BOOKS: Big message in little sports story for kids
Steven Sandor’s new novel Replay may seem like a nice little story about sports in small town Alberta – but there’s something deeper going on here. Aimed at readers grades 5-8, the story revolves around Warren Chen, a Chinese-Canadian kid living in Sexsmith, Alberta who dreams of joining the local Bantam football team. When he […]
WEEKEND MUSIC: Order from k-os
With buzz from both urban and modern rock radio, k-os’s sold out show at the Avenue Theatre Friday night promises to be to be one hell of a party. Unlike many rappers, he prefers to perform with a live band – so that helps. The genre-crossing artist’s most recent single “The Dog Is Mine” can […]
HARPSICHORDIA! Antique instruments fight for cool factor at Early Music Festival
You won’t find a musical instrument as misunderstood and maligned as the harpsichord – not the doleful bassoon, not the dreaded dulcimer, not even the hideous pipes, the pipes, the pipes calling from glen to glen and down the mountainside are as hated as the harpsichord. Avant-garde composer John Cage compared the harpsichord’s buzzy chime […]
Rock and Folk Festivals working for the same weekend
The stakes in the Great Edmonton Summer Festival Poker Game just went up. The table is getting crowded. This year’s Edmonton Rock Music Festival happens on the same weekend as the Edmonton Folk Music Festival – and everyone is crossing their fingers that the crossover between classic rock and folk music isn’t too huge. The […]
King Ralph had it in for Edmonton – for our own good!
I only met Ralph Klein once, back in 1992, before he was on the verge of grabbing the Conservative leadership title away from Tory Golden Girl Nancy Betkowski. It was a wintery night at the K-97-CJCA radio studios, where I was working late as a special projects coordinator for K-97, and as I left through […]
Jason Aldean to bring big country show to Edmonton
These country dudes sure rise up the ranks fast. Where not too long ago one might’ve said, “Jason Aldean Who?”, the Georgia boy made good is playing the Big House in Edmonton. Aldean pulls into Rexall Place on Friday, Oct. 4, part of his “Night Train” tour after the smash hit album of the same […]
Meet the new boss of the Edmonton Arts Council!
It’s a no-brainer that Paul Moulton has been chosen to be the new executive director of the Edmonton Arts Council – he was the volunteer chairman of the organization when it started in 1996. “There’s something circular about this,” he says. You said it, buddy. There always is in this town. Locals in the arts […]
Hollywood dreams on hold for Edmonton comic
In order for Canadian comedians to get an immigration visa to work in Hollywood, they have to be established – and in order to get established, they have to work in Hollywood. “That’s the whole catch-22,” says Edmonton comic Kathleen McGee, whose dreams of breaking into American show business are on hold after being denied […]
Mumford sells out, KISS does not, bots win again
It was a busy day at Ticketmaster in Edmonton on Friday morning as Mumford and Sons went on sale, promptly selling out, at the same time as Kiss, which did not. Shout it out loud: Modern rock 1, classic rock 0. In the case of Mumford, at Rexall Place May 22, it’s a lot of […]
WEEKEND MUSIC: Oowatanite(s) with April Wine, Yukon Blonde
If someone asked you what show this weekend was sold out, you probably wouldn’t guess April Wine at Century Casino on Saturday night, would you? You’d be wrong. The legendary Canadian band has had a huge number hits over its lifespan and remains a proven rock ‘n’ roll draw across Canada. But it’s been fraught […]
Richie Sambora off Bon Jovi tour ‘for a few months’
It’s not like Bon Jovi won’t be playing with Bon Jovi. Bon Jovi has always been about Bon Jovi, and by several reports from the Calgary concert on Tuesday, Richie Sambora’s absence was disappointing, but not a deal breaker. The 53-year-old guitarist has bowed out of all the dates on this leg of the Because […]
40 years later: KISS returns to rock Edmonton in July
It’s going to be one rowdy class of ’75 high school reunion when Kiss comes to town this summer. It was the year that Kiss Alive! came out, a formative album for many an area hoser with strong memories of those early thrilling, pyro-ridden shows in Edmonton – and all these years and lost hair […]
