Legend has it: John Legend in Edmonton this summer
Before Auto-Tune made legends of us all, there was John Legend – one of the finest voices on the modern R&B scene who has yet to get his due. The Ohio crooner, who had been signed by Kanye West’s label, won a pile of Grammys before most people had ever heard of him, on the […]
COMEDY: Brent Butt ALMOST a movie star
The great thing about being a stand-up comic who gets a TV series is that you have a pretty sweet gig to fall back on once the series – inevitably – ends. A lot of comedy actors who try to be comedians after their television careers end aren’t so lucky. Ask Michael Richards. Brent Butt […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Folk the weekend
This weekend’s gig schedule is filled with a whole lot of folk musicians and singer-songwriters – appropriate to the city’s music scene and also the time of year. Come to think of it, we get great folk all year long. Josh Ritter and Geoff Berner headline shows on both Friday and Saturday night, and then […]
CONCERT ANNOUNCEMENTS: Cave, Giant, Butt
Summer with Nick Cave in Edmonton – what could be better? His cold, dark love songs will go well with the heat on Saturday, June 28, when the Australian troubadour plays the Jubilee Auditorium, which happens to be the day after the last day of school. Cave and the Bad Seeds are touring select North […]
INTERVIEW: Dan Savage makes punditry cool
On Christians and the whole gay marriage thing, Dan Savage says, “Jesus Christ Himself condemned divorce, yet we’re not amending state constitutions to prohibit people getting divorced. It’s hypocritical of these people to say that they cannot come around on the gay issue because of the Bible when they ignore so many other parts of […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Home for a Party!
Here’s the perfect verse for the end of summer: “You’ll have to excuse me, I’m not at my best. I’ve been gone for a month, I’ve been drunk since I left. These so-called vacations will soon be my death. I’m so sick from the drink I need home for a rest.” Most music fans of […]
Ben Folds to rock ESO a second time
Maybe we can make Ben Folds playing with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra a biennial event. The pop piano-meister will be back to wow his local fans a second time on Wednesday, May 21, 2014, at the Winspear Centre – less than two years after he came to Edmonton for the first time. Tickets ($69 or […]
After low key start, Jazz festival hits high gear
So much jazz, so little time – especially if it’s “free” jazz where “time” takes on a completely different meaning, as does “free,” because you still have to pay to see it. Hope that helps. It’s always hard to choose among so many acts at the Edmonton International Jazz Festival. It didn’t really have a […]
MUSIC PREVIEW: Just a big list of cool stuff
There are some major events going on over the next week, including the Edmonton International Jazz Festival with bass-wielding urban-jazz Goddess Esperanza Spalding on Tuesday, June 25; and the one and only Herbie Hancock on June 27, both at the Winspear Centre. “Johnny Jazz Passes,” conferring free admission to a myriad of other jazz fest […]
Iron and Wine to play Winspear in September
Iron & Wine was alt-folk before alt-folk was cool – so it’s no surprise that the band, which is actually just one talented guy named Sam Beam, marks its return to Edmonton with a bigger room: The Winspear Centre on Sunday, Sept. 22. Tickets go on sale Friday. Emerging on the Sub Pop label in […]
WEEKEND MUSIC: Third time a charm for MGMT?
The band MGMT – coming to play two shows at the Starlite Room Saturday night – may be a classic case of the infamous “sophomore jinx.” Formed by Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden, who met as students at the private liberal arts college Wesleyan University in Connecticut, the band’s first album won critical and popular […]
WEEKEND MUSIC: Dostoyevsky ghosts haunt indie folk from Seattle
There’s an intriguing suite of live music choices this weekend – from album releases to music about chocolate to an after-party for a craft fair, the one can’t-miss show is an early gig Friday at the Pawn Shop featuring Seattle’s Ivan & Alyosha. The wondrous spirit of his indie folk quartet is matched if not […]
