Leaving On A Jet Plane

I do, however, know when I'll be back again. Next Sunday, June 3.

I'm off to London (the UK version) for a week to do a bit of sightseeing, shopping, socializing and to watch Harry Potter be a very bad boy indeed.

While I'm gone, occupy yourselves with the musings of my good friends Merdypops and Sharelle, the latter of whom is back to blogging after an almost 7 month hiatus (translation: everyone pestered her until she was forced to start posting again just to get us off her back). Good times.

Cheerio mates!

Go Shawty! It's Ya Birfday!

I have to give a Happy Birthday shout out to my girl Merdypops who turns thirty-coughcoughcough years old today.

Have a good one Mer and enjoy the drive-in tonight.

Jumpin' Jack Flash

Jack Bauer saves yet another day but will he back for the next and what else could he possibly have thrown at him?

24 had it's big 2-hour season finale this past Monday and it pretty much did a good job of wrapping up all the storylines and creating a few possible threads for next season.

• After double-crossing CTU (and blinding Doyle in the process) Grandpa Bauer kidnaps Josh in and brings him to a decommissioned offshore oil rig in preparation for taking them both back to China to continue the Bauer Legacy, such as it is.
  

• Jack figures out where his dad is in hiding and, along with physical assistance from Bill Buchanan and tactical info from Karen Hayes, manages to launch a secret attack on the rig, kill most of the hostiles, capture the Head Chinese Terrorist, save Josh (but not before the kid pops a cap in Ol' Gramps' ass) and manages to get them all safely off the rig again. Jack actually must make a last minute jump for his life from the rig to an airborne helicopter seconds before the American military (by order of VP Daniels) take the whole place out with an air strike that (presumably) sends the contentious nuclear component to the bottom of the ocean. Sorry about all the stuff in parentheses there.

• The Russians are satisfied that component is no longer in danger of ending up in enemy hands and call off their strike on the US Eurasian military base. For their part in the rescue and recovery mission, Tom Lennox suggests that Karen and Bill be allowed to resign with no black marks on their permanent records. The Veep agrees and then delivers an After School Special-style speech about the difficulties of effective leadership. Oh yeah, and Chloe is knocked up setting in motion another reunion between herself and baby-daddy Morris. I can't wait for Cranky Pregnant Chloe next season.
  

• In the final moments of the show, we see Jack confront Secretary Heller in an attempt to defend his relationship with Audrey and reinsert himself into her life. Heller presents a pretty sensible argument against it and, once Jack sees what a pitiable state Audrey is in he kind of has to agree. He gives the "I love you but I can't be with you" speech to her semi-comatose form and walks out to cliffs facing to sea to look all contemplative as the sun comes up and the silent clock ticks down.

I know a lot of people had problems with this season and, while I agree the producers/writers seemed to have lost the plot after the nuclear detonation, I was pretty happy with the season as a whole. I liked most of the sub-plots and I really liked the family melodrama that Jack had to deal with (yes, I realize I'm alone here).

And though I would consider myself, if not a complete pacifist then at least mostly anti-violence, every once in awhile I think "Yeah, that guy needs to lose a finger or be nearly-suffocated with a plastic bag" and 24 definitely delivered the goods this year. Just me I guess. At least they didn't make Jack an addict again - that was pure torture.

Also, I'm still not entirely sure what happened to President Logan.

Anyhoo...

Speaking of being tortured and people named Jack (Hello Mr. Segue) lets turn our attentions to Lost which actually delivered a pretty awesome season finale especially when you consider how much the first half of the season completely sucked ass (RIP MR. Eko).

It was classic Lost, providing tons of intrigue as it answered many questions while, simultaneously, creating even more to ponder.

We find out Jack gets off the island but at what cost? And did Charlie really (finally) pay with his life?

Without getting into too much detail, here's the key stuff:

• The plan to ambush the others sort of works but not exactly like it was supposed to because Jin, of all people, is a crappy shot. When he, Bernard and Sayid are captured by the Others who aren't killed in the attack it's Hurley who ends saving everyone with a well timed hit and run.

• Ben cuts off the party of survivors who are making their way to the communications tower so that they can pick up a radio signal which make Naomi's SAT phone operational, so that she can contact the rest of her party to come and rescue them all. Ben warns Jack that Naomi is not who she says she is but he kind of lacks credibility at this point and ends getting his ass kicked and being taken hostage. He takes the opportunity to introduce Alex (who tagged along for fun) to her mother Rousseau.
  

• Charlie is held hostage by two Others who are guarding the, still very much operational, underwater station. When the seemingly un-kill-able Mikael shows up, more of Ben's deceptions come to light which, in a moment of uncharacteristic cleverness, Charlie uses to pit the Others against ...each other. Desmond pops up and spears Mikael who has just killed his two former allies. Charlie gets the code for the signal-jamming switch from one of the dying Others and successfully shuts it off, almost immediately generating a connection with Penny who is not, as Naomi claimed, on the offshore rescue vessel. Her location remains a mystery for the time being as the signal begins to break down and Mikael (aka Rasputin) appears floating outside the station with a grenade which he promptly detonates causing the hatch to flood and Charlie by all appearances) to drown but not before warning Desmond of Naomi's apparent deception.

• Also not dead is Locke, who is given the creepiest pep talk ever by the fully pubescent Walt (or some sort of reasonable facsimile), manages to find himself an operational firearm and pull himself out of the pit of death. He tracks down his former allies and shoots Naomi just as she is about to make contact with her people (geez, nobody liked that girl). He reiterates to Jack Ben's theory that neither she or her associates are to be trusted but Locke's also got some credibility issues and bull-headed Jack goes ahead and makes the call. Someone picks up on the other end and it looks like our little lost bunch is about to be saved. However...

• Interspersed throughout the 2-hour episode are scenes of what initially seem to be flashbacks but we soon learn are flash-forwards. We see a despondent, substance-abusing, suicidal Jack still carrying around his reluctant hero/leader complex. We learn that someone Jack knew has died and, with each flash, we are lead to believe it was someone else that was on the island. So, we now know that Jack does eventually make it off the island and so, too, does Kate as they have a tense, late night rendezvous in the last scene that suggests all did not go right with the "rescue effort" and the two still feel guilt about their part in it.

So, presumably by the time Lost wraps up it's run in 2010 we'll learn who else besides Jack and Kate made it off the island alive, what about their rescue was so traumatic that it haunts them still and whose death it is that makes Jack admit that they should never have left. We'll also learn if anything can kill Mikael, what the frick that black mist really is and whether Charlie can make better use of his " guest appearances" than creepy Walt.

Whew! That was a lot TV viewing over the past 4 1/2 months. I need a vacation.

KOL On MSN

Don't worry lads, it will be much warmer than this by the time you get to Toronto for your gig on June 12.

If you, like me, are anxiously waiting for Kings of Leon to make their way to your city on their current North American tour, you can bide your time by watching them in concert tonight (9pm EDT) on MSN's Control Room.

The performance is from their sold out, April 18 gig at the Hammersmith Apollo in London. Should give you an idea of what out friends across the pond were treated to and what we, on these shores, have to look forward to from the lovely and talented Followill boys.

June 12 can't get here fast enough.

SNL Musical Grab Bag

The kids at Stereogum picked the Warped Memory Lane/The Weight sketch as their favourite from last weekend's season finale of Saturday Night Live. Though I agree it was a pretty good one, my vote goes to the Prom Committee bit, with the "Whitney Houston" Weekend Update appearance coming in a close second.

Though Prom was not entirely music-based, I liked that guest host Zach Braff was able to poke a little fun at himself with the Garden State theme/Pitchfork mix-tape soundtrack reference. It was a nice moment for those of us who really enjoyed that film but still kinda really wanted to drop-kick Natalie Portman's character when she delivered that heinous "This Shins' song will change your life" line.

The Whitney skit gets a nod pretty much because Maya Rudolph (who's never not funny) always has me doubling over in laughter with her portrayal of "Mrs. Houston". Of course, the former Mrs. Bobby Brown is now truly little more than a walking joke but, not since the heyday of Debra Wilson on MadTV have Whitney wig-outs been quite so hysterical.

Raise A Glass To Old Queen Vics

Late Night TV Preview: May 21 - 26, 2007

Both Albert Hammond Jr. and Emily Haines will be gracing late night programming in the coming week.

Here are some of the musical artists scheduled to appear on late night TV in the coming week. Note: * indicates an encore episode.

MONDAY

• Jesus & Mary Chain - Late Show with David Letterman (11:35pm - CBS, OMNI)


• Ozzy Osbourne (panel and musical guest) - Jimmy Kimmel Live* (12:05am - ABC, CityTV)


• Ricky Lee Jones - Late Night with Conan O'Brien (12:35am - NBC, A-Channel)


• The Format - Last Call with Carson Daly (1:35am - NBC)

TUESDAY

• Angelique Kidjo w/Ziggy Marley - Tonight Show with Jay Leno (11:35pm - NBC, A-Channel)


• Ozzy Osbourne - Kimmel


• Loudon Wainwright III - Conan


• Emily Haines - Carson

WEDNESDAY

• Fiction Plane - Leno


• The Bravery - Kimmel


• Albert Hammond Jr - Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson (12:35am - CBS, CH)


• Ben Kweller - Carson

THURSDAY

• Patti Smith - Ferguson


• The Bravery - Carson

FRIDAY

• Kaiser Chiefs - Kimmel*


• Mando Diao - Conan


• Satellite Party - Carson

SATURDAY

• Corinne Bailey Rae - Saturday Night Live* (11:30pm - NBC, GlobalTV)


• The Rollins Band - Henry Rollins Show (9pm & 2:50am - IFC Canada)

I Love Kylie's New Do

Kylie Minogue, out and about last week in NYC

Yeah, that's pretty much all I've got today.

I'll try to get back on point tomorrow.

I Believe The Children Are Our Future

Josh "Baby Bay" Bauer: way more trouble than you can possibly imagine.

Turns out the evil Grandpa Philip Bauer wants Baby Boy Bauer (Josh) in exchange for the nuclear device he's holding hostage because BBB is his legacy and will (presumably) make up for the failings of his own sons, Jack and Graem. He's planning to take the boy back to China with him to learn The Ways of Bauer as well as be witness to and benefit from the rapidly growing Chinese industry and economy. Or something. I'm not really clear on the details but I don't really care - I'm just happy to see James Cromwell back in action.

As BBB is led back to the Chinese terrorist base, the remaining gunmen start rounding up the surviving CTU-ers to lock them up in one of the detention areas. Before that can happen though, Jack leads Morris and Nadia (who display surprising combat skills) on a successful revolt against their captors. Jack then goes after Josh, whom he manages to rescue but once again lets the head Chinese baddie get away.

Having lost confidence in the Chinese, Grandpa Bauer uses the nuclear component as a bargaining chip with the very extremely stressed out VP Daniels. Daniels is in the unenviable position of trying to fend off the totally pissed off Russian government who are threatening aggressive action against a US military base unless the nuclear component is destroyed.

The plan to use Lying Lisa as bait to her Russian spy boy-toy flopped when the two ended up having sex (which Tom Lennox was forced to watch - good times), she flipped out on him and he almost strangles her to death.

Though Karen Hayes opposes the "BBB for nuclear component" swap Lennox and Daniels think it's a reasonable trade. So, just as the boy is being readied for a reunion with his mom back at CTU, Doyle swoops in to carry out the the Veep's new orders. Jack is all kinds of pissed off but manages to be restrained by about four CTU field officers.

Next Monday (May 21) is the big 2-hour season finale and will likely include, among other things, a final tense showdown between Philip and Jack Bauer.

Also, don't forget that this Sunday's (May 20) 1-hour season finale of The Simpsons is a spoof of 24, featuring the voices of Kiefer Sutherland (Jack Bauer) and Mary Lynn Rajskub (Chloe O'Brien).

Relevant Music Journalism

Will Butler (second from right) with the rest of Arcade Fire on the April 4, 2005 issue of Time magazine (Canadian edition)...

...and looking all kinds of sexy (far right) in a more recent photo.

Yesterday (May 16) marked the second of Arcade Fire's 2-night stand at Massey Hall in Toronto and the second of my two occasions seeing the band play Massey Hall in Toronto.

Both concerts were fantastic: the band brought unbridled passion to both performances, the crowds were energetic and the music was, of course, simply beautiful. Blah blah blah Arcade Fire are indie music heroes who are at the forefront of changing the way the music industry functions.

Now here's what I really took away from the previous two nights: Will Butler - lead singer Win's little brother - is incredibly hot.

My friend Melissa and I were discussing Will's seemingly sudden emergence as band sexpot after last night's show. We both wondered how we could have failed to notice before now that young Will had become quite so lovely with his sweet smile, indie-boy good looks and adorably floppy hair. I thought it was maybe because he had spent much of the time surrounding the band's first full-length release (Funeral, 2004) running about with bizarre things on his head, drumming on anything that didn't move. Melissa doesn't believe that was even the same guy and thinks it's just that Will was previously considered the young kid in the band and has only recently started to come into his own since the second AF release (Neon Bible, 2007).

Really, though, the most important thing that's come to light here is that Will Butler is hot and I (and Melissa) now fully recognize his hotness.

Yes, that's what stood out most for me after seeing Arcade Fire perform two nights in a row.

It's all about the music.

Canucks All Up In The NME Hizz-ouse

The current issue (May 19) of the NME comes with a free CD featuring a whole whack of our favourite Canadian indie music faves.

The disc, entitled Canadian Blast, includes tracks from the likes of Metric, Les Breastfeeders, Tokyo Police Club, Wintersleep, Land of Talk and The Stills.

The issue is on sale now throughout the UK and should be available on North American shores in the next one or two weeks.

Deets For NXNE

Heavy Trash

Details for the 2007 North By Northeast Festival were announced last week and there are many names of note to look forward to on the music side.



Those expected to perform during the 4-day (June 7 - 10) blow-out include: Heavy Trash, Urge Overkill, Dinosaur Jr., Hunter Valentine, Spooky Reuben, Parkas, Peter Elkas, Tin Bangs, The Vibrants, The Leatherettes and many more. Click here for the full list.



Also, if you're a subscriber to the NOW Toronto Tip Sheet, you can take advantage of their 2-for-1 wristband offer.

Colbert Battles A Hard Rain

Colbert dukes it out with Rain on the Korean music charts.

I love me some Stephen Colbert. Especially when he's doing his wannabe rockstar thing or starting beefs with people. Well, on last Thursday's Colbert Report, my favourite satirical pundit managed to combine the two.

Colbert was all up in arms because he'd only reached the #2 position in a Time magazine reader's poll of the 100 most influential people in the world. He was beaten to the top spot by Korean r&b/pop music sensation Rain.

Colbert was not amused and he wasn't about to take this slight lying down. He set about straight away to making his own Korean language pop music song with accompanying video. The track is quite sensibly entitled Singin' in Korean and it's funny as hell. Colbert's over-enunciated Korean, the awkwardly translated subtitles, the slick dance moves and melodramatic action are all spot on.

Check out the entire Colbert Report clip, including the Singin' in Korean video, here.

Late Night TV Preview: May 14 - 19, 2007

Rufus Wainwright

Here are some of the musical artists scheduled to appear on late night TV in the coming week. Note: * indicates an encore episode.


MONDAY

• Rock Kills Kid - Last Call with Carson Daly* (1:35am - NBC)

TUESDAY

• Wilco - Late Show with David Letterman (11:35pm - CBS, CH)
  
• Flava Flav (panel guest), Feist (musical performer) - Jimmy Kimmel Live (12:05am - ABC, CityTV)
  

WEDNESDAY

• Mavis Staples - Letterman
• Silversun Pickups - Late Night with Conan O'Brien (12:35am - NBC, A-Channel)
• Modest Mouse - Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson (12:35am - CBS, CH)
• Joss Stone - Carson

THURSDAY

• Rufus Wainwright - Letterman
• M. Ward - Conan
• Tori Amos - Ferguson

FRIDAY

• Peter Bjorn & John - Tonight Show with Jay Leno (11:35pm - NBC, A-Channel)
• Elvis Costello - Letterman
• Blonde Redhead - Conan

SATURDAY

• Ani DiFranco (This is my best guess - I'm really not sure what's going on with the IFC Canada schedule anymore) - Henry Rollins Show (9pm & 3am - IFC Canada)
  

I Thought I Saw A Pussycat (Doll)

I was watching a recent episode of MuchVibe and noticed something I hadn't before.

It was during the video for the Black Eyed Peas' 2003 single Shut Up, which features BEP members Will.I.Am and Fergie as a once happy couple battling in song. In the clip, many of Fergie Ferg's back up posse are played by members of pop group/neo-burlesque act the Pussycat Dolls. I didn't spot lead PCD Nicole - I don't know if she wasn't yet part of the group or BEP was afraid she might overshadow the Fergalicious - but I did pick out many of the incidental Dolls as well as, I believe, PCD founder Robin Antin.

Wow. I'm not sure what was more embarrassing about this particular admission - that I'm now able to deftly identify members of the PCD in a variety of situations or that I felt it was interesting enough to share with you all.

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

Milo and Nadia: Oh, what might have been.

Milo confronts Nadia about the iffy status of their relationship and her burgeoning feelings for Doyle (who, you might remember, was in charge of Nadia's "interrogation" less than 12 hours ago). She gets miffed that he's all up in her business and proceeds to plug him point-blank right between the eyes.

OK, it didn't really happen like that but Milo did meet his tragic end courtesy of a (smoking hot) Chinese militiaman for hire who led a bloody coup of CTU HQ (CTU breach - all right!). Milo unwittingly walked into the line of fire when he identified himself to the terrorists as CTU acting director in order to protect Nadia.

It's all very tragic and romantic as the oddly sexy Milo had proved himself to be a stand-up guy over the course of the day. On the plus side, this means there's no need for any awkward "It's not you, it's me" discussions between Nadia and Milo later on down the line.

Meanwhile, Jack is still in shock over Audrey's fragile condition and the insistence of her father (Secretary of Defense James Heller) that Jack stay away from her. The old man's even gone so far as to take out a restraining order against Jack on his daughter's behalf because he feels that a continued relationship between the two would further damage her physical and mental health. Harsh!

So, Jack shoves that little emotional blow to the back of his psyche and concentrates on trying to save Marilyn and Josh (who, for some reason, are still at CTU despite not being essential to the plot since about hour 12) from the terrorists. Looks like the gunmen have been sent to extract the boy at the behest of evil Phillip Bauer who is in the process of repairing the damaged nuclear component for the Chinese. Baby Boy Bauer almost makes good his escape until his mother is captured and threatened with death unless he gives himself up, which he does. Jack is (very conveniently) forced to comfort an hysterical Marilyn as the boy is lead away.

Despite Chloe begging for another chance with their relationship, Morris asserts that it's over because he can never be the man that she wants him to be. Or something. Honestly, I'm not entirely sure what's going on with the two of them right now.

Finally, VP Daniels and Tom Lennox force the Veep's duplicitous assistant/former paramour Lisa to trick her Russian informant boyfriend into thinking that the crisis with the nuclear component has successfully been averted. She is extremely anxious about being able to pull it off without a hitch. Seems she has good reason, as once she returns to her unsuspecting (?) lover, she can't manage to remove herself from his presence so that he can pass along the info that's been planted on her PDA because the man is intent on shagging her senseless. Which Tom, the Veep and all us unfortunate 24 viewers get to witness. Blech!

I Was Watching A Fight And The Boston Pops Broke Out

Seems like even relatively soft-spoken musician Ben Folds (top) has some pretty rowdy fans (bottom).

Last night's (May 9) opening performance of the Boston Pops was disrupted when a fight broke out in the upper balcony.

For real. People were throwing down at the symphony. There's even video footage.

To be fair, this particular audience was probably a little different than normal, as pop pianist Ben Folds was scheduled to be a guest performer later in the evening. Still, I don't recall the Folds crowd having a reputation for being brawlers.

The scuffle was apparently touched off when one concertgoer complained to another about making too much noise.

Which Means He's Now Eligible For National Health Care

Jack White and Ashley MacIsaac: no DNA test required

Jack White is Canadian. Sort of. Well no, not really, but he has Canadian ancestry (and some notable Canuck relatives) which I'm sure amounts to about the same thing.



Nova Scotia lawyer Daniel J. MacIsaac confirmed yesterday (May 8) that he is a distant cousin of White - né Gillis* - and that their family also includes a trio of the Maritimes' premiere fiddlers:Ashley MacIsaac, Buddy MacMaster and Natalie MacMaster.



MacIsaac explained that his grandfather and White's grandmother were siblings.



At this point neither MacIsaac nor, presumably, the three fiddling Macs have met their famous American cousin but there might be a prime opportunity come this July 14. That's when the White Stripes touch down in Glace Bay as part of their enormous cross-Canada tour. The date also marks the Stripes' 10-year anniversary.





*Jack took (Stripes' drummer) Meg's last name during their brief marriage and he's hung onto it ever since. Yet another reason why we can't help loving the man.

Blow Bows Out

Flamboyant fashionista Isabella Blow has died at the age of 48.

Blow, who was a stylist and fashion editor (most recently as Tatler magazine), reportedly succumbed to ovarian cancer yesterday (May 7) in a hospital in Western England.

Even if you had little or no knowledge of the fashion industry, you were guaranteed to recognize Blow when you saw her. Her often outlandish outfits and larger-than-life personality made her a spectacle unto herself virtually everywhere she went.

Blow was also credited with discovering and promoting fledgling fashion talent such as designers Philip Treacy, Hussein Chalayan and Alexander McQueen as well as models Honor Fraser, Stella Tennant and Sophie Dahl.

Isabella is survived by her husband Detmar Blow.

Preachers and Persson Team Up For Chart Hit

The Cardigans' Nina Persson (second from left) is flanked by Manics' (l - r) Sean Moore, Nicky Wire and James Dean Bradfield

Welsh rockers Manic Street Preachers and The Cardigans lead singer Nina Persson have pooled their considerable talents for the track Your Love Alone Is Not Enough, which debuted at number 2 on this week's UK singles charts.

I'm not entirely sure how this musical venture came to be, I could venture an informed guess. Persson likely got a favourable recommendation from another of Wales' favourite sons, one Tom Jones, with whom she (and her Cardigans bandmates) joined forces a few years back for a cover of the Talking Heads classic Burning Down The House.

Whatever brought Nina and the Manics together, the result is just lovely. Click here for the video and judge for yourself.

Late Night TV Preview: May 7 - 12, 2007

Feist

Here are some of the musical artists scheduled to appear on late night TV in the coming week. Note: * indicates encore episode.


MONDAY

• Darlene Love - Late Show with David Letterman (11:35pm - CBS, OMNI)
• Pink - Jimmy Kimmel Live* (12:05am - ABC, CityTV)
• Paul Wall - Last Call with Carson Daly* (1:35am - NBC)

TUESDAY

• Feist - Tonight Show with Jay Leno (11:35pm - NBC, A-Channel)
• Bloc Party - Carson

WEDNESDAY

• Aqualung - Leno
• The Kooks - Letterman
• Dinosaur Jr. - Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson (12:35am - CBS, CH)
• Joseph Arthur & the Lovely Astronauts - Carson

THURSDAY

• Alexa Ray Joel - Kimmel
• Stephen Marley - Late Night with Conan O'Brien (12:35am - NBC, A-Channel)
• Henry Rollins (panel guest), The Bird & the Bee (musical performer) - Carson

FRIDAY

• Ying Yang Twins - Carson

SATURDAY

• John Doe (TBD) - Henry Rollins Show (9pm & 2:35am - IFC Canada)
  

Fashion Fatigue

I just got back for Day 1 of The Clothing Show and I am plum tuckered out.

I'm off to spend the next little while trying on all my great new gear from the likes of Damzels/Doll Factory, Greenbaum Clothing and Island. Then, I need to refuel and rest up for Day 2.

Proper blogging returns tomorrow.

Suspicious Minds

Chloe and ex-husband/current squeeze/soon to be ex again, Morris O'Brien

There’s a mole! Finally! I actually thought we might make it through an entire season of 24 without any classified information being leaked to the ne’er do wells.

This time the culprit is VP Daniels personal aide/love bunny, Lisa. Sort of. Seems that, aside from bonking the Veep, she also has a thing with a hot Washington lobbyist. The two are playing Daniels – she supports his whack foreign policy so that they can control their pet economic initiatives. Or something. It’s not entirely clear and not at all interesting.

Anyway, turns out Loverboy Lobbyist is using Lisa and her White House connections to pass on classified intel to the Russians (again, for reasons that aren’t entirely clear). This all comes to light when the Russian president reveals that he knows the Whitehouse/CTU has lost the nuclear thingy to the Chinese and they threaten to take military action against the US if it’s not recovered forthwith.

Nadia starts her tenure as CTU acting Director on shaky ground. She’s gruff with everyone but doesn’t back it up with any real show of strength. When a departmental appointed psychiatrist shows up and starts putting the strong hand to a fragile Audrey, Nadia initially allows him free reign. It isn’t until Milo and Doyle give her some council that she sees the need to stand up to the Doc and protect Audrey. Oh and also because Jack (with Doyle’s assistance) escapes from custody, liberates Audrey from CTU medical and goes rogue until he’s able to work his gentle persuasive and get her to reveal information that may or may not lead to the location of the Chinese and the nuclear component.

Finally, Morris and Chloe have called it quits for good. Or have they?

Scarlett J. w/JAMC

As previously promised, here's slightly clearer footage of Jesus & Mary Chain at this past weekend's Coachella festival, performing their classic Just Like Honey with special guest vocalist Scarlett Johansson.

I'm sorry to say but our Scarlett sounds a bit flat here. That doesn't bode well for the Tom Waits cover album she's rumoured to be working on so let's just hope she was nervous and/or having an off night.

The Earth Intruders Are Coming

Never one to disappoint in the vocals department is Bjork, whose newest album Volta will finally hit stores this Tuesday (May 8).

You can listen to the entire album now courtesy of the NME. Bear in mind, you do need to be a n NME online member but it's free to sign up and well worth the effort.

Check out the video for the first single Earth Intruders on Bjork's MySpace page.

California Coconut

Most people are familiar with Jason Schwartzman as an accomplished young actor who has appeared in such films as Marie Antoinette, I Heart Huckabees and Rushmore. they may also know that he's a member of the esteemed Coppola clan - Francis Ford is his uncle (brother to Talia Shire, Schwartzman's mother) and his cousins include Sofia and Roman as well as Nicolas Cage.

Fewer know that he's also a talented musician, having been a founding member of Phantom Planet the band best known for penning California, the theme to the teen soap opera The OC.

Schwarztman had left the band to pursue his acting career but he's now launched himself whole-heartedly back into to his love of music. He's the lone figure behind Coconut Records, a project that recently completed work on a full-length release entitled Nighttiming. The album is packed with lovely, jangly pop tunes, all infused with a chilled-out, beach vibe. The tracks are streaming right now via the CR MySpace page and you can purchase the entire album through itunes as well as other downloading services.

Lest we think that Jason is the only Schwartman with musical inclinations, take note that younger brother Robert Carmine is a member of the band Rooney.

Thanks to Stephanie for giving me the heads up.

What Katie Did

Kate Moss (far left) strikes a pose in the Oxford Street Top Shop window last night

Today marks the official launch of the new Top Shop clothing line designed by model/Pete Doherty paramour Kate Moss.

Yesterday, hundreds of fashionistas and the just plain curious lined up outside the Oxford Street branch to get a sneak peek at the clothes and to see Moss herself work her model thing by posing in the store window in one of her own creations. Click here for a video of the chaos.



The UK retail giant is doing it's best to make sure that everyone has a fair crack at getting their hands on the highly anticipated items. Customers were only permitted 20 minutes to shop and were only allowed to purchase five items in total from the collection. The buying limit applies through the website as well.



Even so, though the line was only made available at all other TS locations and online starting at 4:30am and reports have many other key pieces being sold out by 7am. Some items have already found their way to Ebay.

Moss and Canadian model Irina Lazareanu model pieces from the Top Shop line

I'm somewhat surprised to find that I actually like quite a few of the pieces. Aside from the waistcoats/vests (all kinds of wrong), the clothes look quite cool, if not entirely original. Should there be a morsel left by the time I get to London at the end of the month I might try to score a thing or two. Fingers crossed.

Take A Picture, It Lasts Longer

Also, launching today (albeit more locally) is the 2007 Contact Toronto Photography Festival.

Running the entire month of May, the festival features homegrown and international artists exhibiting works in traditional and non-traditional venues.

One of this year's highlights is sure to be Warflowers, a public installation by author/artist Douglas Coupland to be exhibited in TTC transit shelters along Queen ST W. As well, there's Wonderful Nuit, an exhibition of 30 works by 18 different photographers (including my good friend, Melissa Goldstein) that presents images of the city taken from the Tower on the occasion of the Toronto's inaugural Nuit Blanche Festival last September.