When BC Place opened, the area was still largely industrial Its neighbours at the time included a sawmill, a cooperage, and the 1912 swingspan Connaught Bridge, replaced in 1985 by the current Cambie Bridge. Its air-filled white teflon roof, often called the “marshmallow in bondage,” was the largest object on the False Creek/downtown skyline until 2010, when it was replaced by a retractable roof. A televised ceremony on Jofficially opened the building, and the next day the Whitecaps christened the new field, beating the Seattle Sounders 2-1 in front of over 60,000 fans. The stadium covered 10 acres, with a circumference of 750 metres. By November 1982, BC Place’s roof was being inflated by an air pump and held aloft by 16 giant fans, making it the largest air-supported dome in the world. Alvin Narod was appointed CEO of the crown corporation created to oversee BC Place (PavCo), and Jim Pattison became chairman of the board, while Studio Philips Barratt was awarded the design contract.Ĭaught up in the controversy of the hugely expensive plans for Expo 86, BC Place was met with mixed feelings by the public, but nevertheless was completed on time, costing $126 million, and its success was meant to spur the continuation of development in preparation for Expo. The provincial government proceeded to buy 175 acres from CPR’s Marathon Realty for $60 million, and construction began that same year on the stadium, although infrastructure like roads and water lines needed to be created in the area first. Nicknamed “Bennet’s Bubble,” the plan for the stadium was part of a much larger proposal for Vancouver to host the 1986 World’s Fair, and was meant to bring new life to a traditionally industrial area. After a study commissioned by the provincial government in 1979 to look into the feasibility, including location, of a new stadium, Premier Bill Bennett announced plans for BC Place in January 1980. Sound and Chaos: The Story of BC Studio includes interviews with musicians such as Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth, Michael Gira of Swans, Brian Viglione of the Dresden Dolls, Bob Bert, who played on Sonic Youth's Bad Moon Rising, Bill Laswell of Material, JG Thirlwell aka Foetus, Grand Mixer DXT, Jim Coleman of Cop Shoot Cop and Michael Holman of Gray (with Jean-Michel Basquiat) and creator of famed 1984 hip-hop TV pilot Graffiti Rock.In the late 1970s, Erwin Swangard, president of the PNE proposed a new open air stadium, to take over from Empire Stadium, which had been built for the 1954 British Commonwealth Games. A new, massive Whole Foods supermarket across the street is the latest addition to this once out-of-the-way area, that Bisi fears will increase property values to the point of pushing out long-time renters and artists like himself. However, the future of the recording studio is in question as it is squeezed in by the encroaching gentrification of the neighborhood. He has recorded across many genres, from experimental music, to hip hop and indie rock in the old factory building by the contaminated Gowanus Canal. Following that success, Bisi worked with many other influential musicians there, including Sonic Youth, Swans, Angels of Light, John Zorn, Foetus and the Dresden Dolls. This was the first mainstream, popular song to feature a DJ and a turntable, utilizing 'scratching'. Working with Bill Laswell and the band Material, Bisi recorded Herbie Hancock's hit Rockit in this underground space. After a chance New York encounter, the studio was founded with money from Brian Eno, who subsequently worked on the album On Land there. For over 30 years, Martin Bisi has recorded music from his studio in Brooklyn's Gowanus neighborhood.
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