The Jimmy Swift Band walked the line between rock and electronica (or, as they often call it, “rocktronica”) from the late ‘90s until their official breakup in 2011. When they announced their last hurrah tour in 2014 (crowned with a prime slot at Evolve festival), fans figured they’d seen the last of the Halifax-based musicians. […]
Morgan Mullin
Morgan was the Arts & Entertainment Editor at The Coast, where she wrote about everything from what to see and do around Halifax to profiles of the city’s creative class to larger cultural pieces. She started with The Coast in 2016.
Posted inArts + Music
Ten ways to make your weekend amazing
Pride Week only has a few days left, so let’s make ’em count with Pride festivities, diva-themed brunches, outdoor exploration and, of course, THE PARADE. 10. Queer Contra Dance. Saturday, July 23, 5-9pm Not your typical dance, this event eschews traditional gender roles, offering a binary-free, queer-friendly atmosphere. Bring something to the 5pm potluck and […]
Posted inArts + Music
Samson Learn is travelling down the Trans*Canada highway
Samson Learn is calling from the road, somewhere between Montreal and Ottawa. While he talks, the engine hums dully in the background. Learn has been travelling for just over four weeks. On a storytelling odyssey passing through our national artery, the Trans-Canada highway, Learn explains he’s attempting to redefine Canadians’ perceptions around the word “trans.” […]
Posted inArts + Music
Sam Cash has a new album and the perfect summer song
Sam Cash is working hard to remember what life was like before it became so damn complicated. As the Toronto-based singer-songwriter (and leader of Sam Cash and The Romantic Dogs) explains, he’s been thinking a lot about certain feelings from his youth, ones he doesn’t want to let go: “I basically try to get back […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Eyelevel’s appetite for conversation
Emily Lawrence and I meet for our interview on a particularly summery-feeling afternoon. The heat is radiating from the sidewalk as we make our introductions. Soon, under a candy-blue sky, the meeting becomes an impromptu mini-picnic, complete with melting ice cream and sweating iced coffee on the Common. It’s fitting for the subject matter as […]
Posted inArts + Music
Mount Saint Vincent University’s pulpy look at the past
Two women lock eyes across a crowded room. Soon, one approaches the other and lightly touches her shoulder… Sounds like a scene from a bad movie, or, at the very least, not something you’d expect to find behind glass in a library. Not according to Mount Saint Vincent University (MSVU) librarian Meg Raven. As she […]
Posted inArts + Music
Pulpy portraits: book covers from MSVU’s vault
As Mount Saint Vincent University marks 20 years of collecting and preserving lesbian pulp fiction, we’ve gathered some of the overlooked genre’s most distinctive covers from their archives.
Posted inArts + Music
Rad Pride brings the politics to pride week
We love pride week so much it brings little rainbow hearts to our eyes. But while it’s easy to get caught up in celebrating the beauty of love and wearing multi-coloured things, Rad Pride, an “alternative, political queer pride” organization, is quick to remind us all one key thing: “The first pride parade was a […]
Posted inArts + Music
Final Tragically Hip concert to be screened at Grand Parade
When The Tragically Hip lead singer Gord Downie announced his terminal brain cancer last December, Canada’s musical consciousness exploded. News headlines wailed about our impending loss of a national treasure. All of a sudden, Hip hits like Ahead By A Century seemed to be playing on the radio a lot more—or maybe we were finally […]
Posted inArts + Music
It’s the summer of Reeny Smith
Reeny Smith has a secret and she doesn’t want to share. Chatting by phone one recent morning, she drops succulent clues and small details, but politely declines to say too much, no matter which way the question is rephrased. As the North Preston performer gracefully changes the topic to her recently hectic schedule, she seems […]
Posted inArts + Music
Mastery of puppets
Kate Church is upstairs in her studio near Mahone Bay, holding one of the first dolls she ever created. The self-described “figurative artist” and maker of “sculptural puppetry” has kept the figure, of a clown named Wally, over the 25 years she’s been making puppets and dolls. “He’s all dusty and he’s actually sitting on […]
Posted inArts + Music
Tunes at Noon free concerts are back
Looking to liven up your lunch hour? The annual Tunes at Noon concert series is back for its 9th year, lighting up Grand Parade with sounds from a variety of genres. We’re especially excited for Zoe Leger’s spot on the stage, as her so-new-it-hurts album just dropped today so her audience is bound to be […]
