Feel that small soft spot, right near the left of the middle of my twee heart? That's where my love of the printed word lives. When I first moved to Vancouver years ago, it was a time when the prevalence of the internet and its unyielding powers had yet to take over; a time when MySpace and Tom (hi Tom!) were still *the* place to find out about new music and to make new (online) friends; a time when events and concerts were discovered via the newspaper or word of mouth; a time when when some people in the western world who hadn't heard of Craigslist actually existed. It was a time of the alt-weekly.
Naturally, I gravitated toward the two most popular weeklies in Vancouver (one of which I worked for, so can't review, but love nonetheless). Which brings me to WE. Formerly known as the Westender, this paper (it would seem) is really trying to up its game these days. It's always (for as long as I've known it) published Rob Brezny's Free Will Astrology (don't know it? You do now. You're welcome), which I adore; and has a relatively high standard in terms of their editorial choices, but what it's always lacked, is an edge. What made the Westender (now known as WE) any better than the competition? (I'm not even joking about the Free Will Astrology. It was the only reason I picked the paper up)
What it was deficient of in the years prior, it's gained the the last year or so. Smart hiring of staff and contract writers has made for a more rich and unique reading experience. Yes, there's still Rants and Raves, but now has additions of the likes of Kurtis Kolt (Vancouver wine darling/expert/consultant/all-around nice guy) and his weekly "City Cellar' column (winos, take note). And though Andrew Morrison has been a restaurant critic for the paper since 2005, his success with his own project, Scout, has made for a much more exposed look into the restaurant scene in Vancouver. Add those to the regular local news and editorials, and this is a quality weekly.
It's these, and Rob Brezny that keep me picking the paper up. So keep it up, WE. I think you're hitting a stride. read more