tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54124681476557176362012-02-03T16:31:13.986-08:00Opinion. Culture. Books. Music.Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.comBlogger941100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-66871601236135011862011-12-29T15:09:00.000-08:002011-12-29T15:09:35.262-08:00

1. Kate Bush, 50 Words for Snow 2011 may be remembered by some as the year when notably reclusive English singer-songwriter Kate Bush released not one album, but two: a reworking of previous material (Director’s Cut) and her first album of original material in six years, 50 Words for Snow. The title track draws its inspiration from the common urban legend that there are fifty Inuit words for

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-18797038544051998702011-12-29T15:05:00.000-08:002011-12-29T15:05:59.462-08:00

2. Sarah Slean, Land and Sea Anyone that decides to make a double album these days is ambitious with a capital-A, but few can claim rightful ownership of that title like Sarah Slean does with Land and Sea. Who else could make an album with two wildly divergent genres, knowing full well it could blow up in their face, and so thrillingly succeed? It’s an impressive work on both musical and

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-37672014932241590402011-12-29T14:58:00.000-08:002011-12-29T14:58:01.071-08:00

3. Fleet Foxes, Helplessness Blues What’s most immediately striking about Fleet Foxes’ sound on Helplessness Blues is just how expansive it is, and I mean that in both senses of the word: not only does it draw from a variety of cultures, but it quite literally draws the listener in; from the first few notes of “Montezuma” to the final a capella lines of “Grown Ocean”, it’s difficult at times to

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-73038983572820056672011-12-29T14:56:00.000-08:002011-12-29T14:56:23.097-08:00

4. Feist, Metals If there were an award given for the most surprising album of 2011, Feist’s Metals would undoubtedly be its recipient, if not at least a serious contender for the honour. What made so many people surprised by the album was not the inherent quality of its music, but how an artist that had given all indication on her previous records of being a dyed-in-the-wool romantic would

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-67123089710371843862011-12-29T08:12:00.000-08:002011-12-29T08:12:07.131-08:00

6. Colleen Brown, Dirt Has there ever been a more perfectly evocative album title? Dirt has Colleen Brown examining relationships from the ground up, with both their trials and tribulations expertly rendered by the Alberta singer-songwriter. Brown’s voice has always been a bit of an acquired taste, but on “Happy Love Song” and “7 Hours & 15 Days” she’s figured out an arrangement that doesn’t

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-62533664862716460032011-12-29T08:05:00.000-08:002011-12-29T08:05:45.705-08:00

5. Hayes Carll, KMAG YOYO & other American Stories Going on the title alone, one might presume Hayes Carll’s newest record to be a meditative and fairly patriotic collection of vignettes about the life of hardworking, well-meaning, blue-collar Americans – and you’d be partially right. But once you take a look at the album cover, and come to understand that its title track gets its name from a

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-1647893807339763892011-12-28T17:39:00.000-08:002011-12-28T17:39:03.116-08:00

7. Coldplay, Mylo Xyloto The first genuine breakthrough for the band since 2002’s A Rush of Blood to the Head, Mylo Xyloto shows the youthful earnestness of Coldplay’s earliest work has grown into a more mature, yet still wholly genuine, musical perspective. Whereas previous records’ lyrics felt oblique for obliquity’s sake, here not a word is wasted, with the stunning “Hurts Like Heaven”, “

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-54660109508206062232011-12-28T17:31:00.000-08:002011-12-28T17:31:08.307-08:00

8. Dan Mangan, Oh Fortune Having expanded his audience considerably with 2009’s Nice, Nice, Very Nice, Oh Fortune finds singer-songwriter Dan Mangan in a more contemplative mood, if tracks like “If I Am Dead” are any indication. What could have been just idle introspection in the hands of a less capable musician, however, serves as a springboard for Mangan to expand his lyrical and sonic palette

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-77514061786705297272011-12-28T15:05:00.000-08:002011-12-28T15:05:11.010-08:00

9. Nicole Atkins, Mondo Amore Mondo Amore, Nicole Atkins’ first full release since her acclaimed debut Neptune City in 2007, plays like a series of vignettes in the life of a relationship. From the first few eerie, string-led moments of “Vultures” to its spellbinding conclusion in “The Tower”, Atkins takes the listener on a journey equally suffused with hope and pain. Her breathtaking voice is

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-85103776000134933512011-12-28T14:58:00.000-08:002011-12-28T14:58:26.506-08:00

10. Tori Amos, Night of Hunters Night of Hunters finds singer-songwriter/pianist Tori Amos returning to her earliest roots studying the works of Bach and Chopin at Baltimore’s Peabody Conservatory, from which she was famously kicked out at age eleven for her growing interest in rock music. Being approached by legendary classical label Deutsche Grammophon to create a 21st-century song cycle

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-31398957526373809542011-12-20T19:45:00.000-08:002011-12-27T15:36:09.097-08:00

Adele – “Rolling in the Deep” While I’ve made it clear that it never truly clicked with me as an individual song, the actual video for “Rolling in the Deep” is one of the year’s best. The video allows Adele’s voice to really shine, as it no longer takes a backseat to other elements in the song, while also creating visuals that work on both modern-day and archetypal levels. The increasing sense of

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-77184901917492642902011-12-17T13:52:00.000-08:002011-12-27T14:11:30.922-08:00

As I’ve mentioned previously, I’m fairly particular about what makes a good music video. A music video can’t just be ‘a video with music’ or ‘music with a video attached’ – the song and the visuals have to complement, and enhance, each other. The visuals in the music video can’t be too literal or too abstract, either: get too literal, and the song loses most of its impact; get too abstract, and

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-85173593185714425272011-12-16T18:32:00.000-08:002011-12-27T14:15:09.682-08:00

5. “Cheerleader” – St. Vincent  I found Strange Mercy, St. Vincent’s third album, to be a bit of a mixed bag – some of the more experimental stuff didn’t quite work, to be honest, and Annie Clark’s writing generally wasn't up to the same standard as it was on 2009’s brilliant Actor. There were still quite a few standouts, though, and “Cheerleader” is one of the best; it starts out innocuous

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-4356554180624632652011-12-15T08:24:00.000-08:002011-12-27T14:19:04.265-08:00

10. "Good Girls" - Colleen Brown Is it just me, or did every second song released this year have a lyrical theme lifted directly from Trooper’s “Raise a Little Hell”? It seems logical in a way, given the state of the world, but there comes a point when enough is enough. “Good Girls” never feels like a retread, though; it’s a peppy, playfully seductive song that sounds like it just stepped out of

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-63631677682402890382011-12-03T13:34:00.000-08:002011-12-27T14:20:51.811-08:00

The title of this post is kind of misleading: I haven't actually gone anywhere, but still, it feels like I have. The past few months have felt like one continuous, unceasing triathlon, where I'd start out fresh and full of vigour at the starting line and by the time I'd finish running I'd think it was over, but no, now I have a lake to row across, and by the time that was over, wouldn't you

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-12075672428535900262011-02-12T11:59:00.000-08:002011-02-12T12:08:29.899-08:00

"Born This Way" has been hyped to no end by Gaga and her crew as a song of great importance, so why does she sound so impatient in it? Instead of taking time to indicate its importance, the song rushes from verse to verse and hook to hook with very little of it making any impact. Only the chorus leaves any sort of lasting impression, and if Gaga was an artist whose revenue relied entirely on 30-

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-48201546939389833482010-12-29T20:34:00.000-08:002010-12-29T20:34:36.979-08:00

There's a tricky logic involved with collections of b-sides; the songs included are ones, by principle, deemed unfit (for whatever reason) to be included on an album - yet including them on a separate release gives them a strange sort of legitimacy that abandoned outtakes don't possess. Sarah Slean's last b-sides album, The Baroness Redecorates, consisted of songs from the same sessions; tracks

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-8644925027072863932010-12-20T16:42:00.000-08:002010-12-20T16:42:38.401-08:00

"Fa La Erica" starts out on shaky ground, redeems itself partway through with one of the best ideas the show has had all season, and returns to the unjustified happiness that denotes its nature as a holiday special. Being Erica has done worse, though, and while it could be better, it's not unwelcome at this time of year. When I first heard Being Erica was getting a 13-episode run this year, I

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-72012221429226222182010-12-15T14:11:00.000-08:002010-12-15T14:11:54.806-08:00

I still don't know how I feel about this year in music, to be honest. I spent a lot of it busy with work and various commitments, and I don't remember any particular major musical events that made the year particularly memorable for me. Yes, there was Michael Jackson's death, and there was the world discovering Janelle Monae, but that's all I can think of, if pressured. The Grammys were

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-36710540078679387362010-12-15T13:42:00.001-08:002010-12-15T13:42:21.265-08:00

1. Mumford and Sons, Sigh No More “Darkness is a harsh term, don’t you think?” English folk band Mumford and Sons do something interesting with their debut, Sigh No More: they take the grandeur and universal statements of Arcade Fire and inject a dose of humility. It’s not as simple as that, of course – other bands have done the same – but Mumford and Sons have done the best job of melding folk

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-86799606925236733732010-12-15T13:42:00.000-08:002010-12-15T13:42:11.078-08:00

2. Corinne Bailey Rae, The Sea “You were unnervingly delicate.” Corinne Bailey Rae is best known for the bubbly 2006 hit “Put Your Records On” from her self-titled debut, so it comes as some surprise that her second album is a profound look at the nature of love and loss. Taking inspiration from the sudden death of her husband in 2008, The Sea spans a wide range of styles and textures;

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-21374965878554709202010-12-15T13:41:00.001-08:002010-12-15T13:41:58.508-08:00

3. Miss Emily Brown, In Technicolor “It was nothing like dancing with you.” Miss Emily Brown’s second album is a brilliantly beguiling blend of electronica and folk— brilliant even more so because its eight tracks deal with the most ordinary things and never feel pedestrian. Drawing on the WWII journal of her grandmother for inspiration, Brown captures the slowly creeping despair of wartime

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-67123527831918290372010-12-15T13:41:00.000-08:002010-12-15T13:41:41.117-08:00

4. Janelle Monae, The ArchAndroid “Whether you’re high or low / You gotta tip on the tightrope.” One of the most ambitious major-label debuts to come along in years, The ArchAndroid tells the story of Cindi Mayweather, an android on the run in the futuristic city of Metropolis for falling in love with a human. Monae’s voice and scope may invite comparisons to James Brown and Lady Gaga, but

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-31846027572055300902010-12-15T13:40:00.000-08:002010-12-15T13:40:58.098-08:00

5. Joanna Newsom, Have One On Me “Come on, little life giver / Give your life.” American singer-songwriter Joanna Newsom is one of those artists whose lyrically and musically dense work takes months, if not years, to unpack, so Have One On Me could be seen as a difficult work to decipher on first listen – and rightfully so, as its eighteen tracks are spread over three six-song discs. Therefore,

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-70589145697792933762010-12-14T14:32:00.001-08:002010-12-14T14:32:31.744-08:00

6. KT Tunstall, Tiger Suit “It’s easy saying nothing when there’s nothing to say.” For the longest time, it seemed like there would be two sides of KT Tunstall – spontaneous, looping live KT and pensive, polished studio KT – but with Tiger Suit, her third album, the fiery Scottish songstress has melded her two selves. The result: an adventurous and passionate, yet perfectly-judged, pop record.

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-36770389931641372012010-12-14T14:32:00.000-08:002010-12-14T14:32:14.533-08:00

7. Laura Veirs, July Flame “Can I call you mine?” Portland-based singer-songwriter Laura Veirs has been releasing consistently great albums over the past decade, and July Flame is the latest chapter in her storied career. Veirs makes her songs a study in what is and isn’t said, especially the title track and the haunting Appalachian folk of “I Can See Your Tracks”. Charmingly folksy at first,

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-51180136830260647722010-12-14T14:29:00.000-08:002010-12-14T14:29:01.329-08:00

8. Sufjan Stevens, The Age of Adz “The scariest things are not half as enslaved.” Reevaluating his approach to songwriting after composing for an orchestra, indie wunderkind Sufjan Stevens has returned with a compelling chronicle of our times, The Age of Adz (pronounced “odds”). The album is an accessible but layered take on electronica and Stevens’ familiar lyrical themes of love and faith. A

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-63569071019289313522010-12-14T14:21:00.001-08:002010-12-14T14:21:59.219-08:00

9. She and Him, Volume Two “That won’t stop me crying over you.” She and Him -- Zooey Deschanel and singer/songwriter M. Ward – made waves in 2008 with Volume One, a collection of songs that were charmingly retro and impressively modern all at once. Gifted with a larger production budget, the two have once again crafted a compelling soundworld; penned entirely by Deschanel (aside from a couple

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-6399112887829376442010-12-14T14:21:00.000-08:002010-12-14T14:21:27.427-08:00

10. Pomplamoose, Tribute to Famous People “We’re only making out / We’re making out all right.” While covers are a dime a dozen these days, indie pop-jazz duo Pomplamoose stand out from the crowd thanks to their inventive yet faithful takes on familiar hits and old standards, all anchored by Jack Conte’s sly arrangements and Nataly Dawn’s effortless yet captivating voice. Through their lens, “

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-16320610300862992572010-11-05T10:41:00.000-07:002010-11-05T10:42:27.257-07:00

Note: Yep, this is weeks late. I've been busy, so posts that I've had in the works for a while will be published here in due time. Thanks for your patience! Being Erica is becoming a much darker show than anyone anticipated. Last week's episode dealt with the consequences of fighting fire with fire and the destructive (and violent) consequences, and this week's episode begins with a revelation

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-72498858885880403472010-09-28T20:50:00.000-07:002010-09-28T20:50:13.212-07:00

Only a show like Being Erica could make me hurt so much and still make me come back for more. After a mediocre second season that seemed more like a Canadian version of Sex and the City than the smart, funny series the show was in its brilliant first season, I had understandably low hopes for Season 3 premiere "The Rabbit Hole". I mean, come on: when you create an entire story arc revolving

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-47066786842375067272010-09-13T19:15:00.000-07:002010-09-13T19:15:48.148-07:00

KT Tunstall's new single "(Still a) Weirdo" for her upcoming album Tiger Suit is pretty great. It also reminded me of a song I hadn't thought of in ten years. "Pinch Me" by Canada's own Barenaked Ladies. Tell me if I'm crazy, but there seems to be some mysterious cosmic link between these two songs. I don't know why, but there is. What do you think? (Unfortunately, none of the "Pinch Me

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-82546075519002704922010-07-31T19:12:00.000-07:002010-07-31T19:17:23.247-07:00

Hello there! Hope you're enjoying your summer/winter - I feel compelled to include the slash because my readers span both hemispheres (56 countries? Really? Wow.) - and are in good health and good spirits. My blogging frequency has kind of, um, gone off the radar - and not in a good way - as of late, and I wanted to reassure you all that I will continue blogging. I need to make some changes to

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-62602836918929179292010-07-06T18:10:00.000-07:002010-07-07T08:51:49.416-07:00

Updated on July 7th, 2010 My life has been a whirlwind for the last month or so, what with preparing for summer and taking care of all I needed to take care of, but a piece of news recently came to my attention and I felt I had to share it with you all. Chantal Kreviazuk, the respected Winnipeg-born singer/songwriter, had an article of hers put on the June Grade 12 provincial ELA exam in

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-73329253422080778582010-05-24T19:35:00.000-07:002010-05-24T19:40:08.205-07:00

Long time no see. When we last met, I shared with you what this year's Oscars might have looked like if they had been turned into a musical, and explained some of the more, uh, unorthodox selections from my 20 Best Albums of the Decade list (although who needs an explanation for something like music?). Oh, yeah, and it was March. Sorry about that. Seeing as everyone seems to want explanations

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-2900908176873933932010-03-08T10:40:00.000-08:002010-03-23T08:19:43.204-07:00

I was originally considering writing a proper prose-style article on this year's Oscars and how awful they were, but, considering how devoid the Oscars were of proper musical numbers (five, to be exact), here's my Oscar recap this year -- in song!All lyrics in italics are sung by the Chorus.ACT I: The Opening Number(Curtains open. NOMINEES stand awkwardly on stage as Chorus sings.)Hello, hello,

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-3155438477980672442010-03-01T18:01:00.000-08:002010-03-01T19:27:10.940-08:00

When I posted my 20 best albums of the decade list on the blog, I was expecting for some of my readers to agree with me. I was expecting some of my readers to disagree with me. I was even expecting there to be a lot of confusion, especially considering my list differed quite a bit from the ones suggested by the folks at Rolling Stone and Pitchfork.I was also expecting, inevitably, having to

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-37207555358616688452010-02-15T08:00:00.000-08:002010-02-15T08:00:04.257-08:00

No, this isn't one of those tasteless jokes you find so often on the Internet.The problem with being a creative person is sometimes having too many ideas. So I've come up with this series of posts, each of which contains some brief musings. I'm calling them Espresso Shots, because they're quick and don't last long but hopefully leave you with some sort of energy, if I do them well enough.Here

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-24149770682270129312010-02-13T20:04:00.001-08:002010-02-13T20:35:13.468-08:00

If I told you that this generation’s Bob Dylan hails from a small Ontario town and recently won the Canadian Folk Association’s award for Young Performer of the Year, you’d probably believe me. But what if I told you that this generation’s Bob Dylan has vibrant red hair, wears plaid socks, plays the ukulele and is only nineteen years old?Ariana Gillis began playing music at the tender age of six,

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-77754150164779385632010-02-01T09:55:00.000-08:002010-02-07T17:26:47.832-08:00

When it comes down to it, the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards were an awful lot like an old-fashioned western. You had your heroes -- most of which were country musicians, come to think of it -- and your villains -- the most ominous of which, Kanye West, could have been compared to Dr. Claw in Inspector Gadget for the way he remained behind the scenes at the Grammys while still managing to win one of

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-56121356449547439252010-01-11T09:51:00.000-08:002010-01-23T15:11:23.842-08:00

What can you honestly say about "Wild Honey Pie"? It's less than a minute long, features Paul McCartney screeching over a cacophany of instruments, and probably should have never made it off the cutting-room floor. Yet it made it on The Beatles -- something most attribute to Pattie Boyd, George Harrison' wife, having an overwhelming fondness for the song -- and must be blogged about.Out of the

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-56947303552566176962010-01-02T13:26:00.000-08:002010-01-02T15:02:07.334-08:00

It seems hard to believe that another year has passed. I spent most of it working, moving from Point A to Point B, but incredible things still managed to sneak their way into my life, often without my noticing.You may have noticed the title: it's a lyric from the Tori Amos song "Gold Dust", a masterpiece that manages to be beautifully oblique and sharply relevant at the same time. I find music is

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-54729299748872657752009-12-31T15:16:00.000-08:002009-12-31T19:15:52.723-08:00

Well, it's almost a new decade, and looks like the jury is in on what the 2000s will be called: the Aughts. Calling it 'the Aughts' is fine, but for many people it could also be 'the Noughts' - this decade was not an easy one for many people.So I've made this mix. It's a reflection on ten years of gains, ten years of losses, and ten years of music. It's one of the few mixes I've made, so I hope

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-4779199211177014122009-12-27T15:35:00.000-08:002009-12-27T19:55:02.053-08:00

There are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of taglines used every year by production studios, hoping to draw audiences to their films. There is also one that, although it is never used, is the most implicit:Read the book. See the movie.It's obvious that the primary demographic for any film based on a previous work is, ideally, the fans of the adapted material. There are, of course, exceptions (how

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-48186770026982718822009-12-26T19:13:00.000-08:002009-12-26T20:38:17.077-08:00

Greetings, everyone! Hope you had a peaceful holiday, whatever your traditions are -- if you've been fighting your way through shopping malls to find the perfect present, I hope you emerged (relatively) unscathed with what you wanted. If you've been cooking non-stop, I hope you're taking a breather. If you've been entertaining relatives, I hope all went well. And if you've been caught in a

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-41844641617476225722009-12-17T19:56:00.000-08:002009-12-18T13:13:12.303-08:00

Well, the 2000s -- Noughts, Aughts, whatever you want to call them-- are almost at their end, and it seems fitting to address how much great music there was in a list of some sort. Make no mistake: compiling this list was a huge labour of love, and for each of the 20 albums on here there are at least 20 I took off. (There's a list at the end of some notable runners-up, if you're interested.) If

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-2257831889211656332009-12-17T16:11:00.000-08:002009-12-17T16:22:07.435-08:00

1. Sufjan Stevens, Illinois (2005)Illinois, an epic 22-song masterpiece with the titular state as inspiration, confirmed Sufjan Stevens’ complete control of his musical abilities. Shifting from jaunty pop (“Chicago”) to heartbreaking ballads (“Casimir Pulaski Day”), often within the space of a single track, Illinois remarkably never felt disjointed or uncontrollably ambitious. Stevens treated all

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-51895823303670284152009-12-17T15:40:00.000-08:002009-12-17T16:10:47.941-08:00

2. Bob Dylan, Modern Times (2006)More than anything else, Modern Times proved age is not necessarily related to the quality of one’s musical output. From the opening notes of the rollicking “Thunder on the Mountain” to the eight-minute epic “Ain’t Talkin’”, Bob Dylan demonstrated that, nearing the age of seventy, he possessed as much energy and desire for experimentation as artists decades

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-1980785080743346562009-12-17T15:25:00.000-08:002009-12-18T09:16:58.531-08:00

3. Kate Bush, Aerial (2005)After the birth of her son in 1998, enigmatic British singer-songwriter Kate Bush largely vanished from the spotlight, intending to raise a family free from the pressures of celebrity. Twelve years passed, and in 2005, Bush returned with the critically acclaimed Aerial, a double album. The first disc, A Sea of Honey, addressed a variety of lyrical subjects, with the

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-87161545034649894642009-12-17T15:09:00.000-08:002009-12-17T15:21:49.260-08:00

4. Tori Amos, Scarlet’s Walk (2002)While the tragedy of 9/11 led many artists to offer musical responses exploring the aftermath of the event, few were as daring as Scarlet’s Walk. Drawing on her Cherokee heritage and experiences during her 2001 tour, Amos created a “sonic novel” told through the eyes of an alter-ego named Scarlet, exploring a period of America when the nation’s masks— and gloves

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-57510232136518583642009-12-17T14:59:00.000-08:002009-12-17T15:08:10.318-08:00

5. Radiohead, Kid A (2000)Kid A, Radiohead’s first album after the critical and commercial success of OK Computer, found the group taking a dive into electronic music’s deep end, finding a new way to explore frontman Thom Yorke’s common lyrical themes of paranoia and alienation in the process. From the unsettling, incoherent babble of “Everything in Its Right Place” to the anxiety of “Morning

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-13222059655006625402009-12-17T14:33:00.000-08:002009-12-17T14:59:04.392-08:00

6. Fiona Apple, Extraordinary Machine (2005)Fiona Apple’s third album, Extraordinary Machine, was a work that, for the longest time, seemed as if it would never be released. Originally recorded in 2003 and then abandoned, the album was revisited in 2005, with many of the songs given radically different arrangements in the process. The wait paid off: songs like “O’Sailor” and “Not About Love”

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-48813380496433568122009-12-17T13:17:00.000-08:002009-12-17T14:33:20.581-08:00

7. Pink Martini, Hey Eugene! (2007)Throughout the decade, Pink Martini consistently proved to be fearless in redefining the boundaries between jazz and world music. With its adventurous arrangements, Hey Eugene could very well be seen as the group’s manifesto, moving effortlessly from shimmering originals like “Everywhere” and “Cante e Dance” to inventive takes on covers like “Tempo Perdido” and

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-36153428340400601372009-12-17T13:09:00.000-08:002009-12-17T16:32:14.134-08:00

8. Leonard Cohen, Live in London (2009)Driven by the depletion of his bank accounts by a scheming manager, Leonard Cohen— who had abandoned touring years earlier— embarked upon on a worldwide and critically acclaimed tour throughout 2008 and 2009. Live in London, captured over two nights at London’s O2 Arena, served not only as a snapshot of the tour itself, but as an indication of the enduring

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-79858586104880120392009-12-17T12:53:00.000-08:002009-12-17T13:08:26.668-08:00

9. The Fiery Furnaces, Widow City (2006)The Fiery Furnaces’ music and lyrics in the 2000s were often as concrete as they were convoluted, and Widow City best exemplifies their complex nature. A collection of sixteen songs that began with “The Philadelphia Grand Jury”— a seven-minute ode to everything from conspiracies to being sued— the album veered off in countless musical directions while

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-56215213852066752752009-12-16T18:47:00.001-08:002009-12-17T12:52:28.414-08:00

10. The Decemberists, The Crane Wife (2006)Any album based on a Japanese folk tale carries with it a great degree of ambition, but on The Crane Wife, The Decemberists smartly tempered their ambition (particularly for ten-minute-long epics) with frontman Colin Meloy’s unassuming voice. As a result, The Crane Wife succeeded on both a personal and conceptual level; while “Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-27694612194015527922009-12-16T18:25:00.001-08:002009-12-16T18:45:05.329-08:00

11. Amy Winehouse, Back to Black (2007)In 2007, Amy Winehouse established herself as an international presence and took the world by storm with a refreshingly modern take on ‘60s girl-group pop and Motown soul— all thanks to Back to Black, on which disarmingly honest lyrics (“Rehab”, “Love is a Losing Game”) met music that smartly tipped its hat to its predecessors before going along on its own

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-11839366543050317732009-12-16T18:13:00.000-08:002009-12-16T18:24:39.256-08:00

12. Beck, Sea Change (2005)The music world was generally shocked when Beck, known previously for his sarcastic lyrics and complex melodies, released Sea Change, a stripped-down and emotionally honest record, in 2005. Sea Change’s inspiration— a difficult breakup— led to the album’s tracks, especially “Guess I’m Doing Fine” and “Paper Tiger”, possessing a simplicity that nevertheless seemed

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-59871704089554064142009-12-16T17:58:00.000-08:002009-12-16T18:11:35.087-08:00

13. The Clientele, Strange Geometry (2005)A love letter to the Clientele’s native London as much as it was to a physical relationship, Strange Geometry displayed one of Britain’s most heralded indie bands at its best. Alistair MacLeod’s wistful falsetto helped imbue songs like “Since K Got Over Me” and “Geometry of Lawns” with a sense of nocturnal regret. As well, the half-spoken, half-sung “

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-38832365573071452092009-12-16T17:29:00.000-08:002009-12-16T17:56:30.574-08:00

14. Clare and the Reasons, The Movie (2007)With The Movie, Clare Muldaur and her band the Reasons crafted an album of songs that, simply put, defied easy categorization— while many (such as “Cook for You” and “Love Can Be a Crime”) were, musically, an homage to the 1930s, those same songs were brought into the present by Muldaur’s strikingly modern lyrics. Nowhere was this contrast more evident

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-43200479700734166582009-12-16T16:59:00.000-08:002009-12-16T17:28:04.838-08:00

15. Sarah Slean, Night Bugs (2002)Night Bugs, Sarah Slean’s major-label debut, showed the young artist possessed the musical and lyrical maturity of a seasoned performer. The album’s songs, rooted in a love for poetry and jazz, sparkled with clever arrangements (“Drastic Measures”, “Dark Room”) and inventive lyrics (“Book Smart, Street Stupid” and the closer “Bank Accounts”) as theatrical as they

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-92179432349943479842009-12-16T13:27:00.000-08:002009-12-16T13:47:21.392-08:00

16. Nicole Atkins, Neptune City (2007)Musically, Nicole Atkins quickly established herself as a bit of an odd duck; she labeled her work as ‘pop-noir’, but attracted attention from heavy metal labels before her eventual signing with Columbia Records. Neptune City solved the question of genre by placing the focus firmly on Atkins’ powerful voice, with ballads like “The Way It Is” putting her

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-11738308276375742742009-12-16T10:28:00.000-08:002009-12-16T13:46:22.116-08:00

17. Anjani, Blue Alert (2006)With Blue Alert, Anjani Thomas, whose unique blend of jazz and folk had previously attracted the likes of Leonard Cohen, established herself as a force to be reckoned with. Merging spiritual and secular themes, Blue Alert found beauty in the commonplace through its minimal instrumentation and Thomas’ honest, elegant singing— particularly on the startling title track,

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-64996257605062230652009-12-16T10:12:00.000-08:002009-12-16T13:24:34.741-08:00

18. Regina Spektor, Begin to Hope (2006)Begin to Hope, the third album from Regina Spektor, showed an artist unafraid to embrace the mainstream while retaining her idiosyncrasies. Deceptively lightweight songs like “Fidelity” and “On the Radio”, as well as the mournful "Lady" and thunderous “Après Moi” (on which Spektor sang in French and Russian) gave Begin to Hope diversity and a

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-68558564681668878002009-12-16T09:54:00.000-08:002009-12-16T13:15:17.596-08:00

19. Coldplay, A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)Whether you love or loathe Chris Martin, A Rush of Blood to the Head was undeniably Coldplay’s masterwork. Written at a time when the band itself was at the brink of exhaustion, the album challenged Coldplay’s previous reputation as romantic balladeers (and little else) with the dark opener “Politik” and the stunning “God Put a Smile Upon Your Face”

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-48360451747640748842009-12-16T09:40:00.000-08:002009-12-16T13:09:28.959-08:00

20. Nelly Furtado, Folklore (2003)Three years after her introduction to the world with Whoa, Nelly! (which spawned the Grammy-winning single “I’m Like a Bird”), Folklore showed a mature but no less adventurous side of Nelly Furtado, whether she blended hip-hop and Portuguese folk music on “Fresh Off The Boat” or challenged the melting pot of American culture on lead single “Powerless”. While it

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-70784423082100868422009-12-11T12:24:00.000-08:002009-12-11T12:48:08.066-08:00

Well, I watched Barbara Walters' Ten Most Fascinating People of 2009 special Wednesday night. Considering the relative mediocrity of this year's selections, I wasn't expecting much for No. 1, but when it was announced I could only think of one thing.Michelle Obama? Really?Granted, she's definitely "fascinating" in a sense -- she's the President's wife, after all -- but for her to be labelled the

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-57344579386495525332009-12-08T13:38:00.001-08:002009-12-08T15:40:14.483-08:00

Fascinating... or just media-savvy?That's the question I was asking myself after finding out about Barbara Walters' ten most fascinating people of 2009, nine of which were revealed today on MSN.com. While Walters claims she wanted this year's list to be "more adventurous" than last year's (a veritable snoozefest, as far as I'm concerned), this year looks to be more of the same. And by same, I

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-79167637485076373772009-12-03T16:23:00.001-08:002009-12-03T16:37:23.782-08:00

To be honest, I'm not really in the mood for talking about "Glass Onion", mostly because I have a bit of a head cold and the song is just so cynical. I mean, there's this great, positive feeling you get with "Back in the USSR" and "Dear Prudence" -- and "Glass Onion" kind of ruins it, like someone crashing a very lovely party, drinking all the wine and eating all the food.Well, not exactly that.

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-4124081520773161852009-12-03T08:48:00.000-08:002009-12-04T13:37:26.954-08:00

December is finally upon us, and considering how cold and bleak it is outside for much of the world (well, the northern hemisphere, anyway), the next post of the White Album Redux project couldn't have come at a better time.The fourth song off the White Album (fifth if you're from Saskatchewan -- sorry, football joke there, couldn't resist) is "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da", a happy, idyllic song about a

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-11010295860669997242009-11-27T17:36:00.000-08:002009-11-27T18:15:29.193-08:00

It's official: my blog has had one thousand hits. Exciting, eh? The standard course of action would be to give you all some story about how I started this blog four months ago on nothing but a smile and a shoeshine, but I'm not, so you can breath easy now.Rather, I figured we should celebrate, and since the blog's taken a musical turn in the past while (we are in the midst of the White Album

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-1822348486069339702009-11-25T09:13:00.000-08:002009-11-28T09:52:56.046-08:00

After many months of unseasonably warm weather, winter has finally come to Winnipeg, and the reaction has, quite frankly, been mixed. Having green (or almost-green, or greenish-yellow) front yards in, say, mid-November stirred something deep and disquieting in our souls, made us feel uneasy -- but, on the other hand, we could actually go outside without donning a parka.But we take it in stride,

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-3731104702119668042009-11-22T19:59:00.000-08:002009-11-22T20:24:56.244-08:00

I'm back, and I have a bit of owning up to do. Very few of the posts I've promised (Moulin Rouge: The Ballet, more Being Erica goodness, etc.) have actually happened. And I haven't exactly kept up with the Saturday Spotlights, either.But that all changes today. Do you know what today is?Some forty-odd years ago today, what is regarded as one of the best albums by the Beatles and one of the most

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-53482850382764370912009-11-10T13:24:00.000-08:002009-12-09T09:32:27.230-08:00

The fact that Being Erica was picked up for a second season seems like a no-brainer, considering the cliffhanger season one ended on. Since then, we've had an excellent premiere ("Being Dr. Tom") that shook up the show's format, several so-so episodes ("The Unkindest Cut", "Under My Thumb"), and a few episodes that could, in some sense, be called failures ("Cultural Revolution" and "Battle Royale

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-85815974271864635142009-10-31T18:54:00.000-07:002009-11-05T20:05:00.684-08:00

Well, I'm back from a bit of a break from blogging (how's that for alliteration?) -- self-imposed, I'm afraid, due to having more work than you can shake a stick at needing to be done and leaving little time for the things I love to do, like blogging.But I'm here now, and rest assured, I'll have more going up each week than just a Saturday Spotlight from now on. A Being Erica mid-season recap and

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-81132721757979388482009-10-10T19:38:00.000-07:002009-10-10T20:55:16.645-07:00

Well, Winnipeg was hit by a snowstorm yesterday afternoon, an event which appears to have been a surprise (or so I've heard). With most of us turning up the heat indoors, it seems appropriate that British indie-pop quartet The Clientele release their latest album-- the warmly-titled Bonfires on the Heath-- around this time.I found out about The Clientele through the wonders of poking around

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-89681257983588304312009-10-03T14:43:00.000-07:002009-10-03T15:42:43.619-07:00

Unlike some of the other artists I've featured in Saturday Spotlights, The Weepies might be a group you've already heard of, whether it be on Grey's Anatomy, in a commercial, or somewhere else I haven't discovered yet.Don't take this to mean that The Weepies have sold out; rather, Steve Tannen and Deb Talan have just found ways of getting their name out there, and anyone that immediately labels

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-41031539436171357952009-09-29T20:21:00.001-07:002009-10-09T13:56:13.556-07:00

DISCLAIMER: The following contains medium-level spoilers. Read at your own risk.For anyone that's had the good fortune to watch Being Erica's season premiere (and what a premiere it was) and hasn't caught up on last season yet, the abrupt change in format "Battle Royale" presents may be a bit of a shock.For those that have watched the first season, it shouldn't be a surprise that, after the

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-80190237718100325132009-09-26T17:27:00.000-07:002009-09-26T18:54:23.580-07:00

Believe it or not, despite being a genius, Sufjan Stevens was not my first pick for this week's Saturday Spotlight.I really wanted to write about Dan Mangan (whose new album Nice, Nice, Very Nice is one of my recent favorites) but the videos of him on YouTube weren't to my liking, and then I considered Fiona Apple for an hour or two, but this week has, to be honest, felt like a long hike (in

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-72687634609661338322009-09-22T20:05:00.000-07:002009-10-01T19:06:43.213-07:00

DISCLAIMER: The following contains spoilers. Read at your own risk.Being Erica has become one of the few shows on TV (along with Doctor Who and Lost) that I actually try and keep up with. I started watching the show online this summer (mostly driven by curiosity after someone commenting on a National Post article called it "the best show this season on either side of the border") and quickly

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-28989367026774599372009-09-19T19:20:00.000-07:002009-09-19T21:10:59.388-07:00

Welcome to another Saturday, everyone! Yes, I know this is later than expected, but I was talking about Neil Gaiman's American Gods with someone (fantastic book, go read it if you haven't already) and I read "The Babysitter" on Friday and, well, the pinball post decided to show up for the party, so what could I do?(Note to any writers out there -- whatever you do, when you get an idea, write it

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-24147820421829863582009-09-19T12:45:00.000-07:002009-09-19T13:45:07.830-07:00

Yesterday I read a fantastic short story by Robert Coover called "The Babysitter", and while its use of multiple perspectives was interesting and (to be honest) somewhat confusing, what I really walked away from the story with was the great metaphor of a woman as a pinball machine.This made me think of a number of things -- first, if this metaphor existed anywhere else (and if so, "Pinball Wizard

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-9049449803175536282009-09-12T10:30:00.000-07:002009-09-12T10:30:00.217-07:00

I first encountered Combustible Edison's music back in early 2008, when I was browsing through iTunes and just happened to stumble upon their debut album. After listening to the 30-second samples of most of the songs (granted, 30 seconds of a song is rarely enough to gauge whether or not you like a band by), I was convinced enough to buy the album. The music was excellent (a mix of lounge and

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-14687212381347376802009-09-10T17:57:00.000-07:002009-09-10T20:03:20.954-07:00

From the CBC:Ellen DeGeneres is dancing her way into the fourth judge's seat on American Idol.Fox announced Wednesday that the talk show host and comedian, who admittedly has no formal music experience other than a passion for tunes, would join Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi for the ninth season starting in January.Yes, it's official: Ellen DeGeneres is joining Simon, Randy and

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-91268446080238063832009-09-06T21:14:00.000-07:002009-09-07T16:37:29.900-07:00

First of all, I'd like to wish everyone a happy September! Let's hope the weather continues to be sunny and fall stays far away until at least October.Second of all... you may have guessed, by the revised title, that I am (gasp!) late for the Saturday Spotlight. This weekend hasn't exactly been the most pleasant, though, so I hope you'll forgive me -- maybe I'll blog about it. Who knows?Let us

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-59883635323399866302009-08-30T20:29:00.000-07:002009-09-01T17:37:12.397-07:00

C'mon, Harriet Zaidman! Get happy!I know what you're thinking:1. Who is Harriet Zaidman, and why, pray tell, should she "get happy?"2. Who is the woman in the photograph to the left, and what does she have to do with Harriet Zaidman? Is she Harriet Zaidman?Is she Harriet Zaidman's cousin? Is she--I'll stop before I get ahead.The woman in the photograph is legendary Canadian author Alice Munro,

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-41673269900669683122009-08-29T16:31:00.000-07:002009-08-29T18:19:15.099-07:00

Last night (August 28th), I watched the Late Show with David Letterman in anticipation of Imogen Heap's performance on the program. I recently reviewed her latest album on this blog, and Heap rarely makes appearances on TV, so I thought I'd give it a go.As is the case for most late-night talk shows these days, the featured musician was the last guest of the evening; despite Are You Being Served?

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-49803861100385842292009-08-29T13:52:00.000-07:002009-09-03T18:47:23.183-07:00

In celebration of having gone to see 500 Days of Summer earlier this week (which I loved), this Saturday I've chosen to feature Regina Spektor, who has two songs--"Us" and "Hero" (which I could only find a live version of on YouTube; apologies in advance) in that film.Spektor, despite having only officially released five albums' worth of songs, has written, demoed, and performed live hundreds

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-75698365253307134792009-08-24T20:27:00.000-07:002009-08-27T18:31:54.593-07:00

Just when you thought she was going country, Miley Cyrus (perhaps at the behest of her management) goes in the opposite direction with "Party in the U.S.A." A release from her upcoming EP The Time of Our Lives, Cyrus seems determined to distance herself from Hannah Montana as quickly as possible.She has tried to accomplish this by declaring herself a fan of Jay-Z and Britney Spears in the same

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-22500663259246737742009-08-23T15:27:00.000-07:002009-09-01T12:24:29.532-07:00

On her third album, Imogen Heap has taken all the aspects of her musical personality-- the soul-baring singer-songwriter on her debut, I Megaphone; the multifaceted, multi-talented producer and artist of her "Hide and Seek"-spawning second album, Speak for Yourself; and as one half of the group Frou Frou, along with Guy Sigsworth-- put them in a blender, and flicked the On switch.The result is

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-29317157218770620412009-08-22T18:00:00.000-07:002009-08-27T18:52:29.865-07:00

Welcome to the first of many Saturday Spotlights! Each Saturday, I plan to showcase an artist I love, in the hope that you'll come to appreciate them too. To get us started, here's someone you might have already heard of: KT Tunstall.Tunstall has been one of my favorite artists, hands-down, for quite some time now. Yes, she's the woman behind "Suddenly I See" and "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-42283178468144373752009-08-21T20:48:00.000-07:002009-08-27T18:26:07.276-07:00

When I first saw A Prairie Home Companion, back in 2006 -- it was in theatres then -- I knew it was a great movie, a funny movie, a movie with heart.I knew it was one of the two great performances of Lindsay Lohan (I'll bet you choked when I just said that, didn't you), along with Freaky Friday and, if a third were to be included, Mean Girls.I knew it was a great film; Roger Ebert thought so too,

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-29392129699770747982009-08-21T12:41:00.000-07:002009-08-27T18:46:33.063-07:00

I saw Julie & Julia on a dismal, wet Wednesday (I was going to have my wisdom teeth taken out the next day, and what better way to celebrate, I figured, than two hours of food-inspired film before entering a surgery-imposed fast later that evening?) and loved it. However, before sitting down in the theatre (which was practically stuffed to the gills, by the way), I wasn't quite sure if I would.

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5412468147655717636.post-86440098403412825432009-08-21T12:29:00.000-07:002009-08-21T12:37:35.407-07:00

Greetings all! Welcome to Paul's Winnipeg! Grab a comfy chair and your choice of beverage, and settle right in.I'm your host, Paul, ready to take you on a journey through music, film, books, thought... and, of course, life in the mysterious city we know as Winnipeg.In case you're wondering, the title for this blog comes from Guy Maddin's movie My Winnipeg. I figured that, if that was his Winnipeg

Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12229634716475217746noreply@blogger.com0