Music
Grounded in R&B-dancehall and afrobeats, Mighty effortlessly blends in elements of roots reggae, hip-hop and reggaeton, pushing the boundaries of popular music through the lens of island-inspired sound.
Read More
Three Headed Monster - consisting of Violent J of the Insane Clown Posse, Ouija Macc, and the infamous Esham - to one of Calgary Alberta’s most recognized venues for an outstanding performance. The Back Alley is one of Calgary’s most audacious spaces when it comes to auspicious events and they never fail to please.
Read MoreFounders of The Black Academy, Shamier Anderson and Stephan James, alongside Insight Productions and CBC, announced the recipients of the 2023 Legacy Awards and more!
Read More
Debby Friday has won the 2023 Polaris Music Prize for the album Good Luck. Photo: Viktor Radics
The Polaris Music Prize is a not-for-profit organization that annually honours and rewards artists who produce Canadian music albums of distinction. A select panel of music critics judge and award the Prize without regard to musical genre or commercial popularity.
Read More
Image: Joshua Rille
Kardinal Offishall will be in Calgary to celebrate 50 years of hip-hop at the Olympic Plaza on Aug. 30, 2023 as part of the Arts Commons free event “Party in the Plaza.” The event features acts from a plethora of local artists such as Tea Fannie, Kiesza, Halfcut and many more.
Read More
Yolanda Sargeant is the Queen of Lo-Fi Soul. A genre that she and her producer Comrade (Evgeniy [Jay] Bykovets) pioneered after not being able to find an appropriate label that fits their eclectic style. The duo infuses jazz, soul, funk, dancehall, hip-hop, as well as other genres into a unique sound that combines the old with the new. Sargeant’s rich vocals take centre stage while Comrade’s production takes you on a multi-layered, genre-bending journey from beginning to end.
Read MoreSargeant X Comrade release the music video for “Love Someone”. The new single is part of the Calgary-based duo’s forthcoming album, Lo Fi Future, which arrives July 28 on Mo Gravy Records.
Read MoreAmong the million other things that make me stick out like a sore thumb in Nevis besides being the palest pickney to ever come from a Black woman, as well as having bizarre hair and social difficulties, a metal band shirt also does the trick.
Read More
Wrust playing in South Africa in 2013 (Photo Credit: SueDiduknow)
For someone who has dedicated the last two articles to the metal scene in Botswana, haven’t profiled any bands yet, have I? No worries! Only half as neglectful as I seem, here I am extolling the ominous, aggressive pleasure of three bands, the names of all coincidentally ending in “ust”. Huh. Though not featured, a genuine honorable mention to Skinflint; we love a black girl metal drummer.
Wrust
Formed in 2000 in Gabarone, Wrust’s brand of death metal dips hard into groove metal, gaining comparisons to the classic band Sepultra. Members Stux Daemon, Dem Lawd Master, Oppy Gae, and Benson Phaks released their most recent album, Intellectual Metamorphosis, in 2013. Their music has been both influenced by and compared to many classic death metal bands, such as one of the early and formative bands of the genre, Obituary, as well as Carcass (with whom they have shared a stage), and Pantera, a classic groove metal band that has come under much fire for their use of confederate flags, and Phil Anselmo’s repeated “joke” declarations of white power.
Despite largely American influence, their song Day of the Sacrifice has more traditional Tswana singing and drums in the introduction that seamlessly layers with the growing grooves and riffs of the metal soon to come, a welcomed change from the usual metal intros: of random screaming, sampled audio that sounds out of a haunted house, or worse, clean vocals.
While definitely having its melodeath moments that really let me enjoy and get into the metal mood, Intellectual Metamorphosis somehow feels less sinister than a lot of metal despite the lyrical content. Hate ’em All is almost anthemic death metal, something you could headbang or dance to.
Spiral of Torture and Hate ’em All seem to succinctly sum up the albums themes surrounding systems (of) control and oppression, evoking ideas of a brutal government/world/society with claws around one’s neck.
Recommended song: Hate ’em All
