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Montreal, News

Montrealers gather for the third annual Women’s March to end violence against women

by Elizabeth Kearney on

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On Jan. 19, the Manif des Femmes Montréal, or Women’s March of Montreal, returned for a third year as part of the International Women’s March. Despite temperatures of negative 24 degrees celsius, Montrealers gathered at Place Émilie Gamelin to participate in a rally and take a collective stand against violence towards women.

The first march, held in 2017, was largely in response to Donald Trump’s inauguration and its impact on women’s rights globally. In 2018, the conversation shifted to the emerging #MeToo movement, focusing on those excluded from the conversation on sexual misconduct and recognizing the importance of diversity and equality within feminist movements. This year’s march continued to strive for intersectionality between movements while also expanding the discussion to include victims of domestic or systemic abuse.

Sarah Barone, one of the march’s organizers, reached out to local groups that work with survivors of violence to ensure that their testimonies were heard.

“At the marches this year, we will collectively put a foot down and bring awareness to the prevalence of violence in our communities,” Barone said. “We, in Montreal, are working to intersect this global discussion with our local advocacy groups, culture workers, and organizations that are out there in our community, everyday, trying to recognize what violence is and can be.”

Georgette Pascual, another organizer of the march, shared statistics about the disturbingly-high number of female victims of violence and noted the prevalence of abuse among the march’s attendees.  

“One out of three women experience violence in their lifetime,” Pascual said. “Raise your hand if you have been a victim of domestic or systematic violence, mental or emotional abuse, physical or verbal abuse, virtual abuse, financial abuse. Look around you. Each hand is one too many.”

The Native Women’s Association suggested that participants of the march wear a red scarf to raise awareness for the disproportionate violence that indigenous women and two-spirit peoples face in Canada. An assortment of handmade signs and dozens of red scarves populated the crowd. Laura Camille Cyr, a law student at the Université de Sherbrooke, explained her decision to don a scarf.

“Whilst the government says it’s trying to provide support, it’s not doing enough for these women, and, therefore, our show of solidarity today is crucial,” Cyr said.

Due to the unforgiving temperatures, organizers of the march suggested postponing it until a later, warmer date. A poll on Facebook, however, showed that an overwhelming majority voted to uphold the original plan and face the cold. Explaining her decision to march in spite of the low temperatures, Cyr expressed that women should strive for equality no matter the weather.

“We constantly say to the people around us that we are providing a voice for women’s rights, but we also have to match what we say with action, and today is no exception,” Cyr said. “The least we can do is to be out here in the cold for a few hours when women’s rights are being repressed.”

Reflecting on previous iterations of the march and thinking forward to next year, Barone highlighted the importance of continuing to expand the focus to include more women who have previously been excluded from the discussion on equality.

“That’s what’s great about shifting the conversation every year, you can open doors to more people in the community you didn’t know about and more people who can help us write more inclusive definitions of these words,” Barone said.

News, The Tribune Explains

The Tribune Explains: SSMU Budget

by Jacqueline Yao on

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Sometimes, while lamenting their tuition fees on Minerva, students learn that they also need to pay fees to the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU). Each undergraduate student pays a base membership fee, which varies according to their program and credit load, in addition to fees for the Society’s services, funding committee, insurance plans, and other miscellaneous benefits. SSMU’s General Manager Ryan Hughes, Comptroller Desmond Rodrigues, and the previous vice-president (VP) Finance Esteban Herpin drafted the 2018-2019 budget, which features a significant revenue decrease due to the University Building closure.

Where does SSMU’s revenue come from?

SSMU’s main source of revenue is the base membership fee paid by all undergraduate downtown campus students. The fees charged are scaled by inflation, and the overall base fee revenue depends on enrollment in the university. Due to an increase in total enrollment in Fall 2018, the projected revenue from base fees is $1,711,000 for the 2018-2019 academic year, a $33,000 increase from 2017-2018. Undergraduate students in the faculties of Law, Dentistry, and Medicine pay a base membership fee of $32.49 per term if they are enrolled for nine or more credits and $15.37 per term for fewer than nine credits. Students in all other programs pay $43.93 per term and $21.11 per term, respectively.

SSMU also usually generates revenue from Gert’s Campus Bar and space rentals for events in the University Building. However, with the SSMU building closure extending beyond the original Winter 2019 deadline, these sources of funding are currently unavailable.

How are funds allocated?

The majority of the base fee pays for administrative costs, which can be divided into three categories: General administration, information technology (IT), and executive administration departments. General administration expenses mostly go toward permanent staff salaries, while executive administration costs are mostly allocated to executive salaries. IT costs are mostly subscriptions for software such as Microsoft Office, Adobe Illustrator, and MailChimp.

For the 2018-19 year, SSMU allocated funds toward rental fees for student clubs and services previously housed in the University Building. TV McGill, Muslim Students Association, The McGill Tribune, The Daily Publication Society, and several other students clubs, groups, and services were moved into 2075 Robert Bourassa in March 2018. Starting in late January, SSMU will relocate most of them to 688 Sherbrooke, a building acquired by McGill in fall 2017, in order to save over $80,000. All other services and student clubs are now housed in 3471 Peel Street, a former MORE house. SSMU budgeted $26,000 for utilities and general maintenance for 3471 Peel Street and $275,000 for renting 2075 Robert Bourassa. Outside of club relocation, SSMU acquired 3501 Peel Street to provide SSMU resources; SSMU will pay for the building’s mortgage principal, taxes, and interest over 20 years through its Capital Expenditures Reserve Fund (CERF). SSMU withdraws money from CERF to fund maintenance, purchase capital assets, and cover other unanticipated financial losses.

SSMU events such as Faculty Olympics, Frosh, Activities Night, and Awards Banquet usually break even but may incur costs, which are then funded by the base fee. SSMU also receives sponsorships, usually from local restaurants and external companies, to bring in $25,000 in revenue to cover deficits in other programs.

What do the other SSMU student fees do?

SSMU services, funding committee, insurance plans, and other miscellaneous fees expire after a given period and must be renewed through referenda.

SSMU services, which include Midnight Kitchen and the Black Students’ Network, are student-run groups that provide all undergraduate students with resources and support. The annual budget for each service is drafted by its members and must be approved by SSMU Council.

The funding committee levies fees to provide student groups with financial support. As few groups apply for grants such as the Environment Fund and the First-Year Fund, there is often a surplus that rolls over to the next year. The funding committee also absorbs salaries for casual staff, such as club auditors and mental health commissioners.

L’Alliance pour la santé étudiante au Québec (ASEQ) is a health insurance agency that provides Quebec and out-of-province students with health-care services which the provincial healthcare plan does not cover. McGill’s International Student Services, rather than SSMU, administers the Blue Cross International Student Health Plan for international students.

McGill, Montreal, News

Demonstration of solidarity with Unist’ot’en camp on campus

by Laura Oprescu on

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Around 70 students and members of the Montreal community gathered at the Y-intersection on Jan. 14, joining tens of thousands across the country to show solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en First Nation’s fight against pipeline expansion in British Columbia (BC). Members of the Wet’suwet’en Nation have set up checkpoints along the proposed route of the Coastal GasLink pipeline, which would run through the BC interior across the territory of 20 indigenous bands. One of the checkpoints, the Unist’ot’en camp, garnered significant media attention after the RCMP arrested 14 protestors at the site on Jan. 7.

Although elected chiefs from the 20 bands have approved the pipeline, members of some nations have contended that this does not constitute sufficient consent from all of the indigenous peoples that will be affected by the pipeline project. Hereditary chiefs from the Wet’suwet’en Nation have publicly opposed the pipeline.

Ella Martindale, co-chair of the indigenous Student Alliance (ISA) at McGill and member of the Cowichan First Nation, emphasized that the protest was a demonstration against threats to indigenous sovereignty across Canada—not just an anti-pipeline protest.

“This demonstration should serve to acknowledge indigenous sovereignty over all else while standing strong against the imposed settler-colonial state that continues to cause harm to indigenous peoples and their land,” Martindale said.

Tomas Jirousek, member of the Kainai First Nation in Alberta and vocal advocate for the #ChangeTheName campaign on McGill’s campus, believes that the issue of sovereignty extends beyond the pipeline.

“This is about indigenous nations being sovereign,” Jirousek said. “This isn’t about a pipeline for us. This is about every indigenous nation having a right to decide for themselves, as sovereign people, as autonomous people […] what to do with their own territories.”

According to Jirousek, construction on indigenous lands without extensive consultation is a violation of consent and indigenous sovereignty.

“When this country was founded, we never gave up the right to be sovereign people, to maintain our own chiefs and councils, [or] to maintain our own ways of life,” Jirousek said. “So, this isn’t just about the pipeline. Some nations will support pipelines. Some won’t. But it isn’t for non-indigenous people to force something on us that we don’t want ourselves, and that’s what’s happening here.”

Nakuset, executive director of the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal and member of the Cree First Nation in Saskatchewan, urges anyone looking into the dispute to think critically about how consultations with indigenous peoples are conducted.

“What these big businesses have in mind is just meeting with a particular chief and then signing off on [the pipeline],” Nakuset said. “So, when people say ‘consultation,’ they better really look into what exactly happened at that table and who was at that table.”

According to Nakuset, Coastal GasLink is not considering the impact of the pipeline on future generations.

“There’s something called the seven generations, [which] is a prophecy where we don’t think about the next generation, but we think about how we’re going to keep this land in a good way for the next seven generations,” Nakuset said. “The people that want to build the pipeline are not thinking about that. They’re thinking about now and how they’re going to fill their pockets now.”

Nakuset explained that a clash of values is central to the conflict between corporations like Coastal GasLink and First Nations.

“Indigenous people are really concerned about the next seven generations, and this is the difference between our values as indigenous people and those that are more into the money,” Nakuset said. “The values are so completely different, and, if we don’t bow down to them, they find ways of pushing it forward.”

Out on the Town, Student Life

On the table: The five best sandwiches by McGill

by Gabriel Helfant on

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McGill students are constantly on the hunt for a convenient, affordable, and filling meal in between classes, and sandwiches always fit the bill. The McGill Tribune has compiled a list of the five best sandwiches near campus for when Subway starts to taste a bit bland.

Vua Bánh Mì

A great option for those on the east side of campus, Vua is a Vietnamese bánh mì sandwich shop one block south of the Le James Bookstore. Often, the staff can get customers in and out with a warm bánh mì in under five minutes. In addition to its speedy service and low prices, Vua also offers a great seating area perfect for a leisurely lunch. Yelp reviewers are quick to note that the only thing worth ordering are the sandwiches, while the rest of their menu is disappointing. Still, Vua offers a substantial meal that will not break the bank.

Rating: 4/5 stars 

Taste: 3/5 stars 

Cost: 4/5 stars 

Convenience: 5/5 stars

 

Super Sandwich

Despite its odd location at the counter of an understocked dépanneur, customers receive their orders in a flash. Diners can get some combination of deli meat topped with cheese and slathered in mayo and mustard, and piled high with tomatoes and lettuce. While this may not excite the average sandwich lover’s taste buds, it is a good alternative for students on a budget.  

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Taste: 3/5 stars 

Cost: 5/5 stars

Convenience: 4/5 stars 

 

Olly Fresco’s

While Olly Fresco’s is less convenient than other eateries on this list, hungry students willing to brave the cold will not be disappointed. This lunch spot, located in the St. Catherine pavillion in the underground city, is a popular space for the stressed Montreal business elite. This downtown deli is packed with a daily buffet, pasta bar, and a selection of soups. Students can leave with Lebanese, grilled, or wrapped sandwiches, all under 10 dollars. Tasty and budget-friendly, Olly Fresco’s is the ideal location for stir-crazy library-goers up for a short walk.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Taste: 5/5 stars

Cost: 4/5 stars

Convenience: 3/5 stars 

 

Joe’s Panini

This 24-hour sandwich joint serves up classic grilled sandwiches, which may not be creative, but are always well-made. Joe’s Panini is renowned for its spicy chicken sandwiches and late night eats. Every sandwich goes for just over five dollars, which makes up for the long walk. Recently, Joe’s Panini has appeared on popular food delivery apps, making their sandwiches more convenient than ever.  

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Taste: 4/5 stars

Cost: 4/5 stars

Convenience: 3/5 stars

 

Campo

Campo is a fast-food chicken shop that serves Portuguese-style chicken in every conceivable form: Sandwiches, poutine, salads, and wings. A grilled chicken sandwich goes for eight dollars and comes with a considerable amount of chicken on a crunchy bun. Located right next to Peel metro station in the heart of the downtown area, the restaurant is located relatively close to campus. While it may not be the most economical choice, Campo is one of the best sandwiches on this list and offer a variety of lunch options.

Rating= 3.5/5 stars

Taste: 5/5 stars

Cost: 2/5 stars

Convenience: 3/5 stars

 

Out on the Town, Student Life

Montreal by Metro: Blue Line Edition

by Miguel Principe and Janine Xu on

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Seldom travelled by most McGill students because it does not bypass the McGill area, the blue line presents a unique opportunity to explore Montreal outside its downtown core. From bakery hopping to circuses, the blue line offers a variety of activities to overcome the winter blues.

Snowdon

Though downtown Montreal doesn’t offer many fast food options, one of Montreal’s three Wendy’s locations is situated footsteps away from this bustling station. Students craving the nostalgic taste of an ice-cold Frosty or a Baconator burger can make the trek to this stop on the blue line. Nearby is another fast-food staple, the world-famous Gibeau Orange Julep. Dubbed ‘Big Orange’ by locals, this globe-shaped fast-food restaurant specializes in cheap, greasy comfort food such as hot dogs and poutine. However, it is most famous for its orange milkshake, a treat that tastes like a melted orange creamsicle. In the summer, Orange Julep also hosts vintage cars and motorcycles in its parking lot every Wednesday.

Côte-des-Neiges

Upon exiting Côte-des-Neiges station, head to Saint Joseph’s Oratory on Queen Mary Road. Originally a small chapel founded by Saint André Bessette in 1904, the historic site was transformed into a monumental basilica between 1924 and 1967. Particularly noteworthy to visitors is the museum’s fifth floor, which houses a collection of sacred art and seasonal exhibitions. Until March 19, the museum is hosting an exhibition entitled, In Search of the Lost Me and Meaning, a display by Élisabeth Eudes-Pascal, which comments on the themes of identity.  Additionally, the Oratory presents NOUVELLEGENERATION.ORGUE, a weekly concert series that showcases young, up-and-coming composers every Sunday afternoon.

De Castelnau

The De Castelnau station is located at the intersection of beloved party avenue, St. Laurent Boulevard and the Mile-Ex neighbourhood. A former industrial district transformed by young artists, the area around the station has recently attracted a unique nightlife scene. The most notable venue in the neighborhood is Bar Le Ritz P.D.B., which hosts a variety of weekly events ranging from concerts to themed dance parties. Meanwhile, those in search of a relaxing night out can venture to Salle Miss Villeray. While their classic bar grub and alcoholic beverages are pricey, the sophisticated and warm wood-furnished atmosphere is worth the splurge. Be sure to visit on a Sunday when the staff organize weekly quiz nights.

Saint-Michel

Located in suburban Montreal, Saint-Michel is a hub for circus arts. In recent decades, the nearby Parc Frédéric-Back has hosted renowned talents, including the Circus Arts City TOHU, Cirque du Soleil, and the National Circus School. In addition to the acrobatic  performances and workshops held year round, the area hosts annual summer festivals, including the Montreal Cirque Festival and Montréal Complètement Cirque. While in the area, be sure to explore the park grounds, a former landfill and quarry that has been transformed into a public space dedicated to environmental preservation.

The Saint-Michel area, known as Little Maghreb, is home to thousands of immigrants from Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco—the first such neighbourhood in North America. Among the culinary standouts in the area is La Table Fleurie d’Algerie, a gourmet pastry shop that serves North African treats such as baklava, Algerian makrout cookies, and mint tea.

Know Your Athlete, Martlets, Soccer, Sports

Know Your Athlete: Tia Lore

by Kaja Surborg on

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Fourth-year Martlet winger Tia Lore is at a pivotal point in her athletic career. With only one season of McGill soccer left, Lore is both reflecting on her time as a student athlete and looking ahead to her post-university future. But before her career in university athletics, the Richmond, British Columbia native grew up surrounded by sports.

“My parents were very pro-sport,” Lore said in an interview with The McGill Tribune. “They just wanted me to be in everything, so I did quite a few sports growing up.”

It was the close, unique team dynamic, however, that compelled Lore to stick with soccer.

“I had great teams growing up, so I was lucky,” Lore said. “It’s a second family, and it really helps you get through things because it’s like you’re all living the same life.”

When it came to finding a school where she could continue her soccer career, at first, McGill wasn’t even on Lore’s radar. But, after her coach convinced her to visit the school, the team dynamic won her over.

“The team was just so welcoming and so caring,” Lore said. “They were interested in me and what I wanted to do [….] At the other schools, the teams seemed more competitive than cohesive, whereas, here, you could just tell it was a family.”

During her time at McGill, Lore’s role on the team has evolved. Although she doesn’t wear the captain’s armband, she still tries to be a team leader through her work ethic on and off the field.  

“I’ve definitely taken on more over the years with leadership roles on the team,” Lore said. “My involvement on the team has grown because, in first year, you’re still transitioning a lot.”

Lore recalled some of the challenges of her own transition from high school to university and how her time at McGill has helped her develop as a leader.

“[At first], even just being at every practice was a lot,” Lore said. “I’m definitely more involved now that I’m better at managing my time, so I do more. You get to know how things run and how much time you need for things. I also started to figure out what I did and didn’t enjoy at school.”

A sociology major with a minor in communication studies, Lore has a wide variety of interests for her post-graduation plans.

“I think I want to do some kind of event planning,” Lore said. “This year, I’m president of varsity council, which is planning a lot of events for student athletes and creating opportunities for them, which I really enjoy.”

As much as she has enjoyed her time with the Martlets, enduring another Montreal winter after graduation is not part of Lore’s plan.

“I could see myself working in an athletics department at another university because I’m so closely tied to it right now, just not in this cold,” Lore said. “Maybe the University of Hawaii is hiring.”

Since starting to play soccer, Lore has also seen the women’s game grow in Canada.

“I [used to] just go to soccer, play soccer, and not really hear about it,” Lore said. “With the World Cup coming [up] and seeing all these other university teams, […] you realize how big [the sport] is and how much bigger it can be.”

McGill’s Women in Sport initiative has played a part in giving women’s sports at McGill the resources they need to raise the level of the game for female athletes.

“They’re really trying to emphasize women in sports, which I think is awesome,” Lore said. “Getting women to realize that they’re just as important [as male athletes] is huge.”

In the 2018 season, Lore scored the goal that secured McGill’s spot in the RSEQ playoffs, and, throughout her time with the Martlets, has made significant contributions to the team and the greater soccer community. To cap off this season, she was presented with the 2018 RSEQ Leadership and Citizenship Award for her efforts, including a program supporting the development of soccer in Paraguay for young girls that she worked on as the president of the McGill Varsity Council.

Lore has made her mark at McGill and will, undoubtedly, do the same wherever she chooses to go next.

Basketball, Martlets, Sports

Martlet basketball falls short against Concordia

by Théo Farineau on

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On Jan. 19, the McGill Martlets (4-3) basketball team faced the second-ranked team in the country, the Concordia Stingers (7-2). Unfortunately, the Martlets could not come out on top in their annual Shoot for the Cure game, part of a national fundraiser to help fight breast cancer. The Stingers, both more aggressive and more consistent in their efforts, emerged victorious 59-47.

McGill never led during the game, even once trailing by 21 points. The Martlet offence struggled despite fourth-year transfer centre Sirah Diarra’s 14 point contribution, including four three-pointers.

The Stingers came into the game with a higher intensity than the Martlets, eager to avenge their loss to McGill just two days prior on Jan. 17. That energy mismatch showed in the first quarter of action, as Concordia started on a 10-0 run over the first five minutes. Ultimately, the Stingers built a 13-point lead by the end of the quarter.

“When you beat number two in the country [Concordia], they’re gonna come back hungry,” Head Coach Ryan Thorne said. “We didn’t have the same hunger, and they showed why they are that [highly] ranked in the country. They’re a good team, well-coached, and they play with fire. We didn’t play with the same fire.”

Diarra agreed that both teams were definitely still feeling the effect of their earlier showdown.

“I think there was a lot of emotion from the game we played on Thursday, and it took us a minute to put our head in the game,” Diarra said. “Toward the end of the first quarter, we started to get ourselves together, and that’s when we started scoring and reducing the deficit.”

The Martlets picked up the pace in the second quarter and scored almost twice as much as they had in the first, yet the Stingers continued to dominate. Concordia’s lead reached 20 points halfway through the second quarter, due in part to McGill’s lack of aggression on defense. By the end of the game, the Stingers had a 38-27 edge in rebounds.

The third quarter saw more of the same, with McGill’s deficit hovering around 20 points throughout the frame. Even when two three-pointers from Diarra in two minutes gave the Martlets some momentum, the Stingers retaliated immediately to preserve their lead.

However, the Martlets did not give up easily. In the fourth quarter, some important defensive stands—notably a crowd-pleasing block by first-year forward Shayann Laguerre—helped the Martlets cut their deficit back to a mere nine points, with three minutes to play. Even with the strong Martlet effort, the Stingers held on to their lead and came away with a 59-47 victory.

Despite the loss, fourth-year guard Gladys Hakizimana felt confident in the team’s ability to gain some momentum and finish out the rest of their season strong.

“We need to communicate more and pay attention to the details from the start, so it doesn’t cost us in the end,” she said. “From there, we should be in a good position.”

The Martlets will try to bounce back from the tough loss with two consecutive games against the Bishop’s Gaiters (2-8), first on Jan. 24 at Love Competition Hall for Beach Night, then on Jan. 26 in Gaiters’ territory.

Moment of the Game 

Shayann Laguerre showed her unrelenting spirit, blocking a Stingers’ attempt for the basket in the fourth quarter, giving hope to her teammates and to the McGill crowd when a come back still seemed possible.

Quotable 

“It’s a special game because we are all women, and it gives us a great opportunity to play for an important cause.” -Gladys Hakizimana on playing to raise funds for breast cancer awareness.

Stat Corner 

The Martlets came out cold, shooting a paltry 12.5 per cent from the field during the first quarter.

Art, Arts & Entertainment, Theatre

Dance takes center stage at the MAC

by Jonathan Giammaria on

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On Jan. 11, the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (MAC) held a series of events as part of their current Françoise Sullivan retrospective, including a panel and a separate exhibition. Aptly titled the Dance and Visual Arts Study Day, the MAC invited a host of educators, artists, and theorists to share their ideas on the role of dance within the realm of the visual arts. Montreal-born artist Françoise Sullivan, whose own work has famously combined film and dance, was in the audience, giving the presenters the opportunity to reflect on the icon’s influence on their own works. Among Sullivan’s better-known pieces is the watershed work Danse dans la neige, a 1948 film that features the artist dancing in different seasonal landscapes.

During the first presentation, the panelists explored dance’s uncanny inclusion in the context of the exhibition. Given the multidisciplinary backgrounds of the collaborators, it came as no surprise that their approaches vastly differed from one another.

Flutura Preka and Besnik Haxhillari, the performance artists comprising The Two Gullivers group, discussed their neologism “performography”, which refers to the role that dance takes on in the context of the exhibit: The designer is tasked with creating a comprehensible whole from a string of separate and mutable pieces.

Meanwhile, Simon Grenier-Poirier, a conceptual researcher with a broad focus on relational art, and Dorian Nuskind-Oder, a choreographer and performer, shifted their focus to the audience’s dynamic role in the exhibition. During a traditional theatre experience the audience is stationary, whereas, much like a dancer, an exhibit viewer is able to move through the designated artistic space. Unlike a theatre, a museum does not limit the audience’s focus, instead allowing the surrounding art to contextualize the dance within the accompanying exhibit. These reflections were particularly striking for audience members, informing them of how they might alternatively experience the conference, which itself took place in a room that featured some of Sullivan’s work.

In a second talk, artist and educator Paul-André Fortier discussed his own views on the subject. Fortier expressed a conflicted attitude toward the fleeting temporality of dance. On the one hand, he lamented the fact that all of his performance existed only in the moment during which they unfolded on stage. On the other hand, he remarked that any wishes to index dance, such as a museum’s attempts through photography or video, would strip it of its spontaneity, framing recording as an affront to the body’s ability to create something irreproducible.

It seems impossible to reconcile the ephemera of dance with the static nature of traditional visual art. By the end of the panel, however, each contributor’s eclectic ideas harkened back to a common concern—dance as a dynamic artform. Whether through the perspective of time, place, or person each talk presented dance as a visual art that stresses the processes  of motion and change.

 

Out on the Town, Student Life

Luminothérapie lights up Quartier des Spectacles

by Gabriela McGuinty on

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Walking around Montreal in the winter can be lonely. In an effort to bridge the gap between the city’s residents during the season, Le Quartier des Spectacles put on its ninth edition of Luminothérapie, Quebec’s largest public art competition. Local design agency Ingrid Ingrid is behind this year’s winner, Effet Domino, an installation composed of 120 giant, coloured musical dominos. The work conjures a sense of community by encouraging collaboration among strangers during the winter season.

In their work, Ingrid Ingrid attempts to create art that engages the public. To that end, the firm designed installations that work to unite people and celebrate the beauty in human interaction.

“At Ingrid Ingrid, […] our activities are very often directed [toward interactive] activities […] and working with content in a public space,” Geneviève Levasseur, founder of Ingrid Ingrid and creative director of the installation, said. “We wanted to not [do] something in a traditional park because there [are] a lot of projects like that, which are very good, and we just wanted to do another thing.”

Effet Domino invites the public to play with a set of 10 dominos which guests can rearrange into fun, creative patterns. Each set of dominoes illuminates and erupts with musical sounds when players topple them over. According to Levasseur, the project encourages cooperation among participants.

“We realize that [playing dominos] is a very solo game, but, when we play with it [on] a large scale, it becomes something [that is made easier and more fun when] we work together,” Levasseur said.

Bringing together families and university students at the epicentre of Montreal’s art community, the interactive component of the project makes it attractive to curious minds no matter their age. According to visitors, the exhibition has been successful in forming bonds with strangers.

“[Effet Domino] brings, especially in this neighbourhood [that is] made for people to come and enjoy culture, […] diversion and [distract them from the cold],” Maelle Jacqmarcq, U2 Political Science, said. “Since it’s a community piece, the ‘domino effect’ [can be interpreted as] bringing [everyone] together. If one person is happy, [then] multiple people can be happy.”

Effet Domino highlights the interconnectedness of a community while accentuating the hidden beauty of the neighbourhood. The public can visit and interact with the dominos until Jan. 27. During this run, Levasseur hopes that the exhibit will encourage passers-by to create memories with the strangers around them.

“[Participants are] laughing, [they] use it [in ways that we had not envisioned],” Levasseur said. “It’s very important for me to [do justice to the] the optimistic vision of the project [….I want people to take away that] when you do something and you need help, there [are] other people there for you. I think it’s a subtle message, but, subconsciously, it works very well.”

Album Reviews, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Fired up with Fireball Kid

by Dylan Adamson on

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Just over halfway through Fireball Kid’s “Be Friends” (with Magi Merlin, Ura Star, and Big Friends) a distorted guitar solo rips through the production. Sparkly pop textures, autotuned falsetto verses, and Magi Merlin’s lush, commanding hook suddenly fall off, and, for a second, it sounds like someone tripped over a cord. Out of nowhere, this shimmering, SoundCloud object becomes oddly physical. Just as quickly as this uncanny revelation hits, though, Fireball Kid reassembles his toolkit, and the guitar riff is cleaned up, looped, and inserted neatly back into the beat.

“I used to play in bands, little baby boy bands, through our teen years,” Fireball Kid, otherwise known as Colin Ratchford, said in an interview with The McGill Tribune. “Then, I got all edgy and bitter because we played in so many for so long and I was all like ‘Man, guitars are over. Guitars are done.’”

“Be Friends” is the second track from Fireball Kid’s previous EP, Speedrun, released at the end of last August. On Jan. 20, alongside his best friends and close collaborators Ura Star and DvD, Fireball Kid celebrated the release of Starfire. Though the project bears only Ura Star’s and Fireball Kid’s names, Ratchford insists that all three friends contributed equally. Stepping onstage after a slew of openers from all corners of Montreal’s pop scene, including Margo and Magi Merlin, as well as Rare DM, a touring artist from New York City, the trio opened with “Be Friends,” an ode to the awe inspiring power of friendship, guitars, and beat pads.

“We made beats for a few years, and I was like ‘I wanna put some guitars on this,’” Ratchford said. “Like, I want to subvert using guitars. But it’s not a subversion at all, it’s just, like, good pop music where I’m not scared to use all the tools at our disposal.”

If the gnarly solo tearing “Be Friends” in half indicated a shift in Fireball Kid’s approach to music production, Starfire finds him and Ura Star straddling these superficial boundaries in bold, cowboy-like fashion (“I’m a heartsick cowboy,” he croons on “Whole Body Mood”). They followed “Be Friends” with “Starcross,” Starfire’s opening track, which features real drums, bass, guitar, and an unmistakably pop-punk lyrical flare. But, in Fireball Kid’s energized landscape, these archetypes are teeming with new possibilities by virtue of their unification. He and Ura Star pepper their lyrics with images of cowboys alongside dancers alongside wrestlers.

“Our vision of a cowboy has nothing to do with what cowboys are supposedly all about,” Ratchford said. “Cowboys are people who are honest about their feelings. They are open with people. Cowboys cry. They tell their friends they love them. Cowboys pick up a flower and smell it once and then shed a single tear. A cowboy is whatever you want it to be as long as you’re open with yourself and true to yourself. Same with a dancer. All cowboys and dancers are kind of interchangeable for me. A cowboy would fight you, as would a dancer, if you fucked with their friends.”

As tempting as it is to term Ratchford’s music “Boybandcamp” (or “ROCKHampton” as he called it in our interview), Fireball Kid and Ura Star aren’t trying to build a metaphorical bridge between Bandcamp and SoundCloud. For Ratchford, honesty, earnestness, friendship, collaboration, and good, fun pop music can overcome any boundaries.

“Pop is just fun, that’s it,” Ratchford said. “It’s pop because it gets you goin’. It gets you fired up. I just want to write a fun, happy, pure song. I think at its most peak and distilled form, pop is just going to be fun.”

Starfire is available on Apple Music, Spotify, and SoundCloud.

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