We Made A Deal With the Devil

Methinks Presents a Collective Action Expedition

Archive for category bloggery

Project Update: Wanderlust

Aug 25

Posted by admin in bloggery, project updates | No Comments

P1010117

An unexpected discovery in Montreal

P1010010After nine stops on the tour the Wander Project is beginning to take on a recognizable face. Each new place brings with it a chance to follow my feet towards slices of delicious texture, graffittied walls, and heaps of colourful garbage. Along the way, I meet construction workers, climb fences, and tiptoe through dirty puddles. The images I collect speak to a sense of space based entirely on first impressions. My eyes adore shapes and angles, especially where metal meets wood, weeds grow from stone, or paint has peeled its layers. I would like to continue this project into the future. I have visions of thousands of images lining white walls, all catalogued according to place and corresponding to a mapped out wander. Ordered and adventitious at once. This is how a wander feels to me…

P1010032

Near Major's Hill Park, Ottawa

P1010067

Rue Richeileu, Quebec City

P1010114

Rue de Boullion, Montreal

P1010143

Rue Berri, Montreal

P1010001

Garneau Garden Center, Victoriaville

P1010017

Delicious texture, Cornwall

P1010055

Behind Charlotte St., Peterborough

CREW SHOTS: what we’ve been reading…

Aug 24

Posted by admin in bloggery, tour documentation | No Comments

alex with "heart of darkness" 

 

alex with "heart of darkness"

 

 

ryan with "folklore of canada"

ryan with "folklore of canada"

karol with "against his-story, against leviathan"

karol with "against his-story, against leviathan"

rick with "the shock doctrine"

rick with "the shock doctrine"

lisa with "how to be canadian"

lisa with "how to be canadian"

andrzej with "hard core road show"

andrzej with "hard core road show"

 (all photos by crewmember karol, except for karol, by alex.)

Crew Shots; Send In The Clowns.

Aug 24

Posted by admin in bloggery, tour documentation | No Comments

Tour_318

Lisa: Stern advice and voice of reason

Rick

Rick: aka, The Riggmeister

Tour_328

Karol: Currently on the run from garbagebag

Tour_320

Ringer: Management & oversight. Also, totally RAD

Tour_336

Alex: The wandering lentil pusher

Tour_333

Andrzej: Running commentary and perpetual death rigger

Poutine Pursuit: Shawinigan, QC

Aug 21

Posted by admin in bloggery, project updates, tour documentation | No Comments

Image by Karol

Image by Karol

Next we visit Tramway Pub 57, a small roadside oasis in Shawinigan, QC, just outside Drummondville, where, by the way, you will find another poutine shack, Le Roy Jucep, which claims to be “Plus que l’inventeur de la poutine” (more than the inventor of poutine).  Why didn’t I visit Le Roy Jucep? Well, it’s simple: I didn’t know about it until now.

But no matter; the poutine at Tamway Pub 57 was, hands down, the most delightful poutine I’ve had yet on this tour. Super-fresh curds and beautiful golden fries nestled in a swamp of delicious home-style wayside gravy. Thankfully I ordered a mini; had I ordered a larger size, I wouldn’t have been able to eat fast enough to avoid having the fries turn mushy.

Also of note: at Tramway Pub 57 you’ll find an outdoor showcase of classic cars (including a replica General Lee); there’s an icecream stand next door; and it’s a great place to play a prank on your tourmates.

Andrzej fell asleep in the shady side of the patio, and the ladies at Tramway totally helped us pull a prank on him. We left him a note explaining that we decided to vote him off the tour, packed up in the van and hid the van behind a building nextdoor and waited for him to awaken, all the while video-taping him from afar. The tramway ladies claimed that they didn’t see us leave.

Hail Tramway Pub 57. Oh and… hail Satan.

- crewleader Ringer

PHOTO UPDATE: VICTORIAVILLE, QUEBEC CITY, AND ON…

Aug 21

Posted by admin in bloggery, tour documentation | No Comments

rick documents the unicorns...

rick documents the unicorns...

It’s Karol here, your official tour photographer checking in with another update from the road. Since I last sent you a set of pics from Montreal, we’ve travelled hundreds of kilometers and had a another pile of adventures. We tested the rig (and Andrzej’s patience) at a poutine stop  near Drummondville, we setup and SLAMMED the amazing Bar L’Agitée in Quebec City, met some amazing folk musicians who rocked accordions hard, drove more, got a speeding ticket, had a Trois Pistoles beer at the foot of the church depicted on the label in Trois Pistoles, QC, and  kept driving until we finally made it to Fredericton. Now, we wait to meet a Hurricane, and set up tomorrow all day at Crumbs Café for an impromptu art show and concert from 9:30am-7pm. TELL YR FRIENDS!

ryan observes practical joke victim andrzej from afar.

ryan observes practical joke victim andrzej from afar.

wendy ventricle's mom?

wendy ventricle's mom?

driving from drummondville to victo...

driving from drummondville to victo...

chevy till the death, and fuck the rest.

chevy till the death, and fuck the rest. (Belair, our man in Victo)

the softer side of terrorclown

the softer side of terrorclown

cooking in quebec city.

cooking in quebec city.

quebec city shirt: a coincidence?

quebec city shirt: a coincidence?

marking the spot.

marking the spot.

camping outside quebec city. shot at 2am.

camping outside quebec city. shot at 2am.

the cirque.

the cirque.

measuring cup of joe.

measuring cup of joe. (one of our quebec hosts)

accordion idols.

accordion idols. (our quebec city hosts)

terrasse breakfast

terrasse breakfast

kid tested. father approved.

kid tested. father approved.

a skid of skids.

a skid of skids.

we fought the law and...

we fought the law and...

1666

1666

notre-dame de trois pistoles.

notre-dame de trois pistoles.

happy trails,
-crew photog karol.

Poutine Pursuit: Victoriaville, QC

Aug 19

Posted by admin in bloggery, project updates, tour documentation | No Comments

tourslams-211

Image by Karol

So I finally hit rock-bottom. I had poutine for breakfast. Some of my tourmates are concerned for my health. They think I should stop this gravy-laden debauchery…but I can’t; I’m hooked.

We met a guy (Belair) in Victoriaville who let us camp out in his backyard, where we cooked food over a steel drum fire and went nuts in the dark. The next morning, over dry cereal in the van, we asked him where to find the best poutine in Victoriaville. “The fucking goodest poutine,” he said, “is at the Cantine Chez Annie.” “It’s the fucking goodest, cheapest poutine!” So, with a quick, heartfelt goodbye, we packed up camp and set out for yet another sloppy poutine experience. We found the place in no time. It’s a little snack-shack on 27 Bd Arthabaska E. Cantine Annie’s is air-conditioned, service is tres friendly – and they have red and blue slush puppies.

tourslams-208I ordered a mini poutine. It cost me 6 bux and change. I should have ordered the baby poutine cuz, as is often the case in these parts of the poutine universe, a mini is enough to feed two people my size. At least I had leftovers (which I scarfed down in the van three hours later once we hit Quebec City). Anyway, I was a bit disappointed by this one. Though the curds were really fresh and abundant, the gravy and fries were poor. Really, I couldn’t taste the gravy because the fries, though perfectly crispy, tasted like three-week-old fryer grease. Overall, this was one of my least favourite poutines. To be fair, though – considering it was the first thing I consumed that day – less than two hours after waking up – and I washed it down with a Slush Puppie and a can of Pepsi – well, I must admit: my judgement may have been a bit impaired.

- posted crewleader Ringer

A brief tribute to Cornwall

Aug 19

Posted by admin in bloggery, tour documentation | No Comments

Tour_115-SignReflect

Image by Alex

P1010027

Image by Alex

Tour_174

Image by Alex

Tour_251

Image by Alex

I must admit, it was an unexpected pleasure. Cornwall crept up on me. From wide open parks to hidden walkways that lead to authentic poutine stands, we wandered through big box store parking lots, into the old downtown and back again. A cafe on the East end welcomed us to siphon Internet for hours. Our hosts (Ryan’s brother Aaron, his wife Missy and their six children) added six more people to their household without a moment’s hesitation. We set up two shows in two perfectly odd venues. We burned bonfires high into the night and ate fresh vegetables from Aaron’s garden. I’ve left with an impression of honesty. Life for many may be tough, and the work never ends, but there is a beauty in the roughness and a pride in the people, and I for one and grateful to have had the time to notice.

- Crew member Alex.

Tour_197

Image by Alex

Tour_184-Louis

Louis Pizzaria -Image by Alex

Tour_160

Image by Alex

P1010024

The East end -Image by Alex

P1010037

The East end -Image by Alex

Tour_262

Adam -Image by Alex

Tour_178

The old downtown -Image by Alex

Tour_158

Wandering big box land -Image by Alex

Crew Shots: Spirits of Merrickville, ON

Aug 18

Posted by admin in bloggery, tour documentation | No Comments

Enjoy! 

Alex

Alex. Image by Karol.

Andrzej. Pic by Karol.

Andrzej. Pic by Karol.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lisa. Image by Karol.

Lisa. Image by Karol.

Rick. Image by Karol.

Rick. Image by Karol.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Karol. Image by Rick.

Karol. Image by Rick.

Ringer. Image by Karol.

Ringer. Image by Karol.

MONT_UN_REAL…

Aug 17

Posted by admin in bloggery, tour documentation | No Comments

tourslams-144

ryan ringer conducts a beer tasting.

As we prepare to leave Montreal, I’m taking a minute to look back over my shots and get wistful. Montreal has brought us the best crowds, the best food, and a whole lot of love. Our show at the Centre Chat Bleu was amazing, with Aleks Bartosik joining us again for live drawing, Big Pig driving all the way from Brooklyn to slamdown with us, and Ryan Ringer doing one of his infamous beer tastings. On Sunday, we setup at Les Tam-Tams, and had an amazing time talking with people about the work and the tour. Terror Clown made an appearance and brought laughter and the opposite of laughter to children and adults alike. Also, my dear friend Shane and his partner Jolene took us in last night for an unbelievably good spread of vegan South Indian cuisine, including a vegan Saag Paneer that just about destroyed me (in a good way). 

Above and Below are a selection of snaps from our short sojourn in the cité plus sexuelle. 

tourslams-122

a shot of the setup

tourslams-132

aleks bartosik gets real.

 

some of the audience watches...

some of the audience watches...

 

big pig slams down.

big pig slams down.

 

setup at the tam-tams.

setup at the tam-tams.

 

tam-tams people

tam-tams people (photo by ryan)

tourslams-157

terror clown gets made up.

(thanks to myke briggs for the title inspiration.)

- crew member karol.

Setup, Tear-down, Setup, Tear-down, Set-up, Tear-down…

Aug 13

Posted by admin in bloggery, tour documentation | No Comments

@ the avant garde bar in ottawa

@ the avant garde bar in ottawa

The logistics of this tour can be trying at times. We’re essentially taking a very modular setup of gear to wildly varied locales and working within ever-changing time and spatial constraints. With just over a third of the tour under our belts, we’re getting used the shifting conditions and different demands.

Rig Master Rick and All Hands Andrzej have been especially instrumental in dealing with the logistics of the constant setups and tear-downs. Above and below are some snaps of the various ways that we’ve put up our show so far. Coming up in just a couple of days is a slamming banger of a party in Montreal which will once again put our setup skillz to the test.

- crew member karol.

@ blockhouse park in merrickville

@ blockhouse park in merrickville

an epic setup at murphy's inn in cornwall

an epic setup at murphy's inn in cornwall

@ lamoureux park in cornwall, sunny skies

@ lamoureux park in cornwall, sunny skies