Foxymoron

Hunter S. Thompson is an old whore

It's ridiculously late in the game and I have a 10 a.m. presentation tomorrow morning. It's about Hunter S. Thompson, but with less than 12 hours to go I've yet to really nail down the focus. Oh well, I am enjoying the ride thus far. The man is often brilliant, despite his arrogance and neurosis. I like him. And reading The Great Shark Hunt has been a ride. The man has some lines that leave me speechless — or reeling with laughter. This is my favourite so far:

"I've always considered writing the most hateful kind of work. I suspect it's a bit like fucking, which is only fun for amateurs. Old whores don't do much giggling."

Magazines: Margaret Cho is Shameless, Maisonneuve and Me

Since my entire life now revolves around the magazine industry, it's only fitting that I write my first blog of the week about magazines.

+ The second issue of Shameless should be on the racks of your favourite bookstores within the next week. The issue looks good, I'm especially a fan of the cover art. And of course, "Loud and Proud," my profile on Margaret Cho is on page 22. I haven't read it yet, but you can.

+ Maisonneuve, (the magazine I would say is my favourite if I had to pick one,) is giving away half-year subscriptions for free. They were also present at Word on the Street, which was was fab, even with the pushy/bitch crowd. Doormouse was practically giving away their mags. When we left it was down to 25 cents each for titles like Believer, Bust, Fugue, DIW and Metro Pop. Not bad.

+ Tegan and Sara show at Mod Club last night was aces. I'll write a more detailed account of it later, in the meantime, please check out eestoreydesign. Emily designed my business card (pictured above) and her work also includes T&S's CD packaging for So Jealous and their latest merch.

Toronto the Creative: Arts Week 2004

Once in a while, I get sent to Vtape to pick up a "deck" (that's industry speak for a VCR or DVD player). It's usually on a beautiful day and so I don't mind, especially since the Vtape offices are in my favourite building in the entire city (maybe even the world!), 401 Richmond — the home of beautiful, nice and talented people.

From the outside, it doesn't look like much. Just a converted warehouse on the southeast corner of Richmond and Spadina. But inside there are creaky hardwood floors, exposed brick, art galleries, publishing companies and other officies devoted to creative creation. Up on the roof is one of the nicest, most private places to enjoy your lunch. There are flowers and plants everywhere and a secretive place to admire the Toronto skyline.

401 Richmond is also one of the sites participating in this year's Arts Week. There will be public exhibits and other events all around the city. The official kickoff is tomorrow at Nathan Phillips Square.

Don't forget, Word on the Street is this Sunday. This year it has moved from Queen's Street to Queen's Park, (so in my opinion it should be Word in the Park). There are a number of cool events including a panel discussion titled "Hearts and Minds: The Struggle of Canada's thinking persons magazine," which will feature panelists, Ken Alexander (The Walrus), Derek Webster (Maisonneuve) and Joyce Byrne (This Magazine). I'll be there.

I will also be at the Shameless magazine booth, where they will have copies of their second issue. This issue includes a profile on Margaret Cho, done by yours truly. I admit, I'm not particularly proud of this article, but I am pretty excited for it anyway. Next time, I'll write better...

Links:
Toronto Arts Online

Vinyl Cafe in 2D

"What could TV be that it isn't now? Good. I have an animated show that I developed with some friends of mine, called The Vinyl Café. It's based on the work of Stuart McLean. He's a bestselling author from Canada who writes about a family -- very funny, warm, sweet stories. His is the top radio show in Canada. So this is found material -- someone came to me with the idea of making an animated show, they convinced me to try it, and then CBS let us make half an episode, then they didn't want it." -- Phil Rosenthal, creator of Everybody Loves Raymond, says at a Salon.com round table about the state of television. Other panelists included Al Franken, Wil Wheaton and Spencer Rice (Kenny vs. Spenny).

I haven't decided if a Vinyl Cafe cartoon is brilliant or really wishful thinking. Canadian sense of humour has come up big in American entertainment but, the self-depreciating humour of Stuart MacLean is far different from the silliness of Jim Carrey and Mike Myers. Nonetheless, as a fan of the radio show, a patriotic Canadian and admirer of Mr. McLean, I would like to initiate a Vinyl Cafe for television cartoon campaign. Speaking of which, I've got a lot of Family Guy to catch up on...

Links:
Stuart McLean's bio on the Ryerson Journalism School website

Concert Review: Sarah Harmer @ Massey Hall, Sept. 17, 2004

With C'est What's Nia room gone from the list of Toronto's music venues, Massey Hall has quickly taken over as my favourite concert venue. One seats no more than 200, the other seats approximately 2800. They're obviously very different, but both have a sound quality superior to 98% of the other live music venues in the city.

Sarah Harmer headlined Massey Hall last night. The background was a simple combination of white fabric backdrops and coloured lighting. Although there were a few band missteps, Sarah's voice was crystal clear from the moment the first lyrics of "Around the Corner" escaped her lips to the last word of (my personal favourite,) "Lodestar," with which she closed in an encore. She sounded beautiful but my only complaint is there were no funny anecdotes or interesting song explainatons to make me want to spend another $50 for the next time she comes around.

Links:
Tab does the Q&A with Sarah Harmer in this week's Eye.

The Spoke dies from the inside

I'm a little depressed tonight.

Friends from the old skool bring word of a terrible event. Our beloved Spoke has become a wannabe Starbucks. So now instead of a bar, it's more of a coffee shop. The bar remains open, but there is only a very teeny tiny drinking room too small for the squash team, let alone football's defensive line.

This is bad news.

Singing along to Rick McGhie's "The Gambler" with a latte is simply wrong. But what's more wrong is that Rick isn't even on the calendar, which leads me to believe Wednesday nights are McGhie free? The man may be creepy but Western without Rick McGhie is no Western at all.

I'm miles away from London, but I find myself longing for the familar smell of stale beer and those dirty of beer bottle-lined booths. It was ugly, but it was home and the latest change to a cleaner, more sterile Spoke proves that although change is inevitable, it's not always for the better.

Link:
"Not ready to be a Spoke in the Wheel" — the final column I wrote at the Gazette that touches on some of the reasons why the Spoke has a special place in my heart.

CD Review: Tegan and Sara's So Jealous

It seems like it was so long ago when I first heard Tegan and Sara. I believe it was on CBC Radiosonic when the twins first came out with Under Feet Like Ours. But the second time I heard them, the first time I really listened, was during my internship at Chart. Oh how young I was then. I had barely interviewed anyone and I remember being assigned to interview them in person. I listened to This Business of Art on the subway, thinking that I really identified with these chicks from Calgary.

That was four years ago. Things are very different now. Tegan lives in Vancouver. Sara is in Montreal. (And me? Well, I'm back at my parents place in the suburbs of Toronto, but that's besides the point.) But more than geography, a lot seemed to have happened to both Tegan and Sara in the past four years. There was cries of heartbreak in their last album, If It Was You and hints of musical maturity. With their latest release, So Jealous, there is a sense that the duo have really come into their own. I won't pretend to know the twins, but musically, the album features more complex arrangements and better sense of drama, like the numbness of a stalled love in "I Know I Know I Know"—a song driven by a simple, yet solid bassline—and the bittersweet "Downtown."

Despite all the postive developments in the production Tegan and Sara's music, they have maintained their pop song credibility. The first ingle, "Walking With A Ghost" leads with sweet acoustic guitar chords and a great sing-a-long melody. The entire album is not all wonderful. "Speak Slow" is messy and the title track is simply odd. Standing on its own, it would be a fine track, but despite its title, "So Jealous" doesn't fit. Still, this may be my favourite Tegan and Sara album yet.

So Jealous comes out tomorrow, September 14th.

Links:
New Official Tegan and Sara Site

Film Review: Beyond the Sea

Last night, BW got us tickets to the world premier of Kevin Spacey's Beyond the Sea. It was Spacey's baby, his film tribute to Bobby Darin ("Splish Splash," "Dream Lover"). The event was very Hollywood. Red carpet, paparazzi, screaming fans and industry types wearing black.

Spacey was in attendence, looking very Kevin Spacey in a silver suit. He is one of my favourite actors. I love him especially for his role as Lester Burnham in American Beauty. Perhaps it is his role as this lovable loser that made his version of Bobby Darin kind of unbelievable. Spacey can be an everday man with a mid-life crisis in American Beauty. He can be a teacher in Pay It Forward. He can even be a psycotic serial killer in Se7en. But I just don't buy Kevin Spacey the smooth-talking crooner.

And even though, she planted a big wet one on Spacey after his introductory speech I also didn't believe there was chemistry between Sandra Dee (Kate Bosworth) and Darin. One can argue their relationship was not the focus of this film, but then what was? Perhaps it was Darin's back-and-forth banter with himself as a young boy. It was, in my opinion, a boring and annoying part of the film that served no purpose.

I did like the song-and-dance sequences. They reminded me of Bjork's "It's Oh So Quiet" video (but without the dancing mailboxes and pillars). But truthfully, that was all I really liked.

I suppose my criticism is harsh. Most of the audience at Roy Thompson Hall gave it a standing ovation and the Hollywood Reporter couldn't come up with anything really negative. The film comes out in November, but I suggest buying some Bobby Darin records instead.

Leave me down below the stars

In the centre of High Park, I forgot about the skyscrappers and highway traffic. It was a dream in the park, a cute production of As You Like It. I haven't seen a Shakepearean production in a long time and I'm so glad I made it out for this summer's final show in the park. It was a great warm night beneath tall trees. Even the pesky bugs stayed away and the only creatures crawling around (that I noticed) were ants attempting to snack on our picnic. Mmm picnics.

Afterwards the streets were busy. Roadrage on the Lakeshore and an awesome view of the fireworks. We gave a bouquet of ballons to a car full of strangers. Cake at Futures (they're bathrooms remain disgusting). Parallel parking on Bloor and I felt like a real city girl. Too bad I had to drive my Civic back to the suburbs aftwards. But this will all change...we're apartment hunting. I couldn't be more excited. Send your leads my way.

Say your goodbyes to Andrea Chiu, suburban poser. Say hello to Andrea Chiu, real Torontonian.

Gmail pt. 2

OK. So I went a little Gmail crazy and decided I didn't like my first gmail account. So it's now, foxymoronic@gmail.com. Do what you will with that information.

I didn't realize how insane the search for Gmail invites was until I found myself at Gmail Swap. Its slogan is: because people are nice. Its purpose is to help those who are looking for invites to offer products and/or services to people with invitations to give out. It's funny. My favourites are the woman who offered "one slightly used husband" and the guy who offered "a 2004 air guitar."

I still have a few invites left. The question is, what will you give me?