Introducing Trans Trenderz: A label by & for Black trans artists

Trans Trenderz is the Black trans-owned record label helping trans and nonbinary artists achieve mainstream success by providing them with the resources they need. Founded by Blxck Cxsper (they/them) in 2016, the record label has now grown to span across Montreal and NYC, with Steph Durwin (he/him) joining the team in 2018. 

The label mobilizes allies via the Ghostly Beats Project, which provides Black trans artists with the resources they need to launch their careers. This includes recording, mixing, mastering, financial help with distribution, graphic design, music video creation, and marketing, all completely free of charge. They also host educational workshops for covering (but not limited to) transness, identity, and creative practices.

We caught up with Trans Trenderz to talk about the label's history and learn how allies can help. 

Blxck Cxsper: Hi! I'm Blxck Cxsper, Black non-binary hip hop artist from Montreal, and founder Trans Trenderz. My pronouns are they/them.

Steph: Hi I'm Steph, I'm an NYC-based engineer, producer & songwriter, and my pronouns are he/they.

Blxck Cxsper via Trans Trenderz

Malaika for Also Cool: Hi! It's so nice to meet you. Let's start by talking about how the label began.

BC: The label started off as a mixtape that I had curated and produced. It featured 14 different trans artists from all over. We released it during a live launch in New York City on November 6th, 2016. I'm a Capricorn, so I'm always thinking about what's next every time I achieve a milestone. That's what initially inspired Trans Trenderz. The day after the launch, I was like, what can I do next? How do I keep going?

Steph: We met in the summer of 2018 at a trans health conference. We brainstormed about how we could work together on Trans Trenderz. We launched the label's NYC branch shortly after that and found some artists to start working with right away. 

Also Cool: What kind of support does the label offer to its artists, and how is it different from other labels out there?

BC: We don't take any royalties from our artists. We're a label, but we also provide management, an agent, the full package. So when an artist works with us, we're providing them with everything they need to get their career started. We also prioritize working with Black trans people and providing them with the support they need.

What we do most often is a six-month contract where the artist will release one single. They keep their music and royalties' rights, we take 10% of the booking fees, and then split the profit from the merch sales and physical copies. Artists don't have to pay anything in advance, and we record and produce their music entirely for free.

Steph: We do everything from pre-production to recording, mixing, mastering, distribution, the artwork, even going as far as performance coaching and mentorship. The goal of what we're doing is to provide the knowledge and skills to our artists so that even once our contract is over, they're to be fully independent. 

AC: This is the most ethical model for a label I've ever heard of.

BC: Well, we're artists too, you know!

Apollo Flowerchild via Trans Trenderz

AC: Understanding industry terms, knowing what kind of a team you need (or not), and even owning your music is essential to surviving as an artist, so it's great to hear that you offer that kind of support.

BC: We don't want the artist to ever be the only trans person in the room. It's essential to have another trans person there with them, so they're not alone if anything happens.

AC: Tell me about some of your artists! Do you focus on particular genres, or is it more general?

BC: It took us a little while to figure out who we wanted to work with, and the most important thing was learning to know when an artist was ready. The artist needs to be able to work with a team, and we need to make sure that collaboration will work before making the commitment. 

Right now, we have Apollo Flower Child and Heather Hills on the label. It's very important to me that the majority of the artists on the label are Black trans people. When it comes to who we work with as a team, there are a lot of white allies volunteering, which is great. We're working on expanding and looking into collaborations with different studios (especially in Montreal). This will allow us to have the infrastructure to work with even more artists.

AC: What would be the best way for an artist interested in working with you to reach out?

BC: We don't just work with artists that we sign, we work with many other people as well. We have a forum for Black and other trans musicians to connect and build this online community. 

Black trans musicians on that forum can ask for free services, whether that be mixing, mastering, graphic design etc. They can connect allies on the forum who offer their services for free. We use that forum to find the artists that we want to sign next since we can witness their growth and provide resources. So whenever we can help someone's career in a more committed way, we reach out to them to sign them. 

AC: How have your operations changed since COVID-19, and how are you readjusting?

BC: The only thing that's really changed about how we work is that we don't do as many live shows. But seeing as Steph is in new york, and I'm in Montreal, we've been working remotely forever. We've been Zoom professionals before it was cool.

AC: One of the most significant barriers to entry for musicians seems to be even knowing how to send a press email, or figuring out how to reach out, or how to make an EPK. We really want to provide advice & tips for anyone starting out and wonder what advice you would have.

BC: I'm a self-taught musician, and although it seems obvious, I would really recommend googling things all the time. How do I promote myself? Google what an EPK is and how to make them. There are so many resources online, even for free. That should be everyone's reflex, google EVERYTHING.

Steph: Something that I've found to be a  useful process is first defining the boundaries of your artistic direction. Figure out what that is, and draw a clear distinction between yourself and your brand. Find someone who's brand aligns with yours and take inspiration by adapting their methods to your brand.

Heather Hills via Trans Trenderz

AC: Do you think artists need to be online to be successful?

BC: Definitely, without question. Again, free resources. Everything that isn't online is often very expensive. Being online is the best and most resourceful way to get your music out and make yourself known.

Steph: Another thing that's interesting in that sentence is the word "success." What is success? What does it mean to you? It's almost like artists might feel pressure to have a particular definition of success that doesn't necessarily align with their personality or the music they like to make. 

I always say, think about what that means for you. Maybe for you, success means playing shows a few times a month at your local bar, and that's totally ok. 

AC: Wrapping up, is there anything you'd like to highlight, or is there any specific kinds of support that you're looking for from allies right now?

BC: If there are allies from Montreal who want to get involved, whether that be a studio or professionals that can help sign a few artists in Montreal, that would be great. 

ALLIES: Offer your services to Trans Trenderz here

Trans Trenderz

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Blxck Cxsper

Instagram I Spotify

Apollo Flowerchild

Instagram

Heather Hills

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The T-1 sequencer: Turn off your brain and turn on a musical brainstorming machine

“There’s too much thinking involved in making electronic music - I think it should be more about expression… and feeling.”

The Euclidean algorithm - it binds African rhythms, nuclear physics accelerators, string theory, and soon, dance floors of the electronic underground. Developed by the ancient Greek mathematician Euclid, the algorithm is a mathematical method for finding the greatest common divisor between two numbers - simply put, the largest number that divides two numbers without a remainder. Ugh, yeah, math - but this old numerical theory turned out to be a fundamental concept underlying traditional rhythms, particularly in Greece, India, Namibia, Rwanda, and Central Africa. 

Euclidean rhythms can be found in N-geru and Yalli ballads by the nomadic Tuareg people of the Sahara, make up the Rupaka Tisra tala of South Indian music, Korean Buddhist chants, and were more recently used by the Russian composer Tchaikovsky for his Symphony No. 6 and form the meter for Dave Brubeck’s Take Five.

So what’s this ubiquitous pattern? Discovered by Canadian computer scientist Godfried Toussaint at McGill University, the Euclidean rhythm evenly distributes a given number of pulses (or notes) across a chosen number of steps (how long a sequence will be) in a rhythmic loop. In manipulating just these two parameters, there’s an endless potential of different rhythmic patterns to be made.

Now that that’s out of the way, why are we talking about ones and zeroes? Remember raves? There are people actually doing research to make the experience even better. A few years ago, a group of friends - Mathias Bredholt, Mathias Kirkegaard, Lars Buchholtz and Jonas Kenton - founded Torso Electronics, a budding music hardware company in Copenhagen. All musicians and/or engineers, they shared a vision for adding more improvisation, more spontaneity to playing live electronic music - and so they came up with a MIDI device called the T-1: a euclidean rhythm sequencer. 

I caught up with Mathias B. (AKA Areal) to talk about how it all started. 

Sequenced on the T-1 sequencer by Torso Electronics

Maya for Also Cool: Could you explain what a ‘euclidean sequencer’ does and how that concept makes the T-1 special as a new drum machine?

Mathias: I really wanted to make something that’s easy to perform with. It's all about immediate response. The cool thing about euclidean sequencing is that you can do it on stage - normally, (with live hardware sets) you enable steps at different sequences. You program the rhythm, but it’s really hard to make radical, sudden changes. 

It was actually a researcher at McGill who came up with it like 15 years ago. He did a study on traditional African rhythms and how they have this commonality - they all share a property that every rhythmic event has this evenness. 

If you take a time sequence, or some duration of time, in each of these rhythms there will be a repeating pattern of equally distributed rhythms. He came up with this simple algorithm with only two parameters to create all these different kinds of patterns. It's really just two numbers that you need - and we created two knobs dedicated for this purpose. With only these two controls, you can create rhythms instantly - and you can change them. You can make them really dense or make them really sparse... and it works great for live performances. You can control how energetic the pattern is going to be - and the cool thing is that they all sound good, no matter what you do. 

Also Cool: How does that change a typical production workflow?

M: The T-1 is a happy accident machine. It's all about listening. If you really get to learn it, you will be able to predict more of what it will do, but to begin with, it’s a tool for exploration. It’s really good if you're stuck and don't really know what to play on your keyboard - you can just start the machine and it will create something for you. You can explore, turn the knobs - and you don't really have to think to use it. That’s what makes it very different from a lot of drum machines - electronic music is too much about thinking. And it's also too visually-oriented. 

If you work with Ableton, [writing MIDI] is a lot of putting notes in various places, and you have to know some music theory to be able to do that, because otherwise you’re just going to create rhythms that are not in time. When I was teaching electronic music, I noticed that it was very common for people to end up making music in weird time signatures. When you use a computer, you just type stuff in, then listen to it, and decide if it sounds good or not. I think what we’re trying to do is to add some more exploration to electronic music - so you can just play it and not have to think about it. Sort of like if you play the piano. There’s too much thinking involved in making electronic music - I think it should be more about expression… and feeling.

AC: What is the story of how this thing came to be?

M: My friend Mathias and I both studied electrical engineering and met each other at university. We came up with the sequencer as our thesis project in undergrad. Then we worked together with Jonas (Kenton Slash Demon, When Saints Go Machine) - our friend who is a very talented producer and musician. He’s got a lot of experience playing live all over the world - and we also had this idea of playing live music and improvising on stage. He was frustrated that after playing live [electronic music] for over ten years, you still always have to prepare everything - that it feels like you’re not really connected with the music. You can’t really improvise. So we all shared this idea and started working on it.

Mathias and I went to Montreal for two years - we were afraid that the project wouldn’t succeed because it’s pretty hard to keep up the excitement when we were all so far away - but the lab that we were in at McGill gave us a lot of inspiration. We were in the Input Devices and Musical Interaction Laboratory (IDMIL), which is focused on the expressivity and live performances of electronic music - and the embodiment of electronic music. It really follows along the same lines of what we were trying to do. At IDMIL we also explored adding various controls that would allow [the user] to interact with the instrument and use their body to control it more. 

In academia it’s pretty common to see electronic music performed with various gestural controllers that sense your motion and then affect the music in different ways. It’s not very common to see that in the underground music scene. I’m really curious to see how we can merge these two worlds together with the sequencer. 

During their time in Montreal, both Mathias B. and Mathias K. performed at various local venues, including Eastern Bloc, La Sala Rossa, and Café Résonance - and they also hosted basement jams. Now that they’re back in Copenhagen, Torso just launched a Kickstater campaign to build the first series of T-1 sequencers - and after passing their goal on just the first day, they’ve definitely kicked off on a good note! Keep an eye out for euclidean rhythm sequencers at the next rave…

Learn more about the T-1 sequencer here. 

Support the Torso Electronics team on Kickstarter.

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From Beatmaking Workshops to Community Leaders: These are the Froot Origins

If you haven’t heard of Montreal’s Black, queer, hip-hop trio Strange Froots already, it’s about time you drop everything and check out their entire discography on Bandcamp… STAT. The group is comprised of the talented Mags aka Passion Froot, Naïka aka Dragon Froot, and Sage aka Star Froot. Next week, Strange Froots will be celebrating their 6th anniversary as a band with us by throwing a Digital Sleepover — and you’re all invited! Come play our favorite party games, learn trivia about local artists, and have an open discussion about the COVID-19’s impact on our community, as well as the contributions made by its Black artists! DJ Mollygum will also be playing the after party.

The event will be streamed online, and will also serve as a partial fundraiser, with the proceeds donated to the Black Lives Matter DC, Regis Korchinski-Paquet’s family, to Taking What We Need (a Montreal-based discretionary fund group for low-income trans women) and Also Cool Mag's Artist Emergency Fund. Janice Ngiam (of Sun Astronauts), has volunteered her talents and allyship all the way from Hong Kong. For every new donation 20$CAD or more, Janice will produce a short, personalized song about anything you want! Discover her music at www.janicengiam.com/music.html

Join the Froots this Thursday on Instagram from 5pm to 8pm for a Frootiversary Happy Hour, and get a taste of what's to come this Saturday!

We got the chance to catch up with the Froots to reminisce on their early beginnings, discuss their future aspirations, and hear their thoughts what work has to be done to make Montreal’s hip-hop circles more inclusive and safe for QTBIPOC folks. Check out our interview below!

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Strange Froots (from left to right: Mags, Sage and Naïka), photo by Didi M’bow

Also Cool: Before we begin, tell us who you are and about your individual artistic pursuits.

Mags aka Passion Froot: My name is Mags. I’m an illustrator, cartoonist and graphic artist by trade, as well as a beatmaker, singer-songwriter, MC and casual guitarist.

Naïka aka Dragon Froot: My name is Naïka, I’m a Haitian, queer, Black woman. I’m a singer-songwriter, a guitarist, a bassist, and an MC. I recently released my first solo album, Painted Imageries, this past January.

Sage aka Star Froot: Hello, I’m Sage! I'm a singer, songwriter, actor and producer. I am also a passionate linguist, studying Spanish and Mandarin. Learning languages is a really interesting and ceaseless artform to me. 

AC: Individually and collectively, how has music helped you learn and grow?

M: On an individual level it has helped me spiritually for as long as I can remember, producing (more so than writing) has somewhat helped me translate my journey to sound. It’s also helped me reconnect to my ethnic origins as a first-generation African-American; in learning how to sample, I’ve been able to reimagine classic songs my parents would play around the house, or that I would hear over the summers of my childhood visiting relatives. As part of a collective, I think I’ve been able to contribute the story-telling attributes of my instrumentals, as well as the eclectic sounds of our diaspora. 

N: Individually, music has helped me grow into who I am and explore every facet of what I am., [Music] has given me the ability to express myself in a way that can be scary, but at the end of the day, honestly. Collectively within Strange Froots, this band’s music has allowed me to step out of my comfort zone by pursuing artistic directions and musical styles that are not necessarily my go-to. The band keeps challenging the ways that I write, compose, and structure music, and I love that about Strange Froots.  

S: Music has given me a way to express myself creatively and honestly. As a dynamic introvert, I spend most of my time reflecting over socializing. Music has been a great conduit for me to both share who I am and bond with those in my circles. It’s how I found Mags and Naïka all those years ago. I can’t imagine life without music. If I don’t like the song, I’ll change it, but there are very few times where I’ll go for silence. 

AC: What are the Froot origins? How did your diverse creative backgrounds come together for the first time? 

M: At the time of our meeting (Spring 2014), I was in my last year at Concordia. I was VP Marketing and Communications for the then-named Hip Hop Heads Concordia, of which I am a co-founder; this was a revival of the university’s long-defunct hip-hop club. I had by this time already been acquainted with a few of Montreal’s hip-hop artists, and it’s through them that I was introduced to NoBad Sound Studio. 

N: The manager of NoBad Sound at the time wanted to do a “girl” workshop, ‘cause few of them were at the studio and few were seen in hip-hop in general. It’s through this that our diverse creative backgrounds came together. I came up with the name Strange Fruits (paying homage to Billie Holiday and Nina Simone) for our band, as we are all Black and know what the song talks about: it was very dear to me, to us. Then Mags came up with the spelling “froots,” like the cereal, ‘cause we’re all nerds like that and are all pretty “out there”... fashion and personality wise, we’re all very colourful. But it says a lot too: the “roots” within fROOTs, refers to our Black roots, and it is also a derogatory gay term that was reclaimed by the queer community; which includes all of us in this band.

S: I was the last to arrive. I went to NoBad interested in beatmaking workshops, when I met Mags and Naïka days later. We shared our musical taste and gauged that we all had very different musical backgrounds. As the alternative member of our alternative-chill-soul collective, I am influenced by rock, house, jazz, pop, film scores, musicals, i.e. eclectic. I was also part of a theatre troupe and sang in choirs growing up, so working together came very naturally 

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Strange Froots (from left to right: Sage, Naïka and Mags), photo by Andrée-Anne Guy

AC: What is your creative process like as a collective, and how has this evolved over the years?

M: A lot of our collaboration these days (COVID withstanding) has happened digitally, sending beats, voice notes, guitar riffs and the like, due to ever-conflicting schedules. In the very early days, even after our first EP dropped, we would continue to meet up at NoBad and much of our collaborative efforts happened there. Then, you have songs like “Regular” that come about from very random inside jokes created well outside of the context of the band, and just from goofing around as friends.

N: OHHH child it has evolved! At first, we would all sit down together and write to a beat Mags or Sage produced, or a riff I played on the guitar. We held a lot of importance to composing all together in the same space and time, but it’s not always feasible and realistic. Now, we tend to write separately, propose something from one person who wrote, created a riff, laid down a beat and then the rest adds to it. We talk more openly about what we want to change, about directions of the sound. It’s literally a constant draft and constant back and forth within our capacities and availabilities, instead of depending on each other’s presence to finish a song. 

S: I think now a major difference, especially with our individual artistic pursuits, is that we create music with an understanding of if it’s for Strange Froots or for another passion project. If I can imagine Mags dropping a fierce 16 or Naïka working magic with her bass for example, then it’s for Strange Froots. It was easier in the beginning to put us all in one room for a few hours to create, but later became very unrealistic. 

AC: Since meeting through the NoBad Sound Studio workshops, do you feel that the Montreal hip hop scene has become more inclusive? In your view, what work has to be done to further grow hip hop spaces in this way?

M: In the 6 years of our existence, I’ve seen some slow, gradual efforts to not only include more cis women than they did at the time (because if we’re being honest that was their first hurdle). We’ve seen some kind of attempt at understanding and including the LGBTQ+ community. They’re not going to get it right all the time or on the first go, (some might even say there’s a  sense of pinkwashing and “you-go-girl”-ism), but I’d like to think that our group’s existence helped create more waves in that direction, especially in the Black community. 

N: Adding to that though, the Montreal hip-hop scene is VERY underground. The hip-hop that you see out there, that is being paid attention to, is mostly performed by white cis Francophone men. It completely disregards the Black and Latinx folks that laid the groundwork for hip-hop in Montreal, and the deeply ancestral history of hip-hop for Black folks. It’s our culture. In the last 10 years or so, Quebec suddenly “discovered hip-hop” from white kids, even though it’s been here for decades... So is it more inclusive to women? Meh, not really. We make our spaces. There needs to be a lot of work done for women in hip-hop and for queer folks. Hip-hop was made by marginalized folks who were Black and Brown: you have to include women and queer Black and Brown folks, not just the cis het straights, ‘cause they are marginalized as fuck. 

S: I agree, there’s still a lot of work to be done. There is hope – queer and black artists like Backxwash lighting the ground up – but when it comes to the hip-hop scene in Montreal, space is sparse and divided. White Francophones are still the dominant voices of hip-hop in Montreal unless the event is specifically curated to showcase queer and POC voices. Considering the origins of hip-hop as a tool for the marginalized and oppressed, it is crucial that more queer artists of colour are able to share their multifaceted truth and be on the mainstage. I hope we can get to a point where black and queer-owned venues exist and our music is not competing for airtime and spots in the margins. 

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Strange Froots (from left to right: Naïka, Sage and Mags), photo by Kinga Michalska

AC: Beyond music and performances alone, Strange Froots has acted as a collective driving interdisciplinary collaboration in Montreal. How have you connected with the music community, and how has that had an impact on your outlook as artists and activists?

M: From experience alone, I’d say due to the varying types of shows we’ve been able to play, we’ve not only made some great friends and musical colleagues, but we’ve been able to connect them to each other in many ways. With amplifying other artists through our platforms and association came an organic sense of belonging, like, “some of us are synth artists and some of us do hip-hop and some of us are riot grrrls but fundamentally we want the same things.” I was able to adopt this mentality when I was approached to co-found the multidisciplinary winter festival Lux Magna in 2017, alongside certain members of the Suoni Per Il Popolo festival.

N: I’m a part of a collective that I I co-founded called Fruition. Fruition is by and for QTBIPOC, and ensures that we have the space to thrive and access the resources we need to survive, succeed and heal in spite of systemic racism, oppression, assimilation, colonialism. We create art/music events, workshops, panels with QTBIPOC folks within our community so they can tackle their artistry in a way that is safe and radical. Individually, that has a lot of impact on me to help me grow and feel even more secure in my identity, but has also helped me find tools to build within our community. 

S: I find activism goes hand-in-hand with hip-hop, since injustice is not too far behind. In our collaborations with The Rap Battles for Social Justice, we had opportunities to explore deep rooted issues in our society, like austerity, police brutality, and climate justice. It inspired me to become more politically informed and recognize the power of music to facilitate important discourse. We are all writing our own artist blueprint while also having to navigate the erasure of inclusive physical spaces to share our art. In Montreal, the helping hand comes from utilizing our network and own creativity. That’s why it’s crucial to stay connected and support each other. I think it’s great that many collaborators are people we can also call friends, but at the very least, are people who share our values. These are people that I want to see flourish, so my activism is about standing up in the face of injustice and also facilitating joy as a form of resistance.

AC: Now that we are coming up on your anniversary; what has been a defining moment in your band’s history, and what are some of your future aspirations as a group?

M: Not to be a total Leo rising about it, but I think our priorities and our individual scopes had to severely shift when I was made to leave Canada. Long story short, I had a few bureaucratic hiccups regarding my status in Canada, and so I was turned away at the border when I was returning from a home visit from Silver Spring, MD. A lot of things were put on hold, and I attribute a lot of my shortcomings in taking care of my status, to hyper-focusing on keeping the band afloat. I held an unhealthy amount of self-worth in what I was able to do for the community and how I was able to alleviate my bandmates’ workload (I was the only one done with school), it took me away from myself in some very detrimental ways, and I think we’ve finally reached a place where we see that clear as day, and are constantly working to not repeat the mistakes that lead to several kinds of pressure and burnout. I hope that our group can continue influence positive and progressive change in Montreal’s youth, to make our queer circles less racist, and the hip-hop scene less queer and transphobic overall, and I hope as more doors open for us, we can hold them up for our friends in the game.

N: A defining moment in our history was going to Senegal and finally seeing our community of QTBIPOC fam come together when we put on hip-hop performances for queers. For future aspirations, I want us to keep creating and finding ways to create for ourselves, as a way to sustain imagery and art within our community.

S: I would love for us to all be in the same place physically for longer than a week! Technology helps, but our first in-person rendezvous will be something. The most defining moment for me so far has been our trip to Senegal. The connections made there and the wisdom shared will last with me forever. If the fates allow, I would love to journey with the Froots again to another motherland. Ultimately, I wish for more growth, love and understanding and for us to keep doing the work we do. The journey has been incredible so far. I’d like to see how much further we can go.

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Strange Froots (from left to right: Sage, Mags and Naïka), photo by Mariel Rosenbluth

Keep up with the Froots on their socials!

Strange Froots

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Mags

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Naïka

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Sage

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Introducing Liquid Love: A label for the Montreal underground

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Liquid Love Records is a new project by Montreal-based producer and DJ, Martin Cadieux (AKA Liquid Love Angel). “Boundary Condition” marks the label’s second release, embracing the spirit of local collaboration and paying tribute to the city’s underground scene. Two original tracks by Cadieux are accompanied by remixes from Toronto-based Korea Town Acid and Hesk. The EP features original artwork by Francois Beauchesne.

“Boundary Condition” features a hammering acid bassline with a vocal sample of Stephen Hawking discussing his theory of the universe before the Big Bang, “My motto is there are no boundaries.”

Representing the local scene’s diversity and no-boundaries versatility of sound, what begins as a 160 BPM, drum and bass hard-hitter transforms into to a slower, more club-friendly house mix, until it’s finally reworked as an emotional IDM-flavored jam with Korea Town Acid incorporating sustained pads and emotive chord progressions. Meanwhile, Hesk is recognizable for his footwork productions - and his stuttering remix keeps the essence of the style’s rhythmics while simultaneously pushing its boundaries with elements of acid and techno. 

Pursuant to the label’s essence, the record was produced with an improvisational style to it, using live hardware - representative of how Liquid Love Angel and friends organize and play live analog shows around the city.

Martin: “Detroit, New York and Chicago - they have their own sound. I wanted to start a label to represent Montreal. We have such a beautiful and diverse city, and we have a lot to offer in terms of music, producers, and DJs... We have a very vibrant city.”

Attending Concordia University’s Electroacoustics program, Cadieux developed an interest in experimenting with analog synthesizers. Being around so many people with a similar passion inspired him to build his own platform - giving exposure to an unfailingly innovative underground dance music scene.

Martin: “I got tired of always listening to other people's music. We have great artists in Canada. I know a bunch of them. I went to school with them. I'm going to shows with them. I'm playing shows with them. 

It did take time - but now that I have all these people, I'm putting everything together, and I only plan on releasing more music. Just seeing where it goes.”

In the spirit of improvisation (we’re all winging it, right?) Martin recounted how the collaboration came to be:

Martin: “I didn't know how it was going to turn out. Jess [KTA] checked it out on Instagram in a 10-second clip and she asked, ‘What is that?’ - she made a comment on one of my posts and said she was going to be playing in Berlin in a few days, at this club called Wilde Renate. She wanted to play the track - and I hadn't finished it yet… 

Then she hit me up like two weeks later and said, ‘Hey, I'm going to play in this club - I want your track where is it? What's going on?’ 

It's hard to put yourself out there - the more I'm doing it, the more I'm impressed with other people. Constantly releasing music - yeah, it's for the love, but also it takes concentration. It takes effort.”

Korea Town Acid by Colin Medley

From the producer, to the remixer, to the sound engineer, to the cover art, putting out a record is a collective effort - it takes a lot of coordination, a lot of synergy. It’s exciting to see a DIY project come to life and shed light on the lesser-known gems in the city.

Martin: “This is the beginning of something important for me, and I'm hoping to bring out other artists I find interesting on the scene through this.”

All proceeds from “Boundary Condition” will be donated to a local organization dedicated to supporting POC in Montreal - get it here. 

Liquid Love Records

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Liquid Love Angel

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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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Slip Into A Daydream with Artemis' "Lay It To Rest"

Still from Lay It To Rest

Spend a sun-soaked afternoon with Vancouver to Montreal singer-songwriter Artemis and Cyrus Jordan. We're so excited to premiere the dreamy new video for Artemis' song Lay It To Rest, the first release off of her upcoming EP All My Rings, a follow-up to Glow4meplz, which came out last year.

Photo by Caitlin Bevandick, concept by Artemis

The video features a bedroom jungle of plants and pillows, with Cyrus' soft guitar leading us through Artemis' honest lyrics about letting go and coming to terms with tender feelings. "Maybe just put it away someday you'll say everything you wanted to wanted to, maybe just put it under your pillow 'til you're ready to let go."

The video was shot by Cyrus Jordan and Brayden James, edited by Artemis, and the artwork is by Ruby Izatt.

Watch Lay It To Rest below

Artemis

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Cyrus

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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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Dance or GTFO: Mollygum Talks Dancefloor Safety, Her New All-Asian Label & DJing Club Q

Art by Malaika Astorga

If you’ve been out dancing in Montreal over the past few years, you’ve probably run into Mollygum either behind the DJ booth on the dance floor. Known for unapologetically calling out any creepy behaviour she witnesses, or anyone standing in the middle of the dance floor on their phone, Seven (AKA Mollygum) is a force to be reckoned with.

Check out her latest mix below while you read her experience connecting to the Asian communities in Montreal and LA, her new all-Asian label, and how she started DJing in the first place.

Also Cool: Tell us a bit about who you are and what you do. Who is Mollygum, how did you start djing, and where are you at now with your DJ/music career? Not to mention that you’re also an incredible chef over at Nice to Meat You.

Mollygum: This is my sixth year in Montreal, and I recently graduated from Concordia University with a BA in Communications. Right now, 50% of my career is music, and 50% is food. When I’m not making music, I’m making food. I was working at a restaurant, doing a pop-up and then doing DJ gigs on the weekend. 

The name Mollygum came when I was in China, from a thought I had: “What if there was gum specifically made for when you're on molly?” I was working at a bar, and I started DJing based on a bet. It was an open decks/mic night. We had booked someone who had sent us a set, but when he showed up he played nothing like what he had sent. It was supposed to be an electronic night, and he was playing all traditional dance music. The crowd was not down, they were there for electronic music. I had to stop him, and told him that it wasn't the vibe for tonight. He asked me if I was a DJ, and if I even knew what electronic music was. I said, “No, I am not but come next Wednesday and you’ll see.” I borrowed all the equipment from a friend, watched YouTube tutorials, and had a great time. I even went down to the dance floor, forgetting that I was DJing, and someone yelled, “Where the fuck is the DJ?,” when the music stopped.

I started with my Chinese twitter name dobidobi7, but the more DJing became a career for me, the more I settled on a name. I was briefly DJ Apportez Votre Vin, but it caused confusion at gigs with promoters, so I changed it.

AC: You’ve been heavily involved in event coordination over the past few years, both in Montreal and internationally. You’re iconic for yelling at people to stop being too cool to dance, and for calling out inappropriate behaviour on the dance floor to keep the audience safe. What does event-planning usually involve for you, and what kind of events do you love hosting?

Mollygum: Montreal is trying really hard to create a safe space dance floor, but you still never know. When I think of the things I've seen and experienced, the people who are affected often don't feel comfortable or safe telling anyone what’s happening. They end up leaving while the harasser ends up staying on the dance floor and continuing to bother more people. 

Everyone working at the venue has a job to do, and the DJ is often the only one actively watching the dancefloor for the vibe. In that way, I feel like I have the privilege and power to keep the dancefloor safe. If I stop the music, everyone stops. If there’s a person making someone else uncomfortable, I want to keep them safe. Every time I've stopped the music or done something similar, I’ve gotten positive feedback from the audience and venue. I'm not starting a fight, but instead giving a verbal warning that works really well. 

In the same way that if you go out with a group of friends, you feel safe, but if you're alone you're way more aware of who's touching you and close to you. If I can make those people feel comfortable, that's what I want. Dance or GTFO the dance floor is for the people who aren't dancing, or who are on their phones, taking up space to look cool when others could be dancing.

AC: How have you been able to find community through the music scene in Canada and in China?

I actually don’t really have my own community in Montreal. Meaning, I don’t have a lot of Asian friends who grew up in China, and then moved elsewhere. I feel super connected to the community in L.A., however. It doesn't matter what category you fit into, there's some kind of community for you there. Here I feel like a part of my identity is lost. 

I've met a lot of friends through good music, and through dancing. That's how we bonded, and every time we hang out there's music involved. They're always encouraging me, and helping me make my own music. They’re even inspiring me to start my own music label, it’s called, “Have You Eaten?,” which will be curated and supported by Asians. We’re not often represented, and we need to support each other and work together to be heard. If you don't have your own community, then start one. Maybe someone else out there will feel the same way you do.

Mollygum (provided by Seven Yuan)

AC: Your set on Club Quarantine a few weeks back was amazing. How did you get involved with them, and what was that experience like for you?

Mollygum: The night I DJed Club Quarantine, I was supposed to DJ a rave in real life. The event got postponed way ahead of time, but a week before the gig, Club Q messaged the event organizers and DJs to do a DJ night online. I checked it out the night before my set, and saw that there were 400 people on Club Q. Not only that, but there were so many people that I knew too. It felt like a Durocher party. The day of, we did a sound check, I got some wine, and I was actually nervous. I got a lot of new followers on my SoundCloud and Instagram. Someone even messaged me about my set afterwards! It felt very positive and supportive, and I DJed the afterparty for hours after Club Q had ended. 

AC: How have you found community during COVID-19, and what are some of the ways it’s affected you?

Mollygum: Two weeks ago, my dad offered me a flight to go back to China. I had to seriously consider it. My life in Canada has become really important to me, so it would really stress me out to leave for a few months. Two years ago, I wouldn't have questioned taking a flight back, but I'm starting to feel like Canadian life is my adult life. I’m starting to plan for the long term here. My family doesnt understand it, they feel like I can just rent my room and leave.

I'm constantly on Chinese social media, watching how China is slowly getting back to normal, watching all the heartwarming videos from day one to where they are now. There's hope, people are out, and getting back to their day-to-day lives. For the large number of people there, they were able to get it under control in two and a half months. I’m feeling a strong sense of national pride for that. China is also helping so many countries, despite the intense external racism. I've even gotten messages from people warning me about going out because of that kind of fear.

AC: How can we best support DJs and the music industry during these times? What’s the best way to support you personally?

Mollygum: For me, asking for money for “no reason” gives me more anxiety than being broke. I know that everyone is struggling for money right now. I am very grateful for my friends who helped me financially when I was in a desperate situation and now I feel I could not/ should not ask for more. 1/10 of the people I know are working from home and everyone else is waiting for EI. The other day, someone asked me to DJ a birthday party of nine people. Everyone paid me $10 for a song request, and I ended up making $80. It was so fun and made me feel like I was really DJing again. 

Now and in the future, party together more often, share my sets, dance to my music. Spiritual support is more important than financial right now. I would rather people pay for their needs and buy their groceries. For others, DJs and producers are putting out mixtapes and new music right now on Bandcamp, and buying their music instead of streaming it is the best way to directly support them.

When this ends, come to our gigs, don't ask for a guestlist and pay for cover. 

Mollygum

Book her for your next (digital) party 7lovetoystory@gmail.com

Catch her next party on May 2nd with LOWSODIUM-4

Instagram I SoundCloud

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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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Jodie Overland on How Dancing Can Induce Socio-Political Change

Jodie Overland by Ariana Molly

What’s better than dancing to forget? Dancing to induce socio-political change. As a DJ, producer, event organizer, and community activist, Jodie Cook embraces this true spirit of dance culture. The Vancouver-based artist known as Jodie Overland has been recognized as a rising star in Canadian electronic music, bringing an acid-infused incursion of hard, dark techno to a scene characterized by chilled-out dream house. With upcoming releases on the labels Sweat Equity NYC and Lisbon-based Naive, Overland has only recently began making music full-time - and yet her near-decade of DJing has established her as a sonic wave-maker touring the world over.  

However, Overland’s hypnotic sounds are not the only waves she’s making. Last summer, Jodie organized Rave Against Renoviction - a rave protest outside of Lululemon-founder Chip Wilson’s $73.1 million Vancouver home. Over 60 artists gathered together to dance in protest of the displacement resulting from Wilson’s development firm’s eviction of artist studios and music venues with impossible rent hikes. I got a chance to catch up with Overland before her Montreal Boiler Room debut this month, got the lowdown on her involvement in Vancouver’s underground, and the aftermath of raving outside of Chip Wilson’s house.

Jodie Overland by Ariana Molly

Overland got her first set of CDJs at 17 years old, when she was living in Calgary. Upon moving to Vancouver seven years later, she had just learned how to use Ableton, and had little more than a few tools and a dream of one day releasing her own music. She first moved in with fellow artist and Planet Euphorique founder, D. Tiffany.  “I holed up in this warehouse and made music for the better part of a year. I would go to different raves, but no one would book me because no one really knew who I was. I realized I needed to figure out who the bookers were at these places. So I just started throwing my own parties - and I haven’t really looked back since.”

Those parties were the beginning of Freak Hour - the Vancouver-based warehouse rave series that Overland described as, “the Berghain of Vancouver, where it’s just peak-hour techno all night.” Prioritizing booking women, queer, and nonbinary artists, Freak Hour’s bottom line is hard, fast techno, “There’s no opening or closing set - people just know that there’s gonna be hard dancing all night.”

Jodie Overland by Ariana Molly

Some of the organizations that were ‘renovicted’ by Low Tide Properties include Red Gate Arts Society, AIDS Vancouver, Index, and 333 - which was a frequent venue for Overland’s Freak Hour parties, among many other iconic underground events. That’s how the idea of Rave for Renoviction came to be - upon the closing of two monumental venues for the underground music community, one of Jodie’s friends asked the obvious question, “Want to throw a rave outside Chip Wilson’s house?” Clearly, her answer was ‘yes’. 

Similar to the evictions and displacements induced by big developers such as Shiller Lavy Realties in Montreal, Wilson’s Low Tide Properties was responsible for evicting artists and community services that were deeply rooted in the local identity - taking an especially hard toll on marginalized LGBTQIA2S+ and BIPOC groups. 

Chip Wilson made an unexpected appearance just as the protesters were setting up for the rave. After listing all of his charitable donations for various artistic causes, he clumsily attempted to justify the firm’s operations, stating, “I didn’t get here without making a lot of mistakes and having failed many times, and many times I couldn’t make rent because I didn’t have a product that people actually wanted to buy.” 

“OK, thanks for the econ lesson.” Although the exchange was brief, Overland noted that the athleisure magnate’s appearance made a huge difference in the aftermath of the protest, “We probably would have just looked like a bunch of crazy art people staging a rave in front of a billionaire’s house.” 

Thanks to clumsy one-liners like, “Socialism will always fail,” Chip’s comical response brought the public’s attention to the plight of Vancouver’s art community. “The aftermath was just really good press for the arts community. Since then, Vancouver started to donate spaces to artists and collectives and to help subsidize rent for artists. Vancouver is also looking into replacing the square feet that have been lost by gentrification to kind of keep the fabric of the art community alive.” Programs supporting artist spaces in the city include the Artist Studio Award Program and the Artists in Communities Program. 

Jodie Overland by Ariana Molly

What artists or sounds have you been inspired by lately?

I digest music in a strange way. I get obsessed with things, then I move on. I’m into individual songs, but I don’t really follow particular labels. I just kind of stumble upon things and I’ll be like, “This is sick,” and move on. 

I’m obsessed with Leticia (softcoresoft), I think everything she does is fantastic - I could not go on more about her. Violet has been such a mentor, she’s like my rave mom. She was the first person who said “yes” to my music and I was just like, “what?” (laughs) she has always been there for me. My friend Eric from Edmonton, he goes by Frazier, makes amazing, crazy electro. Reptant, he’s a good friend, also makes wild electro. I don’t really play a lot of that kind of music, but I like to listen to it. 

I listen to a lot of ambient and sometimes I don't listen to anything at all. Sometimes I like no music. I need to rest these ears a lot, I find. Sometimes it’s nice to put on a YouTube playlist and let it run - then I don’t have to do any of the work to choose anything.

What does your gear setup look like?

Oh god… I’m never gonna impress gear-heads honestly (laughs). I just work in a dinky little studio. I have my little MOTU microbook sound card and my Roland 303, and then just my laptop. I mainly just have samples of an 808 and a 909, then I use certain plugins and delays to make them sound cutesy. It’s a pretty simple setup. The delays and reverb that I’m using are the only thing I keep super consistent. 

Jodie Overland by Ariana Molly

I saw you have big things coming in 2020 - records on Sweat Equity and Naive - what’s been your mindset for the new music you’re writing? What are you excited about (in music or in life) for this new year (or decade...)?

The one with Sweat Equity is really about autonomy because for a long time I wasn’t autonomous. I’m just really coming into myself as an artist. The one on Naive is just that playful, naive theme that [represents the label] - it’s about how I’m not a genius at anything, I’m just still trying to figure it out myself. They're the same but also different.

I go through really hard times and then I’ll spend a week just writing music. I’ll come out of that hole and be like, “Ok, wow, um I feel better.” After that, I just won’t make music for a month, and then I’ll go through another hard time and it starts over again. I find that I’m only able to write when I’m going through hard times, which is probably not healthy but, you know, I need to exercise the demons. 

I’m doing music full time now, which I never thought I would do. It was always just a fantasy, but I quit my job - told them I wouldn't really be able to work since I’ve been away so much. I’ll be in Europe for most of this year and in the US a bunch, just going wherever the wind blows, or wherever someone wants me to come. 

Public Works, San Francisco

https://www.residentadvisor.net/events/1372724

 Dolly, Vancouver 

https://www.residentadvisor.net/events/1380153

Tresor, Berlin

https://www.residentadvisor.net/events/1380381

More and more DJs and event organizers are taking the initiative to take activism beyond social media likes and reposts. The community values of the dance music scene are a critical tool in mobilizing people to engage in political activism. The history of dance music is built on this, and preserving DIY spaces is essential to keeping these movements alive. In Dr Motte’s famous words during Berlin’s Love Parade in 1989, “We want to keep this place for ourselves, our children and all the others who will be on this planet after us.”

To the artists organizing events in support of the Wet'suwet'en crisis, we see you and we would like to support you however we can. 

Jodie Overland

SoundCloud I Instagram

Photography 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. 

Visual I Sonic

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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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.

Buy tickets on Resident Advisor

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The Diving Bell Social Club: From a Space Full of Junk to a Community Hub

Visual by Malaika Astorga

The Diving Bell was the home of our first-ever fundraiser and has been an essential part of the DIY music scene in Montreal. The venue is currently run by Sarah (AKA Hot Tramp), Maryse, Austin, Jason, and Evan. We talked to them about how they got started, what it means to run a venue, and how they’re actively creating safer and more inclusive spaces.

Malaika Astorga for Also Cool: Tell us about your first experiences going to shows, and why you wanted to get involved in the DIY music scene. 

Austin:  I used to go to lots of little DIY shows when I was a teenager. Sometimes they were pretty well set up, like an all-ages show at a youth center or an art gallery. Other times they were very scraped together...but often those were the most fun.  A few times we’d get a few bands together and do a sort of "pop-up" show in the underground parking lot of Emily Carr University In Vancouver. Obviously the sound quality was iffy, but it was really fun and spontaneous. 

Evan: My first experience going to local shows was through playing in bands in high school in Edmonton. DIY shows were few and far between at that time, so we played a lot of bars. The atmosphere was driven by profit, and bands were mostly used as a way to attract customers. 

Sarah: When I moved to Montreal, my first experience going to shows was mainly at the Bog and other DIY spaces that have since closed. As a newcomer to the city who didn’t know many people, I really appreciated the sense of community in these places. I always want The Diving Bell to feel that same way for others; a welcoming place to listen to good music, connect with others, and ultimately just feel at home. 

Maryse: My first experience going to shows was in Vancouver, where DIY spaces, unfortunately, keep shutting down due to exorbitant rent. When I moved to Montreal a couple of years ago, I was so blown away by the DIY community and venues that let emerging artists share what they're creating. I think one of our goals at The Diving Bell was to retain the DIY spirit of support and community while offering a licensed venue with a really solid stage and sound set-up.

Visual by Malaika Astorga

Also Cool: What are the different ways that you’ve been involved in the DIY music scene over the year?

Evan: After moving to Montreal in 2011, I was introduced to places like Drones (FKA Silver Door), Poisson Noir, La Plante, Psychic City, and eventually joined up with friends and fellow musicians to create The Bog in St Henri. 

Austin: When I came to Montreal, I got involved with The Bog. I initially got involved by shooting videos of the live performances, but also helped to curate some of the events. The Bog is where I met some of the folks who later helped establish The Diving Bell with me. It’s still there too! They don’t do shows nearly as often as they used to, but it’s definitely worth checking out anytime they have an event.

Sarah: I’ve been growing my own business, Hot Tramp, which promotes shows and a yearly festival while offering management, public relations, and booking to various artists.

Maryse: I’m a musician (Maryze) and organize many DIY shows with other artists – often with Hot Tramp spearheading the events, since Sarah is also my manager!

AC: Walk us through  the history of The Diving Bell , from the initial inspiration for the venue, to where you are today. 

Austin:  About a year before we started working on building The Diving Bell , The Bog and the late Psychic City we’re in talks about joining forces and starting an all-new, mega DIY venue space in a former potato chip factory near the train tracks on St Hubert. For many reasons, that never ended up happening, but the spark for finding a new, larger and multi-purpose space had been ignited. 

About a year later, Evan, who was managing a bar on Saint Laurent called Blizzarts (now Barbossa), got word from his landlord that there was a large space sitting unused on the third floor of the same building. He called me up and we went in to check it out; immediately seeing its potential. However, we began to understand why such a large, perfectly located venue space was left unused for so long. It was completely filled with junk and the landlord, a very interesting and eccentric guy, didn’t want us to get rid of anything. He kept insisting that we “just put curtains up” to hide the junk and stuff like that. It took a lot of frustrating negotiation, but eventually, after about five solid months of back and forth, he allowed us to move all the stuff to another building he owned on the other side of town. 

All in all, we filled up a rented three-ton moving truck ten different times! Eventually, thanks to the amazing support of so many friends from The Bog community, we cleared all the stuff out and were able to get started! 

EVAN: In spirit, The Diving Bell is a direct extension of The Bog for Austin and I. We essentially wanted to capture the sense of community that flourished within that venue, while also allowing it to grow. Our goal has always been to create a welcoming space that puts artists first. Bog alumni Sarah and Maryse joined our team, and are integral to the life and energy of The Diving Bell.

The Diving Bell before it was cleared out. Image provided by the Diving Bell.

AC: What are some of the challenges you’ve faced running a venue?

Austin: The constant threat of noise complaints is something that definitely keeps me up at night (RIP Divan Orange). Many of our main challenges spawned from the instability of our landlord, who unfortunately passed away in May 2019. As previously mentioned, he was a fairly disorganized person who left behind quite a few big messes that we had to wrap our heads around. Also, there were a few stressful months where we didn’t know who our new landlord was going to be and if they would kick us out or crank up our rent. Luckily, it all worked out in our favour for the most part, and we’ve got a more sturdy foundation than ever! 

Evan: Recent challenges also include attempts to bridge the divide between French and English programming, and offering better representation for those from marginalized communities.

AC: How do you actively work to make The Diving Bell  a safe and inclusive space?

Evan: When we first decided to open up The Diving Bell, we did so with the knowledge that extra measures would need to be taken to accommodate our guests. It has always been a priority to create a welcoming, diverse, and safe space for anyone attending our events. Our staff has been trained in de-escalation and conflict resolution techniques, as well as first aid. What is becoming clear is that regardless of the culture and environment that exists past The Diving Bell door on the third floor, there needs to be the same amount of work put into our stairway and the street outside. Our little corner of St. Laurent Boulevard is not yet the safest space for marginalized peoples, and we hope that by listening to the needs and concerns of our community that can help to make The Diving Bell an even safer and more inclusive space moving forward.

Sarah: As Evan mentioned, active listening and keeping an open dialog with community members is something we take very seriously. We promise transparency and encourage folks to inform us either directly, or anonymously if they feel unsafe or unwelcome in our space. What is great about booking at The Diving Bell is that we are a multi-performance space, which allows us to bring different creative communities together under one roof. When booking, Austin and I always try and put a variety of events on the calendar to ensure that the community we are serving feels represented.

Maryse: I think we make a strong effort to listen to our community about their needs and concerns and to try our best to address them. We especially want to make sure marginalized groups like the queer and BIPOC communities feel safe, welcomed, and included in our space. We need to keep learning by actively listening to folks, and be open to how we can change to better understand and respect their realities.

Austin: With that, we also strive to be as friendly and welcoming as possible on all fronts. 

AC: What would your advice be to people who are looking to get involved in the DIY scene by running shows, or even a venue?

Austin: Safety first! All it takes is one mishap to ruin everything for a DIY venue. For example, the fire at Ghostship in Oakland a few years ago was a terrible reminder of the importance of taking these things seriously.

Evan: The best advice I can give is to do what you love, find people with the same passion, and learn to count on each other. This kind of thing can’t be done alone; it truly requires a village. Put on a show in your kitchen, put on a show in a park… The space is not what’s important; it’s what happens inside it. Be safe, be kind, be respectful, and listen. 

Sarah: I’d say go for it - our city needs more venues and people running shows! Just keep in mind that it is a lot of work getting anything off the ground. Opening a venue requires spending a lot of time on tedious paperwork and dealing with the frustrating budget constraints of independent promoters. So, you really have to make sure your heart is in it! These early stages are never as fun as they seem. 

AC: If I’m an artist or organization looking to book the space, what do I do to get involved? What information should I include in my email?

Evan: The best way to get involved is to send us an email at info@divingbellsocial.com, or come by and visit us during a show! We’re always happy to meet new people and brainstorm new ideas. 

Sarah: If you reach out to us by email; you should always include links to your project, dates, and a short overview of the event in question. This seems super basic, but you'd be surprised how many emails I get missing that info! Also for music shows, if you are a touring band, please send us who you have in mind for local support! If you are a local band, please send me your full line-up or at least an idea of what it will be. I think a common misconception is that venue bookers and show promoters are one and the same. As a venue booker, I will rarely put a line-up together for you, that’s a promoter’s forte. 

Evan: We will also be adding a FAQ section to our website and booking form in the coming weeks, which should help facilitate your booking requests! 

Visual by Malaika Astorga

AC: What are your goals for The Diving Bell in 2020?

Austin: I'd like to see more daytime usages of the space. At this point, we’re pretty much only a night-time space and it just feels like a bit of a waste. 

Sarah: I agree with Austin; we need to get some daytime rentals going as it really is just missed opportunity with our space sitting empty all day - so definitely reach out to us if you’re interested in setting up classes, workshops, etc! Overall, I hope in 2020 we continue growing, learning, and connecting with the FAB community we are so lucky to be apart of! 

Evan: The Diving Bell has huge goals in 2020. Among these, we are continuing to branch out in our programming and aiming to diversify our events. We want to try even harder to bridge the divide between the Anglo and Franco music scenes and make a purposeful effort to run bilingual shows as often as possible. We have big plans for renovating our bathrooms, and we hope to open our kitchen officially this year. Stay tuned!

Maryse: I’d like to keep finding better ways to offer a safe space for all by creating an environment that is welcoming and inspiring for artists. I’d also like to achieve this by expanding our programming to host new types of events, like artist meet-ups, book clubs, astrology and tarot parties, yoga and dance classes...There are so many possibilities! 

The Diving Bell

Website I Instagram I Facebook

Email: info@divingbellsocial.com

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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

Lux Magna

Event I Festival I IG

ANSWERS TO GUESS THE SIGN

1. Libra

2. Virgo

3. Gemini

4. Cancer

5. Pisces

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