Loverboy has got to go!
CBC’s National Playlist lets Canadians decide what music hits the airwaves
Anthony Augustine
National Playlist — www.cbc.ca/nationalplaylist
— CBC’s National Playlist might not reflect the music
tastes of everyone, but it’s still a fascinating experiment
in trying to understand how varied our tastes are. While local
hip hop act mood ruff didn’t make it through last week after
their catchy single Rocketship was submitted by CBC radio personality
and Smugglers singer Grant Lawrence, it was still great exposure
for the long-running trio. Currently, retro new wave act Hot Hot
Heat is rubbing shoulders on the playlist with R.E.M in its prime,
hipster Sufjan Stevens and k.d. lang performing live at the Junos.
Catch the debates weekdays at 11:30 a.m. on CBC Radio One. One
downside is that all the audio samples for the playlist are only
available in RealAudio format. Considering CBC has been innovative
on some of its other sites, it’s odd that the Mother Corp.
doesn’t give users an option to get the content in a different
format.
Mico — www.myspace.com/micoband
— Busy at work in the studio on the follow-up to its
sophomore album, Outside the Unbearable Grows, Calgary-based melodic
punk act Mico has uploaded two new songs from the forthcoming
disc to its MySpace page. The guitar-driven act has undergone
a number of lineup changes over the years, but former Red Fisher
singer John Stewart is still front and centre. Although it’s
taken the band three years to get back into the studio to record,
the lineup shuffles haven’t affected the way the group sounds.
The track Motion Pictures is anchored by a foundation of intricately
layered guitar, while Handling Required is all about manipulating
dynamics. Mico hopes to have the album released in the spring,
although it appears the band is still shopping around for a label
to handle it. Check it out — Mico has to be one of the most
under-rated groups around.
Paul Butler — www.theotherpaulbutler.com,
www.divorcekevin.com,
— As most of us know, Winnipeg is not only a hotbed of music
but also has a thriving visual-arts scene. While River City’s
Royal Art Lodge may have been the first out of the gate, more
and more local talent is getting worldwide recognition. Along
with running a successful online gallery, artist Paul Butler is
increasingly taking his work on the road. Butler’s minimalist
approach refreshing, and his striking collage pieces have examined
body-image issues, consumerism, self-help messages and the fashion
industry. Butler is also responsible for the altered Jets logo
that was used on the promotional posters for the recent found-footage
documentary Death by Popcorn.
Znet — www.zmag.org
— With Osama bin Laden’s recent assertion that people
should read William Blum’s Rogue State, you have to wonder
what else is on the bedside table of the most wanted man in the
world. Blum is an occasional contributor to political hotbed Znet,
and you can find some of his work — along with articles
on Canada’s involvement with Haiti, problems in New Orleans
and the collectivization of Wal-Mart workers in Florida —
within Znet’s massive web portal.
Anthony Augustine is a freelance music and pop culture writer
who spends way too much time in front of the computer. He also
hosts a weekly two-hour electronic music program on CKUW 95.9
FM Got a site you think he should see? E-mail him at anthony.alloneword@gmail.com. |
Uptown
Magazine - Winnipeg's Online Source for Arts, Entertainment & News
