In the central courtyard of SFU’s Burnaby campus is a steel framed, cerulean blue pyramid created by sculptor Bridge Beardslee. Energy Alignment Sculpture (1976) was made to reference the proportions of Cheops’ pyramid in Egypt, and positioned to align with the rotation of the Earth’s axis; although some questioned whether it was appropriately positioned to harness “pyramid power.” Brady Cranfield and Kathy Slade read letters and articles written following the sculpture's installation in 1977, to map a heated and often humorous exchange of local controversy surrounding the artwork. The sounds of a synthetic drone and gong are heard throughout, in reference to metaphysical speculations of the frequency 432 Hz, a number which also has connections to mythologies surrounding the Great Pyramid of Giza.

Episode 3 | Brady Cranfield and Kathy Slade on Bridge Beardslee

In episode #489 of Talking Radical Radio, Scott Neigh interviews Shawna Dempsey. She is a performance and video artist, and also the co-executive director of Mentoring Artists for Women's Art (MAWA), a feminist artist-run centre in Winnipeg. She talks about feminism in the arts and about MAWA's decades of work.

For a more detailed description of this episode, go here: https://talkingradical.ca/2022/09/27/radio-feminism-in-the-arts/

Talking Radical Radio

Feminism in the arts

Root crops for the summer: carrots, radishes, potatoes and more.
A weekly discussion with Embark's Sustainability Society's Gardening Manager Pablo Vimes and CJSF's Magnus Thyvold on growing a productive vegetable garden.

Gardening with Embark

Gardening with Embark - Week 21 (May 27 - June 2, 2024

Director Chris Auchter joins Jesse for a conversation about his documentary film The Stand, which chronicles the hidden true story of Indigenous resistance on Haida Gwaii.

The Stand returns to the VIFF Centre on Friday, February 28th and runs until March 20th.

Image from the film, courtesy of the National Film Board of Canada.

Interview with Chris Auchter, director of The Stand

Dan Mangan is Vancouver's indie music golden boy. He started from humble beginnings and now tours the world and tells stories about that time he hung out with Willie Nelson, Snoop Dogg and members of Radiohead. I was kind of geeking out when I met Dan Mangan in the backstage area of the Vogue Theatre and of course he was a really down to earth guy--he even gave me an Easter Egg. 

Which musicians make Dan Mangan geek out? Did he turned down a chance to smoke up with Willie Nelson and Snoop Dogg? What was it like getting his band Blacksmith back together after a long break? Is Dan always writing songs--even during interviews? What is his idea for a sequel to his fan-favorite song "Robots"?  How does he react to people saying that he's left his singer-songwriter roots behind? You'll have to listen to find out! 

Tracks played on the radio edit of the show...

1) Dan Mangan + Blacksmith, Club Meds (2015) "Vessel" 
2) Dan Mangan + Blacksmith, Club Meds (2015) "Kitsch" (background/partial)
3) Dan Mangan + Blacksmith, Club Meds (2015) "Pretty Good Joke" (background/partial)
4) Dan Mangan + Blacksmith, Club Meds (2015) "Mouthpiece" 
5) Dan Mangan, Nice, Nice, Very Nice (2009) "Robots"  
6) Dan Mangan + Blacksmith, Club Meds (2015) "Kitsch"  

ALL songs CANCON

The Interview Show

The Interview Show with Dan Mangan (radio edit) #291

I hung out with Meredith Graves, Ray McAndrew and Shaun Sutkus from  Syracuse, New York punk band Perfect Pussy one windy summer day as the band took a smoke break. The band tour van was noticeably dented from a collision, so we sat on the grass in the sun.  

Perfect Pussy began as a "fake band" that singer Meredith Graves pulled together for her film director friend Scott Coffey's 2013 film,  Adult World. But Perfect Pussy ended up becoming a real project and the band were quickly touring North America. Lead singer Meredith Graves was also very vocal about the abuse of power by older men in the music industry--when it was something that people were afraid to do. https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/515-sun-kil-moon-yells-at-cloud-war-on-drugs-suck-my-cock-and-the-language-of-male-violence/   

What happened to the tour van? Why did Meredith choose that band name? What was it like to get such quick success? How did Meredith react to pressure to be the focal point of the band? Which song does everyone think about is about sex (when it's really about something else)? What was it like for the band when Meredith decided to call out bad behavior in her hometown music scene? Which Perfect Pussy song is "the hard one" to play? Which song did Ray want to sound like Sonic Youth's "Daydream Nation"? What is "band feelings time"? Which Perfect Pussy song is the first Meredith duet with... Meredith? You'll have to listen to find out.

Tracks played on the radio edit of the show...

1) Perfect Pussy, Say Yes to Love (2014) "Driver" 
2) Perfect Pussy, Say Yes to Love (2014) "Advance Upon the Real" 
3) Perfect Pussy, I Have Lost All Desire for Feeling (2013) "i" 
4) Perfect Pussy, Say Yes to Love (2014) "Interference Fits"
5) Perfect Pussy, I Have Lost All Desire for Feeling (2013) "iii"    

NO songs CANCON

The Interview Show with Perfect Pussy (radio edit) #292

You might remember Ryan Karazija as the frontman of the Oakland, California indie rock band Audrye Sessions. Just as that band was starting to see some success, Ryan got divorced and relocated to Reykjavík, Iceland. Next, he started a new dream pop band, called Low Roar. You might have heard Low Roar's track  "I'll Keep Coming" in a trailer for the Death Stranding video game.

I had a few drinks with Ryan in his deluxe tour van one hot summer night. The van had a leaky roof and one seat needed a bucket to collect water when it rained. Things got pretty sweaty. 

Which band member has to sit in the leaky seat? What made Ryan decide to leave the Bay area indie rock music scene? What was it like to start over in a new country? Was it easy to find a new music community? Does Ryan ever get tired about being asked about Iceland? What's the story behind my favorite Low Roar song? You'll have to listen to find out! 

Tracks played on the radio edit of the show...

1) Low Roar, Remix EP (2015) "Breathe In" (Carmen Rizzo Remix) 
2) Low Roar, Low Roar (2014) "Friends Make Garbage (Good Friends Take It Out)"  
3) Low Roar, 0 (2014) "Dreamer"  

NO songs CANCON

The Interview Show with Low Roar (radio edit) #293

36? started as Taylor Cochrane's solo project when he was a teenager. As he says, "36? emerged at a very difficult and incomprehensible time in my life. I existed in a constant state of medically induced psychosis. I wrote and recorded songs on a daily basis, a mechanical imagination running wild in a zombie suit. Appearing as a hazy shell of a human being to the outside world, a blank dead eyed slate sitting at the back of the classroom, but on the inside I was in a constant state of creation." 36? has evolved since it's 2006 beginnings and now Taylor has folded many of his Calgary music scene friends into the band. They've recently released a new record Milk Mountain. 

The last time 36? were in Vancouver, I had a few drinks with Taylor and his new bandmates Kerry and Laura Hickli. When I brought up one of the first songs Taylor wrote for the project "So what if I feel like bondage?" it turned out Kerry and Laura had never heard the song before--so I get their reaction after hearing the track for the first time! 

How do you pronounce "36?" Why does Taylor find it strange observing the many ways people move on from a broken heart? How did Taylor cope with his mental health issues? Why record a piano version of a punk rock song like "So What?" You'll have to listen to find out! 

Tracks played on the radio edit of the show...

1) 36?, Vic single (2019) "Vic" 
2) 36?, So what? single (2019) "So what?" (piano version) 
3) 36?, love.hate.bondage (2006) "So what if I feel like bondage?" 
4) 36?, Milk Mountain (2019) "I think my dog knows I'm high"     

ALL songs CANCON

The Interview Show with 36? (radio edit) #294

I chilled out backstage at Vancouver's Commodore Ballroom with Taylor Rice and Kelcey Ayer from Silver Lake, Los Angeles, indie rock band Local Natives. It was the first night of their Spiral Choir Tour 2019  and they were on the road to promote the new record, Violet Street. 

It's always great to hang out with bands on the first night of a tour. Everything is fresh, everyone is well-rested, and bands are excited to hit the road to see their fans again. While we chatted, opening act Middle Kids finished their soundcheck and Taylor and Kelcey admitted they hadn't even met Middle Kids yet. 

Where does the tour title "Spiral Choir Tour" come from? Which song is about Taylor's relationship with his wife? How does Kelcey's partner feel about him writing about her? Does the new record Violet Street focus on "the unsung upkeep of relationships?" What is an "emotional check in" and how do they keep Local Natives a well-functioning band? What gross habits did Taylor and Kelcey have when they lived together in that band house, Gorilla Manor? Why does the band post all their song stems on their SoundCloud page? What is the band's secret pre-show ritual? You'll have to listen to find out!

Tracks played on the podcast edition of the show...

1) Local Natives, Violet Street (2019) "When Am I Gonna Lose You" 
2) Local Natives, Violet Street (2019) "Megaton Mile"   
3) Local Natives, Violet Street (2019) "Tap Dancer"  
4) Local Natives, Sunlit Youth (2016) "Dark Days" (featuring Nina Persson) 
5) Local Natives, Gorilla Manor (2010) "Wide Eyes" 
6) Local Natives, Violet Street (2019) "Shy"  

NO songs CANCON

The Interview Show with Local Natives (podcast edition) #295

I chilled out backstage at Vancouver's Commodore Ballroom with Taylor Rice and Kelcey Ayer from Silver Lake, Los Angeles, indie rock band Local Natives. It was the first night of their Spiral Choir Tour 2019  and they were on the road to promote the new record, Violet Street. 

It's always great to hang out with bands on the first night of a tour. Everything is fresh, everyone is well-rested, and bands are excited to hit the road to see their fans again. While we chatted, opening act Middle Kids finished their soundcheck and Taylor and Kelcey admitted they hadn't even met Middle Kids yet. 

Where does the tour title "Spiral Choir Tour" come from? Which song is about Taylor's relationship with his wife? How does Kelcey's partner feel about him writing about her? What gross habits did Taylor and Kelcey have when they lived together in that band house, Gorilla Manor? What is the band's secret pre-show ritual? You'll have to listen to find out!

Tracks played on the radio edit of the show...

1) Local Natives, Violet Street (2019) "When Am I Gonna Lose You" 
2) Local Natives, Violet Street (2019) "Megaton Mile"   
3) Local Natives, Gorilla Manor (2010) "Wide Eyes" 
4) Local Natives, Violet Street (2019) "Shy"  

NO songs CANCON

The Interview Show with Local Natives (radio edit) #295

Here is an excerpt from Saturday's (Feb 1st, 2020) "Pirates of the Caribbean" radio show- CJSF 90.1FM in Burnaby BC, Canada which features a live mix of some of Dennis Brown's tunes to launch Black History Month!
Big up VP Records & Carter Van Pelt.

Launch of Black History Month 2020

Pirates Of The Caribbean Feb1st Dennis Brown Tribute

CJSF 90.1 FM is Simon Fraser University's arts, public affairs and indie music radio station!

CJSF strives to provide points of view that are rarely expressed in mainstream media. We take pride in being an alternative to mainstream media, offering the public a forum for expressing perspectives that otherwise may not be heard.

CJSF 90.1 FM broadcasts from the Burnaby Mountain campus of Simon Fraser University to most of Greater Vancouver, from Langley to Point Grey and from the North Shore to the US Border. 

As a non-commercial station, CJSF takes pride in being an alternative to mainstream media and offers the public a forum for artists and social issues that otherwise may not receive media attention. This includes music by independent artists from a diverse range of genres and public affairs programming that addresses issues faced by marginalized or disadvantages communities. 

CJSF and all campus/community radio enables the public to create the media they want to hear. They have over 150 volunteers from the SFU and Metro Vancouver community and are always looking for new recruits to come in and make radio. 

Interview with Chris Auchter, director of The Stand

CJSF 90.1 FM

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