REVIEW: alt-j weirdest band in the universe
If there is such a thing as being the exact opposite of “radio friendly,” the band alt-j would win the prize. Thank God! Radio is getting too friendly as it is. This trio of British nerds have decided to take the rock ‘n’ roll rule book, throw it out the window and reinvent the art […]
THEATRE: Evil rises again in Bright Room
Back in 1985, American playwright Tony Kushner launched a new work called A Bright Room Called Day. He went on to write the two-part Angels in America that became one of the most highly regarded pieces of theatre of the 20th Century. You can certainly see elements of the genius that Kushner was later to […]
THEATRE: Ubuntu a haunting fusion of cultures
The story of how Ubuntu (The Cape Town Project) came to be could make something of a play in itself. Back in 2004, current Citadel Theatre Artistic Director Daryl Cloran became fascinated by the ancient Bantu word “Ubuntu” meaning, “I am because you are.” The concept, and Cloran’s perception that theatre would be one of […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: alt-j a Delta Force
Just curious: What happens when you actually press “alt-j” on a computer keyboard? Hmm, nothing. Or wait. What’s this: ∆ … is the actual name of the band. It’s Delta, the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet, and it refers to the discriminant of a polynomial equation, among other things. Does that help? Right. So […]
Arcade Fire meekly mesmerizes millennials
They came, they saw, they conked the much-despised Boomer generation on their collective noggins with the ferocity of a barbed-wired baseball bat on a hapless Walking Dead captive. OK, the jury’s still out on that third assessment, but it was all to the delight of the devout 10,000 or so hipsters at a pilgrimage showcasing […]
Local comic makes serious study of comedy
Lars Callieou has been studying comedy longer than he’s been a comedian – thanks to his long-running weekly show on CJSR radio. He’s had on every area comic you could name during the last 11 years; they’ve plumbed every angle, dissected every joke, shared many a gory road story. As such, he is uniquely qualified […]
Imagine Dragons breathes fire at Rogers Place
“We will never be stopped!” Take heed of the inspirational rallying cry from the Las Vegas band Imagine Dragons in the wake of the horrific mass shooting in their hometown. The show must go on. They pretty much had to bring it up during their concert at Rogers Place on Tuesday night, especially seeing as […]
PLAYBILL: I Am Because You Are
Never let it be said that the Citadel Theatre is an ivory tower that never takes chances. Those two “nevers” just cancel each other right out in the hands of their bold new artistic director Daryl Cloran. In the second play of his first Citadel season in Edmonton, he has wrangled an ambitious new play […]
MUSIC: 7 acts you MUST SEE at UP+DT
The city’s final music festival of the year is also one of its best, despite it not getting near as much attention as some of the others. Up + Downtown is back again with a vengeance and fury like no other, and is one of those festivals that no matter how much you think you […]
Miranda Lambert a shining light
At her concert at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton on Tuesday night, Miranda Lambert alluded to the Las Vegas mass shooting. Due to the recent tragic event that took place right here in our own city, these attacks were on everyone’s minds. She told the crowd, “There’s so many heavy hearts here tonight so I just […]
PLAYBILL: Fortuitous Endings just the beginning
You know that point near the end of a relationship when you start lying to your friends? Ha, ha! Yeah, we always yell at each other like that. Everything is JUST FINE. It can get a bit awkward. The title of the season opener for the provocatively-named local “Toy Guns Dance Theatre” is too long […]
