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Uptown Magazine - Winnipeg's Online Source for Arts, Entertainment & News

October 1, 2009


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2009-10-01

There is a club, on Albert Street...

The Royal Albert Arms is celebrated in a new, made-for-TV documentary

Jared Story

Like a sticker on the pillar.

When shooting Call to Arms: The Story of the Royal Albert, writer/ director/editor Randy Frykas quickly realized that, to properly document the legendary local live-music venue, he'd have to toss the blueprint and just blend in.

"It's the type of story where you wouldn't just be able to write down notes, and then sit down and do four interviews," says Frykas, 29. "It's the type of thing where you have to just let things happen.

"There's a scene where the roof is leaking. stuff like that wasn't planned. I walked in, I had my camera and I was just in to get some extra B-roll that day, and the roof is leaking. That's perfect. That was the perfect example of an Albert shoot. You just show up prepared for anything that could happen, like the roof is leaking or some guy is crawling from the ceiling."

The story of this story begins in August of 2008 when Cam Bennett, executive producer of MTS TV Winnipeg On Demand, came to Jeff Newman of local production company Nüman Films with the idea of doing something on the Albert. Newman, knowing that Frykas, a freelance editor, was looking for opportunities to write and direct, decided to act as producer of the film. He, too, understood that the Albert wasn't going to cooperate with traditional movie-making methods.

"When we first started talking about it, Randy would ask, 'Who do you want to be the director of photography?' or 'What kind of equipment should we have?'" Newman says.

"Randy came back to me after a while and said, 'You know what? It's not going to work there.'

"We couldn't have a traditional set-up, coming in with a big crew, today's the day we're shooting, setting up lights and big interviews, and putting all our interviews on the same day. That's how I had approached any film in the past. That's the basic filmmaking process. But it wouldn't have worked. It would have never evolved the way it had, had Randy not taken this fly-on-the-wall style."

"It's the fucking Bermuda Triangle of Winnipeg music."
- Drew Johnston, Electro Quarterstaff

That quote from Call to Arms speaks volumes.

Built in 1913, the same year as the statelier Fort Garry Hotel, the Royal Albert Arms was overshadowed from the outset. In its nearly 30 years as a punk rock club, the Albert's stage has been graced by the likes of The Cure, Green Day, Hüsker Dü, Melvins, Dave Grohl (when he was playing with D.C. band Scream), Sloan, even Nickelback. Yet your average Winnipegger doesn't know this. Many don't even know where the hotel is.

"It's weird because it is just a block away from Portage and Main, but it's tucked away," Frykas says. "Just from playing shows there, you'd tell people you're playing at the Albert and they'd ask, 'Oh, where's that?' It's on Albert Street. 'Oh, where's that?'"

When Johnston delivers that 'Bermuda Triangle' quote, he's alluding to the Albert's underground status, but those words, perhaps unintentionally, say so much more.

Like the folklore of that notorious region in the Atlantic Ocean, misconceptions and distorted facts have unfairly created a popular opinion of the Albert as a dangerous place.

Frykas and Newman hope Call to Arms can bust that myth.

"It will never be a mass-appeal kind of place, but the one thing the film could do is, if someone has a preconceived notion that the Albert is a dirty shithole that you'll get stabbed in, well, maybe they'll gain an appreciation for it," Newman says.

"They might never go to the Albert or even have any desire to go, but at least they can see why it's had its longevity and why people love it."

Sam Smith, the Albert's artistic director since 2003 (and patron/promoter for much longer) sees that same value in Call to Arms.

"I think the film, in the long run, will prove helpful, in that it explains to people what this venue is all about but, ultimately, what drives people through the doors is the band that's playing here that night," Smith says.

"The film won't change that approach. We're always going to be this weird little outpost, but the film is a nice, complementary piece where people can get some perspective and history, give them a better sense of the place."

Back to that 'Bermuda Triangle' again.

Let's say the urban legend is true, and that the sea really does suck up ships and aircraft. Well, the same can be said of the Albert. Whether it's the bands, the staff, the patrons, or perhaps the building itself, there's an overwhelming sense of community and camaraderie that's so contagious it will just swallow you right up.

"It's just a building, it's just a room, but there really is a sense that the place means something and that really comes through in the film," Newman says.

"When Natalie (Sharma, the Albert's general manager) breaks down talking about the Albert in the film, well, she's just mopping the floor, but this dingy little club has really impacted her life.

"For a couple of generations now, it's really had a strong impact. People are sending us emails from across Canada saying how badly they want to see the film. That really surprised me. It's really integrated into people's lives and that's really neat to see."

"Just because Natalie said that and felt those emotions, well, there are hundreds of people who feel the exact same way," Frykas says.

"Just because Natalie said something or Derek Kun (Burnthe8track frontman) said something or whoever, they feel that same thing and just express it in a different way.

"For her, for that moment, it just sums it all up; everyone wants to work hard to keep the Albert here. Everyone loves it and wants to see it keep going forever."

CALL TO ARMS: THE STORY OF THE ROYAL ALBERT
Public screening
Oct. 8, 8 p.m. (show starts at 9 p.m.), Royal Albert Arms
Admission $5

Beginning Thurs., Oct. 1
Winnipeg On Demand
MTS TV Winnipeg

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