Two Hours Traffic
The latest edition of my Polaris People column is online over at the Polaris Music Prize website.
This week Grimes gets her Game Of Thrones on, Dan Mangan goes Cosmo and Two Hours Traffic find their rhythm.
To read the column, go here.
Filed under Music, Shameless Promotion
Stompin’ Tom Connors postage stamp
When Canadian country hero Stompin’ Tom Connors died earlier this week one of the subsequent discussions was about how Tom fearlessly did what he wanted. For someone who created folkie songs about ketchup, hockey and potatoes, he was essentially… a true punk.
As such, I wrote about the life lesson I learned the one time I had the opportunity to spend a day drinking in the Connors’ family rec room. The story, called “Stompin’ Tom Connors Was More Punk Than You: A Memorial,” can be found here.
In related Tom tributes, over at my other workplace the Polaris Music Prize I also wrote an article collecting the many tweets from various past Polaris nominees who were also touched by Tom’s music. You can read that article here.
Filed under Music, Shameless Promotion, The Misadventures Of
How To Destroy Angels ‘Welcome Oblivion’
Because I care only about the hippest, newest, youngest emerging musical acts I recently reviewed the following albums for Spinner:
How To Destroy Angels‘ Welcome Oblivion — Trent Reznor with his wife singing. Click here.
Johnny Marr‘s The Messenger — The Smiths still aren’t reunited. Click here.
Filed under Music, Shameless Promotion
Gob Bluth
The television jerk is a beautiful thing. Residing somewhere between villain and oaf, these characters are often the antidote to lame protagonists and pandering storylines.
Here are five of my favourites:
5. Master Shake, Aqua Teen Hunger Force
Cartoon milkshake Master Shake’s constant antagonism of dullard running buddy Meatwad is his go-to act-out, but pretty much everything he does is ridiculously and brilliantly assholic. Master Shake’s jerkishness is a thing of relentless beauty.
4. E.B. Farnum, Deadwood
Technically, E.B. Farnum’s more sniveling worm than jerk, but most of the characters on Deadwood are jerks so his brand of noxiousness uniquely stands out. Particularly good are his interactions with his assistant Richardson, a simpleton E.B. picks on mercilessly.
3. Malcolm Tucker, The Thick Of It
Watching Malcolm Tucker will a) help you compose brilliantly withering insults, and b) make you want to swear at your co-workers a lot more.
2. Pierce Hawthorne, Community
Bumbling racist Pierce Hawthorne’s best when executing some act of physical comedy — tripping over drumkits, having trampoline accidents — and without him there’d be no Community.
1. Gob Bluth, Arrested Development
Gob Bluth is a perfect human. “Come on!” is one of television’s great catchphrases.
Filed under Television
Ron Sexsmith
The latest edition of my Polaris People column is online over at the Polaris Music Prize website.
For this one we discovered what karaoke songs Ron Sexsmith likes, go to the theatre with Stars and learn about Two Hours Traffic‘s favourite bands.
To read this week’s column, go here.
Filed under Music, Shameless Promotion
I Overcame My Autism And All I Got Was This Lousy Anxiety Disorder: A Memoir
