Lutra Lutra’s- ‘Lutra Lutra’

Posted on June 26, 2016 by Brad Oates

Under the Green Desk Lamp…

On July 1^st, 2016, Filthy McNasty’s will be hosting ‘Oh Can of Beer’ (Link), the CD Release party for Lutra Lutra’s self-titled debut EP.

Lutra Lutra is an Edmonton, AB based band whose members include Garreth Burrows (Vocals and Guitar), Katrina Burrows (Keys and Vocals), Will Smith (Bass) and Denis Frigon (Drums). Relatively new to the Edmonton music scene, the group has already put on some stellar local shows (Link), but July 1^st will mark the official release of their debut album—giving attendees a chance to pick up this impressive EP while enjoying some drinks and hearing Lutra Lutra perform live.

What better time, then, for Brad OH Inc. to take a serious look at just what this EP has to offer with an official review?

Lutra Lutra’s ‘Lutra Lutra’

The ‘Lutra Lutra’ EP consists of six songs, and clocks in at just over 17 minutes. It’s a brief taste of the band’s potential to be sure, and the fact that of these six songs, two of them (the Intro and Interlude) are primarily musical numbers can tell us a good deal about the brash and independent vision of this unique Edmonton menagerie.

Grounded in an upbeat and addictive rhythm section, Lutra Lutra excels at creating brief but compelling tracks, as memorable for their precise musicianship as their impeccable sense of lyricism and wit. In fact, for this writer, the lyrics were a special stand-out—bringing a near-literary vibe to the EP sorely lacking in so much contemporary music.

Adding this promising foundation to Katrina Burrows’ classical keyboarding and the Burrows siblings potent harmonizing makes for an especially unique musical journey which ends sooner than we would like, but certainly leaves us clamouring for more.

To get a better understanding of what’s on offer, let’s take a look at the track-list:

1) Intro-

The album starts off with a gentle, melodious intro which sets a patient tone for the album. Katrina sings wordlessly over a slow keyboard section, which soon cuts into the first full track, and lead single of the album.

2) Fall Out of Love (F.O.O.L)-

The EP’s lead single, ‘F.O.O.L.’ kicks into high gear right out of the gate, taking us straight into its churning guitars to create an immediate sense of urgency. Garreth’s lyrics are punctuated with a double beat of the drums by Denis Frigon in a cunning serve-and-return, creating an effective sense of tension and payoff. With a powerful chorus, an impressive guitar-based bridge by former band member Cody Willets, and consistent harmonizing by the Burrows siblings throughout, the song delivers an impactful introduction to the band’s charm and talent. If this lead single was the best the EP had to offer, it would remain a satisfying debut, but that title is called into question as soon as the next song.

3) Miser Remedy-

Katrina starts off the vocals of this song attended by a simple drum beat. Upon setting this gentle tone, she is soon joined by Garreth as the song picks up its pace and flows smoothly into a desperation-laden chorus by Garreth, who pleads to the ether for deliverance and direction. This song is especially notable for its gorgeous lyrics, including gems such as ‘The Queens are gone but the Kings are still shuffling’, and ‘We all go to bed, in our own disguise’.

The chorus itself introduces the important motifs of light and hope, as Garreth assures some unknown and possibly unattainable salvation, ‘You could shine a light, when all my thoughts are faded in the darkest of night’. This theme will be revisited later on.

4) Interlude-

Following the stunning ‘Miser Remedy’, we are treated to a brief musical interlude. This track offers the jaunty playfulness of a 70’s spy movie, teasing us with its increasing complexity while assuring the listener that it’s brief appearance is not for nothing. Throughout, the track functions as a countdown—a Rube-Goldberg metronome ticking down to the next song.

The sensation pays off as expected, and after a quick guitar bridge, we’re straight into ‘Culture and Wine’.

5) Culture and Wine-

‘Culture and Wine’ is a tour-de-force of cheeky lyrics and chugging rhythm. The rapid-fire lyrics are a non-stop showcase of the band’s laudable vocabulary and razor-sharp wit, including marvels like: ‘You’ve got your dignity, I missed the irony, that your soliloquy was blurted aloud’ and ‘Don’t be afraid, you’re strength of argument is only contradicted when you vent’. This one was a bit frustrating for me as a writer, as the onrush of intriguing turns-of-phrase left me pondering the depths of one as the next one breezed right past.

The song has no shortage of charisma, and a shockingly groovy bass-bridge by Will Smith only punctuates the point. This penultimate track certainly sets a high bar for the closer.

6) What We’ve Lost-

As the final track of Lutra Lutra’s debut EP, ‘What We’ve Lost’ doesn’t disappoint. This one opens with vocals by Katrina, setting a mood of dissonance and uncertainty before being joined by Garreth for a harmony which brings back the theme of light. We are assured that despite the desperation of their situation, there is hope for better. But we aren’t offered directions to get there; instead this song is a reflection on what has led us to this point, and how experience can corrode our youthful expectations.

The lyrics are stellar throughout—from Garreth’s cocky refrain of ‘I’ve got impeccable timing…’, which is followed immediately by a drumline to drive home his point, to verses written perhaps as an intentional affront to the peace-of-mind of this blissfully listless generation. Garreth later laments: ‘By what I’ve seen so far I’ve lowered expectations, full marks from my heart if you’ve escaped your parent’s basement’.

Poignant stuff no doubt, but these are soon followed by a set which left everyone here at Brad OH Inc. twitching with doubt: ‘Now we’re drowning in the deep end, while you’re looking for a new trend, of thinking up a title in order to sound vital so upon the stock market crash, you won’t need your bible’. These are the sort of insidious and seditious lyrics that make us want to sit down for a few beers and a long talk with lyricist Garreth Burrows—if for no other reason than to ensure he’s no philosophic threat to the hallowed Corporate tenets of Brad OH Inc.

…This is a powerful song about loss and potential which demonstrates admirable introspection from the nascent band. They manage at once to contemplate their past and purpose, while struggling with the dissonant knowledge of their own place and privilege. In the end, it’s a lament for our more childish hopes for what the world could have been, in the face of what it really is.

When the album finishes, one cannot help but wish it were longer. If the brief 17 minutes were marked with an undeniable sense of swagger, they were also entirely bereft of posturing. To the band’s great credit, they exude a sense of soul-searching sincerity, and the more introspective moments of the disc flow into one another with no prescribed intent beyond self-examination and direct expression. There is no deception here, just clear provocation and articulate reflection. We can ask little more of any band, and might usually expect far less from a debut effort.

Lutra Lutra’s self-titled EP is an impressive debut, and deserves a place on the shelf of any ardent music fan eager to explore emerging new talents. But don’t take our word for it—get out to the Lutra Lutra EP release party (Link) on July 1^st at Filthy McNasty’s to see the band live, and grab a copy for yourself!

-Brad OH Inc.

The Final Facet of Globalization

Posted on June 19, 2016 by Brad Oates

Under the Green Desk Lamp…

This world of ours is globalized (Link) to an incredible degree. With every increase in technology, we have observed exponential growth in the level of interconnection and access afforded to nearly all of the world’s inhabitants. The internet alone serves an unbelievable role in making the world a truly global society—allowing the instantaneous sharing of information which would previously have taken weeks, or even months.

Planes, trains, and automobiles have provided the means to efficiently move physical resources around the globe—meaning that formerly exotic commodities can now be found as easily as a trip to your local grocery store. Science as well has played a pivotal role here—advances in refrigeration, preservation, genetic modifications, and more have helped us share the bounty of this world far and wide…for those capable of paying for it.

As a result of this process, leading nations draw labour, resources, and wealth from the poorest nations in the world, always at offset values. By outsourcing easy labour jobs to nations with lower (Read: dismal) minimum wages and few to no laws protecting workers, Corporations have managed to increase their output, up their profit margins, and generally thrive in a relationship which can scarcely be described as anything short of parasitic.

Yes, for every gain there is a cost, and despite the progress made, it would seem that the one big concept which nations have refused to show any global regard for is that of human rights and minimal standards of living.

In a world with sufficient resources and scientific knowledge to keep everyone fed and healthy, the fact that one woman may drive a million dollar car while a child elsewhere does without a 5 cent pill is entirely unacceptable. In fact, it’s downright despicable.

The exchange is rather one-sided to say the least—and year after year we may observe new wars started, new sanctions imposed, new government-facilitated coups to install more ‘cooperative’ leaders, and other such heinous acts all in the name of increasing the profit margins of large-scale Corporations. Human rights violations in much of the world are ubiquitous; from the factories which provide us our clothing, to the plantations which grow our food.

Of all the resources and technologies we have managed to import and export on a global scale—it would seem the most obvious and easily renewed is yet to meet that lauded status; specifically, I’m referring to empathy.

The atrocities which are committed in the name of profit are the inevitable result of a system which treats empathy with the same cavalier and disposable attitude we reserve for so many other resources. But this view of empathy as a resource is rather telling—for if it is to be viewed as a resource, then it is essential that we recognize it as a wholly renewable resource. As such, caring for others and striving for a new global best is not a zero-sum game in which everyone is competing for limited supplies and the gains of one must be the losses of another. No, the truth is that the gains of one may be shared unilaterally, and if one society flourishes, this should—and must—benefit everyone involved.

But this is rarely the case. We import resources from around the world and utilize the cheap labour available, but what are we offering in return? The most common answer is that we act as a force of freedom, democracy, or protection for the rest of the world—but this claim is entirely indefensible for even the simplest mind with the vaguest understanding of global politics (Link). To glean all the potentially beneficial resources from a nation yet contribute nothing to it in return is not a globally beneficial system, but rather something more akin to an exploitative, imperial domination.

As it stands, misery and despair are the most evident exports of the so-called first world.

When we deal in such unjust ways, we may be importing more than we bargain for. We’ve defined ourselves with callous disinterest and self-serving malice abroad, and now the chickens come home to roost. International resentment is growing at all times, and even the local populace is losing faith in its leadership and stirring under an ever increasing sense of anxiety and civil unrest.

So perhaps this whole arrangement needs to be revisited. Trade and grow we must, but if we continue to do so with such a total lack of regard for human decency, we will come to find that our imports tend to reflect our exports in a far more sinister manner than we anticipated.

No other outcome is possible—that’s just the nature of the deal. When we short change our trade partners on a regular basis, we soon find ourselves cut out of the loop entirely. Fair trade must be fair in all senses. Financial growth must mean human liberty, and for every measure of progress in science, technology, and resource access, there must—in any civil society—be a commiserate gain in compassion, kindness and equality.

The change needed cannot be more evident—we must make the imperative shift into a trade relationship based on equity, empathy, sustainability, and virtue. Empathy—this key renewable resource, must become a staple export of our society—an example of decency and righteousness used to set the standard not only around the world, but at home as well. Until we make this crucial change, and plant the seeds of charity and kindness abroad, we can never honestly hope to reap them at home.

-Brad OH Inc.

A Brief Ode to Baseball

Posted on June 12, 2016 by Brad Oates

Under the Green Desk Lamp…

Bases and bunts and broken bats,

Bullpens and secret tips of the hat.

Backstops and breaking balls,

And charging the mound after dubious calls.

Check swings, switching up, and clutch hits,

Cut offs, steals, and foul tips.

Dugouts, cleats, and walk-off hits,

Grand slams, tag ups and catcher’s mitts.

Diving grabs and 3-run shots,

Home plate and the batter’s box.

Pitching duels and pennant races,

Pinch runners and shifting places.

Mounds and moonshots and make-up calls,

Money pitches or base on balls.

Errors and bloopers and hard line drives,

Breaking up plays with illegal slides.

Cutters and sliders and throwing the heat,

South paws and road trips and records to beat.

Strikeouts and tag-ups and tough one hoppers,

Infield rookies racing for choppers.

Aces and shutouts and defending the title,

Manufacturing runs and hitting the cycle.

Pitching relief, close or starter,

Young boys with posters of Joe Carter.

Pick off throws and Double plays,

And crowds all chanting ‘Let’s go Jays’.

-Brad OH Inc.

Has Bernie Sanders Been Casting Pearls Before Swine?

Posted on June 5, 2016 by Brad Oates

This week, the American people will have their final chance to capitalize on the heartfelt platform of hope proffered by presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. Will they take this opportunity, or has Bernie merely been casting pearls before swine?

We’ll find out on June 7th, as the DNC hosts their final major round of primaries, with 6 states holding contests, and a grand-total of 694 pledged delegates up for grabs. As of the writing of this article, the pledged delegate count sits at 1500 for Bernie Sanders, and 1770 for his opponent Hilary Clinton.

It must here be noted that this does not include super-delegates—the patently undemocratic party elites who are afforded the opportunity to pledge their loyalty according to their personal interests, rather than the will of their constituents. Of these, Hillary currently has 520, while Bernie holds a comparably measly 45. Although these super-delegates have currently promised their loyalty as such, their support is not locked in until the Convention in July. It’s possible therefore that the events of June 7^th could weigh heavily on this final process, and herein lays Bernie Sander’s greatest hope.

Based on these current numbers, Sanders would need to take ~71% of the vote on the 7^th in order to enter the Convention with a compelling argument. It’s a tall order to be sure—but not wholly impossible. Still, even if Sanders and Clinton went to convention with relatively equal delegate counts, the onus would be on Sanders to convince the super-delegates to throw their support behind him—a revolutionary thinker who has consistently challenged the very sort of entrenched Establishment politics upon which the super-delegates are based.

It’s not an encouraging scenario, and it brings us back to our initial question. In his campaign, Bernie has been infallibly consistent in the message he’s delivered to the American electorate. His vision is that of a nation which values its people as a whole, and not simply its business owners and billionaires. He has captivated the youth and other well-meaning people of the nation with the rather seditious notion that government must serve its people: that fair taxes must be paid by everyone, and that the use of those taxes must at all times be aimed at improving the station of the population as a whole—rather than merely protecting the interests of the rich and powerful.

For the majority of the civilized world, these ideas are already held as sacrosanct. Unfortunately for him, Bernie Sanders is running in America, where the reek of Reaganomics still lingers in the very fabric of the economic structures, and the working class still confuses the meanings of freedom and fiefdom.

So if Bernie’s natural empathy for the working class and indefatigable hope for the future have captured the minds of the electorate, it may prove rather less effective in securing the support of the ruling elite. Rather, his argument will soon switch focus—insisting (and not without merit) that he is the most likely Democratic contender to topple Donald Trump—that unholy mess streaming down from the recently self-eviscerated GOP.

Unfortunately, the Democratic National Committee is firmly entrenched in its current politics—hell, their pocketbooks depend on it. So this argument—though valid—may still fall upon deaf ears, leaving America in a more dismal situation than ever.

If June 7th turns sour for Bernie, this rare opportunity for positive growth will have been momentarily squandered, and Americans will be left with a choice between Donald Trump: a hair-brained demagogue promising to fan the already raging flames of fear and bigotry, or Hillary Clinton: a sorry shill of a candidate whose sound-bite message changes with every opinion poll, but whose true priorities are as intrinsically tied to Wall St. and the corporate elite as is her fundraising. Either would likely mean another four years of rule by corporate interests…and a depressing admission that despite the growing mass of well-informed and even-headed voters, the powers that be still have a fatal stranglehold on American politics.

For voters on both sides of the political spectrum, this scenario would amount to little more than a compulsion to vote for the ‘lesser of two evils’—all while knowing full well that the end result will favour the entitled rich, and further isolate the vast majority of society from active political discourse.

However, this won’t be the case…at least not entirely. The message Bernie has been spreading is nothing new—hell, he’s been saying it the entirety of his 35-year political career, and most of his life besides that. What’s more, it is the ever-growing sentiment of the caring and politically-informed—not restricted to the young alone as the media often claims—open and accessible to all with the mind to understand the scope of their situation, and the resolve to damn well do something about it.

Bernie has not created this movement, but rather he has acted as the lightning rod for an already growing resistance. He has become the voice of a generation who have had enough of the unfair playing field they have been given, and who seek to build a system that is fair and compassionate; one which provides for all of its citizens the opportunity to flourish in a country which has no justifiable reason to offer anything less.

While Bernie has been the mouthpiece, this surging tide will not end with his campaign (should it indeed end). Bernie Sanders has shone a light on the reality of our station—showing countless people that they are not alone in their hope for a better world, and that they are not naively idealistic in their expectations. This ever increasing sense of justice is one that cannot help but spread, simply because it is rooted in a truth far more fundamental than the forces of greed and vice against which they strive.

If Bernie’s message could be encapsulated in a few words, it would be this: ‘We can do much better’. He has spoken this time and again—sounding often enough like a broken record—and despite the potentially disappointing results of this year’s primaries; his message has not fallen on deaf ears. People perceive how much better we can do, and even though the forces of greed may once again prevail, the lasting sentiment of this movement will continue to flourish. Now, its message is a bit different. The knowledge of a better world is beyond doubt, but so too are the obstacles to obtaining it all the more evident.

So perhaps Bernie has cast pearls before swine—far too many swine at least. But his pearls have nonetheless been plucked up by deserving and admirable minds, and their message now, seeing the fight before them, may be best expressed with a line stolen from the late great Pete Seeger. Democratic Socialism and Bernie Sander’s Revolution are of one clear and conscientious message: ‘We are not afraid.’

So, although trampled and despoiled, pearls they remain. And if there are dark times ahead, then so too is there the promise of brighter days. The masses, I am convinced, have been awoken, and never again will their eyes be closed to the truth of their oppression, nor from the laudable promise of a fair and equitable world which values it’s humanity above its finances. For this at least, we owe Bernie Sanders a debt of thanks—time alone will reveal just what a great debt that is.