Buzz Stop! Going Mobile with Indigo Joseph By Brian Bowman
It's hard to put a label on Indigo Joseph: a blues-rock band, a folk-funk band, maybe a post-cabaret style band, or, all of the above? It's all on their play-list, it's well performed, strong lyrics, too, and it's all original.
So was their interview with BuzzCity. "Let's do it on a bus!" they said. BuzzCity thought that was pretty cool so we contacted Regina Transit who agreed. (Thanks, Gail Lambert) and they contacted a photographer, Cal Fehr, to come along. Then Birdsong Communications got wind of the impending event, and their film crew, Don List and Bill Warriner got on board along with BuzzCity's Brian Bowman and Steve McDonnell. We started from the Riddell Centre at the University of Regina and the bus was rocking before we made it to the parkway.
Indigo Joseph has charisma, and, in addition to solid training and evident talent, the band seems to have a magic touch. In the short time they've been together, they've been getting enviable attention. They have played numerous Regina venues and their recent audition for the Sask Sampler earned them a place on the line-up for the Regina Folk Festival AND The Bengough Gateway Festival this summer.
To really appreciate their talents, you need to see them live. On nearly every number the members switch instruments, and they use several, like musical chairs. Impressive. Fairly hot, bluesy, folky, funky Indigo Joseph. The name's a good fit.
Interview:'Wolf Pack' - unplugged
Valuable Comics - Regina’s burgeoning comic book collective By Brian Bowman
In the olden days, when people used to stand on their lawns on a starry evening to see the Sputnik pass overhead, parents ruled and held the same regard for comic books as they did for rock and roll. That was during what is known as the Silver Age of comics, when many lurid tales of fantastic adventure were read with the aid of flashlights.
There have been several ages of comics, running from the Platinum Age in the early 1900s through to the present; all of them defining significant changes of style, story and character. The ‘30s and ‘40s is the Golden Age with the advent of the superhero, ie. Superman backed by a whole battalion of selfless, noble immortals. Most were virtuous American paragons, but Canada did have Captain Canuck, a commendable model of colonial pluck. Since then, comics have experienced several stages of growth, change, and decline. They’re popular again, and today’s age is known either as the Iron Age, or the Modern Age of comics depending on your preference for labels.
Things have gotten much better since the Silver Age. In the new and improved Iron Age, comics sell better than books. And they’re really big in this town. There are at least four comic book stores here, and a dozen comic book artists. Better yet, their titles are on the store shelves.
Regina based Valuable Comics started about five years ago when a number of local comics artists saw the need for a collective to provide mutual support and shared resources for their efforts. Today, the collective has about a dozen members and publishes three times per year.
Core members include:
Darcy Zink (Editor and Chief,) Nephi MacPherson, Allan Dotson, Jonah McFadzean, and Dakota McFadzean. More recent members include Derrick Burns, Keely Tyler, Adam Dodge, Dyson Yobb, Elaine Will, and Jason Sylvestre.
It’s a good way to get started. Since most members have a particular skill or specialty, the collective meets regularly to share ideas and provide mentorship in the various skills required for comic book production like scripting, drawing, inking, colouring and computer finishing. Each issue of Valuable Comics features from eight to 12 of the collective’s artists. Their work is mostly comedic adventure fantasy, although some examples are experimental in terms of form and technique. Some stories are kid friendly, while others are targeted to adult readers. But the collective maintains editorial standards and nothing in Valuable Comics is offensive or inappropriate for youthful readers. Valuable Comics artists also publish their own titles and a few, like Jason Sylvstre’s Jason of New York City enjoy wider distribution.
This collective is unique to Regina. No other such collective exists elsewhere in the province and it’s another feather in city’s cultural cap. You can find Valuable Comics’ quarterly publication at Amazing Stories in Saskatoon but it is mainly available from all Comic Readers locations, Phoenix Books and Tramps in Regina.
Jason Sylvestre and Dyson Yobb interview
Jason Sylvestre and Dyson Yobb, from Regina, are self-taught members of Valuable Comics who started by writing, drawing and inking their own work. Yobb, who is newer and less established still does it all himself, but Sylvestre, who enjoys a growing American circulation with Jason of New York City now has others involved in the production process including a co-script writer and a separate colourist. Currently, he is training another person to do the inking. Both artists are self-taught.
Jason Sylvestre’s work is based on old folk tales and mythology and he is fairly successful with his Jason of New York City series which was part of the Small Press idol competition last year and was picked up by a distribution company in the USA. A full colour publication, Jason of New York City is based on the “Jason and the Argonauts” legend and the series is located in modern day New York City. The theme is a classical hero, with classic arrogance, trying to adjust to life in modern times. While Sylvestre’s style is influenced by the American superhero tradition, his work is grounded with an exploration of the human condition.
“I don’t like perfect heroes; I like heroes who are flawed. Every hero I write about is flawed with a sort of Achilles heel that takes him down a notch,” says Sylvestre.
Dyson Yobb explores fantasy in an entertaining way. He draws upon literary references and makes statements about universal human beliefs and questions. He says there are many established influences, but that occasionally these influences are coincidental. For example: “Up until a couple of weeks ago, I didn’t know who he was, but when I put out my comic, people kept coming up to me and saying: ‘you must be a huge Dave Sim fan’. So, I started reading him and realized that I am a huge Dave Sim fan!” says Yobb. Sim is a Canadian comic book artist best known for his 6,000 page creation Cerebus the Aardvark published serially between 1998 and 2004.
Gather round the campfire with The Lazy MKs
No, these guys are not loading envelopes with contraband or exotic pharmaceuticals. The members of The Lazy MKs are assembling and packaging their soon to be released cd entitled “Where We Bin”. You haven’t seen these packages yet, (truly works of art and full of nifty goodies) nor have you heard any of the new cd tracks. But you will when you gather round the campfire (there really will be a campfire) at their cd launch on May 7th at the Artesian On 13th. Doors open at 8PM, show at 8:30 PM. The indoor performance will be theatre in the round with the band (and the campfire) in the centre of the audience. How cool is that?
Please note that Steve the Hat’s interview is full of speculation about the type of music that identifies the Lazy MKs. This is a tricky one as this eclectic band is known to back up musicians from various musical genres and therefore is really everything the Hat mentions... and more ...
A) A steel guitar post rock band
B) A progressive rock band
C) A hipster jazz band
D) God's gift to mankind
E) None of the above
'Till the End of the Day' Trailer - with music by The Lazy MKs - 'Pakowki'
BuzzCity.ca interview with 'Intergalactic Virgin':
BuzzCity.ca chats with the members of Regina, Saskatchewan electronica fusion band Intergalactic Virgin about the history of the band, recent changes in their music, the addition of new members, and their upcoming CD release @ *The Distrikt, April 8th, 2011. *Please Note: This event was cancelled, and Intergalactic Virgin re-scheduled multi-CD Release on Friday, May 27th @ The 2011 Cathedral Village Arts Festival@Cathedral Neighbourhood Centre, 2900 13th Avenue. CoelacanthDance was also on the bill.
BuzzCity.ca interview with 'The Lonesome Weekends': Old souls in an old basement ...
“Oh, lonesome me!” It’s a phrase that is to folk and country music as confining spaces are to empty vistas. So, what better place to practice folksy, bluesy, outré country than in a dimly lit, wood framed and ancient cellar that smells like potatoes and motor oil. Welcome to Friday night rehearsal with The Lonesome Weekends – a Regina band with members whom you may recognize and associate with some very uptown and downtown genres of music. The influence shows. And maybe that’s a good thing. But you be the judge. The Lonesome Weekends launched their new album at Artesian On 13th, April 8th, and played tracks from that album plus other material. The Rusty Augers opened.
Marsha Delouchery’s Fort Walsh Diaries By Brian Bowman
Canada is a big country with a severe climate and a physical geography that changes dramatically from coast to coast – rocks and forests in the east, vast plains in the centre and towering mountains in the west. It’s an environment that doesn’t yield to the imposition of foreign society and fashion. It forces adaptation, and by so doing, creates a social identity that is often unique. And people have noted it. Northrop Fry wrote about it in The Bush Garden, Wallace Stegner addressed it in Wolf Willow and now, Saskatoon artist, Marsha Delouchery is revealing it in art. For Delouchery, the early attire and history of the Northwest Mounted Police provide a vivid and dramatic symbol of this – from their pillbox hats, to their red wool tunics, white gloves and dungarees. It was highly impractical attire for the conditions they faced. And it quickly gave way to buckskins and buffalo coats as the nascent force clothed itself in the fabric of the land and became something new and remarkable. Says Delouchery:
“Inspired by Stegner’s Wolf Willow, a memoir of his childhood in Eastend, my intention is to compliment and illustrate this epic book. When I read this book, I knew that I had found a rich resource for the period of Saskatchewan history which interests me most: the pioneer settlers: the pioneer settlers who came here to build an existence, fuelled mostly with hopes and dreams: their successes, their failures, their amazing lives. I made a pilgrimage to the Stegner House in Eastend in August 2010, living there as an artist-in-residence. I walked in Stegners footprints along the Frenchman River. Informed by this experience, I am continuing with this series, of narrative, historical, and drama inspired paintings.”
Fort Walsh Diaries is featured at the McIntyre Gallery from now until April 30th with a reception from 5PM-7PM on Friday, April 15. Check the interview video to hear and see more.
