The MUSIC Issue

literary & arts magazine

VISIO $10.00

MAR/APR 2022

VOL. 3 / ISSUE. 2

I was 11 years old when my father gifted me my first piano.

This was a time where, in my adolescence, I was nothing short of emotional, and I assume my Dad was perceptive of my need for some outlet.

adriana green

It was a cool October afternoon, in my sixth grade year, that I came home to a home changed by music forever.

There it stood before me, taking up the entire width of our living room wall. Sliding doors with exposed guts, lions claws feet, and all. It was fucking glorious...

visioliterary@gmail.com

Twelve year old Adriana felt such a strange feeling... one that only continued to develop, grow, and live within me. And that feeling I later came to learn, was love.

I loved my piano, and she loved me. I loved the music I gave her, and she allowed me to discover so many parts of myself that would have gone previously undiscovered if not for her. For that music I was able to feel, receive, and let go of.

The MUSIC Issue is a tribute to the beautiful, divine soul that is MUSIC - the pulsating lifeforce within us, a common denominator connecting all those willing to listen. From live shows, to ep's, to touring gigs, to virtual open mics, to session work, to bar gigs, to playing the guitar after work... musicians, are musicians, are musicians, and we're here to pay homage to her.... MUSIC.

May 2022 The "2022" Issue: The past two years have been wiilllldddd.

We're going to discuss it. Don't worry.

CONTRIBUTE

COMING UP

Adriana Green

Wanna become a contributor? email visioliterary@gmail.co m or visit visiomag.ca/submissio nguidelines

visio mag Founder Adriana Green Editor In Chief Adriana Green Staff Writers Thomas Hannah Elizabeth Adan Contributors Ethan Riddle Nancy Dawkins Amy Hollan Moira Demorest Emmett Morrison Adriana Green Spotlight Elijah Russ KPP Concerts Find Us Online visiomag.ca @visiomag Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7M7N2 VISIO Mag is published bi-monthly by BLURB Media.

All Rights Reserved

thomas hannah

the music issue

playlist by emmett morrison

6 IN DIALOGUE A Conversation w/

Moira Demorest , co-owner of KPP Concerts.

BRINGING SHOWS TO KINGSTON SINCE '01 VISIO: When did you start with KPP? What is your role?

MOIRA: KPP Concerts was founded in 2001 and has 20 years' experience presenting live music, supporting under-served genres and audiences, and executing projects that support the Kingston scene. I’m one of the coowners and have been with KPP since 2021.

What is the KPP mission?

KPP Concerts is a live music collective and registered non-profit organization focused on presenting all ages concerts featuring niche genres of music that would not otherwise be supported in Kingston. While featuring artists from all over the world, KPP ensures opportunities exist for local artists through key opening and headlining slots, plus access to various industry development.

Our goal is to attract music fans of all ages and backgrounds and provide an easy point of entry for newcomers.

Our events foster an appreciation of live music while providing a space for networking, socializing and community building.

Where in Kingston can you buy tickets for KPP shows?

Depends on the concert!

We use lots of different venues across Kingston (and surrounding areas). See www. KPPconcerts.com for up to date tickets information…

What do you see for KPP for 2022 now that restrictions have been lifted?

Continuing to put on lots of rad concerts! We’ve got a fun series of events planned for Summer 2022 – stay tuned for more info on that!

Bands can check out our website or drop us a line on our social media platforms @kppconcerts OR send us an email to hello@kppconcerts.com

community 7

kingston's leading festival for #YgkYouth The Juvenis Festival is Kingston's only Youth Arts Festival dedicated to supporting #YgkYouth, with an arts oriented, (virtual and in person), festival experience.

This 11 day-long festival gives young people an opportunity to act, sing, dance, perform, and showcase their artistic talents, as well as take free workshops and masterclasses to build on their interests and skills in the arts.

Everyone involved in this festival is under the age of 30, including all paid staff positions and participants.

The Juvenis Festival is a project of Blue Canoe Theatrical that began in 2016.

Juvenis is one of only two youth arts festivals in all of Canada!

What Defines Youth?

Blue Canoe Productions defines ‘youth’ as anyone 30 and under, regardless of their educational status. The Juvenis Youth Arts Festival serves and celebrates this underrecognized demographic, beginning with a staff comprised entirely of youth, because who knows young people better than young people themselves?

Both in the workplace and throughout the festival, we are establishing a safe, supportive, and inclusive learning environment that offers unique opportunities for personal and professional growth.

Photo ftaken rom Juvenis homepage

8 community

april 28th - May 7th

2022

This year's projects

the juvenis festival presents:

consists of 3

visio slam

musicals, a dance

a night of performance art & slam poetry following the JUVENIS opening ceremony Ages 13 - 30 permitted to keep with the festival!

Location: Kingston Community House 99 York St DATE: Wednesday, April 27th Time: TBD

and performance art piece, a music video an art exhibition, and a

Catered by Coffee & Company Ft. Local Art Vendors

Tickets $10 Students $7

poetry slam.

The 2022 Juvenis Festival Line-Up will include projects led by Kingston youth age 30 or under.

Partners play an essential role in the Juvenis Festival. Partners can put on programming in the festival (eg. workshops and events), make non-monetary contributions, and share festival posts on social media. To find out more about ways to partner with the Juvenis Festival and partnership incentives, please refer to the 2022 Partnership Package PDF below or email maya.meyerman@bluecanoethea trical.ca.

mixed media 9

grace notes

amy hollan / @southerntierlife

10 mixed media

majestically

elizabeth adan / @edgeofelizabeth

mixed media 11

allegro

elizabeth adan / @edgeofelizabeth

203 B Wellington Street, just north/east of Princess Street @MartelloAlley

escape...

to Downtown Kingston's

ART THEMED ALLEY GALLERY! Martello Alley is an art themed historic alley in downtown Kingston.

Representing numerous artists, Martello Alley is a gallery where you can find original and printed artwork, as well a place to meet the artists, and see their "w.i.p's"!

For the Aliens (Collage on Vinyl)

14 mixed media

For the Aliens (Collage on Vinyl)

Artist Statement: The artwork For the Aliens is a collage on vinyl that pays homage to the Voyager Golden Records. In 1977, the Voyager spacecraft carried two phonograph records which contained images and sounds showcasing the complexity of life and culture on Earth. My primary interest in creating this collage resulted from the concept of the original project itself, allowing intelligent extraterrestrial lifeforms to know about the existence of mankind. Although it seems silly to assume that there would be other lifeforms in the cosmos that could understand us in the slightest, the basic action of preserving information about ourselves shows the desire for humanity to make its presence known, whether or not aliens have record players. When collecting photos for this project, I wanted to combine various objects pertaining to human technology and the science of nature. My primary motivator for making art is the simple belief that I will have something to prove my existence after my passing, whether or not people see it.

mixed media 15

For the Aliens (Collage on Vinyl)

16 mixed media Ethan Riddle is a mixed media artist who is currently majoring in Studio Art at Lafayette College. His art career began in 2017 when he decided to attempt collage art as a result of being inspired by the content of various artists from the internet. In the following years, he tried to diversify his body of work by focusing on digital art, photography, 3D art, and drawing. He spends most of his leisure time creating collage and digital art, often trying different art mediums and enhancing his skills in art software programs.

With art being his main passion in life, he hopes to entertain the viewers of his work and to inspire artists who might be interested in the progression of his portfolio. As of this moment, Ethan is working on an art magazine and plans on creating more abstract digital art and visually complex collages in the near future.

Contacts / Social Media: Instagram -@ethanriddle88 Twitter- @RottenApple2002 Sine Wave Coaster (Collage on CD)

poetry 17

name dropping

thomas hannah / @brokesellout

Listen, I always said I’d rather be blind than deaf Before reaching without aid to touch a bedframe Or my sawdust filled forehead Or anything made of wood nearby But really that analogy is a bit more than bullshit to explain my unyielding music’s resilience to ‘basic’ Whatever that means I need to simplify my superiority complex Have some ego death & Not say that anymore.

I’m grateful for & wish only more sense. ~ But I still think of Thompson shot out of that cannon to a Tambourine Sixto’s royalty toiling oblivious under another sun Jeff Buckley’s Whole Lotta Love This is for Leonard Cohen, wherever you are & a hungry Michael Hutchence singing down the phone at Geldolf Blonde on Blonde made Dylan Jesus & Judas Kylie Minougue’s hair was sandy, not suicidal I wish Viola Beach suffered no erosion & Jackson didn’t buy Lennon-McCartney’s Beatles The Wiggles were originally called The Cockroaches I want money (that’s what we all want) But still punk, how rich is Sid Vicious & Darby Crash?

He should’ve shot Chapman, then he’d be famous Johnny rotten should clean up his act Robert Smith is a real name & By the way which one’s Pink?

Did she build the wall?

The one of Bowie’s kiss?

Berlin looked like the death of Pop The New York Dolls are almost finished & We all go through changes Something like Syd Barrett Better than guitarists losing fingertips Or kids wanting to be Keith Richards & Dying like Robert Johnson The Easybeats ended up shocking Coldplay makes me cry Is anyone left from the sixties?

18 poetry Or listens to records & bootleg versions?

Apple music is Apocalypse Now Spotify Shining I only watch Ferris Bueller’s Day Off for The Smiths & Anaconda ironically I’m into The Moody Blues & Only The Red Hot Chilli Peppers nobody knows I dig St Vincent & Hole Although Kurt’s death was suspicious Like Elliott Smith’s Only because I know what happened & All the answers to these questions.

I do great at pub quizzes I’m a true fan of artists I don’t know Subjectivity is myth & My instrument is opinion ~ I’d rather be blind than deaf See.

19 prose

our story like a sountrack Thomas Hannah / @BrokeSellOut The night it started we slept in my bed, my lounge hurt your back like a torture chamber & plus, we were just friends, although I hadn’t known her very long. She had dated my brother briefly & I hadn’t taken the time to get to know her properly, but I knew their song was Foals Out of The Woods, my brother’s favourite band at the time.

She wore a white dress & I was playing songs on YouTube from my cheap & tiny T.V with terribly tinny speakers. Songs like Fluorescent Adolescent from The Artic Monkeys, High & Dry from Radiohead & I Will Possess Your Heart from Death Cab for Cutie. My friends & I were going through an Alternative & Emo revival so I’m sure The Taste of Ink from The Used & Taking Back Sunday’s ‘Make Damn Sure’ would’ve definitely made the algorithm.

So I thought I was pretty cool I guess, but that bubble burst when I handed her the remote & asked her if she wanted to play anything. Can’s Vitamin C came bumping through my shitty speakers & foggy head like they were worth something & it damn near blew me away. I’d never heard it before but it was cool & so was she, cooler than me that’s for sure.

Nobody had ever played Can’s Vitamin C from my T.V before, or ANYTHING like it. So when I tried a rebuttal with what I thought was one of the more obscure bands that I knew-Dear and The Head Lights, of course she knew them, of course they were from her hometown, of course she had interviewed them. Turns out she had started & ran a music magazine out of Arizona & had interviewed many bands that I begrudgingly admitted to knowing, not to mention was in discussions with Ralph Steadman’s management about an interview discussing his new book. & If I thought I wasn’t already completely done for, The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah & Tibetan Pop Stars by Hop Along completely blew me out of the water, within three songs I was drowning in her.

I took back the remote before I did or said something drastic, I fall in love too easily, like Chet Baker. Either way I either very stupidly or smartly played Dylan’s I Want You, (people tend to say things through music that are too hard for them to speak). & So with a kiss & a song between us, the fat lady was truly singing. ~ I Want You will always be ours, & Sad Eyed Lady of The Lowlands, we lived in bliss & in Blonde on Blonde for so long that I can’t be tethered to anyone but her when I hear them.

Our soundtrack grew quickly with time, she always said we were like P.J Harvey & Nick Cave in their video for Henry Lee, I heard it was shot in one take & I believe it-they looked like they were in love & they looked just like us. We also loved Future Islands & their lead singer Sam, & anything from The Smiths.

On quieter nights she would show me artists over dinner like Serge & Charlotte Gainsbourg & the Turkish singers her parents listened to nightly (apparently her grandfather was a well-to-do playboy in Turkey & actually dated one-but I was still luckier than him). After dinner I would show her movies like Control, When You’re Strange, & I’m Not There. On loud nights we would dance to Teardrops, Murder on The Dance Floor, & Rasputin, before doing shots to, Brockhampton’s Sweet & Kanye’s Famous, & unmentionables to Eyes on Fire & Bound 2.

But all isn’t well all the time, our love was strong but we were wild & weird & uninhibited &; living only for each other’s song, which would sometimes scream & weep & lose its voice. Music documents these moments too.

First by Cold War Kids was one, I’d gotten too drunk at an exclusive Bondi house party she’d taken me to & woke up on their lawn the next morning without her, or Under The Pressure from The War On Drugs, which was playing in her earphones the day I was leaving for over a year just as I ran down the street in pyjamas to kiss her one last time, or on our holiday when she danced to Out Of The Woods, Or when P.J Harvey & Nick Cave’s Henry Lee became P.J Harvey & Thom Yorke’s The Mess We’re In.

20 prose Once it was over, I spent too long after the end listening to Father John Misty’s version of One of Us Cannot Be Wrong or Black Sabbath’s Changes or anything angry, (maybe a song like Power, which makes you arrogant & delusional in a breakup, words don’t fill people up, actions do).

What was she listening to? & Who with? & Why? I guess it was none of my business, but I bet it wasn’t anything from Blonde on Blonde.

At the end of the day music like our lives is best shared with the ones who appreciate us, even in fleeting moments, we all should listen. & I would still listen to anything with her, or even nothing at all, because she listened to me.

Even Out of The Woods.

21 poetry

a sword pulled from my back

nancy dawkins @mouseteeth

I feel bitter and old Singing along to songs written by teenagers In the shower to prove to the neighbours I’ve still got it I pulled down the posters enshrining My walls since adolescence Of women wielding fenders, And closed a lid in my stomach Housing the same aged butterflies That grew wings the first time I stepped on stage.

My holy saints, my false idols The truth being that I wanted to play their guitars Just as much as I wanted to hold their bodies close to my belly Pregnant with fire and a mosaic voice made up of slivers of their own And believe me I wanted to hold them more than I can say Sinking my nails into the backs of men who kind of made it Screaming “take me with you” never did any good Maybe condoms work Or maybe talent isn’t sexually transmitted Or maybe you can’t be taken seriously by someone who knows how you wobble The women on stages never seem to wobble And nothing I’ve done as an adult works as well as being a child did But I’ve never really tried Trapped by a potent mix of pride and fear And fear and fear and ego Not so much a fear of failure as not knowing what success looks like And not understanding pedal boards And still feeling fingers on my skin I had not welcomed there Fingers that fish hooked my nos into yeses and pointed Turning me from embodied into just a body And left me as less of myself Writing songs from someone else’s point of view And always hungering for hands to hold to show me I am beautiful even if I can’t be brilliant But I am brilliant Bearing the fruit of my labours like a grin Weeping when I catch myself on the razor edge of my own words Pulled like a sword from my back Weighty with truth I awake and find my mind full of melodies I moulded the night before while howling at the moon and hearing her howl back And picking the skin out from under my nails I learn that proximity to greatness never made anyone great Unless that greatness is love And each time I am told I can do it another handprint leaves my skin And all I really needed was a friend to tell me this is what you were always meant to do.

elijah russ Elijah Russ is a blues, lo-fi, neo-soul "I've been writing music for the last 10 years and (& more), musician based in Grand have finally gotten some songs that I feel good about recording. I haven't professionally done a record Rapids, Michigan, USA. before and when I turned 27 in December 2021, I decided it was finally time to get some things wrapped up and put out there.

Having began his music career at the age of 20, he has performed at numerous festivals, venues, theaters and corporate events both solo and I've been so hesitant to put music out because I'm a perfectionist, but I'm finally getting to a point where I as a side man.

At 27, Elijah is releasing his first two studio albums...

can let go of some of that and let some of the music out to be free" - Elijah Russ

23 spotlight

wandering "'Wandering' is a lofi hip-hop/neosoul/instrumental album by Elijah Russ.

Following the musical trend of 'Lofi Beats to Study/Chill to', was written during Elijah's travels from 20202021 as a commemorative project to those travels.

It was also written during the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic and has tones reflective of that time period."

@elijahruss

'Wandering' - Joe Martinez at Tortuga Design Studio (@tortugadesignstudio)

"Wandering is a bit different. This one was fun. It was always meant to be fun, it was meant to be relaxing, it meant to be easy to produce. I wanted to make some music while I was out traveling in 2020/2021 and had the idea to use lofi hip-hop/neo-soul instrumentals as a channel for that music. After two trips to the West Coast, 'Wandering' is what I came out with. Between both albums, I thought it was important to display some of my musical diversity when it comes to songwriting and creativity. I hope to do more projects like this and show more sides of myself. Who knows what the next projects will sound like?"

- Elijah Russ

www.elijahruss.com

24 spotlight

sandcastles "'Sandcastles' is a soulrock album by Elijah Russ. With an array of dirty electric guitars, thunderous drums and bass, tight horn arrangements, soothing string arrangements, a choir, and synths galore, this album is.. big booty thick.

Sandcastles is a collection of songs that were carefully constructed from 20162020, but were built to be blips in time to one day 'Sandcastles' - Emily Luyk (@emilyluyk)

"Sandcastles has all the songs that I dumped my absolute soul into. It's a heavy, soul-rock album with funk, blues, country, Latin, and traditional influences. The album is really a series of tough decisions and life acceptance that I went through in my early 20s.

There's always a lot to be learned and to experience, but that period of time in one's life is really intense for so many reasons.

Sandcastles is my personal documentation (and a diary of sorts) of some of those events."

- Eliah Russ

support elijah in the creation of his two new albums by donating to his indiegogo campaign until March 30th

wash away."

@elijahruss

news 25

the iranian art crisis Iranian Art & Cultural Heritage, A Former Shining Light in the Middle Eastern Art Scene, Now In Darkness No Thanks to 2018 US Imposed Sanctions.

When Nazil reached out to me by email and spoke of how the preservation of her country's art and cultural heritage was at the risk of collapse, bravely expressing how the mafia in her country has taken control of the arts, I knew I had to get her story. It seemed that the sanctions imposed on her country in 2018, were the worst seen in the history of the Islamic Republic, and was reaching deep in the fabric of Iranian society.

So, what are the Sanctions?

Relations between the US and Iran have (in most recent history), been contentious.

1979 - The United States had imposed restrictions on activities with Iran under various legal authorities following the seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran.

2018 - US President Donald Trump announced the country would withdraw from the controversial international nuclear deal, due to Iranian support for Hezbollah, Hamas, and Palestine Islamic Jihad, whom are considered terrorist organizations by the US. Soon after, the Trump administration had imposed the toughest ever sanctions against Iran in the history of the Islamic Republic.

2019 & 2020 - The potential for the sanctions to further affect citizens grew, as the restrictions enhanced, and hit the financial sector.

Ultimately, Iran is no longer able to buy American dollars, trade in gold, aluminium, steel, or its own currency, the Rial. Under the terms of the sanctions, Iranians cannot wire money to any foreign bank account nor can they receive international wire transfers. Many European, British, and international companies are also withdrawing from Iran to protect themselves from US sanctions. .

Art is considered "informational material," and is exempt from sanctions, but this still does not create many loopholes for Iranian artists.

How do the sanctions affect artists?

As a result of sanctions, Iranian artists, gallerists, and collectors must navigate a complex labyrinth of global transactions in order to receive money for their art. Artists without international bank accounts must often pay additional fees to bring money in through so-called exchange companies. Artists with foreign bank accounts, meanwhile, struggle to cash checks abroad with Iranian passports. Sometimes, an artist will fly to collect the money from a gallery and bring it back to Iran physically.

Nazil Abbaspour

26 news Meanwhile, the cost for local galleries to participate in major art fairs has skyrocketed for dealers who must pay with devalued currency, while security checks often delay shipments and staff are frequently unable to obtain visas.

Moreover, the lack of focus and funding on the maintenance of cultural and historical artistic landmarks (museums, statues), are not being kept up.

This leads to the erosion of the very real, and tangible items that make the Iranian Art Scene such a pioneering force for the arts in the Middle East. History, heritage, and culture are found in the art and music of a community, which is being slowly stripped away from the Iranian people.

The Struggle to Show Their Art While artists struggle to be paid at home, Iranian curators face a different challenge: organizing shows abroad in countries that are unable to take their money.

Some galleries are engaging in creative deals with patrons in order to keep their businesses afloat. A leading gallery in Tehran recently inked a deal with the Dubai-based collector Mohammed Afkhami to buy a number of works—priced between $2,000 and $3,000—for a set budget over the next six to 12 months. (He is paying with money he already has in the country.)

It is possible that the works are being resold abroad but is fact is that it’s much better to buy at the Tehran Auction than to sell. Iran's main target is to boost the domestic market in order to support the foreign market of Iranian art.

The Chokehold On Artists This article was originally intended to be an article. Nazil contacted me in February, and briefly mentioned the crisis state of Iran and art, in addition to some of her own artwork, in hopes that VISIO would accept it as part of this publication.

I of course accepted, but knew that I had to press on, and find out more. I asked her if she was able to answer a few questions for me. I had never heard about this "crisis" that the sanctions had caused, and I was certain that not many of my artist peers were aware, either. Nazil accepted, and said she would answer any questions that I had. I was so excited to "get the story out," that I had soon after made an Instagram post advertising the upcoming article to be featured in the Music Issue.

Except I had forgotten that when you are so use to your own privilege, you forget you cannot extend that to everyone, no matter how much humanity is between you.

And then the threats poured in.

Not from Nazil herself, but from the Art Gallery she exhibits her work at.

I was told that my post was a violation of her human rights, and that by mentioning her involvement with VISIO and the pending interview, she was in extreme danger. If I didn't remove the post IMMEDIATELY, I was to have the cops called on me, and investigative action would be taken against me, and VISIO. What had I gotten myself into?

I had to be careful not to jump to the conclusions that the rest of the world already has - corrupt dealings with a corrupt country. And of course I was scared, but what about Nazil?

I took the post down to avoid any further risk posed on Nazil and her livelihood, but I couldn't help but wonder how many voices in Iran have been stripped, and clubbed into submission by a governing body that has no concern for your uniqueness. No desire to understand how their people could change the world with imagination, and it made my stomach sick.

If the gallery was threatening me this way so easily, as if that's just what you do, I wonder what Iran was doing to the artists there?

Against all the odds, however, the Iranian art scene continues to exhibit remarkable resilience. The show has gone on—inside and outside of the country.

All-cash deals, logistical nightmares, scarce art materials—this is what life is like for artists living in Iran under crushing sanctions. But it's still alive, and for people like Nazil, VISIO will always be a safe place to share your voice.

28 upcoming events VENUES Ale House 393 Princess St. BLU Martini 178 Ontario St. The Mansion 506 Princess St. The Spire 82 Sydenham St.

Mar 24 - APR 23 www.kppconcerts.om @kppconcerts Tickets: Brian's Record Option 381 Princess St.

Thursday March 24, 2022

Sunday March 27, 2022

Monday March 28, 2022

HINTERWOOD

*POSTPONED

PUP

+ Emilie Steele & the Deal Blu Martini, Kingston 8pm doors | $12 adv.

Album Release Show!

STEREOS + Brad Sousa, Cassie Dasilva The Ale House, Kingston Postponed, new date coming soon.

+ Casper Skulls The Ale House, Kingston 7pm doors | $30 adv.

Monday April 11, 2022

Wednesday April 13, 2022

Saturday April 23, 2022

THE PACK A.D.

BEN CAPLAN

ARKELLS

+ Strange Breed The Mansion, Kingston 7-10pm showtime | $20 | AA/19+

+ Terra Spencer The Mansion, Kingston 7pm doors | $22 | AA/19+

+ Haviah Mighty Leon's Centre, Kingston 7:30pm | $41+ adv. | All Ages + Licensed

KPP Concerts is a concert promotion/production group based out of Kingston, Ontario.

@visiomag www.visiomag.ca