Donald Shebib’s 1970 classic Goin’ Down The Road didn’t shy away from tragedy. The result is a depressingly realistic take on two Cape Breton pals, Joey(Paul Bradley) and Pete(Doug McGrath) going to Toronto to make their fortune but leaving with their tails between their legs. The sequel picks up 40 years later and asks the […]
Mark Black
Posted inArts + Music
Daily Picks: Friday
DOG DAY w/Shotgun Jimmie, The Skeletones Four, Reversing Falls, Old and Weird Friday, October 21, Gus’ Pub, 9pm, $10 Friday’s Pigeon Row Showcase is going to be a doozy. To celebrate the fifth year of being a rootin’-tootin’ promotin’ machine, Pigeon Row gathered some of their favourites to make a very sweet lineup. If you […]
Posted inLifestyle
Why Halifax is a Montreal Canadiens town
Once upon a time the question of which National Hockey League team Halifax supports would have been a no-brainer. Boston may be a good neighbour, but that’s about Christmas trees more than hockey. Toronto’s Maple Leafs are constant post-season bridesmaids and Halifax has had enough disappointments. There’s always the Penguins flirtation, but how can you […]
Posted inArts + Music
Quaker Parents understand
We’ve had hilarious questions about that, ‘Are you Quakers?’” says Mark Grundy of his band’s name. The name was chosen for its aesthetic value for the Hot Money Monday singles, a series of 52 singles released every week for a year by various artists in the Hot Money Records Collective including The Handcar Race, York […]
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Thrashfest turns five
“I have yet to see a city with such a diverse and—more importantly—cooperative loud music scene,” says Hellacaust’s Graham Ferguson. “It’s good to have a reminder of that.” That reminder is Thrashfest, two days of extreme music featuring over a dozen bands from Canada and the US. Posters with indecipherable band-name fonts; black sleeveless tees; […]
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Revenge of the nerds
Worf versus Chewbacca, MacGyver versus The A-Team and Optimus Prime versus Iron Man sound like conversation fodder for basement orc-slaying campaigns or topics best suited for messageboards and comic-book shops. But solving these arguments is the raison d’etre of the locally produced comedy debate show Geeks Versus Nerds. Like a geek version of Lewis Black’s […]
Posted inArts + Music
Leo rising
Surprisingly or not, labelling New Jerseyite Ted Leo as a former hardcore or punk guy doesn’t bother him as much as getting pigeonholed as indie rock. “These days what that says to me is milquetoast, white, non-confrontational, soft, boring melodicism. I feel like that’s sort of one of those brushes that I really bristle under,” […]
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Murphys law
The first release by the Dropkick Murphys was a split with fellow Bostonians The Ducky Boys. The lead song, “Barroom Hero” was a mini-classic during the east coast’s street-punk resurgence in the late ’90s. A slew of seven-inch splits and singles followed, but there was little indication that the Dropkick Murphys would become a Billboard […]
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Spooky Campers say so long
When James Gaudet of Spooky Campers says things like, “I know that this is a long shot, but we’re doing what we can” and “We’re just taking it all one step at a time,” it conjures images of a Family Circus clan trying to make the most out of a bad camping trip ruined by […]
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Straight Thrush
After over 10 years apart, Thrush Hermit returns to life with a nearly sold-out nine-date tour and an eight-disc box set chronicling the life and times of the Hermit. And questions abound: will the band’s trademark “Rock” sign make an appearance? Will the box set have the Street Cents theme song? Yes, if the delivery […]
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Myles Deck and the Fuzz versus Cuban Assassins
The only misstep on this split seven-inch might be the upside-down back cover. Both bands commit some of their best material to vinyl and the result just might be the best release in the From Here to There catalogue. The Fuzz offer up “Lights Out! Electric Co.” and “Healing Power,” both sporting a nice Dead […]
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I Am the New Black, Tracy Morgan with Anthony Bozza (Spiegel & Grau)
Brilliant at times, nonsensical, poorly written and (sometimes) funny, I Am the New Black is about what you’d expect from a Tracy Morgan autobiography. Each moment of candidness (the cessation of his relationship with his mother) and tragedy (the AIDS-related death of Morgan’s father) is matched by a reflective moment in which Morgan passes on […]