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Archive for the ‘The Walrus’ Category

Stephen Marche–”A Few Acres of Snow” (The Walrus, July/August 2010)

Posted in Canadian Content, Canadian Music, CBC Radio 3, Galaxie 500 (Canadian band), Short Story, Sloan, Stephen Marche, The Walrus on June 24, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: GALAXIE 500-“Big Bang” (2006).

When I saw this band come up on CBC Radio 3, I thought, I didn’t know that Galaxie 500 were Canadian.  Well, they’re not.  At least the early 90’s band Galaxie 500 aren’t.  But THIS Galaxie 500 are from Montreal.

Now, I understand that there are a lot of bands with the same name.  It’s prettyinevitable as there’s only so many permutations of common words.  But “Galaxie 500?”  How could they not know there was another band with that name, especially as seminal an act as Galaxie 500 was?  So, what is their name?  A tribute?  I just don’t get it.

And so I was prepared to hate this band on principle. But then I heard the song.  It’s noisy, crazy, brash and ballsy.  It’s not exactly punk, it’s sort of a garage band with sound effects (in many places it sounds like the more raucous Sloan songs).

They also sing in French (which means they have more right to the spelling of Galaxie than the previous incarnation of the band).  Even though “Big Bang” comes from the top album Le Temps au Point Mort, I really enjoy this lower album cover more (and the songs from it (which you can hear on the band’s website) are also great.  As is the video (available there, too).

[READ: June 15, 2010] “A Few Acres of Snow”

This story starts out in reality and slowly shifts into a  more fanciful realm.  As it opens, a man arrives at a cabin. His intention is to write a book called One Hundred and Twenty-Seven Paintings To See Before You Die (I love the conceit of this, a sort of lazy man’s guide to touring the world).

He is isolated (which is what he wants), with no phone or contact with the outside word (or his family).  And then it starts snowing.  It snows harder and harder and plies up to his windows.  And then it goes higher still. (more…)

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Heather O Neill–“Riff-Raff” (The Walrus, July/August 2010)

Posted in Adventure, Canadian Content, Canadian Music, CBC Radio 3, Heather O'Neill, James Brown, Kid Koala, The Slew, The Walrus, Travel, Violence on June 23, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: THE SLEW “100%” (2009).

The Slew is the latest band created by DJ Kid Koala. Koala is a fantastic turntablist, and this group uses his scratching and sampling to excellent effect.  The lineup includes drums, bass, keyboards and six turntables!

It’s an insane hodge-podge of music.  And it’s very fun.  I’ve no idea how many samples are in here (James Brown seems to be all over the song) or even if any of the “riffs” in the song are original or from other records, but I enjoyed this very much.

I’ve enjoyed just about everything Kid Koala has done, and this is no exception.  I’m glad to see he’s still being so creative.

There are three five tracks available on CBC Radio 3.  And they’re all fun.

[READ: June 14, 2010] “Riff-Raff”

The protagonist of this story is a nineteen year old girl from Montreal.  She is in a horrible relationship with a boy named Leroy.  But near the end of her first year at McGill, she meets an American boy.  They hang out pretty steadily for a few weeks and, when school ends, he invites her to visit him in New Mexico.

There’s so many places this story could have gone.  I guessed a number of them, but I never would have guessed the direction it went. (more…)

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Zsuzsi Gartner–”Say the Names (after Al Purdy)” (The Walrus July/August 2010)

Posted in Books about music, Books about writers, Canadian Content, Canadian Music, CBC Radio 3, Funny (strange), Gord Downie, Gordon Lightfoot, Rush, The Tragically Hip, The Walrus, Young Rival, Zsuzsi Gartner on June 22, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: YOUNG RIVAL-“Got What You Need” (2009).

I was only able to hear this song once.  It’s surprisingly on available on the Young Rival playlist on CBC Radio 3).  Young Rival play a kind of fast, noisy punk and yet the melodies underneath the noise are very poppy.

I also played the track “Authentic” which is similar in style.  I found both songs very catchy, but have to admit that even a few minutes later I couldn’t recall them at all.  I’d say it’s perfect  for radio airplay.

[READ: June 14, 2010] “Say the Names”

This, indeed, is the quintessential Canadian story.  Every line in the piece is taken from a Canadian song, book or movie.  (I only learned that from the introduction to all of the stories. There’s nothing in the story to reveal that.  Although given its fractured nature and the very obviousness of some of the titles, it wouldn’t be too hard to figure out.]

It’s kind of fun to play “spot the lyrics” or what have you.  I knew some, but far fewer than I would have guessed.

As for the story itself, well, it’s a little disjointed. (more…)

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Rawi Hage–“Waiting for God” (The Walrus, July/August 2010)

Posted in Canadian Content, Canadian Music, CBC Radio 3, Huh?, Olympics, Ramones, Rawi Hage, Religion, Teenage Head, The Walrus on June 19, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: TEENAGE HEAD-“Picture My Face” (1979).

Teenage Head is a punk band in the vein of The Ramones.  If I were younger I probably would have enjoyed this song more.  Not because it’s a punk song (and I’m old) but because it’s so derivative of just about every Ramones-inspired punk song I can think of.

There’s nothing wrong with being derivative per se.  Some of the best bands started out as derivative of something else.  And, frankly when you’re playing three chord punk it’s hard to reinvent the wheel.  But I think these kinds of bands are more for people who don’t have a history of music that is just like this, only better.

Heh, I just looked up this band and found out that this song is from 1979.  Whoops.  So it doesn’t have 30 years of punk holding it up, it still has a whole bunch of Ramones tracks to compare it to.  And, I stand by the suggestion that it’s fun punk, just not terribly original (although perhaps in 1979 it was more original).

[READ: June 14, 2010] “Waiting for God”

This story is set (sort of) at the Vancouver Olympics.  The narrator overhears two men speaking.  One of them is described as “Man in rags” the other is “Man with turnip.”  I understood that much.

I assume this is an homage to Waiting for Godot, an absurd story if ever there was.  And so, this story is also absurd.  Man in rags is discoursing with Man with turnip, but Man with turnip seems to be discoursing with someone else entirely. (more…)

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Lisa Moore–“Mask” (The Walrus, July/August 2010)

Posted in Arcade Fire, Canadian Content, Canadian Music, Lisa Moore, Neil Young, New Yorker, Summer, The Walrus, Zeus on June 16, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: ZEUS-“Kindergarten” (2010).

Continuing my march through CBC Radio 3: The radio announcer dude said that this album might make the long list for the Polaris Prize.

Zeus is a Toronto based band that has worked as a backup band for one of the guys from Broken Social Scene.  This is an acoustic guitar/quietly distorted electric guitar track that’s poppy and fairly commercial.

I wasn’t all that inspired by it, until near the end where these wild backing vocals come in (and it gets something of an Arcade Fire vibe).  The second song on Zeus’ page, “Marching Through Your Head” is much more promising.  A catchy bouncy pop track with enough weirdness to keep it interesting.

They do a cover of Genesis’ “That’s All” which is described as “raucous.”  And if you click on the link you’d be hard pressed to disagree with that assessment.

[READ: June 14, 2010] “Mask”

Hot on the heels of the New Yorker Summer Fiction Issue, I received this issue of The Walrus with their own Summer Fiction section called “Canadian Studies.”  This issue features nine authors.  They were all asked to write “the most Canadian story they could think of.”  Now, I’ll start out by saying I’m not Canadian, and I don’t want to suggest that I know what the most Canadian story should be like. At the same time, I read The Walrus, I watch a lot of Canadian TV, so I have a slight grasp of the culture.  So while I know a Canadian story isn’t going to be about igloos and elk, I’m certain that some more subtle stories will be lost on me.

Lisa Moore’s story is first in the collection.  It is quite short.   And I didn’t think it was especially Canadian, although perhaps, given one of my Vancouver friends’ proclivities, it is. (more…)

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Seth–(The Walrus, July/August 2010)

Posted in Canadian Content, Canadian Music, CBC Radio 3, Graphic Novel, Rah Rah, Seth, The Tragically Hip, The Walrus on June 15, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: RAH RAH-“Arrows” (2010).

This issue of The Walrus features the Summer Reading Issue, which nine short fictions about Canada.  In concert with that I decided to listen to CBC Radio 3 online and review the first songs that I hear in their entirety.

The first band up is Rah Rah.  I’d never heard of them before.  This track arrows is from their just released 2nd CD.  They sound kind of like they are Regina, Sask’s answer to the Arcade Fire.  Rah Rah have 7 members in the band, and they play a sort of energetic poppy punk with lots of backing vocals. (Some of them are screamed, but from a long way away…a very cool effect). The song is catchy and is only punk in the tempo of the track (and the somewhat shambolic nature of the vocals–which is meant as a complement).

I liked the song enough that I had to listen to it again. The riff is super catchy, and the vocals complement it nicely. I liked it enough to check out more of their stuff.  “Fuck NAFTA” is a wonderful song that is surprisingly delicate and catchy for such a belligerent sentiment. Great stuff.

I suspect that I’ll be picking up their album, if I can find it for sale anywhere.

[READ: June 14, 2010] Walrus Summer Reading, featuring Seth

The Walrus’ July/August issue features a summer reading collection.  Nine authors all answering the call “to write the most Canadian story they could think of.”  Over the next week or so I’ll review them all.  But as an introduction, I wanted to mention the artwork of Seth.

Seth is rapidly becoming my favorite artist whom I know very little about.  (more…)

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Billie Livingston–“Do Not Touch” (The Walrus, June 2010)

Posted in Billie Livingston, Canadian Content, Canadian Music, Fears, The Walrus on May 26, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK:  RUSH-Beyond the Lighted Stage (film) (2010).

Okay, so I haven’t seen this yet, but I’m delighted to be able to add the link to the trailer.

This film is an in depth look at Rush’s history.  There’s interviews with all three of them (Neil speaks!) as well as all kinds of fans.  According to the website, it will air one day only, June 10 in the US and Canada, June 7th in the rest of the world.  It’s only playing in 4 theaters in NJ, and there’s a slight chance I can get to it.

Otherwise, I’ll have to wait for the DVD. But those 2 minutes of trailer were very exciting!

[READ: May 24, 2010] “Do Not Touch”

This story works a lot like an onion.  It starts in one place, then it sort of burrows in through a series of layers.

We open with the narrator falling for Thomas because he seems nervous (she find this an attractive quality in everyone).  He is a music reporter, and she is able to assist him with information about Diana Krall.  Soon enough, she has moved in with him.

But things aren’t great.  And then, one day, when she brings a watch to a jeweler, she marvels at the man’s delicate touch and his charm.  And she rummages through the house to find more watches for him to fix.

One of these watches she found at the zoo.  No one claimed it, so she kept it.  It is engraved and is quite old.

The story more or less culminates on a return visit to the zoo, where it takes a decidely different turn.  The narrator watches a woman makes a connection with a primate; a connection that aleinates her son.  And as the narrator watches this scene, she makes a personal decision.

What I loved about this story was watching the onion unfurl in just a few paragraphs.  The only problem I had was that I felt the onion didn’t unfurl all the way.  Many decisions were reached, but I’m unclear what her final decision will be.

Nevertheless, this story was very enjoyable.

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Kaitlin Fontana–“The Flight Album” (The Walrus, May 2010)

Posted in Books about writers, Canadian Content, Essays, Funny (ha ha), Kaitlin Fontana, Memoirs, The Beatles, The Walrus, Word usage on May 19, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: THE BEATLES-A Hard Day’s Night (1964).

Despite my CD player trying to eat this disc, I still managed to listen to the whole thing.

This album came out just a few months after their second disc.  But it is quite a leap forward musically.  Rather than the simple rock and roll sound of the first two discs, there’s more depth of sound (attributable to George’s 12 string guitar?)  Perhaps also because of the use of the 4 track, rather than the 2 track mixer.  Also, Lennon and McCartney wrote all of the songs, so they weren’t bogged down by covers,

At first I thought that I had gotten to my first Beatles disc where I knew all the songs.  But that turned out not to be true.  I knew the first half of the disc (the songs that are in the movie).  But when we got to the second half (and I learned that the US version was different in that in included George Martin’s score for the movie (!)) there were a couple of tracks I didn’t know at all.

With the tracks sequenced as they are, you don’t get a big crunching finale at the end of the disc, like on the first two.  However, those first few songs are pretty classic (even if “Can’t Buy Me Love” completely contradicts the sentiment of “Money” from the previous album.  This is a really enjoyable fun disc from start to finish, even the songs I didn’t know.

I was pretty certain that after this disc, I’d recognize all of the songs.  But I had one more surprise waiting for me.

I also brought the movie home from the library one night but I couldn’t get through most of it.  Guess you had to be there.

[READ: May 13, 2010] “The Flight Album”

This is a memoir of the a Vancouver author’s stay in New York City.   I wasn’t really sure how interesting this story would be, I mean, there are a million stories in the City, so why should this transplant’s story be worth reading?

The piece starts with the author’s awkward assimilation to New York (and the almost offensive Dave Chapelle joke she relates to a cabbie).  His mild reaction lets her know that maybe she can make it there.

For me the best part was the author’s insert of Shit: A Guide to Canadian Usage.  The most notable difference between Canadians and Americans, she has found, is that Canadians use the word “shit” all over the place, and in many ways that Americans do not (in fact it is more all purpose than fuck.  The things that started it all was her use of the phrase “What the shit.”)  It is quite a funny section. (more…)

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Pasha Malla–“1999” (The Walrus, May 2010)

Posted in Books about music, Canadian Content, End of the World, Gnarls Barkley, Minnesota, Pasha Malla, Prince, Sex, The Walrus on May 18, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: PRINCE-Purple Rain (1984).

I resisted Prince for most of my high school and early college years.  He was just so, so, so.  Well, actually I think he was just so popular.  Plus, my freshman year of college, someone on our floor used to blast this CD at full volume every time he did laundry.  It was pretty oppressive.

As I grew less strident, I learned to appreciate his talent (and his absurdity), and even to like Purple Rain.  And when I divorce Prince from the hype, the overplay, the excess, the quirks (yes, I’m talking 2 U) this is a damn fine record.

It’s also somewhat surprising that it was as big a hit as it was.  Musically, it’s all over the place (or is that something for everyone?).  I think in today’s specialized market, this may not have sold as well (or else it would be like Gnarls Barkley and be a hit regardless).

“Let’s Go Crazy” is poppy sure, but it rocks really hard (and showcases Prince’s guitar virtuosity).  But it’s the  second half of the disc that is just berserk with great music. “When Doves Cry” has that insane guitar solo opener.  The rest is simple keyboard pop (until the ecstatic screams at the end).  “I Would Die 4U” is the poppiest thing on the disc.  And the disc ender, “Purple Rain” is just a great rock track.  Delightfully pretentious in the beginning, full-bodied by the middle.  It’s quite genre defying.

I’m obviously not the biggest Prince fan in the world.  I have a few discs from this period (and the greatest hits).  It’s more than enough Prince for me.  And while I don’t listen to this disc while I do laundry, sometimes, when it’s warm, I’ll open the windows and crank this up.

[READ: May 14, 2010] “1999”

This story opens with the line “I wouldn’t fuck [the artist formerly known as Prince] if he was the last man on Earth.”  This turns out to be excellent foreshadowing.  The year is 1999, morphing into 2000.  And the unthinkable has happened.  There is no one left on the planet.  Except for the voice of TAFKAP on the radio, exhorting women to cum 2 him and b with him.

Although Sonya wouldn’t fuck him, several other women in the story most certainly would.   And so, the story follows four different women, each with her own agenda as they travel across the continent to Minnesota, to Paisley Park. (more…)

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Steven Heighton–“Bystanders” (The Walrus, April 2010)

Posted in Adventure, Anthrax, Culture Shock, Death, Megadeth, Metallica, Nature, Slayer, Steven Heighton, The Walrus on April 2, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: Big 4 Thrash Tour (2010).

During my recent trip down metal memory lane, I learned that the Big 4 Thrash bands may be touring together.  The Big 4 would be: Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer.

When I was a young metal dude, these were definitely my big 4.  I own the first 5 or so albums by all of these bands.  Megadeth was the first to fall out of favor (around 1990), then Anthrax (around 1993), then Slayer (around 1994) (although they came back nicely in the last few years) and the Metallica (around 1997 although really they’ve drifted the furthest from the thrash world, and probably I should’ve stopped sooner).

I haven’t really listened to any of these guys’ newer releases (although I did get Slayer’s 2001 release, God Hates Us All–and I wanted to add this wonderful quote from Araya, who sings of ever so much death and destruction: “when you see someone and if you’re a human being you respect them and treat them as human beings”), so I can’t say that I’m the target audience for this tour.  However, I am delighted that these 4 bands, whose music I loved while growing up, are still together and still touring.

I wonder what the audience make up for this show is?  Is it old fogeys like me (who are still younger than the band members, at least) who would have wet themselves for this tour back in 1989, or is it a new generation of thrash kids who would mosh the crap out of me?

Either way, I won’t be going to this concert (in Poland or in Greece for that matter) but nor will I be going should it come to a theater near me.  But I’ll be delighted to hear how it goes.

[READ: March 29, 2010] “Bystanders”

I was prepared not to like this story (actually an excerpt from a novel).  It is set on a mountainside on the border of China and Tibet.  And it was about mountain climbing, a subject about which I care very little.  And as it started  feared it was going to be another story about battling with the elements on top of a mountain, blah blah.

But rather, the story went in a different direction entirely.  While the young protagonist is watching the sun set on the mountains she hears gun shots.  Ad i the distance, she sees a man fall.  The guides come over to offer her a hand but she refuses.  They force her down behind the rocks as they call for her father.  Then she flashes back to another time when her father selflessly came to someone’s rescue.

There were many cool ideas in this story.  I loved the idea that she was sitting in two countries at the same time.  I loved even more the later idea that the glacier has moved the border between the to countries and that soldiers had to remeasure and replace the flag.  But really, it was the final line, “that by making his care, his very life and limb, equally available to all, he deprived [his family] of an exclusivity they had a right to expect” that was incredibly moving.

I don’t know that I’ll track down the novel Every Lost Country, but I did enjoy this excerpt quite a lot.

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