Spring has swept through the office, and honest has been busier than ever. But even through party plans, award banquets and to-do lists a meter long, we carved out a little spot for inspiration, allowing our minds to refresh.

In April, we were visited by the Bros. Landreth, who came at lunch to serenade our office over beer and pizza. The brothers have just finished recording their first album “Let It Lie” and we were privy to a live performance of a few songs. The band, is made up of the Landreth brothers and their buds Ryan Voth & Alex Campbell. Each of these musicians have toured extensively backing up other bands, but this is the first project of their very own that they have collaborated on. The sound created by the band speaks to their diverse collective experiences in music. Each of the boys has an impressive musical resume, touring and recording with the likes of Doc Walker, Imaginary Cities, Fred Penner, Daniel Roa, Steve Bell and Romi Mayes – from country to indie pop to francophone and funk, they have played it all. Their mini-concert was intimate and candid plus we got the bonus of having an impromptu version of an acoustic Fresh Prince of Bel-Air duet.

In case any of you have repressed it, I will remind you that the first week of May was a harsh one, as the sunbeams had to fight layers of clouds and sleet to make it down to ground level. When the weather is terrible, there isn’t much you can do about it ­— except change your perspective on the matter. Up on the 8th floor of 191 Lombard for all intents and purposes it was full-on summer. While the wind and rain howled below at Portage and Main, Shoni and Amanda from Green Action Centre paid us a visit with their blender all rigged up to a bicycle! We turned up the calypso music, and cycled our way to margarita ville. It was a wonderful Wednesday, complete with limes, strawberries and discussion about active transportation. The only umbrellas we needed were tiny, made out of paper and sticking out of our drinks.

The third and fourth refreshers were a success, we will keep you posted on the fifth!

Check out the Bros. Landreth here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOqZWBjZmYo

Take the commuter challenge! Talk to Amanda: http://greenactioncentre.ca/event/2013-commuter-challenge/



 

 

I'll be the first to admit that I have an obsession with the 90s'.

Here's another nice music video. Foals released their new album 'Holy Fire' recently and here's a catchy track from the album.

 

Foals - My Number from Us on Vimeo.

Jim James, frontman of My Morning Jacket, ventures out on his own with a full length album, Regions of Light and Sound of God. Check out this sweet vid for "A New Life".

Sometimes I think of music as an IV line. Through your headphones comes a steady flow of energy, pumping life into your step as you run on the treadmill or the design project you have open on your screen. At 12 I had a walkman, plastered with stickers of Barbie, stars and hearts. At 15 I balanced my discman like a server with a martini on her tray as I tried to run without the music skipping. Going to a CD store was a sacred experience, taste testing the songs through headphones, while looking at rain falling into puddles on Osborne. At 20 I brought an MP3 player that held 63 songs with me around the world, I thought it was the height of technology because it fit into my palm.

These days with an infinite amount of songs available on your phone as you ride the bus, it seems like the medium for music has morphed yet again. Our concept of ownership around music has certainly shifted, as you can stream anything from anywhere at anytime, and never commit to purchasing a song. Although it is a distressing time for artists who depend on fans buying music, it has undoubtedly made music more accessible. With this accessibility of course comes a flood of mediocrity as the industry gets saturated by average chumps with guitars trying to forge their way. The truth of course is though that this just makes those with legit talent, step up their game even more. The good ones become great.

The medium has changed, but something that hasn’t is a live show. If you haven’t seen a show in a while, you are in luck, because we happen to live in one of the best cities in the world for it. No one quite knows what it is about this place but there is no doubt that the Winnipeg music community is alive and flourishing. Now you probably think my opinion is a biased one because I am dating a musician but really that only confirms what I am saying. As world class musicians rehearse in my living room, I am telling you Winnipeg has something really special going on. The community is a diverse and welcoming one, as I watch my bass playing boyfriend play everything from francophone pop to bluegrass to funk all before Thursday in the same week. And as he records his own album with his brother and best friend (The Bros. Landreth) all the artists he and his band backed up along the way are right there to support them as they venture out and make their own name for themselves.

If you haven’t been out to a show in a while, don’t let the opportunity pass you by because we really do have something special going on here in Winnipeg.

Here are a few others who seem to agree:
The trailer to Mike Latschislaw’s documentary about the Winnipeg music scene:
http://vimeo.com/60054088

Josie Leoppky’s podcast featuring Manitoban musicians:
http://andthenpodcast.wordpress.com/

 

The people around her could not care any less. In case you're wondering the song is "Telephone" by Black Angels

These guys are great and are about to do big things. Good positive Winnipeg Hip Hop. "They Told Me" Comes out tomorrow but you can stream it here till then. Enjoy.

http://music.aol.ca/new-releases-full-cds/#/8

Seriously, check it out. We were really excited to work with the Winnipeg Folk Festival this past year but McKim had set the bar pretty high with their dragonfly artwork. This was a great opportunity for us designers to work on such a fun and coveted project. Everyone wanted to be the one to come up with the concept that was going to grace those highly anticipated billboards. We worked tirelessly on the concepts, seriously, we did a TON! Probably close to a billion. Ok, maybe not quite a billion. But we did eat, sleep, and breathe Folk Fest for a little while there. Sure, we can get pretty invested in our work sometimes, but I don't know if it has ever gone to this extent before. So, here's a little peek into our creative process from this years Folk Festival design (minus a tweak here, or a tweak there). We had a lot of fun working on this project and we were pleasantly surprised by all the positive feedback we received. There were so many good ideas, it's too bad they could only choose one!



 

 

Be honest, you probably do this.

A few of us in the office are going to the Beirut show at the Burton Cummings Theatre on Monday. I'm excited for it. The Rip Tide is getting a lot of spins around here. Kerri has been speaking highly of the opening band, Little Scream, as well so getting there early will pay off.

Here's a new video about a wandering boat directed by Houmam Abdallah.

Beirut 'The Rip TIde' from Houmam Abdallah on Vimeo.