Getting back into the swing of things in the Winter term can be hard after a relaxing holiday break, but it’s even harder if you’ve resolved to be healthy this year. Around New Year’s, after a holiday season of sugary desserts and multiple course meals, a common resolution students make is to get their health back on track. Unfortunately, this is easier said than done. When school starts to get busy again, it’s easy to let those resolutions fall by the wayside. Breakfast can quickly transition from a healthy balanced meal, to a greasy breakfast sandwich from whatever café is closest to the first class of the morning. The key to keeping resolutions past the first week of school is making them sustainable. This green smoothie is simple, takes less than three minutes, and can be carried on the go. It’s not laden with insanely healthy ingredients like spirulina or kale, but it is straightforward and easy to keep making when things get hectic. Although a smoothie might seem meagre for breakfast, the peanut butter and chia seeds make this ‘green monster’ filling and will keep hunger at bay until lunchtime. With two servings of fruits and vegetables, this smoothie checks all of the health boxes, and will make keeping New Year’s resolutions a little bit easier.
Ingredients
1 cup of almond milk or other non-dairy milk
1 cup of spinach
1 large ripe frozen banana, chopped into chunks
1 tablespoon of almond butter or peanut butter
1 tablespoon of chia seeds
A pinch of ground cinnamon
Directions
Place all of the ingredients in a blender, with spinach on the bottom. Blend for 30 seconds or until smooth.
In the early days of 2016, refugees have dominated the news cycle in much of the world. While in the United States, most Republican politicians seem to be arguing over the best plan to keep refugees out, up North the discussion is the opposite. Canadians are wondering why only 6,000 of the 10,000 refugees promised by Trudeau—a number already lowered from the previous 25,000 refugee target—have made it into our country.
This has largely been seen as a failure on the part of the Liberal government, either because it fell short of its pledge or because it made a promise that it knew they could not keep; however, while criticism is being levelled against the only policy of the new government that has already achieved concrete results no one seems to be talking about how the government is going to fulfill the other promises the Liberals have made: Marijuana legalization, electoral reform, and the inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women. The Canadian public and media must light a fire beneath the government when it fails to deliver on domestic policy in addition to any perceived shortcomings in humanitarian responses.
An earlier article for the Tribune discussed the limitations of political pledges, with specific focus on Trudeau’s pledge to admit 25,000 refugees by the end of 2015. One of the main points was that the fixation on a certain target overshadows long-term policy, policy that would perhaps be more beneficial to the cause. This same logic can be used to debunk the argument that falling short of the 10,000 refugee goal is a political breakdown that requires a response from the government. Though this is a setback, in no way should it be seen as a failure.
Of all the promises that the prime minister and the Liberal Party made during the campaign, accepting refugees is the only one that has actually had concrete results so far.
Of all the promises that the prime minister and the Liberal Party made during the campaign, accepting refugees is the only one that has actually had concrete results so far. Over 6,000 refugees have been accepted, and, although the timeframe for admittance has been revised, there is no sign that the government is planning on altering the substance of its refugee policy. The campaign to legalize marijuana is only in its infancy, with the two secretaries to the Minister of Justice who will handle the case only being named last month. On top of that, both election reform and an inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women have only been discussed vaguely. Despite this, it is the failure to meet the 10,000 refugee target that has received the most attention.
This is not to completely excuse the government from breaking its promise. The Liberal party pledged to bring 25,000 refugees by the end of 2015. Although the pledge was unrealistic, the policy has yielded results. Refugees are coming to Canada and will continue to do so in 2016. It is time to move on from the fact that not quite as many refugees got to Canada by the end of 2015 as we would have hoped. Trudeau and the Liberals made that promise as outsiders without a full understanding of the political and logistical realities that they would encounter once actually faced with bringing 25,000 refugees to Canada.
Yes, it is now 2016. No, there have not been 10,000—let alone 25,000—refugees admitted into Canada. Trudeau deserves some flak for that. But there are over 6,000 refugees of the Syrian crisis who have been brought to Canada since the new government formed, and more are on the way. Meanwhile, none of the other promises that the government made seem any closer to reality than the day they were announced. Let’s stop nitpicking the time and numbers on which the promises that the Liberals are actually starting to deliver, and begin to question them about the ones that they are not.
Zachary Carson is a fourth year joint honours political science and international development student. He enjoys listening to Canadaland podcasts, watching Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, and dogs.
Last year was an exciting year in space. In 2015, the Dawn orbiter visited the dwarf planet Ceres, scientists photographed the surface of Pluto in unprecedented detail, and Matt Damon even got stuck in spaceagain. But knowing what’s already happened is easy—it’s predicting the future that’s hard. But that doesn’t stop scientists from trying. Here are the astronomical and astrophysical events scheduled and predicted to occur in 2016.
Total solar eclipse
What: The moon will pass directly between the Earth and the Sun, completely obscuring it and casting a dark shadow.
When: March 9, 2016
Where: The event will be visible from much of the Pacific Ocean, as well as most of Asia and Australia, who will only see a partial eclipse.
Annular solar eclipse
What: Solar eclipses usually come in pairs due to interactions between orbits. About 177 days after an eclipse on the southern intersection of the orbit will be another eclipse on the northern intersection. This will not be a total eclipse, but rather an annular (ring-like) one, as the sun will still be visible as a bright ring around the edges of the moon.
When: Sept. 1, 2016
Where: Visible from almost anywhere in Africa.
The ExoMars trace gas orbiter
What: A probe designed to search for trace amounts of methane and other gases that are signs of organic activity. It will be launched by the European Space Agency and Russia’s Roscosmos.
When: March 14, 2016 The launch was originally planned for Jan. 7, but was delayed due to technical reasons.
Where: Mars
First partial lunar eclipse
What: As the moon will pass through the Earth’s penumbra, but not its umbra (i.e., if you were standing on the moon, you would see the Earth block part of the sun, but not all of it), the event is not a total eclipse, but will be striking, and visible from Canada.
When: March 23, 2016
Where: Visible to the naked eye from most of the world except Europe and Africa.
Second partial lunar eclipse
When: Sept. 16, 2016
Where: Visible from anywhere except the Americas.
Transit of Mercury
What: A planetary transit occurs when a planet passes directly between the Earth and the Sun, and shows up as a black dot on heliograph plates (like a solar eclipse, it is harmful to observe with the naked eye).
What: The Juno spacecraft is a NASA research probe which will offer new data on Jupiter’s history and makeup using microwave radiation as a sort of lower-frequency radar.
When: The probe is scheduled to arrive on July 4, 2016. It was launched in August of 2011 and is expected to provide useful information well into 2017.
Where: The orbit around Jupiter
Perseid meteor shower
What: One of the most striking and visible meteor showers, easily viewable because of its frequency (about a meteor per minute) and brightness. The spectacle occurs when the Earth passes through the debris trail of the Swift-Tuttle comet, which orbits the sun every 133 years, and the meteoroids burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere. The meteors have been referred to as “The Tears of Saint Lawrence.”
When: August 12 to 13, 2016
Where: Anywhere, but ideally in a grassy park, at night, far from city light pollution.
China builds FAST
What: The behemoth Five hundred meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), when completed, will be the largest and most precise radio telescope in the world. It is similar to the famous Arecibo Observatory in design, but will greatly surpass the South American telescope in ability.
When: Slated to be complete by September 2016 (construction began in 2011).
Where: The Tai Wo Taipa depression, a karst depression—a type of large natural basin—in Guizhou Province, China.
The November 2015 revision to the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Global budget, approved on Nov. 30, 2015, reflected changes from SSMU’s earlier financial plan approved this past June. The largest changes were seen in the Student Fees and University Centre Operations sections of the revision.
A difference of over $55,000 between the June and November budgets can be seen in the Student Fees department, with SSMU noting that revenue from fees was initially estimated conservatively and ended up generating more funds than predicted. The updated budget projects approximately $1.77 million in revenue from total student fees in the 2015-2016 academic year.
Administrative fees also saw a significant drop from the June budget, from $1.36 million to $1.35 million. This is due to a decrease in salary expenses following the resignation of the building director, the general manager (GM), and the SSMU Vice-President (VP) Internal. This change is only around $7,000 because of an increase in paid student staff to offset the effects of the permanent staff resignations.SSMU also spent $17,000 in GM recruitment and $5,000 in legal fees.
University Centre Operations is budgeted at $371,644, more than 60,000 more than SSMU projected in June. This is due in part to increased expenditures of materials and supplies, as well as maintenance costs, such as the repairs on the ramp to the main entrance of the SSMU Building. Under this portfolio, increases in both Gerts’ profits and security costs are stated to be the result of the accounting change. Due to the fact that security costs are no longer charged to Gerts, the bar saw an increase in profits while security showed an increase in expenses.
Additionally, the president’s portfolio is budgeted at $3,576 more than in the previous budget, following the establishment of the Family Care department at McGill. This sum of money will be used in the planning of orientation events for student parents, and undergraduate membership in the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) Study Sundays program, a monthly event for student parents to study and receive free childcare.
SSMU reported a negative $22,000 change in the Food and Beverage Operations Department, mostly due to budgeting of the Student-Run Cafe (SRC). Prior to the revision, the Cafe was budgeted as if it had reached full sales potential right after its opening. The SRC reported a decrease in food sales revenue by approximately $90,000 net of food cost and salaries.
The VP Internal’s portion of the budget review states that the 2015-2016 Old McGill Yearbook is not predicted to run a deficit. This is attributed to a plan for the Yearbook to be covered by a separate fund or be published online.
Is this one of the tightest RSEQ regular season hockey races in recent memory?
“Absolutely,” Head Coach Peter Smith said after McGill’s hard fought 1-2-shootout loss to Montreal on Sunday in McConnell Arena.
The first place Montreal Carabins (8-3-1) are only two points ahead of the third place McGill Martlets (7-3-1)—the two teams are separated by the Ottawa Gee Gee’s (8-4-0).
In a gritty, low-scoring performance, McGill outshot Montreal 38-33, and converted on one of their three power plays. Montreal opened the scoring in the first period, with McGill sophomore forward Marie Philip-Lavoie retaliating with a score seven minutes into the second period.
“I think it’s two real good teams and I think the game […] was indicative of that,” Smith said. “It was two teams playing hard, and playing fast. It was, all in all, a good game.”
It is a testament to both teams’ excellent defence that neither scored until Montreal won in the shootout. Both teams were also stuck in a stalemate in the first overtime period.
“As a team we defend very well,” Smith said, “We play well in our own end, we defend the rush well. I think all six players on the ice have a real good focus on that. I would not consider us to be a defensive team, but we are defensively sound.“
McGill could not get it done in the shootout, however. Marion Allemoz of the Carabins was the only player out of four able to score, while the martlets missed all of their shots.
“I think we are disappointed with our performance in the shootout,” Smith said. “But it’s not like we don’t work at it, and we’ll get better at it.”
McGill beat the Concordia Stingers (3-7-2) 5-2 on Friday at McConnell Arena, earlier in the week. Senior centre Melodie Daoust, fresh from captaining Canada to a gold at the Nations Cup tournament in Germany, had two assists and a goal just six hours after returning to Canada. Senior forward Gabrielle Davidson scored a brace, with the other goals coming from fifth-year forward Joanne Cagianos and sophomore forward Alexandria Serpico.
The 1-1 start to the new 2016 year also proved that McGill had got over its early season power play blues. McGill were 2-4 on the power play against Concordia and 1-3 against Montreal.
McGill will play away against Carleton next weekend. With the race for the RSEQ regular season title heating up, every game is a must-win game for all teams around the league.
Quotable
“We want to be defensively sound so we can get back on offense. Our team does a good job of playing with structure when we don’t have the puck.”—Smith on the Martlets defensive style.
Moment of the game
The Montreal Carabins’ shootout goal was the only one scored in nine combined attempts between the two sides.
Stat corner
The Montreal Carabins lead the McGill Martlets 13-11 in their last 24 head-to-head games, a testament to how closely fought these games are.
Unlike Bon Iver’s For Emma, Forever Ago, which arguably set the trend or working on an album in a cabin in the woods, B.C.-based The Sylvia Platters, that followed the trend, have created an album that sounds nothing like the natural serenity of a forest. By instead labeling themselves as power pop, their debut album Make Glad the Day fits the pace of a hectic, mindless errand run through the city on a Monday. This is stomping music: Guitar-driven, upbeat, and loud.
The band’s sound mixes the classic elements of ’60s rock (hence the power pop) with the urgency of punk and the laid-back tones of surf, creating a very strange feeling of frantic relaxation. The snappy riffs sound like they want to wander off, but they never actually do. Barring a quick ballad-like interlude in “Bloody Knuckles” and the final track of the album, the pace is set early—there is no dawdling in these tunes, even when it really feels like there should be.
This is in part due to the vocals. Though the instrumentals borrow from older genres, the vocals take influence from pop punk: Think Diarrhea Planet, or even Green Day. This creates a harsher, almost jarring effect that is most prevalent in the more upbeat tracks on the album, such as “Boeselagerstrasse.” It’s interesting to listen to, but it doesn’t really work and takes away from what could otherwise be a pretty good sound.
The band prides itself on its mix of genres, and calls the album a “thrilling embrace of our fleeting existence.” Though the album does call into question the listener’s purpose, the better music is borne of the band not trying to be every single guitar-rock genre. Songs like “Girl With Curious Hair”—atmospheric and lazy, but still sticking to the pace—are where the band sounds most natural: Subdued vocals with colorful tones. The band aspires to create their own sound, but Make Glad the Day sounds best when it sounds familiar.
One could say The Sylvia Platters tried to do too much with the album, and that would be a fair assumption. The lyrics are forgettable, the details in the production are often questionable. The album certainly has a novel concept, but the execution is lackluster, and ultimately leaves the music without momentum in a heavily saturated industry. Guitar rock has many unique-sounding genres, and though mixing them is possible, this is not a good example of it.
Sounds Like:
Rooney meets Viet Cong, gets intoxicated, and puts on a show in a basement.
Standout Track:
“Bloody Knuckles”
Standout Lyric:
“Sleight of hand and twist of logic, solemn and severe.”
This year, the Arts & Entertainment section editors worked with our staff writers to come up with the best songs, music videos, albums, TV shows, and movies of 2015; however, not everyone’s favourite made the list. To let the close runners-up shine we’ve each picked our two most-beloved snubs that we felt deserved to make it into the final list.
This is something that shouldn’t have worked under any circumstances. Adapting an 800-page historical biography of relatively-obscure founding father, Alexander Hamilton, into a genre-bending hip-hop infused Broadway musical sounds like an exercise in creative hubris. Instead, it accomplishes the impossible by weaving a coherent personal narrative into the broader historical context of America’s founding and early years as a nation. Hamilton is an incredible synthesis of everything great about hip hop and history and musical theatre. It also reframes the narrative of American history, giving it back to the people who actually shaped it in the first place: Orphans, immigrants, rebels, and underdogs.
Mistress America
Writer-Director Noah Baumbach and writer-actress Greta Gerwig have proven themselves to be an unstoppable creative partnership. After Baumbach’s ho-hum While We’re Young, he returns to straight comedy, following a college freshman (Lola Kirke) in New York City who gets pulled into the orbit of her soon-to-be step-sister (Gerwig), an impulsive self-described ‘entrepreneur.’ Featuring one of the most tightly-written scripts of the year, the film nails the anxiety and possibility of starting university in a new city. Gerwig turns in a fantastic performance as Brooke, imbuing the character with the perfect amount of self-awareness and lack thereof.
Probably one of the biggest surprises this year, Carly Rae Jepsen’s second studio album, E.mo.tion, absolutely shattered her status as a one-hit-wonder. Packed with one masterful pop song after another, E.mo.tion surpasses its closest ‘80s-evoking competitor, 1989, with ease. Jepsen’s once-derided vocals now possess a noticeably smoky quality while the lyrics are both clever and witty. While her debut album, Kiss, felt immature and underwhelmed due to its uninspired lyrics and undercooked production, E.mo.tion absolutely wallows in its fabulously ‘80s retro vibe. “Run Away With Me” provides a screaming saxophone, “Warm Blood” is an irresistible journey into pulsing beats and synths, while the stunning highlight, “Your Type” is easily one of the finest pop songs released this year—E.mo.tion is the best album you didn’t know you needed to hear.
Conjuring up a rather hazy, faded aesthetic on her latest album, San Francisco-based Jessica Pratt singularly wrote, recorded, and produced 2015’s most reminiscent record. On Your Own Love Again harkens back to an era in which simple, guitar-laced melodies bubbled underneath beautifully-crafted vocal melodies were all the rage. Pratt floats through the album’s short 10 songs, her striking Kate Bush-esque vocals drifting up and down an impressive register, and forces the listener to pay attention to the devastating, love-torn lyrics. Perhaps the standout is “Back, Baby,” in which the line, “People’s faces blend together like a watercolour you can’t remember,” provides more nuance and thought-provoking imagery than the rest of her pop peers could only dream of managing throughout an entire career.
Relative newcomers within the metal community, Deafheaven are continuing to expand and redefine the genre with its latest release New Bermuda. Alongside Jack Shirley, the sound engineer behind their breakout album Sunbather, Deafheaven further cemented themselves as the pioneers of a self-created sub-genre: A combination of black metal and indie-oriented shoegaze, known as ‘blackgaze.’ What results is an excellent slew of heavy-hitting noise.“Baby Blue” stands out as the strongest track on the record, showcasing the band’s aptitude for both calm and chaotic sounds. Vocalist George Clarke delivers an astounding performance, noticeably distorting his voice with more growls this time around, and is backed by an extremely tight band.
Despite the occasional anachronisms and minor tampering with chronology, Netflix’s Narcos still manages to tell a compelling and often overlooked historical tale. Interweaving actual news footage and political interviews in between fictionalized narratives, the show does a fantastic job displaying historical facts with enough creative license to generate emotional attachment and foster a more personal investment in said historical events. Given the unfortunate rise in international terrorism over recent years, Narcos offers an important historical window into the politics of fear and demonstrates how much a single group can threaten a state, without even the use of the internet.
Earl Sweatshirt’s second album lives up to the title; most tracks are moody and introverted, with lyrics stark against a minimalist, yet sometimes messy background of sparse piano, synths, and drumbeats. Two tracks, “Huey” and “AM // Radio” have the assured attitude that Sweatshirt introduced in his last album, Doris, but I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside generally goes as twice as slow without losing any lyrical punch. In this pared-down style, Sweatshirt seems more confident and refreshingly, more honest.
In its fifth studio album, Beach House delivers the newest installment of the soundtrack of a timelessly nostalgic and faintly adolescent daydream. The band hasn’t changed much in the past 10 years, but in Depression Cherry they seem to have perfected their formula for ethereal, sentimental tracks. Depression Cherry delivers the classic Beach House sound without being boring or repetitive: The choral opening of “Days of Candy” and the surprisingly harsh guitar in “Sparks” add exciting and new layers to the songs. With every release, Beach House seems to shape the landscape of people’s most elusive dreams. Depression Cherry is no exception.
Eric’s Picks
Neon Indian—VEGA Intl. Night School
It flew under the radar, but Neon Indian took a massive step forward with VEGA Intl. Night School. By trading in acid-washed chillwave tracks for coke-fueled disco bangers, Alan Palomo has crafted his most thrilling album so far. Highlights include the reggae romp of “Annie,” the Moroder-esque “Slumlord,” and “Dear Skorpio Magazine,” a lighthearted ode to a 1980s Italian smut magazine. Don’t expect any lyrical innovations from Palomo here, but VEGA is one hell of a party record. A must own for Beegees and Daft Punk fans alike.
FKA twigs – “In Time” (Or anything off M3LL155X)
Following last year’s excellent LP1, FKA twigs put out another marvellous project this year with her M3LL155X EP. In contrast to LP1, these songs have a darker aesthetic. From the hypnotic groove of “Figure 8” to the new school vogue of “Glass and Patron,” the EP was just as boundary pushing as one would expect from an artist like twigs. The highlight might be “In Time,” a mind-boggling mixture of trap, pop and experimental electronica; however, you could really make an argument for any of M3LL155X’s songs to be in the top 10 of the year. Twigs is just that good.
Coldplay—the band you loved in the seventh grade and now want nothing to do with—released what is rumoured to be its final album this month. After 16 long years of experimenting with sounds, bouncing around on stage, and getting routinely torn apart by the international music community, the band’s latest album, A Head Full of Dreams, should place Coldplay exactly where it started: A decent band releasing a decent album. Only this time they've got history behind them.
Coldplay and its fans have journeyed through quite a few reiterations of the music scene. There were the "limestone-rock" days of old: Parachutes (2000) and A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002). Then there were commercial successes packed to the brim with neat, quotable lyrics, and hit songs ("Yellow," "The Scientist") that introduced many young listeners to a mature observation of heartbreak. This was the intellectual version of Linkin Park—the young, naive music snob's reference band.
X&Y (2005) bridged the gap between musical maturity and youthful relatability well, but Viva la Vida (2008) should have served as a subtle warning sign. Mylo Xyloto (2011) made Coldplay ‘experimental,’ showing the band opt for more synth, more colour, and, essentially, more pop. It was the ultimate betrayal: They had a song with Rihanna.
By this point, the anti-Coldplay sentiments that started simmering with Viva La Vida reached their boiling point. Devoted fans bailed, the band was dubbed as unoriginal and the bitter jokes about the group increased in intensity. Ghost Stories (2014), an album about Chris Martin’s breakup with Gwyneth Paltrow, was released without much fanfare, and quietly continued on into obscurity. But then, some silence and a Game of Thrones musical later, the group’s latest album was announced.
The long voyage of Coldplay is painfully apparent in this album. Every song twists through the band’s varied shades of polite Britpop—some instigating nostalgia, others assaulting your ears with colourful arpeggios. Sixteen years after its debut, Coldplay has released the ultimate Coldplay album, sweeping up everything they’ve done before in an impressive effort to move forward, broaden their horizons, and sound as little like Parachutes as possible.
The album takes off with a funky intro. “A Head Full of Dreams” asserts the momentum of the record as quickly as it can—this is Martin’s ‘over it’ album—but the bass line that starts the song speaks to another theme in the album: Coldplay is trying to do as much as it can with this one. This means, unfortunately, that the group’s forays will not be interesting and avant-garde, but instead tread the tried-and-true paths of its forebearers. “A Head Full of Dreams” sounds like a U2 song. “Adventure of a Lifetime” sounds like a mix of Tokyo Police Club and every EDM vocalist ever. “X Marks the Spot” is R&B pop in 2009. In Coldplay’s attempt to expand its sound, the band has lost the uniqueness that got it here.
That’s not to say the album doesn’t have traditionally Coldplay moments. “Everglow” will cure any fan’s need to hear the old sound, even though it is now more generic than ever before. “Birds” could have been from Mylo Xyloto, with its sonic colour and Martin’s up-tempo vocals. “Amazing Day” isn’t terrible, and “Hymn For The Weekend” is everything “Princess of China” should have been. But it’s been 16 years of big falsetto breaks, and much of the lyrical strength of Coldplay’s early days has faded away. “You give me this feeling, this everglow,” for example, just can’t compare to “You were an island and I passed you by.” ‘Coldplay Moments’ just won’t do it anymore.
There is finality in the sound of this album, even with its attempts to be more diverse and upbeat. Martin’s comments in an interview suggested that there was a completion with this record: it might not spell the end of Coldplay, but this is the ultimate design of their sound. It’s been a fun time; and though A Head Full of Dreams could have been far better, perhaps it’s perfect as it is: the closing chapter of a decent band’s saga.
Once the first snow sticks, you know winter is here to stay. Lucky for us, El Niño came on strong this year, and snow has been staved off for at least a few more weeks. The one thing we can say for certain is that finals come and go, but winter break is forever. Cozy up next to family and a fire and let these holiday tracks take your mind through the emotional rollercoaster that is December.
“Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays” — *NSYNC
Fall exam period is the only barrier standing between students and two weeks of rest and rehabilitation at home, and for many, holiday celebrations with family and friends. Whether it’s Christmas, New Years, or Chanukkah, this is undoubtedly the season for celebration, as *NSYNC’s “Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays” reminds us. References to specific religious holidays aside, the lyrics touch on common secular experiences like family love and childhood joy that everyone can relate to. As you trudge through the snow to the gym to take your exams, it helps to be reminded of the light at the end of the tunnel.
Aside from the festive lyrics, “Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays” is the kind of sugary sweet bubblegum pop song that everyone needs in their life during stressful times. Sure to get your toes tapping while studying, it’s an upbeat motivator to help you plow through those last few readings. It’s cheerfulness will lower stress levels just by listening, and it could even make a solid choice for an impromptu dance session. What better way is there to forget the snow piling up outside your window or the five degree wind chill than dancing?
There’s no better time than now to indulge yourself in a little nostalgia, and no band embodies the pop music of our childhoods quite like *NSYNC. There’s a certain comfort involved in revisiting the bands you heard on the radio as a child, especially those of the guilty-pleasure nature like *NSYNC.
– Jenna Stanwood
“The Christmas Song (Roasting Chestnuts)” — Arcade Fire
Arcade Fire has received critical acclaim for its studio albums since the release of Funeral in 2004; however, being overshadowed by their award-winning music, little attention has been paid to what could— generously – be called their first EP: A Very Arcade Xmas. The first song on the EP, “The Christmas Song (Roasting Chestnuts),” hilariously attempts to bear likeness to the original holiday classic recorded in 1946 by the Nat King Cole Trio. It opens with the gentle sounds of piano and xylophone, while soft laughter can be heard in the background.
“Ah, it’s Christmas morning. I smell something,” is the lyrical opening, leading into a brief, recognizable 30 seconds of the song. The final two minutes, however, are a drunken train wreck of jumbled, and at most times, completely incorrect lyrics. Although their rendition is probably the funniest version of “The Christmas Song” ever recorded, the gentle instrumentals of the piece bear surprising melodic resemblance to the original.
Recorded in 2001 at a holiday party, A Very Arcade Xmas is not commercially available, so to listen to the EP in full, YouTube is the only option. This means you will not be hearing any of these tracks on the radio; good news for those frustrated with the month of December allowing no reprieve from the familiar holiday tunes. In the words of Win Butler’s inebriated, screeching, stream of consciousness, “I know it’s Christmas in the suburban van, Christmas on the mountaintop. But who knows if we’ll get there one more time, it’s never certain—and will it ever be?”
– Aislinn Kalob
“Holiday Road” – Lindsey Buckingham
Lindsey Buckingham, better know as the guitarist and vocalist of Fleetwood Mac, may not be exactly what every person immediately associates with Christmas time. The holiday classic National Lampoons’ Christmas Vacation (1989), however, is high up on the list. Buckingham’s contribution of “Holiday Road” to the movie’s soundtrack is one that cannot be forgotten – quite literally. It has all of the elements of a song that is guaranteed to get stuck in your head: A jaunty upbeat pop melody and easy, repetitive lyrics. “Holiday Road” revels in its own simplicity with Buckingham’s signature finger-picked guitar playing and satisfying harmonies taking centre stage. And while it’s a far cry from anything found on Fleetwood Mac’s rock albums, it was one of the biggest hits of Buckingham’s solo career after leaving the British-American band.
Despite the track’s undeniable link to the beloved Christmas film and ideas of picturesque holiday road-trips, the song’s music video is surprisingly more of a reflection on corporate American culture than anything else. Taking place in a dark office with barred in windows, Buckingham delivers his lyrics straight to the camera, absent of any emotion, while a supervisor on a raised platform yells at workers who are clearly yearning for a holiday. With McGill’s Fall semester coming to a close and finals beginning, the majority of students can relate to Buckingham’s sentiments in this context that it’s going to be a “long way down the holiday road”.
Of the many problems afflicting the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) today, the most pressing is a broken electoral system. Much attention has been focused on the “intensely negative online culture,” and suggestions such as vesting the Chief Electoral Officer with greater powers or limiting use of social media by candidates have been proposed as solutions—but this is just a symptom of the deeper problems. One is voter turnout, which in in the last election was a depressing 8.7 per cent of eligible students. The other is the outcome, which regularly produces an executive with fairly homogenized views that are perceived to represent the same faction at the expense of other demographics. Candidates are increasingly forced to campaign not for the entire student body, but for the small minority that bothers to vote.
The best option is for SSMU to fundamentally restructure its electoral process by adopting a system of formal political parties. Let like-minded students organize themselves and, year after year, run for each position under a common platform. SSMU needs to adopt the process by which democracy functions in the majority of the world.
Candidates typically run on mostly indistinguishable platforms filled with empty platitudes. In the short two weeks of a campaign period, students find it easier to assess a candidate’s history and reputation than their policy proposals. Established parties would develop their ideologies and more clearly advance certain priorities, whether that be equity, fiscal responsibility, or whatever else candidates choose. The current barriers to making an informed decision for the marginal voter are unreasonably high. With anywhere from zero to five candidates running for six executive positions and 30 councillor seats, students must make a significant investment to decide which of those candidates would best represent their interests. Parties with distinct platforms would better communicate this information to voters.
The ballot box is students’ only viable opportunity for actual accountability. It doesn’t happen under the current system because student politicians rarely stand more than a single year and so cannot be influenced by re-election. Rewarding a party for a successful year by voting for their next year’s candidates, or the opposite, would be a great improvement. Greater continuity would also improve the efficacy of multi-year projects. Additionally, an organized opposition would stimulate transparency. A competitive party system would not only incentivize greater communication and transparency of legislative shortcomings to the public, it would likewise spur parties to more actively promote their successes. The average voter’s attention would be competed for, not ignored.
Candidates are increasingly forced to campaign not for the entire student body, but for the small minority that bothers to vote.
Political parties would level the playing field and improve the overall quality of SSMU elections. Running a campaign is incredibly difficult and chaotic. The daunting mass of the tasks, people, and stress to handle is mostly behind the scenes and invisible to the public; but for a candidate, it means choosing between sleep, food, or school. A party system would allow veteran campaigners to assist rookie candidates. Within the party itself, it would be a more sustained transfer of knowledge from older to younger students, not just about winning elections but more broadly about how SSMU works and how it doesn’t. A larger, experienced team of volunteers would be more capable of taking responsibility for the many administrative tasks so that candidates can spend the two weeks actually campaigning. Institutionalized parties would create opportunities for students to get involved, especially for those who aren’t as enthusiastic about the current direction of SSMU.
Lastly is the pressing concern of personal attacks. Party politics won’t end the temptation of drawing the skeletons out of a candidate’s closet, but a campaign focused on policies rather than personalities will help ease it. Strategically speaking, a single scandal could effectively end an individual’s campaign, but would do relatively much less damage to a team of six. Likewise, having equally invested peers on their side would make it much easier to weather the storm and respond to the situation. Political parties won’t end the anonymous online toxicity, but adding more regulations won’t either. Introducing political parties would be a fundamental transformation for SSMU. McGill’s student democracy is in crisis–this is an opportunity that would be foolish to waste.
Do you have opinions on how best to restructure SSMU and the electoral process? Contact the Tribune opinion section at [email protected].
