Blog Archive

Canada

• Canadian ’90s Rock Playlists (Spotify/YouTube) (November 12, 2020)
  

  Playlists of Canadian alt, modern + pop rock from the ‘late ’80s to early ’00s: YouTube playlist / Canadian ’90s Rock Music Videos 🇨🇦 Spotify Playlist: Canadian ’90s Rock 🇨🇦

• We Live to Survive Our Parodoxes (November 10, 2017)
  

  “As the Tragically Hip’s lead singer and lyricist,” wrote CBC’s John Mazerolle last month in memoriam of the group’s frontman, “[Gord] Downie was the face and voice of a band whose discography sold more than eight million copies. The band’s propulsive, muscular rock, coupled with intense live performances and Downie’s cryptic, literary lyrics, allowed the […]

• FJØRA Interview (September 29, 2017)
  

  Born in Canada and now stationed in New York City, FJØRA isn’t a traditional “Nashville artist,” despite the roots of her debut release being firmly planted in the city’s musical landscape. Having moved to Nashville to attend Belmont, she expanded her presence in the city’s scene following her graduation last year, establishing herself within an […]

• The Evaporators “Gassy Jack and Other Tales” (March 31, 2013)
  

  In ’90s when he was bombarding unsuspecting artists with his off-the-wall interview stylings (the man was a deep-googler before Google was even a thing), few if any might have placed Nardwuar the Human Serviette as some sort of niche hip hop icon as the new millennium’s first decade drew to a close. Yet that’s exactly […]

• If Nardwuar Can Do It, You Can Do It, Too! (April 14, 2011)
  

  For those still unfamiliar with Nardwuar (his Odd Future SXSW interview ring a bell?), the Canadian radio and television personality has been going strong and doing his thing for well over two decades. One of the higher profile aspects of “his thing” has been creating a niche for himself as one of the world’s most […]

• Seeking “Spiritual Pollution” (March 27, 2011)
  

  To this day it still might be widely perceived that grunge’s northern reach ended at the 49th parallel in the early ’90s. That simply wasn’t the case though. Signed to Reprise/Warner in 1991 based a single demo tape, Vancouver’s Pure achieved the bulk of their success based on their 1992 full-length debut, Pureafunalia. Produced by […]

• Terry Fox (March 6, 2011)
  

  I just finished watching the film about Terry Fox that Steve Nash helped create for ESPN’s 30 for 30 series (Into the Wind). His is a story that I’ve taken for granted—being Canadian it has always been there as long as I’ve been alive—but I suppose I was never of the mindset to appreciate the […]

• Katie Lee (of Braids) Interview (January 24, 2011)
  

  As support for Braids‘ debut release began to gain momentum last year, the group received substantial coverage from a number of key outlets ranging from Canada’s National Post to Stereogum; later mentioned in the latter’s “Most Anticipated Albums Of 2011” and “Best New Bands Of 2010” lists. And if early Native Speaker feedback is any […]

• Metric “Black Sheep” (Influenza) (November 10, 2010)
  

  No strangers to acclaim, Metric’s Polaris Music Prize and Juno Award nominations have contributed heavily to the Toronto-based quartet being recognized as one of Canada’s highest regarded rock acts. That said, the band is seemingly perpetually on the brink of something greater. With the release of last year’s Fantasies—which debuted atop Billboard’s Top Heatseekers chart—the […]

• Hissy Fit “Outdoor Life” (Influenza) (November 5, 2010)
  

  Over the past couple weeks alone, under his Hissy Fit pseudonym, beat-maker Matthew Hiscock has already released a live podcast via Swing and Skip Records and an EP via Phuturelabs. He also has a another full-length 12″ on its way next month via S&S, and still the Newfoundland-born producer finds time to curate a bass-friendly […]

• Seeing Suge “Breaking” (Influenza) (October 31, 2010)
  

  Blackbird Blackbird is a California-based producer who churns out music described by Nialler9 as “reverb-heavy” “dream pop jams,” and I Guess I’m Floating as “sunny, idyllic dreamwave.” Star Slinger is a UK-based producer who creates a sound which Dazed Digital has called “heavily rooted in the fundamental laws of hip-hop.” Emay is an Ontario-based producer […]

• Neil Young “Le Noise: The Film” (September 30, 2010)
  

  Le Noise: The Film: is “a [largely] 38-minute black and white film of eight live-in-studio performances of the eight songs that appear on legendary rocker Neil Young’s brand-new album Le Noise… The performances, shot by filmmaker Adam CK Vollick, feature Young on acoustic and electric guitars at Lanois’ home studio in Silverlake, CA, where Young […]

• Neil Young’s “Le Noise” & “Ordinary People” (September 2, 2010)
  

  “There’s a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.” – Leonard Cohen. In 2007 I wrote an essay that’s about as long-winded as its title: “A Sustainable Future, Neil Young’s ‘Ordinary People’ and the Beauty of Coincidence.” Essentially it touches on a rocky time in my life which led me to a series […]

• I Used to Love H.E.R. (August 23, 2010)
  

  The 46th installment of I Used to Love H.E.R., a series in which artists/bloggers/writers discuss their most essential or favorite hip-hop albums and songs… Maestro Fresh Wes “Let Your Backbone Slide” I don’t remember where or when I first heard it, I just remember that “Let Your Backbone Slide” has practically always been a part […]

• The Almighty Defenders at The Royal Canadian Legion (Calgary, AB) (July 1, 2010)
  

  Video of the Almighty Defenders (Mark Sultan with the Black Lips) performing at the Royal Canadian Legion as part of the Sled Island festival in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. [This post was first published by Culture Bully.]

• Golden Triangle at the Royal Canadian Legion (Calgary, CA) ()
  

  Photos of Golden Triangle taken July 1, 2010 at the Royal Canadian Legion as part of the Sled Island festival in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. [This post was first published by Culture Bully.]

• Deerhoof at Central United Church (Calgary, AB) ()
  

  Prior to the show, I overheard someone in the church pew behind me ask “Those don’t look like standard Deerhoof guitars, do they?” While I’m not sure exactly what standard Deerhoof guitars are supposed to look like I doubt that they were disappointed as guitarists Ed Rodriguez and John Dieterich took to the stage, progressively […]

• Sled Island (June 7, 2010)
  

  First and foremost: it was a pleasure participating in Sled Island. My sincere thanks go out to Zak, Drew, and everyone else who went out of their way on multiple occasions to help my friends and I. I’m glad to have had the opportunity to attend and I wouldn’t trade spending Canada Day in some […]

• Hank Williams III at The Whiskey (Calgary, AB) (June 6, 2010)
  

  The I last time I saw Hank Williams was a little under three years ago and the show drew what I still remember to be one of the wildest crowds I’ve ever been a part of. While I can’t say the same for this show (which probably had as much to do with the ticket […]

• Drake “Thank Me Later” Review (June 3, 2010)
  

  Drake has nearly 650,000 followers on Twitter, 225,000 fans on Facebook and 31 million page views on MySpace. But for every fan the young vocalist has garnered, he’s also found a hater. And understandably so as the 23-year-old actor-turned-MC has never shied away from displaying his affluence, his privileged upbringing, or flaunting and flossing every […]

• The Hypnotic Allure of Braids (June 1, 2010)
  

  Hype can be a funny thing sometimes, especially in terms of music. It can lead to exaggerated slants on bands that might not be entirely grounded in reality, but it can also help shed light on artists who might otherwise not have been given the time of day. “Braids are by no means a sure […]

• Abstract Minimalism: Beneath These Idle Tides (May 21, 2010)
  

  Sounds like: Aphex Twin’s Selected Ambient Works, Vol. II & Stars of the Lid’s Stars of the Lid and Their Refinement of the Decline. Upon initial inspection of Beneath These Idle Tides’ MySpace page one might be underwhelmed, if only by the lack of a “pimped skin;” background information is non-existent, there are only two streaming […]

• De La Soul at Olympic Plaza (Calgary, AB) (May 1, 2010)
  

  Video of De La Soul performing “Getting’ Down at the Amphitheatre,” “Stakes is High,” “Pass the Plugs,” “Ego Trippin’ (Part 2),” “A Roller Skating Jam Named ‘Saturdays,’” “Me Myself and I,” and “Oooh” May 1, 2010 at the Olympic Plaza in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. [This post was first published by Culture Bully.]

• LiveStyle 2010 B-Boy Competition at Olympic Plaza (Calgary, AB) ()
  

  Video coverage of the 2010 LiveStyle $2000 winner-takes-all 2-on-2 B-boy competition, featuring Original Rudes (Presto & Rein) vs. Maximum Efficiency (Piecez & Handles), Floorwookies (Nerve & ?) vs. Maximum Efficiency (Piecez & Handles), and Floorwookies II (Calgary) vs. Soul Felons (Vancouver). The LiveStyle event took place May 1, 2010 at Olympic Plaza in Calgary, Alberta, […]

• Calgary, Alberta, Canada (November 26, 2009)
  

  Photos taken November 26, 2009 and May 2, 2010 in and around Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

• The Tragically Hip Critics’ Pick (October 27, 2009)
  

  Did you know that Canada has a Walk of Fame? It does. Located in Toronto, it includes but a slim 123 members added since its establishment in 1998. Among those with a star along the enshrined path are such expected names as Wayne Gretzky, Neil Young, and Jim Carrey. But in 2002, Kingston, Ontario’s Tragically Hip joined ranks of such […]

• Japandroids Critics’ Pick (September 5, 2009)
  

  After a hazy guitar intro, the second track on the Japandroids’ debut album, Young Hearts Spark Fire, rolls into a an introductory beat comparable to that on Phoenix’s summer hit, “Lisztomania.” Mere moments after that the similarities between the two bands end, however, as the Vancouver-based duo take flight into the sonically explosive track with an energetic power […]

• Bran Van 3000 feat. Curtis Mayfield “Astounded” (August 18, 2009)
  

  Largely remembered for the band’s 1997 single “Drinking in L.A.” (the single being from the album Gleewhich would yield the collective a 1998 Juno award for Best Alternative Album) Montreal’s Bran Van 3000 reinvented itself somewhat with the first single from its 2001 album Discosis. Blending electronics with a bit of disco flavor, the song […]

• The Tragically Hip “My Music at Work” (August 17, 2009)
  

  When the Seattle Weekly asked “Can anyone explain the Tragically Hip to me?” this past March, the first thought I had was: no. The comment that fell in line with my thoughts on the subject read “As for explaining The Hip… well, there is no explaining. You either get it, or you don’t. And when […]

• Sunset Rubdown Critics’ Pick (June 26, 2009)
  

  There’s an unusually rich pool of talented and critically fawned-over bands that have originated in Montreal over the past decade, usually with a single degree of separation between them due to their heavy cross-pollination of band members. Call him the Francophonic Kevin Bacon: At the center of things is multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter Spencer Krug. Aside from splitting the leadership role […]