I've been spending a good bit of time on Bandcamp - it's a great opportunity for an artist to throw up some tunes for free and get noticed nearly immediately. Weekly, I sift through dozens of bands that sound like they've been booked at 1067 Granville to find the best freebies the city has to offer.
Currently, I've slipped a little for Honey Larochelle. This pop-R&B sensation has just returned from a European tour on the success of Clean Lust and Dirty Laundry; an album produced by Sleep Deez (Beyonce, Black Eyed Peas), Lions Share (Anthony Hamilton, Pharoahe Monch), Caviar (T.I), Danish Reggae producer, Pharfar (Beenie Man), and a bevy of others.
I recommend picking this whole album up before she needs to buy some bread and butter.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Part of the R.L. Stine Universe
Growing up, I read R.L. Stine's Goosebumps series religiously. As a matter of a fact, I read all of them, as my friends and I would often pool together our money to buy into the popular title every month via the Scholastic Books program. Granted, I was tired of them somewhere around our third visit with the Living Dummy, but I plodded on for bragging rights - to say I read them all.
I'm certainly not alone in this department, as the title remained incredibly popular and the franchise has launched several other series' in relation to the books - Goosebumps Horrorland first appeared in 2009 and is ongoing; marking the 18th year of the franchise.
The franchise has also branched into other mediums; a very successful TV series was adapted in the mid-90s, and a similarly veined show, The Haunting Hour, returned to the airwaves last year. Coincidentally, the series is filmed in my old stomping grounds; Langley & Aldergrove, and the show is providing a unique opportunity to be part of the R.L. Stine experience.
The show's production crew has graciously donated an on-air experience opportunity to a winning bidder, and the proceeds will be used to benefit a local Relay for Life (cancer charity) team; the interestingly named "Xavier got Scotty's Hotties All Jazzed Up." The winner will receive a tour of the set, a look into how the show is filmed, and a possible experience appearing as an extra in the show itself. This is a unique opportunity for those who need that one last Goosebumps experience. I encourage any nostalgia-laden fan to bid, if only to challenge the actors on Goosebumps trivia.
Link
Sunday, September 25, 2011
What's in a name?
I'm not sure if this is particularly unique to Vancouver, but we seem relatively resistant to corporate control. Enough so, that I'd be particularly wary about signing into naming rights with the lot of us. I work in the tourism industry, and repeatedly throughout the day note the improper names of several venues, as I find the official names only true if endorsed by the people of the city.
It seems as though a renaming of BC Place has already been locked in (personally, I hope they name it Dead Spider) and I wanted to go through a brief rundown of some of Vancouver's unendorsed renamings.
1. Metropolis at Metrotown / Metrotown
The mall was originally named Metrotown, but as Metrotown started to become the name of the surrounding area, the management group decided to rename the mall Metropolis during an expansion to separate itself from the surrounding area. This proved entirely uneventful as everyone understood the difference between Metrotown (mall) and Metrotown (area), but was important to Metropolis as they wanted to separate the difference between buying retail at the mall and buying retai at, say, the nearby Crystal Mall.
2. Telusphere / Telus World of Science / Science World
This was a bad, bad idea for Telus, and I speculate it's one of the reasons they didn't pick up the naming rights to (now) Rogers Arena. Science World in 2005 was a relatively run down facility in bad need of repairs and upgrades, and I credit Telus with stepping in and offering 9 million to renovate the facility. However. They failed to recognize the significance of Science World in the minds of Vancouverites as a shining glowing waterfront beacon and a reminder of Vancouver's entrance to the world stage during Expo 1986. Initially, they renamed the facility Telusphere, which was met with derision and hatred by most, and the negative backlash eventually gave way to naming the facility "Science World at Telus World of Science" - a name nobody ever uses.
3. Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium / Nat Bailey Stadium
Scotiabank was wise here. Nat Bailey was an incredibly popular and successful Vancouverite, the founder of White Spot, and he used his successes avidly to support little league baseball. His devotion to the sport was so notable that on his death, the former Capilano Stadium was renamed to honour him. Scotiabank carefully seems to target the field itself as an addendum, and seems fully aware that though their name may appear in print, that it will never be used verbally in reference to the stadium.
4. GM Place / Rogers Arena
When GM Place opened it's doors in 1995, people were largely accepting of GM Place - the stadium was built without the fiscal support of taxpayers and Canucks fans were still glowing with the pride of the 1994 Stanley Cup run. Besides, associating cars with hockey didn't seem too sacrificial; It sure beats affiliating with life insurance or a bank. To GM's concern, the building in the press was often referred to as the Garage. When the lease GM had with then-Orca Bay Entertainment expired, Rogers swept in and bought the rights. The building's outer face was soon renovated with a statue of Roger Nielson and is now referred to as "the Rog" - counterculture Rogers likely had not anticipated. The common name serves in reference to the Garage, Roger Nielson, and Rogers.
In summary, I think there is commercial value to renaming a building - the sponsor's name will appear repeatedly in print and paper. However, there is real risk of offending and alienating your target audience. BC Place served 307, 000 Lions fans during the 2009 season, and like Science World, was built for Expo '86. It's unfortunate that as taxpayers, we've allowed corporations the luxuries of naming rights to our buildings and that we can no longer afford these buildings to commemorate BC and the great people who have served it. I don't think anyone would complain about Terry Fox Place.
It seems as though a renaming of BC Place has already been locked in (personally, I hope they name it Dead Spider) and I wanted to go through a brief rundown of some of Vancouver's unendorsed renamings.
 |
| Courtesy of Venture Vancouver via CC-BY-ND 2.0 license. |
The mall was originally named Metrotown, but as Metrotown started to become the name of the surrounding area, the management group decided to rename the mall Metropolis during an expansion to separate itself from the surrounding area. This proved entirely uneventful as everyone understood the difference between Metrotown (mall) and Metrotown (area), but was important to Metropolis as they wanted to separate the difference between buying retail at the mall and buying retai at, say, the nearby Crystal Mall.
 |
| Courtesy of quinet via CC-BY 2.0 license. |
This was a bad, bad idea for Telus, and I speculate it's one of the reasons they didn't pick up the naming rights to (now) Rogers Arena. Science World in 2005 was a relatively run down facility in bad need of repairs and upgrades, and I credit Telus with stepping in and offering 9 million to renovate the facility. However. They failed to recognize the significance of Science World in the minds of Vancouverites as a shining glowing waterfront beacon and a reminder of Vancouver's entrance to the world stage during Expo 1986. Initially, they renamed the facility Telusphere, which was met with derision and hatred by most, and the negative backlash eventually gave way to naming the facility "Science World at Telus World of Science" - a name nobody ever uses.
 |
| Courtesy of Canadian Veggie via CC BY-NC-ND license |
3. Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium / Nat Bailey Stadium
Scotiabank was wise here. Nat Bailey was an incredibly popular and successful Vancouverite, the founder of White Spot, and he used his successes avidly to support little league baseball. His devotion to the sport was so notable that on his death, the former Capilano Stadium was renamed to honour him. Scotiabank carefully seems to target the field itself as an addendum, and seems fully aware that though their name may appear in print, that it will never be used verbally in reference to the stadium.
 |
| Courtesy of The West End via CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 license |
4. GM Place / Rogers Arena
When GM Place opened it's doors in 1995, people were largely accepting of GM Place - the stadium was built without the fiscal support of taxpayers and Canucks fans were still glowing with the pride of the 1994 Stanley Cup run. Besides, associating cars with hockey didn't seem too sacrificial; It sure beats affiliating with life insurance or a bank. To GM's concern, the building in the press was often referred to as the Garage. When the lease GM had with then-Orca Bay Entertainment expired, Rogers swept in and bought the rights. The building's outer face was soon renovated with a statue of Roger Nielson and is now referred to as "the Rog" - counterculture Rogers likely had not anticipated. The common name serves in reference to the Garage, Roger Nielson, and Rogers.
In summary, I think there is commercial value to renaming a building - the sponsor's name will appear repeatedly in print and paper. However, there is real risk of offending and alienating your target audience. BC Place served 307, 000 Lions fans during the 2009 season, and like Science World, was built for Expo '86. It's unfortunate that as taxpayers, we've allowed corporations the luxuries of naming rights to our buildings and that we can no longer afford these buildings to commemorate BC and the great people who have served it. I don't think anyone would complain about Terry Fox Place.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
An Expulsion from Lions Bay
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| Lions Bay, courtesy of Stv via CC BY-NC-SA license. |
Some residents have recently raised concern about the volume of traffic by outsiders, and the apparent lack of respect that non-residents seem to carry for the area. Their concerns range from full and unregulated parking areas to water conditions, and this group of residents wishes to ban access to non-residents by utilizing a gate system.
This raises a lot of concern for me as a Vancouver citizen. They already have a potentially unlawful restriction on non-resident scuba divers in the area, and what entitles a city exclusive access for it's residents? Though ownership of the beach lies with Lions Bay, anything below the high tide line, that is, the beach itself; resides on Crown land. From a legal standpoint, I doubt that Lions Bay will have any real property rights to the beach, and I hope that Crown pursues this argument aggressively, or other municipalities may follow suit in preventing access to their properties by non-locals. There is a slippery slope argument to this as well. If we allow Lions Bay to ban access to their beach, what is to stop other neighbourhoods from banning access to their beaches, ultimately increasing traffic at smaller beaches until they choose to cut off access themselves due to the increased volume?
From a moral standpoint, shouldn't Canadian, crown-owned beaches be for the enjoyment of all Canadians, local and non-local? I think it will be noted by the general public that the affluence of Lions Bay residents will not go unrecognized by the general public and it's hard not to perceive this movement as elitist and ignorant. Diversity has long been a cornerstone of our culture, and I take pity on those who do not believe that Canada is for the enjoyment of all.
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