MUSIC PREVIEW: Incomparable Sam Roberts
Is the Sam Roberts Band a soul band with a rock groove, or a rock band with soul drive? Maybe they’re a soulful groove band that rocks, or a driving rock band that grooves. So confusing when you’re in the labeling business. It’s always been hard to rack these guys, returning to Edmonton for a […]
Red Cannons unite band of brothers
There is evidence that brother bands are tighter than bands whose members are unrelated – in as many ways as you want “tight” to mean. There are exceptions, of course, but sometimes you can just tell. Hear the creative cohesion, for instance, on the Red Cannons’ new EP Always Something. The Spruce Grove band plays […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: January thaw
We’re in the depths of what’s usually the coldest part of the year, which scares off all manner of touring musicians – though you wouldn’t know it, of course, and with temperatures on the weekend expected to soar well into the single digits, you might just be tempted to leave your jacket in the car […]
Inside the song: That Damned Filthy River
You can tell that a songwriter is being honest when they get inspired by their own backyard. Hard to fake that. Local rootsmith Jake Ian has hit the mark with a worthy song of the land, or water, anyway, called That Damned Filthy River. It’s a dark and beautiful love letter to the North Saskatchewan. […]
REVIEW: Heavenly Blue Rodeo
Having Blue Rodeo in Edmonton for a pair of January shows is a tradition. After playing a two-nighter at the Jubilee Auditorium in January 2016, the six-piece country rock band is back for another two nighter at the Jubilee Auditorium in January 2017 – and Thursday was another packed house. This is unsurprising in a […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Must be January, Blue Rodeo is here
Today on Hinterland Who’s Who: Like the swallows to Capistrano, Blue Rodeo returns to Canadian concert halls once again for their annual migration. Behold the wonders of nature! Wait, are there any swallows left or are they all extinct? Where the heck is Capistrano, anyway? No fair Googling. Anyway, Blue Rodeo is a perennial Canadian […]
INTERVIEW: Blue Rodeo careful with politics
Blue Rodeo might be too close to themselves to understand how interesting it is that they didn’t include their one-off protest song Stealin’ All Our Dreams on their new album, 1000 Arms. Maybe it’s a hidden secret bonus track? “It is?!” exclaims singer Jim Cuddy in a recent interview. No … what? It is? “No.” […]
INSIDE Edmonton’s Avant-garde
There may have been as many performers as there were audience members at the gig – but it didn’t matter. This was ART. A man named SkruntSkrunt rendered space sounds through a speaker box that was duct-taped to a didgeridoo. The Japanese performer Himiko wore a scary face mask as she played oddly consonant chords […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Bye Bye Bunny
Everyone’s favorite year-end album list starts as a blank slate. Which way will the winds blow in 2017? Where will this year’s standouts come from? What genres will they play? It certainly seems like the most interesting local projects these days are those that blend a bunch of sounds into one, but isn’t that really […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Rollins the Raj of Rage
Just over a year ago on late night television, Stephen Colbert asked Henry Rollins what makes him angry. He replied, “Anything where humans could be better, where they could treat each other and themselves better.” Colbert cut in, “Isn’t being angry the sort of thing we should stop? Aren’t you part of the problem, Henry […]
Lord of the Logos: Black Metal AF
Seriously, metal dudes – what’s the point of having such a beautiful logo when you can’t read the name of the damned band?! For an answer, we turn to the Lord of the Logos himself: Christophe Szpajdel, the prolific Belgian metalligrapher whose customers include Metallica, Rihanna and Foo Fighters, among an estimated 10,000 bands over […]
NYE PREVIEW: The Secretaries play to type
As the year concludes, this weekend’s live music opportunities center around – no surprise – New Year’s Eve. There’s a bevy of options for everyone, from folk to rock to folk-rock, from electronic to pop, and lots in between. One of the best shows, and the best values, may be at Ritchie Community Hall, where […]
