Wednesday 30 October 2013

New JP Riemens and the Fabulous Barflies CD: No Filter

http://www.emusic.com/album/jp-riemens-the-fabulous-barflies/no-filter/14370733/
No Filter is an apt name for the new album from JP Riemens and the Fabulous Barflies.  Recorded live in Barry Mac's living room, the no-nonsense, warm, organic feel is evident from the very first note.

The local singer/songwriter's phenomenal storytelling shines in this immediate state.  The heartbreak, joy, love and sadness in the songs stand out when they are laid bare.

The Fabulous Barflies (Brian Griffith on guitar, Carrie Ashworth on bass, and Danny Lockwood on drums) do a stupendous job of eaving a mix of jazz, blues, county and folk to JP's emotional tales.

This must-have collection is available for download on eMusic and iTunes. Physical copies can be picked up at JP's magnificent live shows.

Check out the video below



Blast From the Past: JP Riemens CD - Dirty Sunset

Links: JP RiemensMore JP Riemens Stories, More CD Releases

Previous (Videos: Rick Taylor, Mo Kauffey and Sean Pinchin@Mississippi John Hurt Workshop) - - - Next (Halloween Videos)
I don't care that days before its official release YOU CAN DOWNLOAD EMINEM'S NEW RECORD THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP2 (DELUXE EX EDITION) FOR FREE HERE OR HERE. It's totally illegal and it keeps your hard-earned money out of the hands of the has-been homophobe. Resist!


Reviews of Restaurant Reviews: The New York Times Review of Hearth

I don't like restaurants, and I blame my dad. He used to tell me over and over what a ripoff they are. They give you pennies worth of ingredients and charge big bucks. A hamburger? Thirty cents worth of beef and two cents worth of bread. Salad? Three cents worth of lettuce and croutons. And don't get me started on pasta.

Though Dad had a point, he also had eighteen denim shirts and zero friends. Restaurants are a fact of life, and there's no way to avoid them. For years I managed to justify the rather exorbitant expense: I didn't have to wash dishes. I didn't have to grocery shop. It was almost worth it if the chef put in a lot of work.

And then came the latest food movement: quality ingredients, simply prepared. That's the motto of every restaurant in New York these days. And that's where I draw the line.

You know that story about how you kill a lobster? Put it in cold water, and slowly bring it to a boil. The temperature rises so slowly it doesn't realize it's in trouble until it's already dead. That's what the restaurant scene is like. First they charge you $50 for dinner, and then they try to get out of cooking it. It's like asking the lobster to crank up that burner himself.

See, the last thing I want is my food "simply prepared." I want the chef to show me what I'm paying for. I want the end result of dozens of cooking processes. I want my steak deep-fried and french-dipped and fricasseed. I want my fish seriously fucked with. Before my chicken hits my plate, I want that dead flesh to sit up and say, "Okay, okay -- enough al-fuckin'-ready!" I want the chef to drive my chicken to Rockefeller Center to meet Bernadette Peters before he plops it on my plate.

Needless to say, I heard Dad's voice in my head while reading Pete Wells' review of Hearth in the New York Times.


[W]hen I think of Hearth, ... I also picture the platters for two. The spatchcocked chicken with flavor in every scrap of its flesh and golden skin, the whole roasted fish stuffed with lemon and rosemary, and the côte de boeuf are all treated like the classics they are. Unlike other restaurants, where trendy platters for two are an old-fashioned opportunity for price gouging, Hearth sells the chicken and fish for about as much as two regular main courses.

"Spatchcocked"? Isn't it slightly pretentious to have an entrée that sounds like the landlord in a Dickens novel? "Chicken with flavor in every scrap"? I don't know about you, but I'd be a bit more surprised if the breast was meaty and toothsome but the wing tasted like soggy tofu. Heading to Hearth's online menu makes Dad drop his soldering iron:



Can't. Give. In. Must. Fight. Back. Pete Wells is right! If stealing a glove compartment is a misdemeanor and stealing a tire is a misdemeanor, stealing a Mercedes should be a misdemeanor too. The meatballs are $29. The pasta is $30. So $62 for a chicken isn't crazy at all! Seasoned and stuck in an oven. Served with two cents worth of lettuce and three cents of corn. Not price-gouging! Frantically searching for justification I find Hearth's philosophy.



It doesn't help. They find inspiration "in the strangest places"? Are they trying to say their beer comes from Belgium, or they bought their champagne at the Dollar Store? Dad would head back to the garage to grind the lens of his telescope, but I don't have to be stuck in a long-dead past. I'll stay and compromise. In the future, my food is also going to be "rooted in the modern traditions of the American kitchen."

I'm going to buy an $8,000 stove and then live on take-out.

Saturday 26 October 2013

Jordan John Debut CD: New Day

For a number of years, Oakville's Jordan John has been blowing the roof off of many local venues and wowing festival audiences.  Now you can take some of that experience home with you on his recently unleashed debut album, New Day. With a whopping 15 tracks of his signature blend of R&B, soul, funk and blues, the disc will be a wonderful addition to your music collection.

This young Bluesman is a musical force to be reckoned with.  Along with his smooth voice and amazing guitar skills (both electric, slide and acoustic), he plays drums, wurlitzer, organ, clavinet, moog, piano, tambourine and more.

On New Day Jordan is joined on bass by his father, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, Prakash John (Parliament-Funkadelic, Alice Cooper, Lincolns).  Other talented guests include drummers Jorn Andersen and Al Cross (Big Sugar), Dave McMorrow (keyboards) and more.

Physical CDs are available at his unforgettable live performances.  You can also download this marvelous collection from  iTunes.

Videos below courtesy of Blues in Bront.





Blast from the Past: Jordan John and the Blues Angels@Sound of Music Festival

Links: Jordan John, More Jordan John Stories, More CD Releases

Previous (Downchild Blues Band Videos) - - - Next (Videos: Rick Taylor, Mo Kauffey and Sean Pinchin@Mississippi John Hurt Workshop)

Thursday 24 October 2013

Downchild Blues Band Videos


Not surprisingly, the Downchild Blues Band recently sold out their November 23rd performance at the Molson Canadian Studio in Hamilton.  The legendary group have added a second amazing show on Sunday, November 24, 2013.

Click here to buy tickets.

Videos below courtesy of Gary Asseltine







Blast from the Past: Downchild and Others@Burlington Ribfest

Link: Downchild Blues Band, More Downchild Stories

Previous (News Roundup w Trevor Howard, Tyler Wilson, Danny Lockwood, Zeppelin) - - - Next (New Jordan John CD)

News Roundup (Trevor Howard, Tyler Wilson, Danny Lockwood, Zeppelin)

Craig Chandler/University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University Communications
Local

World

Funny/Weird Stuff


Blasts from the Past

Featured Videos 



Links: Tyler Wilson Band, More Tyler Wilson Stories, Video courtesy of Tyler Wilson, More covers and stories by the Band



Links: Danny Lockwood, More Danny Lockwood Stories, Video courtesy of rwhmoto, More Johnny Cash Covers/Stories


    Previous (Videos from a Private Show-Paul Langille, Wendell Ferguson, Katherine Wheatley) - - - Next (Downchild Blues Band Videos)

    Tuesday 22 October 2013

    Harry Potter Fans Prefer Bootleg Wizard Paraphernalia Because It's More Like What An Actual Wizard Would Have

    Warner Brothers is suing Los Angeles shop Whimsic Alley for selling goods that infringe on the "Harry Potter" trademark.

    While the store sells licensed merchandise like wands, books and sweater vests for those who want to re-create the boy wizard's look, much of its stock is unofficial and merely reminiscent of objects from the wizard's universe.

    Customer Caity Knox, 27, said it would be a shame if the legal dispute forced the store to close, because she prefers the store's unlicensed merchandise to the real thing. "If I am going to dress up as Harry Potter, I am not going to buy something that has a logo on it," she noted. "I want to buy something that an actual wizard would have."


    Monday 21 October 2013

    Today In Food Network Drama

    On the debut of Guy Fieri's new Guy's Grocery Games, contestants have to make spaghetti and meatballs. They're thrown a curveball, though, when they discover the store is completely out of ground beef. How will these plucky amateurs meet the challenge using just ground turkey, ground chicken, ground veal, ground pork, and eight types of sausage meat?

    Art Appreciation: Tom Of Finland Woodcut Masterfully Captures The Pathos Of The Sinking Of The Titanic

    Art can serve many purposes. It can dazzle. It can entertain. It can provoke thought. Perhaps its highest purpose, though, is to communicate feelings that are otherwise impossible to convey.


    Tom of Finland's woodcut of the sinking of the Titanic falls masterfully into the latter category. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and this adage is never truer than when one is talking about a sailor's ass. Like Manet's Olympia, the central figure's body language shocks us with its crudity. Is this poor lad fevered and thinking that rather than clutching an oil drum he's humping his girlfriend Stella? Or did the sinking leave a void that he finds manifested in his ample buttcheeks?

    Mr. Finland displays his mastery of allegory by omitting all the flotsam and jetsam of a typical maritime disaster to cause the reader's eyes to focus on the sailor's dookie maker. Where are the lifeboats? Where is the iceberg? Mr. Finland seems to be saying that all the gory details of the modern world don't amount to a hill of beans when one has a booty that could crack Brazil nuts.

    Like all great artists, Mr. Finland takes us into a world we've never entered before, and the wealth of detail he includes is astonishing. The ship hasn't even finished sinking, yet the sailor is far from it, with no other passengers in sight. We're drawn deeper into his world of secrets as we wonder: Is he a fast paddler? Or did he leap off the deck before the ship sank because he saw an island and had a yearning for coconut?

    Though he's floating aimlessly, the sailor isn't wet. Though ship disasters can be messy affairs, he isn't dirty. In fact, he hasn't even lost his hat. Gradually we begin to wonder: is this sailor, in fact, a victim to the ship disaster, or was he just floating by doing the Sump-Pump Shuffle when the tragedy occurred? Judging from the expression on his face, he looks like he's next in line for Go Ahead And Chute Me! at the Dorney Water Park. Is shock the reason his face struggles to convey something more than, "Man, I could sure use a Pepsi Light"?

    To the artist's credit, the work still serves as an educational instrument, because without it we wouldn't have known that the Titanic sank exactly on the horizon, and that, judging by the steam pouring from the smokestack, the engines were still going full-speed ahead even though the prow was pointed down.

    Sunday 20 October 2013

    New Tia McGraff CD: Break These Chains

    If you're sick of the usual "dull pop with a twang" country music that's out there, Tia McGraff's latest CD, Break These Chains is the cure for what ails you.

    This local singer/songwriter really knows how to craft a song.  The storytelling and honest lyrics are just first class.  Tia's angelic voice just stands out on every track as well.

    She's also not afraid to expand her sound.  Bits of folk, rock and even some east coast influences pepper the music.  Each tune has it's own spirit and feel!


    Joining this talented lady are her husband (and producer, co-writer) Tommy Parham (guitar) and Johnathan Edwards (guitar, bass, mandolin).  Guests include Ian Bell  on accordion and Jim Kimball (from Reba's band) on harmonica

    This amazing CD is available at her great live performances, cdbaby, and through her web site. It can be downloaded though iTunes, cdbaby, and her web site.

    Video below courtesy of Tia McGraff.



    Blast from the Past: Tia McGraff and Others@Festival of Friends

    Link: Tia McGraffMore Tia McGraff Stories, More CD Releases

    Previous (Videos from private show w Crucial Groove, John Prince, Don McGeoch, Steve Shelton) - - - Next (Videos from a Private Show-Paul Langille, Wendell Ferguson, Katherine Wheatley)

    Wednesday 16 October 2013

    Danielle Beaudin Debut CD: Wait For Your Love

    Wait for Your Love is the first CD from local singer/singer songwriter Danielle Beaudin.  If this debut disc is any indication, we should expect a lot of great things from this talented lady.

    Boasting  a few high energy tunes (Sun Will Shine, Everything and Nothing), great bluesy numbers (Take a Little More) and beautiful softer moments (Don't Walk Away, Little Bird), the disc is an incredible, multi-faceted musical ride.

    Danielle's voice handles it all with style and the instrumentation is amazing.  She's joined here by members of Freedom Train (Carl Jennings even co-wrote the songs and produced the CD), Tim Allard, and Aaron Goldstein (Lee Harvey Osmond, Huron).

    The CD is available at her wonderful live shows and as a download through her website.

    Videos below courtesy of Danielle's YouTube Page







    Links: Danielle Beaudin, More Danielle Beaudin StoriesMore CD Releases

    Previous (Videos from a Private Show w/Crucial Groove, Michael Maguire, Donna Ceighton, Don McGeoch) - - - Next (News Roundup w/Sarah Beatty, Shawn Brush, Jane Lewis)

    Hmm. So it hit it?

    Tuesday 15 October 2013

    If you haven't gotten a chance to look at my new novel bOObs, you'll soon have the chance to hear highlights in person. I'll be reading from bOObs and my followup novel My First Five Hundred Boyfriends at the Bureau of General Services -- Queer Division this Friday at 7. It's on the Lower East Side at 83A Hester Street between Orchard and Allen.

    It's a pop-up avant-garde queer space, which means no cupcakes.


    Monday 14 October 2013

    If all the tattoos on Brooklyn hipsters were laid end to end, it would reach a weasel smoking a cigar.
    As the old saying goes, England and America are two countries divided by a common language. Most Americans who venture "across the pond" will find it bizarre to hear our ordinary, commonplace words pushed past the limits of comprehensibility. While their obfuscation can be baffling in person, it might actually prove hazardous when one is trying to decipher real British traffic signs like these.

    • You May Be Seriously Reconsidering Your Desire To Continue Forward, But You Cannot Reverse Course From This Point

    • Pray Do Not Let Your Vehicle Rest Here Immobile

    • The Thruway Ceases To Advance From This Place Due To The Failure Of A River-Crossing Abutment

    • Blemishes in the Traffic Surface Are Being Attended To For The Next Thirteen Meters

    • The Area In Which Schoolchildren Alight From Educational Vehicles Is Approaching Posthaste

    • Do Not Tarry Here Unless Your Timepiece Reads Between Teatime and Supper

    • Before You Know It The Zone In Which The Right-Most Cars Travel Will Cease To Exist

    • I Hasten To Warn You About The Upcoming Appearance of An Annoying, Biscuit-Shaped Lump of Bother Used to Regulate the Speed of Traffic

    • This Street Is Not Bi-Directional, And I'm Sorry To Say The Direction It Lacks Is Yours

    Videos from a Private Show, Part 1 (Crucial Groove, Michael Maguire, Donna Ceighton, Don McGeoch)




    Link: Coming of Age Band (members' old band), More Crucial Groove Stories 



    Link: Michael Maguire



    Links: Donna Creighton, More Donna Creigton stories



    Links: Donald McGeoch, More Don McGeoch Stories

    More from this show
    Blast from the Past: Videos from last year's private show (Jericho, Ginger St. James, Don McGeoch, Ludgates)

    As a thank you to the provider of this show, please make a donation to the Oakville Humane Society. Thank you!



    Previous (View Magazine Readers' Choice Awards) - - - Next (New Danielle Beaudin CD)

    Sunday 13 October 2013

    I don't know if the plumbing in my apartment is bad, but the only option on the toilet seems to be "rearrange."

    Saturday 12 October 2013

    View Magazine Reader's Choice Award Winners 2013

    Readers of Hamilton's View Magazine have had their say!  The mag's Reader's Choice Awards for 2013 have been unveiled.

    All the votes are tallied and the Hammer has chosen their local favourites: From the best music, to the best place to break up (Gore Park, by the way) to the finest shops in the land.

    Musically, the big winners are rock group Monster Truck with 3 wins and This Ain't Hollywood with 4 (co-owner Lou Molinaro landed an additional two)

    You can click here for the full list

    Below are all the music-related categories.

    Congrats to everybody!

    Local Female Artist


    Links: Terra Lightfoot, More Terra Lightfoot Stories, Video courtesy of Mel Olds

    Local Male Artist


    Links: Steve Strongman, More Steve Strongman stories, Video courtesy of M2B67

    Local Band
    Local Cover Band
    Local Band Most Likely to Make it Big
    • Gold: Monster Truck
    Local Band Name
    Local Album Artwork
    • Gold: Blind Mule EP
    • Silver: Jonny Debt: Prince of The Golden Horseshoe
    Open Jam
    • Gold: Carrigan Arms
    • Silver: This Ain’t Hollywood
    Open Stage
    • Gold: The Baltimore House  
    • Silver: This Ain’t Hollywood
    Local Festival
    • Gold: Festival Of Friends
    • Silver: Super Crawl
    • It’s Your Festival
    Local Radio Station
    • Gold: Y108
    • Silver: Funny 820
    • CFMU
    Local Radio Personality
    • Gold: Ric Taylor (CFMU)
    • Silver: Lou Molinaro (CFMU)
    Local Show Promoter
    • Gold: Lou Molinaro
    • Silver: Ken Inouye
    Local Independent Record Label
    • Gold: Sonic Unyon
    • Silver: Hidden Pony Records
    Coolest Instrument to Play
    • Gold: Guitar
    • Silver: Drums
    Local Recording Studio
    • Gold: Grant Avenue Studio
    • Silver: Catherine North Studios
    • Jukasa Studios
    Local Rehersal Space
    • Gold: Rock Parlour
    • Silver: The Jam Zone
    • SoundCheck
    Lounge
    • Gold: The Casbah Lounge
    • Silver: The Baltimore
    Live Venue
    • Gold: Stonewalls
    • Silver: This Ain’t Hollywood
    • The Casbah
    Country Bar
    • Gold: Dirty Dog Saloon
    • Silver: Galley Pump
    Jazz & Blues Venue
    • Gold: The Masque
    • Silver: Cat ‘N’ Fiddle
    Pub
    • Gold: Slainte
    • Silver: Rebel’s Rock
    • Snooty Fox
    Vibe
    • Gold: Gallagher’s
    • Silver: Sarcoa
    • Lazy Flamingo
    Dive
    • Gold: This Ain’t Hollywood
    • Silver: Prince Edward Tavern
    • Galley Pump
    Musical Instrument Store
    • Gold: Long & McQuade
    • Silver: Mountain Music
    • Musical Equipment Sales
    Store to Buy New Music
    • Gold: HMV
    • Silver: Cheapies
    • Dr. Disc
    Store to Buy Old Music
    • Gold: Cheapies
    • Silver: Dr. Disc
    • Where Heads Meet
    Blast from the Past: The 2012 Winners

    Links: View Magazine, More from the View's Reader's Choice Awards

    Previous (Jethro Tull Videos) - - - Next (Videos from a Private Show w/Crucial Groove, Michael Maguire, Donna Ceighton, Don McGeoch)

    Friday 11 October 2013

    Jethro Tull Videos

    This page is to celebrate when Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson offered something old and something new Hamilton Place on Thursday, October 17, 2013.

    The veteran rocker performed his classic 1972, Thick as a Brick album as well as the 2012 sequel to the masterwork. It was an amazing night thats included a light show, many cool theatrical parts, a few laughs and amazing music.

    From the press release:

    Thick As A Brick was a world-wide success, including a No 1 spot on the American Billboard chart, and excerpts from the piece have regularly featured in Jethro Tull and Ian Anderson live shows. But Ian had steadily resisted record company suggestions that he write a follow-up. It was not until a chance encounter in 2010 with old pal Derek Shulman of Gentle Giant, who nagged him to consider a 40th anniversary sequel, that Ian gave it some serious thought – and surprised himself by not dismissing it out of hand this time. He had noticed that in recent years his audiences had been changing. “It wasn’t just old codgers, it was kind of a mix between old codgers and young codgers. It really struck me that there was this new wave of interest from youngsters who want something that is an alternative and antidote to the X-Factor and the very repetitive rock music that does tend to be the stuff of today. So I began to feel that it was not quite as undignified as I had earlier supposed to be doing something that was more in that kind of progressive vein."



    Video above courtesy of Nudlaug





    Above two video courtesy of TullManagement


    Previous (News Roundup w/Gavin O'Sullivan, Tom Finochio, Joe Mavety) - - - Next (View Magazine Readers' Choice Awards)

    Thursday 10 October 2013

    News Roundup (Gavin O'Sullivan, Tom Finochio, Joe Mavety)


    Local

      Canada 

        Funny/Weird Stuff

        Blasts From the Past

        Featured Videos



        Links: Tom Finochio, Video courtesy of Maggie Ciere



        Links: Joe Mavety, Video courtesy of TheSusanmca


        Previous (New Smoke Wagon Blues Band Live CD) - - - Next (Jethro Tull Videos)
        One thing I didn't expect in Rome was totally incompetence. I assumed that since 99% of the country's income came from tourism, navigating would be a piece of cake. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that my hotel didn't have any tourist maps, and I couldn't find any in the streets. No maps in the subway, none at bus stops. Every street sign pointed to the Vatican and zero pointed anywhere else.

        MAXXI, the provocative modern art museum? Good luck finding it. The controversial Renzo Piano towers? It's like they didn't exist. EUR, the suburb infamous for its colossal fascist architecture? From the total absence of information it could have been in Africa for all I knew.

        I took the subway to the EUR stop anyway, with my fingers crossed. Instead I found nothing. Vast, wide open horizons with no clue where to find the interesting stuff. Where was the "square Colosseum" Mussolini built? Where was the culture museum, a ridiculously overblown piece of propaganda the fascists hadn't had time to finish? Where was the stadium encircled by marble statues of half-naked Aryan muscleman? I zigzagged for a mile or two but didn't run into anything. Finally, exhausted and mad, I hopped the subway back.

        I tried to keep my spirits up. Rome still had a lot of attractions. Giorgio Armani, Salvatore Ferragamo, Donatella Versace: the place definitely had the market cornered in one department. Unfortunately arm hair doesn't have the cultural cachet that it used to.

        Men in Italy are very stylish. Some have sport coats that very nearly match their pants, and a few go quite well with their tennis shoes. They wear mesh t-shirts that look like fishing nets strung between their shoulders. Sometimes if you get close you can smell the mackerel. It's easy to remember that Italy gave birth to drama when a somebody casually takes off their shirt and all of a sudden you're in "Streetcar Named Desire."

        Italian women also have their own special style. This year it's bare shoulders. They're sexy, they're sassy, and they're the only body part that can't get fat.

        Both sexes chain-smoke. It's part of their allure. It's illegal to smoke indoors, so now in the middle of the day Roman streets look like the moors in Wuthering Heights. Imagine the synergy when two grand Italian passions, smoking and style, collide:


        As a whole, Italians are a very expressive people. Just look at the faces you see on the subway. Love, rage, frustration, peace. And that's just the folks who are picking their zits. They're also refreshingly unpretentious: In America the only place you'd find this model is on GetThatAwayFromMe.com.


        Still, I was a bit startled by the sexism. Men still harangued attractive women with leers, whistles and catcalls. Even the advertisements clearly delineated the gender roles.


        "Like women, catching men," the billboard says. The good news is, with all the cigarettes and jewelry, the women can't get up to six miles per hour in a week and a half.

        The streets were full of American tourists clutching maps and grimacing, seemingly close to their limits frustration-wise. You don't want to get within fifty feet of them, because they're dying to share their stories. They can't wait to tell somebody about their lunch, their hotel, their flight here. After days of talking to Italians, they yearn to once again speak English without having to yell.

        Mere seconds after taking a seat at Ivo, a sidewalk cafe in Trastevere, an American couple started nattering away at me. I ate my pizza and drank my wine and eventually the woman stumbled upon an intelligent thought. "I was touring the Sistine Chapel with my parish priest and he told me how the Vatican works. Any time there's evidence of something embarrassing -- a sculpture of a saint who's been discredited, a painting of a pope with eighteen mistresses -- it's hidden in a corner of some hard-to-find room and all the lightbulbs around it just happen to burn out."

        That explained everything, I thought. I paid my bill and hit the road. All in all I liked Rome: the food was great, the streets were alive, and there were still some cool people around. So what if they wanted to control what people saw or didn't see? What was wrong with that? I followed the road to the top of the hill and snapped one last photo just in case I forgot.

        Wednesday 9 October 2013

        New Smoke Wagon Blues Band CD: Live in Hamilton

        Stonewalls must've been a very hoppin' place when the Smoke Wagon Blues Band took the stage in May of 2013.  The boys recorded the stunning show for their latest CD: Live in Hamilton and the fun just shines through.

        Filled with spectacular performances of their best songs (Barton Street Blues, I Can't Change, Fine Furred Mama, Wrong Side Girl plus many more) and fabulous covers (Ain't No Sunshine, Feelin' Alright, Muddy Water's Blow Wind Blow) the disc is a great example of what this top notch band can dish out live.

        You can pick up a copy of this CD at their explosive live shows (so in a way, you'll get a chance to experience two great live performances!).  It's also availble through the band's website and will be available through iTunes and other digital stores soon.

        Video below courtesy of Corey Lueck



        Blast From the Past: Smoke Wagon CD - It Ain't Easy

        Links: Smoke Wagon Blues Band, More Smoke Wagon Blues Band Stories, More CD Releases

        Previous (Matt Weidinger and Pappy Johns Band Going to Internatioanl Blues Challenge) - - - Next (News Roundup w/Gavin O'Sullivan, Tom Finochio, Joe Mavety)
        In England, I took a train out to Maldon to visit my cousin. She picked me up at the station and drove me to her house. It was a cute little cottage with appropriately low ceilings. I eyed the beams that dropped clearance to probably close to six feet, then noticed each had a tiny red Post-It attached.

        My cousin giggled. "It's so you don't hit your head and hurt yourself," she said. "I want to make sure you see them."

        I smiled. She clearly thought it was sweet, but I wasn't so sure. The more I thought about these idiot stickers the more insulted I felt. Did she think I was clueless? That my eyes didn't work? That I was too stupid to see these giant dark wood things stretching the length of the room, or that I was too dumb to duck?

        We chatted for a while over tea and scones, and at nightfall she drove me back to the station. I told her I'd take care of her if she ever got to New York. Pick her up at the station, give her a snack, tie a towel around her neck in case she drools. "Isn't that thoughtful?" I'll giggle. "I mean, I'm sure you'll be absolutely fine but we don't want to get the carpet wet."

        Tuesday 8 October 2013

        Giorgio Armani, Salvatore Ferragamo, Donatella Versace: Italy still has the market cornered in one department. Unfortunately arm hair doesn't have the cultural cachet it used to.


        I might have drank a bit too much on vacation but it was a learning experience. I didn't know, for example, that baby birds get totally pissed off when somebody other than their mom regurgitates on them.


        Holiday Snaps


        Welcome to London!

        Holiday Snaps

        Goddammit. I saw David Bowie at a restaurant in London but I snapped this photo at exactly the wrong time.


        Monday 7 October 2013

        Holiday Snaps


        This is the center of the dome at St. Peter's Basilica. The building is definitely one of the wonders of the world, made all the more astonishing because it was altruistically constructed as a monument to man's love for God. The golden motto in the center reads "S. PETRI GLORIAE SIXTUS PP. V.A. MDXC PONTIF. V.," which roughly translates to "'God's the best!' says Pope Sixtus V who totally built this thing."

        Holiday Snaps


        This is a sculpture in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. It's some dude holding a beehive on his lap. The beehive is an allegorical device that features prominently in Vatican artwork. It represents the papacy. It's really the perfect symbol since they too have lots of drones and workers but only one queen.

        Holiday Snaps


        "I already told you I don't want to buy any gum."

        Holiday Snaps


        You've got to applaud the Catholic Church for reaching out to gay people. I mean, at the Vatican Museum my mouth totally dropped open when I spotted Treasure Trail Jesus.

        Holiday Snaps


        "Ratzinger? No, can't say I've heard of the dude."

        Holiday Snaps


        "Yup, I'm dead, but I still got the Prada slippers, bitches!"

        Holiday Snaps


        Everything you've heard about Italian cooking is 100% true.

        Sunday 6 October 2013


        Are people finally tired of listening to chefs talk? That's what somebody told me at yesterday's Tap-Dancing Architects show.

        Saturday 5 October 2013

        Matt Weidinger & Pappy Johns Band Going to 2014 International Blues Challenge in Memphis

        Photo by Stefan Myles www.fandyphotography.ca 
        Our friends at the Grand River Blues Society have chosen their representatives for the 2014 International Blues Challenge in Memphis.  Over 16 local musicians vied for the coveted spots.

        Kitchener's Matt Weidinger will compete in the solo/duo category and Oshewken's Pappy Johns Band will duke it out for best group. 

        On January 21, the talented musicians will be showing the Blues world just what this area has got to offer.  Good luck guys!

        Click here for more stories about the IBC

        Blast from the Past: Last Year's Winners and Finalists



        Links: Matt Weidinger, Above video courtesy of Andrew Austin



        Links: Pappy Johns Band, More Pappy Johns Band Stories, Above video courtesy of Pappy Johns Band 

        Previous (Morgan Davis Videos) - - - Next (New Smoke Wagon Blues Band Live CD)

        Friday 4 October 2013

        Repeat Friday: What A Dump

        I don't understand my dog Snowflake. Three times a day I take him out for a walk, and he always scurries over to the same old tree. To the naked eye it looks like all the other trees, but from the way Snowflake acts you'd think it was Bob Fosse. He sniffs at the bark, paws the fallen leaves, circles endlessly. It makes me wonder if he's stupid. This thing's the botanical equivalent of "The View," except even Barbara Walters rarely reeks of piss.

        I yank on his leash and drag him farther down the block, past a new apartment house they're building. I've got a love/hate relationship with it. It's an oversized concrete box surrounded by classic old brownstones, but since it brings ten hunky Polish construction workers to the neighborhood it could be the Gates of Hell for all I care. Whenever I pass one of these guys on the street I'm tempted to strike up a conversation. I usually go for flattery as a pick-up line, but I'm not sure "You can sure stack concrete blocks!" will prompt eyelashes to bat.

        Snowflake and I are almost to the corner when we find an enormous brown pile in the middle of the sidewalk. It's about enough to make me lose my lunch, but to Snowflake it's like finding vintage Gucci. He tiptoes up to it, circles a few times, sniffs. He can't take his eyes off it. If he had opposable thumbs he'd be snapping pictures.

        I'm tugging on his leash when a construction worker appears. He's picked up a Snapple at the deli, I guess, and now he's headed back to work. He's one of my favorites, reminding me of a guy I used to date. We went all hot and heavy until his birthday came up. I still get defensive about it: I mean, if mango shower gel is a crime, color me guilty.

        "Hey," he says, in a thick Polish accent, "you gotta clean up after your dog."

        I show him my hand, stuck inside a plastic bag, and think about making it talk. I decide not too: I mean, if there's a profession that less sexy than accountants, it's puppeteers. "I do," I say. "He hasn't gone yet."

        "Then what's that?" he asks, pointing to the sidewalk. Like an idiot I look. It hasn't changed. "Your dog took a dump."

        "It's not his," I say. "It was here when we got here."

        "Of course it's his. He's standing right next to it."

        "You're standing right next to it and nobody's claiming it's yours."

        He starts his next sentence with "Listen, wise guy," which doesn't bode well for our future together. I don't date anybody who reminds me of Dad. "I just went to the store, and it wasn't here when I left. Look around -- you see any other dogs? Who else could have done it?"

        I don't see any other dogs, but this doesn't prove anything. "My dog's poo is nothing like this," I maintain. "For one thing, this is bigger than his head. Snowflake ate a whole pizza once and barely crapped a cannoli."

        "I'm not even listening," he says. "I'm not buying your excuses, and you're not leaving until you clean that up." He's just dripping with macho swagger. It's only hot when you're sure the guy's not going to kill you.

        I come to the conclusion that I can't win this argument by myself. I need backup; I need a character witness. Surely some of the neighborhood folks have seen Snowflake poo before, and can testify that this monstrosity isn't his.

        Like the answer to a prayer, the guy who lives upstairs from me is fast approaching on the other side of the street. I've kind of got a crush on him too: he reminds me of a guy I used to date in college, who dropped me when I gave him a ring. It wasn't commitment he was afraid of -- some folks just don't get Cat's Eye. "Hey!" I yell. "Excuse me! Have you ever seen my dog take a crap?"

        "No!" he hollers, and he darts across the road like the Clash are playing on our side. He takes one look at the sidewalk and scowls. "Damn," he snaps. "Did I miss it?"

        This is such an allegory for my life, I think. Two men I'm interested in, and the topic of discussion is whether or not my dog took a dump. Under other circumstances I'd probably have caved, but the dog that left this muffin was clearly not in good health. Let's just say it'd be easier to pick up apple sauce.

        From four different directions bystanders approach. In a quiet Italian neighborhood like this, a giant crap is like Cirque du Soleil. I get the newcomers up to speed, hoping somebody'll back me up, but everybody takes Construction Worker's side. "If I wasn't going to clean up after my dog," I ask, "why did I bring the bag?"

        "You were gonna pretend to clean it up," a chubby kid replies. Right, I thought -- now I'm the Sociopathic Urban Mime. He's just mad because I gave out Swiffer refills last Halloween.

        "You know," somebody says, "I'll bet he's the one who's been carving graffiti into the trees."

        "And setting off the car alarms at four in the morning."

        The crowd murmurs like a posse on "Bonanza," accusing me of everything from destroying the ozone layer to reusing postage stamps, and the circle around me starts to close in. By now I'm thinking, hey, maybe Frankenstein didn't have it so bad. Sure, he was chased around by villagers with torches, but it wasn't in a hip neighborhood, and he didn't have to worry about ruining flattering clothes.

        Just as I'm deciding on the best direction to run, an old lady in a faded housedress breaks through the circle, wielding a cane like a tire iron. Somebody explains the situation to her in Italian, and I'm guessing they offer her first whack. Instead she takes a look at the dog, the poo, the plastic bag over my hand, and puts it all together like a Sicilian Miss Marple. "So your dog hasn't gone yet?" she asks. I nod. "Then make him go."

        A gasp of surprise erupts from the crowd. It's like we're all gathered in the library and she's just picked out the killer. Even I'm impressed -- I mean, I wouldn't have expected anything more than interesting than curse words and tasty gnocchi from her. "Easier said than done," I complain. "I have to massage his lips to get him to eat."

        "Convince him."

        All eyes turn to the dog, who's shivering like a chilly chicken. "Poor little puppy," somebody says. "He's too nervous to go."

        Now this was just flat-out wrong. Snowflake's never cared who was around when he went. In fact, he seemed to be spurred on by attention from attractive guys. It was the bane of my existence: I'd meet somebody, we'd flirt, he'd try to make friends with the dog, and before we could swap numbers we'd be scurrying for gas masks.

        A lightbulb goes on over my head. "Hey," I say to Construction Worker, "pet the dog. Pretend you like him."

        He stares at me like I'm crazy but follows my instructions. Not two seconds later Snowflake is proudly standing over his own, markedly-smaller creation.

        The crowd grumbles and I beam like a new dad. "See?" I say, gesturing like it's a game show prize. "There's a huge difference."

        They nod reluctantly. It's a rollerskate next to a Humvee. "Sorry," Construction Worker says. "I guess I jumped to the wrong conclusion."

        "No prob," I reply, and then comes our first awkward silence. Pause. "You can sure stack concrete blocks."

        He smiles and his brown eyes twinkle. "Thanks. Well, I gotta get back to work. Maybe I'll see you later."

        "Yeah, that'd be nice." We all watch as he walks away.

        Snowflake and I head back towards home, and he runs to the safety of his tree again, circling like a Spirograph. I still can't claim to understand the little pooch, but he's a chip off the old block in a couple ways:

        Great taste in men. Really not so great with gifts.

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