Spin That Music
This seems like it could be worth a look for any of our Toronto readers. There is an exhibition of photography and art created by various people in the music biz being held in the city. The main attraction for myself is to see some work by Michael Stipe, but there are some other interesting people involved, including producer Daniel Lanois and Blondie’s Chris Stein. The show runs from today until March 31st at SPIN gallery, 156 Bathurst St. Best of all, it’s free! I wonder what the chances of Michael being at the reception tonight are like?
Posted by Marcus
Saturday, March 2, 2002 10:51 a.m.

Jad and the Fannies take to the road
Following on Sophie’s piece on Half Japanese the other day, our UK readers will have a chance to catch eccentric Japanese front man Jad Fair live next month. Jad is heading out on the road for 4 dates in London and Scotland with Scottish jangle poppers Teenage Fanclub. The dates are to support the forthcoming collaborative album ‘Words of Wisdom and Hope’ which is out on March 4th. Those hopping for some old Fannies favourites may be disappointed though, as bassist Gerry Love says they won’t be playing any of their back catalogue. "We want to keep the thing casual and special. I'd hate to promote it as just another record" Love says. Whatever they play, it’s bound to be interesting.
In related news, the Fanclub are working on new songs to be added to a "retrospective" album set for release later this year. As we’re big Jad and Fanclub fans round here, it all sounds like good stuff to me.
Posted by Marcus
Friday, March 1, 2002 05:01 p.m.

The Canadians love their hockey
As most of you will know, Canada won the Olympic gold in the men’s ice hockey this past weekend. According to the Nielson ratings this match had the highest viewer ratings in Canadian TV history. Including the viewers of the French-language broadcast and the people crammed into bars, it’s estimated that half the population of Canada watched the game. This entry is not really about the match so much as the Canadians’ reaction to it. Sophie and I, along with our visiting friend Alex, avoided the hockey by going to see the new Todd Solondz film Storytelling [I mean, if you’re going to watch an essentially silly, violent sport, hockey’s the game for you. Or rugby. Or running with the bulls at Pamplona. Or indoor box lacrosse. Whatever. Hockey is fast, bloody, and beer-soaked, all of which is fine, but it simply cannot compete with the lure of yet another one of Solondz’s meditations on the seamy underbelly of suburban life –Sophie]. On exiting the theatre at about 7:15pm (a good 90 minutes after the end of the match) we were greeted by the sound of blaring car horns. We proceeded to Bloor Street to see what was happening to be met by lines of cars with people and Canadian flags hanging out of them and the most INSANE amount of noise and nationalistic pride you could imagine. We walked a few blocks up to the corner of Yonge Street, where we found the police directing traffic as, in their euphoria at the win, people had stopped obeying the traffic lights and it had turned into a free for all. [It was absolutely infectious. I was all, “We’re Number One!” and the boys were all, “Dude! You’re an AMERICAN.” – Sophie] At this point we retired to our more sedate East End neighbourhood to be told that even here it had been pretty crazy right after the game had finished. I heard on the TV the next day that Yonge Street had been shut down until 3am with celebratory revellers and Sophie and I spotted at least one person still flag waving on Monday afternoon. Alex took some photos on Sunday night, hopefully I’ll be able to post some here so you will be able to see the insanity for yourselves. Bottom line: The Canadians love their hockey! [And how! –S]
Posted by Marcus
Tuesday, February 26, 2002 07:05 p.m.

The Band Who Would Be King
This is a great movie to watch after a luxurious yet slightly grueling weekend of record store crawls [luxurious because of the vast bounty of Toronto's independent music stores; grueling because we don't have a full-time foot masseuse to rub our barking dogs after hours of pounding the pavement]. You might have purchased a disc or two of pure genius, but in general, you're looking for something to cleanse your palate of an embarassment of riches. So you pop the DVD of this documentary about Half Japanese into your player, sit back, and watch. And your jaw drops on the floor as Jad Fair cheerfully admits not knowing how to play a single chord in the same breath as he announces his intention to write the greatest, most popular song of all time. They are some crazy guys, but they mean all of it, 100%, and that makes it worthy.
Posted by Sophie
Monday, February 25, 2002 09:13 p.m.

Crotchety Genius
That'd be Mr. Stephin Merritt: tough-minded, deadpan, rhyming "spirochete" with "obsolete", and working hard at maintaining his title of Grumpiest American Man Under Age 80. Greatest quote: "If Whitney Houston suddenly arrived and asked me for a song, I would have to say I didn't have an idea for her. But I wouldn't send her away. I'd say, 'Give me 20 minutes.'" Hah-hah!
Posted by Sophie
Monday, February 25, 2002 09:05 p.m.

John Thaw R.I.P.
Renowned British actor John Thaw has died from cancer of the oesophagus at the age of 60. I don’t know how well known he was in the US, but in Britain he was best known for his roles in the 70’s TV show ‘The Sweeney’ and as the cerebral, opera-loving, crossword-playing Oxford detective Chief Inspector Morse. He also had small parts in both ‘Cry Freedom’ and ‘Chaplin’. I think a suitable way to remember him is with a quote from his character in ‘The Sweeney’
Det. Inspector Jack Regan: Nah, 'course I wasn't scared. Mind you, some bugger's pissed in my pants.
Posted by Marcus
Thursday, February 21, 2002 09:09 p.m.

Is the cosmos ready for *NSYNC?
*NSYNC-er Lance Bass is planning to follow in the spacey footsteps of Dennis Tito, the world’s first space tourist. For a cool $20 million, Lance will be the first pop star to go to space. Apparently Sister Bliss, from UK dance group Faithless, was planning to be the first person to perform in zero gravity on one of those planes they fly into low orbit and then drop to earth to simulate weightlessness. She made the flight but the zero g made her sick so she couldn’t spin the platters that matter up there. In order to make his trip, Bass would have to spend six months training near Moscow. At least that means we’re spared any new *NSYNC product for a while.
Posted by Marcus
Thursday, February 21, 2002 05:52 p.m.

Ali G under fire
Ali G is the creation of English comedic actor Sacha Baron Cohen. He is a none-too-bright weed smokin’ hip hop wannabe from the London suburb of Staines, and is so, so funny. His UK TV shows have been a big hit and he was the host at the most recent MTV European Music Awards. He now has a film coming out in the UK and as a tie in has recorded a duet with Shaggy titled ‘Me Julie’ (named after his never-seen girlfriend). After a recent outburst on the Radio 1 breakfast show it seems he has got the back up of the UK Jewish community who say his “continual pathetic and stereotypical humour does not win the Jewish community much respect.” [Meanwhile, I fail to see how the character of Ali G reflects in any way on the Jewish community. From what I can tell, Mr. Cohen is about as Jewish as Courtney Love. Give it a rest, people. –-Sophie] So far there has been no response from either Ali or Sacha. To get a feel for Ali G in action, check out the [Frickin’ hi-larious! – Sophie] movie teasers here
Posted by Marcus
Wednesday, February 20, 2002 08:42 p.m.