Well, Ottawa/Gatineau, I must say we can’t call you ‘boring’ this week looking at the broad spectrum of exciting events taking place in your clubs and Museums this week. Clubs and Museums, that’s interesting, could there be a trend starting when dealing with events with buzz in the National Capital Region? Perhaps. Or, it may just so happen that the NCR simply got lucky. Having said this, the week ahead is nothing but exciting if you love dancing, music, audio-visual effects/installations, and progressive ideas and you live in and around Ottawa!
I’ll begin by letting you know about the 2011 Electric Fields Festival organized by Artengine taking place between November 23 to November 26, 2011. Electric Fields 2011 basically “focuses on the relationship between sound and space. They have commissioned a number of artists to develop projects that engage with specific spaces around the city: a public pool; a basilica church; civil service buildings; iconic national architecture. Electric Fields will use your ears to redefine your perception of the spaces around you”.
As part of Electric Fields, I’ll be attending Polytectures on November 23 at the Bytowne Museum and a very special edition of the Electric Pow-Wow with A Tribe Called Red taking place on Saturday, November 26 at 9:30 pm at the CMC, which I am really looking forward to attend. And that’s actually a major understatement. You see, I’ve been wanting the Electric Pow-Wow to take place in the Museum’s #GrandHall for a while now and it’s finally going to happen for the first time thanks to Electric Fields and everyone at Artengine, which I am most thrilled about. Described by Artengine with this bit “a space is more than just a building, and you cannot talk about space without considering the role of culture in shaping it. A Tribe Called Red have been building a new cultural space in the nations capital for a several years with their Electric Pow Wow parties. On the surface is original dance music that brings people together for a great time. Below the surface is a motivation to create a cultural space for the urban aboriginal that is authentic and progressive. For this special edition of the Electric Pow Wow, the ATCR crew will integrate traditional singing into their performance and re-organize the dance floor in a special location, rich with its own spacial history” This is one of these events that you don’t want to miss and you can expect an event review after the fact.
Then on Friday, November 25, I have the pleasure of going to Mercury Lounge to dance to a live set by DJ Vadim on the occasion of the lounge’s 15th birthday. This will be a first for me and I am definitely excited to see this critically acclaimed DJ perform live in the nation’s capital. To hear DJ Vadim visit http://soundcloud.com/dj-vadim.
Last but certainly not least, Ottawa will be graced by the presence of the Wu-Tang Clan’s Ghostface Killah for not one but two shows taking place back to back on November 28 and 29 at Ritual. Ottawa is the only city in Canada to host 2 Ghostface shows during the same tour! For those of you who are true Wu Tang fans, you can imagine what this will be like. Having seen RZA, Raekwon, GZA, U-God and Method Man perform in the past, I’m greatful that we get to welcome this hip-hop legend in the 613 during his Canadian tour. This shall be grand and a must for all the heads 🙂
