Links

With a Whisper, Cuba's Housing Market Booms
HAVANA — Virtually every square foot of this capital city is owned by the socialist state, which would seem sure to put a damper on the buying and selling of property. But the people of Havana, it turns out, are as obsessed with real estate as, say, condo-crazy New Yorkers, and have similar dreams of more elbow room, not to mention the desire for hot water, their own toilets and roofs that do not let the rain seep indoors.

Rethinking the Meat-Guzzler
A SEA change in the consumption of a resource that Americans take for granted may be in store — something cheap, plentiful, widely enjoyed and a part of daily life. And it isn’t oil. It's meat.

Waving Goodbye to Hegemony
Turn on the TV today, and you could be forgiven for thinking it’s 1999. Democrats and Republicans are bickering about where and how to intervene, whether to do it alone or with allies and what kind of world America should lead.

Cuba Links

The coddled "terrorists" of South Florida
Anti-Castro Cuban exiles who have been linked to bombings and assassinations are living free in Miami. Does the U.S. government have a double standard when it comes to terror?

The Terrorists Among US
Think of how angry Americans would be if Pakistan's government let Osama bin Laden emerge from his cave of refuge and take up open residence in Islamabad?A scene just like that is the reality here in the United States where Luis Posada Carriles, who ranks in the top ten list of the world's most prolific terrorists, is living freely in Florida--despite his known involvement in blowing up a civilian airliner and other bombings and assassination attempts over more than forty years.

Anti-Posada demonstration in Miami called off after confrontation
Protesters demanding the arrest of Luis Posada Carriles called off a planned demonstration Little Havana after they were confronted by supporters of the anti-Castro Cuban militant.

source

Links for January 10, 2008

Report criticizes oilsands companies on environment
Nine out of 10 oilsands producers in Alberta got a failing grade in a new study that compared the environmental records of the different companies.

Radiohead Finds Sales, Even After Downloads
LOS ANGELES — In a twist for the music industry’s digital revolution, “In Rainbows,” the new Radiohead album that attracted wide attention when it was made available three months ago as a digital download for whatever price fans chose to pay, ranked as the top-selling album in the country this week after the CD version hit record shops and other retailers.

The Wire in 4 Minutes
Get caught up on David Simon's critically acclaimed look at drugs, police and power in Baltimore with this quick recap of the first four seasons of The Wire.

links

Rush of Cuban migrants use Mexican routes to U.S.
Cubans are migrating to the United States in the greatest numbers in more than a decade, and for most of them the new way to get north is first to head west - to Mexico - in a convoluted route that avoids the U.S. Coast Guard

The Leaders of Cuba, Venezuela sign a new economic partnership agreement
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Cuba's interim leader Raul Castro oversaw the signing Monday of economic partnerships in areas ranging from oil production to tourism as the countries moved to further integrate their economies.

Slash and Burn
Smack, crack, groupies and firearms - not to mention little blue men crawling across the floor: with Guns N' Roses, at the height of their fame, Slash saw it all. An exclusive extract from possibly the most insane rock'n'roll autobiography you'll ever read ...

Modest Mouse in E-Town

Sat. Nov. 3 @ Ed's
pre-sale happing now
password: education

school

Classes start Thursday. I hope to use this site to catalog some sites and sounds for myself and for anyone else that shares any passing interests. Hard to believe that summer is coming to a close. A pretty decent one all told. I'm gonna keep show updates on the side to the best of my abilities. more to come, cheers

rock star tour

Chicago

'People call us renegades
because we like living crazy
We like taking on the town
because people are getting lazy'
kol

'And if it's crowded, all the better,
because we know we're gonna be up late.
But if you're worried about the weather
then you picked the wrong place to stay.
That's how it starts.'
lcd

'I fell in love again
all things go, all things go
drove to Chicago
all things know, all things know'
ss

good night san diego

hello family and friends. my time here in santiago is coming to a close. i´ll be heading out on wednesday morning along with five others to take a week long journey through cuba. we will first stop in camuguay and spend a night then head of to trinidad for three evenings. after we will be in santa clara for two nights before hitting varadero and then finally we´ll be back in havana by the 25th. i´ll be in havana intill i leave on may 1st. looking forward to this little trip. it´ll be pretty hard for me to be in contact during this jaunt. i´ll touch base once i get into havana. i miss everyone back home and i´ll be back in a flash. cheers

happy easter!

hello family and friends, i want to wish everyone a happy easter from here in cuba, wish i could be there with everyone.

tonight i will head out to the first game of the semi-finals in the cuban baseball league. santiago vs. villa clara. should be a grand evening.

only one more week of class left, hard to believe.

i will be leaving santiago on april 18th with a groupl of us canucks, we will tour the country for about a week on the journey back to havana. we should get to havana no later than the 26th and then spend a few days in and around the grand city before we head back to canada. looking forward to it.

cheers

from santiago

hello family and friends. the last few days have been pretty fun-filled here in cuba.

thursday-playoff baseball
friday-birthday party
saturday-afro/cuban dance show followed by a giant street party
sunday-beach

tough life. only two weeks of class left and then two weeks to explore the country before hoping on the plane back to canada. when i get back i´ll be sporting a beard, shaggy hair, and a tan. hard to believe the trip is almost over, i gotta admit i look forward to coming home and seeing everyone again, but until then i will enjoy this interesting nation a bit more. cheers

cuba time

if you head over to http://www.flickr.com/photos/shook_one/ my little sis has put a couple pic from cuba up. i think/hope she will upload a few more in the coming days and weeks.

my time here in cuba started of with a couple days in havana. a 15 hour bus journey took me to my home city for the trip of santiago de cuba. cuba's second largest city, santiago is all in all a nice place to experience cuba. not without it's problems, but is a bit quitter than havana and maybe dare i say a bit safer.

i spent the first half of the trip residing in the hotel birret. it's ran by the host university, university de oriente, and was overall a decent place to stay. we were given breakfast and supper and a room for a breath taking $9 CUC's a day. a big plus for me was that we got hbo, showtime, cnn, and tnt at birret. premium american movie channels in cuba? i'll take it. cnn isn't the best news source in the world but at least we got some idea of what was going on in the outside world presented in english.

i'm sorry i got distracted, just read on pitchfork that arcade fire debuted at number two on the billboard chart. wholly shit! my sis was able to send me a copy down in feb and it has been in constant rotaion on my ipod ever since. but number 2...wow. congrats. i'll pick up my tales of cuba very soon, running low on internet time. until then, cheers

not forgotten

well it´s been just about a month since i´ve posted anything on here. my apologies. during that time i´ve had the good fortune to have my family pay me a visit in cuba and i´ve moved into a casa particular aka a private home. school has been going good, in all honesty it doesn´t feel like i´m in school down here. so much different than back home. a more relaxed time all around. the weather is almost to good to be true. thank to everyone that has added me on facebook. i wish the internet situation was a bit faster and cheaper down here so i could check in with everyone. nice to see all the old forestburg gang online. i hope school and spring break went well for everyone. i hope to share some more details on my new residence here in santiago in the coming days. cheers

happy valentine´s day

caught a tropicana/caberet show just outside santiago this past weekend
cool experience
visited an amazing castle
beautiful view of the ocean
amazing runs at sunset down here
done first round of classes
started our first cuban taught cuban translated courses
interesting way to learn
miss everyone back home
enjoy spring break
cheers

bugs

first baseball game last nite
huge crowd
santiago vs. havana (bitter rivals)
amazing experience
today during ids class they burned garbage right next to our building
our hotel was fumagated this morning
i guess using masks while spraying chemicals is for pussies
as best as i can tell an aggresive spraying campaign is underway against mosquitos
lots of bug bites lately, i think mostly mosquitos (never actually seen one yet) and ants
my sunburn is doing quite well
four hour classes are not fun
i'll have more time next week, hope to get a pic or two up
if anybody wants to send me news clips from mtv, rolling stone, cbc, bbc, ny times, &/or any nba related thing i'd be very greatful
i don't get a chance to visit any of those websites down here
we lost showtime on our tv, but the a/c is kinda working now
miss y'all lots
cheers

three weeks

only one more week of espanol
could go for several more weeks of it
can't always get what you want
nice sunburn from the weekend trip to the beach
finally got to go in the ocean, beautiful feeling
had my best cuban prepared meal of the trip
hope everyone is warm back home (non-sarcastic tone)
experienced some earth movement yesterday
watched the superbowl in espanol
no a/c for the last 5-6 days isn't fun but we still get hbo and showtime
miss everyone back home
cheers

two weeks

two weeks in cuba
overall a solid time
slowly catching on to the two economy thing
nice hotel san the ants
good group of people to be around
miss everyone back home a bunch
cheers

hola

hello to everyone back in canada
i am safe and sound here in santiago de cuba
having a good time thus far
it´s like stepping into another world down here
the weather is beautiful
can get pretty hot
so far i only have two classes on the (spanish and ids)
i send my love and best wishes
cheers
devin

the new year

A belated happy new year's to everyone.

I will be leaving for Cuba very soon (12:30am on January 15 to be exact) and I am hoping to send old fashioned letters and postcards to friends & family while I'm gone. If anyone wants to visit the mailbox one day and find a little piece of Cuba in it send me your mailing addresses. You can email them to me or hit me up on facebook or phone 'em in, just have them to me by the 14th if you want a letter.

If snailmail is not your thing, I hope to send out a few mass emails on my goings on in the land of Castro. We've been told that internet thing is a crap shot each time Augustana goes so I'm covering my bases with the mail thing.

The Citadel show was pretty crazy. Long waits in cold lines, lost coats & licenses, and missed buses did not damper what was a grand ole time. Shout Out Out Out Out made me a believer. The Citadel was a beautiful venue to kick in 2007. Pictures will soon be up on flickr.

hola

Happy Holidays to everyone.

So...it's been awhile. The crunch got to me, got me real good. I'm back, still reeling abit. I'll be here for a minute then I gotta leave. I promise when I get back I'll be full of stuff to share.

Rewinding a bit, the Blood Brothers/Trail of Dead show was a grand time. I thought the Brothers killed it. December has given me a great appreciation of those dudes. I was disappointed that Trail did not play new material. I was really getting into the new stuff and I think a live performance would of pushed it over the top for me. But hey, you can't always get what you want.

On Sunday I'm heading to the city to go to the New Year's show @ the Citadel. I'm kinda excited about it. I'm not sure what kinda a vibe this things gonna have. Whatever it is, I'm sure I will be dancing my ass off. I hope to gawd Shout Out Out Out Out have the double riser for their performance.

tonite!

Trail of Dead + Blood Brothers
=rawking out

happy b-day

i wanted to break the hiatus for a sec and send out some birthday wishes to The Worst Part's only reader. cheers to you mr. mcphail

venue change

I've been out of the loop lately (dang skool) so I'm not sure when this was announced
...trail of dead/blood brothers show has been moved to the comfortably sized Starlite Room from the Edmonton Event Centre
Date & time & all that jazz are the same
I

New Years Eve '06

In less than 20 mins you can grad a discounted ticket to see Edmonton's own SHOUT OUT OUT OUT OUT + MSTRKRFT ring in the new year @ the Citadel.
First 250 tickets are $31.80 + s/c
then tix jump to $53 + s/c
so act fast
Ticket info here

Indie Fans

For the 'records' leads me to Gawker with it's 'Taxonomy of an Indie Rock Show'
reading the comments led to 'The Gigocracy'
Two entertaining pieces describing the pecking order of fans that attend NYC indie rock shows. So very true, all of it.

Insound Rocks My Boat

Awhile back I mentioned the awesomeness of the newest Pavement reissue. To capatalize on the sweet deal I ordered from Insound. Yesterday I finally received the disk and all of it's collective goodies. To up the ante Insound was generous enough to include some nice extras, a 15 song sampler (included were new cuts from Trail of Dead, Blood Brothers, The Decemberists, TV on the Radio, & Tokyo Police Club), a double sided poster & a wonderful catelogue. I was quite pleased and wanted to spread the word. The only downside is that shipping takes a little longer because it is coming from the USA.

Links November 21, 2006

Coachella Expands To Three Days, Country Fest To Follow
The Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival will expand to a three-day event for the first time in 2007 when it overtakes the Empire Polo Field in Indio, Calif. on April 27-29.

Mama Was a Riot Grrl? Then Pick Up a Guitar and Play
HE children whispering and fidgeting in front of the stage at Union Hall in Park Slope, Brooklyn, looked like any kids awaiting, say, a storyteller. Then Zora Sicher and Hugo Orozco, the two 11-year-olds who make up the band Magnolia, climbed onstage and broke into a hard-driving original song called “Volume.” It was clear this was not quiet time.

A Phone Call Leads the F.B.I. to a Stolen Goya
F.B.I. officials in Newark and Philadelphia said yesterday that they had recovered a Goya painting that was stolen from a truck this month while it was being transported from the collection of the Toledo Museum of Art in Ohio to a major exhibition now on view at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan.

Fast Food Nation

Do yourself a favor and make the effort to go see Fast Food Nation.
It's playing at the Princess in Edmonton.

Mr. Lif Cancelled

The entertaining Mr. Lif will not be making the Wednesday show @ the Starlite Room. Looks like cowtown show is still a go.

MSTRKRFT in Edmonton

According to Pollstar, MSTRKRFT will ring in the New Year will a show @ the Citadel.
Strange venue choice. We'll give this one time to sort itself out.

Snow Patrol in Edmonton

Who new how much Grey's Anatomy could change a bands career?
The boys will be hitting Shaw in April. The Journal has OK Go for support. SP have no indication of show on MySpace or their website. I'll go out on a lim and say Silversun Pickups will also be supporting.
Ticket info here.

Eric Clapton in Edmonton

Old slowhands will be hitting the Rexall stage in March. Tickets available Friday @ 10am. Hit up ticketmaster for more info.

Links November 15, 2006

A Comic Who's Sitting Pretty
Canadian Russell Peter's career was a modest success -- until MySpace boosted him into another league.

The Art of Pricing Great
By the time the crowd began arriving in Rockefeller Center last Wednesday for the big auction at Christie’s, rain had already been falling in New York for 19 consecutive hours. It was one of those blustery rains for which umbrellas were no match, so the assembled art lovers were left to peel off their damp overcoats in Christie’s lobby and wait in a long coat-check line.

Sacha Baron Cohen - The Real Borat - Finally Speaks
In his only interview as himself, Cohen talks about growing up kosher in London, inventing a new kind of comedy with Ali G and conquering Hollywood with Borat.

Trail of Dead

The new Trail of Dead record came out yesterday. Pitchfork weighs in with a review. TOD have had a love hate relationship with PFork. The band is the only one that I know of to receive a 10 from the staff. The new one didn't fare as wll. TOD talked to PFork last week. The boys will be in Edmonton with the Blood Brothers Dec. 12. @ Ed's.

Snoop Dogg & Ice Cube in Edmonton

Two orginal G's will be hitting the Rexall stage Wed. Jan. 17. Ticket info here.
WEST COAST

Brand New Brand New

The new Brand New record, 'The Devil & God Are Raging Inside Me', hits stores a week from today. Another song of that lp is now streaming on Purevolume (thx ap). I am really looking forward to this record. These guys blew me away with the last release. If they can capture even a tenth of the magic from the last one we all are in for a treat.

Links November 13, 2006

Music Review | Trail of Dead; Blood Brothers | By Their Despair You Shall Know Them
“I had a house on a rock,” wailed Conrad Keely on Saturday night at Irving Plaza. “I turned around and it had gone to rot.” He went on, over a thrusting drone of guitars: “All that was left of me were walls of doubt; I asked a question but the world returned with silence.”

A Wild and Uncrazy Guy Will Ferrell used to apologize for being normal. He knew that comedians were traditionally angst-ridden, misunderstood misfits who survived unhappy childhoods by masking their pain and anger with humor. Comedy was an outlet and a remedy for their rage or melancholy or fear. From Richard Pryor to Woody AllenJim Carrey, they all had their demons. “I have no interesting demons,” Ferrell told me on a sunny early-autumn day in Hollywood.

Interview: Cat Power
Hi, I'm Fred. I got to interview Chan Marshall (thank you Pitchfork!). I found her to beincredibly charming and very sweet.

RIP Ed Bradley

Yesterday brought news of the passing of legendary newsman Ed Bradley. He will be greatly missed.

Frida Hyvonen

I'm not sure when I first saw the above image. If I had to guess I would say it was some music 'zine. Something about the pic caught a bit of my heart. I had a spot for it in my heart and knew I would sometime have to track down the album to give it a spin. Fast forward a month or two, while on emusic I stumbled into the photo. The album is now happily spinning on iTunes fairly regularly. A little reading up led me to discover that Frida had performed with Jens Lekman. Great album cover + ties to Jens = Cood, sweet, little album. Treat yourself to a listen.

Emily Haines Tickets

Head over to this link to purchase Emily Haines tickets

11-7

I must admit I am a bit of a political junkie. To be more specific, an American political junkie. I watch CNN, the Newshour, Washington Week in Review & NOW on a fairly regular basis. I read the NY Times, Washington Post, & Time Magazine almost daily. I obsevively hit up Drudge & Raw Story several times a day. I am more familar with the goings on in the political climate of the United States of America than I am with my own country. I have been waiting for Tuesday to come for the last two years. I liken it to the feeling of the arrival of Christmas when I was younger.
3 more sleeps.

starlite

Islands

Tuesday night brought a little taste of summer

Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton in Edmonton

That's right, Ms. Haines will be performing Wednesday January 17 @ the Citadel according to Pitchfork. No word on tickets yet.

Wasted State of Mind

Go to MySpace to hear new ...Trail of Dead
I'm digging it

Tragically Hip

The Hip will be back in the Praires this winter
4 Dates have been announced across Alberta
January 13 in Grand Praire @ Canada Games Arena
14 in Edmonton @ Rexall Place
16 in Red Deer @ Enmax Centrium &
17 in Lethbridge @ Enmax Centre

The pre-sale starts tomorrow @ 10am for American Express cardholders & fan club members
with another pre-sale starting @ noon on Wednesday through HOB & the Bear. The password for those two are container (HOB) & inview (Bear). And finally the general on-sale begins on Saturday. Tickets go as high as $75.50 + s/c. Crazy.

So Many Shepherds Reading

more pics @ Flickr

Wincing The Night Away

The Shins record leaked
Lovely listen so far
Nothing mind blowing
Nice tunes for a Sunday

Wowee Zowee

Read up on the newest Pavement re-issue and all the cool extras you can get.

Sparta Stream

Head over to MySpace to stream the new Sparta record
'Threes' hits stores Tuesday

The Black Parade

head over to The Black Parade to stream the new MCR record
I'm quite surprised at my initial reaction to this thing
I was expecting to be turned off of the band by the grandoise nature of this project
Yet on these early listens I'm really digging it
Time will tell

Poetry Reading

An invitation to all

Ian McPhail & Graham Jensen present
An Afternoon of Poetry
Saturday Oct. 21
Cathel Books in Downtown Camrose

readings @ 1, 3, & 5pm

Links October 15, 2006

YouTube - Jeff Tweedy "The Thanks I Get"
Video Clip from "Sunken Treasure: Live in the Pacific Northwest"

Escape From Japan
AT the Terminal 8 food court of Kennedy International Airport, over a breakfast of Coca-Cola and greasy Chinese noodles, Miho Mimura slipped her hand into her new American boyfriend’s and the tears started to flow. “I’m sad, I don’t want to go back to Japan,” she said.

Flickr: Photos from Noah G.
Pics from Noah from the Devandra Banhart Band

Jason Collett pics

Head over to Flickr for more pics from Friday's show @ the Powerplant. I hope to post some video soon.

Billy Talent Pre-Sale

from the Bear

The Bear just announced Billy Talent coming to Edmonton and you Greedy Bastards
get another chance to beat everyone to the punch! The Bear is offering you a
chance to purchase tickets to see Billy Talent, with special guests Rise
Against, Anti-Flag, and Moneen in Edmonton on January 25th at Rexall Place,
prior to the public sale.

The pre-sale begins Wednesday, October 11th at 10:00am and runs until Friday,
October 13th at 10:00pm.

To take advantage of this sale, click the following link
http://www.hob.com/go/ine/315/edmonton_bear/ and enter the password "mass" under
the Greedy Bastards Pre-Sale offer.

Brand New return

from AP

' Influential rock act Brand New have finally announced a title and tracklisting for their upcoming third album. The album -- the group's follow-up to 2003's Deja Entendu and their major-label debut -- will be titled The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me and will feature 12 tracks, including "Sowing Season (Yeah)," "Deguasser" and "You Won't Know," all of which were showcased on the band's headlining tour this past summer; it will be released Nov. 21 via Interscope.

Brand New and longtime friend Mike Sapone produced The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me and Rich Costey, whose credits include Muse, Franz Ferdinand and The Mars Volta, covered mixing duties. The tracklisting is below.

The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me
01. Sowing Season (Yeah)
02. Millstone
03. Jesus Christ
04. Degausser
05. Limousine
06. You Won't Know
07. Welcome to Bangkok
08. Not the Sun
09. Luca
10. Untitled
11. Archers
12. Handcuffs'

new Blood Brothers video

from AP

' Seattle-based progressive hardcore quintet the Blood Brothers have posted online the video for "Laser Life," the first single off their new record, Young Machetes, out Oct. 10 via V2 . The video can be viewed in QuickTime, or it can be watched on YouTube.'

Rise Against, Moneen, Anti-Flag, & Billy Talent in Edmonton

The Journal will inform you here on what should be a good nite (Jan. 25) of rock n' roll. Too bad I'll be in Cuba.

Links Oct. 4, 2006

A Secret Society, Spilling a Few Secrets
For more than two centuries, the Freemasons and their grandiose rituals have played a secretive, mysterious role in American life. One of the Masons’ symbols looks a lot like the all-seeing eye on the back of every $1 bill. And look whose picture is on the other side.

Why Couldn't 'King's Men' Put It Together?
As Steve Zaillian's film "All the King's Men" sinks at the box office, he wonders one thing: What happened?

Jingle Bell Rock 2006

More info has emerged in regards to the Coheed show. It will be part of Sonic's Christmas show. Atreyu will be on the bill as well. Tickets are $39.50 + s/c. A presale is now underway through sonic with general onsale this Saturday @ 10am. More info here.

Cold War Kids stream

Head over to AOL to stream the debut full-length from the amazing Cold War Kids.
via Stereogum

Links Oct. 1, 2006

A Guide to the Hold Steady States of America
THE HOLD STEADY was supposed to be a local band, and in a sense that’s what it is. The members mainly live in New York, and Sunday night they’re coming to Manhattan, to Irving Plaza, to celebrate their great new album, “Boys and Girls in America.”

Booked-Up Publishers Could Be in a Bind
NEW YORK — This fall, the largest number of new titles by brand-name authors in recent memory is hitting bookstores, and the publishing world is asking itself an unusual question: Can there be too many good books?

Instead of Bad Movies, Cinema Shows None
The owner gives workers a paid vacation and closes for two weeks to protest 'lousy material.'

Tom Morello Arrested At Protest, Spends Night in Lockup
Guitarist released Friday after protesting for immigrant workers' rights at Los Angeles march.

The Writing Life
Watching a writer write is about as interesting as watching paint dry -- but something hairy is going on...

The Inside Agitator
It seemed somewhat bizarre, then, when Howard Dean, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, chose to make the long odyssey to Alaska at the end of May, near what was the beginning of one of the most intense and closely contested national election campaigns in memory, when every other Democrat in Washington was talking about potentially decisive states like Ohio, Pennsylvania and Connecticut.

Coheed And Cambria in Edmonton

According to Pollstar the emo-prog band will be hitting the stage Friday Dec. 15 @ Shaw. Remiscinant of another emoish group (MCR) hitting up the praires to close the year out. I have seen Coheed once before, back @ the 2004 Warped Tour stop in Calgary. A drunk Claudio hit the stage and proceed to piss off the crowd with his antics. The bottle throwing got so bad that the group was finally cut off half way through the half hour set. Crazy moment. Read about it here, here, & here. No other dates listed as of now, I expect Calgary to be added. I wonder what kinda of reaction they would get now? If any? Time will tell.

Guns N' Roses in Edmonton

That's Right, Guns N' Motherfuckin Roses Will Be Tearing Apart Rexall Thursday December 7. Tickets on sale this Saturday @ 10am, for way too much ($79.50 + s/c). The odds of this show actually going through are probably pretty slim. In less Axl has got his meds in order. Maybe Chinese Democracy will be out by then.

pre-sale action Friday @ 10am
more info to come

K-Os in Edmonton

Thursday Nov. 9 & Friday Nov. 10 @ the Starlite Room. If memory serves me correct, the last time K-Os was in Edmonton he played Shaw. Should make for two sweet intimate gigs. Tickets on Friday @ 10am. $29.50+ service charges. More info here & here.

New Sparta

Sparta have posted a lovely new one on purevolume. The new album hits the street Oct. 10. More info here.

David Simon

I'll let the article do the work for me
Talking With the Creator of One of TV's Best and Smartest Shows
David Simon gives a preview of "The Wire" Season Five, the scoop on why the mayor of Baltimore hates his guts and more

information on the beast moans

You know it's a good start to a week when the new Swan Lakes & Beck lps leak. Swan Lakes is probably my most anticipated record of the fall/winter season. Three Canadian indie heavyweights joining forces = excitement. I'm more of a casual Beck fan. None the less 'the inormation' is like icing on the cake. Thank you wedge board.

Links Sept. 24, 2006

71, and Still Succeeding in a Young Man’s Game
Early this month the director Mike Newell started production for New Line Cinema on a film version of Gabriel García Márquez’s “Love in the Time of Cholera” that will take him from Britain to Brazil and Colombia. At about the same time, another director, Julian Schnabel, began shooting an adaptation of Jean-Dominique Bauby’s book “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” for Universal Pictures in Lourdes, France.

For N.F.L., Crowd Noise Has Become a Headache
At most big ballgames, noise is good, and more noise is better.

Click Fraud Is Growing on the Web
A year ago, DiamondHarmony.com, an online jewelry store, decided that it had outgrown its sole source of advertising, which was eBay. The company added an elaborate marketing effort on search engines that included a pay-per-click advertising campaign based on keywords and phrases. For its trouble, DiamondHarmony became ensnared in click fraud.

The Ballad of Big Mike
As he drove into Memphis in March 2004, Tom Lemming thought that everything about Michael Oher, including his surname, was odd. He played for a small private school, the Briarcrest Christian School, with no history of generating Division I college football talent. The Briarcrest Christian School team didn’t have many black players either, and Michael Oher was black. But what made Michael Oher especially peculiar was that no one in Memphis had anything to say about him.

Links Sept. 22, 2006

Le Romantique
On a sunny day in June, Michel Gondry, director of the movie “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and the creator of many wondrous music videos, was in his sparsely furnished New York production office, rummaging through a large cardboard packing box. He was dressed, as he typically is, in loose jeans and an untucked short-sleeve button-down shirt. At 43, Gondry is boyish, with quick, sharp eyes like those of a hyperalert bird. He is French, and although he speaks perfect English, he has a thick accent. “These are all about an ex-girlfriend,” he said, as he took several curious-looking items from the box and placed them, one by one, on an oval conference table. “I made all these when she left me, two years ago.”

Exclusive: Sondre Lerche Album Details Revealed
Having gotten his lounge-singer jollies out of his system with the jazzy early 2006 album Duper Sessions, Sondre Lerche is getting ready to rock in 2007. On February 6, Astralworks will release Phantom Punch, the Swedish cutie's "third full-length album with his band, the Faces Down," according to a press release.

Blood Brothers stream new lp

Thanks AP for the heads up. Head over to this ecard to stream 'Young Machetes' due to hit stores Oct. 10. In case you forgot the Blood Brothers will be in Alberta in December with ...Trail of Dead to melt our collective faces off. Dates to the right.

Links Sept. 21, 2006

Music From Somewhere Deep
Considering what has happened to them in the past year, it's hard to picture that not long ago the Cold War Kids had to steal into campus buildings at their alma mater, Biola University, to practice. Imagine what the odd art student must have thought, to run across four scruffy but intense young men banging away on secondhand instruments and making (considering how they sound now) what had to be a palette-shaking racket.

No Longer The Loneliest Number
On The Billboard Charts These Days, It's Crowded At The top

TV on the Radio aim for 'voice to our time' on new album, 'Cookie Mountain'
TV on the Radio already had a singer before Kyp Malone joined the band. Tunde Adebimpe's soulful, oscillating croon was considered by many one of the strongest voices in rock music, thanks partially to his ability to individually render each of the syllables in a few words like "storefront cemetery."

People Who Share a Bed, and the Things They Say About It
While researching rural life more than 20 years ago, Paul C. Rosenblatt took his 12-year-old son with him to interview farm families in the Midwest. Father and son stayed in a farmhouse and had to share a bed.“It was terrible,” said Dr. Rosenblatt, a professor of sociology at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, because his son thrashed and turned so much that “his feet were in my face all night.”

On Sale Info

The Dears tix available Friday, Islands tix available Wednesday Sept. 27, &
Pretty Girls Make Graves tix hit Saturday thru tickemaster, Megatunes, Blackbyrd & Freecloud Records.

Mr. Lif hit the street Friday and can be found thru tickemaster, Megatunes, Blackbyrd, Freecloud Records, Listen, Foosh, Treehouse, & Soular.

The Dears in Edmonton

According to The Dear's myspace they will be performing @ the Starlite Room Saturday November 25. Blood lines to open. Union Events has more info here. On-sale this Saturday. $20+service charges.

Links Sept. 20, 2006

9 Lives and Counting: Cat Power Sobers Up
Another day, another fifth of Scotch.

Keef: I've quit 'weak' drugs
HELLRAISER Keith Richards says he has finally given up drugs — because they don’t give him Satisfaction any more.

Shout Out Out Out Out in Edmonton

Friday Sept 29 marks the return of Shout Out Out Out Out to Edmonton. They will be bringing along Holy Fuck & Land Of Talk. Doors @ 8pm @ the Dinwoodie Lounge. Advance tickets $18 @ any of these fine locations: Blackbyrd Myoozik, Listen Records, Megatunes, The Powerplant, and SU Info Booths.

Studio 60

Last night I had the good fortune to catch the debut episode of an amazing new television show. CTV, for reasons I'm not familiar with, aired the pilot of Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip. NBC will air the show in the US on Mondays, which gives you the chance to witness greatness in the making. The show is the best network piece I've seen in ages. I usually go out of my way to avoid network fare but this, this is something special. It reminds me of Sports Night and I'm afraid it will follow the same fate. That discussion is for another time. In the meantime, do yourself a favor and check it out tonight, 8pm NBC

Sondre Lerche

get a listen of Sondre Lerche's newest here

RHCP in Edmonton

Edmonton Sun & Edmonton Journal weigh in with reviews

The Wire

Do yourself a favor later this evening and switch the channell to Moviecentral and watch the best show on Television, The Wire.

Links Sept. 17, 2006

In San Francisco, a Plague of Stickers Opens a New Front in the Graffiti War
One of the most wanted men in San Francisco — if he is a man — has no known name, no known mug shot and one very efficient sticker machine.

The Killer still kicking at 70
Jerry Lee Lewis's hard-headed life of self-destructive recklessness - filled with drugs, booze, scandal and broken marriages - didn't seem to be the formula for a long career.

Novak Slams Jon Stewart: ‘Self-Righteous Comedian Taking on Airs of Grandeur’
During an appearance on C-SPAN, columnist Robert Novak was asked about his television viewing habits. Novak said, “somebody mentioned the Jon Stewart program, I’ve never seen that in my life and I will go to my grave never having seen it.”

Links Sept. 16, 2006

Paying Top Dollar for Punishment, 26 Miles’ Worth
The notion of paying hundreds of dollars for the opportunity to run 26.2 miles may not appeal to most people, but some runners are doing just that because demand for marathons has outstripped the number of spots available in the fields.

Millions to watch farewell
MILLIONS around the world are expected to bid a tearful farewell to Steve Irwin when they tune in to Wednesday's memorial service at his beloved Australia Zoo.

The Whole World Is Watching, and Ben Silverman Is Watching Back
ON a midsummer evening in 2001 Ben Silverman, an agent with the William Morris talent agency who was in the process of starting up his own television production company, was vacationing in London and staying with a friend. He switched on the television and starting flipping through the channels to an unusual looking show on BBC2.

The Wedge @ V Festival

Tonight's epidsode of The Wedge features interviews & performance clips from last weekends V Festival. Bands included:
Phoenix, The Flaming Lips, The Strokes, and Eagles of Death Metal
Tonight @ 9:30pm on Much

Links Sept. 15, 2006

36 Hours in Chicago
THE notion that Chicago is a city of neighborhoods seems silly and obvious at first. Aren’t all cities? But a weekend here, wandering the nooks far from the tourists swarming Navy Pier near downtown or ogling the masterpieces at the Art Institute of Chicago, explains the distinction.

Canadian Dollar Declines as Oil and Gold Head for Weekly Losses
The Canadian dollar declined the most in a week as commodities including crude oil, gold and copper headed for weekly losses.

Microsoft Announces Zune Digital Music Player, Online Store

New 30GB player with wireless capability to be ready for holidays.

Who’s This Guy Dylan Who’s Borrowing Lines From Henry Timrod?
Perhaps you’ve never heard of Henry Timrod, sometimes known as the poet laureate of the Confederacy. But maybe you’ve heard his words, if you’re one of the 320,000 people so far who have bought Bob Dylan’s latest album, “Modern Times,” which made its debut last week at No. 1 on the Billboard album chart.

Worst Part news

I'm making a consious effort to post on a more regular basis. Each day I hope to throw up a link post with stories that catch my eye or pose some revelance to my interests. I'd like to in the coming days change the layout a bit to provide more info on the side of the page. Concert listings and music recomendations get lost in the shuffle of posts in the current settings. I'm not sure how realistic the chance of the change is due to my lack of blogspot skill. Only time will tell.

Chuck Palahniuk

I just caught the tailend of a BBC World Hardtalk Extra with Chuck Palahniuk. Very good. For those not in the know, Palahniuk is the author of Fight Club. I've only read and listened to interviews with Palahniuk. Seeing him visually respond to questions about his fairly fucked up life was cool. He revealed he didn't become the author he is until he quit watching television. Food for thought.

Tokyo Police Club in Edmonton

TPC will be performing @ the Powerplant on Friday November 24 according to Pollstar

Sloan in Edmonton

Sloan @ the Dinwoodie Saturday October 28. Ticket info here

Emmylou Harris in Edmonton

Monday Feb. 12 @ Jubilee. Tickets $63 + service charges. More info here.

Links Sept. 14, 2006

Philanthropy Google’s Way: Not the Usual

The ambitious founders of Google, the popular search engine company, have set up a philanthropy, giving it seed money of about $1 billion and a mandate to tackle poverty, diseaseand global warming.

'On A Pretty Nice Roll'
Tiger shooting for his sixth consecutive victory

My Chemical Romance Unveil Black Parade Track List, Album Art

New Jersey band's epic concept disc due October 24.

Jay-Z Prepares To Reclaim His 'Kingdom'
Details are beginning to surface about Jay-Z's long-rumored comeback album, which will be his first since announcing his retirement three years ago and becoming president of Def Jam. The new disc is reportedly titled "Kingdom Come" and due in November via Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam.

Nintendo to launch Wii game console in December
intendo Co Ltd said it will launch its next-generation stand-alone game console 'Wii' on Dec 2 as the Kyoto-based company prepares to take a bigger share of the lucrative home entertainment market.

George Clooney briefs U.N. on Darfur genocide

Holocaust survivor and writer Elie Wiesel and Hollywood star George Clooney appealed Thursday for urgent action to save the population in Sudan's Darfur region from being massacred after African Union peacekeepers leave the region.

'Dog' Arrested At Mexico's Request

MSNBC has learned that U.S. officials have arrested TV reality star Duane "Dog" Chapman and two family members in Hawaii for extradition to Mexico

TOTR

Yesterday marked the North America release of 'Return to Cookie Mountain'
Check that shit out

Links Sept. 13, 2006

Dance of Diplomacy Is Grist for the Gossip Mill
There are perils to being unattached in the stodgy world of diplomacy. Sometimes it has seemed that all Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice needs to do is show up in public with a man, and people start talking.

Apple Rolls Out New Nano, Shuffle; Adds 'Pirates,' Other Titles To iTunes Film Library

New devices also include an 80GB iPod with brighter screen.

Back on defense
Lance Armstrong bristled Tuesday at a report that two former teammates admitted using performance-enhancing drugs, calling it "a hatchet job ... to link me to doping through somebody else's admission."

I-69: Yet Another NAFTA Super-Highway
Another NAFTA Super-Highway is moving state-by-state from the planning stage to the funding and construction process. As listed on the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration’s website, the “I-69 Corridor” is planned to connect Mexico and Canada through Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois and Michigan.

Patton Oswalt Gets His Wish!! THE WIRE Gets Season Five!!
Ratings for Sunday’s season premiere were weak, but reviews were strong to very strong, and HBO has given “The Wire” its fifth season.

Irwin's fans take out grief in 'revenge attacks' on stingrays At least 10 stingrays have been found dead in Queensland waters in what are feared to be revenge attacks for the death of Steve Irwin, the popular Australian television naturalist.

Links Sept. 12, 2006

2 Ex-Teammates of Cycling Star Admit Drug Use
Two of Lance Armstrong’s eight teammates from the 1999 Tour de France have admitted for the first time that they used the banned endurance-boosting drug EPO in preparing for the race that year, when they helped Armstrong capture the first of his record seven titles.

Armchair sleuths uncover strange military sites in China
Tech-savvy armchair sleuths around the world are having a field day discovering military secrets in China.

Big Black, Scratch Acid, Man . . . or Astro-Man? Give Chicago Hope At Touch and Go Bash
Ted Leo, !!!, Calexico, Pinback, Three Mile Pilot also make waves at 25th anniversary event.

Brian Wilson, Neil Young, Reznor Play Bridge Benefit
n 1986, Neil Young's wife Pegi helped found the Bridge School, a Northern Californian educational program for students with communication impairments. Her husband has been organizing benefit concerts for the organization from the beginning.

Links Sept. 11, 2006

Apple set to start film download site
Apple Computer, whose iPod personal music player and iTunes digital music store dominate the legal music downloads business, is this week expected to unveil a service for downloading films.

Federer Wins Third Straight U.S. Open
In a class by himself.

Irwin Memorial Likely Next Week
A public memorial service for wildlife celebrity Steve Irwin will be held next week, probably in a large football stadium in the Queensland state capital of Brisbane, his family told media Monday.

IRS Reached Largest Tax Settlement In History: $3.4 Billion
he IRS announced today that it has resolved the largest tax dispute in American history: a transfer pricing dispute with Glaxo SmithKline Holdings (Americas) Inc. & Subsidiaries (“GSK”):

Matt Pond Pa & Gomez in Calgary

MacEwan Hall Thursday Oct. 19.

The Elected in Edmonton

Friday Oct. 20 @ Powerplant according to Pollstar.

BSS

I haven't really reflected in words all that much on the Chicago trip. Probably out of my intense laziness. This really made me smile about the whole thing. Look at the Best Show of This Year section. More on the magical performance here.

Islands in Edmonton on Halloween

No ticket info yet. Starlite room to host October 31 appearance of Islands.

links

Going Out On Top
Schumacher wins Italian GP, says he plans to retire

Why the Ipod is losing it's cool
Apple has added ever more extras to its digital music-player in a bid to stem falling sales. But fears are rising that the device is now too common to be cutting edge

Baby-Faced Mayor Takes Over an Aging Pittsburgh
At 26, many people haven’t even decided on a career. Luke Ravenstahl is already the mayor of Pittsburgh.

Ticket Info

Get tickets for Frank Black, Jurassic 5, ...Trail of Dead/Blood Brothers, & The New Pornographers here