1 image 2 eyes 3D
| June 24, 2009 12:00 am | to | October 18, 2009 12:00 am |
Frédéric Back: One with Nature
| June 18, 2009 12:00 am | to | September 27, 2009 12:00 am |
Free exhibition at the Montreal museum of fine arts
Expanding Horizons: Painting and Photography of American and Canadian Landscape 1860-1918
| June 18, 2009 12:00 am | to | September 27, 2009 12:00 am |
Piknic Électronik (June 28th Edition)
Montreal has never had it so good when it comes to electronic dance music.
There are only a few great electronic music events in Montreal, and Piknic Electronik is high up there. While I’ve been to Bal en Blanc, Cream, Celebration/Resolution and countless of after-hours events with big name DJs, nothing comes close to Piknic’s setup. Take four parts of talented DJs (and maybe one or two that’s very well known internationally) throw in some powerful speakers and subs and host the event outdoors: you get a Piknic Electronic. What makes it better is that the event is on a Sunday and it starts at 2 PM and ends something close to 10 PM, so there’s no staying up late trying to enjoy the music. The cherry on top to all this? The entrance fee is only 10$.
The true electronic music lovers will recognize the big name artist in this lineup for the day, and that is the infamous Richie Hawtin who is an English-Canadian artist, owner of record label Minus. I could go on and on about Hawtin’s music style, but that is out of the scope of this review. The majority of Montrealers out there will most likely not enjoy minimal techno as much as I do, so I’ll leave it for everyone to hear for themselves and judge accordingly.
Last time I had a chance to attend the event was two or three years ago, or the last time Richie Hawtin was in town. There was something close to a thousand people and more wondering around Ile St-Hèlene, and a large portion of them dancing to the beats to the artist of the moment. It was a gorgeous day and everyone was in a damn good mood. If I’m not mistaken, I believe there was alcohol being served to the public, or it might’ve been people bringing in their own bottles of booze. I don’t remember much of my surroundings because I was dancing away to Hawtin’s music. What I do remember, however, is the amount of people smoking marijuana close to the water.
For June 28th, the line-up consists of the following artists:
- 2:00 PM: Stefny Winter
- 4:00 PM: Pheek
- 5:00 PM: Ambivalent
- 6:30 PM: Barem
- 8:00 PM: Richie Hawtin
Piknic Electronik runs from May to October, so check out Piknik’s website if you wish to know the upcoming artists and their respective dates.
I managed to get to the event at around 5:25 PM due to me getting lost, but all I had to do was follow the music. Parking cost me 10$ and was a good 7 minute walk away from the main event, but I didn’t mind it. At about 5:35, a rush of people started swarming in from a nearby metro station.
Entry was pretty quick; there was a lack of security as bags were not searched. Not that I fear that anything happens during these events, since rarely I hear about violence during an electronic music event. The lack of security, however, was made up for the fact that about twenty something police officers showed up to patrol the event. There’s no denying that drugs are being sold here and the cops want to crack down on it. I got a few looks my way while I sitting around watching people walk by. Perhaps they thought I was the one selling since I looked so suspicious.
This year, there are more people than ever, and to answer the mystery about the booze situation here: you can bring your own booze but don’t get caught! The trick is to either bring beer in cans rather than bottles. If you bring bottles, you should bring plastic cups. If you want to buy, there’s stands selling alcohol and food for the public.
Since I’m covering this event live (yup, out here with my camera and laptop) a lot of people came up to me asking why I’m on this darn thing. I told them I’m working and enjoying the music. 
More photos available, just continue browsing after the 30th picture.
Exploring, Partying, Shopping… Montrealing
Montrealing is a verb (even though my spell-check thinks otherwise). Just like jumping or swimming, Montrealing implies action – the act of exploring and discovering the city of Montreal. It’s anything that we can do in this urban metropolis to spend our time right.
Like Jacques Cartier, we are all explorers (minus the fancy outfit) out looking for adventure, and Montreal is full of thrills. Whether it’s going clubbing, going to bars and pubs, eating out, watching sports (the Canadiens, of course), going shopping, enjoying nature, or sightseeing, there is always something that keeps our hearts pumping hard! Knowing all these hot spots, including the ones that you won’t find in a traveler’s guide, is what Montrealing is all about. Mr. Cartier wouldn’t even have recognized this place…
Montreal is a multicultural European city in North America. It reminds tourists of Europe because of its magnificent architecture and of course the small and narrow streets – especially the stone-paved streets in the Old Port. Although, it’s the largest French-speaking capital after Paris, almost everyone here speaks English. Besides English and French, Montreal speaks many languages depending on which part of town you happen to find yourself. With the arrival of different immigrants throughout the last century, many communities were formed. This diversity gives Montreal the ever changing look, and brings new tastes and flavours to its dishes!
Montreal is best known for its entertainment, whether it’s going to bars and clubs or attending one of the many festivals that are going around during the year. It’s during the summer that Montreal hosts many of its most popular festivals, notably, The Jazz Festival, The Just For Laughs Festival, and the Francofolies which bring tourists from all over the world.
Whether you are in the city for a short stay or have lived here all your life, you can be sure to discover something new each and every time you go out. The city of Montreal should welcome tourists by guaranteeing a “for pleasure” trip. Keep on partying, sightseeing, eating, shopping, exploring…and have fun Montrealing!
Vote For Your Favourite Montreal Canadiens Journalist
It’s finally time to vote for your favourite (or non-favourite) Montreal Canadiens journalist(s), based on the four characteristics we had discussed before. Basically, this is how it’s going to work: below, you have the four lists of journalists based on credibility, knowledge, like-ability and shit disturbor factor. Pick the five journalists whom you think deserve said characteristics. Once we have a high enough number of votes, we’ll publicize the results for everyone to see and discuss. Enough jibber-jabber, time to vote!
Loading ... Loading ... Loading ... Loading ...The Montreal Jazz Festival
Up until last year, if we were to choose the biggest event in the city, there probably would have been a debate between the Montreal Grand Prix and the Jazz Festival. Loosing the Grand Prix to uncle Bernie has paved way to an undisputed champion of all events held in Montreal, The Jazz Fest.
The event is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year and the performance lineup is very impressive, led by none other than Stevie Wonder, the living legend himself. As a celebration of this milestone The 2009 edition will be presented in the brand new installations called the Quartier des Spectacles ( Concert Block) which is being pushed to be completed for the launch of the festivities.
As usual, there will be tons of free shows, on a total of 8 different outdoor stages. Be advised that the addition of the Quartier des spectacles and its new facilities have resulted in some changes in the concert locations as Montrealers know it. This rearrangement will probably be a welcome change, a version 1.0 per say of the Montreal Jazz Festival in its new era, with a complete city block tailored to its needs.
The Plateau Mont-Royal Mini Review
The Plateau’s eclectic and dense architecture bringing in the European, French community. The latter’s generally drawn to a healthier, similar lifestyle feel makes it a hot spot for tourists and Montrealers like to walk endlessly on hot summer days.
This borough is considered by many to be one of the coolest neighborhoods in North America. With the many restaurants, cafés, bars and eclectic shops, it’s definitely a place to get together for all hours of day.
The Plateau Mont-Royal consists of three main busy streets:
- Mont-Royal Avenue
- St-Laurent Boulevard
- St-Denis Boulevard
Each one brings a different character to the city, and their proximity to each other is what makes the Plateau such a great area to live in.
St-Denis Boulevard
It’s the perfect “summer” street. A must visit whether it’s for a quick bite, shopping at small shops or walking aimlessly for hours. Tourists especially love this area for its predominant French-speaking clientele, as opposed to say, Ste-Catherine’s or Crescent street which attract a more English crowd.
IMO, the people seem friendlier, and it’s a spot most representative of the French community of Montreal. A European vibe to it with the dense spacing, the eclectic architecture and sizes of buildings. (uneven) And the nature f the stores are generally drawn to a more healthier, simpler lifestyle
Mont-Royal Avenue
Although very similar in style to St-Denis, Mont-Royal is where you will find the shops selling recycled clothes and a multitude of used CD and book stores. You’ll notice the lack of judgmental stares and arrogance from the locals, as opposed to tourist who stand out wearing flashy colors and don’t know the art of using your “indoor voice”.
For our fans with voyeuristic tendencies, check out the live feed on the webcam on Mont-Royal Avenue.
St-Laurent Boulevard
It has won the battle when Ste-Catherine relinquished its role of the “clubbing” street of Montreal. St-Laurent also boasts some higher-end restaurants and supper clubs worth checking out.
Things you will see:
- Tons of traffic
- Tons of pedestrians
- Endless line-ups into clubs
- Fancy close
- Mini-skirts
- Maybe a fight or two
Here at Montrealing, we consider the Plateau to be one of Montreal’s best kept gems that tourists should know about. Montrealers, what do you think?
Jacques Martin is the new Canadiens Coach
For the first time since another Jacques was hired, the Montreal Canadiens organization have put and experienced coach behind the bench. Now I’m not saying we’re going to win our 25th cup next season, but it sure is a step towards it.
The fact is that we have a young team and we need an experienced coach to control these kids, almost like a father figure. Forgive me for my simplistic comparison, but Carbo was like that cool uncle everybody has and Jacques Martin is well… the boring one. My comparison might be simplistic, but I think it makes complete sense, just picture them while reading the rest of the article.
Carbo with his wife
CARBO: The Cool Uncle
The cool uncle is typically well dressed and talks about the ladies like he is part of the boys. They are extremely cool and relaxed until you piss them off, and that is when the shit hits the fan. Cool uncles have a temper, and when I say temper, I mean they go all out! art of it is because they feel that they have an authority because they are older, but the truth is they loose that authority the minute they start talking about tits and ass with the guys. The funny thing about it is that everybody likes to piss off the cool uncle, just for kicks, so we trigger it just to get a laugh to a point where there is some animosity developed. I wonder if that’s what happened between the boys and Carbo
Jacques doing his thing
MARTIN: The Boring Relative
On the other hand, Martin is the boring relative who demands to be treated with respect. Nobody even wants to piss this guy off because of simply because of the way he screams at his cat and neighbors. These species typically command respect and making fun of them although is more frequent, is typically done in secret. Unfortunately, Martin is also known for coaching a boring defensive style, so prepare for a more defensive and unexciting style of hockey.
Well that’s it for my comparison. I know it’s borderline stupid, but whether you like it or not, it kind of makes sense. I really think that at this point, experience is key and that Bob Gainey found the ideal candidate for the job: our long awaited boring relative.