REAR END IN VIEW: Stick a fork in it
For the fourth year running, a story about Purple City was one of the most widely read articles on GigCity. It’s an Edmonton thing. Among all the weird attractions in a weird town is this time-honoured ritual of getting high and going to stare at the lights outside the Alberta Legislature at night. After a […]
Super silly satire a spectacular success
Ben Spencer didn’t plan to become a children’s entertainer. He kind of stumbled into it. And now it could become his true calling. The Edmonton singer-songwriter, who’s just moved back home after 10 years in Montreal, with a French wife and two toddlers in tow, is a little new at this. The release show for […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Freecloud Records marks 30 years
The man who runs one of Edmonton’s last remaining record shops is also the frontman for Mad Bomber Society – so of course Rich Bomber gets to play for his own Freecloud Records’ 30th anniversary shows this weekend. The concerts happen Friday at the Rocky Mountain Icehouse with the Mad Bombers, the Cygnets, the Fuzz […]
Getting in Rolling Stone the best Revenge
A mysterious and sinister Edmonton band you may never have heard of has wound up in Rolling Stone magazine’s 20 Best Metal Albums of 2015. This list includes the usual suspects: Lamb of God, Clutch, Napalm Death, Slayer, and at No. 1, Marilyn Manson for Pale Emperor. Coming in at lucky No. 13 is a […]
CASSETTE COMEBACK: Are you kidding?!
They hiss, they rattle, sometimes they get eaten. Like snakes, cassettes are great survivors. From the brink of extinction these humble little tapes have been revived by a thriving sub-culture of young musicians and music fans. Who would’ve thought? Old people – who got rid of their turntables to buy tape decks, then ditched their […]
Huron Carole founder speaks on Syrian refugees
Coming from Tom Jackson, words of support for Syrian refugees carry a lot more weight than the usual pundits. The 67-year-old actor and singer perhaps best known for his role in North of 60 has dedicated his life to helping less fortunate people. “When there are vulnerable people, we need to let it be known […]
Metric and Megadeth in March
We’re getting into the M’s now. The latest concert announcements are Metric and Megadeth in March. Not on the same bill, of course. Could you imagine? Metric will play Rexall Place on Tuesday, March 29, a “co-headlining” bill with the great Death Cab For Cutie, even though that would be impossible unless both bands play […]
Bill Maher brings political comedy to Edmonton
Why one of America’s greatest political comedians would spent even a moment away from his home country in the run-up to one of the most important elections in history is a mystery. But we’re still glad Bill Maher is finding the time for a short Canadian tour next summer. Maybe it’s his vacation. The outspoken […]
OPINION: Motley Crue burns fans in Edmonton
Motley Crue must make amends to fans in Edmonton who have been suckered into seeing two “final” shows. It’s only fair. They said that November 2014 at Rexall Place would be their last concert in Edmonton. Fans bought their tickets thinking it was going to be their last concert in Edmonton, thinking that they would […]
Slayer! F***ing Slayer!
Slayer will always be welcome in Edmonton. This city has a rich history and devotion to the art form of heavy metal music, breeding fans from many generations who regularly come to commune with one of the stalwarts of the genre that’s more than just a genre of music. It’s a movement. There is therefore […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Classic rock rules
Raise a little hell, raise a little hell, raise a little hell … With that immortal prose from a more innocent time was launched a Canadian Classic Rock institution, the legend known as Trooper – who are literally troupers, depending how you spell it, as the band enters its fifth decade of dependable rockin’. The […]
Rufus Wainwright comes to Edmonton
Evidence that musical gifts can be born as well as bred can be found in Rufus Wainwright. The son of Kate McGarrigle and Loudon Wainwright III (who once wrote a song about his infant son called Rufus is a Tit Man) has proven a formidable force in Canadian music well beyond his family roots. Theatrical […]
