3rd Annual Industry Pig Dinner Goes Down This Wed At Refuel…

News from Scout supporter Refuel

Mmm…pig dinner! Smell the camaraderie, the love, the ale! All of the relevant details ($55 per seat, etc) can be found in the image above, but to learn and see more about Refuel and what it’s all about, click on… Read more

The Long Awaited “Judas Goat” Opens In Gastown’s Blood Alley

Judas Goat has finally opened in Gastown, and it looks great for a shoebox hideaway that doesn’t take itself too seriously. For an explanation of the art within from co-owner Sean Heather and shot shots of the pre-opening interior shots of the 21 seat, Spanish-inspired tapas micr0-restaurant and wine bar, click here. For shots from their first full day in action, check below for several…

Break a leg.

Zulu Report: Loving Fan Death & Waiting For Devendra Banhart

Our friends over at Kitsilano’s Zulu Records once again present their weekly Scout feature, the Zulu Report. Within, staff from the West 4th music store provide The Track, the song that is on heavy rotation that week; The Playlist, which is pretty self-explanatory; The Gig, the must see show of the week; and The Glance, a view ahead to music on the horizon. From their ears to yours, enjoy…

The Track

The tune currently on heavy rotation…

BROKEN BELLS | “The High Road” from the album Broken Bells on Sony Music.

Broken Bells – heard of them? They’re what you’d call an Indie Rock Super Group, except there’s only two of them, so maybe their more of a Dynamic Duo. The Bells consist of the ever dynamic, chameleon-like musician-producer Danger Mouse and James Mercer, frontman for Aughties powerhouse indie rock band The Shins. Seems like kind of an unlikely pairing at first, but upon listening to a few of these jams I’m totally convinced of their intentions. It’s just good, morose, spacey pop. And really, looking back over the Mouse’s career, it’s clear that he never intended to stick strictly within the hip-hop world. Wasn’t his Gray Album mash-up of Jay Z and the White Album essentially a premonition of the po-mo flattening of musical genres, the gray washout that bleaches over all western facets of culture and practice? Rolling Stone calls this “wistful space-pop gorgeousness,” but I call it Fredric Jameson theory-rock. Either way you cut it, it’s good.

The Playlist

TAKEN FROM ZULU STAFF TOP 10 of 2009

Click the links for some audible flavour…

FAN DEATH A Coin For The Well (Last Gang)
Vancouver by way of NY sex-disco for sweaty Saturday night romps and adventures.

BARDO POND Bufo Alvarious (Fire)
Philly’s finest drugged out, hazy-eyed dreamers wake from a hash-nap to boil some tea and delve into some heavy electro-astral investigations.

CLOGS The Creatures In The Garden Of Lady Walton (Brassland)
Instrumental, almost classical sound greatness from members of The National, sounding fresh and inventive.

ROGUE WAVE Permalight (Brushfire)
Rogue Waves’ much anticipated return to the public eye finds them older, wiser, and ready to teach the kids something about the human condition.

SHOUT OUT LOUDS Work (Merge)
Merge delivers another commodity destined to rise to the top of the indie rock stock exchange and make their shareholders very happy.

REAL ESTATE s/t (Woodsist)
New Jersey nice boys jingle-jangle the soul of Malkmus back into working order.

SADE Soldier Of Love (Sony)
Hot damn, the high priestess of soul-jazz-pop returns to claim her rightful place: the throne of pop. Sade, you melt me.

SMITH WESTERNS S/t (Hozac)
A couple of dudes barely out of their teens strike upon the a delightful blend of T-Rex strut and Count Five skronk.

YELLOW SWANS Going Places (Type)
The final offering from PDX’s mighty Yellow Swans is a glorious, almost devotional bliss-out of warm, blue gray astral skree. Very necessary.

For more ZULU STAFF TOP 10 of 2009 check http://www.zulurecords.com/

The Gig

Devendra Banhart and the Grogs Friday March 19th at The Commodore.

When Banhart rolls into town it’s always worth your while to check it out if for no other reason than that you don’t know if the show is going to be a night of spectacular music or a spectacular disaster. The last time Banhart and his gang of merry, hairy pranksters rolled into town it was a bit of both. I recall at one point how an audience member was invited to get up on stage and play his own song, while Banhart and the gang took a smoke break?! Hippydippy-ness aside, Banhart can be relied on to bring the WTF-factor that so many live shows sorely lack. To see that kind of drama unfold at the Cobalt or Pat’s is expected, but in a Commodore setting it becomes something really special. Trust me.

The Glance

Fine local shows on the immediate horizon…

Wed MAR 17

DRAGONETTE – COMMODORE

Thu MAR 18

JAY MALINOWSKI + KINNIE STAR – BILTMORE
FREESTYLERS – SHINE
JIMPSTER – FORTUNE

Fri MAR 19

JOHN DIGWEED – CELEBRITIES

Sat MAR 20

RAPHAEL SAADIQ & INDIA AIRE – ORPHEUM
DEVENDRA BANHART + The Grogs – COMMODORE
IMMACULATE MACHINES w/ Sun Wizard + A Pale Blue – BILTMORE
KREATOR – RICKSHAW

Sat MAR 20

POSTDATA – MEDIA CLUB
HOT BUTTERED RUM & FLOWMOTION – VOGUE
DON DIABLO – SHINE

Wed MAR 24

JON ANDERSON of YES – VOGUE

Thu MAR 25

SAMAPALOOZA – VENUE
THE SLACKERS – RICKSHAW

Fri MAR 26

NATALLIE PORTMAN’S SHAVED HEAD – PIT PUB
JASON COLLETT w/ ZEUS / BAHAMAS – BILTMORE

Sat MAR 27

WHITE STRIPES FILM + ARTHRITIS FUNDRAISER – PACIFIC CINEMATHEQUE
SCATTERHEART – COMMODORE
KALEIDOSCOPE – RICKSHAW
ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE – BILTMORE

Tickets Soon To Go On Sale For 2010 “Outstanding In The Field”

Tour dates for the 2010 season of Outstanding in the Field have been announced here. If you’ve never been to one of these al fresco experiences, they are two of the best events on BC’s gastronomic calendar, right up there with the Tofino Food & Wine Festival and Feast of Fields. The dinner series, put on by California-based artist and chef Jim Denevan and his traveling band of merry men and women, sees the best chefs in almost every North American city preparing meals on long, linen-draped tables set with silver, wine glasses, flowers, and really good people. It’s a pretty amazing gig. They boot around the continent hosting these first rate, farm-to-table meals in spectacular settings like beaches, vineyards, forest groves and farmer’s fields, all the while making fast friends wherever they go. Nice.

The one in Pemberton, held at Jordan and Trish Sturdy’s breathtaking North Arm Farm, goes down on July 18th. followed the very next day by a dinner out at UBC Farm. Chef James Walt of Araxi will be returning to cook at the former (he did a superlative job last year), while Robert Belcham of Refuel and Campagnolo will be breaking his Outstanding cherry at the latter. Tickets for each are $180 (US, presumably), and they go on sale March 20th.

Check the Scout Field Trip video above to see how awesomely spectacular both events were in 2009. We took the Westfalia up and camped with the crew after dinner, and then torqued down to UBC the next day. It was the best 48 hours of eating I experienced last year. Here’s hoping you decide to join us at both in July!

Lumiere and Db Bistro Offering Special Olympic Hangover Menus

A couple of months ago I wrote briefly about an outstanding meal I’d had at Lumiere. No evening out since has bested it on both the food and service fronts, and though I can’t slip into luxury mode all that often, I’m eager to give it another go sooner rather than later. I’ve had 8 pizzas in 10 days, so I’m due for some white linen and crystal.

It looks like I’ll probably get my wish, too. From a recent email:

Both Lumiere and db Bistro Moderne are offering ‘Olympic Hangover Menus’ during the month of March. We have a three course menu at db bistro for a scant $30 and a three course menu at Lumiere for $60. They are both wonderful and compelling ways to revisit our dining rooms…

No kidding. Take a look after the jump to check out the special menus. Several of the dishes that my wife and I enjoyed during our recent visit are offered on Lumiere’s special menu, including the hamachi and the beef duo, both of which were extraordinarily good. If you need a photo refresher, click the link above after reading the menu below. Read more

Top Table Restaurants On The Most Romantic Night Of The Year

News from Scout supporters CinCin, Araxi, West, and Blue Water Café

Vancouver + Whistler, BC | Like yours, our Olympic memories are rife with wonderful individual moments and the spirit that celebrated excellence at every turn. We enjoyed a great mix of our regulars and locals at each of our restaurants – Araxi in Whistler, and Blue Water Cafe, CinCin, and West in Vancouver – along with many visitors, royals and celebrities of an extraordinary diversity. Read more

Zulu Report: Really, It’s OK To Be Addicted To Pantha Du Prince

Our friends over at Kitsilano’s Zulu Records once again present their weekly Scout feature, the Zulu Report. Within, staff from the West 4th music store provide The Track, the song that is on heavy rotation that week; The Playlist, which is pretty self-explanatory; The Gig, the must see show of the week; and The Glance, a view ahead to music on the horizon. From their ears to yours, enjoy…

The Track

The tune currently on heavy rotation…

Pantha Du Prince | “Stick By My Side” from the album Black Noise (Rough Trade)

Pantha Du Prince has pulled off a remarkable feat with his beautiful sound poem of an album, Black Noise. Recorded in the Swiss Alps (and heavily inspired by those surroundings), Black Noise features forest sounds seamlessly integrated into minimal techno jams. Like Burial, The Field and the entire K7! label, Pantha Du Prince works within the “electro house” genre, but this is hardly the soulless, brainless throb that you’d expect by that tag. This is lush, blissed out, feeling music, as this track, Stick By My Side, attests. Having Panda Bear guest vocalize on this album will boost the songs appeal, but this is Pantha’s show all the way. Watch this video and be transported into the future by gazing into the deepness of humanity’s collective forest-past. Read more

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