Ep57: Alternative music creating alternative spaces
Tales under the cat tree: Imagination and AdventureShow Notes
Johnny Nolan returns as my co-host for another Newfoundland Alternative music deep dive, but this time we are honoured to be joined by author and journalist Rhea Rolman. We wanted to explore the influence of alternative music on alternative communities in St. John’s, Newfoundland and how music is important in creating safe spaces during the 1990s and even earlier. The 1990s Analogue Culture: Yup this was before the time of Social Media and we had to rely on concerts, gigs, and the radio of all things! Safe Spaces and Organising: Rhea explains how the music scene provided vital safe spaces during a time when minorities, especially sexual minorities, may have faced repression in Newfoundland. Festivals as Catalysts: We chat about how events like the Peace Accord and modern festivals like Lawnya Vawnya bring diverse groups together to exchange ideas. Saving CHMR: Rhea shares the story of the recent community fight to save the funding for the campus community radio station, preserving one of the last remaining creative spaces in the city.
About Rhea Rhea Rollmann (she/her) is an award-winning journalist, writer and audio producer based in St. John’s, NL, and is the author of A Queer History of Newfoundland (Engen Books, 2023). She’s a founding editor of The Independent NL and her journalism has appeared in Briarpatch Magazine, CBC, Xtra Magazine, Chatelaine, PopMatters, Riddle Fence and more. Special Thanks for their tracks with permission Bob Earle and Draize Eye Test Liz Pickard and the Lizband for One Song Phil Winters and the band Bung for Ramirez.
More from Tales under the cat tree: Imagination and Adventure
From punk music to album cover art, from opening for the Blue Oyster Cult to writing an album in 19 days; these are the stories of Dan Moore and Johnny Nolan in our history of Newfoundland's alt music scene. This episode traces the history of Dan Moore who played with bands such as Sheavy, Wizards of Kaos, Afterforever, Festered Corpse, Howl, and more in St. John’s Newfoundland. This is the fifth of the episodes Johnny Nolan and I have co-hosted chronicling the history, music and stories of Newfoundland’s alternetive music scene in the 80s, 90s, and 2000s. We feature the following music with permission: * Psycho Flower by Festered Corpse * Whipping Post by Afterforever * Supa Hero by Sheavy * White Face by Wizards of Kaos * Tale of a Broken Heart by Hardliner Please also check out the art of Dan Moore at https://tales.dups.ca/p/ep73-dan-moore-of-sheavy-and-wizards-of-kaos
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Recently in Germany, the right-wing party Alternative für Deutschland (AFD) won more votes than any other party in the province of Saxony-Anhalt. In many parts of the world headlines rang that Germany was returning to the days of the 1930s. That's not really the case, but at the same time, it is the case that right-wing and other extreme ideologies are on the rise in western democracies from USA, to France, to Sweden, to Finland. I sat down for a conversation with my friend, former professor, and collaborator, Dr. Erwin Warkentin, who is living in Berlin as Berlin goes for an election that might swing to the complete opposite of the AFD if polling is to be believed. His point was that we weren't quite back to the 1930s, but much more perhaps to the 1920s. How did we get here and where are we going if we use history as a teacher? More show notes: https://tales.dups.ca/p/ep71-1920s-and-german-politics-today
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