More Than 10 Years After Everybody Else Stopped Caring...

...Liam Gallagher says the Blur/Oasis feud is over.

Um, OK, thanks for the heads up Liam.

Well, let's just use this breaking news to play the two songs that were at the centre of the feud. Oddly, I just heard the Blur track a few days ago at my gym.



(Hey, that's Matt Lucas from Little Britain as the "scientist"!)





Ahhhh, memories.

It's Called Parity, Bitch!

Satirical/political pundit Stephen Colbert holds forth on the recent strengthening in Canada's dollar, especially in comparison to it's weakening American counterpart, on last night's episode of The Colbert Report.










Really just an excuse to post some Colbert content because I heart him so much and haven't had him on the blog for awhile.

Polaris Nabbed By Montrealers - But Not The Ones You Think

With their Close to Paradise disc, quartet Patrick Watson held off stiff competition from fellow Montrealers The Dears and Arcade Fire - as well as Toronto's globe-conquering chanteuse, Feist - to take home the 2007 Polaris Music Prize.

The announcement of the winner capped a three hour gala ceremony/concert at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto this past Monday (September 24).

Aside from bragging rights, the band will also pocket the $20 000 monetary portion of the prize.

Selected tracks from all the nominees (except Da Fire, who just don't roll like that) are available on the official Polaris Nominees CD.

I'm not going to lie to you all: part of the reason this post is two days late is that, until they were announced as winners, I wasn't entirely sure who Patrick Watson was. I'd heard the name before but wasn't familiar with their work. Plus, I thought it was just one dude as opposed to a proper band (though, I think that might be an understandable mistake).

Not that it really mattered, but I wanted to hear some of the winning album before I posted. Verdict: me likey. See what you think.




Drifters (from the album Close to Paradise) - Patrick Watson

Insert Your Own 24 Joke Here

Not funny: Kiefer Sutherland - a grown-ass man who also happens to be an extremely well-paid Hollywood actor - gets busted for a DUI on his way home from an event hosted by his employer - a major TV network that, presumably, has never heard of taxi chits. It's Sutherland's second offense in 5 years which means, if he's convicted on the latest charge, he's looking at jail time.

Pretty funny: intrepid Toronto Star theatre critic Richard Ouzounian's account of the arrest and his own harrowing attempt to attend an event given in honour of the 24 star in the subsequent, um, 24 hours.

Totally funny: the following (not at all related but still absolutely priceless) video of an all-kinds-of-drunk Kiefer attacking a Christmas tree.

Weekend Prep

Yes, I know it's only Tuesday but, considering all the stuff that's going to be happening in our fair city this weekend I thought it would be a good idea to get a jump on everything asap.



Toronto's 2nd annual Nuit Blanche will probable require the most amount of strategic scheduling. This all night/overnight, city-wide event runs from 7:01pm Saturday September 29 to sunrise on Sunday September 30 and is comprised of dozens on installations and exhibitions, many of them interactive.



Check out the website for more info or, if you've still got the current issue of NOW magazine and/or last Saturday's Toronto Star both publications have handy pull-out inserts to help with your Nuit Blanche "plan of attack". I'm going to make an educated guess and say that you can probably get similar info pamphlets at your local Scotiabank branch or at Toronto City Hall, since both are event sponsors.





Also on both Saturday and Sunday (but just during the day) is The Clothing Show, the one-stop, shopping extravaganza for all the frugal fashionistas in the GTA. Once again, you'll be able to pick and choose from among a plethora of new product by local designers and retailers as well as second-hand finds from the best vintage dealers in the city. Hours of operation are Saturday 11am - 8pm and Sunday 11am - 7pm in the Automotive Building at Exhibition Place.



Wrapping up an already jam-packed weekend is Word on the Street, Toronto's annual book and magazine festival. The roadways around Queen's Park will become a "no vehicle zone" on Sunday from 11am - 6pm as lit-lovers converge on the area. Aside from being able to peruse the wares in the booths of publishers and lit retailers, attendees will also be able to take in the many readings, lectures and seminars that will go on throughout the day. Word on the Street is a family-friendly event, with many booths and activities dedicated to children of all ages.



I will be making the gallant (some might say "dumbass") attempt to attend all three of these events. As well, I have tickets for concerts this Friday and the coming Monday. Needless to say, there isn't going to be a lot of blogging over those four days. Actually, if I come out the other side of this weekend with my faculties still somewhat intact I'll be quite pleased. Wish me luck.

And I Don't Even Really Like Ice Cream

OK, I think my highly inappropriate crush on Rupert Grint just hit stratospheric proportions.

Really, though, how can I be expected to resist when Rupes just keeps bringing the cuteness as can be witnessed in the photo below. (Yes, I realize that excuse delves dangerously into Dateline: To Catch a Predator territory - I plead "no contest".)

[source]

Seriously, this photo is just all kinds of adorable. I heart it so much that I'm not even going to get into how heinously wrong it is that Ribena popsicles actually exist. Or that the scoop of ice cream Rupert is offering up is kind of on the stingy side.

It should go without saying that this photo is now my computer wallpaper and people who are stalking Suri Holmes Cruise coughAmyandLorriecough should refrain from being so judgmental.

Late Night TV Preview: September 24 - 29, 2007

Jose Gonzales

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


MONDAY

• Diana Krall - Tonight Show with Jay Leno (11:35pm - NBC, A-Channel)
• Will.i.am - Late Show with David Letterman (11:35pm - CBS, OMNI)
• Kanye West (panel guest and performer) - Jimmy Kimmel Live* (12:05am - ABC, CityTV)
  
• Rilo Kiley - Late Night with Conan O'Brien* (12:35am - NBC, A-Channel)
• Zap Mama - Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson* (12:35am - CBS, E!)

TUESDAY

• Sea Wolf - Kimmel
• Mandy Moore - Ferguson
• Jamie T - Last Call with Carson Daly (1:35pm - NBC)

WEDNESDAY

• Bright Eyes - Leno
• Chaka Khan - Letterman
• Will.i.am - Kimmel
• Devendra Banhart - Conan

THURSDAY

• Melissa Etheridge - Letterman
• Bjork - Conan
• Ben Lee - Ferguson

FRIDAY

• Queen Latifah - Leno
• Jose Gonzales - Conan
• Zap Mama - Ferguson*

SATURDAY

• Kanye West - Saturday Night Live (11:30pm - NBC, GlobalTV)

Congratulations Papa Noel!

Oasis lead man Noel Gallagher and his girlfriend Sara MacDonald welcomed the birth of their son yesterday (September 22).

The child reportedly weighed 7lb 5oz and has been named Donavon Rory MacDonald Gallagher.

This is the couples' first child, the second for Gallagher who has a 7-year old daughter named Anais with ex-wife Meg Matthews.

The Post-TIFF Post

Considering the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival wrapped up a week ago, I figured it was about time to give my final thoughts on the movies I saw and the Festival in general.

As with my previous TIFF post, what follows will make only the weakest attempt at cohesion and coherence. This time, though, I've included trailers for 9 out the 10 films I saw - I couldn't find a clip for the 10th film so I've substituted an interview with the director/lead actor and executive producer that aired on MTV Canada. If I end up finding that trailer, I'll include it in a later post.

Also, I realize this is a super-long post so, if you're just looking for a brief synopsis here it is: I liked all ten of the films I saw - none of them was lower than a 7 out of 10.


OK, off we go!


Things I was worried about that (thankfully) didn't pan out:

1. Elizabeth:The Golden Age would be a disappointing follow-up to the brilliant original.
   
2. Ross from Friends would cock up a perfectly good Britcom (Run, Fat Boy, Run)
   
3. A movie about the relationship between a man, a small town and an anatomically-correct, life-sized silicone doll (Lars & the Real Girl) would be excruciatingly bad.
4. Gael Garcia Bernal's directing debut (Déficit)would be pretentious crap.
   

Who needs a 6' tall leading man? Let's hear it for all the somewhat vertically challenged hotties: Ryan Gosling (Lars & the Real Girl), Ayinde Howell (White Lies, Black Sheep) and Gael Garcia Bernal (Déficit).




Les Chansons d'Amour: a tragic musical about pretty, perfectly-attired young French people with plenty of sex thrown in for good measure. I really shouldn't have to do anymore to sell you on this film.

Keeping in mind that I generally hate romantic comedies, I did really enjoy Run, Fat Boy, Run and would certainly recommend it. Yes, it did bear many of the staples of your standard romcom but the great performances and genuinely funny dialogue were enough to elevate it out of treacly hell. Bonus points for not going with the typical happy ending. Plus, let's be honest here, the British accents certainly don't hurt.

Montreal band The Dears may be well on their way to becoming the new soundtrack darlings. Their music was featured in two of the films I saw - White Lies, Black Sheep and Weirdsville.

My girl-crush on Cate Blanchett (Elizabeth: The Golden Age) continues to grow - this woman can do no wrong.










A Black man who likes rock music - perfectly fine. A man (of virtually any sort) who reads Nylon magazine - um, no. (White Lies, Black Sheep)

Apparently, Breaker High was a really popular TV show. I'm kind of glad I have no first-hand knowledge of it.

My read on the major theme of Elizabeth: The Golden Age is this: Dare to betray a queen and kiss your sorry ass goodbye.





If I could just take a moment to address my fellow Festival-goers and, really, anyone at a movie theatre at anytime ever: It is not OK to take off your shoes and prop up your disgusting bare feet on the seat in front of you! Yes, this really happened - more than once.



Best cameo by an inanimate object: the Ontario license plate in Déficit.

Probably my favourite Q&A moment came after the screening of Elizabeth: The Golden Age. Director Shekhar Kapur recounted an instance when a concerned royalist/amateur historian noted that Sir Walter Raleigh and Elizabeth Throckmorton did not marry until after the Spanish Armada and not before as is portrayed in the film. Kapur's response: "Is that a problem for you?"

All hail the punk rock kids (Control, Persepolis, White Lies, Black Sheep) for they will always be the leaders of the revolution.


I had a Little Miss Sunshine moment while watching Lars & the Real Girl. It seemed that the majority of the people at the screening thought it was a screwball comedy while I thought it was more of touching, quirky love (of every sort) story that included some screamingly funny moments. I certainly laughed quite a bit but I was choked-up and teary-eyed just as much if not more so. I'm going to need you all to go out and see this movie when it's released so you can give me your verdict.

Drug-addled slackers, hookers that rise from the dead, icicle-induced cranial injuries, Satanic rituals, pint-sized "medieval times" re-enactors and prophetic mice (Weirdsville). Discuss.





I cannot emphasize enough how much I loved the film Control. I can't say I've ever really been a fan of director Anton Corbijn but I think he did such an amazing job of honouring the memory of Ian Curtis and Joy Division that I'm not even going to hate on his questionable decision to use a particular version of a JD song during the closing credits. Actually, yes I am but I won't get into it here.

I realized on Wednesday (September 12) that I hadn't been putting the names of the films on the voting ballots. Therefore, I'd like to apologize to all the films I saw before that date - I swear I gave you all 4 out of 4.

Most bad-ass line of dialogue (which, incidentally, I may be misquoting): "All my bitches wear my collar!" Queen Elizabeth - Elizabeth: The Golden Age


Here's are two life lessons for all you kids out there, courtesy of the film Déficit. 1) It is never a good idea to leave work, buy some cheap liquor and come back to work to spy on your hot employers as you get drunk - it will always end badly. 2) Relationships conducted via cellphone are never stable ones. There's too much of a temptation to hide your true feelings with cryptic voice messages and vague texts. The other person always knows the truth.

Samantha Morton (Control, Elizabeth: The Golden Age) is a goddess. That's all.




Day 1 of the Festival: attendees will take serious note as the organizers explain in great detail the evils of movie piracy and the punishment that awaits those who commit this most heinous of crimes.

Day 5 of the Festival: attendees will pretend to listen while actually checking their Blackberry messages while organizers briefly go over the anti-piracy spiel.

Day 9 of the Festival: attendees will do loud pirate impressions as organizers gleefully hint at the things they've witnessed during screenings while using their anti-piracy night-vision goggles.

The day after the Festival: all 349 films that were screened are now available for download somewhere on the interweb.

It's Kylie, Bitches!

Courtesy of my subscription to the Kylie e-newsletter (yeah, that's right) received earlier today...

KYLIE RETURNS WITH NEW SINGLE & ALBUM!

With a sold out Homecoming tour, a hugely successful perfume launch, a touring exhibition and celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary since the release of her debut hit 'Locomotion, 2007 has been a great year for Kylie fans. And it's just about to get even better...

Kylie releases her fantastic new single 2 Hearts on November 12th, preceded by the digital release on November 5th.

"2 Hearts" was written and produced by London based electro band Kish Mauve and finds Kylie sounding better than ever. Speaking about the track, Kylie said: "I loved it from the moment I heard it. It was a joy to record!"

The single is the first taster from Kylie's eagerly-awaited new album X which hits stores on November 26th. The 13 track album, Kylie's first new studio album in four years, was recorded in London, Stockholm and Ibiza, and features the first new Kylie material since the greatest hits compilation Ultimate Kylie in 2004.

X includes collaborations with the likes of Richard "Biff" Stannard, The Freemasons, Cutfather & Jonas Jeberg, Bloodshy & Avant, Calvin Harris, Greg Kurstin, Eg White, Guy Chambers and Cathy Dennis. Here's the tracklist!

2 Hearts

Like A Drug

In My Arms

Speakerphone

Sensitized

Heart Beat Rock

The One

No More Rain

All I See

Stars
Wow

Nu-di-ty

Cosmic

Caught Kylie's Showgirl concert on MuchMoreMusic last night - not sure if/when it will air again but you can click here to investigate further. Now if she would just get herself over to North America for a proper tour (or even just a one-off concert in Toronto - I'm not picky) I'd be a happy camper. Very excited about the new album though.

La la la...

Jumping Music, Swift DJs

Manifesto, the Festival of Urban Music & Arts, kicked of yesterday (September 20) in Toronto and continues until this Sunday (September 23).



The Festival is comprised of ticketed and free events at venues around the city with performances by scores of local talent including Michie Mee, Maestro, Jason Palma, Masia One, Saukrates, DJ Dopey, Fritz Helder, Eternia, Choclair and the Dream Warriors.



You can get all the information from the Manifesto website ­as well as the handy pull-out guide in this week's NOW magazine. Update: Um, yeah, that last bit is totally wrong - don't know where I came up with that but I hope it didn't cause too much confusion.

If By "Role Model", You Mean "Crack Whore With A Great Singing Voice"

I'd like to think that this quote by Paul Weller (pictured) was taken out of context but, unfortunately, I just don't think that's the case. See what I mean for yourself.

Paul Weller has praised Amy Winehouse on his upcoming Radio One Legends Show.

Using the programme as an opportunity to sing the praises of Winehouse, Weller declared her "one of my favourite all-time singers."He added: "I've been lucky enough to work with her - she is an amazing, great talent and, despite what all the papers say, she is a great role model for people and I don't think the drugs and the drink and all that make a scrap of difference really. I think you should judge people on their talent and on that level she's up there, a major talent." [source]

Weller might want to reconsider his standpoint after Winehouse's shaky performance at last night's MOBO Awards.

Certainly, when the "drugs and drink" start to take a toll on your talent (nevermind your general health and well-being) I think that does, actually, make a huge difference.

Um, otherwise, Rock On Modfather!

The Not-Feeling-Very-Productive-Today Post

Three consecutive nights of inadequate sleep is taking it's toll and I really don't have a lot of energy on this lovely Hump Day. So, instead of blathering on incoherently (though, let's face it, I'd still do that after a solid eight hours of REM) I'll just post the video for About You Now, the lead-off single for the new Sugababes album (their fifth) entitled Change.

Love the song - the video is a'ight but the use of all the yellow is...unfortunate. Certainly a lovely colour when used sparingly, yellow as a group wardrobe statement is just not on. Seriously, it kind of burns my retinas. Shame the 'Babes are, apparently, going with the same look for the album artwork.

Meg Is Just So Darn Acute

By now, you've probably heard that the White Stripes have cancelled the U.S. dates on their fall tour due to drummer Meg's bout with acute anxiety. I'm sure I join all Stripes fans in wishing Meg a speedy recovery but my empathy apparently doesn't stop me from having a bit of a giggle at her expense. Courtesy of New York Magazine (?!?) here are the Ten Things That Probably Stressed Out Meg White.

1. The cleaners keep washing her whites with her blacks and reds.
2. Difficulty of remembering drum part to Seven Nation Army.
3. The emotional scarring of having accidentally married her brother.
4. Exhausted from constantly having to talk Jack out of regrowing his mustache.
5. Kanye West not winning a single award at the VMAs — seriously, what was that?!
6. Secretly wants to wear orange, just once.
7. Jack's insistence on recording the next White Stripes album with just a megaphone and a wax cylinder.
8. Upset about Vulture's review of the band's MSG show. Whoops!
9. Wants to try one of her songs for a change.
10. Is actually a great drummer; sick of holding self back to fit Jack's idea of primitivism.

LOL! Number 5 is totally my favourite. Yeah, I know, I'm going straight to hell.

If the NYM list isn't quite snarky enough for you, check out what the always opinionated (and often entertaining) readers of Stereogum had to say on the subject.

I'm So There

No doubt prompted by the deafening roar of "What about us, eh?", Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling has extended her North American fall book tour to include one Canadian stop.

Rowling will touch down at the Winter Garden Theatre in Toronto on October 23 as part of the annual International Festival of Authors. The intimate reading of the series finale Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows for 950 lucky fans will be in stark contrast to Rowling's record-setting October 2000 appearance at the Skydome which played host to 20 000 Potter-heads. Tickets to the event are free but are currently only available via the Raincoast Books website through a daily lottery which began today and continues until September 28. The Ontario Library Association will be responsible for distributing the remaining tickets.

I've already entered the draw.

In other Potter news (cuz you know I'm good like that), veteran character actor Jim Broadbent has been cast as sycophantic Hogwarts potions master Horace Slughorn in the film adaptation of the sixth book in the series, Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince. I'm very excited about this particular casting note as I think Broadbent is always fantastic in any role he takes on and I think he'll make an excellent addition to the Potter film franchise. Filming for HPB begins this week in the UK and is scheduled for release in November 2008.

Late Night TV Preview: September 17 - 22

Paolo Nutini

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














MONDAY

• Emmylou Harris - Tonight Show with Jay Leno (11:35pm - NBC, A-Channel)



• Angelique Kidjo - Late Show with David Letterman* (11:35pm - CBS, OMNI)



• Zap Mama - Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson (12:35am - CBS, E!)



• James Morrison - Last Call with Carson Daly (1:35am - NBC)

TUESDAY

• Paolo Nutini - Leno



• Steve Earle - Letterman*



• Mandy Moore - Ferguson

WEDNESDAY

• LCD Soundsystem - Leno



• Mute Math - Jimmy Kimmel Live (12:05am - ABC, CityTV)



• Rogue Wave - Late Night with Conan O'Brien (12:35am - NBC, A-Channel)



• Paolo Nutini - Carson

THURSDAY

• Cold War Kids - Leno



• Gogol Bordello - Letterman*



• Ben Lee - Ferguson

FRIDAY

• Editors - Leno



• Velvet Revolver - Letterman*



• Ben Harper - Conan



• Ingrid Michaelson - Carson

SATURDAY

• The Shins - Saturday Night Live* (11:30pm - NBC, GlobalTV)



• New York Dolls - Henry Rollins Show (9:30pm & 2:30am - IFC Canada)

Further Musings

For some reason, Blogger is unwilling or unable to allow me to update my previous Virgin Festival post so I'm going to just tack on this little addendum right here. Mmmkay?

• Why the frick does a festival named after a wireless service provider with a mobile phone company as one of it's major sponsors not have any designated areas to recharge your cell?

• Girl#1: Omigod, Alex [Turner, lead singer of the Arctic Monkeys] is, like, sooooo hot and it's totally because of his accent! Girl#2: Yeah, totally! Um, where are they from again? Girl#1: The UK...or Scotland. You know, one or the other. Girl#2: Right.
  

• I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the generous people of Virgin Mobile for the approximately $60 worth of Apple iTunes free download gift cards that I was able to obtain over the weekend. Cheers!

Musings On An Outdoor Music Festival

This past weekend, I took a break from all the film festivalling in order to attend the Virgin Music Festival along with about 40 000 of my close personal friends. What follows are my views and opinions on that which occured over those two days with no particular attempt at chronology, order of importance or even fully formed thoughts. Consider yourself warned.

• I'd like to start off with, what I would hope is, helpful advice to the good people running the funnel cake stand. In future, you may want to reevaluate the demand for these tasty treats and consider having more than two people working at once, thereby avoiding the crazy long lines and up to 40+ minute wait times. Thanks in advance.

• Um, wasn't The Coral supposed to be part of the lineup? Anyone know what happened there?

• Dragonette were ...disappointing. I wish I'd ditched their set earlier so I could have caught more of Paolo Nutini who, based on the 1 1/2 songs i saw him perform, played a fantastic show.

• Somehow, I ended up with 50 Cent's crew when, normally, I totally roll with Kanye. Damn you k-os, damn you to hell! Killer set though man. Danke Schoen.

• So, that Jamie T. kid was pretty kickass. I think I was the last to know.

• It was plainly, and painfully, obvious that all the focus of festival organizers was towards the acts on the main stage while all the artists on the sidestage seemed mostly left to fend for themselves. Well, you did the best you could kids - remember that your mothers still love you.

• Biffy Clyro - translation: totally awesome!

• OK, so I've seen Arctic Monkeys three or four times now and, aside from the actual set list, there isn't much variety or even spontanaety in ther performances. Still, they always manage to pull off pretty stellar gigs and this one was no exception. I don't know if it's the fact that the kids in the audience or so enthusiastic (what with their non-stop singing along and bouncing around) or if it's that the songs are just really that good and they do seem to play their little hearts out. Whatever it is, it's working quite well in their favour. Anyway, well done lads! I must admit, though, I was fairly concerned about Jamie (I think that's what the blond one's called) who looked positively peaked throughout the entire set. At one point, his face seemed so flushed from the heat I thought he might actually collapse right into his amp.

• It will take upwards of a dozen text messages over two days and strategizing on the level of a NASA launch in order to meet up with a long lost friend for a total of ten minutes. However, you will randomly stumble across a friend you didn't even know was going to be there with the utmost of ease.

• Funnel cakes >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The Killers. No contest.

• Seeing Blonde Redhead outdoors in the daylight is a wildly different experience than seeing them in a club. Still good - just very, very different.

• Earl Greyhound: a bit too stoner, 60s psychedelia but I kind of like it them anyway.

• Who do you think you are?!? Princess Superstar!

• The members of Louis XIV spent all day after their set wandering through the crowd because: a) they're the kind of band that likes to press the flesh with their fans, b) they desperately want to be noticed or c) they'd to assure each and every member of the audience that those (faux) British accents are coming along quite nicely, thank you. Honestly,I think mine is quite a bit better, actually.

• A friend of mine said it best (though I think she was referencing a recent concert review): D'Arcy and James Iha may not have provided a lot of practical contribution to Smashing Pumpkins but it's becomes clear since the band's reformation that they were the ones responsible for keeping Billy Corgan's wank factor in check. Original drummer Jimmy Chamberlain - the only other Pumpkins' returning member besides Corgan - clearly can't manage the burden on his own.

• Much love to The Carps. Any band who leads into one of their own songs with the intro from Poison by Bel Biv Devoe has found a fan in me.

• Much respect to The Cinematics. They were one of the last band on one of the side stages on Sunday night playing to a bunch of people who, no doubt, were cold, tired and had sore feet. Still, the lovely Scots managed to keep the crowd bouncing and clapping (even after the guitarist swallowed a bug) until their very last song.

• I thought Explosions in the Sky were an entirely different band but I loved them all the same.

• From what I could tell from my vantage point in the funnel cake line, The Heights were pretty good.

• Tokyo Police Club, Stars and Metric: all good reasons to be quite impressed the Canadian indie music scene.

• Praise whatever higher power saw to it that nobody felt the urge to do a cover of Umbrella.

• I know a lot of people found the Interpol set a bit boring but I quite enjoyed it. Having said that, I think it was pretty amusing to watch the band do the "serious, dark-suited musician" thing while constantly in danger of being visually obscured by hundreds of swarming bugs.

• In the end, I think the weekend belonged to two rather spectacular women: M.I.A. and Bjork. Both performed high energy sets which left their respective es tactic crowds begging for more (quite literally in the case of M.I.A. - whoever thought it was a good idea to give her a 40 minute set in the middle of the afternoon should be fired, rehired, had their hair pulled and fired again). By the end of her set, Miss Maya had the crowd eating out of her hands and sweating out of their clothes. As for Bjork, well...the confetti canon, the Icelandic choir/brass band, cutting edge musical instruments and crazy costumes - they were certainly all fantastic. However, I'm fairly confident that Bjork could have stood on that stage all on her own and sang a capella and it still would have been mind-blowing. As it was, I was completely moved. Like teary-eyed and choked up kind of moved.

Well, that's all I've got. I don't think I covered all the bands I saw but it was two days ago and I've forgotten quite a bit already (damn refined sugar - it's murder on the short-term memory kids). If you attended and would like to provide your own review, please feel free to do so in the comments section. Same goes if you were at the Osheaga Festival and would like to rub it in the face of those who were unable to attend (why the frick are both festivals always on the same weekend anyway?). Candid photos of Virgin Fest will be posted soon(ish) in the gallery.

Late Night TV Preview: September 10 - 15, 2007

Modest Mouse

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


MONDAY

• Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova - Late Show with David Letterman (11:35pm - CBS, OMNI)
• Melanie "Scary Spice" Brown, Mandy Moore (panel guests), Joss Stone (musical performer) - Jimmy Kimmel Live* (12:05am - ABC, CityTV)
  
• Bad Religion - Late Night with Conan O'Brien (12:35am - NBC, A-Channel)
• Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova - Last Call with Carson Daly (1:35am - NBC)

TUESDAY

• Spoon - Tonight Show with Jay Leno (11:35pm - NBC, A-Channel)
• Suzanne Vega - Letterman

WEDNESDAY

• The Bravery - Leno
• Modest Mouse - Kimmel
• Spoon - Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson (12:35am - CBS, CH)

THURSDAY

• Michael Bublé - Leno
• Kanye West (panel guest and performer) - Kimmel
• Teddybears - Carson

FRIDAY

• Hot Hot Heat - Kimmel

SATURDAY

• Thom Yorke - Henry Rollins Show (8pm & 2:15am - IFC Canada)
  

Thus Far

Days into the Festival: 2

Films seen: 4

Favorite character (tie): the grandmother in Persepolis; Erwann (aka the teenage stalker) in Les Chansons d'Amour (sometimes, persistence does pay off)

Favourite line of dialogue (tie): "I'm just the sidekick." Marta, The Mother of Tears; "Am I, fuck." Hooky, Control

Favourite line of non-dialogue: "Monkey is anarchy." Dario Argento

Sweetest moment: singing Happy Birthday to Dario Argento just before the world premiere screening of his film The Mother of Tears

Most jarringly spot on performance: Sam Riley as Ian Curtis in Control

Character (unfortunately) forever burned into my psyche: the demon-witch monkey - The Mother of Tears

Ahhhh, that explains everything: The Mother of Tears, which provides at least some insight into (the film's star and daughter of the director) Asia Argento.

Where TIFF and the Virgin Festival collide: seeing Alex and Nick of the Arctic Monkeys at the screening for Control

Let The Celebrity Clusterf@#k Commence

The 2007 Toronto International Film Festival kicks off today and continues until September 15. Over the next 10 days, some 349 films varying in genre, length, country of origin and (ahem) quality will screen at the Festival for critics , industry insiders and the general public.

This year, once again, I have 10 selections that I'm planning to see. Last go round I reviewed and rated each of the films I saw - I won't be doing that again. It's much too time consuming and I don't think I was terribly coherent in my critiques. In fact, I managed to mildly offend an actor from one of the films when I confused his name with another member of the film's production. Maybe I'll do a roundup review once the fest is over - I'm totally in vacation mode right now so any ventures as to my future productivity are pretty futile at this point.

If you plan to "do the Festival" as well, I hope your films selections are worthy ones. Please feel free to email with suggestions on what to see/avoid, mini-reviews on what you've seen or star-spotting anecdotes. As for myself, when I'm not at a screening you might see stalking one or more of the following:

• Gael Garcia Bernal
• Ryan Gosling
  
• Jake Gyllenhaal
• James McAvoy

However, I promise not to be this girl:

The keyword here is subtlety, people.

Subtlety.

Virgin Festival Toronto 2007 Schedule...

...has been posted.

Hey Ladies!

Legendary British comediennes Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders send up Amy Winehouse and Britney Spears (I shouldn't have to point out who's who) in a photo from their most recent project A Bucket O' French & Saunders.





Who knows when that Winehouse/Spears sketch will air in North America so, for now, we'll have to content ourselves with that which BBC Canada deems us worthy to view.

There are new-ish episodes of Absolutely Fabulous starring Saunders and Joanna Lumley as narcissistic fashionistas Edina Monsoon and Patsy Stone respectively. I think we're just into the new millenium as the series resumes - to give you a cultural reference point, Marilyn Manson is still relevant and the Harry Potter film franchise is revving into high gear.

Even more recent is the 2006 French & Saunders production Jam & Jerusalem about a quirky women's group in a small English town. This one stars Sue Johnston (Barbara Royle, The Royle Family) and features appearances by French, Saunders and Lumley.





Get BBC Canada airtimes AbFab and J&J here.



Kind of off topic but just as exciting news (for me, anyway) is that BBC Canada will air the new series from Trinny Woodhouse and Susannah Constantine (the original, and best, hosts of the now entirely unwatchable British version of What Not To Wear) entitled Trinny and Susannah: Undress beginning this Friday. I'm pretty sure it's the same concept as WNTW except that they concentrate on making over couples as opposed to individuals. Here's hoping we've seen the last of that dead squirrel vest Trinny was so attached to in the last series.

Grinderman, Not The Nightwatchman

For some reason, I confused the pretty cool Nick Cave side project Grinderman with the kind of sucky Tom Morello side project The Nightwatchman and, as such, proceeded to exclude the former from my weekly TV listings. I have no idea where my head was at - I mean, the names aren't even really that similar. I'd probably still be deluded if I hadn't randomly channel-surfed into the middle of Grinderman performance last night.

Thus, as penance, I've elected to post below the Grinderman on Letterman video. I believe it's actually an encore episode from back in July but I think I may committed this same error the first time around. Anyway, enjoy.

Well, I don't know about you but I certainly feel better about this whole unfortunate incident.

Hey, just for fun let's watch this 1996 video for Where the Wild Roses Grow by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds featuring Kylie Minogue.

And The 2007 Mercury Prize Goes To...

...the Klaxons!

Yeah, that's right.

As Long As She's Just The Director, I Suppose That's OK

The NME is reporting that Gogol Bordello frontman Eugene Hutz will be appearing in the new Madonna-directed movie Filth and Wisdom. Hutz made his acting debut alongside relative acting veteran Elijah Wood in the 2005 film Everything is Illuminated, directed by Liev Schreiber.

Yeah, so, that's about all the effort I'm willing to put into posting today. I'm headed out on to the roof garden patio - enjoy the rest of your Labour Day.

Late Night TV Preview: September 3 - 8, 2007

Gogol Bordello

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



MONDAY

• Jesse Malin - Tonight Show with Jay Leno* (11:35pm - NBC, A-Channel)
  
• El - P - Jimmy Kimmel Live* (12:05am - ABC, CityTV)
• Feist - Late Night with Conan O'Brien (12:35am - NBC, A-Channel)
• Lily Allen - Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson* (12:35am - CBS, CH)
  

TUESDAY

• Gogol Bordello - Kimmel

WEDNESDAY

• Rilo Kiley - Kimmel
  
• Dinosaur Jr - Conan

THURSDAY

• Kings of Leon - Leno
  
• Galactic - Kimmel

FRIDAY

• Arctic Monkeys - Late Show with David Letterman (11:35pm - CBS, OMNI)
• Hot Hot Heat- Conan

SATURDAY

• Peaches (panel guest), Ringside (musical performer) - Henry Rollins Show (9:30pm & 2:15am - IFC Canada)
  

Slippery Swedes

Earlier tonight, a friend pointed out to me that Peter Bjorn & John have recently pulled out of the Toronto Virgin Festival for some (in my opinion) totally crap reason.

Fuck.

Bloody Hell

No. Just...no.

My Chemical Romance in concert.