Browsing “Good Peeps”

Photo by Joanne Klimaszewski courtesy of the CBC

Name: Jian Ghomeshi
Occupation: Canadian broadcaster, writer, musician and producer
Website: Jian.ca and Q
Twitter: @jianghomeshi and @CBCRadioQ

It isn’t everyday when the interviewer makes the news but that’s becoming more and more the case for Jian Ghomeshi. Take for instance his interview with Joni Mitchell. It’s been the talk of Canada this week. A quick search of the news headlines and Jian pops up almost as much as his subjects.

Jian is the host of Q, a multi platform, and border breaking show that showcases Canada’s culture in a unique and refreshing way. It doesn’t matter if you listen to it on CBC Radio One daily, watch it on CBC-TV each Sunday, listen to it on SirusXM, on podcast or catch it on the web – the magazine show has something for everyone. If you’re not into the band currently on, tomorrow he might have your favourite entertainer on or a politician you just have to hear.

In fact, he has become such a popular staple in Canadian broadcasting that he has the power to get interviews no one else can – like reclusive stars Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen – and after a few minutes of talking with him, it’s easy to see why. He’s easy going and listens whole-heartedly. He’s a warm and charming conversationalist who is more than happy to sit and hear your stories whilst sharing some of his own.

Jian rolled into Calgary at the end of May with the CBC 2013-14 Season Preview bandwagon and we got a chance to sit down with him before the event. It was our chance to interview the interviewer and what a delight it was…

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Janine Vangool in the Uppercase Office               Photos by Amy Jo Espetveidt, Quadrophonic Image

Name: Janine Vangool
Occupation: Publisher / Editor / Designer, Uppercase Magazine
Website: uppercasemagazine.com 
Twitter: @uppercasemag

We’ve heard it a million times before – print is dying, it has no place in a digital age and physical publications are going the way of the dodo. Blah. Blah. Blah. But, trust me, once you’ve held an edition of Calgary’s own Uppercase Magazine, the argument clearly null and void. The feel of the paper, the gloss of the ink, the smell of the press (or in the case of Issue 17 the cherry scented scratch and sniff cover) – it’s plain to see each issue is a work of art.

And that doesn’t even cover the beautiful layout, stylized images or mesmerizing content.

Uppercase is Janine Vangool’s sweat, blood and tears. Her passion for design excellence has garnered an international following, a strong and growing subscriber base and, most recently, is up for two National Magazine Awards – Art Direction for an Entire Issue and Magazine of the Year  – being presented this Friday in Toronto. The coveted crown for Magazine of the Year is given to the magazine that “most consistently engages, surprises and serves the needs of its readers.” Other nominees are Corporate Knights, Cottage Life and Urbania making Uppercase the only Western Canadian magazine up for the award.

We sat down with Janine last week in their beautiful Art Central office and she gave us a closer look at what goes on behind the scenes at this stunning magazine.

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A CELLO, GUITAR & DRUMS: Raleigh – Clea Anaïs, Brock Geiger and Matt Doherty – perform at the Ironwood Stage and Grill last Thursday, May 23, the last show of their cross Canada tour.
Photo by Amy Jo Espetveidt, Quadrophonic Image

Names: Brock Geiger and Clea Anaïs
Occupation: Bandmates in the ever-awesome Raleigh
Website: raleigh-sound.com and facebook.com/raleighsound
Twitter: @RaleighSound

The day was dark and dank, buckets of rain pouring down. Not much of a homecoming for local musical gems Raleigh. The day felt like one to curl up with a cat and a cup of tea, not head to a gig. But their enigmatic sound suited the dismal day, making for one of those magic moments where everything complements the mood.

After coming off a month long cross Canada tour, they were set to play the last night at the Ironwood in Inglewood. Dragging in their equipment from the rain-drenched alley, they launched into their sound check, fine tuning their placid boy-and-girl vocals and guitar-cello interactions.

With everything set and ready to go, two of the trio – Brock Geiger and Clea Anaïs – were kind enough to sit down with me before the show and talk about life on the road and what’s next for the rising local stars.

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Photo courtesy of Jay Ingram

Name: Jay Ingram

Occupation: Author; Broadcaster

Website: www.jayingram.ca

Twitter: @jayingram

Jay Ingram is a hit with science and non-science folk alike.  You may know him from when he hosted CBC Radio’s Quirks and Quarks between 1979 and 1992, wrote for Owl Magazine (those of you in your thirties – think elementary school library), or contributed to various other science-related TV and radio shows.  Most recently, we’ve seen Ingram around town at The Walrus Talks as part of Calgary’s High Performance Rodeo and at events related to Beakerhead, a science and engineering happening which he co-founded.

Q: Tell us about your connection to Calgary and your current local projects (such as Beakerhead).

A: My partner Mary Anne Moser and I live in Bragg Creek.  Beakerhead (which is truly awesome) was her idea.  It’s a collision of art, science and engineering, and we are going to make Beakerhead happen on the streets of Calgary this coming September.

Q: We love when science and fun intersect!  Given your work to popularize science, can you tell us about a time when you had fantastic fun while teaching people about science? Read more

Photo courtesy of Clara Hughes

Name: Clara Hughes

Claims to Awesome: Six-time Olympic medalist in cycling and speed-skating; the only athlete in history to win multiple medals in both Summer and Winter Games; Officer of the Order of Canada; Winner of the International Olympic Committee’s prestigious “Sport and Community” award… eep!  So much awesome.

Website: clara-hughes.com

Clara Hughes is a big, big name in Canadian sport, but that’s is only one part of what makes her a Good Peep.  According to Clara, “success means a lot more than earning medals, it means having a voice and using the opportunity to reach out and help others.”  You may have seen her image recently on Calgary billboards and bus-shelters promoting Bell’s Let’s Talk campaign, or seen her inspire the crowd at High Performance Rodeo‘s The Walrus Talks on January 29, 2013.

When C.I.A. caught up with Hughes, we wanted to find out more about her community work and what she’s been up to lately, now that she is no longer a competitive athlete.

Q: Tell us about your connection to Calgary.

A: My first connection was seeing Gaeten Boucher skate in his last Olympic race in the 1988 Olympics.  But I was in Winnipeg watching it on TV.  But that moment changed my life, it’s where it all began for me.  Then I became a speed skater, over a decade later, and spent 10 years living and training in Calgary at the Olympic Oval.  I ended up in 3 Winter Olympic Games myself in that span. Read more

Photo Credit: Jonathan Taggart

Name: Dan Mangan

Occupation: Musician

Website: www.danmanganmusic.com

When we heard he was presenting at The Walrus Talks in Calgary on January 29, C.I.A. tracked down Dan Mangan for you, dear readers.  Based in Vancouver, Mangan is a two-time JUNO winner and Polaris Music Prize shortlist’er.  He’s also recorded three full-length albums, toured all over the globe with his band and has been a contributing writer for The Huffington Post Canada and The Guardian newspaper‘s Arts section.

Pretty impressive, yes.  But equally important is his high standing on my “Chill” playlist, the fun I’ve had at his concerts, and the cat photo above.

Here ya go Calgary: Dan Mangan.

Q: Tell us about your experience with Calgary.

A: Well, I have an interesting relationship with Calgary. I disagree with a lot of the politics that emerge from the city, but have met many wonderful people there. Our shows in Calgary are always a ton of fun, and I enjoy my time there.

Q: You’ve toured extensively throughout Europe, North America, and Australia.  How does Calgary compare?  Does anything about Calgary really stand out to you?

A: The cities of western Canada are young and unsure of what they are. There are a lot of cities in the world that are old and sweat-soaked and couldn’t change if they tried. Young cities, and the people who live in young cities, have an opportunity to really choose the character of their environment.

I will say this: people don’t visit ancient European cities to adore their subdivisions. I hope, for the betterment of Canadian heritage (and for betterment of life in general), that young cities like Calgary, Kelowna, Vancouver, etc. choose to be interesting and culture-filled places. In times of quick economic expansion in any city, a lot of decisions get made quickly and under duress.

My question for Calgary is this: What do you want the character of the city to be when the oil boom dies down and is no longer the primary impetus for growth?

Q: You’ve shared the stage with so many big names, from Cake to the Decemberists.  Tell us about a musician or band who has been particularly awesome to spend time with.

A: We’ve never played with Radiohead, but they’re my favourite band and many years ago I spent a wonderful, familial, relaxed morning with Colin Greenwood (bassist). He was such a gentleman. It was quite pleasing to see such grace at “the top”.

Q: What’s your favourite place to play music?

A: We have a lot of second homes (Calgary being one of them), but only one home, and that’s Vancouver.

Q: When I last saw you perform live, you received a lot of attention from lady fans.  Do you have any fun stories about all this female attention at shows?

A: Ladies be trippin.

Q: Okey dokey.  How about the future?  Let’s talk about that.  What does 2013 have in store for you?

A: I’m working on a film score currently and demo’ing a lot of new songs for our next album. We just toured relentlessly for about 7 years and we’re taking the year (mostly) off the road to recuperate and focus on other creative projects. The plan is to record a new album in the fall, which is exciting.

Q: What makes Calgary awesome?

A: Chad VanGaalen.

We agree – VanGaalen is a C.I.A. Good Peep too.  Big thanks to Dan Mangan for connecting with C.I.A.

Want more?  Check out this interview with Dan Mangan on one of our sister blogs, Vancouver is Awesome.

Ear Candy’s Beau and Alyssa, in their studio.

Ear Candy is “a Calgary based audio boutique built on a foundation of passion and creativity… and some say, a modicum of madness,”  according to their website, anyway. They’ve worked on television, movies, short films, and of course music and advertising. I was introduced to the studio, and sound guru Beau Shiminsky, through a group I had volunteered for in the past – Apocalypse Wars. Apocalypse Wars was a charity event held to raise money for Brown Bagging for Calgary’s Kids. It was a game like capture the flag – with deadly consequences. You played either as a zombie, or a zombie hunter. Now, Ear Candy had put out a call for the scary folks from Apocalypse Wars to make their very best horror noises for an upcoming film, Spencer Estabrook’s The Hunt. I sat down with Beau in Ear Candy’s cozy, colourful studio on 10th Avenue to chat about their past work, and some exciting upcoming projects.

I just heard about you guys through Apocalypse Wars. How long have you been in Calgary?

I’ve been here with Ear Candy for ten years. I was at another facility in Calgary for a bunch of years before that, but this is mine, so that’s the difference!

So what’s your team like?

It’s just me! Me, and Alyssa, and then I have some freelancers I use for films that I need more people to work on, but the ideas are generally me.

What do you mostly find yourself working on?

Uh, you know, it’s half an half. I do a lot of ad work. I write music for ads, and I do sound for radio and t.v. That’s half of it. Then, the other half is like corporate stuff or film. For film we do documentaries, dramatic shorts… we don’t do too many dramatic feature films, just because there isn’t a whole lot of it! Lot of shorts though – we’ll do a few a year, and a couple docs. That kind of thing.

So, the current film project is a horror one. 

Yeah. It’s called The Hunt. Spencer Estabrooks is director, and there’s Chris Potter from Heartland in it – and a local kid named Rohan Campbell. Right now this week, we’re casting, getting some people in to do the sound for “the creature”. So it’s going to be a kind of fun little session. Instead of going to a CD library and finding growls, we’re gonna have some fun with it!

What is the process like for someone who comes in to work on this ? In the email volunteer call I received, it basically read “Come down to the studio and scream”.

Yeah! I think we’ll just play with it in the studio. So the process is just coming in, we’re going to have the film on screen in the voice booth so they can watch and see the action, and we’ll record at the same time. And so they can see what the creature looks like, and kind of give him his own life!

Then we’ll run that voice, probably through some processes. We have gear here, like a harmonizer and things like that, so we can adjust the pitch and do some weird things. And they can hear that in their headphones! They’ll probably be weirded out by the whole thing [laughs].

That’s great! Do you often do open calls for the stuff you do?

Open calls, not usually, no. When we’re casting for talent for television or radio, or longer form films, we have a very large voice bank – anywhere in the world we have a list of people, and we have lots of great talent in Calgary.So, we can submit them and then the client goes, “Oh, we like these three people”, and then we can bring them in. Open calls are rare – and this one isn’t even really an open call itself. I met Tara [of Apocalypse Wars] doing some work, and she had mentioned that she’s involved in this apocalypse zombie thing. You know, there are certain people that get into that kind of world – so I thought it would be cool to bring them in with some local voice actors.

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Name: John Jackson & Connie DeSousa
Occupation: Co-chefs/Co-owners at CHARCUT Roast House
Website: www.charcut.com | www.charpop.com | www.huffingtonpost.ca/freshblood (Huffington Post blog)

John Jackson & Connie DeSousa are well-known pioneers in Calgary’s culinary scene. The two met in 1999 when Connie was apprenticing under John at the now defunct Owl’s Nest lounge in Calgary. After that, John and Connie found themselves cooking around the world, from opening the St. Regis Hotel in San Francisco to working in Jean-Georges Vongirichten’s Michelin-starred restaurants. During that time, they began to conceptualize opening their own restaurant together, and in 2010, CHARCUT became a reality.

In just under three years, the restaurant and the chefs have received many accolades, including #6 in Enroute magazine’s Best New Restaurants of 2010, Calgary Best New Restaurant of 2010 in Where magazine, #3 in Avenue magazine’s Best Restaurants 2012, a top 3 finish for Connie in the inaugural season of Top Chef Canada and being named in the Top 40 Foodies Under 40 in Western Living magazine and Top 40 Under 40 in Avenue magazine.

Of course, John and Connie’s reach extends beyond the restaurant – aside from being asked to cook for visiting celebrities and moonlight at special events, Alley Burger grew from $5 burgers served at random times in the back alley of their restaurant to a full-fledged food truck. Last year’s CharPOP was a great success, introducing many Calgarians to beef heart steak and crispy pig ears. John and Connie were in the midst of organizing their latest event, CharPOPluck when they took a few minutes to answer some of our questions.

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Name: Danny Vacon
Occupation: Rocker
Website: thedudesmusic.ca /  dojoworkhorse.bandcamp.com / highkicks.bandcamp.com

“The Blue Jays are going to be sick this year.” says Dan Vacon as our beers arrive at the Ship and Anchor. We talk a little baseball before I get started on our interview. He’s also really looking forward to ‘Dirtbag Baseball Sunday’s’ and laments the lack of inner city baseball diamonds. “I think we might have to up it to four teams this year too.” The two team “league”, is a collection of musicians and bar staff Dan plays in every Sunday in the summer. Calgary music fans know Dan Vacon best as the lead singer of the Dudes, who seem to be everyone’s favourite band. At least I can’t find anyone who doesn’t think so. Well that’s not true, I found one person who disagrees but they quickly follow with “I like Dojo Workhorse much better.”, another one of the many Calgary bands Vacon can be found playing in. We got to talking about Calgary’s music scene and why moving to Toronto isn’t the goal for most bands any more.

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Lack of funding is why a lot of creative endeavours end for many artists. They come up with an amazing idea and are forced to let it die due to the expense needed to make it happen. Luckily for Calgary artists, there’s InvestYYC, a Calgary 2012 initiative that can breathe life into amazing ideas through funding.

InvestYYC is structured much the same as Kickstarter, as donors invest in a specific project and receive perks depending on donation level. Where it’s different is that donations are tax deductible, and if a donation of $100 or greater is made, up to $2,500, it will be matched through a credit to the donors account. This is made possible by Calgary 2012, who has provided InvestYYC with $100,000 of matching funds to use before February, 2013.

Thi Vo, an aspiring documentary film maker is one of the artists using InvestYYC as a way to help fund his project, Made in Vietnam.

Thi was born in Vietnam over 30 years ago. Soon after, Thi and his mother immigrated to Canada. The move separated him, not only from his home country, but also his biological father.

As Thi got older, questions about his father became more of a burning desire to answer. He found out the answers to some, but not the identity of his biological father, the most important answer Thi was searching for.

Thi also developed a passion for film as he got older too. This passion began with trying to get in-front of the camera, which he did successfully by landing a roles in Pseudo, an independent Canadian film, and Gettin’ In, a Canadian comedy released earlier this year.

The combination of Thi’s desire to learn his past, and passion for film became the catalyst for Made in Vietnam, where he’ll step behind the camera to document the journey searching for his biological father in Vietnam.

This project is ambitious in many ways, most notably, trying to find one man in a country with a population of over 91 million people. It’s also ambitious in cost; funding a project like this is expensive and could not be done without the help of InvestYYC. This Calgary 2012 initiative is helping to fund the business of culture, something that provides more return for Calgary than just money. It gives an artist like Thi the ability to express himself and share his story, one that is sure to connect with viewers.

I encourage you to go to InvestYYC and check out all the great cultural projects that need funding. You never know, you could be giving support to the next Spielberg, Baryshnikov or Warhol!

To make a donation to Thi’s InvestYYC project – Made in Vietnam visit:
http://www.investyyc.com/projects/view/30

To stay up-to-date with Thi and his journey visit:
Facebook.com/madeinvietnamfilm