Premiere: Korea Town Acid Space Cadet

Photo by Colin Medley, album art (below) by Ashli Ahn

For her latest release, KTA (Korea Town Acid) was inspired by “conquering [the] astro universe” vibes, Jeff Mills, and the Little Prince.

The Korean born, Toronto-based artist is a DJ, producer, and live performer of mind-bending hardware sets. Her improvisational production approach generates raw, hypnotizing compositions that are like living organisms - endlessly moving, continuously evolving. Each track was written live in one take, using hardware, with no post-editing. 

With elements of both chaos and euphoria, the energy at the essence of this EP is definitely one of the core ingredients for life in space. Album artwork by Ashli Ahn.

Join KTA on an adventure across the Universe

Space Cadet by Korea Town Acid, released 04 June 2020 1. Magic Spells 2. In Your Dreams One Live Hardware Take Adventure With Korea Town Acid

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Tiny Planet Vol. 2: Planet Euphorique in solidarity with Black Lives Matter

Today is no ordinary Bandcamp Friday - starting today, in acknowledgement of how the music community and industry has benefited from Black culture and music, and in solidarity with the Black community, artists are donating all of their proceeds to resistance funds and organizations to support Black art and amplify Black voices. Let’s take this opportunity to use music as the political force it can be - today and forever. 

First and foremost, buy directly from Black artists, labels, and producers. Here is a growing list of Black producers and labels that you can directly buy music from.

We’re also excited to share Tiny Planet Vol. 2 - a compilation album in solidarity with Black Lives Matter by Vancouver label Planet Euphorique.

Check it out - 100% of the money made from now until forever will be donated to Black Lives Matter and other resistance funds with focus on LGBTQ organizations. Each month Planet Euphorique will be donating to a different fund.

Mastered by Disc Archive

Tiny Planet Vol. 2 by Planet Euphorique, released 05 June 2020 1. Innocent Heretic - Come Forward Slowly 2. NAP - Salpicon (Inunda) 3. Miss Sweetie - Poofy Puff 4. Tweety Bongo - Dab Dub 5. Rico - Entanglement 6. Adam Pits - Initial Touch 7.

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Friends Interview Friends: Elijah Wolf and Emma Bowers for All My Friends Fest

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Emma Bowers (left) and Elijah Wolf (right)

Promotion for All My Friends Fest (on tomorrow!) continues with the second installment of “Friends Interview Friends,” where two pals from our festival lineup interview each other. This time around, we get to know musicians Elijah Wolf and Emma Bowers as they strike up a wholesome phone call. On the surface, Elijah and Emma have a lot in common: they’re both based in NYC, both their names start with the letter “E,” and as we find out, their musical interests stretch far beyond their own mutual folk-rock style. Read their full conversation on creative growing pains, the importance of collaboration in music, and their new favourite records of 2020 (so far) below!

On coming to music 

Elijah: If music wasn’t much of a thing in your household, what got you into songwriting?

Emma: I picked up the guitar at twelve because of Taylor Swift, and then not too long after that I started finding my way to folk music. I did really latch on to a few of my mom’s favorite songs that informed my songwriting after that, “Here’s Where The Story Ends” by The Sundays and some of The Cranberries’ radio hits...and then by high school it was Bon Iver and Joni Mitchell and Bright Eyes.  

Elijah: It seems like you really found your own path...starting with Taylor Swift and ending up at Bright Eyes. Usually you hear a story about an older sibling or someone down the block who gave someone a tape. You never hear someone just kind of finding the weirder side of music on their own after coming from straight pop music. 

Emma: It’s funny what a teenager will get into when up to their own devices. Were your parents musical?

Elijah: They were, thankfully. I grew up in Phoenicia, right next to Woodstock, so there was a big music presence there. Both of my parents weren’t musicians professionally, but growing up, my mom had an old 60s Guild and a really great voice, and she loved Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell and the great folk music of the 60s and 70s. She would just walk around the house singing those songs. My dad had the ability to just pick up an instrument and play it, he’s really humble about it. He plays a mean harmonica. He used to play it through this old mic called the Green Bullet, hooked up to a makeshift pedalboard with a drum machine, and that was all going through some old combo bass amp. He’d get lost in these kind of crazy experimental jam sessions with himself. I’m pretty sure he taped himself, I need to find those. 

Emma: Yes, you do! Sample them or something. I always wonder what my relationship to music would be if I grew up with a parent with taste similar to my adult self, because now that I love Joan Baez and Neil Young, and I wonder if someone had spoon fed them to me, if it would be the same. 

Elijah: That brings up an interesting point, because I was, very much so. As a result I rebelled against it for years. I played in punk bands and listened to everything but folk music, and then I came around to it and realized that it was the music that spoke to me the most. My sister Kashia is four years older than me, so she actually grew up in the 90s and was able to listen to and love in real time a lot of bands that are some of my favorites. I love the 90s music scene from Seattle, so Modest Mouse and Built to Spill, and I discovered them through her. I just decided that music was all I liked to do, and my best friend Evan, who goes by Photay, we’ve been friends since we were really little and he also came to the same decision as a musician, so we just made like every type of different band together, every kind of genre, just trying things out. 

Emma: That reminds me of Katie Crutchfield’s arc from punk music to folk, which is super interesting and I’m glad she’s talked about that a lot more recently because it’s a great contemporary example of how nonlinear your relationship to genre can be. 

Elijah: It does seem like a somewhat familiar progression that people actually go through. There is some kind of natural transition from punk music to folk or country. I think there are similarities - more so than you’d think. Just because folk isn’t often loud or aggressive, it can still have this rebellious nature.

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Photo provided by Emma Bowers

On collaboration

Emma: My musical life for a long time has been really isolated and solo, and it wasn’t until I made my EP a few years ago that I actually got into a studio with other people and started playing with a band. Since then I’ve been really wanting to pick up instruments other than guitar so that I can play with my friends’ projects and build out my musical life in that way. 

Elijah: That’s something I’ve thought a lot about too, trying to make sure music is more community based and not such a solo thing. I’m sure there are lot of people who would disagree, and I understand that side too, because I tried it. It’s just more fun when you have friends and collaborators around. At least for now, I really don’t want to go back for a while...I want to stay here and enjoy working with my collaborators and working with friends. 

Emma: It’s such a funny time to have the instinct to want to collaborate! I feel like I want to do things with other people more than ever, and maybe that’s partially because I can’t, but I also think I had these curiosities before this but had a hard time following through on the impulse.

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Photo provided by Elijah Wolf

On creativity in isolation 

Emma: Do you find yourself feeling more or less creative?

Elijah: Sometimes I’ll be really productive, and I’ll be able to work on new music and get into the zone and feel optimistic and excited. Then there are weeks when I feel really down and anxious, and don’t make anything at all. I just stare at my guitar and think about how I should be doing it, and then I go down that path which is never good. But it goes back and forth.

Emma: I’ve felt similarly: having really wildly productive days bookended by days where I just can’t get myself to do anything. I’ve been sitting on a handful of songs all Spring, trying to get them to the place where they feel done, and when I can’t do that, I try to be creative in other ways. Either cooking, or making a quilt, or writing about music for work. I find that when I step away after doing those things, I feel a bit creatively restored and can approach my music with a clearer head and a bit more creative confidence. I miss being able to watch other people play in person, that was always a huge part of what kept me inspired. 

Elijah: One thing that’s been helpful for me when I’m in that place is learning covers of songs I love. It helps me to understand the song more and it becomes more personal. 

Emma: That’s something I do too! I often try to find a more challenging song that I love and when climbing up the mountain of learning it, it kind of comes alive in your hands. Every time I do that I end up dumbfounded, wondering, “Did the person who wrote this feel this way about this song?” It’s just so good. 

Photo provided by Emma Bowers

On listening to new music in isolation 

Elijah: I’ve been listening to a lot of music from friends, and I think that the amount of incredible music and art in general coming out right now is just insane. Then also from just the people I like and admire. It feels like once or twice a month they pour on the best records I’ve heard in my entire life. I don’t know if I’m just more sensitive right now, but the records that are coming out right now just feel so right. It’s hard to even articulate. The new Perfume Genius record, and...there’s just so many. I was going to begin to list them all but I really can’t. 

Emma: I wonder if it’s having more time to sit down with new music. I’ve found that having a bit more time and space to listen to these records in full has really changed my experiences of them. 

Elijah: What are you listening to right now?

Emma: Between Saint Cloud and all of her livestreams with Kevin Morby, Katie Crutchfield has been my coronavirus MVP. The Fiona Apple record totally blew my mind open, I had no idea I could feel that way listening to music and be so, so intensely interested and hearing all of these things that I’d never heard before. It was such a unique experience and truly felt like a bit of a gift, having my musical world toppled over because I’ve felt recently that I’ve been listening to music in an indie-vacuum. 

Elijah: I feel like we needed that, a record to come and challenge us. That feels particularly important right now...and the Waxahatchee record, so good. 

Emma: The singles from that record! Every time she released a new track, I was like oh, this is my new favorite song. I’m also deeply excited for the new Phoebe Bridgers record, I don’t know if I’m at the liberty to say this...but I’ve been able to spin it upwards of ten times already and it’s absolutely incredible. 

Elijah: I can’t wait to hear it. There’s also the new Woods record! There are so many good records coming out right now. 

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Photo provided by Elijah Wolf

On living in NYC

Emma: Does it feel like everyone you know is moving away from New York? Because it feels like everyone I know has already or is going to. 

Elijah: Totally, they are. I’ve thought about it a lot because my family is upstate, and I want to be up there, but there’s no place like the city. I still love it, so I’m not going anywhere. 

Emma: I feel the same way. I don’t feel like I’m done yet, and I don’t want to leave until I feel like I’m done because I don’t want to ask, “What if?” The reason I switched from being a history major and moved back from Europe in all of my haste was because I didn’t want to ask “What if?” I feel like if I left New York, and didn’t see this city through, that I’d be walking back on some of that. 

Elijah: I’ve always admired your ability to completely wrap yourself up in whatever is going on in a community, at least in the time that I’ve gotten to know you. I’ve seen you at so many different shows, or at least have spoken to you later on and discovered that you were at a show or a really cool event, and then going to DC and working at NPR. I’ve luckily been able to travel for different reasons, but I’ve lived in this state my entire life. I grew up two hours North of here and really have no desire to leave this two hour radius, so I admire what you’ve done. 

Emma: Thank you. I’m really ready to not feel like I might need to be somewhere else. I haven’t felt totally settled anywhere in my adult life, and I’ve gone back and forth about how I feel about being in New York, but then I remember why I came here. I’ve moved upwards of ten times in the last five years, and it’s really funny because I’m such a homebody. It’s kind of bizarre how many shows I go to and how many places I’ve lived because all of that is in direct opposition to my tendencies. 

Elijah: That’s interesting, you do seem to have a very homebody feel about you, but mostly I think of you as very adventurous, like more so than most people I know even. You have a very adventurous spirit, and that’s pretty cool. That’s a special combo. 

Emma: It’s pretty weird to inhabit, I kind of feel like I’m internally at odds at all times, but it’s brought me a lot of places and I’m grateful for it. 

You can catch both Elijah Wolf and Emma Bowers at at All My Friends Fest on this Saturday May 30th via Instagram live. Both will be performing on the Also Cool Mag Instagram: Emma’s set is from 3:30PM-4:30PM EST and Elijah’s is from 5:30PM-6:00PM EST!

Donate to the All My Friends Fest GoFundMe here!

All proceeds directly compensate all artists on our festival lineup.

Follow Elijah Wolf: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Follow Emma Bowers: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

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Friends Interview Friends: Janette King and Maryze for All My Friends Fest

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Maryze (left) and Janette King (right) by Sabina Roman @darksight

Best friends Janette King and Maryze are two of Montreal’s finest femme vocalists, and their friendship is straight out of a musical heroine biopic (when theirs hits theatres one day, we’ll let you know!): they’re both managed by their pal and local powerhouse Sarah Armiento of Hot Tramp Management, they’ve toured together, and now they’re continuing to raise each other up despite being on Canada’s opposite coasts. In a brand new feature for Also Cool Mag called “Friends Interview Friends,” Janette and Maryze interview each other and discuss their musical beginnings, the eternal cultural value of Britney Spears, and how COVID-19 has impacted their creative process in promotion for All My Friends Fest on Saturday, May 30th.

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Maryze (left) and Janette King (right) via Janette’s Instagram

Janette King: Blessings. I have some questions for you! My first question is: what brought you to music? 

Maryze: My dad was a DJ for a world music show in the 90s, and he was always bringing home albums from all over the world in different languages and we would play them in our living room and dance around. He introduced me to all these different styles and sounds. So, maybe that’s what first made me connect with music. Honestly, pop music as well. I was thinking about the first time I heard “Baby One More Time” on the radio, and I remember thinking, “This is the BEST song I’ve EVER heard.” I don’t know how old I was, maybe 7, but I thought “wow magic is possible!” Just listening to music, and liking how it made me feel, and wanting to recreate that.

J: That actually brings me to my second question, which I had already written: what is your favourite Britney Spears song?

M: No way! I’m having such a Britney Spears moment right now. I feel like popular culture is really appreciating her as she deserves these days. The other day I was telling my partner how much I love her, and I actually started crying because I feel like she’s had it so unfair. Aside from all of that, I think… Can I choose two? A more popular one and a deeper cut? For the more popular one, I would definitely say “Toxic.” It’s such a banger and I feel like it’s definitely transcended time. It can be sung in so many different styles, I don’t care how you feel about pop music, you just have to recognize that it’s a great song. 

J: Truth.

M: Then a deep cut. So off that album that “Toxic” was on, In The Zone, there’s a few that just kill me. This question is the hardest I've ever had to answer... Damn. Maybe “Touch Of My Hand?” I think it’s about self-pleasure, which was a really bold song for her to put out.

 J: Do you do any other form of art other than music, and if so, what do you get from doing it?

M: I write poetry! I studied poetry and creative non-fiction in university, so writing is definitely my big one. I really miss writing more long-form, and I also really love doing photography. I’ve recently gotten into video-editing for my latest video as well.

J: At what age did you write your first song, and what was that experience like for you?

M: I wrote my first song when I was probably around 6 years old. My great aunt Tina passed away, and it was the first time that I had really experienced death in my life, so I wrote this really sad song about how I didn’t think it was fair that she had to go. It was also the first time that I felt I could use my sadness in a more positive way. It helped me feel better and helped me channel my emotions.

J: In what ways has the quarantine made you a better artist, and in what ways has it made you worse?

*both laugh*

M: It taught me that we always have the time for the things that we prioritize. Often through life, especially when we have other jobs, we’re focused on getting by financially and making art at the same time. Personally, there are always so many things I want to do, but I’ll put them off by saying “I’ll do this when I have time.” Now, having time in quarantine, being faced with all this time, I thought, “Okay, I can finally do all these things if I just set aside a few hours each day for them.” 

How it’s made me a worse artist… it goes hand in hand. When you have this indefinite period of rest, you kind of just keep putting things off. It's made me way more aware of time management, but has also made me procrastinate a lot more.

J: My last question for you is: how do you think music can change the world?

M: I think it can change the world by reminding us how we are more similar than we are different. People from all different places and mindsets can hear a song and feel so powerfully... its sadness or its joy, and that's just such an amazing thing that it can reach people from all walks of life, if we let it. I think that music is really powerful if we just open ourselves to feeling what it has to offer and how it brings us together with others.

For the second part of the interview, Maryze and Janette traded places, with Janette now in the interviewee seat. 

Maryze: Now I get to ask you some questions! You’re currently on the West Coast [of Canada], where you’re from. I was wondering if the environment inspires what you want to write about, and if you feel more inspired to write about things on the West Coast versus the East Coast, or wherever you are in general? 

Janette King: I would say that I’m inspired to procrastinate more on the West Coast *laughs*. The energy here is just so chill, which is great because it’s definitely been healing for my body and mental space. But in terms of being productive musically, being on the West Coast has inspired me to take things slow and to kind of go more inwards. It’s inspired me to be more experimental, playing for the fun of it and seeing what comes up. It's a longer way to write instead of being practical. I’m playing a lot more, which is good.

M: Can you describe an early music memory where a song just really hit you and left a major impact?

J: The first time I heard “Smooth Criminal” by Michael Jackson, it was over. My uncle had the album and was taking me to the store, and put the album on, and it changed my life. I had never heard anything that had hit me so hard in my chest before. It made me a dancer and a singer. That was when I was 8 or 9.

M: What was the first form of art you got into when you were younger?

J: I was a dancer for seven years. I studied hip hop, street jazz, and contemporary for a few years. It was my first art form, and then I played electric bass as well.

M: If you could collaborate with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be?

J: Amy Winehouse and Beyoncé.

M: If your music was an animal, it would be a….

J: It would be a raven! Very dark but beautiful.

M: This is my last one. If you could only write one last song, and get one last message out there, what would it be?

J: It would be to quit looking for happiness in the external world. My message would be to search for all your answers within yourself. 

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Maryze (left) and Janette King (right) via Maryze’s Instagram

You can catch both Maryze and Janette King back-to-back at All My Friends Fest on May 30th via Instagram live. Janette King will be performing on the Also Cool Mag Instagram from 4:30PM-5:00PM EST, and Maryze will be performing on the Canvas and Cassette Instagram from 5:00PM-5:30PM EST.

Donate to the All My Friends Fest GoFundMe here!

All proceeds directly compensate all artists on our festival lineup.

Follow Janette King: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Follow Maryze: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

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Canada's Party Capital Will Not Be Put To Rest: This Is "Pandemic Artifact"

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“Pandemic Artifact” cover by Andrew Nowacki

A group of fifteen Montreal artists are marking their city’s two month COVID-19 lockdown period with the release of “Pandemic Artifact.” The electronic compilation album is a vibrant embodiment of Montreal’s diverse musical atmosphere; featuring a sonic spectrum ranging from introspective ambient impressions to upbeat House grooves reminiscent of 90s warehouse raves.

The collective is made up of local DJ and producer Honeydrip‘s personal circle, including former classmates from Concordia’s electroacoustics program . For many of the artists involved, the launch of “Pandemic Artifact” is the first time they’re presenting their art to the general public. On the album and its creation, Honeydrip comments:

“I have always had this irrational fear of releasing music and that what I would release would never be good enough and live up to people’s and my own expectations. Quarantine put that all back into perspective. Being an artist and feeling useless in a medical pandemic, one of the few things I could do and am qualified to do is share my art.”

While the group knows that the end of COVID-19 is unforeseeable, they hope that like their uncertainty about the future, the album will become “a distant memory; an artifact of this pandemic.”

All “Pandemic Artifact” tracks, including a mix by Honeydrip herself, are being sold on a Pay-What-You-Can basis and are available for streaming and purchase here.

- - -

Press release:

If there’s one thing Montréal, Canada’s party capital, doesn’t lack, it’s bonhomie. In the winter months, we tend to gather, huddle for warmth, and drink, dance and eat until we can no longer feel the cold. However, on March 14th, the gavel slammed and suddenly, the entire province’s hospitality and entertainment industry was stalled.

Not one to accept the status quo, local DJ and producer Honeydrip reached out to her peers to set up what would become Pandemic Artifact: a screenshot of the city’s producers’ minds in a dark time. From floor-filling belters to the more cerebral and experimental, the compilation ventures into some of the best electronic music the city has to offer.

Along with the compilation there is a mix by Honeydrip, creatively blending all the genres submitted to create an energetically flowing tracklist.

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Musical Genes: Sisters DJ_Dave and Maddy Davis Premiere "Can't Do This Alone" Remix

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While some siblings get caught up in rivalries over mutual passions, Sarah and Maddy Davis’ combined love of music continues to bring them closer together. Though they couldn’t be any more different musically, with Sarah DJing algorave under the pseudonym DJ_Dave in NYC, and Maddy pursuing her bedroom-pop career in Los Angeles, the sisters are bound by a mutual desire to bring women to the forefront in all aspects of the music industry. Today, they showcase the power of all-female collaboration with the release of “Can’t Do This Alone - DJ_Dave Remix,” a remixed version of Maddy’s original song by her sister, DJ_Dave. Also Cool is psyched to be apart of their premiere, and below we chat with Sarah and Maddy about finding their artistic footing beyond suburbia, navigating gatekeeping in male-dominated spaces, and what it was like working as siblings first, and musicians second, to create this remix.

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Also Cool: Hi Maddy and Sarah! Thank you so much for being a part of Also Cool Mag and congratulations on the new release! To begin, can you tell us about your individual music styles and how you got your start in your respective fields? 

S/M: Thank you so much for letting us be a part of Also Cool! We’re super excited about this release and glad you are too! 

Maddy: I am a suburban-bedroom pop artist, which I’d describe more specifically as both a niche indie artist community, and a genre that bridges the gap between the artist, songwriter, and producer. I like to describe my specific style as suburban-bedroom pop because, having grown up in the most cliché suburb, I’ve found myself inspired by my own relatable experiences, which I tend to gravitate towards when writing. 

Sarah: I am an indie-techno pop artist making music within the algorave community. Algorave is a super niche movement of musicians that produce and perform music using code, who are slowly working their way into club scenes around the world. I picked up this skill about a year ago, and have been making music this way ever since. The deconstructed music production environment somehow made a lot more sense to me than a lot of the DAWs (digital audio workstations) I had tried, and it unexpectedly combined my interests in visual arts, coding and music.

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Sarah Davis a.k.a. DJ_Dave (top) and Maddy Davis (bottom), shot by Farah Idrees

AC: Both of you made the move to New York City, and now Los Angeles for Maddy, from your hometown in New Jersey: How did you both find a sense of community upon relocating, and has that had an impact on your creative process? 

M: I’ve found a sense of community in both New York and Los Angeles, which has greatly impacted my creative journey. I moved into New York right after high school, and quickly found my place in the music scene; playing shows, going to shows, collaborating with other artists, and just generally meeting and spending time with other young creatives. It was the first time in my life that I was around so many like-minded people who supported each other's art and worked so closely together.

I’ve only been in Los Angeles for a couple of months at this point, but I’m already finding that things are similar here. From these experiences, I’ve realized that learning from your peers is sometimes more valuable than learning from those who are already deeply established career-wise. I can’t express how much I’ve learned from simple conversations with people in these social circles, which has led me to further appreciate the creative environments of both cities.

S: When I moved to New York to go to college, I met most of the community I currently surround myself with through the city’s college scene. More than anywhere I’ve ever been, young people in New York have this incredible urgency to create. This resonated with me, which made finding a community easier than I anticipated. My friends, and the artists around me that I look up to, are some of the hardest workers I’ve ever met. We are always pushing each other to do more, while also acting as a support system for each other.

Living in the city and learning from the people around me has not only changed my creative process, but redefined the way I approach art and music. The arts scene is constantly changing, and being in New York is like having your finger on the pulse of society. It’s really incredible to get to live and create in New York.

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Sarah Davis a.k.a. DJ_Dave (left) and Maddy Davis (right), shot by Farah Idrees

AC: For Sarah, your work tackles the representation of femme artists in male dominated spaces, specifically in tech and rave communities. What aspects of these dynamics do you confront in your music, and how do you go about capturing your feelings on this subject? 

S: I first noticed this lack of representation when I would rarely see female DJs at my favorite clubs. Whether it was the most packed night of the week or a slow weekday, the DJs were almost always men. I was tired of seeing the same group of guys getting the spotlight, given the fact that womxn DJs are everywhere, so in my own work I collaborate exclusively with femme musicians and artists. Algorave as a community is actually very female dominated, so using this artform as my way of bringing more womxn representation into club scenes seems very appropriate. I’m surrounded by incredibly talented womxn in music, and it’s honestly just so exciting to collaborate with them and show people our work! 

AC: Branching off of that, we heard that you further combined your passion for technology and safer-space practices to develop an app. Can you tell us more about it? 

S: Yes! So when I was a sophomore in college, I conceptualized an app called Outro that acts as a safe space for women, the LGBTQIA+ community, and people of colour in nightlife. The app allows users to rate and review nightclub spaces based on safety and quality to prevent future unsafe situations from happening and promote spaces that consider safety their number one priority. Outro is available on the app store for whoever wants to check it out!

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Sarah Davis a.k.a. DJ_Dave, shot by Farah Idrees

AC: In a similar vein, Maddy, you strive to make space for womxn in not only performance spaces, but production spaces as well. How does having control over every aspect of your music, from songwriting to execution, impact your relationship with your art? 

M: I grew up with the understanding that producers were almost exclusively men.  As a result, I never considered production as something I could pursue, let alone learn. That is, until I saw iconic femme producers starting to emerge and realized that I could produce too. Fast forward five years or so, and now I’m producing all my own music, and repeatedly explaining to guys in my DMs that I don’t need them to send me beats. When I started producing, it unlocked an entire world for me to find my own sound as an artist. This allowed me to better articulate what I wanted to say with my music, and express myself as an artist entirely. 

AC: With this, what advice would you give to womxn trying to navigate gatekeeping in the music industry based on your experiences? 

M: Womxn are taught that men make more money, men are stronger, men are generally more successful, etc. … These same beliefs, unfortunately, exist even in creative industries. The advice I’d give to womxn trying to navigate the music industry, whether on the business side or the creative side, is to not feel intimidated by men. Don’t be afraid to speak up in a session or during a meeting, because your voice matters too. To this day, I still encounter imposter syndrome pretty much whenever I’m in a collaborative environment with men, but I try to always remind myself not to degrade myself and understand my worth as an artist, writer, and producer. 

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Maddy Davis, shot by Caity Krone

AC: Moving forward, the track you’re releasing today is a remix of Maddy’s song “Can’t Do This Alone.” What was it like collaborating together and what inspired you to combine your musical feats in the first place? 

S/M: We’d always written and performed music together growing up, so it was inevitable that we would eventually collaborate once we both started releasing music. One of us (Maddy) has this organic ethereal sound, while the other (DJ_Dave) uses a geometric method of music production, so we were inspired to see what the combination of our two contrasting styles would sound like. 

AC: What was the highlight of working on this track together? Did you encounter any challenges? 

M: I’d say the highlight for me was hearing the first versions of the remix. I loved that DJ_Dave was able to transform the song to fit her signature sound, while keeping some of my favourite elements from the original. I’d say the biggest challenge was deciding when the remix was actually finished between the two of us. It took a lot of different versions, but when the final was done, it was pretty obvious to both of us.  

S: “Can’t Do This Alone” is one of my favorite songs by Maddy, so the highlight for me was getting to work with the stems and combine our really different styles. I would say my biggest challenge was maintaining the message of the song, which is so strong and important, while manipulating the tracks.

AC: Before we let you go, is there anything you’d like to add? Are either of you working on any new projects at the moment?

S/M: Since being in quarantine, we’ve both been working on a ton of new music that we are super excited to share soon. Also, just a huge thank you to Also Cool for giving young emerging artists a platform and a chance to get their music heard! 

(Editor’s note: Thank you! We love hearing your music!)

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Sarah Davis a.k.a. DJ_Dave (left) and Maddy Davis (right), shot by Farah Idrees

Keep up with the sisters and their music!

DJ_Dave

Instagram I Spotify I Apple Music

Maddy Davis

Instagram I Spotify I Apple Music

Photos by Farah Idrees and Caity Krone

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Premiere: Mutually Feeling's Relentless

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From Mutually Feeling’s Relentless

“It's coming right for us… it’s relentless,” purrs Ariana Molly of the poetry-infused rave duo with Pulsum (Connor McComb) called Mutually Feeling.

Their latest release, titled Relentless is a donation to SOLIDARITY, a compilation of tracks by some of the most exciting Canadian electronic music artists in support of Wet’suwet’en Nation in their fight against Coastal GasLink’s movement to build a pipeline through traditional unceded territory.

The fundraiser compilation is curated by Minimal Violence, a Vancouver-based instrumental electronic duo specializing in dark techno and live performances.

Get lost in Mutually Feeling’s sexy, scary, fantasy world - the music video for Relentless is a wholly DIY production completed at home, giving an intimate glimpse into the couple’s quarantine microcosm. It’s a beautiful retro-horror romance tinged with the sinful allure of capitalist hedonism.

Both sonically and visually, it’s a perfect juxtaposition of soft glamour and ruthless forewarning. Ariana’s vocals susurrate over a punishing bassline and slapping snares as she sings of an imminent danger, “I feel it in my body / I feel it in my chest / I feel it all around me / I feel it like its death / It’s relentless...”

SOLIDARITY was created with the intent to raise funds and awareness of the ongoing situation in the Wet’suwet’en Nation and Unist'ot'en Camp. All the money raised from the compilation will be going to the Unist'ot'en Camp Legal Fund. Bandcamp will be waiving all their fees on Friday, May 1st, so if you’re thinking of supporting the cause, purchasing the album will have the greatest impact on that date!

Mutually Feeling

Instagram I Bandcamp I YouTube

More information on the Unist'ot'en Camp Legal Fund below

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From Mutually Feeling’s Relentless

Press release:

All of the following information has been gathered from the Unist’ot’en website, the Unist’ot’en Legal Fund page summary, and timeline details from the Instagram account @gidimten_checkpoint. We did our best to bring together the talking points that have been put forth by the people themselves but encourage you to go directly to these websites to educate yourself further on the situation and what you can do to show solidarity.

In 1997, the Delgamuukw Supreme Court Case was a landmark decision recognizing that aboriginal title is not extinguished in the areas claimed by Wet’suwet’en and Gixtsan. Wet’suwet’en traditional territory spans 22,000 square kilometres in northwest B.C. west of Smithers. Coastal GasLink/TC Energy is pushing through a 670-kilometer fracked gas pipeline that would carry fracked gas from Dawson Creek, B.C. to the coastal town of Kitimat, where LNG Canada’s processing plant would be located. LNG Canada is the single largest private investment in Canadian history.

Each clan within the Wet’suwet’en Nation has full jurisdiction under their law to control access to their territory. Under ‘Anuc niwh’it’en (Wet’suwet’en law) all five clans of the Wet’suwet’en have unanimously opposed all pipeline proposals and have not provided free, prior, and informed consent to Coastal Gaslink/ TransCanada to do work on Wet’suwet’en lands.

The Unist’ot’en Clan is one of five clans that make up the Wet’suwet’en Nation. Unist’ot’en Camp, located on Dark House territory of the Gilsehyu Clan and directly in the path of the intended pipeline, has been a beacon of resistance for over 10 years. It is a space of Indigenous sovereignty dedicated to healing, reconnection to the land, revitalizing cultural identity, and an active example of decolonization.

In January 2020, Coastal GasLink/ TC Energy accessed the territory at gunpoint, following a court injunction, using militarized RCMP forces. In February, the invasion advanced, seeing land defenders arrested, Chiefs denied access to their land, and matriarchs arrested at Unist’ot’en while in ceremony for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. The world witnessed the violence on unarmed citizens (in the presence of elders) despite the RCMP’s attempts to create an “exclusion zone” and shut out all media from the events.

Considering the current COVID-19 pandemic, any pipeline workers brought into Wet’suwet’en territory put the community at risk. COVID-19 is causing a global pandemic that’s sending shock waves across the world. We’ve already seen that COVID-19 is in the LNG Canada man camp. Meanwhile Coastal GasLink (TransCanada/TC Energy) is still working in these territories, despite British Columbia declaring a provincial state of emergency. CGL is continuing to bring transient workers in and the workers are not practicing social distancing. Furthermore, the construction of “man camps” increases the risk of violence towards Indigenous women, children, and two-spirited people.

The Unist’ot’en remain steadfast in their refusal to let fossil fuel infrastructure be built across the land. CGL/TC Energy continues to violate environmental regulations and destroy archaeological sites that are sacred to the Wet’suwet’en. Coastal Gaslink has no consent from the Hereditary Chiefs whose territories would be permanently desecrated by the project.

#AllEyesOnWetsuweten #WetsuwetenStrong #ReconciliationIsDead #ShutDownCanada

unistoten.camp

www.yintahaccess.com

actionnetwork.org/fundraising/unistoten2020legalfund/  

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Andrea Turk & Janelle Brosnan Wish You Good Karma From Their 8Bit 80s Dreamworld

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Still from KARMA provided by Janelle Brosnan & Andrea Turk

There’s nothing better than seeing someone getting the karma they deserve, whether it be good or bad. We chatted with up-and-coming artists Andrea Turk and Janelle Brosnan about their collaborative music video for KARMA featuring Prince Husein.

They shared their creative journies with us, from Andrea opening for The Chainsmokers to Janelle making her media for Bank of America in downtown Los Angeles at the age of 14. These girls are killing it, and if you don’t know who they are, you do now. Oh, and did we mention that they made the video with no budget and an all-female crew?

Read our interview below

Also Cool: Hi Janelle and Andrea, thank you so much for being a part of Also Cool. Can you tell us a bit about yourselves, and what you do?

Andrea: Hey hey! I’m a 19-year-old Indonesian-Croatian singer-songwriter and producer based in Greater Los Angeles. I was born and raised in Jakarta, Indonesia and I started living in California last September when I began my studies at the California Institute of the Arts. Although I major in VoiceArts (specialized in singing), I love to produce and write my own music, as well as creating movies for fun on the side. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the scholarship they offered, so I’m extremely grateful to be given a chance to collaborate with like-minded creatives who are willing to create art for the sole purpose of arts’ sake. 

Janelle: I'm 20 years old, and I grew up in Greater Los Angeles. My family's business is within the entertainment industry, so I was able to understand its intricacies early enough to ruin any aspect of "movie magic." Nonetheless, I've always been obsessed with American pop-culture, which blends into making art. 

AC: Andrea, music entered your life early on. To quote you from your documentary, you were singing while doing homework when your parents first noticed your talent, and subsequently enrolled you in music lessons. You’ve since gone on to open for The Chainsmokers, among many other performances and international music workshops. What role does music play in your life now, and who are some of your musical inspirations at the moment?

Andrea: Truth be told, I was a very shy kid. I never thought singing Ed Sheeran’s + and Adele’s 21 alone in my room would lead to the reason why I have a musical career today. Although I pursued all kinds of musical education (music theory, classical singing, mixing/mastering, etc.), I knew that the only way for people to really recognize my music was to land gigs and collaborations. 

I can never be more grateful for all the opportunities that were given to me, from opening for The Chainsmokers, to winning a songwriting competition in the U.K., to launching a charity concert for a local cancer organization, and finally performing at the Palace as a soloist for Indonesia’s Independence Day in front of everyone, including the President, on live national television. 

It’s been a daze ever since, and I don’t see my life purpose being anything else other than creating music. It’s funny because I’ve always dreamt of being a doctor. As extravagant as it sounds, helping people is the only thing that I care about. I’m glad that my music has made this possible. My musical inspirations change from time to time, but Billie Marten is still my main muse for songwriting. Finneas is also a pioneer for when it comes to music production, and Lolo Zouaï’s aesthetic as an artist inspires most of my outfits.

Still from KARMA provided by Janelle Brosnan & Andrea Turk

AC: Janelle, tell us a bit about your work as a director and editor. Where did you learn how to produce music videos? Did you go to school for production, did you DIY everything?

Janelle: My first job as an editor was when I was 14 years old, making media for Bank of America in downtown Los Angeles. In high school, I had the privilege of taking film and theatre classes, where I learned how to direct actors and build sets. Theatre is also where I started doing photography when my classmates needed new headshots. I started carrying a camera around school every day, and found it to be so instantly gratifying. 

Post high school, I didn't have the grades, nor did my family have the money to send me to a UCLA or USC program. My declared major in community college was film. Half way through, I realized I was nowhere near graduating, and there was no fucking way I was going to pay to take more general education classes I didn't want to take in the first place. I had a kind of "fight or flight" panic episode and applied to two art schools that I hoped would serve as my way out. Thankfully, I was accepted to both with scholarships, but chose to go to the one conveniently located 15 minutes from my house, CalArts. 

The toss up here is that I applied for their "Photography and Media" program, instead of film, because I was more confident in the less competitive program to help me escape the sinkhole of community college. My plan was to go in as a photographer and finesse my way into using all the film school resources. Only God knows how that is exactly what I managed to do. During my first year, I met sweet princess Andrea Turk and the rest is history!

AC: Let’s talk a bit about the animation aspect of the music video. How did you settle on the Mario-World aesthetics? Can you tell us a bit about the animator? Janelle, how did you find balancing the live-action footage with the animation?

Janelle: When Andrea asked me to make a video for her, I felt it was the perfect time to strike with a professional directorial debut. The electronic sounds bites in the very beginning of the song immediately reminded me of the older Nintendo games I would play as a kid. The extension of this concept led to the use of primary colors, block shapes, and late 80's costume. 

Every set piece we bought for the video was from our own pockets. We spent hours painting the red and white checkered backdrop, cutting and sewing hoodies, and begging our friends to assist on set. The key ingredients came together when I asked my best friend and sister, Summer Wagner, to co direct as a way to mentor me through a professional set. Summer then brought on Alissa Rooney, a cinematographer from Orange County who was willing to help me take the video to the next visual level. Both these women helped me for free, and taught me more than what I had ever learned in school.

 The final piece of this DIY journey was my friend, Gabe Wooden. The very first time I met Gabe, he was sitting on his computer animating on After Effects. I asked him if he knew how to do pixel animation, and he quickly pulled up a reel that was strictly pixel animation. After showing him Andrea's song, we began the three-month journey of me explaining my vision, and him executing it above and beyond. He understood what I was trying to achieve and believed in me enough to put in hours of his time to help it materialize. I think I pushed Gabe to his limits more than anyone else on this set, and I thank him for not only being a reliable artist, but an amazing friend.

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Behind the scenes of KARMA, photo provided by Janelle Brosnan & Andrea Turk

AC: What was the inspiration behind the video, both visually and conceptually. The hazy, yet colourful aesthetics are nostalgic but very on trend at the same time. I particularly loved the makeup and how the shots were framed. 

Andrea: When I pitched the idea of doing an animation for Prince Husein to Janelle (since he’s based in Jakarta and there was no way that we could shoot him), she instantly had a vision for it to be this retro Nintendo game vibe that thrived in the 80s. That concept inspired the whole video’s aesthetic, and we made sure that every little detail looked like it came from that era. Janelle is also an 80s poster child so it wasn’t hard for us to revive the looks, since her entire wardrobe is retro. As for the hair and makeup, it was all Lindsay and Gio’s magical touch and talent.

AC: Andrea, you’re Indonesian and Croatian, and also have a little bit of Spanish the lyrics of “Karma.” How do you integrate your cultures and experiences into your work? 

Andrea: I grew up in Indonesia, and recently I’ve tried to incorporate more of our traditional music into my songs, like the gamelan-sounding melody in my song “Message Unsend” feat. Bagus Bhaskara. The gamelan is such a beautiful sounding instrument (Claude Debussy was inspired by it) and it’s sad to see that not a lot of Indonesian youth want to learn how to play it. I would say I’m a nationalist at heart, and I’ve always been pushing for my generation to have national pride. I think cross-cultural music gives a different flavour to the songs as well. Likewise, this educates others about world music genres without needing to actively search for them, which is something happening in Latin music on a global scale. As for the Spanish lyrics, I’ve always thought it was hot to be able to speak it since it’s such a beautiful language.

AC: You mentioned doing the entire video with no budget, which is crazy because it looks like a high-production ordeal. How did you make that happen, and what would your advice be to others who are shooting their own music videos?

Andrea: There wasn’t any other motive than to create the highest form of art we could possibly make, and I think that’s purely what we did here. Since I’m not signed to any label and I’ve been releasing my music independently, having a strong support system from other artists is the best thing I could ever dream of. When you get the chance to collaborate with such talented individuals, you don’t think about the nominal anymore. At the end of the day, the art that we’re making is what we value more than anything else. For anyone who’s shooting a music video, the sky is your limit. If Janelle and I hadn’t believed in the video enough, it wouldn’t have happened. We kind of used what we had in close proximity and started from there. There’s also no harm in asking help from people when you need it.

Janelle: The only advice I can really give is: THE DIFFERENCE IS DOING IT! You may look at my video, or my photography, or Andrea's song and think, "Well I could've made that," but you didn't make it. We made it, and making it took a lot of fucking effort, but once it's made... it can finally exist. The existence of the art itself helps us claim the title of its creators. . So, if you can do it, why not do it? I'll acknowledge there was a lot of privilege at my disposal, the main thing being my upbringing and the opportunity to attend an art school. However, about 90% of the resources we used were outside of my school’s resources. I'll point out that Lady Gaga's most recent music video was shot on an iPhone. Half the work is getting others who want to create as much as you do, and putting forth the effort to create your united goal. 

AC: Do you (both) have any exciting projects coming up? How have you been keeping busy lately?

Andrea: You’re actually the first one to hear about this. I’m excited to share that I’ll be releasing a new single this month, and I’ll definitely be dropping another album this year. I’ve been working with other animators as well to make the visuals, so that’s going to be super fun! Once the pandemic crisis eases down, Janelle was planning to help out with my album artwork, so I’m excited to be working with her again on that. She’s such an amazing partner to work with. Though I’ve only known her for a short amount of time, I’m lucky to call her one of my best friends, especially one who supports me in my music career.

Janelle: Obviously things are very complicated right now, as far as the pandemic, but that doesn't mean we can't use this time to our creative advantage. I've been dedicating more time to exercise my editing skills as well as learning how to animate. As soon as I'm able to go outside, I’ll start shooting again too.

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Still from KARMA provided by Janelle Brosnan & Andrea Turk

AC: Last but not least, where can we find you (both) online?

Andrea: You can find me on Instagram and YouTube! Also your online music streaming services, of course.

Instagram I Youtube I Spotify I Apple Music

Janelle: You can find me on Instagram! @janellebrosnan 

Thank you everyone for watching and supporting the video! We appreciate it more than you know!

Music video credits:

Artist: @andreapturk @princehusein

Director/Editor: @janellebrosnan

Co Director: @summergwagner

Cinematographer: @alissa_rooney

First AC: @hunter_drones

Animation: @_mastergabe

Gaffer: @austin_bland

Makeup: @giovanni.rubio.mua and @lindsayreneebeauty

Wardrobe: @janellebrosnan and @angelo.numa

Extras: @peytonkileysaige @genevieve_garcia_ @jamespaulsklena @donovan.darko 

PA:  @ratenamer @pepiandthecreatures

Song credits:

Composed by Andrea Turk and Prince Husein

Produced by Andrea Turk

Mixed by Indra Qadarsih

Mastered by Chris Gehringer at Sterling Sound, New Jersey

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Digital Hell: Open World DJ & Production Workshop Series

Visual by Remote Access

Also Cool is proud to be teaming up with Digital Hell on their workshop series Open World. The workshops will be on DJing, production, personal finance and grants, making live visuals, and more! The workshops will be hosted on Zoom and streamed on Twitch, and there will be links to donate to the artists involved and/or to organizations that they would like to highlight.

Visual by Remote Access

Digital Hell: Open World is an information resource sharing project inspired by 2000's early-web optimism and generosity. Digital Hell started as a DJ mix series in 2018 out of San Francisco to sonically express frustration and despair about tech-capitalist dystopia. It has since moved to Montreal where it has continued as a radio show on N10.as and an ongoing project, and now through the Open World series. 

Open World is a tutorial and resource sharing series to facilitate teaching, learning and sharing within the DJ, music and visuals community while within a pandemic. Before the quarantine, Open World was an IRL Open-Decks DJ night organized with DJ Pacifier, Knapsack, and MVCOKO. The same spirit of sharing now continues online. Its goal is to create an online space to share knowledge with each other, to give and receive while digitally separated, and to build information resources that will continue to be accessible once quarantine lifts.

Remote Access is an artist/DJ based in Montreal and the person behind Digital Hell. They're most well known in Montreal for their web and design work for/and involvement in Vault and Non/Being as well as their role as an organizer of Open World: Open Decks nights.

This week’s workshop is Ableton Favourites with Tati au Miel and will take place on Tuesday, May 26th at 7pm EST.  

In this workshop, Tati au Miel will take you through their personal favourite tools and techniques that they use when producing and performing music in Ableton. They will discuss topics such as using samples, favourite plug-ins and how they use them (including links to downloads), max for live, using ableton for production vs live, how to make a mix in ableton, various other tips and tricks, and how to use ableton in a fun, no-pressure way. They will also dig into one of their track’s Ableton files from their most recent EP release The Exorcism of Tania Daniel, and demo their process throughout the tutorial.

Tati au Miel is a multidisciplinary artist, musician, DJ, and designer currently based in Montreal.  Spanning across many mediums such as music production, live performance, hybrid DJ/live sets, fashion, and more their work is always raw, powerful, and full of life. Their performances (both musical and artistic) are chest-reverberating and insightful experiences; their fashion designs is a gender-euphoric dreamy construction on the landscape of the body. They are not bound to one specific genre in music, either – they work with techno, punk, sound collage, noise, industrial and more to express their fluidity and vision. For Tati au Miel, the worlds of artistic exploration are infinite, and transcendental.

They recently debuted their first EP The Exorcism of Tania Daniel, an industrial adventure that is both disjointing and freeing – out on all platforms. You can find their work on Soundcloud, Bandcamp, and contact them for bookings at tatiaumiel@gmail.com.

The workshop will be held on Zoom and streamed on Twitch. The Zoom code will be posted on the Also Cool and Digital Hell instagrams day-of on May 26th before 7pm EST.

Stay tuned for information on our future workshops and online resources.

To access archived material visit 4444digitalhell.info!

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Visual by Remote Access

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Frankie Teardrop on Pre-Show Anxiety, the Best After Hours & Being a Grandpa

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Photo courtesy of Frankie Teardrop

There’s no denying that Frankie Teardrop is a Montreal queer icon. Check out their absolutely fire mix while you read about the LIP & Slut Island founder’s journey to becoming a DJ, producer & gay superstar. 

Malaika Astorga for Also Cool: From being a varsity soccer player to playing guitar in Ursula to now being a powerhouse DJ, you've been performing in front of audiences for a long time. How do you prep for a set (musically and personally), and do you have any tips for pre-show anxiety?

Frankie Teardrop: Pre-event anxiety has never failed to show up before a gig or a game, no matter how often I do it. On a team or in a band we could deal with it collectively, as a group, we could squeeze our nervousness out of us by relating and talking it through. As a DJ, you're somewhat alone in this game of butterflies. I don't want to sound like a shitty politician by not giving a direct answer to a question, so here we go. 

Five things I find that help reduces my pre-show anxiety:

1) Being prepared in advance, musically and technically.

2) Talk it through. Just like therapy, vocalizing your feelings helps. Give yourself a time limit, and find a friend who is willing to listen for a moment before you head to your gig. I usually go to gigs alone, but you could alternatively bring a friend. I did this when I played Igloofest, and it helped immensely. 

3) Arrival time. Go to the venue early. It always helps me to get a good sense as to what vibe in the space is like that night, who the crowd is, who the other DJs are, and what they are playing. It helps me have confidence in knowing what direction my set will take. 

4) Outfit. I refuse to be ashamed to bring this up. Pick your outfit, or get in contact with the designers you're collaborating with in advance. This probably doesn't apply or even occur to a lot of dudes because they can show up in their random pantalonz and shirt, and people will drool over them. But being femme, I feel pressure whether I like it or not (reminds me of that Beyonce and Ed Sheeran meme). Personally, I feel the eyes are on me, I want to look and feel good along while also sounding good. Even if I'm in a big baggy tee, I want to rock that big baggy tee.

5) Lastly, pick one "Step back and look at yourself!" reminder. Mine is: FRANKIE YOU'RE JUST A DJ LMAO

Also Cool: You've been heavily involved in event coordinator over the past few years in Montreal and Vancouver, from your first gig at Playhouse, to LIP and Slut Island. What are the differences you've experienced in the two scenes, and what's one thing you love about both cities?

Frankie: There is quite a difference between the two, the cities are so different economically. Vancouver is expensive, event-goers live across the entire city and surrounding suburbs, and people often have to work a lot to survive. 

My life here is very different than it was in Montreal. I work in film with a minimum of 14-hour days. I'm constantly exhausted, and I feel disgusting after work. Still, I try to direct any free time and energy I have towards my community projects. It is hard to find the energy, but I feel so deprived in the cis white straight man world of film that when I do hear of a queer party happening, I buy my ticket in advance and willingly look forward to that one night out. 

As for Montreal, I love how abundant queer events are each weekend. It's overwhelming how many options you have every night. The scene is small but powerful. The city feels small, people live close, living is cheap, so capitalism doesn't seep in as deep. Organizers and artists are less competitive, which creates way more space for collaboration. I love Montreal, it's been a pleasure to experience and witness the growth of the queer scene over time. I miss it.  xoxo Grandpa Teardrop

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Photo courtesy of Frankie Teardrop

AC: What was your experience like when you were first finding community in Montreal? How have you been able to find community through the music scene now both online and IRL?

Frankie: When I first moved to Montreal, my community was my soccer team. I'd bus out to Loyola campus every day after class to practice with my teammates, and we'd go on trips around Quebec to play every weekend. Soccer was my life. By my third year, I had to quit, classic to women's sports. The team got no scholarly funding, so I had to work. That's when I, of course, became a freakin' raging trans-integral feminist!

I was working at American Apparel when I first found my music lovers, queer friends, and my first girlfriend (co-founder of Slut Island Sultana Bambino). I moved to the Mile End around that time with my roommate, and we started going to Faggity Ass Fridays at Playhouse. This is where I found the queer community. FAF was where I realized why I wasn't as excited as my soccer teammates when the boys would share a touring bus with us.

During this time, I also learned that parties can hold incredibly powerful messages, and can solely exist to uplift those who are in more need of support in this world. FAF was a fundraiser for the Head & Hands Sense Project. It's a project that supported and still supports youth's healthy sexual development by giving them the information and tools to make empowering decisions about their own sexual health. Fulfilled and inspired by having found community and friends I related to, listened to and learned from, I started LIP and Slut Island.

AC: What was the best after-hours spot you've been to, and why?

Frankie: The best one I've been to was in Mexico City this February. There were actually two that blew my mind, but I'll pick the one that had more bathrooms. 

It was massive. There was a taco stand outside, the walls were smothered in colourful graffiti, and the ceilings were incredibly high. There were soaring pillars jutting out everywhere, holding the building up around the dancefloor. There was a little tunnel into another rave room that made me feel as if I entered into a cave, with one laser as a light source. For me, the best after-hours spot means a good sound system and a fascinating space to allow your party-people to drool over. 

AC: How can we learn how to DJ while we're quarantined?

Frankie: This really depends on how accessible equipment is to you. If you already have a controller or CDJs, keep practicing mixing tracks! Many of us have time to be patient right now. If you don't have the gear, computer DJing helps a lot when preparing to use physical gear. That's how I did it, virtual DJ, to controller, and then to CDJs. 

Keep an out eye for our collaborative DJ workshop series with Digital Hell, starting on April 14th.

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Photo courtesy of Grandpa Teardrop

AC: What's the best way to support you and other DJs/performers right now?

Frankie: Share and listen to our mixes. Donate if you can, most of us have our online cash drop apps up. Book us if you're doing anything online. Remind those who are not in the music or art scenes to support self-employed artists!

AC: Any final thoughts? 

Frankie: I wish everyone the best during these times, it's not easy. Shout out to all the frontline workers who are working so hard right now to keep people alive and safe.

Thank you Also Cool mag for your time, I love what you're doing.

(Editor’s note: Thanks, we love you too Frankie.)

Keep up with all things Frankie here & catch them on the LIP x HOT CRIP: Club Quarantine Take Over and stay tuned for our upcoming interview with Internet sweethearts Club Quarantine.

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VAULT Unlocked: How Montreal Raving Builds Community

Visual by Malaika Astorga

From the organizers of the infamous tunnel rave that entranced Montreal this past summer, VAULT: Unlocked brings you almost 24 hours of pure rave bliss and community events. NON/BEING is the collective behind some of the best underground raves in the city. Over the past few years, they’ve brought the community together -  from their early days at Barbossa (FKA Blizzarts), to the depths of an abandoned tunnel in Griffintown. 

Tickets are selling fast, be sure to pre-order here to avoid the increased ticket price at midnight. The daytime events are free, and open to the public.

VAULT: Unlocked is a celebration of the collective’s forthcoming compilation album Certified Reality, which features international artists such as Murder Pact (NY, USA), Tati Au Miel (Montreal, Canada), Jaclyn Kendall (CA, USA), Minimal Violence (Germany), and many others.  The festival itself is centered around sharing knowledge and resources, and bringing various scenes, practices, and communities together. The event experiments with the relationships and sentiments shared on the dancefloor, but this time recontextualized in daytime events and community-oriented activities. 

VAULT events are known for their excellent rave-invite websites, all created by Remote Access. You can catch their radio show “Digital Hell” on N10.as Radio every fourth Wednesday of the month at 5pm EST.

Also Cool Mag is proud to co-present the community panels portion of the festival, where we will have a facilitated open discussion on Montreal’s various creative scenes, and how we create, support, and sustain the communities' efforts. The panel discussions will be led by community leaders and creative organizers from different academic, social, and experiential backgrounds, bringing together people and perspectives from many different parts of Montreal's cultural foundation.

Read our interview below with NON/BEING co-founder, and VAULT: Unlocked coordinator Diana Baescu a.k.a. D. BLAVATSKY.

Also Cool: Who is Non/Being? 

Diana for NON/BEING: NON/BEING IS THE MURKY SLIME THAT COVERS A DANCE FLOOR AFTER A RAVE. We are Diana Baescu [who is speaking in this interview], Simon Rock, and Heather Mitchell at its current core - but we are more importantly a research studio built by the sentiments and moments we share in warehouse rave basements and late night chat rooms.    

AC: How did the idea for the Vault: Unlocked festival come about - what was your vision?

Diana: The VAULT: Unlocked festival all came together in about a month - but it has also been something we have been working towards for many, many years. Our vision is all of us hanging out in a big warehouse sharing time, knowledge, and resources. Maybe eating some snacks, or dancing...but mainly just being together in celebration, with ourselves, and with one another. 

AC: The festival is an opportunity for exploring the meaning of community and the various interconnections that exist within it - what is the significance of collaboration between various 'scenes'. How can Montreal's creative community benefit in particular?

D: Montreal has always been a very fragmented city. Based on a very clear separation between Francophone and Anglophone culture/communication, there is a type of transience present with how people interact with this city that makes it difficult to establish long term creative infrastructure. Collaboration is the most important thing. Although our different scenes might nurture varying aesthetics and sonic preferences, the lack of communication and resource sharing happening across even just the different rave communities within Montreal is really limiting our abilities to set up secure community roots. It shouldn't be this difficult to find spaces to throw events and work out of, nor this tough to seek out knowledge and advice from older, more experienced community developers. 

The difficulty and conflicts that each new generation of creatives faces in Montreal is ultimately based on how impermanent living in this city feels. People living here are constantly looking at places like Berlin and New York as cultural focal points to raving and other forms of art organization, but the reasons why people can do the things they are doing there now is because they have generations of infrastructure to tap into for resources, knowledge, and support. The point of collaboration is to come together and share what we have/what we know, and although dancefloors and rave spaces might be our current focal points for these community organizational practices, collaboration will only enrich our lives as creatives and individuals. 

I think that it is pretty clear at this point in time that institutions in power are not concerned with our states of being. They are not here to protect or nurture our interests or basic needs of living, and although at a younger and more naive point in my life I may have been inspired to try to ‘change the system’, at this point I am only concerned with establishing alternative support networks for the ones that continue to fail us. 

Raves are important, but this isn't just about raves. It is about using raves as spaces for celebration that expand to other aspects of our social livelihoods. This festival is a small contribution to our deeper social reflections on how we can support and flourish with one another, in a world that feels like it is falling apart - we will only continue to fail at building broader long-term community infrastructure, if we do not learn the best ways to collaborate and live with/alongside one another.     

N10.AS is an online community radio, who will be co-presenting the daytime market portion of the festival

AC: What events have you previously organized and how have those experiences fed into putting together the festival? 

D: Everyone in the NON/BEING and festival crew has organized a wide range of events. Vault itself has been running for two years, and has been most deeply impacted by the abandoned tunnel rave we threw over the summer. Completely changing our personal perspectives on our capacities as organizers, and really slamming down on some important aspects of illegal event throwing, the abandoned tunnel rave has informed us as both ravers and community members in really special ways. 

Throwing a festival of this sort has always been a dream of mine. Having moved to Montreal two and a half years ago, some of the first conversations I was having with people I met in the rave scene were about wanting to put something like this together. Based on zine-making events and punk shows I used to organize when I was younger, I have always wanted to expand the special feelings I have while raving to other forms of community gathering. 

When we first started thinking about this event on the 29th, we did not intend for it to be a festival. But after the tunnel rave this summer, the idea of organizing just a rave did not interest us as much. After exploring different warehouses and abandoned churches for a while, Simon and I found the first space for the fest and quickly started fantasizing about different ways we could use it. Also marking the launch of our new collective, NON/BEING, we wanted to do more than just throw a rave. I have always valued markets and group discussions for their shared abilities in bringing different people, perspectives, and experiences together - and it all just kind of came together really fast. So here we are.   

Frankie Teardrop is an event planner and DJ based out of Vancouver. In 2014, Frankie co-founded Slut Island Festival alongside Sultana Bambino. Within the same year they founded LIP, a queer events series, in which both projects are based out of Tio'tia:ke. They will be a speaker on the second panel, and a DJ during the rave segment of the festival.

AC: Who are some of the people in the panel discussions and what important topics will they be covering?

D: I am fan-boying over all of our panel speakers so hard. You can read more about each person in detail on the facebook page/fest document we sent out, but it will be an extremely interesting two hours. Drawing from knowledge bases and experiences that are involved in Montreal institutions like Mutek, Moonshine, Slut Island, Inner Circle, McGill and Concordia Universities, Lagom, Taking What We Need, (you folks at Also Cool), and so much more - a lot of really great humans are coming together to share their perspectives and ideas on community. The panels will be segmented into two one-hour conversations, with different folks for each discussion. Broadly asking ‘what is community?’, the first hour will more philosophically look at how community manifests within our lived realities, and why strengthening and expanding community support/conversation outside of rave and dance floor spaces is important. 

Comprised of generally younger members involved in more recent years of art and cultural development within Montreal, the first hour is intended to identify the tone and structure for why and how we should organize ourselves moving forward. The second discussion group will then build off of what was shared in the first hour, to more-specifically talk about the issues our communities face around spaces and funding. 

Incorporating very real dynamics of not only our community structures, but also of our personal lives - we will be graced by more experienced members of Montreal’s various scenes to talk about how we can establish sustainable spaces to work and gather within, and reflect on how we can better collect and direct funding sources within our community practices.

The self-taught, Montreal based artist Jimmy Bertrand (Neo Edo) creates through any means digital. They will be performing live at the festival.

AC: For someone who's never attended a rave before, what would you say have been the greatest lessons you've learned from those experiences?

D: Wow this is a really great question. One of the things that makes raving such a profound aspect of who I am today, is how it can be an extremely personal thing, yet a broader social/community-based undertaking at the same time. Raving has opened up a whole new understanding of embodied existence to me, a relationship between self and the physical that I was never able to fully grasp before moving to Montreal. It has taught me how to be with my physical self, and has offered the resentment I had developed growing up as a trans/non-binary individual, the opportunity to heal. 

Celebration is important. Having spaces we can experiment, escape, and explore relationships with ourselves and one another are founding sentiments for my beliefs in the power of raving. For so long I felt trapped and detached from the physical aspects of my existence, but through this development across my personal journey of raving, and the community relationships I have built - raving has taught me, and continues to teach me, lessons that inform complex aspects of my personhood. 

HONOUR YOUR INSTINCTS. You know yourself best. Always check in with yourself and reach out to people around you if something feels off. Consent and mutual respect should inform every aspect of the intentions you bring into a social space, especially raving. Although raving can be a beautiful and powerful exploration of self, acknowledge and respect how your personal journey affects and impacts the other people sharing space with you. 

We all have something to gain and learn from raving, but your experiences will always be more fruitful for both yourself, and those around you, if you move through them in consideration of broader community sentiments and mindful practices. Raving is a great place to begin these journeys, but I do not think they are the last and only places these feelings, conversations, and lessons should be shared.  

FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

12-6pm: Meet the Community (Co-Presented by N10.as & Sweatboxx)

A daytime art market co-presented by N10.as and Sweatboxx featuring local artists and vendors. Local DJs and VJs will be performing and broadcasting live on N10.as during the market.

6-8pm: Community Panel Discussions (Co-Presented by Also Cool)

A facilitated open discussion on Montreal’s various creative scenes, and how we create, support and sustain the communities' efforts. The panel discussions will be led by community leaders and creative organizers from different academic, social, and experiential backgrounds, bringing together people and perspectives from many different parts of Montreal's cultural foundation. 

Panel One: What is community? 

With speakers Malaika Astorga, Diego Cabezas Watson, Willow Cioppa, Sophia Sahrane, and Jacqueline Beaumont, moderated by Diana Baescu.

The first hour of panel discussions will more philosophically explore what community is, and how it manifests within our lived realities. Reflecting on scene-building within Montreal in reference to broader international art networks, this hour will touch upon how we can nurture fruitful locally-based cultures, while analyzing the political implications of our social organization within the real world. 

Panel Two: Community Spaces and funding

With speakers Odile Myrtil, Danji Buck-Moore, Milo Reinhardt, Estelle Davis, and Frankie Teardrop, moderated by Diana Baescu.

The second panel will be looking at more concrete questions of community spaces and monetary accumulation/redistribution. With the quickly shifting housing market within Montreal, how can we establish sustainable spaces/studios to work out of, and how do we find new venues for rave throwing and event organization. Closely intertwined with questions of spaces, speakers shall also be touching on various resources for funding, and shall reflect on how we can fund projects, pay one another, and redistribute wealth in productive/beneficial ways. 

8pm-Midnight: Live Performances

Live hardware performances from various local electronic musicians Liar/Lier, Exe.Jocko, Neo Edo and Dregqueen.

Midnight-7am: DJs/Rave

DJs and Vjs Pulsum, Frankie Teardrop, Lis Dalton, D.Blavatsky, Art Director B2B Fresh Out, The Dryer, Anabasine B2B Dileta, Remote Access and She.Phase, Viiaan and MPM10.

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Lux Magna 2020 x Also Cool Present: Age of Aquarius

Visual by Malaika Astorga

Lux Magna is everything you would want a music festival to be. The festival is entirely operated by a group of women and non-binary curators and artists, who redefine how arts events should be run. They emphasize the importance of lifting each other up, rather than tokenizing and commodifying each others’ work. Lux Magna does this by shining a light on the music, dance, spoken word, and visual art unique to their community.

Also Cool has the privilege of co-presenting a Lux Magna event this year: Age of Aquarius: An Aquastellar Experience with Cosmique Tea. We’ve worked in collaboration with the festival to launch a series of fun “Guess The Sign” visuals (answers at the bottom of the article), and we will have an “Intro to Astrology” zine available at the event!

Read our conversation with Mags from Lux Magna below.

GUESS HER SIGN 1 Visual collab Malaika Astorga x Lux Magna

Malaika Astorga for Also Cool: Tell us a bit about why Lux Magna started and how it has evolved over the years.

Lux Magna: The festival was born out of a desire to not only expand outside of the corporate understanding of festival curation, but also to see our favorite artists play during a time of year that isn't typically associated with festival season. Winter is a very difficult time in Montreal, especially for mental health, and Lux Magna is one of few ways to relieve that.

Also Cool: Your team has previously voiced frustrations about how music festivals are run. How are you making the changes that you wanted to see with Lux Magna? 

LM: Some of the ways we challenge current festival norms is by ensuring safe(r) space policies and giving accessibility info about our venues. With accessible venues becoming few and far between, not to mention closing down altogether, it's the least we can do.

GUESS HER SIGN 2 Visual collab Malaika Astorga x Mags & JUICE

AC: You've also emphasized that it's essential to be inclusive without tokenizing the communities that you're trying to uplift. How do you implement that into your festival planning and programming?

LM: The simplest way that we do this is by ensuring the team reflects different parts of the local scene, and as a team we go over projects we're genuinely excited about and would benefit from our platform.

AC: How did your team get Lux Magna going? It's incredible what your team has achieved, and we're curious about what that journey has been like. What would your advice be to someone who wants to start a music festival, but doesn't know where to begin?

LM: For my part, I joined the initial team in 2017 after I was invited to curate a show for Suoni Per Il Popolo 2018. My input as an independent event organizer, as well as a younger artist with an ear to the ground in terms of what millennial QTBIPOC were interested in, was noticed and valued. My advice would be to develop a solid work ethic in the public sphere, especially if it's DIY. Often people mistake DIY or working with friends as less professional, but it equally requires doing the homework and showing and demanding respect, while acknowledging all the ways capitalism and mainstream event organizing limits our mobility in the scene.

GUESS HER SIGN 3 Visual collab Malaika Astorga x Mags & JUICE

AC: How do you find and select your artists?

LM: A lot of the time, the local artists we pick are artists we've seen live and are excited to offer a larger audience where we can. Depending on who we're listening to, or discovering on SoundCloud or Bandcamp, we try our best to match artists to a lineup in order for their respective fanbases to discover something new. The best thing about this is that many of our artists end up discovering each other and collaborating after the festival! Honestly, it’s the best feeling.

AC: Let's talk a bit about our collaborative event, Age of Aquarius: An Aquastellar Experience. For those who don't know what's going to be going on, and what are we celebrating?

LM: So, it just so happens that every year, Lux Magna coincides with the beginning of Aquarius season, whose sign is associated with innovation, community and looking into the future. I have been working on an album with my dear friend, and talented multidisciplinary artist JUICE, that we've named Age of Aquarius. This event will serve as its official launch/listening party. During the first half of the evening, we'll be playing the album while our magical Aquarian friend Toni (Cosmique Tea) does 10 minute $10 PWYC tarot readings, which have been made more accessible thanks to our partnership with Overture with the Arts.

Afterwards, Toni will lead a short guided meditation, followed by an Astrology 101 talk that I'll be co-facilitating, as well as some fun zodiac games (prizes may or may not be involved 👀)

JUICE, Mags & Cosmique Tea by Malaika Astorga

AC: Tell us a bit about the Age of Aquarius album. Where did the initial inspiration come from, and how has the project developed over time?

LM: The inspiration behind the album was very random and sudden. In fact, I don't even remember the exact thing that spurred it initially because the themes are so intrinsic to the friendship JUICE and I have built over the last year or so. For example, we are both very much into astrology;  it's part of our daily conversations. We are also both nerds in our respective ways. While we both love anime and cartoons, JUICE is definitely a bigger gamer than I am. That said, I have an appreciation for the music featured in the video games and online games I grew up with. So, the idea to combine both astrology and video games into a musical project came very naturally to us. 

Age of Aquarius cover art

AC: What are your signs, and how do you think that they affect your work and specifically this project? 

LM: The current Lux team is comprised of two Aries, two Capricorns, a Gemini, a Sagittarius, a Scorpio, and I'm a Virgo. If you know anything about these signs, you’ll know that for the most part they like to take charge, but are also able to work independently. So, a lot of this project has been each of us doing our own thing, and then coming together at pivotal moments. JUICE is also a Capricorn but with very heavy Aquarius placements, which is one of the reasons behind why we named our album as such; we both have at least four Aquarius placements in our chart. I feel like working on this album allowed me to bear witness to the conflicting nature of Earth sign and Air sign tendencies, none more than within Joyce, so powering through it together was something very special. I think it comes through in the songs. 

GUESS HER SIGN 4 Visual collab Malaika Astorga x Mags & JUICE

AC: How would you explain astrology to someone who never even thinks about the stars?

LM: Literally the other day I was just saying how the Myers-Briggs test is just the layman suburban mom's astrology. Certainly with astrology, there comes important knowledge of astronomy, the movement of the stars and planets. The concept of astrology is usually described with the phrase "as above, so below,”  meaning the way we see the planets interact with each other from Earth is reflected in the way people act with each other on Earth. All the signs can be split up into different elements, different polarities, much like how the Myers-Briggs is split up by introvert/extrovert, feeling/thinking, perceiving/judging etc. It's these different combinations that make every person so unique. The Myers-Briggs test limits its results to 16 types, astrology is dependent on the exact star map of the time and place you were born. Not everyone's sky is the same. Even with twins, some traits are nurtured throughout life more than others between siblings. I should know, my mom is a twin. 

TL;DR, it's a way more entertaining Myers-Briggs test and nobody's results are ever really the same..

GUESS HER SIGN 5 Visual collab Malaika Astorga x Mags & JUICE

AC: Tell the world what you have going on. (plug any projects, links, whatever here)

LM: Follow me everywhere @Mags119 for more beats, illustrations, possible rants about Steven Universe, and follow my band too! @StrangeFroots

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ANSWERS TO GUESS THE SIGN

1. Libra

2. Virgo

3. Gemini

4. Cancer

5. Pisces

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Anyways… Meet Regularfantasy

Photo, Hair, and Art Direction by Ariana Molly

So you needed a sparkling new party girl anthem to lose yourself on the dancefloor? We did too. 

Montreal-based artist, DJ, and producer, Regularfantasy (Olivia Meek), has cooked up just the jam - topped with dog barks for claps. An expert in finding the perfect balance between fun and sentimental, Liv's productions and DJ sets are sprinkled with funky pop, dance, breakbeat, and UK garage influences. This duality is equally reflected in the vibe Liv creates; she brings the party to life, but beware - her impeccable curation never fails to stir up some deep-down emotions! She’s also playing this year’s Igloo Fest, check it out here.

With releases on Canadian labels Mood Hut, Heart to Heart, and Total Stasis, the lover of all things analog (and gluten-free!) has been in the game for a while, and she's got more magic up her sleeve. Regularfantasy's latest release on Irish label Pear, titled Anyways…, is a selection of three timeless jams that will make you groove, reminisce, and fall in love with the power of dance music all over again. As she says herself, "How could you not?"

Also Cool's Maya Hassa got the chance to catch up with the dazzling, (not so) Regularfantasy, to talk about her musical journey, her inspirations, and her thoughts on music for healing.  

Photo, Hair, and Art Direction by Ariana Molly

Maya Hassa for Also Cool: Before you began producing electronic music, you were playing in live bands. How would you compare your experiences in rock bands to DJing? 

Regularfantasy:  Before Regularfantasy, I had a project called Cover Girl, where I made weird covers, had a loop pedal/guitar, and sometimes performed live - which is still essentially true. That budded my interest in remixes, covers, and edits. I really love the format of a band because it's so loose, creative and fun, and I feel like my ideas flow better when I have someone to bounce them off of. However, as jam spaces in Vancouver became condos, more and more people started to make music at home. I mostly just jammed for fun, even got kicked out of a band once. Ciao is an active project with Void Mirror, where we work in the studio and record live jams. For my solo production, I used to make music only with an MPC and analog synths. I've recently transitioned to using a combination of Ableton, synths, and samples. I collaborate with many different artists, but I've also been making solo music for a long time. I think it was just a way of dealing with being alone. Electronic music allows you to do that. 

I strongly believe in the power of dance music and dance parties as a healing experience, which explains why it inevitably became part of my life. People need it. The scene where I grew up in Victoria, BC, was really playful and dancey, regardless of the musical style. I always loved groovy music and dancing - how could you not? When I moved to Vancouver, I was still looking for that fun vibe and ended up discovering it in the dance scene there. 

Even though I digitize everything, and play using CDJs, I love digging for vinyl. I like choosing music based on the object as a whole, not just the sound. I like the history that the object holds. When I was in my early teens, I inherited a record collection from a family friend. I really enjoy the album art, the physicality of it, record players, everything about it. I only really got into collecting dance music when I was 18. At that point, I became obsessed and never really got over it. Even now, as I make my way through different dance genres, I feel the same way I did then. 

Also Cool: You have a very recognizable aesthetic - your productions unwaveringly reflect the "plush" theme you have going on. Can you describe the story behind "plush" and the cozy aesthetic that you embody so well?

Regularfantasy: One of my longest collaborators is D.Tiffany. We have a project together called Plush Managements Inc., and we both share a love for the plush sound. Plush describes a synthetic version of luxury as well as what "plush" usually means in the context of consumer products. It could be something to do with Vancouver, which can be a depressing place on a budget, like most major cities. I think the sound is an escape, a desire for luxury, comfort, meaning, and safety. 

I think I am drawn to a certain lightheartedness of music because I have a deep darkness in my soul, which is fueled by PTSD and dissociation. I'm constantly using music to recreate a reality for myself that is not my creepy brain. I have an interest in comfort and in creating comfortable spaces (imaginary, audible, or physical) - and the plush sound and aesthetics help to create these places for me. I also think my visual art background plays into my sound, as well as inspiration from all different kinds of music. I like to keep it varied, you know. As Ursula K. Le Guin said, "Variables are the spice of life." 🤔

Photo, Hair, and Art Direction by Ariana Molly

AC: What is your gear setup like? Do you prefer using hardware or digital synths (and use a DAW such as Ableton, etc...)?

Regularfantasy: I recently moved, so I don't have a huge setup right now. I've been taking this opportunity to get to know Ableton better and work on finding new workflows. Usually, it's a mix of some synths and drum machines that I sample into the MPC or Ableton. 

For the heads, my previous bedroom setup when I was in Vancouver was (JP-8080, MPC 1000, Shruthi, Juno-106, Micro Korg, SH-101, 707) and recording into Ableton.

AC: Your latest album, featuring collaborations with D. Futers and D. Tiffany (Plush Managements Inc.), is a brilliant mix of moody, cozy, and euphoric. What was your inspiration for Anyways…?

Regularfantasy: Anyways... earned its name because it was kind of a random mix of songs that had no home, but were special in their own right. The song MSN with D. Futers, for example, was UKG-inspired with a throwback vibe, whereas Plushied is a bit of a flowy, pop-inspired jammer. It evokes a memory of someone talking; a stream of consciousness: overheard talking; dream talking; drunk talking; what you wish you said, and what you want to say. Finally, Party Girl Theme was made strictly for dancing purposes.  

Photo, Hair, and Art Direction by Ariana Molly

AC: Who are your musical influences?

Regularfantasy: A lot of my musical idols are 90s house producers, including Todd Edwards, Ian Pooley, Danny Tenaglia, Masters at Work, Daft Punk, Don Carlos... anything Italian. I also love 90s Canadian house. My favourite genres include all the styles of house, techno, tech-house, Eurodance, Italodance, Eurohouse, UKG... The list is endless.

I mostly listen to friends' mixes at the moment: Melbourne Deepcast, Libramix, Trushmix, Lobster Theremin mixes and HNYPOT, to name a few. Otherwise, I am actively looking for music or listening to the podcast Lexicon Valley, which is about language. It's my favourite thing ever, and I've listened to every episode. 

AC: You've been throwing DIY parties in Vancouver for quite some time. What's the significance of afterhours spaces to you - what meaning do these places have for underground culture and the local art community? 

Regularfantasy: Regardless of how late they go, DIY spaces are essential for building scenes and communities. They allow people of all levels, whether it's artists, DJs, promoters, or bands, to get experience. People can get a hands-on feel for what it's like to do events and learn to understand the responsibilities of working in non-DIY/afterhours venues. I also just like a grungy DIY vibe. It makes me feel comfortable, not sure why.

I think afterhours spaces are vital for the community. They stay open later, which allows people to experience the music and get into dancing. These parties are also usually invite-only and harder to find, which can help different people feel more comfortable to go to them. Sometimes I like a late event just because I can actually finish all the crap I need to do that day. When I can't possibly do anything else, I go out dancing. 

Going late also allows more people from different scenes to come dance together, and staff are also an important extension of the lineup and overall vibe. DIY spaces are like nothing else; people don't all get yelled at and herded out at 3am, pouring onto the street. I mean, they do eventually, but it's not like full chaos, main club-strip style. Something about dancing late into the night is just special. 

Photo, Hair, and Art Direction by Ariana Molly

AC: You make the freshest breaky remixes of pop classics. What do you look for when choosing a sample? Are there specific sounds you tend to gravitate towards?

Regularfantasy: I haven't really been into singing much lately. It takes a lot of extroverted energy, which I hadn't been feeling when working solo. Still, I'm looking forward to experimenting again. I've been making lots of pop edits because they're fun to work on - and I still get to play with (other people's) vocals. 

When I choose a sample, I usually like a vintage sound mixed with a clubby/techy vibe. I sometimes choose things that I'm repulsed by, just for fun. I'm still figuring it out. It's all about working to that edge. 

AC: Are you working on any new projects? Where can friends and fans find you next? IGLOOFEST, DUH.

Regularfantasy: I've been travelling a lot, and so I've been working with different people. I have some edits and tracks circulating and coming out, officially and unofficially, with D.Tiffany, Flørist, DJ Chrysalis, Priori, Ciao (Void Mirror and I), Fio Fa, R. Kitt, Kristian North, and more!

Upcoming gigs: 

Montreal: Igloofest, Jan 18 (20h00-21h30)

Montreal: Brasserie Beaubien, Jan 31

Montreal: Poubelle Magnifique, Feb 7

Glasgow: Le Cheetah, Feb 13

London: MOT, Feb 14

Berlin: about:blank, Feb 23

Dublin: Izakaya, Feb 29

Regularfantasy

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Photo, Hair, and Art Direction by Ariana Molly

Ariana Molly has been striving to capture the feelings with no name in her short films, 35mm photographs, and music since she could identify her pulse. 

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Maya Hassa

Maya is a music journalist from Chicago who fell head-over-heels in love with Montreal’s unique DIY culture. She works to promote underrepresented and underground artists through her writing.

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