Drifting

NYC - Mindrelic I Timelapse from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

So I stumbled upon this video after reading the works for Tuesday and I couldn't help but think of both Debord and his drifting and the various strolls discussed by Rebecca Solnit. Everyday, be it in New York or Edmonton, city streets are host to countless numbers of people, allowing each individual to pursue down their own personal path. Be it the recreational stroll of a San Franciscan or the bold purpose filled strut of a New Yorker, city streets facilitate various stories, sights, sounds, etc. I would definitely considered myself more of a New York styled walker, because when I'm going it's towards a destination, with no time for stops and ganders. I also heavily related to the student discussed in Debord's text who basically only travelled between several major locations, and all other areas of her city were left unexplored. So this week I'm going to go drifting. After I'm done compiling my photos for the mapping assignment, I'm just going to go stroll. I don't know where. I don't know how long I'll be. But I certainly hope to find something interesting. I'll let you know how it goes...

thus far...

So here's a little photo I snapped early this morning on my way to work at the Kinsmen. It was around 7:15am with no one on the road allowing me to slow it down to a crawl and capture it with my trusty iPhone. I see this image every Sunday on my weekly commute to work, and am always slightly shocked by how pretty it is. Same goes for when I'm catching the 5:10 bus back to the park on Tuesday Thursday as the sun is just beginning to set upon the city. As much as I find this place bleak and boring at times...ok MOST of the time, little moments like this really make me appreciate it as something I can always call "home".

Being in this class has really caused me to open my eyes as to what's going on within this city, to investigate places and events I might not have even considered in the past (look out Edmonton arts scene, I'm coming for ya). I've learned there are stories here, with long and interesting histories, that have often gone unnoticed by the general public. But do I think this new found interest and discoveries will be enough to keep me here? Probably not. The itch remains unscratched for me to go out and live and experience somewhere new. And not just for a two week vacation.

There is a Place for Every Sound in This City

So after our class I have my Music 203 lecture immediately after. Today we had a guest speaker come in who owns his own record label here in Edmonton (Old Ugly, check 'em out here --> http://olduglyco.com/fr_olduglyrecordingco.cfm). When my prof began to introduce "Ugly Joe" I was expecting him to either:
a) be some old hippie or wanna be rock star who never quite made it or...
b) your classic money grubbing suit who's not exactly in it for the love of music.

To my surprise, out came a hipster looking dude who couldn't be more than a few years older than myself. As he spoke he revealed that he is a rapper, who had once been approached by the major label Universal Music to sign on as their next marketable find. He would be flown to the big city of Toronto, and distributed to the masses. Due to a bad gut feeling, he turned them down. He opted instead to start his own label here in Edmonton, void of any interest in profit, and merely about branching into what he described as the huge Edmonton music scene. He mainly signs on friends who aren't sure how to get their sound out into the city.

He continually mentioned how amazing the local talent here in Edmonton is, and how each band or artist, no matter what genre, supports one another. The scene here is apparently all about contribution rather than competition, and that sort of mentality cannot be found in the major cities such as Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. The main method of support fellow artists and fans can contribute? Going to shows. Most of the albums pressed by the label are for free, and what they really want to see is the music getting out there and for people to attend their gigs. He spoke of how if you regularly attend local Edmonton shows you will discover a community and friends and even more musical talent.

Listening to this speaker and reading some of your blogs have made me realize what a bad supporter of the arts I've been in this city. Its really inspired me to start going to more shows, because I do listen to lots of local sound, but I've never put in a concerted effort to see them live. And when push comes to shove, if I'm going to take part in the scene by consuming (mostly for free thanks to downloads) the least I can do is go hang out for the night in one of the many venues Edmonton has and support some good local music.