2B Magazine 1 - Guide Gai du Québec

2B Magazine
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2B Magazine
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4 2B Magazine
2B Magazine
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Contributors
Index
Contributors
5
News
8
The Harper file
12
Haiti and HIV: GHESKIO
14
HIV Criminalization Case, Québec City
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Defining Queer Issues in 2011
17
Funkytown
18
Annabel by Kathleen Winter
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Daniel Allen Cox: Krakow Melt
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2B in LA by Jay Quint
26
John Greyson: Sex & Segregation
28
Good Gets Better: Daniel Barrow
32
JP Fournier @ Galerie Dentaire
36
The Flamingo (Ottawa)
40
Wakefield Mill Inn Get-away 42
Eye for Style: Photoshoot 44
Grindr Foundr Joel Simkai
49
Black Party: Resurrection
52
Jef Barbara - Sami Basbous
B’UGO: Queer 2B Reckoned With
© Laura Beeston
Michael Hawrysh is an Ontarian ex-pat and
proud franglophone. Freelance journalist, editor,
translator and environnemental projet manager,
when he`s not writing about Montreality, you
can usually catch him composting his beard
trimmings or pretending that a banana is a
telephone.
Laura Beeston, a Montreal-based artfag
journalist, contributes to 2B between working
towards a degree at Concordia and losing
her mind as Production Manager of The
Link Newspaper. When she’s not writing or
shooting to deadline, she’s been known to
organize burlesque and Go-go dance. © César Ochoa
© César Ochoa
Danny Légaré began his foray into freelancing
for urban cultural magazines in Vancouver in
1999. His highlights include uncovering Goldfrapp
for the CBC and interviewing Gabriel & Dresden
for the Montreal Mirror. Shy, meticulous,
insatiable, sometimes misunderstood, Danny is
undeniably a hedonist at heart.
Jay Quint is a born and bred Montrealer. He
studied Business at Concordia’s John Molson
School, but always felt inclined towards his
creative side. He has lives in Sydney, Paris,
Miami, and LA in the past six years, and is now
living back in Montreal. He has been writing for
2B since Sept. 2010. 56 + 58
60
Cover Photo: This month’s cover photographer
Keith Race breaks out some Pierre & Gilles
styling on our coverboy DJ B’UGO on p. 60.
Check out more of Keith’s work at:
www.keithracephoto.com
Our Page 4 boy was graciously provided by
Toronto’s Kenny Lee. More of Inked Kenny’s
sexy, confident, hard-edged men will be
featured later in 2011 at Galerie Dentaire, and
in future pages of 2B. www.inkedkenny.com
6 2B Magazine
© César Ochoa
2B Magazine
7
Québec Human Rights Tribunal awards $12,000
to Gay Couple in Harassment Case
Significantly, the court reviewed the
social context of homophobia in Quebec
workplaces, schools and society at large, and
took into consideration “the context in which
the Defendant violated the Plaintiff’s rights,
[and] the arrogance he manifested by taking
the law into his own hands when he went to
the Plaintiffs’ residence to hurl abuse at them
and to invite them to fight”. It also noted
that “an award of more substantial punitive
damages would have been fully justified in this
case.”
© Denis Courville, Archives La Presse
A gay couple in Pointe-Claire has scored
another
victory
against
homophobic
harassment before the Quebec Human Rights
Tribunal, which awarded last month $12,000 in
moral and punitive damages to the two men
as a result of a violent incident in April 2004.
Mr. Roger Thibault and Theo Wouters, two senior
citizens who are known for being the first gay
male couple in Quebec to formalize their union
under Quebec’s civil union law, lived through
hate-motivated harassment and vandalism at
their home for many years. In their pursuit of
justice, the couple sought the assistance of the
Centre for Research-Action on Race Relations
(CRARR), where director Fo Niemi helped them
navigate the sometime difficult path.
8 2B Magazine
Filing the complaint in 2005 with CRARR’s
help, the couple claimed that in April 2004
Gordon Lusk, a neighbour who resided on the
same street, came to their front door to invite
them to a fight, made death threats and called
them “f------ faggots.” Lusk will be required to
pay the landmark indemnity within 30 days.
This is the second decision of the Human
Rights Tribunal (Commission des droits de
la personne) in as many years, the first of
which was awarded in 2008 for homophobic
harassment on the part of a local youth. For
Niemi, the Tribunal is to be praised for upholding
“the notions that homophobic harassment is
against the law and carries a price.”
When asked if the lengthy legal battle was
worth the effort, Theo Wouters replies instantly:
“Yes, because peace is more and more
returning to the neighbourhood.” Roger Thibault
is equally adamant that the struggle was worth
it: “We think people should be perseverant in
their cases to discourage this kind of violence.”
Wouters reiterated that he encourages “gay
people to come forward. It’s your own dignity
at stake. I’m a couturier, I worked for the highest
people in Canada, but I was pulled down to
ground level. It was killing my creativity.”
Both Wouters and Thibault are happy with the
Tribunal’s decision. And what do they plan to do
with their indemnity money? “We are planning
to revive our garden… We have a very special
garden. We are going to plant winter berries,
which are robins’ most favourite food.” They are
particularly happy that they now “can garden
in the front of the house without being harassed.
That was a pleasure we were deprived of for
quite a number of years.”
For more information on CRARR and how to
file harassment or hate-crime complaints with
the Commission des droits de la personne, go
to www.crarr.org
2B Magazine
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Illinois civil union bill signed into law
by Rex Wockner
Gov. Pat Quinn signed Illinois’ comprehensive
civil-union bill into law Jan. 31. It will take effect
June 1.
“This is the moment that I think long after
we’re gone, people will remember us, on the
31st of January in the year 2011 that we came
together here in Illinois, the Land of Lincoln,
and made history,” Quinn said.
The governor used 97 different pens to
sign the bill, so that many of the people who
worked on it could have a souvenir. It took him
7 minutes and 25 seconds to affix his signature
to the document. For video of the neverending signing, see tinyurl.com/quinnsign.
Under the law, gay and straight couples in
a civil union will receive the same state-level
benefits, protections and responsibilities
provided to married people. The law also
recognizes other states’ same-sex marriages—
but only as civil unions.
“This new law reflects the triumph of hope
and fairness over distortion and division,” said
Jill Metz, board president of the American Civil
Liberties Union of Illinois.
In all, 13 states and Washington, D.C., now
have expansive civil-union laws, allow samesex marriage, or recognize same-sex marriages
from other jurisdictions. Same-sex marriage is
legal in Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts,
New Hampshire, Vermont and Washington,
D.C. In addition, New York and Maryland
recognize same-sex marriages from elsewhere
in the nation or world. Civil-union or domesticpartnership laws that grant all state-level rights
of marriage are also in place in California,
Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington.
Uganda: LGBT Rights Activist Beaten to Death
David Kato was at the pivotal centre of his
country’s debate on an impending law to
further criminalize homosexuality in Uganda.
Police are investigating whether his beating
death on Wednesday, Jan 26th was a hatemotivated murder or a random act of violence.
activist, David Kato was like a “father, a mentor.”
He will be remembered for his optimism, his
enthusiasm, and his ability to articulate his
country’s LGBT reality. “He was a living repository
of meaning for SMUG. He was brilliant, intelligent.
A man of his word,” his coworker said.
Kato, pictured here, had feared for his life
since the Ugandan hate-tabloid Rolling Stone
published pictures, names, and residence
locations of some members of the LGBT
community, along with a headline saying,
“Hang Them.” Kato died on his way to hospital
after a man entered his home outside Kampala,
struck him twice on the head, and departed in
a vehicle. He had previously alerted authorities
as to the threats on his life, but to no avail.
Kato was the advocacy officer for SMUG. He
had been a leading voice in the fight against
the Anti-Homosexuality Bill. While homosexual
sex is already illegal in Uganda, the proposed
law would criminalize all homosexuality, making
it punishable by a fine and life imprisonment.
“Repeat offenders” and those who are HIV
positive would be subject to the death penalty.
The bill has been widely condemned
internationally, including by Stephen Harper
and Barack Obama, who called the bill
“odious.” Kato had said the bill was “profoundly
undemocratic and un-African.”
“A father, a mentor”
In Uganda, Kato’s coworkers at SMUG (Sexual
Minorities Uganda) are in shock. For one fellow
10 2B Magazine
“David Kato’s death is a tragic loss to the
human rights community,” said Maria Burnett,
senior Africa researcher at Human Rights
Watch. “David had faced the increased
threats to Ugandan LGBT people bravely and
will be sorely missed.”
2B Magazine
11
Tightening
Borders
and Queer
Complicity
The Harper File
by Jordan Arseneault
You may be thinking this is just another antiHarper column in another gay magazine. If it
weren’t for the fact that we will most likely have
an election call in the next few months, you
would be right. The Conservative Party, which
has meddled with a minority government for
five years, has already started airing TV ads
bashing Michael Ignatieff and touting their
fiscal good sense as the reason we should stick
with Harper. If that’s not enough of a sign that
the election looms, I don’t know what is.
But why should we care? Isn’t one
government just as bad as any other? Isn’t
it likely that the Harper government will be
voted in a minority again? Think again. The
Conservatives have been making in-roads in
suburban Toronto and rural Québec, pitting
those constituencies against the more liberal
metropolitan areas. Even in the West Island,
Conservative senator (and former Alouettes
12 2B Magazine
CEO) Larry Smith has announced he’ll leave
his cushy senate seat to run against long-time
Liberal parliamentarian Francis Scarpaleggia.
But again, why should we care?
certificates” which allow suspects to be held
without fair trial. The measure to prolong was
luckily quashed by NDP and Bloc Québécois
votes in the House of Commons.
We should care because even in the
shackles of a minority government, Harper’s
Conservatives have made several ominous
steps in directions that are against LGBTQ
rights, women’s health, and democratic
freedoms. From his opposition to gay marriage
(and almost immediate attempt to repeal it) in
2006, to his party’s “Unborn Victims of Crime”
bill C-484 later that year, which sought to
legalize the personhood of the foetus, Harper
has been making major statements against the
welfare gays and women. But the freedoms
of all Canadians are at stake too: in 2007, the
Conservatives tried to prolong the martial law
elements of the Canadian Anti-Terrorism Act,
whose provisions led to the notorious “security
And this is the kind of government we have
had in a minority! Knowing that the Liberals,
Bloc, and NDP had to gang together to
oppose any measure they wanted to pass,
the Conservatives have played on that longstanding Canadian tradition of apathy in an
attempt to erode the progressive social policies
of the last 30 years. As we wait for the election
to be announced sometime this Spring, most
likely, we should all take a moment and think
of how bad things could get for women, First
Nations, and LGBTQ people if the Canadian
public doesn’t get out and cast their vote, if
not for the other parties, then at least against
Harper’s.
© Edward Hohn-Sing Wong
By Fraser MacPherson
On January 2nd, Canada rang in 2011 with
the deportation of 18-year-old Daniel Garcia.
The Parkdale teen was deported to Mexico
despite fears that he would be a target of
homophobic violence. Garcia’s deportation is
one result of tightened Canadian borders. The Conservative government under Prime
Minister Stephen Harper has launched an
aggressive campaign to restrict legal channels
for migrants, immigrants, and refugees to
acquire citizenship. They have simultaneously
strengthened an exploitative Temporary Foreign
Workers Program, stimulated anti-migrant/antirefugee sentiment, and introduced legislation
to further restrict the rights of refugee claimants.
Overwhelmingly, queer organizations across
Canada have been silent about the national
crackdown on migrants and immigrants,
the exploitation of migrant labour, and the
criminalization and imprisonment of refugee
claimants. It is crucial that queer people and
organizations in Canada remember that queer
people are migrants, refugees, immigrants,
and temporary foreign workers.
Since taking office, Public Safety Minister
Vic Toews and Immigration Minister Jason
Kenney have worked to introduce a number
of changes designed to restrict the channels
through which migrants and immigrants can
come to Canada. For queer people migrating,
immigrating or claiming refugee status in
Canada, legally acquiring citizenship has
become even more challenging.
The year 2010 saw the introduction of a
list of “safe” countries from which refugee
applicants would no longer be accepted
(thankfully this project was nixed). A restructured
interview process for refugee claimants was
also introduced, with Bill C-11. The Canadian
Council of Refugees (CCR) was highly critical
of these changes, which slice off a month of
preparation time for the interviewee. In June of
2010, executive director Janet Dench reported
that the interview process “is highly problematic,
particularly for people who won’t be ready
to talk in front of an official in terms of the real
grounds of their claim…people who are claiming
on the basis of sexual orientation and…[are] not
in a position really to talk about it openly.”
The Conservative government’s project of
strengthening Canada’s borders has gone
hand-in-hand with targeting refugees and
migrants. What are queer folks here doing
to ensure that queer migrants, immigrants,
refugees, and workers are welcomed to
Canada, not harassed, imprisoned, and
deported? Where were the rainbow flags
demanding that Garcia be allowed to stay?
Queer people have a long history of resisting
the criminalization of sexual, gender, and racial
difference, and have never been afraid to
challenge the police and the justice system for
the ways in which they have inflicted violence
in our lives. It seems this past is being left behind.
http://ccrweb.ca/en/c49
http://toronto.nooneisillegal.org/node/530
http://nooneisillegal-montreal.blogspot.com
2B Magazine
13
Haiti
and
HIV
NGO Founder Speaks about
Recovery After the Quake
Laura Beeston / 2B Magazine
DrPape © LauraBeeston
One year since the devastating
earthquake ravaged Port-au-Prince Haiti,
the founder of the first medical institution in
the world dedicated to fighting HIV/AIDS,
Dr. Jean William Pape spoke at Concordia’s
Hall Building Jan. 20 about the pandemic,
his research and non-governmental
organization (NGO) outreach before and
after the quake.
Head of the Haitian Group for the Study of Kaposi’s Sarcoma and
Opportunistic Infections—or the GHESKIO Centre, which is the largest
research, training and HIV/AIDS prevention organization in the Caribbean,
Dr. Pape challenged the academy to expand its educational mission to
eradicate and control infectious diseases in the third world.
“All the major problems are still there,” he told the crowd. “Only five
per cent of the rubble has been removed, and only 10 per cent of the
international aid has been provided.” In a place where there are traditionally 2.3 physicians to care for
10,000 people, Dr. Pape’s work is nothing short of remarkable. GHESKIO
was able to account for 95 per cent of all its HIV/AIDS patients within two
weeks of the quake, resumed all medical research within one month and
resumed training volunteers and nurses within two months. GHESKIO also
set up field hospitals, able to care for over 700,000 displaced persons. Seen as a leading NGO in the face of natural disaster, Dr. Pape’s team
has since tackled the cholera epidemic and withstood heightened political
turmoil—what he described as ongoing “crises within the crisis.” Since last
year, his team has created 10 cholera intervention centres and trained
over 1,200 medical volunteers, while taking on an influx of new patients.
Dr. Pape anticipates that the rate of HIV/AIDS transmission—which
14 2B Magazine
remained largely unchanged before and after the earthquake—will
inevitably increase due to the cholera epidemic, political unrest and
mass migration of Haitians throughout the country.
“But my biggest concern right now is the cholera epidemic,” he said.
“We should be providing a vaccine and have been lobbying very hard,
but it’s the politics that are preventing the medicine from being provided.”
As someone who has withstood his share of trials at the helm of an
NGO for the last three decades, Dr. Pape is still optimistic about the
opportunity to rebuild.
“Right now we’re in a situation where nothing is coordinated, and what
I suggest doing is working closely with the Minister of Health, because
NGO’s will come and go but the ministry will stay,” he said. “You’re going
to have presidents, prime ministers and politicians who are trying to pull
[NGOs] in one direction or another—but you have to keep focus, keep
your work ahead of you and be honest [about what you can do.]
“When you have the wind behind you, your boat will go fast. But in Haiti,
the direction of that wind changes very quickly,” he explained with a smile.
“Don’t rely on that wind. It’s better to go slowly and be true to your work.”
For more information or to donate, go to: www.gheskio.org
Editor’s note: 2B’s parent magazine, Être, continues to promote the
VIH/AIDS Relief work of smaller NGO Sérovie, also based in Haiti. Sérovie
provides frontline support to people living with HIV and AIDS, and are
currently battling to rebuild their centre, which was leveled in the Jan
2010 quake. Donations to Sérovie can be made through http://oxfam.
qc.ca or via Montreal AIDS service org la Maison Plein Coeur:
www.maisonpleincoeur.org
Interview (In French) with Sérovie:
www.etremag.com/2010/09/haiti-les-lgbt-quebecois-mobilises-228
2B Magazine
15
Steve Biron + HIV Criminalisation
HIV non-disclosure:
30 charges against
Québec City man
RG + 2B Staff
Accused of having unprotected sex with
numerous partners without disclosing his HIV
positive status, Steve Biron was back in court
in Québec City Jan 31. Biron, 32, allegedly lied
about or failed to disclose his HIV status in sex
encounters arranged on gay411.com and
other sites. Once again denied bail, he will
stay in jail until his next court appearance on
March 21. In all, an overwhelming 15 people
have come forward since November, aided
by detectives from the Service de police de
la Ville de Québec who investigated Biron’s
online cruising contacts.
HIV Criminalization:
at the forefront of
LGBTQ issues in 2011
by Jer Dias
The Ontario Working Group on Criminal Law
& HIV Exposure is a collaboration of HIV-AIDS
organizations, academics, and community
members who seek to address the ongoing
criminalization of HIV in Canada. With law
enforcers across the country seeking more
prosecutions for HIV transmission or exposure,
however, it seems the criminalization of HIV
non-disclosure is here to stay.
Most HIV and queer organizations agree
that criminalization is not a real solution to
reducing HIV in Canada. Tim McCaskell on
the Working Group explains, “The majority of
HIV infections in Canada happen because
people do not know their status, and as a
16 2B Magazine
Since his first court appearance, on Nov.
26th, Biron’s case now includes 30 charges in
total, added to the initial two aggravated
assault and two aggravated sexual assault
charges. Leading up to his December bail
hearing, nine individuals – aged 30 to 47—
reported to police that Biron had unprotected
sex without disclosing his status. He was denied
bail in order to “preserve the credibility of the
court” and was kept in custody due to being
considered a danger to the public.
Under the Canadian Criminal Code (§268),
failing to disclose one’s HIV positive status to
a sexual partner is punishable as assault. As
the current precedent in Canada stands, any
person who has HIV, fails to disclose the fact to
their sexual partner, and does not take some
sort of protective measure (such as condom
use), is guilty of aggravated sexual assault.
result infect someone. When you criminalize
HIV transmission and say that knowing your
status makes you legally responsible for
your actions, you are not targeting the real
problem, the majority of HIV infections. In fact,
you are increasing them because now people
who would ordinarily get tested are not going
to because they understand that knowing
their status could make them criminally liable.
Further, people are given a false sense of
security that the government will protect
people against infection, when really that is
not the case. As a result, we are seeing a rise
in HIV infections and a reduction in testing.”
The Working Group recently came up with
guidelines for Crown prosecutors to help
nuance the criminalization approach, stating
that prosecution is only warranted when
transmission of HIV was intended and occurs.
They are also asking that prosecutors stop
using fear tactics such as publishing names
and photos of the accused, and unduly
The gay community and online chat rooms of
Québec City are abuzz with the Biron story. While
some bloggers are denouncing Biron for putting
people at risk, other observers are pointing out
the inconsistencies in police testimony. Some
court observers argue that accusers’ and
police statements are unfounded and have
been taken at face value.
For AIDS Community Care (ACCM)’s
Alex Wysocki-Najar, “These cases are very
disturbing, because they turn into witch hunts
without anyone looking at the broader issues
at play. Most people don’t know their HIV
status,” he cautions. “Demonizing individuals
living with HIV is not creating an open dialogue
about sexual health, it’s shutting it down.”
Regarding the Biron case, ACCM contends
that the use of criminal accusations for nondisclosure elides the fact that “sex is about
shared responsibility.”
dragging people into court when they are not
criminally responsible.
“We are thinking of this as a harm reduction
strategy, because harm is being done by these
cases. If we can’t stop them, then at least by
giving guidelines we hope to address a large
proportion of cases,” said McCaskell. “So far
we have had some positive response from the
Attorney General’s office in Ontario, and as we
do consultations across the province, we hope
to build dialogue and support for the issue.”
Ottawa activist Elliott Youden feels more
needs to be done by the community, not just
in terms of criminalization, but also in terms
of public education, “People have become
complacent because of the advances in
medication, but what we have failed to
address is the stigma of being HIV positive.
We need a back to basics approach that will
emphasize prevention, while not stigmatizing
those who are HIV positive.”
Defining
Queer Issues for 2011
By Jeremy Dias
At the start of a new year, with an election looming, Jer Dias takes the
pulse of the LGBTQ issues that will be making news in the coming year.
Refugee Claims for LGBTQ People
In 2007, the Alvaro Orozco case shed light on challenges queer refugees
faced when immigrating to Canada and escaping violence, legal
prosecution, and in some cases death because of their sexual orientation.
A Nicaraguan-born youth, Orozco sought a better life in Canada,
however the Immigration & Refugee Board didn’t believe he was gay,
and rejected his request to stay in Canada. Orozco, underage at the
time, went underground, to escape deportation and death in Nicaragua.
Today he lives homeless in dire poverty on the streets of Toronto.
Orozco’s lawyer and human rights activist, El-Farouk Khaki, says that
things have only gotten worse since then. “It is not just an attack on
queer people, but an attack on the whole refugee system” says Khaki.
“We are watching this conservative government starting to restrict entry
based on a variety of factors making it harder to get into the country”.
Immigration Services are currently adopting a new model that would
remove refugees right to council, forcing them to deal directly with
a government officer. “This new procedure is so abhorrent. We are
talking about people, not cargo. How can one in 30 days of arriving
in Canada tell their whole life story to a total stranger? We are talking
about people who are escape extremely dangerous situation and
psychologically damaging situations,” says Khaki.
“And the truth is that for queer refugees it is worse. We are finding
that many immigration service officials lack real sensitivity on our
issues,” says Khaki. “Other than what is going on in the mainstream
refugee community, I don’t see much going on by our community to
help queer refugees. I feel that we, as a community, need to bring our
issues to light and act to support our bothers and sisters internationally”.
Trans Rights
With bill C-389 going to its 3rd reading in March, a new dawn for trans
rights is on the horizon. Introduced by NDP MP Bill Siksay, bill C-389 would
add gender identity and gender expression to the list of prohibited
grounds of discrimination in the Canadian Human Rights Act and to
sections of the Criminal Code that deal with hate crime and sentencing.
“For people in the transsexual and transgender community, who
regularly face discrimination and violence, they will finally see themselves
in our human rights legislation” said Bill Siksay. “They wil experience full
and equal citizenship within the law. The explicit protections offered
in C-389 will go a long way making their lives easier and assure them
protections and access to essential services, jobs and housing.”
“I am excited how it will positively impact the lives of my friends and
those I work with!” said PTS Executive Director, Claudia Van den Heuvel.
“The next battle for trans rights is the ongoing education and persuit of
celebration. It is not enough to just be tolerated. As a whole community
we want queer to be normalized like those in the straight community.”
2B Magazine
17
Disco Realness:
by Jordan Arseneault
Montrealers who lived through it knew it was the place to be.
Montrealers who survived it knew there was no way it could have lasted.
It was 1976, and for four years the centre of music and nightclub world
was a storied discothèque on rue Stanley, Le Limelight. Funkytown is a
Québec-made take on this era and its not-so-fictionalized characters.
Based on a year of meticulous research by co-producer Simon Trottier
in collaboration with Mambo Italiano writer Steve Galluccio, the film
is a Scorsese-inflected story of Montreal’s disco underbelly. Galluccio
has crafted a double story-arch where we see the fall from grace
(or is it groove?) of disco TV host and party animal Bastien Lavallée
(a grotesquely middle-aged Patrick Huard) intersecting with the rise
of nightclub owner Daniel Lefebvre (geek cutie François Létrourneau)
with a sub-plot involving the erotic awaking of closeted gay dancer
Tino, played by an adorable Justin Chatwin. If you didn’t know about
Montreal’s place in music history during an era that was dominated by
the Olympics and the foreboding 1980 referendum, Funkytown will give
you a lot of insight into the bright floor lights and dark recesses of our
city’s recent cultural past.
Talking to director Daniel Roby, the theme of dark vs. light that made
him famous with art-house vampire thriller White Skin becomes more
18 2B Magazine
apparent. “When you to see a drama, you need to see people make a
choice,” Roby says, explaining the dualistic framework of the story. While
Bastien’s family life is torn apart by drug use and his infatuation with a vapid
model, Tino’s story explores the quasi-mythic world of disco as a great gay
awakening. Seeing Chatwin stroll through the basement gay floor of the
Limelight, Roby uses slow-mo and a haunting version of “Don’t Let me
be Misunderstood” by Santa Esmeralda to draw us into the character’s
nascent desire. In stark contrast, the gritty reality of 70’s gay culture is shown
in atmospheric “under the bridge” scenes, where shadowy characters
cruise and fellate in the chiaroscuro of a cement viaduct. Originally, Roby
had intended to film the cruising scenes on Mont-Royal, which would have
been more historically accurate, but impossible to achieve budget-wise.
The result is one of the film’s most effective aesthetic elements: parallel
worlds of glamorous desire and dark decadence.
As in Jean-Marc Vallée’s C.R.A.Z.Y., 2005’s runaway homo hit about
a queer character living through the glam rock era, Funkytown boasts
a superbly chosen soundtrack of hits like “Disco Inferno” and “Daddy
Cool” by the late Boney M. Memorably, Roby has chosen newer
remakes by the likes of Florence K (“I Feel Love”) and Jully Black,
whose awesome version of “Young Hearts Run Free” accompanies a
beautifully filmed disco scene.
2B Magazine
19
As a historically accurate period piece, the film has its
successes and failures. Gay glitterati and real-life socialite
Jonathan Anderson is carried almost convincingly theatre
actor workhorse Paul Doucet, whose scenes with Chatwin
sadly lack any believable chemistry. The character of Mimi,
on the hand, is a pitch-perfect portrayal by Geneviève
Brouillette of a failing 60s francophone songstress, based
loosely on real-life diva Michelle Richard. She carries her
own subplot beautifully, triumphing over the misogynist, antiFrench and youth-obsessed disco culture in one of the film’s
strongest performances. Juno-worthy for sure.
The social and political context is a main undercurrent of
Funkytown’s relevance. Galluccio admits that the story of
the decline of disco is a thinly veiled metaphor for what he
sees as the 20-year stagnation of Montréal’s socio-economic
history in the 80s and 90s. We see the optimism of the 70s with
the 1976 Olympics (caustically shown in sex and drug scenes
at Habitat 67) and then the quick departure of Anglophone
money with the 1980 referendum. Galluccio’s trilingual
English, French and Italian story is a recreation of a time when
language politics were politics, and nonetheless the film
exemplifies a rare accuracy in that its dialogue is 60% English.
It is being released in versions with French or English subtitles,
but also an additional version where Tino and his girlfriend
are dubbed over in French in order to avoid criticism for the
Québec-made film having trop d’anglais.
As a document of a lost era, Funkytown is certainly a
must-see for Montrealers and LGBTQ history-buffs and as an
ensemble piece it holds its own. If the director had managed
to avoid some of the drawn-own sentimentalism of Huard’s
Bastien losing his family, we would have a story that would
potentially hold its own in the pop music period piece genre.
Kudos to Roby for a cinematic portrayal of gay characters
that are neither idealized nor vilified, and for giving us a
backdrop we deserve.
Funkytown hits theatres Feb. 4th.
20 2B Magazine
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21
There is an emblem of colonialism and
patriarchy in this book, with Wayne’s body as
the territory presided over by medical men,
denied autonomy, limited and controlled. But
Winter’s text resists a black-and-white reading:
some doctors are kind, and while Wayne’s
father Treadway is certainly the Master of
the Masculine, tasked with tightening up and
battening down his son in preparation for a
harsh Labradorian manhood, he turns out to
be more than a stereotypical domineering
dad. His internal tension vis-à-vis his love for
his child and his fear for that child’s future is
heartrending. And his best friend is an owl.
Some of these father scenes are so sentimental
and bathetic that they transcend questions of
good or bad, like a Jimmy Stewart movie: you
are going to choke up, don’t even try not to.
And you’re going to enjoy it.
Annabel
By Kathleen Winter
By Anna Leventhal
Wayne Blake, the protagonist of Kathleen Winter’s much-buzzed first novel Annabel, is born
in 1968, in the far reaches of Labrador, a place most of us know only as a footnote to the CBC’s
scheduling announcements, a semi-mythic, half-hour-late region. Already we are thinking, Oh
dear. Things do not bode well for young Wayne, who has both male and female genitalia,
and parents eager to give their child a “normal” life. Because they see no way to raise an
intersex person, they designate him male, and thus he is split into two – the visible Wayne, and
the hidden Annabel.
As a “perfect hermaphrodite,” Wayne is a rare creature, but his coming-of-age story is
nevertheless familiar. Annabel’s protagonist recalls in some ways Madeleine of Ann-Marie
MacDonald’s The Way The Crow Flies – a bright, awkward, dreamy kid who senses no room for
herself in the standard accoutrements of either gender. We see hints of grown-up Madeleine’s
queerness in her childhood alter-ego Mike, her theatricality, her unusual worldview, her struggle
to widen the architecture of her young life, just as Wayne’s hidden gender and sex suggest
themselves to his parents and close friend Thomasina in various ways, such as an untoward
enthusiasm for synchronized swimming. Wayne proves a compelling narrator, full of strange,
funny, and touching observations, and we watch his creativity and selfhood unfurl with held
breath, whispering “Hang in there, kid – It Gets Better.” But does it?
22 2B Magazine
Annabel is a book oddly lacking in sexuality,
given that desire would be a way of seeing
Wayne act as an agent rather than acted upon
as an object. But Wayne seems almost entirely
uninterested in fucking – understandably
enough, given the trauma imposed on his body
by forced medical procedures, hormones, and
the fear of being outed to his small community.
Still, although there are a few moments that
hint at some groiny awakenings, Wayne for the
most part seems more like a mythical creature
than a human teenager or young person.
Perhaps this is Winter’s intention; it does, at
least, succeed in surrounding Wayne with the
kind of light that shines on eunuchs, mermaids,
and forest elves.
Ultimately Annabel is a novel about selfdetermination. It’s less about Wayne’s search
for “the truth” than about the development of
his inner life, which is rich and manifold, and his
struggle to find a way of living it authentically
in the external world. The truth is, none of us
knows what any of us is going to turn out like,
and that’s always a story worth telling.
House of Anansi
461 pages
$32.95
2B Magazine
23
Krakow
is Burning
An interview with Montréal novelist
Daniel Allen Cox
By Michael Hawrysh
After the success of his debut novel Shuck, Montréal novelist Daniel
Allen Cox offers up a racy and bold novel about a queer Polish
pyromaniac seeking social justice and the sort of purification that only
fire can bring. This tall dark and handsome writer met up with 2B to talk
about his latest work.
The novel was inspired by some intense experiences on both sides
of the Atlantic. Cox spent a couple of years teaching English in
Poland. ‘’I fell in love with the country,’’ he says. ‘’I saw some major
social upheaval and was very, very moved by it.’’ The most moving
experience, perhaps, was witnessing the public reaction to the death
of the Polish Pope John Paul II. ‘’It was nuts. The country basically
shut down. There was an unofficial but very clear national mourning.
Everything closed for a week. People were wearing black armbands.
There were candles everywhere blocking traffic. I found the whole
thing very beautiful.’’
As a former Jehovah`s Witness, religion has had a great impact on his work and his life. ‘’Religion has had a very interesting role in my life. A
role which makes it impossible for me not to think of the relationship between one`s sexuality and one`s religious upbringing.When asked about
Québec, he says, ‘’There is definitely a waning Catholic influence here. I don`t see it waning in Poland.’’
The beauty of the public reaction to the death of the pope however, was juxtaposed by the overwhelming homophobia in the
country. ‘’One night at Poznan’s only gay club, which was at the edge of town and had no sign, three men accosted me after I
kissed a guy on the dance-floor. They were yelling something and pointing at their heads. I didn’t know what this meant, so I asked
someone. They were signalling ‘are you stupid?’ which meant I was stupid for kissing a guy in front of ostensibly straight men. ‘’
“I had sex with men who couldn’t tell a single person what we did. Those experiences, in part, are what drove me to write Krakow Melt. It’s
much worse for queers who live there permanently, who have to deal with homophobia and transphobia that is so systematic.”
24 2B Magazine
The second catalyst for his latest work was when his Montréal
apartment building burned to the ground in 2007. ‘’It`s amazing to
lose so much of what you have. My partner and I were able to salvage
much of our personal belongings. It was a cathartic experience to
decide what to take and what not to take. The firefighters gave us
10 minutes to take our stuff. The fact that I didn`t save any books
is shocking. I saved photographs, scrapbooks given to me and
underwear. It was fall so it was a little chilly. All of our friends came to
our rescue. It was the greatest experience in the last few years for me.
Within a week of the fire I was working on Krakow Melt. The first draft
was done in a feverish 20 days, working about 12 hours a day.”
Though his novel is undoubtedly queer, it focuses on a kind of love
story between a man and a woman. ‘’I enjoy writing characters who
are queer allies. That notion of allies for the queer movement is very
important. The ally factor is very appreciated.’’
Krakow Melt has been described as a sort of call to arms. ‘’I see it
more as a call to awareness. To raise a bit more awareness of social
justice issues outside of North America. I think this is one of the effects
the novel has had. We have a tendency to be insular in North America.
It`s important to me to look at the scope of queer rights issues. I just
wanted to bring one to light that doesn`t get a lot of press.``
A Montrealer born and raised, this shines through in his novel. ‘’The
main character considers French to be the language of his own
liberation.’’ Cox, whose ancestor`s name was actually Cock – he
jokes, ‘’I come from the Cock family’’ with a mischievous grin came
back to Montréal after years in New York and Poland. ‘’I always come
back here. Friends, family, affordable housing.’’ When asked if he`ll
write a novel that takes place in our fair city, he replies, ‘’No plans for
right now, but that`s a good idea..’’
Krakow Melt is published by Arsenal Pulp Press.
Krakow
Melt
Review
By Michael Hawrysh
Krakow Melt is daring, poetic and charmingly vulgar. The protagonist, Radek, is a bisexual artist and radical obsessed with building replicas of
some of the world`s greatest fires – Chicago 1871, San Francisco 1906, London 1666 – and burning them to the ground. He meets his match in
Dorota, a young literature student and fellow pyromaniac. The novel takes place in Poland in 2005, at a time when the country is redefining its
place in Europe and mourning the loss of the Polish pope. Cox contrasts the religious repression of the cold war era with the violent homophobia
of present day Poland. Cox’s writing style is vivid and unapologetic, whether describing a particularly graphic love scene between two elephants
or a violent and defiant gay pride march in Krakow. It`s a tale of personal and sexual liberation, of lovers in a tumultuous time. Krakow melt is
bold, unforgettable and certainly not 2B missed.
© www.dallascurow.com
2B Magazine
25
Welcome to LA!
Who’s Your Daddy?
By Jay Quint
Having told my editor about the three-week vacation I booked to Los
Angeles, I knew would have to come up with a compelling story to write
about from there. I had lived in LA a couple of years, and have retained
a handful of sceney, West Hollywood friends who enjoy a healthy dose
of debauchery, so I knew that I would surely find myself in a number of
idea-inspiring situations to regail you with.
Thankfully, LA was just as I remembered and loved it. There was
Fabio — quintessential romance-novel cover model — lifting weights
at the Hollywood gym, and Janice Dickinson at the makeup counter of
Barney’s in Beverly Hills. There was Queen Latifa rolling up to Urth Café on
Melrose in her Rolls Royce. The Santa Monica Blvd./Robertson area was
also as I remembered — the drunken gay boys, and twinks in leggings
and makeup scrambling to find the after party. The other topics that
sprang to mind for my article included: Gogo Dancers: Why are all of the
Hot Ones Straight?, and Hot Tub Hygiene: When is it finally time to Drain?
My gracious friend, CSI actor and star of the 2010 gay-comedy Bear
City, Gerald McCullouch (yes, I’m name dropping!), invited me to attend
Daddy, a play in which he “intensely and gracefully” renders the role of
a forty-something newspaper columnist who begins a romance with a
twenty-one year old office intern. As I watched the story unfold on the
stage in front of me, I realized that the daddy/son relationship had been
one of the overarching themes of my own vacation. Hot young boys
with rich daddies were absolutely everywhere in Hollywood! I’d never
seen it so pervasive — and I lived in Miami, hotbed of young tanned
prostitutes and fashion-unsavvy, Tommy Bahama-wearing gentlemen.
In LA, however, the daddy/son relationships were unapologetically
public, and in your face.
The plethora of websites devoted to intergenerational daddy/son
relationships reflects their popularity. Bob H. Hawkins, a writer who
has worked for an online gay dating service for several years, asserts
that some younger guys have always been attracted to older men,
finding them as “more sophisticated, experienced, and level-headed
than guys their age… some are actually out for real relationships, and
money-grubbing is the last thing on their minds.” Father hunger may be
at play here, as many gay men experience a painful distance from their
fathers, resulting in men who have some of their most basic father needs
unmet. In a conscious manner, some gay men seek out older, dominant
26 2B Magazine
© www.inkedkenny.com
men, who can serve as mentors. Other men crave the dominance
and submission found in Daddy-boy dynamics, seeking to be initiated
and guided into deeper parts of their masculine psyche, while others
seek the mature masculine nurturance, intimacy and mentorship. On
the other hand, some older men express feeling more comfortable
with younger, more energetic and optimistic partners.
Whether for deeply psychological reasons, or purely superficial ones,
LA’s a good place to be if you’re a son seeking a daddy, or daddy
seeking a son. I’ll be corresponding on intergenerational and other
relations from the hot tubs and pink carpets of my soon-to-be new
home in the issues ahead.
Feedback: [email protected]
2B Magazine
27
SEX, SONG, AND
SEGREGATION:
Spotlight on Artist and Filmmaker
John Greyson at Cinema Politca
By Jordan Arseneault
Talking to John Greyson is strangely similar to conversing with a very
smart and accomplished teenager. Although he currently teaches film
and video at York University, this artist, filmmaker and activist has been
fuelled by a passion for rebellion and critique for nearly 30 years, and is
showing no sign of letting up.
For mainstream and gay audiences alike, Greyson is perhaps most
famous for his 1996 art-house success Lilies, based on Québec playwright
Michel-Marc Bouchard’s Les feluettes, ou un drame romantique. He
long ago found a place in the Canadian film canon through his breakthrough media-critical AIDS musical Zero Patience (1993), and was
making headlines again in 2009 for his highly publicized boycott of
the Toronto International Film Festival in protest against their honouring
the Israeli city of Tel Aviv. He had removed his ultra-bizarre feature
length opera-mentary Fig Trees from the TIFF selection in solidarity with
occupied Palestine and as part of the Toronto-based Queers Against
Israeli Apartheid, of which he is a vocal member.
AIDS, doomed love (both Lilies and 2003’s Proteus tackle that one), and radical social justice struggles have informed Greyson’s continual
reinvention of his own film style and content. With the TIFF boycott of Fig Trees, Greyson put an international spot-light on what was considered
a fringe group within both queer and Middle-East activism in the West. And then there was the parade, followed shortly by Greyson’s capacitycrowd presentation at the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions conference that took place in Montréal last November. This month, Cinema
Politica is presenting a programme of Greyson’s short films in a screening called Sex, Song, and Segregation: we enjoyed a rare phone date with
him to talk about radical film-making and his upcoming projects.
Radical Juxtaposition
Excerpts from the sometimes inscrutable Fig Trees will feature in the Cinema Politica programme. In this controversy-steeped film, Greyson
inserts David Wall’s operatic score for Gertrude Stein’s Four Saints in Three Acts into a double-documentary about Canadian Tim McCaskell
and South African Zackie Achmat, both AIDS activists in parallel contexts. It is a sweeping example of an aesthetic Greyson attributes to Susan
Sontag’s ‘Happenings: An Art of Radical Juxtaposition’ in which the activist documentary is abruptly edited around segments of a modernist
opera. Yes, it it that weird, and seemingly far astray from his narrative feature length works like Uncut and Lilies.
‘Narrative cinema has been a funny occasional stop on a trajectory that is most interested in radical politics and visual arts,’ explains Greyson,
describing some of his recent short-video and pop-song remakes that he has made in support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS)
movement. He’ll be showing some of these in the Feb 28th programme, including Vuvuzela, a World Cup-themed satire about Israel’s 2010 attack on
a flotilla attempting to bring aid to Gaza. Many of the short films feature the musical magic of long-time collaborator David Wall, whose satirical riffs on
28 2B Magazine
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29
Still from Fig Trees © John Greyson
Björk and Elton John oppose the celebrity musicians in support of Palestine
against those who refuse to join the boycott as if they were soccer teams
in a World Cup game. His wide span of references are mashed together to
make viral video works that are entertaining, but still bear the inscrutable
mark of an underground provocateur.
Does he ever let up the politics and just do a movie? As far as his proPalestine work is concerned, no. ‘It’s exhausting to be in the eye of the
storm, but it’s rich and it’s engaging,’ he admits. ‘I realized pretty early
on that the issue wasn’t gonna let go of me. We all have responsibilities
as citizens to take a stand on public issues. There’s ways we can take
stands, I’m trying to use my tools and resources and skills to contribute
as a working artist to raising awareness.’
To keep his work responsive and radical, Greyson takes a cue from
inspirational Québécois art-star Robert Lepage, whose process Greyson
credits for his workshop-based practice. While doing groundwork for a
new piece, this cineaste will typically do installation work, documentary
research and visual or performative piece to solicit feedback and
dialogue that further feeds his work.
30 2B Magazine
And what’s next for this teenaged film prodigy trapped in the manly
body of a 49 year-old artist? The answer is a short film called Bieber
Discovers BDS, a satire condemning the tween pop star for keeping a
performance date in Tel Aviv later this year. Performance artist Chelsea
Lichtman is slated to play both Bibi (Benjamin Netanyahu) and Bieber.
And whenever that’s wrapped up, Greyson will be continuing work on
his next feature, Jericho, a film about the Palestine situation spliced with
references to penguin marriage and divorce. Luckily for his loyal queer
audiences, Greyson’s radical juxtapositions show no sign of letting
up. See you at the Hall Cinema Feb 28th, and this time I promise to let
someone else have the mic first for the Q&A.
Sex, Song, and Segregation, Monday Febr uary 28, 2011, 7pm
Room H-110, Concordia University, 1455 de Maisonneuve West
Check out Cinema Politica’s programme:
http://www.cinemapolitica.org/greyson
Greyson’s “Vuvuzela”:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI1y5pQE798
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31
«Good Gets Better» frontispiece © Daniel Barrow
Daniel Barrow:
Good Gets Better
by Jordan Arseneault
It’s been a fabulous year for Montreal-based
artist Daniel Barrow.
© Valérie Sangin
32 2B Magazine
After moving here in 2009, the Winnipeg-bred
creator has made a big splash in his newfound
home, winning the coveted Sobey Art Award last
November, in a gala presentation at the Musée
d’Art contemporain. In awarding Barrow the
$50,000 prize (Canada’s biggest contemporary
art prize), the curatorial panel praised his virtuoso
performances for “transforming the abject into
the sublime, heartbreak into redemption.” We
sat down with Daniel to ask him about this very
gay theme in his work, the trappings of success,
and to celebrate his recent win.
2B Magazine
33
We asked him about the melancholy themes
in his work, where he often speaks in the voice
of a character caught out of time, or longing
for something lost. “I’m drawn to create
characters that are really intelligent, really
introspective, but also really fucked up, and
who have really interesting ideas about sex,
love, death, and God—and sort through those
ideas in ways that are funny but really poignant
and tragic.”
His next show, “Good Gets Better” will be on
at the Belgo’s SBC Gallery with a vernissage on
February 12th. It will be his first solo exhibition
in Montreal and will feature a performance of
“Everytime I See Your Picture I Cry” on March
16 at the MAC at 7pm. And what of this stellar
success? “I really don’t think I’ve made it yet.
You have to remember that I went to school
with Marcel Dzama and Michael Dumontier.
Success is very relative.” That being said, with a
wry smile Barrow divulges that he was recently
scouted to be on NBC’s America’s Got Talent,
«Self-portrait: Gay Secrets» © Daniel Barrow only to politely decline because, well, he’s not
American.
Unless you caught the show at the MAC, or at last year’s Radical Queer Soirée, where Barrow
performed “Looking for Love in the Hall of Mirrors,” it may be difficult to imagine just what he’s
doing to get all this attention. His performances consist of a kind of live animation which he
performs by moving transparencies of his drawings on an overhead projector; at the same
time, he tells a story in first person, often addressing themes of love, loss, homosexuality, and
cultural history. Daniel and his fanciful drawings have made the rounds of festivals and art
galleries around the world, from New York’s PS1 to the National Gallery of Canada with titles
like “Every Time I See Your Picture I cry to his recent “Learning to Breathe Under Water.”
34 2B Magazine
In a departure from the live projection genre
(where he is virtually in a class of his own),
Barrow is launching a book of drawings entitled
No One Helped Me at Drawn & Quarterly on
Feb 24. “I’d like my work to be more up-beat,”
he insists, although somehow I feel Daniel’s
sense of humour will always be tinged with that
kind of witty sadness that the intellectual gay
man knows all too well.
www.danielbarrow.com
www.sbcgallery.ca
www.drawnandquarterly.com
2B Magazine
35
Galerie Dentaire’s
Outsider Artist
Self-taught Painter
Jean-Pascal
Fournier
By Jordan Arseneault
The status of “outsider artist” is one which cannot be sought, but
is typically lived and bestowed on its maker. For February, Amherst’s
Galerie Dentaire will be showing the joyfully vulnerable work of actor/
dramatist Jean-Pascal Fournier, whose colours and subjects offer a
refreshing break from the norm.
«École de nuit» © Jean-Pascal Fournier
At his studio home on rue St-Denis, Fournier showed 2B a sneak-peak of
the original works that will make up his upcoming show Coeurs bricolés
(“Crafted Hearts”). Drawing inspiration from Francis Bacon, JeanMichel Basquiat and Québec neosymbolist Dominic Besner, Fournier
paints with a naïve combination of crayon, graphite, acrylic paint and
graffiti techniques, often depicting faces, ageless, weakened bodies,
and bird motifs. In the show’s poster image, a detail from “L’École de la
nuit,” a character who appears to be a wheel chair faces away from
a child-like figure in swirls of pink, blue and crayon.
The fragility of Fournier’s figures is a vivid contrast to the acrylic works of male torsos which so often adore the walls of Village art galleries. The
key to this difference lies in the artist’s first passion: theatre. In his one-man company K/O, or in his ensemble works with local troupe Joe, Jack &
John, Fournier creates dramatic movement pieces that consistently include actors with intellectual disabilities (for 2010’s OFFTA, he produced
Just Fake It, featuring a collaborator and actor with Down’s syndrome). The interiority of his icon-like like faces seem to stem from an empathic
attention to humanity in vulnerable states of disconnection from their environment, as if they were floating in a self-made dream world.
On the topic of buying art, Fournier offered a personal take on what his own collection entails Ils m’aident à vivre (They help me live—or
stay alive). Ideally, Founier wants his work to instill “The idea that you can create from nothing. You can appreciate life and find influence from
anything in the world.”
Jean-Pascal Fournier Coeurs bricolés – Galerie Dentaire
1239 Amherst (Feb 2 to March 21)
Opening Sat. Feb 5th, 2011. www.galeriedentaire.com
36 2B Magazine
2B Magazine
37
A Touch of Class
in the Heart
of Straight
Darkness
By Tom McGraw
It is easy to assume that at one point or another be it for a birthday/work event/
or desperation for a drink, that most inhabitants of this fair city have been subject
to the train wreck spectacle that is the hetro-anglo-centric nightlife of Crescent
and its surrounding areas. Though, hidden away amongst the glitz and the trashy,
a few gems do shine and on principle should be supported, if only for their sheer
dedication to being queer friendly venues but also for their ability to be somewhere
people want to go despite the neighbours. Here are two examples
Le Gourmet
Burger
Kafein
© legourmetburger.com
A good burger may always be the great
equalizer between the rich and the poor, as
everyone can enjoy one but the quality of the
venue defines its clientele. This is why gourmet
simplicity sounds like an oxymoron, but in fact
it’s the right idea the patrons of le gourmet
burger have the choice to make their meal as
simple or posh as they so please and enjoy the
whole thing (and some sweet potato fries) in
an upscale establishment. Be it classic beef,
chicken or vegetarian, Le Gourmet Burger has
something to please any palate because quite
honestly you can be as picky as you please...
so get your eat on Montreal!
Le Gourmet Burger
1433B rue Bishop
514.435.3535
Legourmetburger.com
38 2B Magazine
© César Ochoa
Like a phoenix from the ashes (or more
aptly like the ark after the flood) the newly
renovated Kafien has once again manifested
itself as the place to stop in for a quick after
work cocktail and then be baffled when
you are asked if you want anything for last
call. Existing as a tear in the fabric of space
and time is no easy task, though much of the
credit can be attributed to the men slinging
cocktails behind the bar.
The team of Chris (razor whit) Whitlow and
man about town Brad Yaeger are always
© César Ochoa
concocting up new ways to tantalize your
taste buds while giving you a thousand reasons
to stay. Mr. Whitlow who continues to raise the
bar of fashion for the district manages to keep
the drinks coming, know the full life story of every
regular in the place and do the whole thing
while nonchalantly sporting footwear worth
more than a small car. I am not alone in the
discovery of this hidden gem as most nights of
week the bar is full of hip young professional and
students drinking away the day’s troubles. The
5 à 7 is the perfect time to over hear someone
adamantly praising the new Betsy Johnson
collection or debating Gender theory in soviet
cinema. Never boring and always welcoming
Kafien just might be the place to come after
hard day of downtown hustle and bustle. If
your near Bishop feel free to walk in and order
a ridiculously elaborate cocktail, bask in the
conversation and let the day fade away.
Kafein
1429A rue Bishop
514.904.6969
2B Magazine
39
The Flamingo:
Filling the Glamour Gap
By 2B Staff
It’s not every day that you actually go out
of town for a bar opening, but last Jan 27 was
one such day, when 2B went on the road to
take a sneak peak at the sexy new Flamingo.
Billing itself as “Ottawa’s new destination for
the gay and fabulous,” the bar’s chic interior
and swank hosts have used none of the kitsch
references of pink flamingos or anything so
obvious. A toile wallpapered raised lounge,
two glowing blue bars, a covered (and
heated!) smoking patio and floor-lit stage
stand out against a very contemporary black,
metal and wood design.
For opening night, producer and event
designer Sébastien Provost had all hands on
deck, with an army of staff who were all very
willing to please (and easy on the eyes). And
he brought out le tout Ottawa, from NGO
homo and 2B collaborator Jer Dias (pictured)
to Conservative House Speaker John Baird.
40 2B Magazine
Ottawa Wolves court photographer Dan
Ziemkiewicz was in attendance, along with
a young, diverse, and handsome crowd. 2B
coverboy DJ B’UGO kept the place hopping
from his DJ perch, starting a residency there
the last Saturday of the month called STRUT
that will promise to bring out a lot of music
lovers and fashionistas.
Unlike most gay bars in Ottawa, the Flamingo
Bar/Lounge will feature distinct programming
each night it’s open: live jazz and blues on
Fridays for the happy hour crowd, a line-up of
local and outta town DJs and entertainers on
Saturdays, and drag queens/ impersonators
on Sundays. “We want to shape the gay
nightlife scene by bridging our two sister cities,
Montreal and Toronto,” says Provost, “and
bringing a little big city to Ottawa.”
“Ottawa hasn’t had a bar like this before
with the mix of professional live entertainment,
dance, and cocktail hour,” says Provost. “We
won’t be going the bottle service route, and
we definitely won’t be doing the $1 shooters.
We’ll be filling the gap in the middle, and
we know from our research that this is what
Ottawa’s nightlife needs.”
Provost promises it will only get better. “It is
more than just a gay bar, this will be a cool
and contemporary space that will be different
every night you walk in” says Provost. We were
sad to find out that we were missing Pierre
Fitch, who performed a week later (and rarely
performs in Montreal, at least publically). This
month, expect surprises including Huston drag
sensation Lawanda Jackson, and international
DJ Shawn Riker. The Flamingo is a chic space
with cute staff, great DJs, and just that little
extra to make you feel like you’re in a space
that’s as fabulous as you are. See you there!
The Flamingo
380 Elgin St
theflamingo.ca
2B Magazine
41
Rustic main dishes of rabbit with lobster mousse and a disassembled
seafood casserole were the kind of tasty winter food that you would
enjoy most after a day of cross-country skiing, which is another of the
Inn’s main attractions—the driveway ends where the Gatineau Park
ski trail begins. Looking out on a vertical rock face with clinging snow
and low-hanging hardwoods, we sat back and were dazzled by an
ingenious dessert dégustation of deep-fried spiced truffle (OMG, again)
and melt-in-your-mouth chocolate cake pieces. It was clear that Chef
Riva’s more experimental dishes truly stood out: it’s the kind of food that
seems to alter your brain chemistry, but only with ultra-fresh ingredients.
Rustic Oasis
Wakefield Mill Inn & Spa
After a dinner like that, you can enjoy live music in the bar, or at
one of the other establishments in the village (i.e. the Blake Sheep Inn),
but really, the feeling you get most of all is “I don’t want to leave.”
You crawl into bed after a long bath in one of the giant tubs to be
found in every room, where a plate of freshly plated macaroons with
blackberries awaits you, and enjoy the silence of the Old Mill and its
tastefully simple rooms. Natural wood, cream and yellow hues soothe
the senses with many rooms bearing the original raw stone. Without
veering into anything too modern, the décor keeps your mind at ease
and lets you enjoy that sense of safety you get from being in an old
stone building.
But it wouldn’t be an Inn without breakfast, and here we found
more attention to detail and comfort. A buffet for the busier guests
and a menu for the loungers (ok, so maybe my hair was still wet from
the outdoor hot tub), the service was overseen by Montréal transplant
Michel, the energetic and friendly maître d. Hilary Clinton had just been
there for the North American Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in December,
and we got to hear about the Inn’s brush with The Fame. On our tour
of the grounds the next day, our gregarious guide Tasha informs us that
the adjacent cemetery is the final resting place of late Canadian Prime
Minister Lester B. Pearson, after whom so much is named. “Was he from
here?” I ask, to which she replied, without missing a beat, “No, but he
stayed here.” And with this scenery, service, and Micha, I would too.
Overnight stay with the superb table d’hôte and breakfast starting
at $152
www.wakefieldmill.com
60 Mill Road
Wakefield, Quebec
Canada, J0X 3G0
[email protected]
Tel: 819-459-1838
© [email protected]
By Jordan Arseneault
There are few places in the Ottawa-Gatineau area as charming as
Wakefield. A word so often used in describing similar places would
be “nestled,” but in this case it’s more fitting than usual: built around
an estuary on the Gatineau River, the town is surrounded by rolling
protective hills that make it seem like you’re entering a hidden hamlet
from another era. With its quaint covered bridge and proximity to
Gatineau Park, the village and surrounding forest make you feel
instantly distanced from whatever highways or cities you came from
that day, even though you’re only 25 minutes outside of Ottawa. And,
as in the 19th century, the focal point is the mill, built beside a natural
waterfall that gushes over granite rocks.
The historic 19th-centry mill was converted in 2000 into a beacon of
hospitality by Wakefield locals Lynn Berthiaume and Robert Milling, who
have tastefully maintained the pre-existing structure and added natural
wood and stone extensions over the years. A curved stone veranda
extends from the foundation, where a year-round outdoor hot tub relaxes
spa and hotel visitors year-round, with the addition of a solarium in the
restaurant area being the only outward signs of 20th-century construction.
42 2B Magazine
While we were there, we got to take a look at a third building in the
Mill’s cluster, a 13-room “green” guesthouse and spa structure that looks
over the River above the falls and will open in May, 2011 (a green roof,
geothermal heating and a group spa are part of the plan).
OMG Micha!
Although it is impossible to forget the setting and the quietude that
reign in this special place, when you find yourself enjoying the table
d’hôte at the Inn’s restaurant, your mind is only able to focus on one
thing: the fabulous food. Chef Romain Riva was launching a new
menu when we visited, and our sweet and snappy server Loan was
eager to ask how we liked it. My dapper colleague and I were unable
to keep a straight face during the appetizer course, which was frankly
mind-blowing. While he enjoyed an assemblage of foie gras with crispy
spiced bread and cider sorbet (you will die), I went for the somewhat
gayer “Micha,” a superlative dish that I will never forget. A platesized ravioli stuffed with fresh herbs and Floralpe cheese, luxuriating in
a gorgeous purple Grand Marnier sauce and served with cranberry
“cream jam,” topped off by— wait for it— a piece of delectable dark
chocolate. The warmed baguette and excellent olive oil with rock salt
were helpful in wiping up the remaining sauce.
2B Magazine
43
Eye for style
New eye wear looks from
Antoine Laoun & Warby Parker
© Keith Race
Dar
44 2B Magazine
Diana
Mike
2B Magazine
45
For Eye for Style, Stylist Heather Lewenza joined us for the shoot with
our darling photographer Keith Race. Many thanks to contributor Mike
Harwysh, local queer photographer Diana, and our new friend Dar for
being such good sports for “Eye for Style,” our picks from the next season’s
coolest eye wear.
All frames were graciously lent by Antoine Laoun and Warby Parker.
Dar wears “Fillmore” in Revolver Black by Warby Parker(p. 44), Alain Mikli
mod. 1001, & “Roosevelt” in Bondi Blue by Warby Parker (p.45)
Diana wears “Von Ker Ing” shades by LA EYEWORKS (p.44 from Antoine
Laoun), Monocle (p.45), “Fillmore” (p.46), and “Huxley” in Tennessee
Whisky (p.48) by Warby Parker
Mike wears “Fillmore” in Sandlewood Matte by Warby Parker (p. 44 +
45), DSQUARED mod. 031 aviator shades from Antoine Laoun (p.46), and
“Roosevelt” in Revolver Black (p. 48) by Warby Parker
Alain Mikli, LA EYEWORKS, and DSQUARED available at
www.antoinelaoun.com
(700, rue Ste-Catherine Ouest, 514-866-5050 and other locations).
Warby Parker is an online brand with offices in New York and San Francisco.
They currently fill prescriptions and ship to Canada as well:
www.warbyparker.com
46 2B Magazine
2B Magazine
47
48 2B Magazine
2B Magazine
49
Homo Social Network:
Not about who you are,
offending user.” So, bonus: you can find upwardly mobile gays in
your area. Draw-back: greater potential for surveillance. You win
some privates, you lose some privacy.
but where you are
The future of Grindr (There’s more?)
While a large portion of us gays reply exclusively on the net to
cruise/meet guys, it might seem like only a matter of time before
Simkhai and his co-horts would come up with a similar blueprint for
the straights and lesbians, right? Well all our het and lesbian readers
can breathe a collective sigh of relief – Grindr is a game everyone
can play.
A chat with Grindr’s CEO/Founder
Joel Simkai
“We currently have a feedback form on Grindr.com, and we
receive a large amount of requests for a straight and lesbian version
of Grindr,” says Simkhai. “Our goal is to be able to provide the
Grindr service to everyone - men, women, straight, gay, anywhere
in the world. Everyone wonders to themselves, who and what are
around me?”
By Danny Légaré
The hills are alive with the sound of grindr-ing. Millions of gay
smartphone users are now being connected via Grindr, a social
networking tool that iPhone (and now Blackberry) users can download
into their trusty technological sidekicks. It acts as software that can
instantly connect gay men with gay men within a geographical
boundary, thus coining the phrase ‘geosocial networking’. It’s like
that diligent fag hag that fits effortlessly into your back pocket, with
no cock-block to be found. Grindr’s CEO/Founder Joel Simkhai has
created something with Grindr that no online website has yet been
able to invoke: a self-revealing network of gay men seeking other gay
men. And it does this all in the comfort of the palm of the hand.
Location, location, location
“The idea for Grindr came about because I started getting frustrated
with all the other dating websites and with the idea of “Why is location
not a higher priority?” says Simkhai. “You can search based on city,
but what about the guy that’s in the same room, building, or across
the street?”
While this concept seemed easy enough to tackle and put into
action, there were obstacles. “The technology to solve this issue wasn’t
available,” he continues. “Then the second generation iPhone came
out in June 2008.Three major changes were announced — one was
GPS, another was the App Store, and the last one was iPhone SDK
which was the software language to write these apps in an easy way.
These three innovations allowed us to create Grindr.”
With the technology in place, it was just a matter of time before the
application went viral and the gay online dating community appeared
anxiously awaiting a new era that would bring forth a new, easier vessel
to feed that quick hook-up fix.
And the response has been huge, not just in gay inches. Simkhai
has hooked up over one million gays on the global cruising front, yet
he seemed surprised at Grindr’s quick ascension, towering over the
Manhunt’s and Montreal’s choice of online cruising site, gay411.com,
50 2B Magazine
The answer to this and other decidedly non-existential questions
may or may not be found on Grindr, since at the moment it will only
show you who else is around with a smart-phone like yours. One
trend to watch out for: gay guys going out to clubs wearing yellow
to identify themselves as Grindr-users. They may also be the ones
with apparent ADD, texting their next potential date while they ask
you whether you’re on it.
For the complete world of Grindr: www.grindr.com
as they scrambled to produce reasonable hand-drawn facsimiles. “I
also never expected it would be used worldwide in 180 countries or
that our users would use it so much, with currently about 243,000 users
logging on every day.”
La gaie province
Having to adjust to Montreal’s rugged bilingual terrain didn’t even
make Simkhai blink an eye as Grindr’s programming code seems to
respond to any obstacle that might stand in its way of ruling the 3G
airwaves with a lubed glove. “You don’t need to speak English to use
Grindr,” he says. “The fact that the Grindr experience is largely intuitive
makes it possible for someone who doesn’t speak English to be able to
be able to figure out how to use Grindr within seconds, which is part of
the app’s appeal and this simplicity is something we want to keep.”
The perils of getting lost and found on Grindr
With a million Grindr users in tow, there were bound to be glitches in the
system. One anonymous user is adamant to admit that while Grindr is the
first app he opens on a daily basis, it did have some growing pains along
the way. “I found my profile planted in the middle of the Pacific Ocean
on this tiny island – approximately 6000 kilometers from my next-door
neighbors in Montreal!” he says. “This went on for awhile and was quite the
kick in the nuts since the app prides itself on using GPS-driven technology.”
Speaking of nuts, showing your junk is forbidden on the Grindr platform,
yet the app comes across as a cruising site because nudity and profanity
isn’t an issue in the private chats that ensue on it. So, is Grindr a social
network like Facebook or just an enabler for a hot romp? The creators
of Grindr say it’s up to the user to decide which route to take. For those
users who stumble across an ill-fated stalker who takes things a tad
too far, Grindr’s got your back. “There is an added benefit to location
identification,” Simkhai says. “If someone engages in illegal activity on our
network, Grindr cooperates fully with authorities to identify and locate the
2B Magazine
51
Not Your Uncle’s
Black Party:
Roseland
Resurrection
by 2B Staff
Resurrection is the symbolically loaded
theme of this year’s Black Party, the annual
springtime ritual that takes place this year
at New York City’s Roseland Ballroom from
Saturday night, March 19, into mid-afternoon
of the next day. The creative team at The
Saint-at-Large is planning an explosive blend
of light, décor and music to create an 18-hour
journey that encapsulates the Spring Equinox’s
cosmic triumph of renewal.
“A sense of danger is an essential part of
the party,” says young Adam Koch, 26, a
theater designer whose creative vision will
transform Roseland a second year in a row.
Koch compares his work to Montréal’s own
Black & Blue, which he attended last October:
“There, it’s about the music and lights. The
mystique and magic of the Black Party is
making someone feel transported. As he walks
into Roseland, it should be like walking into a
movie.”
The party traces its roots to the Saint, the
legendary gay disco that thrived in New York’s
East Village in the 1980s. Impresario Bruce
Mailman grandly conceived of the Black Party
as a recreation of a mystical cult ritual in which
pagan men spent the night of the Equinox
wearing animal skins and dancing ecstatically
to drumbeats to guarantee a good planting
season. Hence the Black Party’s “Rites XXXII”
tag name.
The Black Party has responded to the
sophisticated taste of its patrons moving
from a generic leather-themed event to one
that allows more of a sense of play and the
escapism of fetishes. “We made a conscious
decision to give it some context, because the
leather scene was important in its time but
doesn’t relate to a new generation,” he says.
“Fetishes can be sexy. Fetishes evolve. It’s not
your uncle’s Black Party.”
52 2B Magazine
That carries over into the party’s most
notorious aspect, its “strange live acts.” On
a side stage, partygoers have witnessed
everything from a live adult circumcision to
an erotic coupling with a boa constrictor.
Pool balls, firecrackers, food, hot wax and
body fluids are only some of the props that
performers have used to act out all manner
of role playing. Mike Peyton, a well-known
advocate for New York’s fetish scene, also sees
the party moving away from simple leather —
although many, if not most, of the attendees
adhere to dress (or undress) in leather gear.
“We’re returning to stranger live acts,” asserts
Saint-at-Large director Stephen Pevner, “not
go-go boys, no costumed nuns. We’re getting
a major porn producer to coordinate it.”
For the crucial hours from 10 a.m. until
the lights go up around 6 p.m., the Saint-atLarge has managed to snag Danny Tenaglia.
Tenaglia’s set will encompass the Morning
Music, prettier, more tuneful songs that bring
the crowd gently down after the explosive
energy earlier. The party traditionally closes
with a “Sleaze” set, when the music gets slow
and sensual.
Understandably, the production costs have
gone up a lot, but the Saint-at-Large has
managed to keep the price down. This year,
it is offering a reduced price after 9 a.m. for
those who want to experience the Morning
Music (and get a good night’s sleep). For
those traveling from out of town, there is also
a partnership with the Hudson, New York’s
chicest boutique hotel, only a 10-minute walk
to Roseland.
Black Party Expo
The Black Party has always stood alone as a
one-night-only event — no corporate sponsorship,
no party passes, no tea dance. The underground
vibe is part of what makes it so special. But for the
second year, the Black Party Expo extends the
concept into Saturday afternoon — and, new
this year, Friday evening as well.
“Besides Pride, this is New York’s biggest
weekend,” Peyton says. “It’s not an official
holiday weekend, but it has taken that shape
in the gay community. The Expo reinforces that
weekend and makes it even bigger.” Exhibitors
include purveyors of lubricants, sex toys and
clothes; porn producers; book publishers;
erotic art and jewelry makers; and relevant
organizations. The event benefits New York’s
LGBT Center.
Black Party Expo producer Matt Humphrey
promises even more porn stars, continuous live
acts, more giveaways and raffles, and more
general craziness. Rentboy.com, for example, will
be setting up a bed populated by some of its most
prized commodities, the rent boys themselves.
New this year will be the addition of the
Hookies. Traditionally held on the Friday night
before this Black Party, this year it is being
held at the Expo. Produced by Rentboy.com,
it’s a perfect marriage of themes, with the
Expo providing the perfect backdrop for the
male escorts who will be awarded prizes in
categories like Best Ass, Best Daddy 40+ and
Best Fetish Escort. The top prize will be awarded
to one of the winners of regional contests from
around the world who are being flown to New
York for the occasion.
The Black Party’s unparalleled celebration of
sexuality, music, and freedom will be shaking
the walls at the Roseland Ballroom, 239 West
52nd Street, NYC, from March 18-20. For more
information on the Party and the Expo:
www.blackparty.com
www.blackpartyexpo.com
www.thehookies.com
Group bookings: 800-606-6090 www.saintatlarge.com/travel/
2B Magazine
53
Hot Spots
For up-to-date events info, check out:
www.2bmag.com/montreal-events
Feb 11 + 12
Festival Massimadi: Showing the
invisible. For a third year during Black
History Month, Arc en ciel d’Afrique
presents a festival about the reality of
LGBT black communities from across
the globe. Feb 11, 7:30pm Children
of God + Feb 12, 2pm Une vie interdite (NFB, 1564 St-Denis, $5 PWYC).
www.arcencieldafrique.org/massimadi
Sat. Feb 19th
Nuit Blanche. Check out the corridors
of the Palais des congrès + Place de
la cité internationale for live a installation by Emily Laliberté and projection
of new work “The Last Judgment” by
video trickster 2Fik as part of l’Art souterrain. www.artsouterrain.com Go
warm up at the Belgo Building, 372
Ste-Catherine Ouest to cruise the artfag crowd, 8pm-3am. FREE.
1
1
20
Saturday, Feb 26
STRUT. DJ B’UGO spins at Ottawa’s
newest gay club the Flamingo. Flamingo’s organizers have packed their
calendar with shows and events, and
this new monthly is sure to bring some
much-needed soul and fabulosity.
380 Elgin Street, 10pm-2am
www.theflamingo.ca
Monday Feb 14
BoyZ’ Night Out. Parking’s weekly
with Ian Key is hosted by Hamlet
who promises live performances; flirt
with the bar-boys and service hotties
who can’t go out on the weekend.
Go get ‘em, BoyZ! 1296 Amherst,
10pm-3am www.parkingbar.com
Thursday, Feb 24
Sat. Feb 12th
Hedwig and the Angry Inch is coming
to town with live a band for one night
only. Seth Drabinsky plays the iconic
role created by John Cameron Mitchell and urges you to “Come with
open hearts ready to laugh and cry
as Hedwig takes you on her journey
from East Berlin to Kansas City to Montreal.” Le National, 1220 Ste-Catherine Est, 8pm, $20 TICKETS NOW ON
SALE at La Tulipe box office, Cruella
Boutique (63 avenue Du Mont-Royal
Est) and at www.admission.com
54 2B Magazine
Daniel Barrow launches his new book
No One Helped Me at Drawn & Qaurterly, FREE. A slideshow and artist’s talk
will illuminate the wit and pathos of
Barrow’s drawn and projected works.
(See article on page 32). D&Q, 211
Bernard Ouest, 7pm.
Feb 1-27
Stones in his Pockets. A hilarious tale
of a quiet Irish community turned upside down by the arrival of a massive
Hollywood movie shoot. Young lads
Daniel Brochu and Kyle Gatehouse
play over 15 male, female, and animal characters in a Tony-award winning play. 453 St. François-Xavier,
(514) 288-3161 $32-$44 ($25 students)
www.centaurtheatre.com
2B Magazine
55
Jef Barbara’s
Soon to go Viral
with Contamination
By Boisin Murphy
© 2Fik
For his recently released album, Jef Barbara
blends New Wave, Glitter Rock, franco-pop
and a video cameo from a Parisian hottie
François Sagat to serve up a mellow electro
manifesto of chill pop. 2B got the back story on
these infectious new tracks. (Photo by 2fik)
2B: There is a David Bowie vibe to some of your
songs (Larmes de crocodile, les Homosexuelles,
Wild Boys), can you describe your vintage
inflected sound (and style)?
JB: My style is obviously affected by glitter
rock and androgyny. I’m a pop singer and
I believe that some of the best pop stars
possess androgynous qualities. The spectrum of
vintage sounds and influences on the record is
very wide. However New Wave and disco seem
to always be recurring sonic themes for me. 2B:”Larmes de crocodile” is seemingly about how
you’re never that sad when your friend breaks up
with a hot guy you’re into. Am I mistaken or can
you explain what this song means to you?
JB: “Larmes de Crocodile” is more like a kissoff to a lover who’s cheated on you. Somebody
posted a comment online that read: “Don’t you
worry little fag, somebody out there will love
56 2B Magazine
you. Guys are easy!” I thought that was a pretty
accurate summary of what the song’s about.
2B: Can you explain how you got François
Sagat to cameo in the video and what it was
like working with him?
JB: My friend and I were planning a trip to
Paris so I decided we were gonna shoot there.
I knew I wanted to make a schmaltzy photostory type video and I needed someone to play
my love interest. We brainstormed and figured
François could fit the part, mostly because
he doesn’t mind self-derision and low-rent
settings. He’s a cool guy to collaborate with. 2B: Singing in French on so many tracks is a
unique and very atmospheric choice. Where
does that inspiration come from?
JB: I’m a francophone but I live in both
languages. Therefore I decided that doing
both French and English would be a good
representation of my cultural identity, as well
as Canada’s to some extent...
2B: I’m loving Wild Boys right now! Who’s on
that track with you? Who’s in the video?
Where did you get that great 70s bass riff?
JB: I co-wrote the track with Bernardino
Femminielli, whom I’ve collaborated with on
more than one occasion. He’s a synth freak.
We started jamming and out came my gay
erotica manifesto. I decided to rap, much like
Neil Tennant on “West End Girls”. Then at the
last minute Philippe Roberge came in and
slayed some guitar chords to seal the deal. I
knew I had to make a video for it so I called
up whomever was available that day. It was
a lot of fun shooting.
2B: Why “Contamination”?
JB: Because pop music is so evil and infectious!
I put out an EP with Jef and the Holograms
called “Truly Contagious”. “Contamination”
picks up where I left off with the Holograms. I
firmly believe that pop is strongly additive at its
best, which is often what I intend to do when
I write something. Are you contaminated yet?
Check out Jef and François Sagat in the
“Larmes de Crocodile” video on Youtube:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8a9R1mdaS8Q
http://jefbarbara.bandcamp.com/
2B Magazine
57
The Big Scarlet Heart
of
Sami
Basbous
Montréal musician
cuts an album
with a cause
By Boísin Murphy
© Hoda Adra
Cosmopolitan, endearing, and modest,
Sami Basbous is not a musician you will
have heard of before. His studio-made,
self-produced album Farewell Beirut, O
Scarlet Tramp is a layered orchestral vocalinstrumental ride through the imagination of
a man with a lot of wounds to heal and a
deep sense of musicality. Adding to the many
themes and emotions you hear on the album
is the dedication of $1 from every album sold
on his bandcamp site to benefit Beirut-based
HIV relief organization Anwar Al-Mahabba.
With an eclecticism akin to New Weird
America darling Davendra Banhart’s, Basbous
uses a vast array of instrumentals, samples and
choral elements to texture his lyrical delivery
with a voice that has inflections of Bob Dylan’s
voice-throwing baritone. “Creatures of the
night ring in the sunshine,” Basbous bids us in
“Beautiful,” a crazy rhythmic track that defies
description and, certainly, radio play.
Basbous moved to Montréal seven years
ago, fed up with the hectic, cash-strapped
life he was leading in New York City. Talking
58 2B Magazine
to Sami, you get the sense he’s a man who
has had many lives, from aspiring New Waver
in late 80s NYC, to club musician, writer, and
painter. But from his earliest memories, there
was always music (as a child he would sing
in own language instead of speaking French
or Arabic at home). The untamed acoustic
sound on Farewell Beirut… Basbous attributes
to an epiphany: “It was the time after I
was meditating and I woke up and heard
orchestral music. I thought I was going crazy.”
He describes the process of making the
album as an “exorcism” and as an invitation
for people to share his heart and soul. “The
song ‘Call the Angels’ says a lot. It’s me
inviting listeners to invite me and maybe sleep
together for a lifetime.”
Paradoxically, Basbous says “farewell” to
Beirut with these songs, but the city remains
very much on his mind for the harrowing time
he spent there, convalescing in a hospital. He
dedicates 10% of the album’s sales to Anwar
Al-Mahabba (“the Lights of Love” in Arabic)
because of an inspirational relationship with a
nun who founded the organization. “She went
and slept in front of the Ministry of Justice for
them to change the way they treated people
with HIV,” lobbying for better medical and
psychiatric assistance for people in prison who
were at risk of suicide during the height of the
AIDS crisis. The organization is very dear to
Basbous as well because of the hardships he
lived there. “I’ve gone to the core of what it
means to suffer, what it is to suffer,” he reveals.
“I’ve gotten a lot of flack; I’ve had people who
knew me cross the street because in Lebanon
it’s taboo.”
“Farewell Beirut… is about getting things
done and being free from anything that
labels me,” Basbous concludes. And now,
as a self-defined “entrepreneur,” he plans to
continue writing a screenplay, is working on
his next album and exploring performance
opportunities. Farewell Beirut, O Scarlet Tramp,
and hello, Sami Basbous.
http://samibasbous.bandcamp.com/
www.anwaralmahabba.org
2B Magazine
59
By BoÍsin Murphy
When you talk to B’UGO, you know that
you’re talking to someone who’s more than a
club DJ. Don’t get me wrong, inspiring us on the
dance floor is an important part of gay culture
and that’s definitely what this beat-maker does.
He has his eye on the prize of making it big, but
he keeps it real with a non-profit day job that
matters, and an outlook that is truly inspiring.
He can turn on the glamour, but he knows how
to keep it real, and that’s what makes him this
month’s Queer 2B Reckoned with.
We squeezed in an interview with the Parking
Lucky Sundays resident as he was finishing
editing a B horror movie entitled The Vanityville
Massacre with Klutz Media collaborator Ben
Read, in a week where he would later spin
at the openings of alt-queer monthly POMPe
and Ottawa hotspot the Flamingo. Between
that and the release of his forthcoming remix
of Miles Moore’s “Werk” (Mile End Records, link
below), it looks like B’UGO has made it. “It’s a
good start, but once you’re in there you have
to bring it,” he emphasizes.
“I always came back to this— this is what I
really wanted to do. So I basically did whatever
I needed to do to make it happen, and I’m
living it right now,” he says of becoming a
known entity in the DJ world. “I think I’m at the
beginning of my career. I see big, so for me this
is the beginning.”
B’UGO:
Queer 2B Reckoned With
All Werk and Lots of Play
60 2B Magazine
© Keith Race
As a day-job, in stark contrast to his nocturnal
glitter soundscape, Ugo administrates a
volunteer programme at the Montreal office
of development organization CECI. CECI’s
Uniterra programme sends much-needed
volunteer doctors, nurses, and support staff
to earthquake-stricken Haiti, a cause which
B’UGO took to heart last year, raising over a
$1000 for relief efforts with a benefit night he
threw at Parking. On how to help Haiti now, of
course you can still send money, but you can
also help by “being aware of what’s going
on and being able to share this awareness.”
And for those who want to go a step further,
volunteering is another way of engagement
that programmes like CECI’s Uniterra facilitate.
It’s not every day that you get to talk
international development with a hot
emerging DJ. We couldn’t help but ask how
B’UGO balances these two worlds, which rarely
meet outside of a benefit party. “I’m a Gemini,
so I do have multiple personalities, you know, I
live them. I love being at the office and talking
to my colleagues who find it interesting what I
do as my other job. I know that my life is a little
coo-coo, but I made it this way. I love it, I really
do!” And his life is about to get a little more
coo-coo, building on last year’s exposure and
success (namely, Parking and Toronto Pride),
with an invitation to attend the much soughtafter Miami Winter Conference. Our hometown boy will be spinning with the likes of Danny
Tannaglia, accompanied by House music
brethren Manny Ward and Craig Mitchell.
B’UGO spins at Circus Feb 13.
www.circusafterhours.com
At the Flamingo in Ottawa Feb. 26
www.theflamingo.com
“Werk” the High Budget remix:
soundcloud.com/hibudget/miles-moorewerk-hi-budget-remix
For more information on Uniterra and CECI’s
Haiti relief programme, visit www.ceci.ca
As we are wont to do with our Queer 2B
Reckoned with, we’re giving B’UGO the last word
here, with an inspirational message for young
queers and young queer people of colour:
“It sounds so cheesy, but when you go see
Lady Gaga her message is always that you
can do it, just do it! I especially feel that living
in North America, people shouldn’t feel that
they can’t. If you want to do something, And
to not make excuses, basically. Don’t think
that because you’re gay or because you’re
effeminate or that you like to wear fluorescent
colours that you can’t do certain things. You
should do whatever you really want to do.”
© www.bugo.dj
2B Magazine
61
ANTIQUES
CT Signature
2658, rue Notre Dame O.
514.933.9355
91 D’Ici d’ailleurs et d’hier
1358, rue Ontario E.
514.303.6603
87 Montréal Moderne
1851, Amherst
514.293.7903
86 Mobilier 20e siècle
1023, rue Ontario E
514.575.0533
300 Antiques Puces Libres
3916, rue St-Denis
514.842.5931
DISCOS - AFTER-HOURS
26 Drugstore
1366, rue Sainte-Catherine E
(514) 524-1960
ledrugstore.com
14 Le Parking
1296, rue Amherst
(514) 282-1199
parkingbar.com
17 Unity II
1171, rue Sainte-Catherine E.
514.523.2777
clubunitymontreal.com
101 Café Cléopâtre
1230, Boul. Saint-Laurent
14 L´Olympia
1004 Saint Catherine E
514.845.3524
Galleries, museums
88 Écomusée du fier monde
2050, rue Amherst
514.528.8444
ecomusee.qc.ca
47 Galerie Dentaire
1239, rue Amherst
62 2B Magazine
514.523.5535
galeriedentaire.com
88 Galerie Zéphyr
2112, rue Amherst
514.529.9199
[email protected]
600 Galerie Monde Ruelle
écodesign & art de récupération
2205, rue Parthenais, local 112
514.290.3338
monderuelle.com
69 L´atelier de sculpture du Village
1206, Boul. de Maisonneuve E
514.690.4312
ateliersculptureargile.com
HEALTH SERVICES
Centre de Hast Jyotish Birla
351, Victoria Avenue, Westmount
514.488.2292
89 Fitness shop
1212, boul. De Maisonneuve E
514.527.2970
Paul Labrèche
Homéopathe
1225, Av. Greene, Westmount
514.448.9777
LODGING
Vieux-Montréal
514.282.1735
81 Apart hôtel Montréal
2115, rue Saint-Urbaint
514.934.1774
Casa de Mateo
440 Rue Saint-Francois-Xavier
514.759.6755
6 Hôtel des Gouverneurs
1415, rue Saint-Hubert
514.842.4881
32 Hôtel La Rose
1688, rue Sainte-Catherine E.
514.657.3378
hotellarose.ca
40 La Concièrgerie guest house
1019, rue Saint Hubert
514.289.9297
www.laconciergerie.ca
72 La Datcha bed & breakfast
1478, boul. De Maisonneuve E.
514.525.4222
ladatchabedbreakfast.com
85 La Loggia, art & breakfast
1637 rue Amherst
Montréal, Québec
514.524.2493
300 L´Hôtel
262, Saint-Jacques O
514.985.0019
87 Absolument Montréal
Bed and breakfast
1790, rue Amherst
514.223.0017
absolumentmontreal.com
73 Turquoise bed & Breakfast
1576, rue Alexandre-DeSève
514.523.9943
Auberge Bonsecours
353 rue Saint-Paul E
514.396.2662
RESTAURANTS - BISTROS
87 Auberge de jeunesse Alexandrie
1750, rue Amherst
514.525.9420
alexandrie-montreal.com
Auberge-Restaurant Pierre du Calvet
405, Bonsecours
15 Biron
1429, Amherst
514.528.1429
restaurantbiron.ca
Bistro Su
5145, rue Wellington , Verdun
514.362.1818
www.restaurantsu.com
8 Café Saïgon
1280, rue Saint-André
514.849.0429
Crêpe café
362 Rue Notre Dame E
514.759.6755
39 La Diva (restaurant)
1273, boul. René Lévesque E.
514.523.3470
L’Academie Restaurant
2100, rue Crescent,
514.664.4455
www.lacademie.ca
L’Assommoir
112, rue Bernard O
514.272.0777
Le Parchemin
1333, rue Université,
514.844.1619
www.leparchemin.com
Les Délices de l’érable
84, rue Saint-Paul E
514.765.3456
516 Marius & Fanny
pâtisserie provencale
4439, rue Saint-Denis
514.844.0841
Montréal Poutine
161, rue Saint Paul E
www.Montréalpoutine.ca
Patate et ciboulette
3766, Ontario E.
514.658.8803
Café Nevé
151, Rue Rachel Est
Montréal
514.903.9294
Nüvü
1336, Ste-Catherine est,
514.940.6888
2B Magazine
63
RESTauranT
67 Pho Viet
1663, rue Amherst
514.522.4116
202 Piazzetta
1101, rue Sainte-Catherine E.
514.526.2244
lapiazzetta.ca
71 Pica Pica
1310, boul. De Maisonneuve E
514.658.2874
44 Poissonnerie La Mer
1840, boul. René Lévesque E.
514.524.3561
22 Tomato la boîte à pizza
1272, rue Sainte-Catherine E
514.678.4430
tomatopizza.ca
87 Uchi Sushi
1799, rue Amherst
514.528.8228
66 100 Secrets
1440, rue Amherst
514.845.1440
100secrets.ca
519 Passé compose
950, Roy E
514.524.6663
passecomposerestaurant.
com
67 Euro Polonia
1565, rue Amherst
514.22.4240
europolonia.ca
25 La Mie matinale
1371, rue Sainte-Catherine E.
lamiematinale.ca
47 Pouding Café
1227A, rue Amherst
514-510-7991
72 Brûlerie St.Denis
1587 Rue Saint Denis
SAUNAS
Sauna 3481
3481, Montée Saint-Hubert
Saint-Hubert , Québec
450.462.3481
[email protected]
SERVICES
82 Aux Quatre points cardinaux
Cartes, photographies
aériennes, GPS, guides de
voyage, globes terrestres, etc
551, rue Ontario E.
514.843.8116
aqpc.com
Eveil des sens (spa)
168, Av. du Mont-Royal
514.842.8371
www.eveildessensmtl.com
100 La Capoterie
2061, rue Saint-Denis
514.845.0027
15 Kent Sanderson
Stéphane Costa
Agent immobilier affilié
514.844.0100
Jean-Patrice Bourguet
Agent immobilier
2339, Beaubien E
514.721.2121
www.jpbourguet.com
82 Marcel Proulx
fleuriste-horticulteur
3835, rue Saint-Denis
514.849.1344
Marie Octeau
agent immobilier affilié
101, Amherst, Beaconsfield
514.453.1900
9 Nautilus (Gym)
1431, rue Saint-André
514.905.9999
68 Buanderie Du Village
1499, rue Amherst
514.526.4084
20 Garage Alliance
1180, rue Montcalm
(514) 526-1580
64 2B Magazine
87 Hubert Laberge
Comptable Agrée inc.
1760, rue Amherst
514.528.7097
[email protected]
La Capoterie
2061, rue Saint-Denis, H2X 3K8
514.845.0027 télec.
514.845.4440
www.lacapoterie.net
18 Jean Chainey
Artiste peintre
514.521.3200
jeanchainey.com
Un amour des thés
781 av. du mont-royal
amourdesthes.com
10 Montreal Ink
908, rue Sainte-Catherine E
montrealink.com
PETSHOP
Jack a Billy
1880 Rue Ontario Est
438.380.4333
SALON COIFFURE - SPA
34 Mohawk
1305, av. Papineau
514.524.7582
mohawkmontreal.ca
517 Philippe Gohier, massothérapeute
2028, rue Saint-Hubert
514.794.3339
68 Physotech
1457, rue Amherst
514.527.7587
physotech.com
83 Smarty´s
803 rue Ontario E
514.270.911
coiffuresmartys.com
SHOPS
301 Claude André Hébert Parfums
165, rue Saint Paul O
514.439.3232
DCovia (déco)
4152, rue Saint Denis
514.284.7333
Ludovik (déco)
248, rue de la Montagne
514.678.6617
Geo Guy
3989, rue Ontario E.
514.527.8732
geoguy.ca
47 Vert Design
1285, rue Amherst
(514) 846-9556
vertdesign.com
Salon Identité
salonidentite.com
165 Pine St E Montréal, QC
514.777.1277
Duo
www. boutiqueduo.com
24 et 30 rue Prince Arthur Ouest
514.845.0882
U&I
www.boutiqueuandi.com
3650/2 boul. Saint-Laurent
514.844.8788
Social services
93 RÉZO
Santé et mieux-être pour
hommes gais et bisexuels
2075, rue Plessis, bureau 207
sero-zero.qc.ca
39 Centre Saint Pierre
1212, Rue Panet
514.524.3561
Projet 10 / Project 10 p10.qc.ca
2075 rue Plessis #307, Montréal
514.989.4585
AIDS Community Care Montréal
(ACCM)
www.accmontreal.org
2075 rue Plessis (Basement)Montréal
514.527.0928
2B Magazine
65
Q-6056 Région de Sherbrooke 2 H, 48 &
79, 150 & 155 lb, 5’8’’ (les deux). Cherchent 1 ou 2 amis, H. de 25 à 75, aimant la
campagne, pour partager la vie sur petite ferme écologique. Bienvenue toute
ethnie, petit sexe, timide. Violent, m.t.s,
gros buveur, plus de 200 lb s’abstenir.
Q-6058 Montréal H, 59, 5’10’’, 155 lb, non
poilu. Bien équipé et sans pudeur. Honnête et discret. Cherche camarade plus
âgé et bedonnant (dessous féminins délicieusement bienvenus). Masturbations
mutuelles et ponctuelles sans intention
amoureuse. Joindre photo.
black guy living in England. Good built 6067 Canada H, 46, 5’8’’, masc., ch. court,
body, caring, honest, seek mature Cana- beau cul, bien équipé, bronzé, sexy, rasé.
dian man for friendship and relationship. Mon nom est Jean, cherche H. 30-50 sex,
amitié bienvenue.
A-6055 Africa M, young, 5’9’’, 60 kg affectionate, kind, sincere, easy going. 6068 Cuba M, 23, Cuban. I study in university.
Chocolate slim with black hair and black I have open mind. Please send me a letter.
eyes. I’m looking for a real man who is
ready and willing to meet. Age is not im- C-6069 M, 25, 1,73 m, 62 kg, Cuban, good
portant; I’m looking forward to hearing looking, dark haired, bright eyes. Honest,
sincere, I need a relationship 30 to 75. I am
from you soon.
versatile. Kisses, Roldy
A-6059 Africa M, 25, Black Ghanaian. Versatile, body-builder, honest, educated, C-6070 M, 38, 1,86 m, 86 kg I’m civil enbroadminded. I love traveling, music, and giner. I want to find a serious couple and
football. Looking for a man for friendship, that he loves me. I speak Russian, French
and English.
possible one to one.
Q-6061 Montréal H, 35, 145 lb, 8’’ non circoncis. Beau jeune homme. Gym 3 fois
/ semaine. Cherche bouche chaude & C-6064 Cuba M, 23, 1,73 m, 85 kg, Cuban.
Honest, not complicated, a true friend,
gorge profonde.
romantic, passionate, sexy, 100% masc. I
C-6063 Cuba Chico sincero, honesto, am Yoandy, naturally tanned skin, brown
me gusta la música romántica, los ani- eyes, athtletic and brawny body. I love
males, la playa y paser. Busco mi media nature and healthy entertainments. I’m
naranja, si eres mayor que yo mejor. not looking for a perfect physical but a
Tengo 26 años Adrián Castellanos
spiritual person. I also seek friendships.
F-6053 France H, 40, 1,75 m, 60 kg, très
passif petit, 13 cm, ch. brun. Adore tout et
très sérieux, adore lire, écrire et aussi platonique. Photo obligatoire. Merci
F-6057 France H, 37, Français, agréable.
Cherche à correspondre avec Latinos
parlant français ou anglais et habitant
Cuba, Brésil, Mexique ou ailleurs. Joindre
photos. Réponse assurée.
L-6060 London H, 33, 5’ 9’’, handsome
66 2B Magazine
6065 U.S.A M, 49, 5’9’’, 170 lbs, blue eye /
blondish hair. Frequent visitor to Montréal.
Handsome nature lover, ISO masc. alpha
top. Arabs, Turks or hirsute any race, for
friendship, poss. +. Photo replies only.
Q- 6071 Montréal H, 47, 5’12’’, 125 lb,
6.5’’ circoncis, look jeune, non poilu. Rocker non sadomaso tendre, affectueux,
pas efféminé, instruit, fumeur, pas de drogue, ni d’alcool. Cherche H. 35-65 sérieux
pour relation durable, simple, affectueux,
franc, sens l’humour. Toutes ethnies bienvenues. Obèse, violent, buveur, drogué
s’abstenir.
G-6072 Ghana M, 28, 5’8’’, 85 kg, dark skin,
short hair, hot, warm and passionate guy,
athletic built and TOP. I’m open minded,
intelligent, great sence of humor. Looking
for warm and loving long term relationship.
6066 Cuba H, 47, Cubain noir. Cherche Interested in music, sports, photographing,
des correspondants. J’aime le cinéma, la cooking, gardering and traveling.
danse, le yoga, la musique et les langues.
Écrire en français, espagnol, anglais, ita- C-6073 Pelo oscuro, piel canela, ojos
cafes, Chico de mente abierta, sincero,
lien, allemand.
sencillo y romantico.30 y.o., Espero cor-
respondencia de chicos de entre 30-50,
serios, afines a mis caracteristicas para
ampliar mi circulo de amigos.
6074 N.B. Canada Homme début 50e,
désire faire la connaissance d’un bel
homme costaud, sportif, poids proportionnel, poilu de préférence, âgé entre
18 et 35 ans, non fumeur si possible. Aimant la nature. But amitié et possibilité
de relation plus profonde. Bienvenus aux
haltérophiles.
6075 Ghana Sexy, handsome black, guy
30, looking for serious man to meet soon.
6076 A good-looking, honest, intelligent,
manly Ukrainian boy, 24 y.o., H. 177 cm,
74 kg, dark-blond hair, green eyes, with
university education, good health, nice
body and good character. I do not
smoke and do not drink alcohol. Seeks
my special man, real best friend for correspondence, good meetings, holidays
together, friendship, romance, love and
for happy long relationship.
6077 46 ans, 5’6’’, 142 Lbs, 8’’ Non-circoncis, séro+, cherche mec 40-55 ans, pas
bedonnant, enjoué, cochon, comme
moi : pisse, odeurs naturelles (cul, aiselles,
couilles, sueur), tendre et versatile. Black+
Têl XXX bien venus !
6078 40 y/o, 1.80cm, 82 kg, mulato. Cantante profesional, deseo contactar amigos en Canada y el mundo para correspondencia en mi club del amor y la
amistad.
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