Music

Boy & Bear break their limits with new album, tour

Boy & Bear have come a long way in seven years. What started out as a solo project for singer-songwriter Dave Hosking in 2009 became a duo with the addition…

Rifflandia 2016: Music overcomes divisive ‘shock politics,’ says Michael Franti & Spearhead frontman

Since the release of their new album Soulrocker this June, Michael Franti & Spearhead have been touring through the United States, spreading good vibes and inspiring countless crowds. This Friday,…

Frank Ocean’s Blonde unparalleled in its ambition

Frank Ocean has always had an air of mystery surrounding him — a reserved cool, a magnetic solitude. Watch him stand off to the side, eyes down while he sips on an…

Lessons learned at Tall Tree, the island’s biggest smallest festival

Tall Tree Music Festival owes its name to the ginormous trees that comprise Vancouver Island’s endangered rainforest. A lot of people don’t know that our red cedars, Douglas firs, and…

‘B Minor’ performance makes for major occasion

Since his rise to fame during the 18th century, Johann Sebastian Bach’s music has been performed around the world and in a myriad of different interpretations and formats. So it’s…

Just one of the clowns at the 17th annual Ska and Reggae Festival

I spent a lot of this year’s Ska Fest in the same place, with the same people as last year — in the middle of the dancefloor at Ship’s Point in Victoria’s…

Run away with her: A one-year retrospective of Carly Rae Jepsen’s ‘Emotion’

Carly Rae Jepsen’s Emotion was released on June 24, 2015, and while they’re a little late to the party, Martlet editor-in-chief Myles Sauer and former staff writer Michel Ghanem are…

Almost seven weeks later, we’re still sippin’ that ‘Lemonade’

Illustration by Leone Brander, Graphics Contributor   It’s been just over a month since Beyoncé dropped Lemonade on the unsuspecting masses April 23. We’re sure you’ve heard a thing or…

‘It’s a good time to be a Canadian artist,’ says Young Empires frontman

Toronto band Young Empires just finished their extensive U.S. tour following the release of their debut album The Gates — a trek that included a stop in Victoria on May 18. The…