Spotlight on
TEXAS WITH A DOLLAR SIGN
HAILING FROM THE quiet town of Kemptville, Ont., Texas With a Dollar Sign (or Texa$) brings fans nothing but pure hardcore rock and roll. Striking down the myth that scream-ridden, distortion-heavy hard rock takes no talent to produce, this band uses rough effects and a careful mix of singing and screaming to construct a sound that shows impressive songwriting and talented playing.
Bypassing formulaic song structure, Texa$ strikes a perfect balance between fast tempos and epic solos with great variation from track to track. Their song “Hotter Than Girl On Girl” has a great build-up, fast drumming, and truly striking guitar melodies—but, more than anything, the track highlights the band’s clever variation in pace and vocals. Lead vocalist Matt Lear’s singing is off set perfectly with support from bassist Kaleb Blake and drummer Shane Bennett. Another notable track is “Keep The Cymbals Splashy,” which exemplifies Richard Mosher and Roddy Harrison’s amazing guitarwork.
Texa$ sets the bar high for local bands, bringing innovation and talent to a much-degenerated genre. If you have the chance, don’t miss checking out what Texa$ is bringing to rock and the Ottawa music scene.
Sounds like: Hard, fast, and rough rock and roll.
Check it out: Listen to a small sample of the band’s tracks at myspace.com/eatsleeptexas.
CAROL WAINIO
PAINTER CAROL WAINIO is far from a starving local artist, but her work still maintains similar themes and tones of Ottawa’s thriving art scene.
Wainio’s works, which are mostly large-scale, vary between intricately detailed acrylics and indistinct semi-abstracts. Her piece “Bagmen 3,” for example, is a great contrast to her modernized and ominous fairy-tale works, such as “Industrial Fairy Tale” and “Jack and the Cornstalk.” The “Bagmen” pieces display indistinct, humanoid shadow-figures on a blank background. Th e lack of context that the fairly empty canvas aff ords allows the viewer to interpret the subject of each painting openly. In contrast, the paintings that make up Wainio’s fairy-tale series are very busy, and much more reliant on symbolism than the “Bagmen” works. In both small series Wainio’s precision and inventive imagination show through, despite variation in subject matter.
Well-crafted and modern, Wainio’s work is art that this city can be proud of.
Looks like: Modernized, 18th-century style.
Check it out: Much of Wainio’s works, as well as information about upcoming exhibitions, are posted on her website at carolwainio.com.
