Author Archives: Phil Figueiredo

2020 – The Year New Holiday Traditions Are Born

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Well, It looks as if this will be a holiday season unlike one we’ve ever seen or will ever see again. At least that’s the hope. This holiday season, as numbers gathered together will be limited I’m sure, it’s time to spark new traditions in your home.

I feel most families have a tradition of some sort when it comes to celebrating Christmas. Every year, my best friend and his two brothers and sister all get together on Christmas Eve at someones house and play video games all night… Now I know thats not really a typical tradition, but it’s something they’ve done since they were kids. Sure, it started with board games and as technology became more and more advanced it turned into video games, but it’s still a tradition in their eyes. I know it may not be everyones vision of celebrating the holiday season, but to them, it’s something they all love to do and brings them together. That’s the most important part.

Growing up, I was a very impatient kid and if you know me now, you’d know some things never change. I couldn’t wait to open presents on Christmas morning. As soon as Santa ate those cookies, drank the milk and left the presents under that tree, I was ready for gift opening. Every year I would bug my parents to the point where I finally got my way. When I was 10, my parents decided that on Christmas Eve, we would get together with the whole family, have a huge dinner, then when everyone went home, my sister and I would go to bed. We’d sleep for a couple hours, then allowed out of our rooms at midnight to open ALL our presents. That was the best.

I’ve been out of the nest for about 8 years now. And I still don’t have a tradition. My usual route on Christmas Eve/Day is visiting different friend groups and family and it really puts a damper on the holiday when all you’re doing is driving around town to say hi. I guess the one perk is unlimited amounts of Christmas dinner.

For me, I think this will be the year where a new tradition it born. I mean, I’ve got nothing but time right now.

Canucks “Reverse Retro” Yay or Nay?

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The Vancouver Canucks, along with the other 31 NHL franchises, teamed up with Adidas to drop new jerseys for the 2020-21 season, which will hopefully be underway in January.

Adidas labeled them the Reverse Retro jerseys, implementing a retro look onto a modern jersey. Whats that term? What’s old is new again? Well, for some teams, they absolutely nailed it. But for most of them, I think they got it all wrong. Some jerseys look like warm ups. Some look like knock offs and some just look like they didn’t change a thing.

Let’s look a bit closer at the Canucks Reverse Retro jersey. They went with (for whatever reason) a jersey from the 2001-02 season which featured a gradient dark blue to maroon coloured jersey with the staple orca logo on the front. I actually really liked this jersey growing up. In fact, it was the first Canucks jersey I ever owned. The Reverse Retro jersey is the current Canucks colours of mostly blue and green gradient with white trim, and the upgraded, larger size orca logo in the middle.

Now, I know the Reverse Retro jersey was revealed to the public almost a month ago, but I’m still trying to figure out if I like them or not. At first there was no way I was on board with them. They looked cheap, knockoff style, something you’d find out of a guys van with the name plate falling off. Pictures and videos on the internet did no service to this jersey. It was a lost cause, and I was okay with it.

The jerseys finally went on sale to the public a few days ago, and some people I follow on Twitter were some of the first in line to buy one. Honestly, they don’t look so bad when fans are wearing them.

Ultimately, what it comes down to though, is interest of the fan. And like I said at the beginning of this article, what’s old is new again. The Canucks played a few games last season with the “Flying Skate” jersey (if you know, you know,) and I think it’s a pretty heavy majority that want that jersey brought back over a jersey like the Reverse Retro. People have no attachment to the 2001-02 team with an updated blue to green gradient look.

Adidas, the Canucks, the NHL, whoever was in charge of designing these jerseys missed a huge opportunity to give the fans a wicked jersey with an old school touch that people old and young could be happy about. Reverse Retro Flying Skate being worn by Petey, Quinn and Brock is something I think this entire fan base could get behind.

Travelling the World Feels Like a Lifetime Ago…

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This will require some imagination, because it’s something unusual. Something that hasn’t been talked or thought about in quite some time. Picture yourself, on a beach in Fiji. Laying on a chair, drink in hand, your favourite book, not a care in the world. The sun beaming down on your face. The waves crashing as they hit shore. Imagine thinking this was a possibility. Well at one point, which feels like centuries ago, it was possible.

Back in 2016, my girlfriend and I decided to quit our jobs, and travel the world. We were away for nearly six months and visited 10 countries during that time.

It was a bit unsettling for me at first. Living out of a backpack, visiting countries without knowing the language. How would we get by? Would we survive? “I hear it’s a bad time of year to visit, maybe we should just stay put.” The excuses I would make to not go somewhere at first was hilarious. We sometimes wouldn’t book a hotel or hostel until the day of. Not knowing where I was going to sleep a week from now gave me anxiety, but I learnt to roll with the punches.

Ultimately, travelling was one of the most beautiful and amazing experiences I’ve ever had. The world is an incredible place full of wonderful people. I was shocked at how many countries main source of income is tourism, which is why it makes me so sad for these people right now. Some countries are under complete lockdown and have been for some time. Who knows how or when they will get their next meal.

Once the world heals and has some normalcy again, I encourage everyone who has been on the fence about travelling, to take the leap of faith, and go somewhere that you’ve never been. Meet people from different countries and get their perspective on what makes them happy.

As soon as we’re given the green light, I’m outta here. Please, join me.

Vancouver Christmas Market – Closed for 2020, But you can still support!

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Although 2020 has been an absolute shamble of a lifetime, one thing remains jolly and bright and that’s the holiday season. It’s a month away, I haven’t even thought about what to get my mother in law. Heck, I don’t even know what I want for myself! But this year, more than ever it’s about the gift of giving over the gift of receiving.

A personal touch to this – I never celebrate Christmas before my birthday on November 12th. As much as I don’t really care to be celebrated, I’ve always thought it was too early to put up the tree and decorations before my birthday. Well, this year is a little bit different. In a time where people needed more joy in their lives, I encouraged everyone to put up their tree or begin to celebrate the holiday season however they see fit and as early as they liked.

I say this because every year, our kick off to Christmas is the Vancouver Christmas Market. This year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the event has been cancelled. I know many, like me, are in line with hundreds of others to get their hands on a schnitzel, or bratwurst sausage, perhaps even a gluhwein to warm up your insides – if you’re of age, that is.

The Vancouver Christmas Market is where we go with our significant others, friends and family and really kick off the Christmas spirit. Taking pictures together and creating memories. Every year, they come out with a new design for their Christmas mug, and sadly, we wont be getting those in person this year. Instead, they’ve created a bunch of different gift packs you can purchase which include many different artisan created decorations, apple cider and the holy grail of the Vancouver Christmas Market and my favourite piece – the mug.

If you purchase one of these gift bags, it will also include two free tickets to the Vancouver Christmas Market opening week in 2021. What’s not to love about supporting local? Especially over the holidays.

Diego Armando Maradona – The Loss of a Legend

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At the age of 60, one of the all time greatest footballers has passed away. Diego Armando Maradona died from a heart attack in his home in Argentina on Wednesday November 25th. Maradona went in for an emergency surgery to remove a blood clot in his brain at the beginning of the month, and was supposed to make a full recovery.

In the 1986 World Cup, Maradona and the Argentina national team took on England in their quarter-final match which went down in history as one of Maradona’s most notable games of his career. He scored two goals in that game to lead Argentina to the semi-finals, and ultimately winning the world cup, but not without controversy. One of the goals Maradona scored has been titled “The Hand of God” where Maradona goes up for a header against the English goalkeeper and hits the ball into the back of the net using his hand. If you don’t know the basic rules of soccer, then you wouldn’t know that using your hands – especially to score goals – is not allowed, and it went undetected.

The other goal Maradona scored was incredible. To give the best visual I can. Picture a man, 5 feet 5 inches tall with a soccer ball basically bungee tied to his feet, dribbling through an entire team, leaving them in his dust, and scoring a goal. Maradona did both of these things in one night. Actually, Maradona scored goals like this almost every night. He was a natural goal scorer. He was unstoppable.

Maradona lived his life full of controversy. He lived a rockstar lifestyle. Fast and dangerous. He was fuelled by drugs and alcohol, and had a boatload of financial issues. Although these issues always followed him wherever he went, one thing was for certain, he was a great footballer.

I hope you take a moment to watch the video attached. It’s Diego Maradona in 1989 warming up before a game against Bayern Munich. Live is Life by Opus blaring over the PA system. Diego with his shoelaces untied living the dream. I would try to replicate this video as a kid with the song blasting on my stereo in the backyard, trying to be like Diego.

 

Rest in peace, legend.

Imagine: Van Gogh Exhibition

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Holland is far, far away, and getting there right now would be next to impossible. Your next best bet to view some incredible art by one of the worlds most recognized artists is coming to our own backyard.

Imagine Van Gogh: The Immersive Exhibition is set to pop up this winter at the Vancouver Convention Centre. There will be more than 200 of the Dutch artists paintings on display for the very first time in Vancouver displayed in a “grandiose and immersive concept of Total Image,” according to the groups media release.

This means that there will be projection displays of some of his greatest masterpieces for people to wander through, with added audio to add “emotional depth to each image.”

During my travels to Europe, I was fortunate enough to have visited some of the worlds greatest museums with incredible artists. Including Picasso in Barcelona, Spain. The Louvre in Paris, France, and even the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Every single one of them was worth the price of admission. Think about every cool art piece you’ve seen on the internet, read about in a book, or seen in a movie. They were all there, in all their glory.

Understandably so, this event will be taking place as long as no restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic are in place. Of course health and safety are the number one priority when it comes to welcoming guests. Imagine Van Gogh will be a contactless experience with limited amounts of guests being able to visit at a time. Hand sanitizer will be available, while masks will be mandatory for all guests upon entry to the exhibit.

Tickets aren’t available as of right now, as the show is currently in Winnipeg, but you can sign up for the event’s pre-sale using this link: https://vancouver.imagine-vangogh.ca/presale/

Set dates for Imagine: Van Gogh have yet to be solidified, but the event will be taking place in February of 2021.

BC Music Scene – Dear Rouge

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Drew and Danielle McTaggart met while touring in their early days, before dating then getting married and starting their own band, Dear Rouge. Dear Rouge is from Vancouver, B.C. and began in 2012. The name is based off of Danielle’s home town, Red Deer. “Dear” being a homophone of deer and “rouge” being French for red.

Dear Rouge is also a “Peak Performance Project” winner from 2012. They’re also quite the decorated group when it comes to awards. Winning the SOCAN Songwriting Prize in 2015. Nominated and won several awards in 2017 and 2018 in the Western Canadian Music Awards. And have even scored a Juno Award for Breakthrough Group of the Year in 2016.

The group has four studio albums, with their latest being released in March of 2018 “PHASES”. The album had three singles which got pretty high up on the Canadian Alternative and Canadian Rock charts. “Boys and Blondes” and “Modern Shakedown” got as high as 6th. While “Live Through the Night” (arguably their biggest song) got all the way up to number 1.

Dear Rouge has toured the country on several occasions. In 2013 they did a cross Canada tour in spring and again in winter, with their western shows supporting Canadian artist Lights. In 2015 the band was able to tour in support of another Canadian group “The Arkells” on their winter tour dates from February to March. They toured in support of the Arkells again in 2019 on their “Rally Cry Tour” Through the west coast U.S. stops.

The band hasn’t mentioned anything new in the works in regards to an album or a tour. The pandemic is keeping everyone a little bit more hush-hush. Although Dear Rouge is still scheduled to play at the Pigeon Lake Music Festival in Alberta in 2021. We’ll see if that still happens.

BC Music Scene – Daniel Wesley

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Daniel Wesley was born in White Rock, B.C. and raised in Brookswood – a community in the Township of Langley, B.C. Wesley has eight albums, one EP and one live recording which was performed at the Commodore Ballroom.

Wesley has been posting journals on his website over the years. He mentions that a few years ago, him and his family decided to sell their townhouse out in South Surrey, pack up, and move to a 4.4 acre lot on the Sunshine Coast in Roberts Creek – something Wesley says was a bit out of his comfort zone.

Wesley wasn’t sure if creating music was going to support him. So while working full time he decided to finish his electrical ticket and also continue making music and doing live shows. Well, Wesley finally had about enough and says “I did what anyone in their mid 30’s would do and quit my job as an electrician to focus on my music career”. Which is crazy if you think about it. Gambling on yourself is a power move, and Wesley is all in.

He dropped an EP in June of last year titled “Beach Music” which included 5 songs that Wesley thought had a more common style. Then released the full album “Beach Music” later on in September 2019.

Wesley has a pretty unique style with many different instruments. His style is kind of that West Coast Reggae Rock. The type of music you throw on while you’re sitting around the campfire at the beach with a bunch of friends. Crack a beer, light up a joint and sail into the night. He’s created several sing alongs that you just can’t help but belt out.

There’s no plans as of right now for a tour involving Wesley. I’ve yet to see him perform live, but I’ve heard incredible things. One things for sure, the day we get back to some normalcy and he announces a tour, you better believe I’ll be first in line for tickets.

BC Music Scene – Dan Mangan

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Dan Mangan is a Vancouver-based musician who was born in Smithers, B.C. He’s toured the world and shared the stage with many incredible artists including Broken Social Scene (CAN), Japandroids (CAN) and Mumford and Sons (UK). Mangan released his debut album in 2005 titled “Postcards and Daydreaming”. He completed 4 albums since then, with his latest in 2018. He’s also won multiple JUNO awards.

Mangan was scheduled to do a show on March 13th 2020 at the Danforth Music Hall in Toronto, Ontario. But it was unfortunately cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Mangan ended up playing at the hall anyways, with no audience and streamed the event on YouTube titled “Show To Nobody”.

Mangan was scheduled to be on tour this year, making his way across Canada and into the states for a couple shows. Ultimately everything has been put on hold for now. The tour was to go until the end of January 2021.

A couple years ago, Mangan put together a mini series called “More or Less – songwriting series” which went behind the scenes of some of the songs that had the biggest impacts on him as a songwriter. The videos show raw footage of him in the studio and performing some of the songs in person, encouraging the crowd to sing a long with him.

He just released a new single titled “There’s a tumour in the White House” which talks about – well – I’m sure you cant figure it out by the title. But also several other social issues the world is currently dealing with.

Mangan is the co-founder of Side Door Access. An alternative concert booking startup. It is used to host ticketed live stream concerts and has been holding events regularly during the pandemic. He is set to perform a covers only set on Saturday, November 21st via Side Door Access.

BC Music Scene – Current Swell

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Current Swell is a Canadian indie rock band. Their roots lie on Vancouver Island, in Victoria, B.C. They currently have 7 studio albums with their most recent album “Buffalo” released in 2019. They formed in 2005 and are still going strong to this day.

Their song “Young and Able” from 2009 is what put them on the map. A light campfire sing along style. Definitely a suitable island type of vibe to it.

Current Swell has played many shows over the years, but one of their most impressive was back in 2011 when they got to play in front of 45,000 people at a jam packed B.C. Legislature on Canada Day.

Although the awards aren’t all there for the band, one of their biggest awards they’ve received was back 2011 (which was definitely a good year for the group.) Current Swell entered a local radio station contest (Peak Performance Project) with the grand prize being $100,500.

They’ve been fortunate enough to share the stage with many incredible talents over the years, including Bedouin Soundclash, K-OS, The Beach Boys and The Tragically Hip to name a few.

Current Swell has said that they get their influence and motivation in their music from travelling, friends, strangers. But the most important thing that keeps the band going is the love and support they receive from their fans from all over. Not just in B.C., but the band are the beneficiaries of a massive support group and loyal fan base in Brazil. The band says that they receive emails constantly from fans asking them to come back to perform. Currently Swell has said that they plan on returning to Brazil as soon as they can. Not for the money, fame or opportunity. They say they want to head back for their fans.

Imagine the feeling a band from Vancouver Island must feel when the love is felt worldwide.