COMMENT: WTF at the BVJ?
It was one of those weekends at the Big Valley Jamboree, the BVJ – a WTF weekend. As in, “WTF did I just hear? WTF did I just see?” And mostly importantly, in the words of one obscenely intoxicated youth, “Just what the f— is a Corb Lund, anyways?” It’s not surprising that the BVJ […]
Wunderbar: Dead Bar Walking
On the morning of Wednesday, July 15, Craig Martellica, owner of the beloved Wunderbar Hofbrauhaus off Whyte Avenue, made one last plea for clemency. He launched a Go Fund Me campaign called Keep Wundi Alive for a Bit, asking for help in paying rent by the end of the day – without which, despite a […]
Pawnshop closing, gigs move to Union Hall
It isn’t so much that Edmonton has lost another music venue, but has gained a “twinned” one. Look on the bright side. Pawnshop Live – a popular Whyte Avenue rock club that’s operated under several different names and owners over the years (Rebar, Stars, etc.) – will close its doors after Saturday’s last show under […]
What happened to BT?
The dark cloud over the sudden cancellation of Breakfast Television – city TV’s news-talk-variety show that’s run every weekday morning in Edmonton since they were called the A-Channel back in the 1990s – at least seems to have a small silver lining. BT is gone, the majority of its staff laid off, part of a […]
Neil Young to Honour the Treaties in Edmonton
There are few rock stars who have been as critical of the Alberta Oil Sands as Neil Young – and now he’s putting his music where is mouth is. So to speak. Part political event, part Neil Young concert, his “Honour the Treaties” show happens Friday, July 3 at Rexall Place, part of a cross-Canada […]
McGowans rediscover True Spirit of 420
420 has to be the most redundant, ridiculous holiday ever invented. Every hour of every day is 420 for its most chronic celebrants. Why bother? “I guess it’s kind of like how people have Christmas in their hearts all year round, but still celebrate on that one day,” says Mark McGowan of the McGowan Family […]
Beyond Bjork: Edmonton Iceland love affair EXPOSED
It’s high time we got to the bottom of this torrid love affair this city seems to be having with Iceland. For the love of Odin, why? Why go to a place even more frozen and isolated than Edmonton? It can’t just be volcanoes and Bjork. Observers credit Iceland’s recent massive tourism campaign, bouncing back […]
To be an April Fool in the Age of Bulls***
Edmontonians of a Certain Age can still remember an April Fool’s Day joke played by 630 CHED in the early 1970s. It was reported that the phone company, Ed-Tel, was going to blow all the dust out of the phone lines at precisely 7:30 am on April 1, so citizens were advised to put plastic […]
Put it where the Sun don’t shine
They came to mock, not to bury – but then The Sun News Network suddenly went off the air, leaving a group of local performance artists intent on venting their feelings towards Ezra Levant’s soapbox with a wake instead of a roast. The first – and probably last – presentation of The Scum News Network […]