FAVOURITES OF 2010

2010 was quite the year. We were graced by... Whatever. Who cares? Here's some favourites:

ALBUMS
(in alphabetical order by artist)

The Arcade Fire "The Suburbs".
Key tracks: EVERY ONE; though I really love Ready To Start
Still an absolutely amazing band. The beauty and passion is evident in every note they play and sing. If there's a god making lists, all these players have very special spots in heaven.

Broken Social Scene "Forgiveness Rock Record".
Key tracks: Meet Me In The Basement, Romance To The Grave
Another great album. My favourite BSS album since You Forgot It In The People.

Deftones "Diamond Eyes".
Nothing can match "White Pony", but, this is a solid effort from a very formidable rock band.

Fang Island "Fang Island".
Key tracks: Careful Crossers, Davy Crockett.
Great first album. Reminds me a bit of listening to Modest Mouse and Blitzen Trapper for the first time.

Kylesa "Spiral Shadow".
Key tracks: Distance Closing In, Spiral Shadow.
Metal rules and these guys and gal take it to another level. I found a lot of tracks on this album sound like older stuff, a couple like ... Trail of Dead; and it's easily one of my favourites of the year.

Liz Phair "Funstyle".
Key tracks: Bollywood, Oh Bangladesh, And He Slayed Her.
Everyone has written Liz Phair off for about ten years. I don't agree with that, but I do say this is her best album in at least that long, since WhiteChocolateSpaceEgg. It's barely an album as it was released after someone had leaked it; it is stuff she had only intended for herself. This album is like her new mid-life Girlysounds. The Girlysounds were her demo tapes she'd made during college years and made the basis for Exile In Guyville, easily one of the finest albums of the 90s. So, maybe her next serious release will be like that; not in sound, but in terms of being something really good.

The Love Language "The Love Language".
Good old-time sounds in a new band. I get the sense of classic music from the 40s-60s.

Matthew Dear "Black City".
Key tracks: I Can't Feel, More Surgery.
Very Prince-y vibe to this album. I'm not usually a fan of the straight up techno/digital music, but this is a great listen.

Meth, Ghost, Rae "Wu Massacre".
Key track: Criminology 2.5, Mef vs Chef 2.
Solid Wu-shit!

One Less Of Infinity "Working".
Key tracks: BlueMicIntro, Put Your Babies To Sleep, Decision Mixed.
One fuck of an impressive debut!

Philip Selway "Familial".
Solid mellow album all the way through.

Prince "20Ten".
His best in many years. The ENTIRE ALBUM is awesome! Funky! Prince is a genius. This was a London (Britain?) only release through a newspaper. Of course, today that can only be kept away from the masses for so long. Dude's awesome and so is the music on this album.

Quasi "American Gong".
Key tracks: Repulsion, Simple Simon.
One of the greatest bands around right now. Come to The Rickshaw on February 11 and be pleasured.

Tame Impala "Innerspeaker".
Key track: It's Not Meant To Be.
Great raw old-school rock sound with a singer that sounds like John Lennon. Pretty much a can't lose formula.

The Walkmen "Lisbon".
Key track: Woe Is Me.
First album of theirs that I've listened to and I like it!

Wavves "King Of The Beach".
Key tracks: King of the Beach, Supersoaker, Convertible Balloon.
Good fun sunny rock & roll.

LIVE SHOWS

I spent the majority of the first half of this year concentrating time and money on comedy as opposed to gigs. I really didn't make it out to too many live gigs this year.

Conan O'Brien @ The Orpheum, April 14
Funny stuff. Unfortunately, I'd read about a show from a few nights earlier and pretty much knew every gag coming. My fault. Fun to watch him pick up the guitar and walk around; he's a fine player.

Doug Stanhope @ The Bourbon, July 25
Probably the best underground comic going right now. He's too good and I'm glad I got the chance to see him this year, because with his lifestyle who knows how long/short he'll be around.

Todd Barry @ ? in Kirkland, Washington, Date ?
Laid back and funny. Can't get enough of him. You may have seen him (The Wrestler, Bored To Death) if you haven't heard his comedy. He's buddies with Louis CK (the best comic in the game right now) and often has good fun with him through Twitter and Youtube.

Broken Social Scene @ The Commodore, October 14
I hadn't seen this band since a night many years ago at Richard's when Stars opened for them and it was a full on classic BSS line-up. That was a special night as everyone in attendance was right into it, in a small place. I didn't think that could be re-created, especially on a grander scale, but this show did it. The band was clearly having fun as they were winding down a long tour. Neil Osborne (54-40) came out for a few songs including "One Gun" and they were still rocking the stage as my crew and I left.

Wild Flag @ The Green Frog Acoustic Tavern, Bellingham Washington November 11
Wild Flag is a band I guarantee you will be hearing about in 2011. They haven't even recorded an album yet, but they sold out (albeit small) shows up and down the west coast this November. Not surprising as the group consists of Carrie Brownstein (Sleater-Kinney), Janet Weiss (Sleater-Kinney, The Jicks, Quasi), Mary Timony (Helium) and Rebecca Cole (The Minders). Oh, you will hear of them this coming year. The show was awesome. Maybe 45-55 people inside and at least ten to fifteen standing outside listening. The stage literally couldn't hold them and the keys player, Coles, was out on the floor with us.

Kylesa @ The Media Club December 2
Very good, but way too short show. Alex and I were about to leave because he had to fly out early. But, the second opening act (can't remember their name) was really good and we stayed. Kylesa rocked the house, but as written above, it wasn't long enough.

MOVIES, FILMS, TALKIES

Barely went to any theatre movies this year; pretty much only with my nephew and/or niece.

Mogwai: Burning 10+++
This is a concert film of the greatest band in the world. That is all that needs to be said. It is awesome. This band should be seen/heard live, but if you can never make it to a show, this is a must-see.

The A-Team 10+
I'm really not one for re-makes or simply re-hashing the past, however, this was a great summer popcorn movie. Each character is cast perfectly and a sequel should be at least as much fun.

Tron: Legacy 10+
I loved the original and the video game released with it. Tron was definitely my favourite at the arcade; it was really like 4 games in one. This movie is a great sequel. I didn't mind the cgi for Clu though it was worse in some parts than others. Apparently, there's two more sequels to come and an off-shoot series. Should be cool.

BOOKS

Flight (Peter F. Hamilton, 1999)
Finally finished this, volume one in book three (The Naked God) of the Night's Dawn trilogy. Peter F. Hamilton is an amazing sci-fi writer. This is hardcore science fiction writing at it's best. Right up there with Dan Simmons as far as story-telling goes, and more detailed.

The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins, 2oo8)
Great first book to a trilogy. Pretty wild concept and well enough written; it is meant for teen readers. I'm definitely looking forward to what happens next.

IT'S BEEN A WHILE

It's 2010, y'all!!! Rrraaaannddyyy!

Yeah, it's time to start this shit again.

Coming Soon: That open letter to America, as well as some other essays.

Keep in touch, yo!

view from my balcony looking at grandview cut and skytrain

opening night at vancouver's first ever walmart

today i wished i was american for a while

a blues chord

today we felt the sun and saw the sky

the tracks behind marpole loop near the bus depot

i somewhat regularly use three of the businesses shown

wine and beets

the majority of my current titles

east 4th between commercial and woodland

looking east down 16th Avenue at Trutch from inside the bus

A guitar, a wall, a tapestry, a ceiling.

Sandalwood elephants.

Self-portrait

The hallway, looking west.

The Stone, beside $84 worth of comics and some magazines.

This image is from January 4, 2009.

In the UBC Bus Loop (Diesel)

Looking up from the southeast corner of Dunsmuir at Thurlow.

PHOTOGRAPH 2

Scene from the movie "Control" on my t.v.

PHOTOGRAPH 1

The Greyness

ONCE AGAIN THEY COME THROUGH TOWN, AND ONCE AGAIN THE CHURCH WILL OPEN

The year was... well I can't really remember the year anymore, but I think it was 2003; it may have been 2004. In any case, it was TV on The Radio's first time touring outside of New York as far as I know; it was definitely their first time in Vancouver. My friend Lindsay had given me a copy of their latest release, their first full length album, Desperate Youths, Bloodthirsty Babes, of which I'd only listened to parts of two tracks. It sounded nice and I decided to snap up the extra ticket she had for the show at The Picadilly Pub that week. This, friends, turns out to have been one of the best decisions I have ever made in my life. What the crowd of several hundred people that night witnessed changed them in ways they'll likely never fully understand. When change such as that occurrs, I don't think we are meant to understand it. We are only meant to know that it happened.

The band absolutely slayed the audience with a steady pounding of droning, beautiful and heavy rock and roll. They actually had an entire pub dancing, including myself, and I'd been notorious for being one of very few who would go to night clubs with friends and come closest to dancing when I'd bob my head to the beats. The band played with the New York cool that consists of knowing you're so good that you need not prove anything, while at the same time having no arrogance, as if you're playing to, and for, a large group of friends. That night TV on The Radio made a couple of hundred friends in a city that is so full of pot smoke that it's at times hard to meet and make new acquaintances through the haze. We were all at church that night as we were lifted to a higher plane where we've all stayed since. I'm not saying we're better than those of you that missed that show, but we are cooler. Lindsay, Julie, Rob, myself and a couple of hundred other now-hipsters are walking on sunshine as the rest of you walk through a mist.

Now's your chance to rise above said mist. The band has come through town at least four times since then (I was at one of those shows in 2006), and they will be back again Sunday September 7. This is your chance to get on the plane, attain nirvana, gaze at the bodhi tree, talk to your lord. If you don't live near Vancouver, find out when this band comes to your town and make that trek. You can only become more at peace with your world and gain some form of enlightenment. YOU have absolutely nothing to lose.

Two weeks after their appearance here they will drop a new album called Dear Science, which I am looking forward to more and more every minute. Until then go out and get Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes and Return to Cookie Mountain. You will be happy you did. Both times I've seen them live I could see only smiles as we left the venue.

WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS NOW

The world needs more Zooey Deschanel. Much more. Not only can she act (of course, anyone can do that; I think most of us are acting most of our lives). She can sing too. And she can sing really well.

Check out She & Him, a band that features herself and M. Ward, he of indie rock fame.

But this is about Zooey. She rules, and all female children throughout the world should only be clones of her. Perfection has arrived.

THE YEARS HAVE BEEN MORE THAN KIND FOR THEM AND FOR US


Wolf Parade
Spencer Krug - keys, vocals
Dan Boekner - guitars, vocals
Hadji Bakara - sounds
Dante Decaro - drums
Arlen Thompson - guitars (on tour)




(picture from internet)



Two years ago I had the chance to see Wolf Parade live at The Commodore. I witnessed them at the expense of a Boys Only trip (an annual gathering of men friends that has been going strong for nearly a decade); the boys only trip went ahead, and I was only gone from the crew for a few hours, but it was in an urban setting and it was a disaster (however, that's a completely different story). That night I was very excited because I was supposed to have seen the band several months earlier (I think the year before) when they played a basement in East Vancouver. However, I completely forgot about that show and found myself in Avanti's drinking beer alone as I read in The Georgia Straight that the show was that night. If I had hustled I may have been able to make it in, but I was high and nearing being drunk so I thought it best not to make my way there, and likely turn around half way there.

Anyways, I went to the Commodore show two years ago and I was so disappointed; it may have been partly because of not being with the guys drinking, but to me the band was just going through the motions. I don't think they weren't into it. In fact, I think they were very much into it; too into it really. There was no excitement and to me it came off just like the album. They were very young men with not many high-capacity gigs in their repertoire, so I'm thinking that is what they considered a really good live show. But to me, if a band just plays the songs as they are on the album the audience may as well stay home, put on the headphones and press shuffle on the music player.

This brings me to July 12, 2008. What a difference 23 months makes. Wolf Parade has travelled the world, played many shows to many different audiences and released a new album as well. At Mount Zoomer is definitely one of the best albums of the year so far. It is very different than their first album (Apologies to Queen Mary) in that it has a much slower pace. However, the music is just as fun and beautiful.

I think the band has taken all their life experiences and put the energy into their live shows. They band witnessed two nights ago was full of confidence and energy. They played all the songs from their two albums and played them with passion. The key word there is passion. It was a true rock show. Dan Boeckner could barely contain himself to his small area of the stage and Spencer Krug looked like he might have needed reinforced stands for his keys. Nearly every song was a bit different than the recorded version. Either slightly slowed down or sped up at times, at times more sparse than on cd, and at times with added layers of sound from the albums. As with all good gigs the focus was on the music. They didn't need to banter much with audience, the music was their banter. They didn't need elaborate lighting; in fact, Hadji Bakara asked the light technician to kill the strobe light. For those who had not seen Wolf Parade live before they were party to a killer live show that they should remember for years to come. For those of us who had seen them before we left with a sense that this is a band that will continue to be worth being heard live for years to come.

Now if only the young drunk girls would stop bumping into me. Don't they know I had heart surgery recently?

Do yourselves a favour and BUY Wolf Parade's At Mount Zoomer. Artists such as this deserve to be paid for what they give us. They give us music that will help define periods in life, instances throughout summers or winters and hope that maybe some day all people will pick up an instrument and create something that will make themselves, and maybe others, happy.

I CAN'T STAY QUIET OVER THIS OUTRAGE

This is absolutely ridiculous. The man in the above image, Ted Nolan, has been fired by the New York Islanders. More accurately, if reports we read are true, by Garth Snow, the GM of the Islanders. Garth Snow was a hack goalie and now he's proven himself to be a hack GM (in reality he should never have been hired as a GM, but the Islanders owner Charles Wang is almost as dumb as Canucks owner Francesco Aquilini).

In over two years Snow did not give Nolan a good team to work with. It's a wonder they actually did make the playoffs one year, and that Nolan even had a winning record there over two seasons. From all accounts I've read, players love playing for Nolan and some say he's their best coach ever. The problem here didn't lie with the coach. It didn't lie with the players either; they played to the best of their abilities, and quite frankly, it's not an overly talented bunch of players. The blame here has to go to the idiot GM who didn't put together a decent team. It should have been Snow to go, but he's in too tight with Wang.

As of now I've untied my bond to the Islanders. They have been my favourite team since 1980, the first year I really got into hockey. I'll always love the classic Islanders teams of the 1980s, and will likely even return to be an Islanders fan once the moron Snow dies or is relieved of his position. However, for now, I have to close the door on all things Islanders. I hope the organization goes under and/or the team loses all 82 regular season games every season until Snow leaves.

A few weeks after my heart attack and heart surgery I didn't think I'd feel this way towards anyone or anything, but this is too much.

GO, CANUCKS, GO!

THINGS TO COME. OH, THINGS WILL COME.

This sight will soon be home to an ongoing story, likely written in erratic fashion and single or multiple chapters at once. Pending I don't get too stoned. Also, the open letter to America is once again on the horizon; and it will likely shock you.

Actually, is it safe to do a story online with no fear of it being stolen? I guess so, as it will all be dated. If anyone knows the copyright laws for sure let me know.