adaM hawboldt

Photos courtesy of adam hawboldt

@verbsaskatoon

[email protected]


here’s something about milan Lucic.

Watching the Boston Bruins left winger bust down the sideboards like a runaway freight train, feathering a pass under the stick of a defender to his centreman is oh-so-sweet.

But it’s not only points and pass-ing for this guy. He’s salty, too. The kind of course salt you don’t want rubbed in a wound. He’s a wreck-ing ball on skates. The kind of guy you don’t want to be hit by and definitely, unless you’re an NHL heavyweight, not the kind of guy you want to drop your gloves with. An impressive mixture of talent and power, grit and scoring punch, sweetness and salty meanness.

The only reason I bring any of this up is because earlier this week I was at Sports On Tap watching Lucic and the Bruins take on the Chicago Black-hawks in the Stanley Cup finals.

When you walk into Sports on Tap and look around, the first thing you notice is the wall to your right. There, like in a sports newsroom, televisions are stacked from the ceiling to nearly the floor. There are six flat screens bookended by two gargantuan big screens.

Taking a seat I thought to myself, “Not a bad place to watch the game. Not a bad place at all!”

Grabbing a chair, I perused the menu. On a shoehorn of black couch-es to my right two friends lounged around, shooting the breeze about hockey. Their schooners of beer rested on the table in front of them (only $7 on Mondays), and they talked about things like “faceoffs” and “Brenden Morrow” and “puck possession.”

With hockey on my mind and a hunger in my belly, I read the menu until I got to the page that told me I could build my own burger. Bingo! And since I’ve wagered not a small sum of money on this series, I figured the best thing I could do was construct a burger that resembled the on-ice personality of Milan Lucic. You know, for luck and stuff.

What I ended up with is some-thing I’ve dubbed the Peanut Butter Bacon Burger.

Stacked with lettuce, tomato and dill pickles, the patty (which was de-liciously spicy) was then topped with cheddar cheese and lathered with peanut butter.

The result? A sweet, salty, spicy concoction — just like the Bruins’ hulking winger.

Oh, and like Lucic and the Bruins in Game 3, the burger was a winner.

sports on tap 2606 lorne avenue | 306 683 8921

what i ended up with is something i’ve dubbed the peanut butter bacon burger.

adaM hawboldt

@Verbsaskatoon culturecontents local editorial comments q + a arts feature food + drink music listings film nightlife comics timeout


music

Photos courtesy of: the artIst / the artIst / arana702

Coming upnext Week

Eli, FoR shoRt

It all started for Eli when he was 18. For his birthday, his mom took an old acoustic guitar from the storage room, had it restrung, and gave it to him as a present. From that point on his musical educa-tion commenced. Wait, no. That’s not right. In truth, his education began years earlier while sitting in the back seat of a minivan, driving across the prairies and listening to music. Since then it’s basically been a life-long obsession — one that has paid dividends. He’s played in a band called The Rebellion, formed a folk duo with Kirby Criddle and put out an EP called Smile and Pre-tend. The songs on the album have a laid-back, catchy quality that are hard ignore. Come see what he’s all about next week.

@ lydIa’s Pubfriday, June 28 – $5

Contrary to what you might think, there’s no dude named Larry in the band Larry and His Flask. Consisting of Dallin Bulkley, Andrew Carew, Ian Cook, Jamin Marshall and Jeshua Marshall, this Oregon-based band plays an infectious, riotous brand of punk bluegrass. And even though they’ve toured with bands like the Dropkick Murphys, they aren’t above breaking out their instruments and playing on a street corner if the fancy (or the need for gas while touring on their own) strikes. And the fact that in 2008 they changed their sound and started playing acoustic instruments only allows them to do this easier. Check ‘em out next week at Amigos, and have yourself a foot-stomping good time. Tickets at the door.

laRRy and his Flask

Ever wonder how bands come up with their names? Some get their name from other people’s songs (Rolling Stones), some choose them from novels (Joy Division), and some are named after contortionist strippers (Alexison-fire). As for Passion Pit, this electro-pop five-piece from Cambridge, Massachu-setts, plucked their stage name from a Variety slang dictionary. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, a passion pit is just another name for a drive-in theatre. With songs that range from whimsical to party anthem, Passion Pit is fast becoming a must-see band for anyone who likes to have a damn good time. With appearances on SNL, tours with Muse and their songs landing on such TV shows as Gossip Girl and Big Love, this group’s star is definitely on the rise. Tickets at theodeon.ca

– by adam hawboldt

passion pit

@ aMIGos cantInasaturday, June 29 – $10

sask musiC pREviEwSask Music has teamed up with the SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival to provide musicians and music fans with two great workshops — for free! A Q+A period at “Music Management” on June 22 will offer insight into what it means to be a manager, work with a manager, hire a manager and more. On June 30, “Tools, Tips and Tricks for Musicians and YouTube” will teach you how to create and engage an audience on the Internet’s second biggest search engine. Space is limited, so pre-register to hold your spot. See http://saskjazz/workshops/ for workshop times, locations and more info.

keep up with saskatchewan music. saskmusic.org

@ odeon eVents centretuesday, sePtember 3 – $32.50

Verbnews.comentertainment contents local editorial comments q + a arts feature food + drink music listings film nightlife comics timeout


listings

The most complete live music listings for Saskatoon.

JunE 21 » JunE 29

21 22

28 2926 2724 2523

s m t w t

FRiday 21house DJs / 6Twelve Lounge — Funk, soul

& lounge DJs liven it up. 9pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / Amigos — With Lee Fields and

the Expressions + more. 10:30pm / $15

DJ aash Money / Béily’s — DJ Aash

Money throws it down. 9pm / $5 cover

Jazz Fest / The Bassment — With Coral

Egan. 9pm / Ticket info @ saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Bessborough Gardens — With

Colin James + more. 7pm / saskjazz.com

Fear oF Knowing / Buds — A local heavy

rock quartet. 9pm / $6

Jazz Fest / Friendship Park — With Gypso-

philia and The Steadies. 7pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / James Hotel — Featuring Rita di

Ghent. 10:30pm / No cover

DJ sugar DaDDy / Jax Niteclub — He

rocks any party. 9pm / $5 cover

Bass invaDers / Lydia’s Pub — Some bass

for your face. $10:30pm / $5

super sMash suMMer sizzla / Odeon —

Featuring Criscole + more. 9pm / $10/20

DJ Big ayyy & DJ henChMan / Outlaws —

Round up your friends. 8pm / $5

apollo Cruz / Piggy’s Bar and Grill —

High-octane blues. 9pm / Cover TBD

Jatino / Prairie Ink — Smooth jazz/latin/

pop. 8pm / No cover

phoenix lauren anD the strength / Spadina Freehouse — Local R&B and soul.

9pm / No cover

teri ann strongarM / Stan’s Place — A

country songstress. 9pm / No cover

Dueling pianos / Staqatto Piano Lounge

— With Terry Hoknes, Neil Currie and Brad

King. 10pm / $5

party roCK FriDays / Tequila Nightclub

— Featuring DJs Anchor + Stikman. 9pm /

Cover TBD

DJ niCK ruston / Uncle Barley’s — Stop

by for some beer and smooth beats. 9pm /

Cover TBD

poor young things / Vangelis — With

Whiskey Songs. 10pm / $8

Jazz Fest / Village Guitar & Amp Co. —

Featuring Andy Shauf. 8pm / Ticket info @

saskjazz.com

satuRday 22house DJs / 6Twelve — Resident DJs

spin deep and soulful tunes all night. 9pm

/ No cover

Jazz Fest / Amigos — Featuring Lee Fields

and the Expressions + more. 10:30pm / $15

Jazz Fest / The Bassment — With Rita

di Ghent + more. 9pm / Ticket info @

saskjazz.com

DJ aash Money + DJ Ctrl / Béily’s

UltraLounge — These two DJs throw down

a high-energy top 40 dance party. 9pm /

$5 cover

Jazz Fest / Bessborough Gardens —

Featuring Metric, Nightbox and We Were

Lovers. 6pm / Ticket info @ saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Broadway Theatre — Featuring

Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Don Griffith.

7:30pm / Ticket info @ saskjazz.com

Fear oF Knowing / Buds — A local heavy

rock quartet. 9pm / $6

saturgay night / Diva’s — Resident DJs

spin exclusive dance remixes every Satur-

day. 10pm / $5

Jazz Fest / Friendship Park — Featuring

Aaron Adair & SK Soul, Wil Campa and

more. 1pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / James Hotel — Featuring

Charly Hustle. 10:30pm / No cover

DJ sugar DaDDy / Jax — He rocks any

party. 9pm / $5 cover

grahaM tilsley BanD / Lydia’s Pub —

Jazzy alt-rock/pop. 10:30pm / $5

outsiDe the wall / Odeon — With Un-

chained and Kashmir. 8pm / $22.50



apollo Cruz / Piggy’s Bar and Grill —

High-octane blues. 9pm / Cover TBD

Caila ellerMan / Prairie Ink — Laid back

folk music. 8pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / Prairie Lily Riverboat — Featur-

ing Maurice Drouin Trio. 6:30pm / Ticket

info @ saskjazz.com

aaron aDair anD sK soul / Spadina

Freehouse — Soul for your listening plea-

sure. 9pm / No cover

teri ann strongarM / Stan’s Place —

Soulful country. 9pm / No cover

Dueling pianos / Staqatto Piano Lounge

— With Terry Hoknes, Neil Currie and Brad

King. 10pm / $5

DJ anChor / Sutherland Bar — Droppin’

dope beats. 9pm / Cover TBD

sexy saturDays / Tequila Nightclub —

Featuring DJ Dislexik. 9pm / Cover TBD

DJ thorpDeo / Uncle Barley’s — Spinning

hot tunes all night. 10pm / Cover TBD

Jazz Fest / Vangelis — With Wake Owl +

more. 10pm / $10

Jazz Fest / Village Guitar & Amp Co. —

With Suzie Vinnick. 8pm / saskjazz.com

sunday 23Jazz Fest / Amigos — Featuring A Tribe

Called Red. 10pm / $15

Jazz Fest / The Bassment — Featuring Vi-

jay Iyer Trio. 8pm / Tickets @ saskjazz.com

inDustry night / Béily’s — Hosted by

DJ Sugar Daddy. 9pm / $4; no cover for

industry staff


Ziggy Marley + more. 6pm / saskjazz.com

Chris CharMiChael / Bon Temps Cafe —

Some down-home blues. 9pm / Cover TBD

Jazz Fest / Broadway Theatre — With John

Schofield Uberjam. 7:30pm / saskjazz.com

DJ KaDe / The Hose & Hydrant — Saska-

toon DJ lights it up with hot tunes. 8pm /

No cover

DJ anChor / Jax — A Bollywood vs. West-

ern dance party. 9pm / Cover TBD

Jazz Fest / Prairie Lily Riverboat — Featur-

ing Maurice Drouin Trio. 6:30pm / Tickets @

saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Potashcorp Club Jazz — Featur-

ing Monkey Junk + more. Shows start 1pm /

Info @ saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Spadina Freehouse — Featur-

ing Absofunkinlutely. 10:30pm / No cover

Blues JaM / Vangelis Tavern — The Van-

gelis Sunday Jam offers blues to rock and

beyond. 7:30pm / No cover

monday 24Jazz Fest / The Bassment — Featur-

ing Soweto Kinch Trio. 8pm / Tickets @

saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Bessborough Gardens —

Featuring Serena Ryder. 7:30pm / Tickets

@ saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Broadway Theatre — Featur-

ing Bettye LaVette. 7:30pm / Tickets @

saskjazz.com

Big Dave MClean / Buds — Awesome

Delta blues. 9pm / $6

Jazz Fest / Downtown Stage — W Doug

Boomhower Quartet and BC Read Duo.

11:45am, 5pm / No cover

DJ auDio / Dublins — Spinning dope beats.

9pm / Cover TBD

Metal MonDays / Lydia’s — If hard, heavy

awesomeness is your thing, swing by. 9pm

Jazz Fest / Potashcorp Club Jazz — Featur-

ing Young Benjamins + more. Shows start

12pm / Info @ saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Prairie Lily Riverboat —

Featuring Maurice Drouin Trio. 6:30pm /

Tickets @ saskjazz.com


ing Young Benjamins. 10:30pm / No cover

tuEsday 25Jazz Fest / The Bassment — Featuring the

Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer. 8pm /




DJ sugar DaDDy / Double Deuce — This

crowd favourite rocks. 9:30pm / $4

Jazz Fest / Downtown Stage — Featuring

Misterfire + more. 11:45am, 5pm / No Cover

DJ niCK ruston / Dublins — Spinning

dope beats. 9pm / Cover TBD

open stage / Lydia’s Pub — Show off your

skills. 9pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / Potashcorp Club Jazz — With

Royal Wood + more. Shows start 12pm /

Info @ saskjazz.com


Featuring Maurice Drouin Trio. 6:30pm /


open MiC / Somewhere Else Pub — Come

out to show your talent. 7pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / Freehouse — Featuring Percus-

sion Syndicate. 10:30pm / No cover

MaC DeMarCo / Vangelis — With Caves.

9pm / $10

wEdnEsday 26huMp weDnesDays / 302 Lounge & Dis-

cotheque — With DJ Chris Knorr. 9pm / No

cover until 10pm; $3 thereafter

MiChael BernarD FitzgeralD / Amigos

— With John Antoniuk. 10pm / $13

Jazz Fest / The Bassment — With the

Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer. 8pm /



Herbie Hancock. 7:30pm / saskjazz.com



Jazz Fest / Downtown Stage — Featur-

ing The Lost Keys + more. 11:45am, 5pm

/ No cover

DJ MeMo / Dublins — Spinning dope beats.

9pm / Cover TBD

/Verbsaskatoon entertainmentcontents local editorial comments q + a arts feature food + drink music listings film nightlife comics timeout


DJ KaDe / The Hose & Hydrant — Saska-

toon DJ lights it up. 8pm / No cover

Dr. J ‘souleD out’ / Lydia’s Pub — Dr. J

spins hot funk and soul. 9pm / No cover

wilD west weDnesDay / Outlaws — With

DJ Big Ayyy & DJ Henchman. 9pm / $4

Jazz Fest / Potashcorp Club Jazz — Mister-

fire + more. Starting 12pm / saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Prairie Lily Riverboat — With

Maurice Drouin Trio. 6:30pm / saskjazz.com

open MiC / Rock Bottom — Hosted by Chad

Reynolds. 10pm / No cover


ing Whiskey Song. 10:30pm / No cover

CJww KaraoKe / Stan’s Place — Your tal-

ent, aired on the radio! 9pm / No cover

Dueling pianos / Staqatto — With Terry

Hoknes, Neil Currie and Brad King. 10pm

thuRsday 27Jazz Fest / Amigos — Featuring Yukon

Blonde + more. 10:30pm / $15

Jazz Fest / Bassment — With Kurt Rosen-

winkel Quartet + more. 7pm / saskjazz.com


City and Colour. 8pm / saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Broadway Theatre — With

Nikki Yanofsky. 7:30pm / saskjazz.com



Jazz Fest / Downtown Stage — Donna

Hay Trio + more. 11:45am, 5pm / No cover

throwBaCK thursDays / Earls — With

Dr. J. 8pm / No cover

DJ KaDe / The Hose — Saskatoon DJ lights

it up with hot tunes. 8pm / No cover

DJ sugar DaDDy / Jax — Rockin’ all

night8pm / $5; free by 11pm with student ID

Jazz Fest / Potashcorp Club Jazz — Jack

Semple + more. Starting 12pm / saskjazz.com


With Maurice Drouin Trio. 6:30pm /

tickets @ saskjazz.com

heavy Metal raMpage ’13 / Rock Bottom

— With Stryker + more. 9pm / Cover TBD


ing Charly Hustle. 10:30pm / No cover

triple up thursDays / Tequila — Featur-

ing DJ Stikman. 9pm / Cover TBD

FRiday 28house DJs / 6Twelve Lounge — Funk, soul

& lounge DJs liven it up. 9pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / Amigos — Featuring Jack

Semple + more. 10:30pm / $15

Jazz Fest / The Bassment — With Alfredo

Rogdriguez Trio. 9pm / saskjazz.com

DJ aash Money / Béily’s — DJ Aash

Money throws it down. 9pm / $5 cover


Dr. John and the Nite Trippers. 8pm / Tickets

@ saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Broadway Theatre — Featuring

Art Pepper. 7:30pm / Tickets @ saskjazz.com



Jazz Fest / Downtown Stage — Featuring

Percussion Syndicate. 11:45am / No Cover

DJ eCleCtiC / The Hose — Local turntable

whiz pumps snappy beats. 8pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / James Hotel — Featuring Gil-

lian Snider. 10:30pm / No cover

DJ sugar DaDDy / Jax Niteclub — This lo-

cal crowd favourite rocks. 9pm / $5 cover

eli, For short / Lydia’s — Smooth, cool

jams. 10pm / $5



Jazz Fest / Potashcorp Club Jazz — Oral

Fuentes + more. 12pm + on / saskjazz.com

the stanDarDs trio / Prairie Ink — A

smooth jazz ensemble. 8pm / No cover



uBerwaltigenD turBoFest / Rock Bot-

tom — Hot tunes. $60 for both nights


ing Charly Hustle. 10:30pm / No cover

Dueling pianos / Staqatto — Terry Hoknes,

Neil Currie and Brad King. 10pm / $5

FloriDa georgia line / TCU Place —

Rockin’ country. 7:30pm $30+

party roCK FriDays / Tequila — With DJs

Anchor + Stikman. 9pm / Cover TBD

DJ niCK ruston / Uncle Barley’s — Come

and check him out! 9pm / Cover TBD

Jazz Fest / Vangelis — With 24th Street

Wailers. 10:30pm / Tickets @ saskjazz.com

satuRday 29house DJs / 6Twelve — Resident DJs spin

deep and soulful tunes. 9pm / No cover

Jazz Fest / Amigos — Featuring Larry and

his Flask. 10:30pm / $15

Jazz Fest / The Bassment — With TD Jazz

Intensive. 1pm / Tickets @ saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / The Bassment — With Court-

ney Pine. 7pm / Tickets @ saskjazz.com

DJ aash Money + DJ Ctrl / Béily’s —

These two DJs throw it down. 9pm / $5


Jimmie Vaughn + more. 6pm / saskjazz.com

Jazz Fest / Broadway Theatre — With

Macy Gray. 7:30pm / saskjazz.com



saturgay night / Diva’s — Resident DJs

spin exclusive dance remixes. 10pm / $5

DJ KaDe / The Hose — Lights it up. 8pm-

Jazz Fest / James Hotel — Charly Hustle.

10:30pm / No cover

DJ sugar DaDDy / Jax Niteclub — He’s

able to rock any party. 9pm / $5 cover

le groove / Lydia’s — Come on down!

10:30pm / $5



Jazz Fest / Potashcorp Club Jazz — With

Red Baraat + more. 1pm + on / saskjazz.com

wayne Bergen / Prairie Ink — Instrumen-

tal guitar. 8pm / No cover



uBerwaltigenD turBoFest / Rock Bot-

tom — Hot tunes. $60 (both nights)

Jazz Fest / Freehouse — Featuring Pile of

Bones Brass Band. 10:30pm / No cover

Dueling pianos / Staqatto — With Terry

Hoknes, Neil Currie + Brad King. 10pm / $5

DJ anChor / Sutherland Bar — It’s the

world famous video mix show! 10pm

party roCK FriDays / Tequila — Featuring

DJs Anchor + Stikman

DJ thorpDeo / Uncle Barley’s — Spinning

hot tunes all night. 10pm / Cover TBD

Jazz Fest / Vangelis — 24th Street Wailers.

10:30pm / Tickets @ saskjazz.com



f you’re any kind of cine-phile, by now you’ve heard all about World War Z.

You’ve heard about the problems that plagued its production. About the spats between the director and cast, the constant rewrites, the revolving door of personnel, the long-delayed release, and the monstrous, out-of-control budget.

Some people thought all this hulla-baloo would lead to an absolute abor-tion of a movie. Others figured, “Meh, it’s a movie about zombies starring Brad Pitt … how can’t it be good?”

The truth of the matter lies some-where in between both viewpoints.

Based on Max Brooks’ novel of the same name, World War Z is a sprawling film about a worldwide zombie apoca-lypse and the search for a cure.

Wait. Let me rewind for a second. The film, directed by Marc Forster (Monster’s Ball, Finding Neverland), isn’t really based on Brooks’ gritty cult novel. It’s more based on the idea inherent in the book. See, if you’ve read the novel, you know it’s written in an interview-based style that, in no way, shape or form, would lend itself to a summer blockbuster like the one For-ster had in mind. So what they did was kept the central concept — that most of the world’s population has been decimated by zombie attacks — and invented an almost entirely new plot.

At the centre of it is family man and former UN investigator Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt.) When we first meet Lane

he’s a mild-mannered, stay-at-home father who loves spending time with his loving wife Karen (Mireille Enos) and his daughters Rachel (Abigail Har-grove) and Constance (Sterling Jerins.) The Lanes are one big happy fam-ily. But that happiness is short-lived when the zombies show up. And at that point, Lane has a choice to make:

stay at home and defend his family or put his unique skill set to work and traverse the globe in search of patient zero in the hopes of finding a cure.

He opts for the latter, and apocalyp-tic chaos ensues.

But this isn’t the kind of some-what contained chaos you’d expect from a zombie movie. For starters, these aren’t the lumbering, slow-moving zombies of, say, Walking Dead fame. No, they’re running, leaping pack beasts with a thirst for blood (which, much to the chagrin of many zombie enthusiasts, there isn’t much of). Another thing that sets

World War Z apart is that instead of being confined to a specific locale, zombie attacks are happening all over. The undead are climbing walls in Jerusalem, running amok in Korea, and boarding planes at airports.

It’s an intense situation, with many intense moments. But here’s the thing: for all the scares and intensity, there isn’t much heart to World War Z, noth-ing that’ll make you go, “Holy crap! That was amazeballs!”

The reason? Brad Pitt’s character. Now don’t get it twisted, Pitt does a good job in the role of Gerry Lane. He just doesn’t have too much to work with. Lane is too perfect. A perfect father, perfect investigator, a perfect zombie slayer. He simply doesn’t have any flaws. And when you have a character like that driving your movie, it’s hard to draw the audience in — heart, mind and soul.

film

Photo: courtesy of ParaMount PIctures

i

World War Z a decent, but not great, addition to the zombie genre by adaM hawboldt

woRld waR z

diRECtEd by Marc Forster

staRRing Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos,

David Morse + James Badge Dale

115 minutEs | 14a

thE zombiEs aRE Coming!

@verbsaskatoon

[email protected]


…for all the scares and intensity, there isn’t much heart to World War Z…

adaM hawboldt

@Verbsaskatoon entertainmentcontents local editorial comments q + a arts feature food + drink music listings film nightlife comics timeout


E

a doCumEntaRy oF thE dogsThe Sheepdogs Have At It chronicles the rise of saskatoon’s favourite classic rock band by adaM hawboldt

@verbsaskatoon

[email protected]


thE shEEpdogs havE at it

diRECtEd by John Barnard

staRRing Ewan Currie, Sam Corbett,

Ryan Gullen + Leot Hanson

85 minutEs | pg

Photo: courtesy of IndIecan entertaInMent

verybody likes a good underdog movie.

C’mon, admit it! You know you do. How can you not enjoy a movie like Rudy or Rocky or heck, even The Shawshank Redemption? There’s something about cheering for the little guy that feels safe and justified. We see ourselves in them, we urge them on. If they can succeed, maybe one day we can too. So let’s hear it for the long shot!

And let’s hear it for The Sheep-dogs Have At It, the new documen-tary about Saskatchewan’s favourite bearded band, the Sheepdogs. Because, ostensibly, that’s what the film is about — underdogs. The movie tracks the band from their humble beginnings (making a racket in drummer Sam Corbett’s parents’ basement way back in 2004) to the making of their sopho-more album last year.

Right, and in case you’re the only person in Saskatchewan who hasn’t heard of the Sheepdogs, here’s the basics of what you have to know: they are an updated echo of the ‘70s,

playing classic rock the right way. They have big beards and untamed, flowing hair. They drink and tour and play the hell out of their stage shows.

Oh, and in 2011 they won a contest and were featured on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. Which, in case you’re wondering, is kind of a big deal.

Beginning just after the Sheepdogs won the Rolling Stone contest, the movie lets the audience know what the stakes are from the get-go. Now that the Sheepdogs have been on the cover of the iconic magazine, it’s time for them to record a sophomore album. But here’s the catch (as record execs, man-agers and agents all attest to): the album better not suck. If it does, all the hard work they put in will be for naught.

No pressure! So the guys go into the studio, and the movie rewinds (literally, there’s a rewinding sound set against a blackened screen) back to the band’s beginnings and rise.

This is where the underdog angle comes from. We learn all about the genesis of the band, about touring in

a beat-up van, about how close they came to quitting, about how hard it is for a big, hairy, old-school rock band to stay true to their roots and make it in this auto-tuned, bubblegum pop day and age.

Fast forward back to the studio, and we see the trials and tribulations the Sheepdogs are having recording their self-titled sophomore album.

Rewind back to the past, leap back to 2011 or 2012. Back and forth the documentary goes, from past to (almost) present. And do you know what? This non-linear storyline works well. The concert footage does, too. Toss in a few funny parts and a few things you might not have known about the band, and what you have is one pretty darn good documentary.

If I were to levy one criticism, though, it would be that the story lacked tension. Director John Barnard should’ve probably amped up the suspense while the Sheepdogs were in the studio in order to keep those unfa-miliar with the band wondering how the album turned out. Still, though, fan or no fan, Have At It is a musical docu-mentary well worth a watch. It might not change your world view, but you’ll definitely be entertained.

The Sheepdogs Have At It is currently being screened at Roxy Theatre.

thE shEEpdogs havE at it

diRECtEd by John Barnard

staRRing Ewan Currie, Sam Corbett,

Ryan Gullen + Leot Hanson

85 minutEs | pg



satuRday, JunE 15 @

spoRtson tapSports on Tap2606 Lorne Avenue(306) 683 8921

MusiC viBe / Eclectic — a little bit of everythingFeature Deal / Johnny Walker highballs for $4, grey goose and pints of rickard’s for $5, bone-less ribs for $6, bone-in ribs for $8, molson pitchers for $15, and molson titanics for $28DrinK oF ChoiCe / grey goose vodka and spiced rumtop eats / Dry ribsCoMing up / Stanley Cup + nBA finals, volleyball half season tournament soMething new / Hockey table giveaway: pose under the picture of the Stanley Cup at Sports on Tap, and post it on Facebook for a chance to win

nightlife



photography by patrick Carley

CheCK out our FaCeBooK page! These photos will be uploaded to

Facebook on Friday, June 28.

facebook.com/verbsaskatoon



nightlife tuEsday + wEdnEsday, JunE 18 + 19 @

yaRd &FlagonThe Yard & Flagon710 Broadway Avenue(306) 653 8883

MusiC viBe / Alternative and rockFeatureD Deals / 15 wings for $4 on TuesdaysDrinK oF ChoiCe / Great Western beerstop eats / nachos — piled high with cheese and a ton of toppings

@Verbsaskatoon entertainmentcontents local editorial comments q + a arts feature food + drink music listings film nightlife comics timeout


CheCK out our FaCeBooK page! These photos will be uploaded to

Facebook on Friday, June 28.

facebook.com/verbsaskatoon

photography by Cortez



comics

© Elaine m. will | blog.E2w-illustration.com | Check onthebus.webcomic.ws/ for previous editions!



hoRosCopEs June 21 – June 27

© waltER d. FEEnER 2013

sudoku CRosswoRd answER kEy

a b4 7 1 9 7 1 58 2 5 6 3 6 9 81 5 8 7 4 6 4 5 2 4 1 3 9 3 2 8 2 7 9 3 6

6 3 2 8 9 4 1 28 4 1 6 2 5 3 7 1 6 9 7 5 7 4 9 5 3 9 8 4 3 5 6 2 1 7 8

aCRoss 1. Bend in a sink pipe

5. Angel costume

accessory

9. Alternative to frozen

10. Put to use

12. Like some dresses

13. Long for

15. Knife handle

16. Become less elastic

18. A plant grows from it

19. Anointing substance

20. Dead on one’s feet

22. Be a nuisance to

23. Say what will happen

in the future

25. Showing signs of wear

and tear

27. Tasteless

29. Leafless flower stalk

32. Gathering to

say goodbye

36. Road surface

37. Lower part of the leg

39. Foot digit

40. Energy units

42. Word used to

connect words

43. Very serious

44. Short summary

46. Out of the country

48. Pass a law

49. Like a crowd, sometimes

50. Chart of family lineage

51. Kind

down 1. Unimportant thing

2. Money for the landlord

3. Inquire about

4. Science that deals with

matter and energy

5. Property divider

6. Lumberjack’s tool

7. Smaller amount of

8. Countries of the East

9. Natural ability

11. Unexpected gift

12. Place where things

are sold

14. Nervous

17. Craftsperson

20. Fork prongs

21. Alcoholic beverage

24. Partner’s dance move

26. Go on to say

28. Hanging ornament

29. Kind of aerobics

30. French square

31. Silver, in heraldry

33. Being at leisure

34. Initial venture

35. Food for farm animals

38. Unnecessarily

quick action

41. Disfigurement

43. Faucet annoyance

45. Bartender’s “rocks”

47. Baby in blue

timeout

CRosswoRd Canadian Criss-Cross

sudoku answER kEy

a

b

4 3 5 7 1 8 6 9 26 7 9 4 2 3 8 1 58 1 2 9 5 6 3 7 43 2 7 6 9 4 1 5 81 5 8 3 7 2 4 6 99 6 4 5 8 1 7 2 32 4 6 1 3 9 5 8 77 9 3 8 6 5 2 4 15 8 1 2 4 7 9 3 6

6 7 1 9 3 2 8 4 59 5 3 8 6 4 7 1 28 4 2 1 7 5 3 6 92 9 4 5 1 8 6 3 73 1 6 2 9 7 5 8 45 8 7 3 4 6 9 2 17 6 8 4 5 1 2 9 31 2 9 7 8 3 4 5 64 3 5 6 2 9 1 7 8

aRiEs March 21–april 19

If you’ve been suffering in the

communication department lately,

Aries, don’t worry. This week you’ll be

able to get your point across, no problem.

tauRus april 20–May 20

There’s going to be a radiance

about you at some point this

week, Taurus. Your happiness and joy

will be infectious.

gEmini May 21–June 20

Rarely does the word enchanting

come up in daily conversation,

Gemini. But this week, that’s exactly what

you’ll be.

CanCER June 21–July 22

Ever have one of those weeks

where it seems like your work will

never end? This threatens to be one, Cancer.

Keep your head down and push onwards.

lEo July 23–august 22

Have you accomplished some-

thing fairly substantial lately,

Leo? If so, reward yourself this week.

You deserve it!

viRgo august 23–september 22

Don’t waste your time watching

television or movies this week,

Virgo. Instead, get out and engage with the

world. It will yield an amazing surprise.

libRa september 23–october 23

Confused about the direction

you’re heading, Libra? If so, stop

and reassess exactly what you want in

life, then charge after it. You got this!

sCoRpio october 24–november 22

A blast from the past may re-enter

your life this week, Scorpio. But

here’s the thing: not all blasts are good! So

be wary of people’s intentions.

sagittaRius november 23–december 21

You’re going to be subjected to

some strange, foreign impulses

very soon, Sagittarius. Proceed with cau-

tion … and a sense of adventure!

CapRiCoRn december 22–January 19

This isn’t a good week to make

long-term plans, Capricorn. So

try to take it easy, and enjoy living in

the moment instead.

aQuaRius January 20–february 19

Unsatisfied with your current

station in life, Aquarius? If so, it’s

easy to remedy. All you’ve got to do is be

an agent of change.

pisCEs february 20–March 20

You know you’re charismatic,

Pisces. So why not put that charm

to good use this week and get things ac-

complished. It’s time to shine!

Verb Issue S245 (June 21-27, 2013)

Documents

making of jeans boots

food drinkmusic

mobile game apps

q anightlife photos

saskatchewanworld war

listingsworld war z

sharecome app

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