Osheaga

Osheaga 2018 | PausePlay interviews

Zac — Tue, 07 Aug 2018 13:59:07 +0000

Osheaga 2018 | PausePlay interviews Zac Tue, 08/07/2018

The PausePlay team visited Osheaga once again this year. Between all the amazing performances we were given by some of the most talented artists on the planet and all of our PausePlay interviews, we are going to remember this weekend for a very long time.

Watch Zac Monson discuss with The Beaches, Billie Eilish, Kali Uchis, Chromeo and many more.

Billie Eilish Interview | Osheaga 2018

The outstanding 16 years old artist, Billie Eilish, joins PausePlay to chat about what it's like being homeschooled, how Jaden Smith broke her ankle, her EP Don't Smile at Me, and when we can expect brand new music!

James Bay Interview | Osheaga 2018

James Bay joins PausePlay for the second time in 2018. This time to chat about how his fans have liked his new album, Electric Light, performing with the Rolling Stones, and when we can expect his new restaurant, James' Bay, to open.

Lights Interview | Osheaga 2018

2 Time Winner of Pop Album of the Year, Lights, joins PausePlay to chat about MOM life, cosplaying her own character, and the album/comic combo that she stems from, Skin & Earth.

Lauv Interview | Osheaga 2018

Triple platinum artist, Lauv, joined PausePlay to talk about lessons learned as a studio intern, writing vs performing, and when we can expect new music.

Amy Shark Interview | Osheaga 2018 | Stingray PausePlay

Amy Shark joins PausePlay to talk about knocking Drake off of Number1, her favourite treat, and her album Love Monster

Kali Uchis | Osheaga | Osheaga 2018

Kali Uchis joined PausePlay to chat about life before music, the moment her family jumped on board her musical path, and her debut album Isolation.

Chromeo Interview | Osheaga 2018

Montreal's own Dave1, of Chromeo, joins PausePlay to talk about the first memory he has of his musical partner-in-crime, PeeThug, dressing like an old french film star, and their latest album Head over Heels

Milk & Bone Interview | Osheaga 2018

Milk & Bone joins us for a chat about how they first met and what they thought of each other, Damon Albarn tweets, and of course their incredible album Deception Bay.

The Beaches Interview | Osheaga 2018

The incredibly talented humans of The Beaches, join PausePlay to talk about winning Breakthrough Group of the Year, fructophobia ( its a real word! ), and their album Late Show.

A Salute to Music City Montreal

Wouter — Fri, 03 Nov 2017 15:09:09 +0000

A Salute to Music City Montreal Wouter Fri, 11/03/2017

As South Londoner and modern soul hero Sampha (“Close But Not Quite”) conquers my speakers, it’s time to relativize and dream. Music is a common love for most of our human fellows, and maybe even other species can enjoy music to the same extent. But, I don’t want to generalize. A recent Harvard study showed that only 50% of people get goosebumps while listening to music. You, for 50 percent sure know those moments. These moments where you want to drown in time, and when those soundscapes and music work to its climax; this perfect symbiosis between chords, vocals, and other sounds. That moment where everything comes together. But, there is a big but, it’s not only about the music: it’s about your ability to imagine, to dream away, to emphasize and embrace the story behind it. Your story. And in this case, Montreal’s story.

If you feel comfortable with these thoughts, you’ll be able to understand, feel, and be part of the concept of a Music City, thus fully grasp the concept of Montreal.

The concept of Music City

This August, I was accidentally part of the 18^th edition of the MUTEK festival. During one of its symposia, I was introduced to the concept of Music City: A few music venues, a couple of festivals, and a passionate civil servant with a cultural policy. Sounds simple, right? But it’s much more. Way more.

Take for example New York, London, and Paris. They all possess amazing music scenes, lots of opportunities, however, at the end of the day, these cities are all about the financial business district, fashion, IT or some other secondary sustenance: they are basically tools to help you achieve your objectives, but not your goal.

Montreal

Montreal is one of the few cities with its own story. Of course, there’s a downtown financial business district and a place where they serve the worst poutine ever (an eerie combination of fries, gravy, and so-called plastic cheese). Most importantly, Montreal breathes all kinds of music. You can almost smell it when entering the city.

The amalgam of amazing downtown venues, small crappy touristic places, artistic stages on every Plateau corner, underground music at Mile Ex, and pop-up music parties across the city is one of a kind, brilliant, and overwhelming.

MUTEK conference

During the MUTEK conference, cities like Amsterdam and Austin were praised for their music policy. Their music drives the identity of these cities, and the opportunity they create coincides with people, motivation, and policy. The conference visitors modestly looked up to these cities. It was followed by a somewhat heated argument between musicians, programmers, politicians, venue-owners, and accidental music lovers. Some visitors even left the room. For me, the detached stranger, it was crystal-clear that there was no actual argument. In fact, everybody was trying – in their way - to articulate the same idea: The nurturing of Montreal’s music identity; the hard proof that Montreal is a real music city.

It’s easy to create formal venues and festivals. Invest a hefty sum of cash in music, and there you go — just like Russia who “built” the Sochi Olympic Games or how Qatar bought World Cup 2022. It’s not part of a culture or entity; it’s just there.

Music and Montreal have a different kind of relationship. It’s passionate, it’s proud, and people live for music. It’s part of the Montréalais’ identity. Every city has residents, ambassadors, and a music policy. However, only a few cities share this music DNA where they embrace music and make it their pride. Few are deserving of the title “Music City.” There is no need to name artists, venues or festivals; it’s praise to the city, it’s a salute to Montreal, which modesty will ensure it remains a dreaming music city until the end of time.

Oh, by the way, I’m a Dutchie.

Osheaga

Mile Ex End

Festival international de Jazz de Montréal

Stingray PausePlay hits Osheaga 2017

Sydney — Thu, 10 Aug 2017 15:53:06 +0000

Stingray PausePlay hits Osheaga 2017 Sydney Thu, 08/10/2017

Every annual trip to Osheaga proves even better than the last. This year we were lucky enough to score interviews with some established rock stars and epic emerging talent. Watch our Stingray PausePlay host Thee Zac Monson sit down with Liam Gallagher, Zara Larsson, Run The Jewels, Arkells, JAIN, Honne, Maggie Rogers, and Lido below!

For more Stingray PausePlay action head to our YouTube channel!

Stingray @ Osheaga 2017 | Review + Photos

Sydney — Wed, 09 Aug 2017 14:37:05 +0000

Stingray @ Osheaga 2017 | Review + Photos Sydney Wed, 08/09/2017

Our Stingray PausePlay team attended Osheaga Music and Arts Festival this year and had a truly remarkable time. Aside from the incredible in depth interviews our team witnessed during the weekend, they managed to capture some stunning moments from the festival as a whole. Our social media guru Catherine Leclerc filled us in on some of her favourite performances and even shared photos.

Cath mentioned that one of her absolute top moments was when former Oasis front man, Liam Gallagher, performed the band's classic "Wonderwall". The entire crowd sang every word and "it was simply magic". Father John Misty was also a highlight. He was extremely entertaining as we have come to expect from FJM. He opened the show with Pure Comedy, interacting with the crowd with his classic blasé attitude. He was "just Misty being Misty". Muse was an "EPIC SHOW" featuring amazing light effects and even fireworks. Lead singer Matthew Belamy was on point as usual. They performed all their hits wrapping the show with "Knights of Cydonia". Finally, although the weather shortened their set to only two songs, Glass Animals gave her absolute favourite performance of the festival.

Check out the Stingray highlight reel below!

Passenger | Interview & Performance

Sydney — Mon, 31 Oct 2016 14:50:29 +0000

Passenger | Interview & Performance Sydney Mon, 10/31/2016

We sat down with the incredibly funny and talented Passenger at Osheaga 2016. He chatted with us about his musical beginnings AND brand new material. He filled us in on the process of writing his new album and honing his skills. We also got the scoop on his love of fast food!

His new single is "Somebody's Love" and we were able to convince him to do a little acoustic performance for us!