INTERVIEW: Sass Jordan on Canadian Idol, short attention spans
There is no alternate reality where American Idol and its ilk did not exist so we could all say, “See? Look how great popular music is without all these deluded show-offs to ruin it for everyone!” The Idols would’ve shown off anyway. These sort of TV talent shows just put inner workings of the pop […]
Has Black History Month lost its meaning?
The trouble with Black History Month isn’t over the fact that it happens to be the shortest month of the year. It’s the word “black.” Does it mean African, and if so what part of Africa? It’s a big continent. It could mean Caribbean or American, descendents of American slaves. And what about black people […]
Happy Valentine’s Day! Yanni’s coming, hint, hint
Hey Ladies! Who loves you? That’s right, Yanni loves you. Do you know who loves you even more? The man who buys you tickets to Yanni, who returns to the Jubilee Auditorium on Tuesday, Sept. 9. Tickets go on sale Friday – Valentine’s Day. Hint, hint. And this should really be directed at the men […]
Astounding CKUA changes: No one gets fired!
For more proof that the CKUA Radio Network is unlike almost any other radio network on Earth, look no further than the station’s impending “shake-up” that takes effect Feb. 18. They didn’t fire anybody! What’s a “change in direction” if they don’t ambush and heave overboard at least one notable radio personality? It happens all […]
Young Frankenstein the Musical a no brainer
Can anything be made into a musical? The short answer is yes. The more difficult question is why. You don’t have to dig far to see that musical theatre has wormed its way into all orifices of popular culture. When rock stars and the guys from South Park and Family Guy and Disney start getting […]
REVIEW: Free Candy sweet outside, bitter within
No amount of sexy name, boppy songs, marching band costumes, tooting horns, fuzzy bass and bloopy old Farfisa organs can hide the fact that the Wet Secrets is a damned dark band. Their new album Free Candy might give sensitive listeners the urge to slit their wrists – if it weren’t for all the delicious […]
Heart returns to Edmonton in a mighty second wind
It is so gratifying to see a once-forgotten classic rock band enjoy a new life. Hey, it happens, from time to time. This time, it couldn’t have happened to a more worthy band than Heart. With the first rate soul sista rock chicks Nancy and Ann Wilson in fine form into their 60s, the band […]
Calgary bar steals ‘Sidetrack’ mojo – Edmontonians irked
Some Edmonton music scene-sters are crying foul over the sudden appearance of the “Sidetrack Stage and Grill” in Calgary – but managers insist that this is not a crass attempt to cash in on Edmonton’s famous sadly defunct music venue. “No disrespect is intended,” says Darcy Clendenning, promotions manager for the Sidetrack Stage and Grill […]
Open data use doubles, ‘Citizen Dashboard’ pickup slow
Use of the City of Edmonton’s “open data” website exploded in 2013, doubling to more than 1.6 million page views from the year prior. But the city’s attempt to simplify all of that data into meaningful performance targets the public can easily check hasn’t done so well: Edmonton’s ‘Citizen Dashboard’ isn’t getting much traffic. […]
