CFXU fills the venue vacuum

A review of Pat LePoidevin, Babette Hayward, and Doug MacNearney

Recently, the StFX Art Gallery has proven to be useful for much more than visual art. Throughout the year, it has been developed by the staff at the campus radio station, CFXU (the Fox), into one of the most frequently used venues in town for music. Just this past week, two shows were held there, both hosted by the Fox: Tanya Davis and Pat LePoidevin. Davis was featured in the spoken word event on Tuesday, while LePoidevin headlined a show the last Friday. It certainly isn’t the acoustics that draws...

In sickness and onstage

Married folk duo tour Atlantic Canada

If you’ve lived in Antigonish for the past couple years and are into music, you may have heard the name ‘Bette and Wallet’ tossed around. The foot-stompin,’ bass pluckin,’ banjo-ticklin,’ French and English howlin’ duo (pronounced ‘Bet and Wall-et’) consists of Antigonish native Mary Beth Carty – spawn of the great Ed Carty – and Gabriel Ouellette of Portneuf, Quebec. And they rock hard. Bette and Wallet have been a band for four years now, with one album under their belt and a sophomore release on the way. With songs...

Reel style

How fashion and film create inspiration

When a costume designer for a movie is choosing what clothing will be incorporated into that movie, the characters being portrayed are the inspiration. If the character is a down-and-out musician, he is put in a tattered jean jacket and dark sunglasses. If she is a princess on her day off, she is put in a blouse and full skirt that fit perfectly. These outfits are chosen to enhance the character, but they often serve a second purpose in inspiring the movie’s audience. Fashion is an integral part of movies,...

Rokos and Creighton deliver stunning performance

Another brilliant performance from the Antigonish Performing Arts Series

Saturday night at the Antigonish Performing Arts Series started off well with a breathtaking performance from harpist Karen Rokos and flutist Patricia Creighton. With a selection of classical and modern pieces, these world-renowned musicians left the audience with a musical experience unlike any other. An opening performance of variations of the traditional Green Sleeves set spectators up for a night of soothing melodies. After several lush movements from famous composers, we had the privilege of listening to each musician perform solo. Creighton chose a modern piece that was written to...

The F- Word and its detractors

Why won’t young people call themselves feminists?

“Being” a feminist is something we rhyme off without thinking, but this statement deserves a bit more analysis. “Being” implies one’s essential nature or characters, and feminism truly is a deeply rooted ideology for many, something they cannot separate from everyday life. Feminism is not superficial and yet we often treat it as something that can be “read” off certain ‘radical’ individuals, who conform blindly to a feminist manifesto. At the beginning of the year I had a rather memorable conversation with a guy at the Inn. During the generic...

Then and now in Pictou County

Daewoo bid is a chance to redeem mistakes of the past

Toxic Lagoon In 1967, when the pulp and paper mill at Abercrombie Point in Pictou County opened, it was hailed as a major victory for the community. It created 300 permanent jobs that would stimulate the local economy and would increase forestry activities in northern Nova Scotia at the same time. It did come with one catch, however, that was hidden from the residents of the county and the Mi’kmaq reservation on whose land the effluent would be treated. The effluent from the milling process, completely untreated, would be dumped...

Reality blows

How real is The Hurt Locker?

Kathryn Bigelow’s 2009 film The Hurt Locker won the top honors at the Academy Awards for its white-knuckled portrayal of bomb disposal technicians in Iraq. The film has been heralded for its realism and accurate depiction of real bomb disposal techniques, but it has recently come under criticism from real-life bomb experts who say that the film was mostly Hollywood nonsense. The film depicts a team of bomb disposal technicians on the last days of their tour of duty in 2004. After the original team leader is killed in an...

Speaking our minds

Tanya Davis’ StFX performance a non-traditional poetry experience

Spoken word, while a form of poetry, falls into a genre all its own. It is poetry that is meant to be performed, not bound into a book. It is a way for poets to play with the sounds they use, to feed off of their audience, to read aloud their thoughts in a way that feels natural to them. On Tuesday, March 16, CFXU hosted the Spoken Word Night at the StFX Art Gallery, featuring Tanya Davis. Poetry readings are stereotypically lofty and pretentious, but this evening of expression...

What’s the current legal status of marijuana in Canada?

Legalization activist speaks about the politics of pot

As one of the country's foremost marijuana legalization activists, Dana Larsen knows the score when it comes to pot laws in Canada. He's been involved in the marijuana debate in various capacities: as a politician, an entrepreneur, and as editor of the alternative magazine, Cannabis Culture, alongside Canada's 'prince of pot,' Marc Emery. His most recent project has been the publication of a parody called Hairy Pothead and the Marijuana Stone, a sequel to which will be released in the near future. Larsen’s formal entry into Canadian politics was as...

Nymphomaniacs and Satyriasis and Tigers, Oh My!

Is sex addiction merely a sexy excuse for being horny?

The most interesting part of Tiger Woods’ latest escapades? The plethora of puns his name enables, “Tiger: Lion Cheetah” being amongst the most used. While the term “interesting” is used, at best, lightly to describe these headlines, my interest peaks at bad jokes, and falls considerably short when talking about Woods’ actions. Woods stated in his apology speech to the public that he believes many issues surrounding his extra-marital affairs are between him and his wife, and not to be aired on a public stage. I personally have no great...

Does Photoshop sell lies as the truth?

Human beings still revere photography as capturing the truth. In courtrooms, photographs are used as evidence as to whether an event occurred or not and in some cases can mean the difference between a verdict of guilty or innocent. But in today’s digital age, with increasingly powerful photo manipulation tools at our disposal, the truth of photographic images is that they are anything but reliable. Adobe Photoshop is the leading graphics editing program used by professionals and amateurs worldwide to modify the images they are working with, either by adding...

In all thy spawn's command?

This year’s culture section has been heavy with feminist ideas and arguments. I don’t always agree with them, but it’s important to have an open dialogue in this kind of media. Therefore, consider this my counter-argument. Last week’s throne speech brought up, among the usual economic imperatives, the perceived need to gender-neutralize the national anthem. Whether or not the inclusion of this proposal in the throne speech was simply a political move meant to distract news editors from the budget, by inserting some media-friendly controversy in the middle of an...

Rebirth on the runway

Trends for spring

Melting snow, longer days, and new life are signs that it’s time to ditch the winter blues and get ready for spring. The latter, when it comes to your wardrobe, makes spring 2010 a little ironic. Each of the trends for the coming season is basically an amped-up regurgitation of last spring. While this may be boring for fashion writers, bloggers and photographers, to the wearer it means digging up your best stuff from last year instead of digging cash out of your likely shallow pockets. Despite this convenience, beware....

Burlesque at the Bauer

Dances of the Dead this Saturday

“It’s pretty radical for Antigonish,” describes Delia Macpherson, a native of Antigonish and second year journalism and theatre student at Halifax’s King’s College. Macpherson is also head choreographer, director, and writer of Bang Bang Burlesque’s upcoming show, Dances of the Dead. Whether or not the show is too radical for our small town remains to be seen, but it must be admitted that it is not a term often ascribed to an event in Antigonish outside of Frosh Week. The show, to be held twice at the Bauer Saturday, March...

Word Art in the Gallery

Tanya Davis to headline spoken word event

Halifax-based poet and musician Tanya Davis will be performing at an event this Thursday at the StFX Art Gallery. Hosted by the English society in conjunction with Radio CFXU, the event will feature a variety of poets, both student and local, alongside Davis, and will also feature an open mic space at the end of the show. The intimate venue will host Davis for the second time. Her first was last March when she stunned the audience with a heartfelt solo set. Davis, originally from Prince Edward Island, was named...