Spotlight on
THE EMPIRICALS
ASIAN-INSPIRED MELODIES and retro-style surfer rock? Stranger things may have happened, but Ottawa-based band The Empiricals definitely give “out-there” a run for its money. The truly surprising thing about the band, however, is that they somehow manage to mesh their two source genres into dance-pop instrumental genius. The band—consisting of four gentlemen on guitar, keyboards, bongos, and drums—explores the dynamic between fast and slow rhythms to the fullest in their music. The quick-paced “Hotline Ho,” from the band's album Golden Beat surprisingly ends up being one of the happiest tracks, though not the most reminiscent of waves splashing against surfboards. That job is left to the appropriately named “Golden Beat,” which practically screams a late-night bonfire on a Chinese beach out of your speakers. They’re like nothing you’ve heard before, but you won’t be able to stop yourself from pressing that repeat button.
Sounds like: Chinese version of The Ventures, with less pop.
Check it out: Pick up their record Golden Beat at Birdman Sound (195 Bank St.) or at End Hits (407 Dalhousie St.).
GUY DUPUIS
OTTAWA-AREA PHOTOGRAPHER Guy Dupuis has made quite the name for himself in the nation’s capital. His art, which focuses on freezing moments in time, is saturated in colour and ranges from travel to local-area photography. The more striking photos, interestingly enough, are taken in the two most different places. Dupuis’ recent work, shot on the artist’s trip to Antarctica in 2009, are crystal clear, striking shots in blue and white; except, of course, the most memorable—a huge boat laden with multicoloured crates sitting below a perfectly defined rainbow. On the other side of the world and visual spectrum are Dupuis’s shots from Tanzania, taken in 2008. Here, the colours are much more saturated. Contrast is employed liberally, sometimes between deep colour of children’s skin and shining white of their ornamental necklaces, other times between a rustic table and the brightly coloured mugs that rest on it. Dupuis not only manages to fulfill his goal of capturing moments on film, but does so with a varied use of colour that always manages to shock and soothe all at once.
Looks like: Colours, playing and contrasting, in real-life moments.
Check it out: Some of Dupuis’ recent work is posted at dupuisg.ca.
