A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the reissue of The Lorrainas’ Party ‘Til It’s Dark LP. Sure, this vinyl reissue of Party ‘Til It’s Dark – The Lorrainas’ first and only full-length studio album – may seek to re-introduce material which is now seventeen years old, but anyone who hears it will excitedly admit that the music sounds one hundred per cent fresh; after the rush of endorphins which come with the music initially begin to fade. The...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into a reissued copy of the Charm School Dropouts LP by The Vapids. For almost three decades now, The Vapids have been one of the hardest working bands in Canada. Since the day they started in 1993, The Vapids have never stopped working; the band has toured regularly as well as doing one-off shows from their home-base in Hamilton, Ontario, and kept a respectably consistent stream of releases on their merch table both...
The Gods Themselvesby Isaac Asimov Try as I may, as much as I want to branch out when reading sci-fi, I always come back to my man Isaac Asimov. I don’t know what about his books appeal to me so much. Is it the mystery or intrigue surrounding his stories? Is it the relatable heroes? Maybe it’s the way he imagines the future, in such a fantastical way but also somehow inevitable. Maybe it’s all of those things. One thing...
Zach Snyder’sThe Justice League Marvel at the very existence of the Snyder Cut of Justice League. I mean, the sheer fact that it exists and that it does in this form is absolutely astounding. Just look at this monster… To give some backstory, when Justice League was originally being made, it was supposed to be some sort of climax for what Zach Snyder had been building for the DC Universe. It was all supposed to lead us to this....
WHO: Steve Gunn WHAT: Other You WHY: I’ve been having a hard time describing Other You, the latest album by Steve Gunn. Every time I play it, it pulls my attention and immerses me in the rich world of its sound. It’s a beautiful world, gentle-sounding, mesmerizing, and full of guitars and layers. It’s Kurt Vile with a lot more Van Morrison thrown in. Other You is the kind of album that somehow works as therapy, making me introspective and...
The Suicide Squad Honestly, what are we doing here? And if these mainstream superhero movies are your thing, what are you doing with your life? The whole point of THE Suicide Squad is a James Gunn fuck you to Marvel for having fired him. So, the whole thing is already tainted from the beginning. But also, why is it called THE Suicide Squad? Is DC already rebooting their own franchise because it didn’t make a billion dollars the first...
The Practice and Theory of Bolshevismby Bertrand Russell This is such a special book to me because it combines two things I really love: Soviet history (particularly the early era) and Bertrand Russell (who is the world’s main man). I tried prepping for this book by reading Bruce Lincoln’s book about the Civil War to have the events fresher in my mind, and this helped immensely. Not that it’s a requirement for anyone reading The Practice and Theory of Bolshevism,...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Nowhere Generation LP by Rise Against. It feels difficult to believe that, with Nowhere Generation, Rise Against has been making records for twenty years. Now, that isn’t to say any band making music together uninterrupted for twenty years is unheard of, just that it’s uncommon for a PUNK BAND to stay together for that long without there at least being some kind of break along the way is a statement unto...
WHO: U-Roy WHAT: Solid Gold WHY: You don’t have to know that U-Roy is a reggae legend to enjoy this – his final album released posthumously. Solid Gold contains, basically, solid gold reggae hits revisited (updated?) and reimagined by U-Roy with an all-star cast of contributors like Mick Jones and Scientist. It doesn’t matter that these aren’t new songs, Solid Gold sounds more like a celebration of U-Roy’s life and reggae music in general and there isn’t a single low-point...
The Theory of EverythingThe Origin and Fate of the Universeby Stephen Hawking It’s probably a good idea if we collectively started consuming a little less fiction and read more non-fiction, particularly stuff that challenged and helps us understand the world around us, right? Someone on my block didn’t think so and put this book in a “Free” box on their stoop and I couldn’t help but give it a good home. What I like to think is that the contents...