By Sean Willett
One of the much touted features of the Taylor Family Digital Library has been its Interactive Digital Media Collection, a vast collection of both retro and modern video games available to students for research and entertainment purposes. The collection is the largest of its kind in Canada, and is a major step forward towards further… Continue reading An introduction to video games
By Sean Willett
Last week, the City of Calgary voted 13–2 in favour of banning shark fin soup from being served within city limits. The new law will take effect in October 2012. This decision followed a quick debate in city council, not even offering affected Calgary residents and business owners time to hold town hall meetings to… Continue reading Debate: Banning shark fin soup in Calgary
By Sean Willett
When discussing the implications of Calgary city council banning the possession of shark fins, it is vital to first look at the barbaric process known as ‘finning.’ When fishermen are hunting for valuable shark fins, they want to optimize the amount of space on their boats. To do this, they store only sharks’ fins, slicing… Continue reading Debate: Banning shark fin soup in Calgary
By Sean Willett
Over the past few years Calgary has welcomed a new restaurant breed with open arms: the food truck. What was once a rare novelty has quickly become a staple in the city’s dining scene with over 30 mobile eateries across the city. A large part of the explosion in popularity of food trucks in Calgary… Continue reading Calgary’s food trucks take to the street
By Sean Willett
This year’s Calgary Folk Music Festival will serve as the end of an era for The Magnetic North. The beloved local band, helmed by brothers Paul and Stephen van Kampen, will go through both a change in direction and a change of name, becoming the more driven and coherent Dark Red Dark Blue. After breaking… Continue reading A new beginning for The Magnetic North
By Sean Willett
One of the many benefits of an independently published game is the freedom it allows developers — there are more opportunities to try new things when the people making a game are unrestrained by the demands of investors and shareholders. The Real Texas is a glowing example of the results of this kind of freedom,… Continue reading Game review: The Real Texas
By Sean Willett
Every year in late July, Prince’s Island Park is covered with tarps, and these tarps are covered with music fans. They arrive in droves of hundreds to attend one of the biggest festivals in Calgary, and one of the most important musical events in Canada: the Calgary Folk Music Festival. Founded in 1980, the CFMF… Continue reading Folk Fest is coming and can’t be stopped
By Sean Willett
During the six days of Sled Island, music reigns supreme. With hundreds of bands playing at venues across the city, it is the most visible and dominant part of the festival. Yet, the extent of music’s reach does not lie solely within the realm of its own medium — the films of Sled Island are… Continue reading The melodious films of Sled Island
By Sean Willett
Although people might not always see it, Calgary is a beautiful city. Despite complaints, it is difficult to dismiss the city’s best features: plentiful green spaces, a growing music scene and wonderful inhabitants. All of these things are brought to the forefront during Calgary’s festival season, where the best parts of the blossoming city are… Continue reading Prepare your bike, Sled Island is here
By Sean Willett
Concerts are often associated with the spectacle of a band or an orchestra delivering an earth-shattering performance at a massive scale in front of an equally massive audience. This type of live music can be incredibly moving, but scaling things back a bit can be just as powerful. A little intimacy can go a long… Continue reading U of C presents music’s softer side