Author: The Concordian

Categories
Music

On Repeat

Our Music Editors share what they have been listening to lately

Music Editor Guillaume Laberge

A lot of hot rap songs have seen the light of day recently, enough to make my hyperactive self sit back, put them on a loop and relax. With that said, here are three songs that have been in my rotation lately. 

“Johnny P’s Caddy” – Benny The Butcher, J. Cole

This hookless single sees Benny the Butcher and J. Cole both spit back to back striking verses with a heavy delivery riding along a chill instrumental.

“ETA” (with Snoop Dogg, Busta Rhymes & Anderson .Paak) – Dr. Dre

Released for the new GTA update, this collaboration features an amazing soul-sampled beat and a great chorus by Snoop Dogg. The best part of the song is without a doubt when Dr. Dre and Anderson .Paak trade bars at the beginning. A must-listen.

“2012” (feat. Day Wave) – Saba

A wonderful song about a young teenage school love over a laid-back beat. Saba provides a great hook and also solidifies himself as an incredible storyteller on this one.

Assistant Music Editor Saro Hartounian

My most recent music sessions have been all over the place: a little bit of funky Red Hot Chili Peppers, a little bit of soft grunge Eddie Vedder, and a little bit of alternative/indie with Father John Misty. That being said, my volatile music taste has brought me many a gem which I would love to share with you. 

“Black Summer” – Red Hot Chili Peppers

This well-awaited single with John Frusciante back as the band’s guitarist has delivered, ironically with a fitting title: “Black Summer.” A darker song from them than usual, but it still feels like driving through the Hollywood Hills.   

“Invincible” – Eddie Vedder

An uplifting song from the surfer grunge icon with strong elements of Bruce Springsteen. This definitely sounds like a song that could be in a surfing documentary the moment the athlete goes through the eye of the wave. 

“Q4”  –  Father John Misty

If ABBA and Rufus Wainwright could have collaborated, they would have made this song. It’s a  warm and happy melody involving a harpsichord (weird right?) that could be played in a Wes Anderson movie.  

 

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Categories
Arts

Art Event Roundup: February

By Véronique Morin and Ashley Fish-Robertson

Make the most of this dreary month by treating yourself to some well-deserved art outings. Feeling a bit lazy? No problem, we’ve also got some virtual events to feed your creative soul!

In-person exhibitions:

  • House of Skin: Artists Sabrina Ratté and Roger Tellier-Craig present an exhibition inspired by David Cronenberg’s films at La Cinémathèque québécoise. Located at  335 De Maisonneuve Blvd. E until March 20.
  • The Sum of Our Shared Selves: Concordia’s FOFA gallery presents its annual undergraduate student exhibition which showcases the work of 27 total artists. Located at 1515 Ste-Catherine St. W. EV 1-715 until Feb. 25.
  • Techno//Mysticism: Exhibition featuring works that explore reflections on new technologies, and is art gallery Eastern Bloc’s first show in their new space. Located at 53 Louvain St. W. until Feb. 26. 
  • Jouer avec le temps: Photography exhibit featuring circus artists presented at TOHU. Located at 2345 Jarry St. E. until March 13. 
  • les liens: Exhibition organized by dance artist Thierry Huard on the theme of power in relationships. The event, presented at the MAI (Montréal Arts Interculturels), is part of the Queer Performance Camp. Located at 3680 Jeanne-Mance St. until Feb. 26.
  • Just Semantics: Group exhibition featuring work that highlights everyday objects that have been stripped of their banality. Located at 1490 Sherbrooke W. until Feb. 11.
  • An Exhibition by Marven Clerveau: Visions Hip-Hop QC: Exhibition of works by painter Marven Clerveau which gives an overview of Quebec’s main hip hop figures at Phi Centre. Located at 315 Saint-Paul Street W. from Feb. 11 to March 26.

Film:

  • NFB Film Festival: Several special events are underway courtesy of the National Film Board of Canada to celebrate Black History Month, including screenings and Q&A sessions. This year’s theme is centered around Black Health and Wellness. 
  • Massimadi: The renowned Afroqueer arts and film festival returns for its 14th edition. Free online events will take place from Feb. 11 to March 11. 

Dance:  

  • 18 P_R_A_C_T_I_C_E_S: Artist and performer Andrew Turner presents a 60-minute show that offers a hearty dose of humour, moments of absurdity, and a sharp tone. Presented at La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines, located at 3700 Saint-Dominique St. from Feb. 16 to 19.

 

Visual courtesy of Netflix (press)

 

Categories
Student Life

Omicron — COVID’s dreaded fifth wave

Four students reflect on how they experienced the Omicron breakout from home

By: Juliette Palin, commentary editor; Evan Lindsay, news editor; Talia Kliot, assistant commentary editor; Amanda Defillo, contributor

 

Juliette’s version 

The day I left for Budapest, mandatory PCR testing was just being re-implemented for travellers on any Air Canada flight. No snow had managed to stick to the ground longer than 72 hours, and Omicron was just starting to bear its gruesome teeth. Once we got to Budapest, and the jetlag started to wear off, my sister and I got wind of the chaotic state Montreal was in: no available rapid tests, serpentine lines outside testing centers, and the familiar sight of cases rising, with one main difference. Never before had we seen such high case numbers in Quebec. One day it was five thousand… then twelve thousand… eighteen thousand…

My sister and I watched in terror from Budapest, where the fourth wave of Delta was dying out and Omicron was a looming threat. We went to the scenic city to visit our parents but had we known how fast the situation would deteriorate, I don’t believe we would have gone.

While we saw every Quebecer and Canadian become confined to lockdowns, and spending holidays alone — my own family catching COVID, and being unable to reunite for the holidays — our situation was different. We had no problem getting tested (which we did a total of five times) and everyone around us had already acquired a booster shot. Our only real issue was explaining why our vaccine passports wouldn’t scan, since they were not registered in any European database.

In Hungary, people were unbothered, lazy with their masks, aloof to what was happening all over the world, or even just a day’s drive away in France or Austria. Needless to say, it was difficult to face two alternate realities every day: that of the fifth wave back home, and an eerie sense that I was looking at the past — a city full of people still enjoying the normality of unregulated life.

 

Talia’s version

The Omicron outbreak in Montreal was frustrating. I was lucky enough to spend it skiing, reading, watching movies, and going for walks with my family. While we were safe and healthy, it was annoying to see that even with COVID case numbers spiralling out of control, hours-long testing lines in the cold, and rapid test shortages, restrictions to help relieve healthcare professionals were only put in place after Christmas. But of course, Quebec is a secular province, duh.

When the government brought back our beloved curfew and shut down restaurant dining rooms, it was right before New Year’s Eve. Many restaurants had already ordered all their food, not only creating waste but causing many to lose much-needed income.

On one hand, I’m sick of all the restrictions and want to live my life again. I missed a Taylor Swift dance party because of this stupid outbreak! But, I know that we need to offer some relief to the healthcare system, which is crumbling as many workers get sick and are unable to come in. It also feels like everyone I know has or has had COVID, so I guess it’s just a matter of time before it comes for me. Wish me luck…

 

Evan’s version

The longer that this pandemic drags on the more I wish that I could say it was somewhat exciting. To think that 40 years from now someone might ask me what it was like to live through a global health emergency… I wish that I would have some more dramatic stories to tell them. Unfortunately, the reality is that this holiday season was spent much like the last, trapped in my house with my family.

I’m grateful to have the opportunity to spend time with my family in Victoria. But if it wasn’t the spike in BC COVID cases keeping me inside, it was the snow. People from Victoria tend to refer to the southern part Vancouver Island as the “tropics of Canada,” which is to say that snow is rare — and when it happens, insignificant. Instead of blizzards, we get massive amounts of rain. This year the snow was neither rare nor insignificant.

Unable to drive due to the snow and a lack of winter tires, I wasn’t able to escape my family home as much as I may have liked. Again, this did yield some positive results: being unable to leave meant more quality time with my family, and kept me from rubbing elbows with potentially COVID-riddled Victorians.

My home is typically very busy during the holidays with out-of-town relatives coming in and constant baking, cooking and the occasional extra glass or three of wine. Despite the pandemic, many of these holiday traditions remained intact. On both sides of the family, my grandparents were unable to travel back to Canada from their vacation homes in the states. My dad’s parents stayed in Palm Springs and my mom’s dad from Seattle stayed in Arizona. More wine for the immediate family I guess?

Restaurants, bars and movie theatres in BC stayed open if you had a vaccine passport, but gyms closed (a popular topic of debate and internet outrage among many of my friends). I was able to take advantage of all our open amenities without much trouble, other than a few people scowling at me for showing a Quebec vaccine passport, and a small argument with my dad about whether it was safe to see Spider-Man: No Way Home (either way, it was worth it. Great movie).

Despite spiking cases in BC, most of my attention and anxiety was directed towards Montreal, knowing in just a few weeks, I would be back in time for a second curfew and record-breaking case numbers.

 

Amanda’s version

When the news about Omicron broke, I remember lying in my bed and receiving a call from my mom. At the time, she was overtaken with panic. She went on and on about how I needed to get back home immediately and told me I should start packing.

I’m from the Dominican Republic, studying as an international student in Canada. I just remember feeling scared that I, along with everyone else in Montreal, would have to go back into lockdown, unable to go back to university for an undetermined amount of time… Once again, I felt as if my life was being uprooted and it’s just not a fun experience.

Probably not even three days later, maybe even sooner, my parents had already bought me a ticket to go back home at the end of that week. Sitting on the plane, I thought to myself, “this can’t be happening, again?”

When I finally got back home things were okay for a while. A little bit better than Montreal, where everything was going to hell, but it didn’t take long for things to quickly go downhill here too. COVID’s fifth wave in DR coincided with an outbreak of influenza. People were getting sick left and right especially during the holidays, with rumours of full hospitals crowding every conversation. Things eventually started to calm down but still, a lot of people around me were getting sick either with COVID or with influenza. It just all felt very intense.

 

Visuals by Cathrine Reynolds

Categories
Sports

The Concordian’s top moments of the year in sports

Our staff members revisit the most captivating moments of the year in sports

Maggie Morris – Managing Editor

In 2021, I did something I never thought I’d do: I cheered for the Habs. As a lifelong Sens fan, I’m used to facing adversity, but the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs tested me in a way I had never experienced before. Ultimately, when the Canadiens were matched up with the Leafs in the first round, it made the decision significantly easier. The Leafs suck. 

The Habs’ playoff run made Montreal come alive in a way that it hadn’t since early 2020. While it’s always more fun to watch your own team achieve that level of success, it was still so cool to be a part of. Honourable mention to the European Football Championship, which assured me that I will never be able to break my British boyfriend’s heart the way that final did. 

Guillaume Laberge – Music Editor

As a French Canadian and a hockey fan since the age of five, it’s hard not to put the Montreal Canadiens’ unbelievable Stanley Cup finals run as my favourite sports moment of the year.  They had such an improbable Cinderella story with them coming back from a 3–1 deficit against the Toronto Maple Leafs (what a choke) and then beating powerhouses like Winnipeg and Vegas along the way. Their win in game six of the semifinals over Vegas was definitely the climax of their run, and the fact that it happened on Quebec’s national day made the story feel unreal. It’s a game we Habs fans will remember for a long time. I’ve been following the Habs closely for about 15 years now and never have I felt more joy and excitement following them over the summer. 

Liam Sharp – Sports Editor 

Having no fans in attendance during UFC fights was an experience I will never forget. Sure, all sports are ultimately better off with spectators, but being exposed to MMA without the deafening crowd noises and reactions was weirdly satisfying. Hearing the heavy breaths, the strikes landed, and coaches’ instructions in excruciating detail throughout a bout was something I’ll probably never get to witness again unless I’m fortunate enough to be octagon-side in the future (or unfortunate enough to experience another global pandemic). 

Without fans, Max Holloway’s beatdown of Calvin Kattar on Fight Island to start the year tops my list. With fans, Rose Namajunas’ flash knockout versus Weili Zhang perfectly encapsulated why this sport can be so endearing. 

Gabriel Guindi – News Editor

Other than the Canadiens making the finals, my favourite sports moment had to have been the Milwaukee Bucks winning the NBA championship. In this day and age of NBA super teams usually winning it all, I found it refreshing that a traditionally-built, smaller market team got to win the Larry O’Brien trophy. Especially for Giannis Antetokounmpo, his loyalty to the franchise by staying with the Bucks and not scampering off to a bigger market team based purely off hype, was gratifying not only for him, but for the city of Milwaukee who haven’t welcomed a professional sports title in over 50 years.

Maria Bouabdo – Assistant Sports Editor

Excluding the Habs’ playoff run, this was my favourite sports moment. Not because it’s amazing or impossible to do, but because of the exact opposite.

Brandon Duhaime is a clumsy and relatable Minnesota Wild rookie, as you can see in the clip. I think it’s pretty rare for hockey fans to watch professional athletes and relate to them on the ice. Like have you ever heard someone say “I could totally pull that off” when talking about Alex Ovechkin or Sidney Crosby? I doubt it. However, a lot of us can 100 per cent say that we have enough skills in the clumsiness department to pull off what Duhaime did. So that alone makes him a 2021 icon for me.

 

Graphic by Madeline Schmidt

Categories
Arts

Art events roundup: fifth wave edition

By Véronique Morin & Ashley Fish-Robertson

This month’s roundup offers options for both virtual and in-person events

With Quebec’s everchanging COVID-19 restrictions due to the current surge in Omicron cases, many of the city’s art events have either been postponed or have transitioned to a virtual format. Here are several events taking place this month, both in-person and online.

Virtual events

Theatre:

  •  Manuel de la vie sauvage: Theatre piece inspired by the reality of young entrepreneurs. The work is based on the novel of the same name by Jean-Philippe Baril Guérard. Available through Duceppe Theatre’s website until March 30.
  • L’amour est un dumpling: Theatre creation by Mathieu Quesnel and Nathalie Doummar that features reflections on life goals and ambitions. Available through Duceppe Theatre’s website until March 30.

Film:

  • Festival Plein(s) Écran(s): Online film festival presenting four or more different short films every day on their website until Jan. 22.
  • C.R.A.Z.Y. (new restored edition): The cult film by Jean-Marc Vallée is available to rent on Cinéma Public’s website. While the theatre is closed, their website features a small selection of films available to watch from home for a small fee.
  • The Lonely Battle of Thomas Reid: Cinema Politica also has a selection of films to watch from home, like this film from filmmaker Feargal Ward.

Other:

  • Saturday Salon: The Centaur Theatre Company will host an online conversation with the artists behind Talking Treaties: Tiohtià:ke as part of their Artistic Diversity Discussion. The event is accessible through their Facebook or YouTube page on Jan. 22 at 2 p.m.
  • Writers Read – Joy Priest: A reading, conversation and audience Q&A with the author of Horsepower. On Jan. 19 at 10:30 a.m.

In-person exhibitions:

    • Terror Contagion: The MAC’s current exhibition based on the research of the Forensic Architecture group. Located at 1 Place Ville Marie until April 18.
    • Situated Gazes: Conceptual art group exhibition at Centre des arts actuels Skol. Located at 372 Sainte-Catherine St. W until Feb. 19.
    • soothsay: Exhibition featuring sculptures by artist Gabi Dao and paintings by geetha thurairajah at Centre Clark. Located at 5455 de Gaspé Ave. until  Feb. 12.
    • We move, just shifting: Concordia graduate Brandon Brookbank presents this photo exhibition at Centre Clark. Presented until Feb. 12.
    • Alambics: Art Mȗr will be presenting the work of Ginette Legaré. This exhibition will explore the past lives of everyday objects and consider their potential when repurposed as art materials. Located at 5826 St-Hubert St. from Jan. 15 to Feb. 26.

 

Graphic by James Fay

 

Categories
Music

The Concordian’s albums of the year

The Concordian staff delve into their 2021 favourites.

 

Silk Sonic – An Evening with Silk Sonic

Guillaume Laberge – Music Editor

With life returning to more or less normal, 2021 was an incredible year for music that saw the release of countless quality records that I will be coming back to in the upcoming years. While Tyler, The Creator and Kanye West dropped some of the best albums of the year, it is Silk Sonic that takes the cake with An Evening with Silk Sonic. Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak team up to deliver nine ‘70s R&B/soul and funk infused tracks that make you want to put on the tightest pants possible, a silky shirt, and go dance all night at your local club. The nostalgic, sexy, and luxurious sound it provides is unmatched and this album has been assembled meticulously to near perfection.

 

The War On Drugs – I Don’t Live Here Anymore 

Saro Hartounian – Assistant Music Editor

Four years after their release of A Deeper Understanding, Philadelphia-based rock band The War On Drugs came out with their fifth and latest LP I Don’t Live Here Anymore. Frontman Adam Granduciel stays true to his writing style filled with melancholic lyrics of grief and the epic quest for love that, during COVID, sounds nigh impossible. The influence of shoegaze bands like Slowdive and Cocteau Twins explains the record’s tragically bittersweet undertones. Adam and his band are revitalizing the ‘80s genre of yacht rock with their Bruce Hornsby-esque lyrical stories and Christopher Cross-like rhythm. Heck, even the intro of their fourth track “I Don’t Wanna Wait” sounds like Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight.”   

 

Billie Eilish – Happier Than Ever

Maggie Morris – Managing Editor

Sorry not sorry, this album was everything I needed in 2021. While some fans were disappointed by the change of vibe from Eilish’s last album, WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?, I found it to be the perfect next step for the artist. As Eilish matures, so does her voice, and this album showcases the vocalist at her best. The title track is probably my favourite off the album, but shoutout to “Billie Bossa Nova” and “Getting Older” (I mentioned that she’s maturing before our eyes right?).

 

Genesis Owusu – Smiling with No Teeth

Evan Lindsay – Co-News Editor

I had never heard of Genesis Owusu before this album, and I don’t know if many people had, considering this is his debut record — and what a debut it was. Smiling with No Teeth successfully delivers an incredible mix of alternative hip hop, R&B, pop and rock in a way that feels entirely original and familiar at the same time. Wearing his influences (like The Talking Heads) on his sleeve in a way that’s entirely his own, Owusu’s sound is frantic and chaotic in all the best ways, with dark and hard-hitting bangers like “The Other Black Dog” and more soulful R&B tunes like “Waitin’ on Ya.” There’s a little something for everyone on this album (there is also a song about his love for fishing if that sounds like your bag). Constant stylistic changes and themes of racism and depression create an ambitious and engaging concept album that should not be missed. This album felt so fresh, new and exciting to me that it had to be my album of the year. Go listen to it, it’s sick. 

 

Feu! Chatterton – Palais d’argile 

Ashley Fish-Robertson – Arts Editor

I’m the type of person who, after finding a catchy album, will play it on loop every morning during my commute. When I first heard “Un Monde Nouveau,” Palais d’argile’s opening track, I was instantly hooked. Lead singer Arthur Teboul’s voice is absolutely haunting, especially on “Avant qu’il n’y ait le monde” and “La mer,” as he churns out surreal lyrics that sound as if they were plucked directly from a Louis Aragon poem. This album offers something for every mood, whether you feel like dancing or curling up in the fetal position while fretting over all the assignments you have yet to start.

 

Taylor Swift – Red (Taylor’s Version) 

Mélina Lévesque – Features Editor 

She’s happy, free, confused and lonely at the same time and I am living for it. Taylor Swift’s Red (Taylor’s Version) reminds listeners of the growing pains of getting older, falling in and out of love, and learning about who you are during this journey we call life. Yes, I absolutely adored Red in 2012, but Red (Taylor’s Version) radiates a different level of poetic perfection. 

Whether it’s the new badass breakup anthem “I Bet You Think About Me” featuring the one and only Chris Stapleton, or the tear-jerking “All Too Well (10 Minute Version),” this album has both broken and filled my heart in more ways than I could have imagined. Swift’s superpower truly lies in her ability to reflect moments from her life through her music and unite listeners through the emotion in her songs. As a life-long Swiftie, I am incredibly grateful that this woman exists and continues to bless us with her passion for storytelling. 

 

Hans Zimmer – Dune (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Hunter Walwaski – Head Copy Editor

2021 saw my purveying love for music take somewhat of a backseat to my newfound interest in film, so it only made sense that my AOTY pick followed suit. While Denis Villeneuve’s masterful take on the Dune-iverse shouldn’t go unnoticed, Hans Zimmer’s accompanying score played a major role in the film’s enveloping atmosphere. From the Sahara-tinged operatic screams on “Gom Jabbar” and “Ripples in the Sand,” synonymous with the spiritual mysticality of the planet Arrakis, to the clockwork-like percussion on “Blood for Blood,” Zimmer helped bring chills to my (multiple) viewing experience of this film. Without a soundtrack as solid as this, it’s fair to say that one of 2021’s biggest flicks wouldn’t have been nearly as impactful, making the album deserving of a spot on this list.

 

Radiohead – Kid Amnesiae

Cris Derfel – Copy Editor

Bundled together with a double reissue of Kid A and Amnesiac is Kid Amnesiae, Radiohead’s love letter to their own most important albums. Not only have I had new tracks like “If You Say the Word” on repeat since release, I’ve rediscovered songs I’ve listened to hundreds of times — “Like Spinning Plates” reimagined as a haunting piano arrangement was an instant favourite, as was “How to Disappear into Strings.” The album somehow manages to evoke both the frigid emptiness of Kid A and the uncanny nostalgia of Amnesiac while simultaneously bringing something new to the table, and with each listen I notice something new. Radiohead continues to reinvent themselves, and I’m here for it every step of the way. 

 

Tyler, The Creator – CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST

Victor Vigas – Former Music Editor

Akin to 2020, 2021 was a great year for music; we as listeners got to reap all the creativity that was brewed over months and months of shutdowns. Thankfully, Tyler was there to headline it with CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST. I know, I know, Tyler and album of the year have felt synonymous since Flower Boy, but I can’t think of another record that surprised me more than this, especially as a follow up to 2019’s Grammy-winning IGOR. There’s just something about DJ Drama making his voice heard from top to bottom alongside a Tyler that raps introspectively over beautifully executed samples that takes the cake for me. I do have to give credit to Little Simz, Young Thug, Twenty One Pilots, and Silk Sonic, though.

 

The Weather Station – Ignorance

Aviva Majerczyk – Former Commentary Editor

The Weather Station, a.k.a. Toronto-based singer-songwriter Tamara Lindeman, is at the peak of her form on her latest album, Ignorance. Backed by a jazzy band, Lindeman’s heartfelt singing feels painful and urgent. The instrumentation of this album is dissonant as fluttery melodies are overlaid by Lindeman’s themes of heartbreak and loss. However, it is more than just a breakup album, as Ignorance’s lyricism parallels the loss of a relationship to the existential loss of our planet to climate change. The perfect album for a crisp, moody fall day, Ignorance is A-tier folk rock. 

 

Graphic by James Fay

 

Categories
Arts

Holiday art events roundup

Treat yourself to a well-deserved break as you soak up some of Montreal’s most noteworthy events

What better way to spend the holiday break than to explore some of Montreal’s unique art happenings? Our Arts Editor and Assistant Arts Editor have compiled a list of current and upcoming events that are sure to appease the senses and, hopefully, get you into a festive mood.

Film:

  • Sisters with Transistors : A film about electronic music’s pioneers, presented by Cinéma Public in collaboration with Suoni Per Il Popolo. Located at 505 Jean-Talon St. E on Nov. 26 and 28, as well as Dec. 1 and 4.

Exhibitions: 

Theatre:

  • Awards : Theater piece mixing music and text from Collectif Tôle. 1345 Lalonde Ave. from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4.
  • Je suis un produit : A play from the Simoniaques Théâtre company. Located at 4559 Papineau Ave. from Nov. 23 to Dec. 18.
    • Antioche : Online theatre piece by Talisman Theatre. From Dec. 13 to 19.
  • Jonathan: A Seagull Parable: Surreal theatre piece directed by Jon Lachlan Stewart. Located at the Fred-Barry Hall of the Denise-Pelletier Theatre (4353 Saint-Catherine St. E) from Nov. 23 to Dec.11.

Dance:

  • Confessions Publiques : Solo performance by Angélique Willkie for the MAYDAY dance company. Located at 3700 Saint-Dominique St., from Nov. 29 to Dec. 4.
  • What Will Come : Dance performance by Julia B. Laperrière and Sébastien Provencher. Located at 1435 De Bleury St. from Dec. 2 to 5.
  • Pomegranate: Solo performance by Heather Mah. Located at 3680 Jeanne-Mance from Dec. 2 to 4.
  • Babel 7.16 : Online multidisciplinary performance choreographed by Belgian artists Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Damien Jalet. From Dec. 8 to Dec. 19.

 

Visual courtesy of James Fay

 

The RCMP must respect the freedom of the press

The arrest of two Canadian journalists shows us our rights are not as safe as we hoped

Two Canadian journalists were arrested, along with over a dozen protesters, on Friday Nov. 19 by the RCMP while covering the Indigenous protest on Wet’suwet’en land against the Coastal GasLink pipeline in British Columbia.

Amber Bracken, an award-winning photojournalist who was on assignment for The Narwhal, and Michael Toledano, a documentary filmmaker with a focus on Indigenous and environmental stories, were detained for the entire weekend. The Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) called for their immediate release on Friday, and since then, the RCMP’s actions have prompted national outrage and international coverage.

Notably, these two arrests come just after the CAJ and other media outlets won a court challenge at the Supreme Court against the RCMP in July, with the judge ruling the police cannot interfere with journalistic coverage of the protests without indicating an operational reason for blocking the media’s access.

Detaining two journalists for covering an event is a violation of press freedom in Canada. This was a deliberate attempt to curtail coverage of the protest and the subsequent actions of the RCMP onsite, and these violations cannot continue to happen.

In an open letter, multiple media companies have urged the Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino and the Liberal party to hold the RCMP accountable for multiple breaches of press freedom rights, but even with overwhelming support for journalists, there needs to be more done to provide oversight for the RCMP.

Whether or not you agree with the protest against the pipelines in B.C., militant action against protesters and journalists is not the answer. Just last year, The Guardian uncovered the RCMP was prepared to shoot Indigenous activists participating in the protest against the Coastal GasLink pipeline. By forcibly limiting coverage of divisive events, vulnerable communities become exposed to extreme violence due to the lack of oversight.

As a student newspaper, we are grateful to see media organizations immediately react to protect journalists on the field. The Concordian stands with Amber Bracken and Michael Toledano in their pursuit to justice following the events this past weekend.

Photograph by Alex Hutchins

What The Concordian strives for

In establishing our future, we look to students for guidance

Off the top of your head, several of the main tenets of journalism are easy to identify: objectivity, accuracy, accountability, and transparency. Journalism seeks to prompt change and influence, while playing a crucial role in facilitating dialogue.

At first, this may seem like an unattainable status for a student paper. Our publication’s influence is too small and our reach is too little to strive for change. However, pressure from our organization and mobilization of the student community nonetheless has led to the betterment of our student community.

Just last year, the Concordia Student Union pushed to have pass/fail an option for each semester; with students petitioning for the resource. The Concordian covered students’ mental stress and need for a pass/fail system during the pandemic, with the Montreal Gazette following with their coverage of students’ stories from different universities on the issue. Before the end of the fall 2020 semester, Concordia announced they would implement the pass/fail system. The option allowed students to receive a pass or fail notation instead of a letter grade on their transcripts for one course.

This wasn’t our doing alone, neither do we take credit for the hours of work poured into advocating for such a change by the student leaders at our university. But we do strive to be a vehicle for change — to help students achieve their potential and promote the well-being of our community.

Outside of Concordia, earlier this fall semester Western University’s student publication Western Gazette broke the story on how several women were allegedly sexually assaulted during orientation week on campus. This prompted national coverage and thousands to walk out of the university in a mass protest against sexual violence on campus and to voice their support for the survivors. While investigations are still underway, this is an example where student media facilitated the accountability of the university to take action, and action against the possible transgressors.

Moreso, journalism must “strive to make the significant interesting and relevant,” according to The Elements of Journalism by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel. While this is a popular first-year reading for j-school students, it lays the foundation for how we will approach our future as a student publication.

In the coming months, we want to hear from students on what they look for in student media. We will seek to interact and engage with our main readership on how we can better fulfill our mandate as a student newspaper. While we will be the ones to reach out, we ask that students provide their feedback on what issues you would like us to explore, what kind of coverage is most important to you; in essence, what you want to see from us.

The fundamentals of our newspaper will remain the same, but The Concordian will strive to report on the concerns and interests most relevant and important to our student population. We are written for Concordia students, and we seek to honour that mandate.

 

Photograph by Alex Hutchins

Categories
Arts

The Concordian staff’s favourite Halloween books

Why not opt for a chilling read in lieu of a horror movie this Halloween? We’ve got some creepy suggestions for you!

Instead of engaging in the typical Netflix horror movie binge each October, why not spice things up this year and opt for a chilling book instead? Here are some spooky reading material recommendations from our staff members that are sure to give you goosebumps!

Ashley Fish-Robertson, Arts Editor

If you’re like me and you find yourself falling prey to every jumpscare in a horror movie, a spooky book can be a better alternative. For those seeking a short read that packs a punch, In the Miso Soup by Ryu Murakami won’t disappoint. This gruesome, fast-paced story takes place in Tokyo and follows Kenji, a young Japanese tourist guide, who suspects that one of his customers may be behind a string of violent murders. Cue the eerie music.

If you’re not looking to commit to a novel because the midterm season has deprived you of the joy that comes from reading, I’d recommend turning to Junji Ito’s manga, specifically Gyo. Between Ito’s masterful albeit nightmarish illustrations and the book’s palpable suspense, you may find yourself devouring Gyo within a day or two.

Mélina Lévesque, Features Editor 

Full. Body. Chills. That is exactly what I felt when diving into Alex Michaelides’ The Silent Patient. This psychological thriller will keep you up all night, enticing you to endlessly rip through each and every page to find out what happens next. After shooting her husband five times, Alicia Berenson is placed in a secure psychiatric unit, and never speaks another word. Freaky, right? We follow criminal psychotherapist, Theo Faber, on his mission to unpack Alicia Berenson’s story.

Michaelides’ storytelling will seriously make you feel like you’re silently tiptoeing behind each character, desperately trying to stay hidden and out of danger as you watch disturbing events unfold. He really takes you right to the scene. Don’t even get me started on the ending. *SPOILER ALERT* You won’t see it coming. Trust me.

Lucy Farcnik, Copy Editor

For those not super into gore, Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia provides a suitably unsettling combination of psychological horror and historical fiction. It follows socialite Noemí Taboada, who goes to visit her cousin Catalina and her new English husband after receiving a disturbing letter from her. She finds a burnt-out mining town, a new love, a terrifying family, and a house that is more than what it seems. It’s a bit of a slow burn, but this just adds to the creep factor. The author also curated a playlist to go along with the book, which really sets the tone!

Victor Vigas, Music Editor 

This isn’t a Halloween book, but it certainly spooked me. Misery by Stephen King is the only book to really creep up my spine and freak me out. The story follows novelist Paul Sheldon after being kidnapped by a superfan, Annie Wilkes. The novel’s textured prose invites readers to get lost into what quickly becomes a haunting and gruesome tale. When the prose meanders into tangents of introspection, it gives readers space to digest every horror that’s been laid out prior. If it is any indication of how crazy this book can get, King said in an interview that out of any character he’s written, the character of Annie would be the worst lockdown partner during COVID-19. That’s big talk coming from the same guy who wrote a book about a clown that feasts on children. In any case, Stephen King threads the needle masterfully in this book, and will easily spook readers at any time of the year.

James Fay, Graphics Editor

For something as playful as it is dark, I would recommend Edward Gorey’s Amphigorey,  a collection of  comics that includes The Gashlycrumb Tinies and The Doubtful Guest. The stories appear as though they are meant to be read to children, but the content and art style brings you to a much darker place. The Gashlycrumb Tinies list children alphabetically, as if to teach readers the alphabet, but each child is meeting their untimely demise in one way or another. For example: “J is for James who took Lye by Mistake.” The art is a particular selling point for me, giving off a sketchy gothic look for all of the Victorian characters and settings.

Hadassah Alencar, Editor-in-Chief

Remember the joy of reading a scary novel as a child? It’s that feeling of losing yourself in a book until late, but knowing deep down the suspense will make you keep your light on for the night. Even now that we’re older, there’s a special nostalgia in reading your favourite classics and re-discovering the story. For me, it’s been The Witches by Roald Dahl; a fantasy story featuring a boy and his grandmother in a world where a community of secretive, child-hating witches exist around the world. While I have not forgotten the main story plot, I find there’s so much I haven’t held on to all these years. The experience feels like I’m riding a roller coaster: I can foretell when the suspense will build and climax, but even so I love the ride.

 

Visuals courtesy of James Fay

Once again, I am asking for you to take to the polls

It’s time to vote, Concordians

Just under a month ago, we headed to the polls to cast our vote on a surprise federal election. The underwhelming result of the ballots tied with evidence of a historically low voter turnout, made for a truly bummer display of civic duty. And while we sit with that, Quebec is calling on us to retrace our steps to the voting booth.

Generally speaking, reasons to not participate in elections usually fall between feeling disenchanted in our voting system, or not wanting to waste a perfectly good Sunday standing in line. After all, why waste the effort when the real election is over, right?

However, it’s arguable that municipal elections have more weight on our day-to-day lives than a federal election do. Unlike Ottawa, the debate governing the bureaucratic red tape is in our neighbourhoods for our neighbourhoods; which includes deciding on bike lanes, building codes, and business policies, to name a few.

Last election in 2017, Montreal voted for Projet Montréal’s candidate Valérie Plante to help bring accountability to local government and city construction projects, decrease housing costs, and increase pedestrian spaces, along with a number of seemingly progressive policies to take the city to the next level. Whether or not you think she has succeeded, Plante played a crucial role in breaking or accomplishing these promises.

Just over 70 per cent of Concordia students are Quebec residents (or approximately 32,000 people). Given that the last election was decided by a margin of 27,138 votes, Concordians have a real weight in determining our city’s future.

To put it in perspective, this election will determine how the local government will handle the housing crisis, funding of the police, French and English language laws for business and education, expansion of the public transportation system, revitalizing the downtown economy, protecting heritage sites, and more.

This week, take time to research and compare the different party platforms running to steer the city, because ultimately, this is our city to decide on too.

 

Photograph by Alex Hutchins

You’re not alone in your fatigue

Getting used to our pre-pandemic schedule is going to take time

It’s not just the pre-midterm slumps that are getting you down this year. Since March 2020, strict pandemic lockdowns and health safety measures have kept us predominantly at home for both leisure and work over the course of this year and half. As we gradually return to our pre-COVID schedules, many are feeling more exhausted than usual. But it’s not just you: between July 2021 and September 2021 google searches for the phrase “Why am I tired all the time?” have hit historical highs.

Our muscles are getting used to backpacks and metro rides, we’re adapting to 8 a.m. class discussions, and dealing with the emotional drain from daily in-person events. As we approach almost our halfway point during the semester, and the days become shorter, many students may be affected by seasonal affective disorder (SAD). All this includes the accumulated affliction from the past year. It’s important to be compassionate with yourself during this phase.

In early 2020, when we were first told to remain home, many felt grateful to stop and rest from the flurry of our daily lives, in a phenomenon named “lockdown relief.” It was short-lived. As the pandemic wore on, unemployment sky-rocketed, panic set in various ways, and to date, we have lost 28,186 Canadians to COVID-19, on top of the deaths from those that could not seek proper medical treatment because hospitals were overburdened with the aforementioned virus.

Don’t get us wrong — many are excited to be back to in-person activities. But nevertheless, we’re still reeling, and undergoing, the effects of a year full of changes and loss. Since the expectation that we would return to in-person learning, there have been mixed reactions.

Results from a poll in May 2021 found four in five Canadians don’t want to return to their pre-pandemic schedules, as some workplaces prepare for the likelihood of burnouts as workers  seat themselves at their long-abandoned desks in their company centres. Additionally, 35 per cent of Canadians said they would quit their job in the advent of being forced to return to their workplace by their employees.

Students also had mixed reactions about going back on campus.They felt weary about the logistics of in-person and hybrid learning, and of rules around vaccine mandates.The CSU released an open letter calling on the university to ameliorate the equitability and quality of the safety measures and accommodations for students. Almost 1,500 people have signed a petition to give themselves the choice over how they attend hybrid classes. The Concordian has also asked university to provide better support for the education of international students and those with health concerns.

Last week, Concordia responded by releasing a short-term absence form to offer better support for students with “unexpected physical or psychological health concerns.” And while that is a welcome resource, we wanted to remind students that you’re not alone, and that reaching out for help when you need it is important. Whether that be with professional help, or calling a friend — we all need support sometimes.

While we welcome students back from the (much needed) Thanksgiving break, we also want to let you know: you’re doing great, and it’s ok to seek out help if it’s getting too much.

 

Photograph by Alex Hutchins

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