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Posts Tagged ‘rheoslive’

César Aira—Shantytown (2001) [translated 2013]

Posted in César Aira, Chris Andrews, Death, Drugs, Humiliation, Rheostatics, Short Books, Translation, tagged on March 3, 2014| Leave a Comment »

shantySOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Mrs. Robinson’s, Kitchener, Ontario (December 20, 1997).

kitchener

What’s most fascinating about these Rheostatics live shows is coming across venues that have no internet presence.  I can’t find a photo or anything of Mrs Robinson’s in Kitchener.  Did it even exist?  Who knows?

The quality of this show is very good although the overall volume is too low. There are also complaints from Dave about his monitor not working.  It doesn’t impact the sound for us, but I guess he couldn’t hear very well.  The intro of “Michael Jackson” is all messed up, but they play on through it.  Then they actually take a pause for an unspecified length of time to fix it (but still do a show that’s over 2 hours long).

Martin and Dave are very chatty for this show.  The intro is quite long, with some good banter including a discussion of the weird table in front of the stage which people can use for stage diving or go go dancing.  Martin explains the origins of “Junction Foil Ball” (about a guy who makes a ball out of the tin foil in cigarette packs.  They make a joke about Don the drummer being from Kirkwood Lake which is where Alan Thicke is from.  And a joke about Polkaroo.

They also introduce Tim Mech (their guitar tech) whose band PEEP-SHOW was one of the winners of Musician magazine’s “Best Unsigned Band Competition” in 1997.  He takes a long solo in “Claire.”

This was their last show of 1997, so this wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

[READ: March 3, 2014] Shantytown

This has been my favorite Aira book so far (and I’m now caught up to his English language releases).  The plot was simple and interesting, and the fantastical elements really worked with the story instead of overshadowing it (which his stories sometimes allow, but which isn’t really a criticism per se, just a point of fact).

This story begins with Maxi, a kind-hearted, but not terribly smart or sensible young man.  He is unemployed, did not finish any real schooling and doesn’t have a lot to do.  He has been going to the gym daily, so he is very strong. And he has recently begun helping the garbage scavengers.

These scavengers are people who live in the Shantytown nearby.  It is a collection of houses, most very tiny and quickly constructed, where the poorest people live.  And many of these people collect and either sell or use rich people’s garbage.  They come up every night before a garbage pick up and root through the streets for anything they can use.  And Maxi has begun helping them shift their carts  Since he is so strong, he finds that none of the their carts are very heavy.  And although he has never spoken to any of them and they have not spoken to him, he decided to start helping them and now he gets great satisfaction in carrying their stuff.

The shantytown is an unsavory place where drugs are sold and not too long ago a young girl was murdered.  Recently a policeman, Agent Cabezas has been trying to get to the bottom of this whole drug thing.  The drug of choice is proxidine which makes things clearer. Even Cabezas himself takes it (even though it is illegal).  But there has been a lot of suspicious activity with a man dressed as a pastor who might be a dealer.  And then there’s Maxi who is suddenly hanging around the shantytown.  And, quite frankly, Cabezas has decided that he’s tired of being a good cop.  He is ready to take what is his. (more…)

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Ben Fountain–Brief Encounters with Che Guevara (2006)

Posted in Adventure, Africa, Ben Fountain, Chumbawamba, Culture Shock, Death, Environmentalism, Golf, Marriage Trouble, Religion, Rheostatics, Sex, The Monkees, Violence, War, tagged on March 2, 2014| Leave a Comment »

briefSOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Spiral Club, Guelph Ontario (December 18 1997).

spiral This show has an interesting technical glitch that the owner thankfully fixed. It was a soundboard recording (which is awesome), but evidently there was static in the right channel that rendered it unlistenable.  So he simply removed the right channel and mixed it mono.  The sound is actually excellent—one of the best early shows they’ve done.  But since there is only own channel, you miss a lot of what, I think, is Dave’s guitar.  When guest Tyler McPherson plays his solo, I believe you can’t hear it.  Yet despite that, it still sounds great.

I feel like the band was a having a lot of fun on this Thursday night in Guelph (every night in Guelph is a weekend). They mention that their Nightlines episode was aired on the night of Lady Diana’s death (so they feel some kind of weird connection to her).

There’s a few firsts in this set as well.  It’s the first time they plated “Junction Foil Ball” (from Nightlines).  They seem to have finally settled in with “Harmelodia” not “California” in “Easy to Be with You.”  They toss in a bit of “Tubthumping” at the beginning of “Horses,” and a bit of the Monkees, song “Look Out Here Comes Tomorrow)” at the beginning of “Queer.”

Of course there are some flubs as well.  Martin messes up California Dreamline big time and Dave gets lost in the counting of “Four Little Songs” (and then says he never went to school).

But it’s the banter that is the fun part of this show.  They ask the crowd not to shout out requests for a couple of songs.  There’s a very funny sequence in which they try to play a Coors lite anthem.  And Martin says he’s out of his mind.  Dave says he’s a madman and Martin calls him a manatee.  And then someone offers Dave an Islanders jersey which he says he can’t accept—it is too generous, but he’ll always remember it (and now so will we).

Before the end of the set, they offer the crowd some of the food they have backstage (if you like olives). But then they say that $18 was a bit steep of a ticket price for the show (can you imagine?).  So they’re going to play extra long because the ticket price was so high.  Man, how cool is that?

[READ: Summer 2013] Brief Encounters with Che Guevara

Several years ago (long before Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk) I read about Ben Fountain…somewhere.  I was reading an interview with a writer who talked about some new writers that he liked.  Ben Fountain was one of them, and this writer specifically mentioned this collection.  A week or so later I was in a dollar store of all places and saw this book on their piles of books.  I couldn’t believe the serendipity. So I bought it (for a dollar).  And then kind of forgot about it (so much for my theory that if I buy a book I’ll read it).  But I did eventually get around to reading it and now sadly not only do I have no idea who originally introduced me to Fountain, I can’t even find it with online searching (and frankly I could have read it anywhere).  Also, Fountain has since written Billy Lynn which received all kinds of praise (and which I haven’t read), so trying to find specific praise for Fountain from 7 years ago is a lost cause.

And just as I forgot to read it I forgot to write about it until now.  This was his first collection of stories.  There are eight in total.  Even though it has been awhile, most of the stories were so powerful and well constructed that I remember them quite well. (more…)

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Dave Bidini–For Those About to Rock: A Road Map to Being in a Band (2004)

Posted in Canadian Content, Canadian Music, Culture Shock, Dave Bidini, Dave Bidini music, History, Neil Peart, Rheostatics, Rush, Short Books, The Tragically Hip, Travel, tagged on March 1, 2014| Leave a Comment »

bidiniSOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Bathurst Street Theatre, Toronto, ON (April 4 & 5 1997).

215px-Bathurst_St_Theatre The Rheos played two nights at the Bathurst Theatre and as I was looking at the setlists I was really impressed that in the two nights the band played 44 songs.  Of those 44 only 9 were played both nights.  So they played 26 different songs between the two nights.  That’s cool especially compared to some bands, like Rush, who play literally the same set list every night.  Of course it’s possibly more fair for a fan who can only go to one show, but for fans who will go to both, what a treat.  The first night was a bit more “hit” heavy with “Claire” and “Horses” and “All the Same Eyes.”  Whereas the second night had some other great songs like “Christopher” and “Soul Glue” and a great version of “Shaved Head.”

I have already written about these shows, but in going over them I found that I was very harsh about the April 4th show.  Unfairly so.  I complained about the quality of the sound (which is actually not that bad).  And I complained about the lack of violin in King of the Past which, come on Paul, lighten up, how are they going to play that?  I also accused Dave of being early on the  “King of the Past” first chorus, but it was actually Martin.  Oh well.

In the April 4th show they tell the audience that they are recording a live album  And they engage with a guy in the front row who I wearing a Mr Bean shirt and tell him to take it off.  They say he has an “umber 31” shirt under it I think—no idea what that is.

This is the first mention I’ve heard of Harmelodia, the kids album.  And “Easy to Be with You”‘s lyrics are not settled yet—with California being in place of Harmelodia.  “Dope Fiends” has a drum solo but sadly it is cut off.

I mentioned in the original post that the April 5 show has a lot of tracks that made it to Double Live.  Like “Good Canadian,” the improv piece—man the band was big into smoking, eh?  They also mention the demise of the CBC Radio show Nightlines (which they’d record an album for soon).

They play “Public Square” from their debut album, which sadly gets cut off.  And a fun acoustic version of “Legal Age Life.”

The band is having fun and are so nice–they seem genuinely pleased that people came from a long way to hear them.

Between the two nights, 11 songs made it onto Double Live (there are 29 on the album in total).  They sound pretty different here (mixing and all) so it’s worth checking these out too.

[READ: February 24, 2014] For Those About to Rock

In addition to his hockey books, Dave Bidini has written a number of books about being in a band.  On a Cold Road was his memoir of touring with the Rheostatics and The Tragically Hip.  Since he likes to write and since he’s a musician, it seemed to make sense to have him write a guide for beginning rockers.  This book explicitly states in the first few pages that if you are as old as Bidini, the book is not for you.  I am not quite that old, but I got the point.  But what’s more rock n roll than not listening to the man?  So I pressed on.

The book contains some real-world practical experiences for those who may be just starting out in a band.  He says there was no book like this when he was a kid, so he hopes it’s useful.  And the book ranges roughly between being a fun guide to rocking out and being a cautionary tale about how tedious and unfun being in a band can be (and how many people may try to take advantage of you).  This book is also very specific about being in a touring Canadian band.  He talks about slogging it through cold winters across the Trans Canada Highway, something that young bands from Florida certainly don’t have to deal with.  But his specifics really help to shape the overall completeness of the book, so take his examples and make them your own.

So I play guitar, have never been in a band and while I always thought it would be fun to rock with others, never had any real desire to “tour.”  Is this book still for me?  Why yes, it is.  Because Bidini has been playing music since the early 80s and he has some wonderful stories. (more…)

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Dave Bidini–Keon and Me: My Search for the Lost Soul of the Leafs (2013)

Posted in Canadian Content, Canadian Music, Culture Shock, Dave Bidini, Dave Bidini music, Dave Keon, History, Hockey, Hockey Night in Canada, Rheostatics, Toronto Maple Leafs, Travel, tagged on February 25, 2014| Leave a Comment »

keonSOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Alt House, University of Western Ontario, London, ON (January 23 1997).

 westernThis show takes place at the University of Western Ontario, an unusual location for the band, but they had an appreciative crowd.  There’s a long introduction in which Don Kerr is late to get to the drums.  They say that he’s sick and, in fact, they’re all sick, but they don’t sound sick when they play.

 The college atmosphere seems to relax them.  Indeed, Martin tells a very lengthy story about a painter near his home town in Italy (as an introduction to “Motorino”).  He rarely talks much on stage so this banter is a rarity.  Dave asks if the fans like the banter.  He takes a poll.  Songs and banter?  Much cheering.  No banter.  Apparently one vote.  Upon hearing that one vote, Dave says, that guy, security!  Some fans shout “only banter no music,” but the band doesn’t acknowledge that.

They once again mention martin’s new Chickadee banner and they even throw in some jokes about chickadees in “Four Little Songs.”

This show they explain that they get a little bored playing older songs so they like to mix them up a little.  “Record Body Count” sounds rather different and it has a very pretty guitar outro by martin that leads into the intro of “Michael Jackson.”

The opening band was People From Earth, the band that Martin’s brothers were in.  I can’t find out much about them and I can’t find any music from them, but I’m very curious to know what they sound like.

This is a really enjoyable show.  The recording level is a little too quiet at times, but the sound is quite good.

[READ: February 24, 2014] Keon and Me

This rush of Rheostatics music has had me investigating what the band has been up to since they split up.  They have all released some solo records, and Dave Bidini seems to have devoted a lot of his time to writing as well.  In addition to his column at the National Post, he has written a dozen or so books.  I’ve already read his two earliest books (which were about touring and hockey respectively) and thought I’d read some of his other books too (about baseball, hockey, touring, hockey, hockey, music etc).  I thought about reading his third book, but then–amazingly coincidentally–his newest book, Keon and Me was staring at me from a pile of new books at work.

How exciting!  Sure it was out of sequence, but that was fine.

The only problem (and the reason I wasn’t too too excited to read it in the first place) was that I had no idea who Keon was.  I had gleaned that he was Dave Keon, a hockey player.  But I’d never heard of him.  It turns out he was the captain of the Toronto maple Leafs in the 70s, during the Leafs’ heyday.  Aside from his achievements, which were quite impressive, what was most impressive about Keon was that he only got into one fight in his entire career–and that was in his last game with the Leafs–which garnered him a 2 minute penalty.  That’s pretty impressive given that it was the era of goons and thugs when fighting was often more important than hockey.

But this book isn’t really a biography of Keon.  Rather, it is a memoir of Bidini growing up and loving Keon.  And of his fanaticism to the Leafs (who have sucked ever since Keon left).  It is also the story of young Dave Bidini, grade schooler, who was bullied by the classroom thug (and biggest Flyers fan). (more…)

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Trinie Dalton–Sweet Tomb (2010) [Madras Press: Series One, Book Three]

Posted in Canadian Music, Madras Press, Rheostatics, Short Story, Small Books, Surreal, Trinie Dalton, Vampires, Witches, Yuck!, tagged on February 16, 2014| Leave a Comment »

madras3SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Barrymore’s Ottawa, ON (January 17, 1997).

barryAfter two recordings in Barrymore’s in 1996, Rhesostatics Live has another concert from Barrymore‘s to open 1997.  And this one is fantastic.  The sound is perfect, the band sounds great and they play a wonderful selection of songs.

They open with a long version of “Record Body Count,” and a rousing “Dope Fiends and Booze Hounds.”  They are also having a lot of fun on stage with the lengthy introduction to “Sweet, Rich, Beautiful and Mine” and the fun teasing that opens “Saskatchewan.”

But the most fun comes in “Fan Letter to Michael Jackson” which sees the band joking around and sounding almost giddy. It’s not the best rendition of the song for novices to the band, but for long time fans, this must have been fun to see.  It’s also amazing that the band has played yet another 2 hours plus show.

[READ: January 8, 2014] Sweet Tomb

I don’t usually mention the book publisher when I post about books, but I’m quite taken with Madras Press.  From their website:

Madras Press publishes limited-edition short stories and novella-length booklets and distributes the proceeds to a growing list of non-profit organizations chosen by our authors.  The format of our books provides readers with the opportunity to experience stories on their own, with no advertisements or miscellaneous stuff surrounding them.

The format is a 5″ x 5″ square books that easily fit into a pocket.  At present there are four series with four books in each series.

Proceeds from Dalton’s book go to the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers & Native Plants.

I have a lot of strange synchronicites with the books I read.  As it turns out, yesterday’s comic book was about a witch and this collection of related short stories is also about a witch.  It’s especially strange because I didn’t know that either book would have a witch character at all (even Zombillenium–it seems like it would be about zombies not witches).  So it’s funny to read two different stories and to see two entirely different attitudes about witches.  In Zombiellenium, she says that being a witch is not hereditary and yet in Sweet Tomb, she says it is (and then wonders why anyone would pass that on to her children).

So yes, these are linked short stories (I assume, and not a novel with chapter titles).  They are all about Candy, a witch, and her exploits.  Typically, I summarize each short story, but it’s more interesting to talk about this narrative as a whole. (more…)

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Arthur de Pins–Zombillenium: 1. Gretchen (2010)

Posted in Arthur de Pins, Canadian Music, Demons, Foreign Books, Funny (ha ha), Ghosts, Graphic Novel, Magic, Rheostatics, Vampires, Witches, Zombies, tagged on February 15, 2014| Leave a Comment »

zombieSOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Record Runner, In Store Acoustic, Ottawa, ON (November 29 1996).

I haverecord already posted about this show before.  And I concur with my assessment of what I said last time.

But I wanted to add a few things.  This was recorded by someone in the audience, I assume.  The sound is good (you don’t hear the audience at all, which strangely almost makes it seem like there is no one there).  But it’s not perfectly clean.

This is an acoustic set done on the morning of their second night opening for The Tragically Hip.  (Dave says that you shouldn’t buy their new shirts at the show that night because they had to charge the same amount as the Hip and you will be able to get their stuff cheaper when they come by again in a few months).

In addition to some interesting renditions of fan favorites, we have a fan singing “The Ballad of Wendell Clark.”  It’s notable not only because of the fan singing it but because they doesn’t really play that song live, at least not circa 1996/1997.  They also throw in some Stomping Tom Connors during the song.

As an intro to “Four Little Songs” Dave says that they were planning on writing a bunch of different little songs so that you might never know which ones they would play on any given night.  He says it’s very easy to write little songs like that and it would be fun.  That seems to have never happened though.  You don’t hear too many acoustic Rheostatics shows.  You can download it here.

[READ: February 11, 2014] Zombillenium No 1

The cover of this book was so arresting I had to check it out.  I don’t know Arthur de Pins.  He’s a French artist and this is his first book to get distribution in America, I believe.  You can tell he’s European from the artwork–I wonder why that is.

Well, I loved this story.  It is very very funny and extremely twisted.  And there is something about the main character Gretchen that is so appealing (I love that her nose is so strangely bulbous, which makes her even cuter, somehow).

As the story opens, we see a man hitchhiking.  After a few panels, it is revealed that he is a mummy. One car speeds away from him, but another soon pulls up.  It is driven by a vampire and there’s a skeleton in the passenger seat. They know who he is, and they’re bringing him back where he belongs.  Which is to Zombillenium: “The Family Amusement Park for Chills and Thrills.” (more…)

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Rebecca Lee–Bobcat (2010) [Madras Press: Series One, Book Two]

Posted in Canadian Music, Food, Madras Press, Marriage Trouble, Rebecca Lee, Rheostatics, Sex, Short Story, Small Books, tagged on February 13, 2014| Leave a Comment »

madras2 SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Live at The Corel Center, Ottawa, ON, (November 28, 1996 & November 29, 1996).

core;There are two Rheostatics shows recorded at the Corel Centre (Nov 28, Nov 29).  This was a gig opening for the Tragically Hip, which was probably the biggest crowd they ever played to.  Gord Downie even mentions them on the live album that the Hip recorded from this tour (Live Between Us).

The Rheos usually play sets that are about two hours.  These opening slots are 45 minutes, so with the two shows together you get nearly a normal Rheos show.  And there’s only a little duplication among these two shows–their big hit “Claire,” their new hit “Bad Time to Be Poor” and, interestingly, “Motorino.”

Otherwise, between the two shows we get the other great songs: “Fat,” “California Dreamlime,” “Self-Serve Gas Station,” “Fan Letter To Michael Jackson,” “All The Same Eyes,”  “Aliens,” “Dopefiends And Boozehounds,” “Feed Yourself,” “Horses,” and the little instrumentals (48 seconds) “Artenings Made of Gold” and (1:41) “Digital Beach.”

The sound quality isn’t spectacular–it’s clearly a fan recording.  But the quality is certainly good enough to really enjoy.  These come across as a kind of best of from 1996.

[READ: January 10, 2014] Bobcat

I don’t usually mention the book publisher when I post about books, but I’m quite taken with Madras Press.  From their website:

Madras Press publishes limited-edition short stories and novella-length booklets and distributes the proceeds to a growing list of non-profit organizations chosen by our authors.  The format of our books provides readers with the opportunity to experience stories on their own, with no advertisements or miscellaneous stuff surrounding them.

The format is a 5″ x 5″ square books that easily fit into a pocket.  At present there are four series with four books in each series.

Proceeds from Lee’s book go to Riverkeeper.org.

I really enjoyed this story a lot.  It has many elements that seem disparate and yet they blend perfectly at the end.

The story is set at a dinner party.  The hostess is planning a tureen, although she acknowledges that it probably won’t be very good.  She is also picking a fight with her husband about the book he is writing.  In the novel, there’s a woman he fantasizes about and she knows it is not her.  She argues that it is really his editor, with whom he spends a lot of time (even though the character is nothing like her).  He denies it outright–laughs it off in fact. (more…)

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Aimee Bender–The Third Elevator (2010) [Madras Press: Series One, Book One]

Posted in Aimee Bender, Canadian Music, Dave Bidini music, Madras Press, Rheostatics, Short Story, Small Books, Surreal, tagged on February 12, 2014| 2 Comments »

13_Bender_TTE_Cover-300x300SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Live at Barrymore’s, Ottawa, ON, (February 2, 1996 & May 23, 1996).

barryThere are many many Rheostatics shows recorded at Barrymore’s in Ottawa.  These two are the earliest and, strangely perhaps, are only a few months apart.

The first show is over two hours long with a great set list.  The problem is the audio.  It was recorded from the floor and, like any bootleg quality show, you can hear more audience than band.  That’s not entirely true, but you can’t hear the band talk at all and during songs you hear clinking glasses and conversations.  It’s kind of a shame, because they cover Blondie’s “Heart of Glass” but you can barely tell what it is.  So, it’s not a great show except for diehards.

The May 23 show, on the other hand, sounds great.  The notes say it was also recorded from the audience, and yet it is crystal clear.  And the set list doesn’t differ too too much from the Feb 2 show.  The opening of the set sounds a little funny–the microphones are too loud or the guitars are too quiet, so “Claire” sounds off, but the rest of the show is very good.  And as it does not feature Dave Clark, but rather Don Kerr on drums, the zaniness that Clark brought is gone, although the band is still quite funny.

There’s a very funny story about chickadees being quite the bad ass in terms of birds, and Tielli drew a great banner featuring a bad ass chickadee (see bottom of post).  Tielli also mentions Nick Buzz, his side project which had an album out at this time.  Bidini tells a great story about meeting and interviewing Joey Ramone (and getting his glasses fixed).

There’s talk of “Four Little Songs” have multiple sections so you never know what they’ll play, but I don’t think that every happened.  And, finally, Tielli evidently had green hair that night (which leads to an impromptu version of “Heat Miser” (and his explanation of where the song came from).

This is a great show and a great introduction to an early Rheostatics setlist.

[READ: January 8, 2014] The Third Elevator

I don’t usually mention the book publisher when I post about books, but I’m quite taken with Madras Press.  From their website:

Madras Press publishes limited-edition short stories and novella-length booklets and distributes the proceeds to a growing list of non-profit organizations chosen by our authors.  The format of our books provides readers with the opportunity to experience stories on their own, with no advertisements or miscellaneous stuff surrounding them.

The format is a 5″ x 5″ square books that easily fit into a pocket.  At present there are four series with four books in each series.

Proceeds from Bender’s book go to InsideOutWriters.org.

For a first book from a new publisher, this is certainly a peculiar story.  It begins with a swan and a queen. The swan is the queen’s pet and never leaves her side.  She wants the swan happily paired off with another beautiful swan, but he is quite picky.  Until he meets a bluebird. The swan falls for the bluebird and they pair off.  Soon the bluebird is sitting on an egg.  But when it opens, it is not a bird at all, but a cloud, which hangs around and which the swan tries to protect.  So far, so allegorical.

Then the story shifts two miles away to a glassed in lobby of a building that has three elevators.  One goes into the ground where miners work.  The miners are not allowed to leave the mine.  They simply fill up the elevator with gold and send it up to the surface.  A second eevator opens into the forest.  The third elevator goes up into the sky.

Then we meet a logger.  The logger is amazing at cutting things down.  But whenever he so much as harms a tree it makes his insides burst. So he cuts down telephone poles and other man-made objects.  And he is soon asked to leave the logging community, despite his family ties to it. (more…)

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Dave McKean–Celluloid: An Erotic Graphic Novel (2011)

Posted in Barenaked Ladies, Dave McKean, Graphic Novel, Group of 7, Kevin Hearn, Photo Essays, Rheostatics, Sex, Short Books, The National, tagged on February 3, 2014| Leave a Comment »

celluloidSOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Group Of Seven Live, Ottawa, ON (October 21 1995).

vesely This concert, available from Rheostatics Live, is a recording of the band playing their Music Inspired by the Group of 7 live.  I’m not sure how many of these shows there were, or even if this is the show in its entirety (it seems like it, but there’s no intro, and maybe there was more after the set?).

At any rate, the Group of 7 album is almost entirely instrumental–scored music that is certainly rock, but quite different from typical Rheostatics fare.   In this live setting, we have piano,  upright (and bowed) bass and cello.  And yet it is distinctly Rheostatics.  Band friend (and Barenaked Lady) Kevin Hearn plays piano (he joins them on many of their live shows) as he helped them compose the original soundtrack.

The band doesn’t say much during the set.  In fact, they don’t talk at all until the half way point, when Bidini introduces everyone and talks about how they came to write this music.  He talks about crossing Canada and is generally a jovial fellow.  And then he talks about the reworking of “Northern Wish.”

The Group of 7 album is probably my least favorite Rheostatics album because it is basically a score (I do like it, and think it’s a great audialization of the Group of 7, but it’s not like their proper albums).  And there are some beautiful songs here.  One of the most interesting is “Boxcar Song,” which has a great riff.  It also includes the reworking of “Northern Wish.”

Incidentally the album’s tracks are just listed as one through twelve, but they have gained names from live shows.  And they don’t match up exactly with the album in this concert setting, as this makes it seem that the final song is the long waltz, which it isn’t.

Anyhow, this download isn’t a top ten.  Unless you really like the CD, in which case this is a must hear.  The show includes the samples from the album and a bunch of very interesting takes on the songs.

For a brief news story on the collaboration, check out this from CBC’s The National from 1996.

and part two

[READ: February 2, 2014] Celluloid

I actually assumed this was a new title, as it just came across my desk the other day, but I see that it is three years old.  I’ve always admired McKean’s work, which I think is grotesquely beautiful.  His characters always seem somewhat pained, and the angles of his lines are often harsh.  So I was really unsure what to expect in an “erotic” story from him.

The fact that one of the first few pages states that this book is not to be sold to anyone under the age of 18 should let you know that by erotic, they mean explicit. (I did notice that the caveat was buried a few pages in, though).  And, indeed it is.  Far more than I imagined it would be. (more…)

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Michael Cera–“My Man Jeremy” (New Yorker, November 25, 2013)

Posted in Acting, Canadian Content, Canadian Music, Funny (ha ha), McSweeney's, Michael Cera, New Yorker, Rheostatics, tagged on February 2, 2014| Leave a Comment »

CV1_TNY_11_25_13Viva.inddSOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Bathurst Street Theatre, Toronto, ON (October 7, 1994).

07Oct1994This show was broadcast on the radio, and indeed, this is an encore broadcast that you can download from Rheostatics Live.

Anyhow, it begins with people raving about the Rheos on the radio.  And then the band kicks in.  The set is 45 minutes, although I assume the original must have been longer.  Why?  most of their shows are longer and this feels like it might have some cuts for commercials and whatnot.

They play ten songs, and it’s alike a highlight reel of their earlier music: “Take Me in Your Hand,” “King of the Past,” “Queer,” “California Dreamline,” “Soul Glue,” “Claire,” “Northern Wish.”  But it’s also got its far share of goofiness: some improvs and the resolutely silly “Full Moon Over Russia” and “Alomar” (which sounds really tight here).  It’s a great set and a great introduction to early Rheos live music.

[READ: January 29, 2014] “My Man Jeremy”

Everyone mostly knows Cera as an actor (who I’ll see in anything).  But he’s also a writer.  His previous piece in McSweeney’s was very funny.  And so is this one.  Although now the two published things I’ve read by him were both about being an actor, so maybe its time to broaden the range a bit.

Anyhow, this is basically a set up about text messaging.  He opens by explaining that people ask him is he has any funny stories about texting (this part is in italics).  Then he tells us this tale about Jeremy.  The text messages are written straightforward, with interjected comments by Cera as he “studies” the exchange.

It begins with a text from an unknown number “Sup you coming to this thing?”

Michael writes back.  “Hi oops I don’t know this number.  I’m Michael, who is this?”

Now, this isn’t especially funny, but it did make me smile to think that anyone would respond to a wrong number this way.  At any rate…. (more…)

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