July 31st, 2012 | by Jerry Gabriel
New York's Village Voice put on an excellent free concert called the 4 knots festival last weekend and I was lucky enough to almost catch the whole day of events while on vacation in the Empire State
October 15th, 2011 | by Daniela Plattner
At five in the morning on October 14, my Montreal based roommate Kamee Abrahamian (producer of the Blood Ballet Cabaret) and my native New York self crawled out of bed to head to Wall Street. We heard that chaos was going to go down before the sun even came up. We thought we would witness some arrests and be part of the fight for whatever these protests are about
September 22nd, 2011 | by Jason C. McLean
BREAKING NEWS: New York City is under occupation and has been for a few days. You'd think that would be breaking news, wouldn't you? Even if it's not the whole city, just the financial quarter. And even if it's not an invading army, but people upset with the way their own country is running things (in this case, the economy). After all, domestic upheaval in Egypt and people occupying a public square in Bahrain was headline news all around the world just a few months ago, wasn't it? Come to think of it, the lack of media coverage of the Occupy Wall Street protest is just like the Arab Spring. State controlled media completely blocked the protesters' side of the story
August 31st, 2011 | by Jason C. McLean
As the remnants of Tropical Storm Irene pounded Montreal this past Sunday, I hunkered down in my apartment. Listening to the winds blow and the rain fall, I thought to myself: "I should really close the living room window, my roommate's XBox is getting wet." If you were expecting my rainy day thoughts to be something more profound or at the very least profound-ish sounding and dealing with the nature of nature and its relationship to our very unnatural culture, well, that's not the case here. And why should it be? Yeah, I had been outside earlier in the day. I had felt slightly stronger-than-usual winds press up against me as I ran some errands. I witnessed the closest thing my neighbourhood got to destruction
March 3rd, 2011 | by Tania Fox
Moving to Montreal was a life changing experience for the better. I have discovered so many things here that I might not have, had I stayed in NYC and I have fallen in love with them. The terraces, the fresh bread, biking, the cheese curds (!?!) are all things that, while they may have been available in NY, I never took advantage of
February 14th, 2011 | by Tania Fox
Flowers, if given the chance, would leap to their death to escape a worse fate at my hands. But at my house, they are not even given the option of suicide because my cat will eat them and, as if chastising me for breaking the "no flower" rule, he will throw them up in places where I am sure to step in it and curse the person who gave them to me for encouraging the cat
January 6th, 2011 | by Jason C. McLean
Is it over already? Twelve months down and we're (officially) into the second decade of the 21st century. With just four more years to go until we get those flying cars we were promised (holding you to this one, Mr. Zemeckis), it's probably a good time to sit back and nurse that hangover (if you've still got one three days later, that is) and reflect on the year that was. While we can't tell you how 2010 was for you, we can say that for us here at FTB it was a helluva year. Think about it, a year ago we had just started out with a handful of regular writers, some political and arts coverage and big ambitions. Now, we have over 500 posts and eleven regular columns covering everything from sex to the environment to things Laurence doesn't like. We've also started covering a good portion of the independent music and arts scenes in Montreal and recently Brooklyn, New York, including artists you might not have heard of and festivals you probably have.
November 29th, 2010 | by Steve Ferrara
Journeymen get ready for the real experience. Multitudes is the kind of band that makes the listener loosen their grasp on reality. Their music transcends genre and is best described as transformative. Bending time and space, a song could start psychedelic and dancey. Then it can turn to free jazz, climax as hardcore and settle into a sophisticated noise. I have always had a strong fondness for three piece bands. A player can stretch out without having to worry about stepping on another player's turf. This comes with a big responsibility though as each instrument is quite exposed. What makes Multitudes a great trio are their simplicity to approach, the passion they play with and the virtuosity each player brings to the stage. I really admire that drummer Alex Lambert is front and center in Multitudes' stage set up. He is right where a lead singer would traditionally go. Lambert has rightfully earned that spot as he is a lead drummer in the band
November 24th, 2010 | by Steve Ferrara
The first thing I heard from the Brooklyn based band Ben Franklin was their record, Optimist. The recording has a great sound. It is no shitty demo. There are big sounding drums, present vocals, and each instrument sits in its own clear spot in the overall mix. On the other hand Optimist isn't over produced like 95% of the major releases today. The songs are catchy and clever post-punk with a taste of indie-rock. They make me think of bands like Cake, Weezer (Blue and Pinkerton only), Cursive, and Sunny Day Real Estate. After hearing Optimist, I knew I had to go to a show and see if the band live stood up to the recording. I saw Ben Franklin at 11pm on a Wednesday at Bruar Falls, one of Williamsburg's not so underground, hip spots. The club was packed. It took about four songs for the band to get warm, but once they got it they were on fire. Their vocal harmonies are well planned and spot on. I find the riff based sections of their songs to be where the band thrives. Billy Gray is not only the main vocalist but also the lead guitarist. His modesty on stage is dichotomous to his masochistic style songwriting. While speaking to the crowd he comes off as vulnerable and sincere. Bassist Eddie Garza does most of the talking for the night. His banter between songs is too long for me, though he does a great job of playing, singing and dancing during the songs. He is the designated fun guy in the band
November 16th, 2010 | by Cassie Doubleday
We're going Loco. I'm already pretty loco, but, that's not the point. We Heart Music is going local and under the radar. Starting November 17th, 2010 and ending December 17th, 2010 (my birthday!), we're going to be doing a special month-long edition dedicated to local and under the radar artists in Montreal and Brooklyn. Let's get Loco! Let's get Loco! is about focusing our eyes to see what's right in front us (3D picture included) innovative and unique local music. We want to give those deserving, hardworking Montreal and Brooklyn based artists the exposure and press they need. We're going to be giving you the down-low about what's going on in your backyard bars, the neighbourhoods you should be visiting for great music, and bands you may have overlooked due to the influx of big names and big game
October 31st, 2010 | by Jason C. McLean
Yup, that's right, the Tea Party has come to power in Toronto. With the election of Limbaugh-esque (and not just for his appearance) loudmouth Rob Ford as the city's mayor, Toronto has turned a page, actually a few pages, back in its evolution. If you thought his call to lynch the homeless was shocking, his thoughts on the rights of cyclists aren't much better. Neither are his actual policies. He has very loudly proclaimed plans to curb the power of unions, privatize sanitation services and support tax breaks for the Bay Street clique while breaking the backs of those who work for them
August 5th, 2010 | by Quiet Mike
What makes New York City great is that it’s a melting pot of nationalities, races and religions. Where ever you
August 4th, 2010 | by Mel Lefebvre
If human and wildlife justice systems were the same, your whole community would be annihilated if you were hit by a car. Ridiculous, isn't it? Well that is exactly what happened to 400 Canadian Geese in Brooklyn last July. The excuse for the mass killings was that a flock of Branta canadensis was sucked into an airliner's jet engines that crashed in the Hudson River. Everyone on the flight survived. The geese were gassed under the cloak of night after New York o.k'd the removal of geese within an 11 km radius of the airport
July 8th, 2010 | by Quiet Mike
Having been well traveled over the last year, I feel it necessary to compare two of the main cities I've visited, Copenhagen, Denmark and Manhattan, New York. If you were to visit both for even a brief period as I have, you would in all likelihood find the differences to be that of night and day
March 11th, 2010 | by Jason C. McLean
She's a lone protester we passed in Times Square the other week while we were in town shooting for JC Sunshine. She didn't look all that intimidating. She was wearing all the trappings of the Tea Party folk you see on the news, except no one in similar garb hanging around. When we asked if we could take her picture, she gladly accepted, saying that no one had paid attention to her in hours
March 6th, 2010 | by Jason C. McLean
The J train stopped on an outdoor platform stretched out over Marcy Street and we exited and descended the metal staircase for the second time in as many days. The novelty of such an exit must disappear quickly for the locals, but for someone used to the organized monotony of the Montreal metro system, even this little bit of NYC Subway difference was interesting
Can you smell the rock Rob Ford is cooking?
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Johnny Scott Will DJ Your Party
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Vegan (No) Meat Balls
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Love, Sex ‘N Shit With Goofy Welldone
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Headhunters is an Effective, if Tone-Deaf, Crime Thriller
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