Category Archives: Vancouver - Page 5

ThisCityRocks Impressing The Prairies

Posted by on April 5, 2007 No comments

Lead guitarist Ryan Lejbak for HoneyBlu in Saskatoon had some kind words to say about our video podcast, ThisCityRocks:

“…This City Rocks is the best though. It focuses on Canadian indie artists. These are the bands that are heard on college radio, found on Pitchfork and that tastemakers listen to. TCR is a high quality videocast put together by hipster Megan Cole and videographer Warwick Patterson. It is brief, to the point and enlightening. They have a perfect blend of music, info and interviews. Megan and Warwick do this project on the side. Their passion for social media and the music scene shines through…”

Thanks Ryan – glad you love the show!

We’ll be starting to post shows for this amazing Spring jam-packed concert going season in mid-April, as soon as the first few are perfectly edited and put togetehrt o release to the masses! This season, we’ve got a few interviews already under our belt: DJ Champion, Malajube and YouSayParty! WeSayDie! – more to come with Great Lake Swimmers, who just signed with infamous Vancouver label, Nettwerk Music Group, The Parlour Steps and artists and bands at the Whistler Ski and Snowboard Festival, New Music West and Wakefest.

Subscribe to our feed over on the TCR site!

Massive Technology Show 2007 in Vancouver

Posted by on March 30, 2007 No comments

Massive Technology Show 2007I attended The Massive Tech Show this week at Canada Place in Vancouver, where local businesses can explore technology through the various scheduled events at the interactive exhibits and daylong flurry of presentations. It’s a great event where participants can take advantage of the networking opportunities from the businesses involved and the many sponsors in attendance.

There was a tremendous line-up of speakers and keynotes at the conference: Leonard Brody of NowPublic fame, and Kerry Munro, Yahoo! Canada GM, to name a mere two. I was lucky enough to stumble into Captain Ajax himself, in the flesh, upon arrival (many thanks for the ticket!) and sat in on his Blogging For Business presentation. It was excellent – to the point, concise and informative for those people looking to the blogosphere for community outreach but not sure how and what and why it’s important to their business. Andre covered all the bases. Check out some of my flickr photos taken during his presentation, and find his slideshow on his session over at his blog.

I once again enjoyed my small stint of being a Bryght girl, while I briefly relieved Roland of his booth duties so he could grab a quick bite. And then I was relieved shortly after when Scales arrived – I think together we made a quick sale or two!!

As always at these types of events, I met some good people, and it provided the chance to catch up with the old. I’d recommend it to anyone in Vancouver (or use it as your excuse to get here for a day or two!). The sessions and speakers are good people to meet and learn from, but if for nothing else, head there just to wander the floor of the exhibits – lots to see, lots to do, plenty to take in.

Hot Canadian Bands Cruisin’ Canadian Stages

Posted by on March 26, 2007 3 comments

So it’s no surpirse to most that Canada is jam-packed with some uber, amazing bands and talent… and to highlight a few, just check out this list of bands hittin’ the stages of Vancouver over the next month… and most of these are on tour across the country:

Keep your podcast subscriptions tuned into ThisCityRocks for (*wink*) Season 2… we’ve got a HUGE line-up of Canadian Indie bands we’re going to feature over the coming months, many of those bands seen above, plus more up and coming bands when we cover The Whistler Ski and Snowboard Festival in April, New Music West in May and in the summer, WakeFest (line-up on their site coming soon) in July.

Don’t miss the first interviews of 2007 with Malajube, Champion and YouSayParty!WeSayDie! coming realllllllly soooooon!

Beyond Robson Features Vancouver’s Latest Art Guru: Izzie Egan

Posted by on March 20, 2007 No comments

Relatively new to the blogosphere, but kind of an old hat in the art world (and fairly well schooled thus far as well!), Beyond Robson has just discovered the increasingly famous Izzie Egan and featured the gallery manager of the Monte Clark Gallery in this week’s installation of Cityphile!

Check out the full article here.

An Out Of Body Experience: Neon Bible, Arcade Fire

Posted by on March 6, 2007 5 comments

I have been waiting for this morning for quite some time. Well, since Funeral was released back in 2004. And today, I sit at my favourite coffee establishment, wifi-ed up, next door to my favourite record store, waiting for 10:30 to roll around. I am still very much the music romantic at heart. I love to stand at play stations for hours on end, and walk out of a music store with 2 or 3 new picks – with the tangible items in my hot, little hands.

So the doors opened, and I was there to pick up The Arcade Fire’s latest, Neon Bible. And now I sit, headphones in, transfixed and inspired, all with the gorgeous smells of new paper and stiff plastic around me, the imagery of flipbooks and a flashy sliver and black CD, an actual CD!

This album is nothing short of epic – an emotional blast that has a bit of everything: it’s full, heavy, melodic, simplistic, passionate – I love this band. I feel as if their sound has matured and evolved to something more of what they first gave us with Funeral – is this even possible? The church organ in “Intervention” and “My Body Is A Cage” gives me goose bumps. On first listen, and second, and third!, I love every track.

Most of this album was recorded in “the church” in Quebec – can they get any cooler? Maybe that’s why it feels eerie, spiritual and I feel slightly out of my skin listening to it. Pick it up, download it – however you get your music these days, get this album – a great Canadian gem.

Another Blog Worth READING: The Contemporary Collectors Club – Art and Travel

Posted by on March 6, 2007 3 comments

Let’s face it: reading a blog has now become a bit of an archaic activity. With our online news sources, blog feeds and Google searches, there’s no time to really read and absorb all we would like to online, just as it goes when you have, or had, 30 minutes in a morning to read the 5 sections of the morning newspaper. It’s all about the scan.

But this blog, you should read. Spend some time with it. It is written by the gallery manager of the Monte Clark Gallery, Izzie Egan. I met Izzie last year, and she has since become one of my dear friends. So, as bias as this post may seem, I truly mean it – I love her blog. And it’s only 2 months old! Izzie comes from an art background, having acquired her Masters Graduate from the infamous and prestigious Sotheby’s in London. In a nutshell, she has a lot to offer and recognizes how the internet is changing the traditional art world. The blog is jam-packed with art knowledge, inspiration and recommendations, with a little travel advice to boot: a treat.

Izzie is also the founder of the Contemporary Collectors Club. Currently, participation is by invite only, but you can read all about it here, and discover how you can get involved.

From a somewhat rookie blogger to another – bravo to a unique and fabulous newbie to the blogosphere!

Interview For Capital Magazine With Sol Guy, 4Real TV Series

Posted by on February 28, 2007 2 comments

I have recently started to play a small role for Capital Magazine, videoblogging interviews with various artists and people who have a story to tell, people who are making social and economic change through art, film, music, television and life – most accurately, people whose stories deserve more attention. Here’s an excerpt from their site, better explaining Capital Magazine’s purpose and goals:

“Capital Media is a non-profit entity dedicated to the sharing of information and encouraging the spread of ideas, modes, and movements. Our collective is dedicated to the untold story. We strive to give voice to people and issues that haven’t been given adequate attention…. We aspire to promote the value of cultural movements, of people’s passions, interests and expressions, and most importantly, to demonstrate the worth of the story untold.”

I interviewed Sol Guy, the host and producer of the television series 4Real – a show that highlights young people around the world who are using art and culture to deal with pressing social issues. Several shows are already in the bag, with the likes of Joaquim Pheonix and K’naan, with more to go before it goes to air this fall on MTV Canada.

All you need to know is here in the inverview, so check it out over at Capital Magazine.

I’ve Landed On The Globe And Mail – An Article on Now Public By Jonathan Woodward

Posted by on February 24, 2007 14 comments

Me on the top of the fold!

I am most excited about this so my dad can see that I am actually doing things out here in Vancouver – top of the fold Pappy!

NowPublic is a participatory crowdsourcing news organization that is based here in Vancouver. I like writing for this news network, believe in their goals, and think it’s pretty damn cool I ended up in the British Columbia section of today’s Globe and Mail because of my contribution.

Read the article here.

Find out more about NowPublic and join the masses.

If you’re in BC, there happens to be a photo that goes along with this article where I managed to get my dog Capo another step closer to being the most photographed dog on the planet!

After thought: For those of you that DO see that photo in person, the caption reads, “a place that gave me a voice”. I think that quote serves a great purpose for one of the postive aspects of NowPublic, but that doesn’t really sound like something I would say, plus, I *think* I’ve had a voice for about 30 years or so. I know that I DID in fact say, “the public wants a voice”. Alas, it’s a great article, and pretty swell to be top of the fold with my dog :)

Lost: The Sequel? From The Beaches Of Vancouver?

Posted by on February 20, 2007 3 comments

Getting Up Close And Personal With A Plane Wreck – Thankfully, This One’s For The Big Screen

Seeing movie trailers, cables, cameras, lights and crew members with walkie-talkies in hand has long been a common occurence throughout the streets of Hollywood North. Every person living in Vancouver has either been on a movie set or knows someone who is “in the business”, so this ain’t no novelty.

But stumbling across the wreckage from a plane, hunks of metal puked all over the beaches of Point Grey on Vancouver’s west side, was a spectacular site to behold. Eerie in fact. Once the initial shock is over, after about 3.7 seconds, one can quickly decipher, “Oh, this must be for a film”. Phew. The movie Passengers is shooting here in Vancouver until mid- March, starring Anne Hathaway, and this on-location film set took up residence along the Spanish Banks for the last few weeks. (Just around the corner from the burned out 747 is Wreck Beach, the infamous year-round hang-out for hippies and nudists with hot pizza, cold beer and plenty of herb.)

The film industry in Vancouver has had its’ fair share of ups and downs, but this set was a strong reminder, and was as in-your-face as it gets, that movies are made here: Made In Canada. And Vancouver’s sophisticated film studios and flexible outdoor backdrop aren’t just attracting feature films. The television series Smallville has long been a Vancouver-shot mainstay. Anne Heche’s new series Men In Trees resides here as well. And let’s not forget the days of X-Files, Dark Angel, X-Men, the list goes on and on. From the BC Film Commission list, there are currently 9 features, 12 televisions series, 5 MOW’s, 3 short films, 8 animations, 3 documentaries, and a handful of pilots and mini series. And this is the SLOW season!

So for all of us in Vancouver, when we’re slaggin’ the back-up of traffic and the no parking zones due to movie trailers and film sets, smile and remember that this industry keeps many Canadians employed and north of the border. And, hey, one of these days you may get lucky and stumble across a gnarly plane crash, or two.

I hope I never get that close again.

CNMA’s: Top 5 Reasons Why Past CNMA Finalists Say “Submit A Nomination!”

Posted by on February 19, 2007 No comments

ONLY 2 WEEKS LEFT!! Submit a nomination for the Canadian New Media Awards 2007 by clicking here.

Check out what past finalists have said about being included in and recognized by the CNMA’s:

  1. “Not only did the awards raise my company’s profile on the national New Media front, but they also legitimized years of independent production and non-profit creative passion!”
    Brooke Burgess | Executive Producer | Budget Monks Productions Inc.
  2. “Winning a CNMA is one more thing that gives a client confidence in me. Every little bit helps.”
    Nate Smith | Centre Ice | The Vacuum Design
  3. “My CNMA nomination did a lot to raise my visibility in the industry and in the company I work for. I’ve been booked for numerous speaking engagements and consulting jobs since.”
    Tim Willison | Interactive Engineering | Organic Inc.
  4. “Thanks to the CNMA Website, a Polish executive found out about my work and invited me to work on a project in Poland which allowed me to set a foot in the eastern European market.”
    Tommy Ferlatte | Creator
  5. The prestige of winning a CNMA gave me the recognition instrumental in launching my career forward. No other award I’ve won bears quite the same weight. Norma Penner | Senior Contributor Designer | Organic Inc.

Submit Here.