TENTACLETHE

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BARRY WALSHInterview

A life at Pipe

the

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TATTOOS FOR THE WORKING CLASS

CENTAURS OF THE UNIVERSE

SIXTY OR SO PERCENT

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PHOTOGRAPHERS:ADAM DEWOLFEDANIEL MATHIEUARRAN JACKSONPRESTON ROSEDAVID KRYSTOFBRYCE CASSELMAN

WRITERS:DAN FARIASCOTT COPELANDBRENNY BOYCRUSTY BASTARD

ON THE COVER: BARRY WALSH AT PIPEPHOTO: DANIEL MATHIEU

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SIXTY OR SO PERCENT IS WHERE WE FEATURE ARTISTS’ WORK FROM AROUND THE SCENE.

12TATTOOS FOR THE WORKING CLASS. WE CHECK IN WITH TATTOO ARTIST AND MACHINE BUILDER JESSE YOUNG FOR THIS ISSUE’S ARTIST PROFILE.

15BANGERS.

31 DAN FARIA‘S ROCK COLUMN COMES AT US WITH A STORY ABOUT CENTAURS FROM OUTERSPACE.

25BARRY WALSH IN NUMBER TWO’S FEATURE INTERVIEW. A LIFE AT PIPE.

7 MY GEAR TO YOUR EAR. BRENNY BRINGS US THE NUTS AND BOLTS OF MUSICIANS’ PREFERED EQUIPMENT. FEATUR-ING ARTISTS FROM AROUND THE WEST COAST OF BC.

6 Q&A WITH JESSE LANDEN

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THIS PAGE:DAVID KRYSTOF

PHOTO: JEFF COMBER

Age? 27

Years skating? 16

How did you get involved with skateboarding? Used to bomb hills on a dominion, then got a real set up around 12 yrs old.

Companies that help you keep it real? ATM skateboards, Billabong, Vans, Dakine.

Baggy pants and bearing covers, Or fat wheels and balaclavas? None of the above.

Worst trend in skateboarding history? Nollie bigspins.

Videos? Questionable, welcome to hell.

Tunes? Archers of Loaf, Dinosaur Jr, Interpol, Gangstarr, Biggie.

Top sk8 influences? Andrew Reynolds, Heath Kirchart, Cairo Foster, Mike Carroll, Rick Howard.

Pre-trick rituals? Harsh claims??

You have a band? I have a band called “Stanford” we’re a 3-piece indie/grunge/90s revival kind of thing. Made a few albums, and play around Toronto.

Last time you referred to the city of Toronto as “the T dot”? No idea.

If suddenly all your bills were paid and you had no responsibility to life or soci-ety what would you do? Play music and Skateboard.

Q & A: JESSE LANDEN

MY GEAR TO YOUR EAR BY: BRENNY BOY

Writing this article not only provides me with an excuse to snoop around musician’s instruments and other gear, but also allows me to catch up with players who have helped shape my musical appreciation. This article is not just about the equipment used to make the music we love, but it is also about the heart of an artist.

Simon Paradis has a musical understanding that only pales in comparison to the size and capacity of his soul. Simon started his musical journey in a Jamaican hotel room as an 8-year old when his father showed him how to play “Get Back” by the Beatles on a guitar. Growing up in Montreal, his guitar mentors were jazz heads who would show him how to play Motown hits. After a bout of focused self-teaching, Simon was accepted into Concordia University where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. A move to western Canada saw Simon playing guitar in local country bands. Simon immersed himself in the styles of Pete Anderson (Dwight Yoakam’s guitar slinger) and honed his swing guitar style. Next came a string of projects including Gut Bucket Thunder, which is where I first heard and saw Simon play. I was blown away by his sense of melody and tasty phrasing. I saw a man who could obviously shred with the best, but yet only played what the song needed. Every note played with such emotion that it nearly ripped my heart out. Simon handles the lead guitar duties with “Joe Stanton and the Precious Littles” as well. During all this time, Simon worked as a carpenter to support his wife and children. One week after the release of the Joe Stanton album, Simon fell from the scaffolding of a home he was working on and broke his back. Simon was in a coma for 19 days. He awoke to

realize that he was paralyzed from the waist down and deaf in his right ear. The accident has forced Simon to relearn everything that his left hand does.

Flash forward 3 years and I am sitting with him in his music room discussing his music gear, his injury and his recovery.

Starting at the guitars in the top row, going left to right, we see a beautiful Gibson ES-135 non-cutaway model. This is a very thin body guitar that looks gorgeous with the “spider webbing” in the finish, and with what looks to be a P90 pickup in the bridge position, one volume pot, one tone pot and a trapeze style bridge. Next we see a 1986 American Fender Strat with Fender Lace Gold single coil pick-ups. Simon says that these pickups were developed to eliminate the noise associated with Strats but were soon discontinued due to the sudden popularity of a certain Stevie Ray Vaughn and all the noise that he embraced and unleashed on the world. At the top right is a “seafoam green” Danelectro baritone guitar with 2 single coil pickups that Simon used during some session work and ended up receiving in a trade for his services. Simon uses this guitar to get the tumble weeds to roll across the stage.

In the middle row we see an original 1970 Gibson SG. This guitar is in awesome condition and looks like it might assassinate Britney Spears if it was left in the same room with her. This was Simon’s first electric guitar which his dad bought for him. Later in life, when Simon was in music school, he traded it back to his dad in lieu of

rent that he owed. 20 years later, his dad fixed it up and gave it back to Simon for his 40th birthday. Next to the SG is a cool old relic. It seems to be a guitar that was sold by Sears in the ‘60’s under the name “Airline”. It’s a thin hollow body guitar with sweet old “harmonica pickups”. This is Simon’s slide guitar. The guitar looks suspiciously similar to certain Harmony guitars of the era. I would love to get my hands on one of these old girls.

Finally, in the bottom row, we come to Simon’s 2000 Fender “fat tele”. This is the guitar that I associate most closely with Simon. This is the guitar that he used to rip the heart out of my chest, squeeze it a few times and re-install it, better than new. He can play one note on this thing that would rival any world class shredder… grab your soul by the scruff of the neck and shake the life back into you, all with one note. If I had to put Simon on a deserted island with only one guitar, this would be the one (I don’t know how Simon would feel about that, but hell, I’m writing this article). This guitar is referred to as the “fat” tele due to the two humbuckers that can be split individually via the 5-way toggle. Last but not least, we come to a humble looking solid top Yamaha FG-150 acoustic. This guitar is somewhere between the size of a parlour and dreadnought guitar. It has been outfitted with a Fishman Ellipse Aura pickup. It is an undersaddle type pickup, with a preamp and the option to blend up to 4 “acoustic images” with the pickup sound. This is Simon’s workhorse these days. He plugs directly into his soundcard and is able to create all sorts of guitar sounds.

Conspicuously absent from his wall of guitars, is his 1978 Dobro. It has a round neck and a nickel-plated body with a single cone resonator. Simon has fitted it with a Fishman “Reso-sonic” pickup. This is the guitar that you can see and hear Simon playing with “Joe Stanton and the Precious Littles”.

Get a cloth ready to wipe away drool because we’re moving on to Simon’s harem of amplifiers. Let’s start with perhaps his coolest amp. It is a mid to late 50s accordion amp made by a company called “Excelsior”. Simon uses this amp and its single 15” speaker to get that clean Nashville sound that he loves. Next to the “Excelsior” is another beauty… a 1988 blues deluxe with a single 12” speaker. This amp has been put thru its paces as evidenced by the worn tolex and beer stains. The next picture of amps shows a couple more Fenders. The 2010 Vibro Champ XD is Simon’s newest amp and the one he uses most now since he is able to move it on his own. It is a tasty little gal that uses a tube preamp and a solid state rectifier. Next to it is Fender Deville with 4-10” speakers. A definite workhorse.

Not surprising, Simon relies on his fingers and heart to achieve the sounds he is after, so his effect pedal closet is a little bare. He does have a couple of gems in there though. A pedal that he absolutely loves is an older (ancient) MXR “Memphis” distortion pedal. Yes that is tape holding it together, but nobody notices because everyone has their eyes closed as they are transported away by the shear depth of this man’s artistry. Next to the MXR is a pedal that Simon has because it contains the sound of Peter Tosh’s “stir it up” guitar. It is a Line 6 “Otto filter”. Simon also talked of his favorite pedal. It is an Ernie Ball volume pedal. He says that he tells all young players, and us older ones too, that the first pedal we should buy is a volume pedal. He goes on to explain how a guitar’s volume pot changes the instrument’s tone as it is lowered or cranked, but a volume pedal preserves your overall tone and merely makes it louder or quieter. Simon gave his Ernie Ball away after his accident when it became apparent that he wouldn’t be able to use it.

This is a man that shares his wisdom openly with no trace of ego. This is a man that pays compliments to other players constantly, comments that stick with them for years, shaping the way they approach music. Anybody that has heard Simon play, would give anything to even approach his ability, yet it is Simon encouraging others, propping up young players, giving them the confidence to continue learning, setting a musical example for others to try to live by. Simon has been busy retraining his left hand to get back to where he was before but has also been expanding his scope of work by taking on recording engineer duties, producing music and teaching guitar. Never once did I see a person complain, instead I saw a person who has taken on another opportunity for personal growth and musical knowledge. Simon was born to create music, he has a heart of an artist and a mind of a scholar. Music isn’t a means to achieve fame and fortune, music is life in all senses of the word.

To see a video essay that Simon created about his new relationship with his legs go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=At14T6dn8nY it is accompanied by Simon playing guitar and singing. To see some live performances of Simon and his band ripping up some blues tunes, go to:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOMM_g5_RAU Contact brenny boy at brennyboy@rocketmail.com

SC: SO WHAT’S YOUR STORY BRO?

JY: I LIVE AND TATTOO IN SECHELT, BC. BEEN TATTOOING FOR 14 YEARS AND I’M ORIGI-NALLY FROM EDMONTON, ALBERTA,CITY OF CHAMPIONS.

SC: WHATS THE NAME OF YOUR SHOP IN SECHELT?

JY: SIX GILL CUSTOM TAT-TOOS.

SC: SO WHEN DID YOU SEE YOURSELF AS AN ARTIST?

JY: I GUESS I WAS A KID MAYBE 10 OR 11 YEARS OLD. MY PARENTS SAID I COULD DRAW WELL AND SORT OF PUSHED ME TOWARDS ART A LITTLE BIT AND I TOTALLY LOVED IT.

DID A LOT OF ART IN HIGH SCHOOL. THEN WENT AND GOT A TATTOO APPRENTICESHIP. PAID SOME DUES FOR A FEW YEARS, Y’KNOW.

OH YEAH, AND MY FAVOURITE MOVIES ARE BIG TROUBLE IN

TaTToos for The working class

Jesse YoUng

LITTLE CHINA AND GREM-LINS 2.

SC: SO IF YOU COULD FIGHT ANY CELEBRITY WHO WOULD IT BE?

JY: I THINK IT WOULD HAVE TO BE FLAVOR FLAV BECAUSE I’M SURE I COULD TAKE HIM. AND I’D LIKE TO GET HIS AUTOGRAPH.

SC: YOU KNOW HE JUST OPENED HIS OWN FRIED CHICKEN JOINT RIGHT?

JY: SHUT UP.

SC: THAT’S FOR REAL. FLA-VORS FLAVS OR SOME SHIT.

SC: SO WHERE ALL HAVE YOU TRAVELLED FOR THE TRADE?

JY: ALL OVER CANADA MOSTLY, BEEN TO EUROPE A FEW TIMES. I DON’T TATTOO A WHOLE HELL OF ALOT WHEN I TRAVEL. IF I CAN PICK UP A FEW DAYS OF WORK THEN THATS AWESOME Y’KNOW?

SC: YEAH, THAT’S SICK.

JY: WENT TO SOUTH AMERICA A COUPLE YEARS AGO. THERE WAS A CONVENTION IN LIMA WE WERE SUPPOSED TO GO TO BUT WE MISSED IT BY A COUPLE OF DAYS. SOME DUDE IN BARCELONA RAN OFF WITH ALL OF OUR MONEY FOR THE PLANE TICKETS SO WE HAD TO STAY IN BARCELONA AND TATTOO FOR LIKE A WEEK AND A HALF TO MAKE ENOUGH MONEY TO GET NEW TICKETS.

SC: SO HOW DID YOU GET INTO MACHINE BUILDING?

JY: I LEARNED FROM MY BUDDY LUCAS FORD. I WAS WILLING TO LEARN AND HE WAS WILLING TO TEACH ME. SO I WENT AND STAYED WITH HIM FOR A BIT AND GOT GOING SHORTLY AFTER THAT.

SC: NOW YOU HAVE A FULL SHOP WITH ALL THE TOOLS, RIGHT DOWN TO WELDING EQUIPMENT?

JY: OY YEAH.

SC: SO HOW OFTEN ARE YOU ABLE TO SELL THEM?

JY: I KIND OF DO IT FOR FUN BUT THEY ARE SELLING OUT AS FAST AS I CAN MAKE THEM. I SELL TO PROFESSIONAL TATTOO ARTISTS ONLY.

SC: WELL, THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME JESSE.

JY: NO PROBLEM, THANKS FOR HAVING ME.

Matt Wilkinson styles one out

Photo: Adam Dewolfe

SHOT BANKTHE

Photo: Daniel Mathieu

Andrew McGraw blends in with a FS Noseslide

Travis Dewitt contemplates time and space while Mat Howell floats on a lofty tailgrab

Photo: Arran Jackson

Geo skimming the wedge

Photo: Preston Rose

Photo: David Krystof

JS LapierreLipslide and a devil’s claw

Hat Trick: Daniel Mathieu

SHOT BANKTHE

BARRY WALSHA life at Pipe

In 1976 a French designer built a stadium for the Montreal Olym-pics. He designed an entrance tunnel for the Olympic torch to be run through and into the stadium grounds. Completely unaware that his tunnel design would be perfect for skateboarding. Now voted as one of the top 10 skate spots in the world, the “Big O” or “Pipe”,whichever you prefer to call it is a perfect concrete mini-ramp. From years of “Pipe Fiending” Canadian skate legend Barry Walsh evolved and maintained as one of the countries longest running pros. He skates for VANS shoes, 5Boro skateboards, Positive Creations and Urban Ambush. I managed to catch up with Barry at his home in Montreal Canada. Check it out!

SC: How many years have you been skating the Big O?

BW: Since about 85-86. Probably around 20 plus years, on and off.

SC: Was there a group of guys that influenced you or were you the first to skate that structure?

BW: There were a couple of guys who skated it but then they stopped and from there it was basically Marc Tison who really influenced me to skate it more; and he’s been skating it the longest out of anybody.

SC: So Tison is the man?

BW: Yeah basically he’s nick-named “The Caretaker”. He cleans it every springtime and maintains it.

SC: Is it skate-friendly or inhabited by crackheads?

INTERVIEW: SCOTT COPELAND

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BW: It’s actually pretty good because it’s in the middle of the old Olympic park from the seventies. People walking their dogs, you’ll get the odd lurker but not many drifters. We even have a beer delivery guy who comes right to the spot. The cops are pretty friendly, they know we’ve been there for years. The only real restriction is we can’t skate when there is soccer games but there’s only like 8 games a year. They are actually expanding the stadium.

SC: You guys fought to save the “Big O’ from development right?

BW: Yeah, we got together a coalition and got the news in-volved, which really helped out to save the spot. We showed the community we weren’t just bums down there drinking and skating y’know?

SC: When I think of Montreal I think of “Pipe” instantly.

BW: That’s cool, it’s one of the last natural skate spots that hasen’t been skate-stopped or bothered by the system. No-body who skates that spot in the history has ever made any money off skateboarding...it’s almost like a bit of a Rasta cul-ture in skateboarding down there.

SC: Core. Everybody’s in it for the love?

BW: Yeah exactly, as corny as that sounds it’s the absolute truth. It’s just real raw skateboarding going on, expressing all forms and styles.

SC: Okay some stock questions now. What was your worst Pipe injury? I know in Tarnished Goods you tried to drop in from the top and bunged up your elbow. Was that the worst one?

BW: That was one of the worst forsure. That was a severely dislocated elbow. Other than that it’s just random tweaked ankles or wrist injury but that’s pretty common in skateboard-ing.

SC: First complete?

BW: My first real complete, before riding ghetto banana boards or one board I made in woodshop, it broke two or three days later because it was made out of plywood. But my first real com-plete was a Santa Cruz jammer. Sims B-52’s and the trucks were either Trackers or Indy’s.

SC: So after watching the Devil’s Toy, seems Montreal has a pretty thick skateboarding history?

BW: Oh yeah. That movie was made in 1966 and is literally one of the first skateboard pieces of film that shows the rebel-lion. Most of the early films on skateboarding were cheesy and were all about the sun and the beach. If you watch the film it actually shows the skull and bones on the grip tape and they’re running from the police. It’s epic y’know?

SC: That’s rad.

BW: As a Montrealer I’m very proud of that film because it re-ally represents the roots and culture of skatieboarding in Mon-treal.

SC: So in a roundabout way your scene and the beliefs spawned from that mentality?

BW: That video definitely inspired us and we sort of feel like with the “Pipe” and the movements been going on for so long it’s almost like part two of that scene. We’re still carrying on the underground fire of skateboarding. Sure people like myself and Marc Tison are getting in magazines but none of us have ever made a big living off skateboarding.

SC: So tell us about your collection of blasters?

BW: I have a bit over fifty ghetto blasters. I have all different sizes and shapes. But if the speakers come off to me that’s a por-table stereo, not a ghetto blaster. I only collect solid pieces and it has to have a handle.

SC: Made to hit the streets.

BW: Yeah exactly. I collect them as long as they are esthetical-ly in good shape. I kind of see them like 70s era cars or women. You know? Like cars from the 50s 60s and 70s had so much style and they were so fucking cool. Like you look at cars today and they all look like pop-cans you know? I kind of look at the ghetto blasters like individual women. You can’t compare one woman to another they, both have unique features.

SC: Are you doing exhibits?

BW: I’ve done two so far and they went really well. I’m working on a third one that will be more of a fashion show, where each girl comes out with a different blaster. And everytime a different girl comes out with a different radio the music changes. To the era of how she’s dressed and the era of the radio. I’ve got a few more ideas. I just picked one up today, oddly enough. I also want to do a book on ghetto blasters one day.

SC: So what do you think of when you watch the Berrics? Have they taken skateboarding and turned it into something boring like golf or a tennis match?

BW: I think it’s cool how they showcase the head to head battle aspect of it. I’m an old break dancer and in the whole B-boy cul-ture it’s a battle of styles. You can do that with skating as long as it isn’t taken too seriously.

photo: MathieuInterview: Copeland

What the Fuck is up with the “line-up”?

A funny thing happened on the way to the surf…we started to get as dumb as

snowboarders. Ever had some dick paddleout…three feet deeper than you then

magically think it’s his (or her) wave? How asinine is that. It’s called the line-

up cause you take turns. Life is not a contest that’s for the egos in the contest

jerseys and sticker board crew. Share the waves and you get some waves as well

as some respect along the way. Anytime someone tries to pull this crap on you

just drop in on them and smile. When they paddle up spouting BS smile and tell

them the next contest is in June Cox Bay I believe, where all the egos live. They

give out lots of cheap plastic crap as well, all for free, lucky us! The Cold Water is

dead word has it. Oh well, one for the surfers one less for the pros.

Some people think that the contest element of surfing is good for surfers. It’s not.

It makes people surf the wrong boards and treat others in the water badly. Makes

a circus of town and only puts money in the hands of companies, Bars and Resorts

who only care about surf because it pays. Pull out a camera and many people act

like jackasses, even the shooter. Put a banner or scaffolding on the beach and WOW

lots of knobs on all that “driftwood”.

Surfing is whatever you want it to be: A lonely break with friends, a crowded reef in

Bali, dirty magical Mex, crazy crowded Hawaii, your not so secret spot with the 20

other Dudes that read about it on the interweb. You’re not the first…but you might

be the first that day. You’re not surfing if your holding a paddle… but it might be

fun…its just boating or S&M depending on the website. Short or longboard, mats,

handplanes, chunks of wood or raw foam. A paint brush doesn’t make you an artist

and a board doesn’t make you a surfer. Do whatever, give a wave, get a wave.

Search a little farther and you might be amazed at what you find. Just remember

this wise old dog:

“Old School, New School…its all about Respect”

P D

Till next time

Crusty Bastard

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omSurfer: Ashleigh DrummondPhoto: Matt Catalano

PARTY FOREVER!!!by Dan Faria

About a year ago a friend of mine was all horny to see this band at the Railway club called The Centaurs of the Universe. I figured with a name like that these guys are bound to be enter-taining. Now, they went on pretty late and I have to admit that I was three bible pages to the wind by the time they hit the stage, but when they did come on I was floored. There were four...fucking...centaurs on the stage. I mean it, four dudes with horse legs and man torsos.... with armour and shit. Let me tell you, these guys ripped. They belted out tune after tune of good time rock’n’roll about space, battle, partying, chicks and more partying. I gotta say, the Centaurs of the Uni-verse are the (not so) pure essence of a God damn

good time. Their monster riffs, angelic vocals and catchy hooks will make you, unknowingly and almost unwillingly, guzzle liquor and in-hale contraband like some kind of mind-less party drone.

Now, a week later, when the hang-over wore off, I was very intrigued by

the rock’n’roll spec-tacle that I had the privilege of witness-

ing. I had to find out more about these party av-

atars. Who were they? Where they came from? Where the fuck

are they playing next? After some research I found out that they are not of this world. They hale from a planet named Centauria, light years away. I also found out that that same

friend I went to the show with had befriended these Centaurs. I knew I

had to meet them. Well, I was invited to a poker game at Randy, the guitarist’s

place. Now, while I was in the process of losing all of my money to the drummer,

Steve, (I swear that dude can count cards as well as, if not better than a 4/4) I was

able to ask the singer, Daryl, of the mythi-cal origin of these rock beasts. I couldn’t get

a straight answer, unfortunately, due to the fact that through the course of the night I

was given a hand full of origin stories. What

I managed to piece together was that they crashed a party on space faring vessel on their home world of Centauria, somehow launched it, couldn’t actually fly it themselves and partied until the vessel eventu-ally, and fortunately, crashed here on earth. Now they can’t fix the ship either, nor could they fly the ship once it’s fixed so they kinda said “fuck it!!! Let’s party here”. I’m glad they did.

So, if you’re looking to lose your mind, and inhibitions, keep your eyes peeled for these half guys partying at a show near you....you wont be disappointed. Check them out on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Centaurs-of-the-Uni-verse and myspace:

http://www.myspace.com/centaursoftheuni-verse#!/centaursoftheuniverse.

Make sure to save yourself a trip to the beer store and pick up a

flat BEFORE you sit down to listen to the tracks

they’ve posted online. Trust

me, you’ll need that

whole flat.!

KATHRYN LEA WALLACE

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MEAGAN MERJEWSKI

Need help developing print or e-content? Please contact Erin McMullan – writer, editor, project manager, coach, photographer.

Every adventure begins with Fresh Horses.

erinlinn.mcmullan@gmail.com

Need help developing print or e-content? Please contact Erin McMullan – writer, editor, project manager, coach, photographer.

Every adventure begins with Fresh Horses.

FIND OUT WHATS COOKIN AT:

WWW.MINDSKIS.BLOGSPOT.COM

THANKS FOR READING..