Humanity has been celebrating the winter solstice and the time leading up to it for quite some time. But we feel that the usual ways to do so are kinda played out.
Whichever belief system (or lack thereof) you subscribe to, The Scene presents to you some ways to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year that are off the snowy, boot-imprinted path (and sometimes, covered in studs).
A Touch of Neon in the Night
Originally Vancouver-based and now making Calgary its home for the last year, punk rock record label and store Neon Taste takes over the Palomino on December 5 and 6 for two consecutive nights of garage rock, power pop, and hardcore. Bands include Vancouver’s Tranzmitors, Winnipeg’s Lackey and Toronto’s Imploders (fresh off the release of a gnarly new record), as well as local rockers Closetalkers, Garland Briggs and Low Blow. Let old man Moshington come out of retirement for two deadly nights! Find out more at thepalomino.ca/live-events.
A Very Merry Craftmas
If you’d rather load up on decorations somewhere other than Michael’s or Dollarama, the long-running periodical craft fair Market Collective takes over the BMO Centre for two holiday-themed weekends, December 5-7 and 12-14. Highlights will include a puppet-making workshop courtesy of the WP Puppet Theatre on the first weekend and a pop-up CRATE Art Therapy Clinic on the second. Scrooge himself could easily get into the spirit of the season here, no haunting required. Learn more at marketcollective.ca.
Improvised Holidaze
Theatre Calgary’s staging of A Christmas Carol is a Cowtown tradition, but those of you who are Scrooge’d out have many other holiday-themed shows to choose from this year. Across December, Calgary’s improv institution, Loose Moose Theatre, presents nine performances of A Chrismoose Carol, their newest parodic take on Charles Dickens’ much-interpreted story … the details of which are a closely guarded secret. For those who prefer rom-coms to classic morality plays as source material, the Kinkonauts are staging three performances of Actually, I Love You: An Improvised Holiday Romance at the Blox Arts Centre on December 5, 12 and 19. Visit kinkonauts.com and loosemoose.com for more info.
Black Ice (the fun kind)
For those of you punx seeking more loud-ass music in an even more sweaty setting, Loophole Coffee Bar will host the all-ages Black Ice Music Festival from December 7 to 13, now in its third year. Each night is dedicated to a different genre of alternative music, in the following order: noise, drumless metal, free jazz, indie rock, hardcore, emo, and punk. Talk about eclectic! Local acts on the docket include deathgrinders Narcissistic Necrosis, improvisational shoegazers Friesen/Hume/Waters, and emo-hardcore gems Still There. Visit showpass.com/black-ice-2025 for tickets and lineup info.
To All A Good Fright
If the spooky season didn’t deliver enough scares for you, the Merry Month just might. On December 12, VVS Films and Bloody Disgusting theatrically release a reboot of the Christmas-themed slasher franchise Silent Night, Deadly Night starring the Calgary-born, Cochrane-raised Rohan Campbell, whom we previously saw as a murderous-but-festive young man in 2022’s Halloween Ends. But you don’t have to wait that long: our friends at the Calgary Underground Film Festival will be hosting a special advance screening at the Globe Cinema on December 8. Make a date night of it, sneak in some Dollarama treats, and leave the kids at home if you don’t want to induce a case of Clause-trophobia. Visit calgaryundergroundfilm.org for more info.
Be Cool to Your Yule
Of course, the original reason we celebrate anything this time of year is to acknowledge the winter solstice, the shortest day and longest night of the year. There are several ways, both ancient and new, to mark the occasion while soothing your seasonal affective disorder. Wiccans and other followers of pagan traditions celebrate Yule around this time, with specific traditions including the burning of a Yule log (a real one, not the log-shaped cake) and a “releasing ceremony,” a purging of negative thoughts and emotions that no longer serve a purpose. Alternatively, members of the Church of the SubGenius – a parody religion that is critical of other belief systems – may choose to ruminate on their past regrets by observing the Feelings of Gnawing Guilt Minute on December 21 from 4:00 to 4:01 PM.
