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NewsPolitics

Donald Trump held a rally in Buffalo last night. More important than the Don remembering 7/11 was the fact that a group of protesters (both inside and out) got their message across. Only two arrests were made and no violence was harbored.

Buffalo was not happy about the arrival of Donald Trump. We did not shut down the hate monger’s rally, rather we celebrated what counts with a dance party: Love and Freedom. We told the world that Hate is not acceptable in our city or anywhere.

All of the beautiful energy of this event was captured by Buffalo photographer and activist Pierce McCleary

(CLICK ON THE FIRST IMAGE TO OPEN GALLERY)

Donald Trump ProtestDonald Trump Protest
ArtsMusicNightlife

Last Saturday, FTB  went to see the 25 year old Jersey rapper  Cakes da Killa at PHI Center. The show opened with WASIU ft. Dear Lola & KD II Times.

It started off with a small crowd until Cakes took over, dressed in Rad Hourani and ready to turn the heat up. His performance was strong, carefree and intense and featured some of his old tracks such as Serve it up, Goodie Goodies and Truth Tella.

The crowd got the chance to vogue with him. When he finished, the crowd was left wanting more!

Click on the image below to open the gallery:

Cakes Da Killa @ Centre PhiCakes Da Killa @ Centre Phi

*Photos by Bianca Lecompte

Contests

The Winner: Joe McLean

The results of our hotel contest are in and we have a winner! Congratulations to Joe McLean you won a stay in an executive suite at Les Gouverneurs Hotel Montreal. We will be contacting you via email with the details. Thank you very much for participating and thanks to everyone else who played too. Also, a huge thank-you to Les Gouverneurs Hotels for this generous prize.

* Each correct guess on a photo got the entrant’s name on a ticket, some had their names on more than one ticket. The tickets were then placed in a Habs hat and the winning ticket was drawn at random.

The Answers

And now what everyone who didn’t win is waiting for: the answers. There were some tough ones and some easy ones and quite a few of you got quite a few of them right

Bench in Jeanne-Mance Park, near Duluth

contest 1
photo by Jason C. Mclean

 

 Cote-St-Catherine Metro Station (Orange Line)

contest 2
photo by Jesse Anger

 

 Rachel Est between Mentana & Boyer (Plateau)

contest 3
Photo by Chris Zacchia

 

Bar de Courcelle (St-Henri)

contest 4
Photo by Jason C. McLean

 

 Alley Near St-Joseph (Mile End)

contest 5
photo by Jason C. McLean

 

 Van Horne between Durocher and Querbes (Outremont)

contest 6
Photo by Jesse Anger

 

 The Turcotte Interchange as seen from St-Antoine and De Courcelle

contest 7
Photo by Jesse Anger

 

 Snowdon Metro Station (Orange and Blue Lines)

contest 8
Photo by Jesse Anger

 

 An alley near Hotel de Ville and Villeneuve

contest 9
Photo by Hannah Besseau

 

 Sherbrooke & Walkley (NDG)

contest 10
Photo by Jesse Anger
Music

This weekend on Sunday, I attended Igloofest for the first time. The weather had uncharacteristically warmed up – above zero degrees! – and I knew that the universe was telling me to make merry and go rave to Flosstradamus.

Flosstradamus is a DJ duo made up of J2K (Josh Young) and Autobot (Curt Cameruci) from Chicago, who has worked with big DJ names like Diplo and A-trak, and also rap stars like Kid Sister, Juicy J, and Waka Flocka Flame. They produce music that is a perfect blend of EDM and trap, bridging the two genres together in an intense way that will get you “Too Turnt Up” or TTU for short.

They performed on the Sapporo stage with flashing graphics of purple and green weed leaves. Two fans were waving huge American flags at the front of the stage and it was a mix of wonderful and random things that felt like a hallucinogenic cartoon.

While I was raving along on top of the Jagermeister truck, it was snowing lightly – the kind of snow that is fluffy and unintimidating that made everything look like it was covered in shimmering glitter. I knew it was meant to be. There were ice sculptures everywhere – tall beautiful symbols of shining capitalism that spelled out brand names like Jagermeister and Sapporo. Other than the Igloosnacks and Igloodrinks you could get in heated trucks, there were ice slides and a hockey rink. What a true Canadian gem!

With all the looming dilated eyes, Igloofest was truly a molly winter-wonderland. The soft snow made the whole experience feel magical, while the raving EDM music coming from the Sapporo stage took you to a different world of colourful bodies, dressed up in silly costumes like the Power Rangers and animal onesies. It was a hypercolour free-for-all that everyone was vibing to.

The crowd began chanting “ROLL UP!” on Flosstradamus’ command, everyone lighting their joints in solidarity and excitement. A layer of smoke rose above the crowd, the familiar dankness hitting me at the top of the bouncing Jagermeister truck. There was so much smoke coming from the crowd, that it looked like the bouncing bobbles on the colourful Igloofest hats were on fire. At one point, you couldn’t tell the difference between the smoke coming from the half-lit Js and people just breathing. Flosstradamus flattered the crowd by stating that Montreal had the best weed in Canada, and the crowd screamed back with joy.

This is what Josh Young and Curt Cameruci do. They are charismatic, talented hypemen who curate their set to such precision that they can get the crowd jumping, smoking, chanting, and dancing at their will. At one point, Flosstradamus transitioned from the kind of chaotic, high-energy trap rage that is “Waka Flocka Flame,” to a tribute song for their fallen homie ASAP Yams, who passed away recently. Flosstradamus has a diverse set of talents, from creating fiery bangers you’ll want to destroy the town to, to producing sweet electronic melodies like “Rebound” and “God’s Whisper.” Their style is fun and intense – a lot of their tracks feature minimalistic, yet heavy trap beats with rap verses that build up to an explosive bass drop that is heavier and dirtier than most EDM tracks care to explore.

The point is, Flosstradamus will get you moving.

For the last half of their set, they started playing “Rebound,” and it was beautiful and cathartic. After going hard for an hour and getting their crowd pumped up, it felt like the performance came full circle by ending on such a sweet melodious note.

Igloofest is still going on every weekend until February 8. If you’re in town, this is one show that you will definitely not want to miss out on. It is like nothing you have ever experienced before (unless you’ve already raved to colourful bouncing Canadians dancing to the beat and to the snow) and it is a memorable night for any Montrealer. Come for the ice sculptures, come for the music, come for the silly costumes. Either way, you won’t regret it – Igloofest is a surreal and wonderful music event that is more of a PLUR-fuelled circus.

Igloofest CorrectedIgloofest Corrected

Click on the photo above to open the gallery. All photography by Isabel Lee.

News

On Sunday, January 18, around 300 people gathered in Place Émilie-Gamelin, in remembrance of the thousands of people murdered by Boko Haram, a militant insurgent group active in Nigeria. Active since 2002, the group has killed nearly 10,000 people in 2014, and has caused nearly 1,5 million people to escape from their homes.

Boko Haram came under the scrutiny of Western media back in April 2014, when they kidnapped more than 300 schoolgirls in Chibok. The group threatened to sell the schoolgirls into slavery, and based on survivor accounts did horrible things to them. The twitter hashtag #BringOurGirlsBackHome trended very highly at the time – even First Lady Michelle Obama posed with a piece of paper with the words written on it.

Most recently, however, Boko Haram killed 2000 people, in the same week as the Charlie Hebdo massacre. The international response to Boko Haram has been widely criticized, however, as mainstream media focused more on the deaths of 12 European people. In contrast to Charlie Hebdo, Boko Haram’s acts receive less widespread coverage, even in Nigeria, where the group is active. Some argue that mainstream media has ignored Boko Haram, simply because it is actually very difficult to go into Nigeria, and try and cover the news. After all, Boko Haram is known to target journalists.

Nevertheless, the point remains that one of the greatest massacres in human history (according to Amnesty International) is receiving less attention than it should. It then remains to vigils and demonstrations like this one to bring about that attention, and raise global awareness.

Boko Haram Victims Rally MontrBoko Haram Victims Rally Montr

Click on the photo above to open the gallery. All photography by Gerry Lauzon.

Photo

They say that a single photo is worth a thousand words, and 2014 has been a year of many photos!

To celebrate the new year, here’s a review of the old one through the lenses of FTB’s photographers.

Enjoy this beautiful gallery that will show to you 2014 in photos!

2014 in Photos2014 in Photos

Click on the photo above to open the gallery. Big thanks to Bianca Lecompte, Jesse Anger, Gerry Lauzon, Chris Zacchia, Melanie Renaud, and Bree Rockbrand for these brilliant photos. 

Here’s to hoping that we’ll have even greater photos in the brand new year of 2015!

the growlers
ArtsMusic

Last Saturday, September 13 The Growlers performed at the newly opened Bar le “Ritz” P.D.B., formerly Il Motore. They’re on tour with West Coast duo (and twin brothers) The Garden. Opening up the show was local band Nancy Pants, a new project by Ohara Hale (Nanimal, Mori), Jeremy MacCuish (The Luggernauts, Shamus, General Rudie, Sugarfoot) and Adam Waito (Adam and The Amethysts, Miracle Fortress).

The Growlers at Bar Le Ritz PBThe Growlers at Bar Le Ritz PB

Click on the photo to launch the slideshow. Photos by Bianca Lecompte. 

Fattal Fest 2014 © Bree Rockbrand
ArtsFestivalsMusic

Amongst the dirt, mosh pits and the pungent smell of stale beer wavering in the air, I found myself in the middle of Fattal Fest. This raunchy punk fest, occurring once a year, is home to the city’s biggest punk community.

I should mention now that I’m not one to frequent Fattal’s punk shows, although I have been to one or two (which, in hindsight, was not at all enough to feel prepared for this festival). I was, in the moment, still trying to attune myself to the whole punk-vibe, which is, more than anything, kind of similar to being pretty drunk among a hundred or two of your shit-faced-wasted best friends who find it fun to push each other into walls (which I did take part in, and enjoyed, minus the bruises).

When I arrived, I instantly felt out of place with my big fancy camera. I got there in time to see the last band of the night perform on the outdoor stage. Fatal Flaw, a Montreal-based band who identify themselves as “Thrashing Crust Punk Fury,” really seemed to catch the attention of the crowd. By the strong presence of their female vocalist letting out her guttural growling, I finally felt grounded and relieved in an environment that seemed to be more or less dominated by men.

The rest of the night seemed to take on a mind of its own. My girlfriend recognized a friend of hers in the crowd and we took it from there. Finding familiar faces brought me to a state of genuine enjoyment.

We ended up in a small red loft, one of the venues at Fattal. While the band was preparing for their show downstairs, we claimed our spot on an empty black couch upstairs. There was a gate around the entire upstairs floor, giving the venue a kind of creepy, jail-type feeling with a hint of MMA-match inspiration (I asked myself if this gate is for decoration or just in case some drunk guy falls off the ledge of the loft’s upper deck).

It was unfortunate that the venue was so small, although I guess that it was part of the charm to see band and crowd become one. The way punks thrash around is very different from what you’d see elsewhere – caught somewhere between dancing, stumbling and street-fighting, there is no way to predict who will be the last man (or woman) standing.

Although there was a definite undercurrent of this violent-esque pursuit of self-expression, I have to note that when I entered the mosh pit and threw myself around like a pinball in a pinball machine, the guy standing next to me was quick to help me up when I fell down. Obviously the members of the punk scene are used to constant scrutiny and judgment, but in this small red room filled with loud music, alcohol and drugs, all of that disappeared. What I was left with was a feeling of community; a certain strength and pride built on the common understanding of what it is like to be an outsider.

(photos by Bree Rockbrand, click first image below to start slideshow)

 

Fattal Fest 2014Fattal Fest 2014
ArtsCityCultureCultureFashionFestivals

The 2014 edition of Otakuthon, Montreal’s annual anime convention, took place last weekend. FTB’s Gerry Lauzon was there with his camera and brings us a look at some of the best costumes and most interesting scenes both inside the Palais des congres and outside in the streets of Montreal’s Chinatown.

Click on the first image to start the slideshow:

Otakuthon Montreal 2014Otakuthon Montreal 2014

For more of Gerry’s photos, please check out his photostream on Flickr

ArtsCityMusic

Last Thursday Montreal-based Doldrums headlined a sold out show at Casa Del Popolo to a crowd as enthusiastic as it was large. The project’s founder and sole member Eric Woodhead poured his soul into every moment of the performance, alternating between synth, keyboard, and echoy vocals.

Opening for Doldrums first was Technical Kidman—a synthy, energetic Montreal three-piece. Between the three guys on stage they managed to incorporate two singers, guitar, bass, drums, synth, and tambourine, dance the whole time, and still look like they were having more fun than the audience (in the best possible way).

The second opener, although originally on the lineup as David Carriere’s solo project Paula, ended up being his full band, TOPS, plus special guest Sean Nicholas Savage on guitar and occasional vocals. I would say this very pleasant surprise was only the cherry on top of a fantastic evening. Enjoy some photos from the night!

 

ohland montreal osheaga
ArtsCultureNewsYear-in-Review

Forget The Box loves to go out onto the streets of Montreal ‘n beyond and shoot photos of local shows and events. Over the course of the last year we’ve gotten some pretty good shots, so we wanted to collect a few of them for you all in one spot. Let us know in the comments below which ones are your favourites!

Jack Layton at the Election Rally in Montreal

The Montreal Fetish Weekend

The play Joe Louis: An American Love Story

 

The Montreal Slut Walk

Montreal Everything to do About Sex Convention

This one was just cute

Sherlock Homo and Twatson at Glam Gam’s Murder Mystery Burlesque show

The Montreal ComicCon

burlesque girl

Blood Ballet Cabaret

Occupy Montreal

Glam Gam’s Murder Mystery Burlesque show

Blood Ballet Cabaret

While out and about we covered quite a few awesome music shows as well. Here are a couple of our fondest memories from music performances!

Flaming Lips at Osheaga

balconies montrealThe Balconies at POP Montreal

ohland montreal osheagaOh Land @ Osheaga

Tokyo Police Club montreal osheagaTokyo Police Club at Osheaga

sheepdogs montrealSheepdogs at Osheaga

Alcoholic faith mission @ CMWAlcoholic Faith Mission at Canadian Music Week

Sadies Sexsmith

The Sadies with Ron Sexsmith at Canadian Music Week

bran van 3000

Bran Van 3000 at M for Montreal

Michou montreal

The Drummer from Michou skateboarding down St. Hubert street after their gig at CFCF

Hope you like these picks and tell us which are your favorites in the comments below!

CityEnvironmentGreen Bean TuesdaysNews

With the effects of climate change becoming more pronounced and more dangerous each year, the push for greener fuels is growing around the world.  Developers of plant-based fuels called biofuels are doing their best to be the ones to replace gasoline, but not all biofuels are as green as they seem. Some can take nearly as much fossil fuel to produce as they are supposed to replace.

Corn ethanol is what is called a first generation biofuel because it is produced from a food grain. This fact has placed it at the centre of the food vs. fuel debate that pits the nutritional needs of people around the world against the need to move away from oil as a fuel source, while exposing corn prices to volatile market forces that have many doubting the viability of corn as a long-term solution.

In Canada, one player stands above the rest: Greenfield Ethanol.  Forget the Box visited the Greenfield Ethanol plant in Varennes on Montreal’s south shore and takes you on a visual tour of the world of biofuels, from corn to ethanol.

Photos by Tomas Urbina

NewsPolitics

Tens of thousands of protesters gathered this past Saturday to send Premier Jean Charest a cautionary warning on the contents of the upcoming budget. After the shocking social cuts that were announced almost a year ago in Charest’s previous budget, social activists came out of winter hibernation to remind Charest that the people of Quebec will not tolerate a repeat.

The roughly 50,000 protesters, comprised of students, union members, women’s groups, les patriotes, the raging grannies and the average pissed-off citizen with baby in tow, gathered at Place du Canada at 12pm. The protest was initiated by the disturbing and unjustified preemptive arrest of CLAQ (Convergence des Luttes Anti-Capitalistes Quebec) organizers by police officers on horseback for “conspiracy” (a.k.a a bullshit charge intended to scare off activists).

Despite the unlawful arrests, the protesters persevered and started to march around 1pm. By this time, the sign carrying activists had grown significantly in numbers and started to chant in unison “we won’t pay for your crisis” and “the people united, will never be defeated”.

Protest signs varied from pictures of the Premier with “services à vendre” spelled out across his face, to protesters with Charest masks and clown hats on. My personal favourite sign of the day was the giant banner hung from a St-Catherine Street building that said: “Si la unjustice est la norme; le combattre c’est notre devoir”. High five to the rooftop guerrilla banner hangers.

While each group of protesters seemed to be angered by specific issues such as tuition increases, health care service fees and increased hydro usage fees, they were united in a delivering a single message: M. Charest, a budget is a question of choice and it’s not okay to choose corporations over public services.

The protest wrapped up at around 2pm in front of Charest’s office building with a pep rally. Our voices were loud and clear but only time will tell if they were actually heard. The budget will be released on March 17th and personally I am pessimistic about its contents. If only Charest could turn his hearing aid up and put his glasses on he would realise that unlike his corporate BFFs, people actually care about their social services and their education.

Check back in the next few days for a more in-depth look at the issue of tuition fees…

Photos courtesy of David Huehn

CityCulture

The 2011 edition of the Montreal International Auto show hosts over 500 vehicles, including new cars, concept cars, exotic cars, hot-rodded modified cars, some electric and handbuilt cars and solar-powered racecars. It was my birthday and I saw a lot of very nice vehicles, some of which I could see myself driving.

For us, the show starts on the 7th floor of the Palais de Congres in the performance zone where the modified hotrod cars are, starting with a police car derived from a Dodge Charger:

Beside this was a table set up with all kinds of pamphlet information on automotive modifications, and what is street-legal. This was followed by hot-rodded vehicles with models posing near them:

After that, you descend to the 5th floor, where the show really begins. First off is Chevrolet, followed by the rest of GM’s Offerings within the Chevrolet, GMC, Cadillac and Buick lineups. Following GM is Smart and Mercedes-Benz. In the next room are the Saabs and the Rolls-Royces, followed by the AJAC Award centre picks.

Next we have another special attraction called “En Route to the Future” which opens with an ultra-rare 1961 NSU Prinz from Retire Your Ride:

followed by solar racers:

and Mitsubishi i-Miev:

Along with a few other electric vehicles and student-built racing cars.

Next we come to the Exotic section of the show, past Lamborghini, Lotus, Bentley, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Maserati and Porsche:

Then we go downstairs again, this time to the second floor, where we are greeted by the latest, locally-made Supercar, the HTT Plethore LC-750:

Following that, we see products from Ford, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Scion, Hyundai, Mazda, Lincoln, Nissan, Infiniti, Volkswagen, Honda, Acura, Lexus, Land Rover, Jaguar, Subaru, Mini, BMW, Volvo, Audi, Kia, FIAT, Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep. Finally, or perhaps firstly, we end up outside the show, on the first floor, at the kiosk for Suzuki.

The Montreal International Auto Show runs until the 23rd of January at Palais Des Congres, in Montreal.

Photos by Laurence Tenenbaum

Quiet Mike also went to the Auto show and tells us about the green nature of this event and the new electric cars coming to the market.

ArtsCityVisual Arts

Hugo Trottier’s Postcards From the Edge Series

In the middle of the night many of us shut our eyes, lose our thoughts and let go of the day. In the middle of the night when many of us are sleeping, dreaming and talking in our sleep, there are artists crafting pieces together that will ultimately change our perspectives, open our eyes and stimulate our senses.

Forget The Box would like to introduce Hugo Trottier’s second series, Postcards from the Edge. The series is a visual representation of how there is still beauty amidst the destruction in our industrialized world. It is where beauty meets the beast. There is a common theme amongst the photos in this series. If you pay attention you will notice the supermodels, you will notice the destruction… but do you notice the umbrellas?

When we examine umbrellas closely they seem so simple, so innocent, so protective. And they are. They are the shields that hide us from the rain, the cold hard rain that comes down and washes away the sadness that fills our lives. But, in this series, the umbrellas do not protect the beauty; rather they are simply an allusion to the precautions we must take in life. We all want a protector or do we?

We have seen destruction in this lifetime. We have seen hurt, poverty, black, white and gray. We have seen the sun, the colours and hippies. But, do we truly see what happens when your protector meets the darkness and what the mind can create in the late or early hours of a midnight sky? Hugo’s collection portrays the innocence of life, the werewolf in your bed and the rays of light that are sometimes forgotten in this busy world.

[nggallery id=carte-blanche-postcards-from-the-edge]