Keep up to date on local art, new albums, and everything entertainment-related.
Nowadays the Internet can be used for everything, including finding up-and-coming stars.
This Wednesday, local Internet sensation Brittany Kwasnik will perform an acoustic set at Le Cagibi. The 16-year-old singer-songwriter made her online debut about two years ago and is now signed to Montreal-based Justin Time Records, with her first album, I Don’t Know Me, set to be released in January.
The latest movie to tackle the age-old convention of nerds trying to lose their virginity is aptly called The Virginity Hit. The film, with its newcomer cast, was produced by Will Ferrell. With the support of such a typically hilarious actor, one might assume that the movie promises to be as funny as some of his other film exploits. While it does have some funny moments, The Virginity Hit ultimaetly doesn’t hold a candle to Ferrell’s past work.
The eighth studio album from Luke Doucet, and the second to feature The White Falcon, Steel City Trawler is an unabashed portrait of the magic in the everyday. The album’s straightforward guitar riffs and upbeat melodies, combined with Doucet’s earnest lyrics, form an enjoyable and thoughtful record.
At first glance, the new Iron Maiden album reads like an epitaph. But the British heavy metal giants are very much alive, kicking, and rocking out. When their latest album, Final Frontier, was announced many began to worry that this would be the last we’d hear of Iron Maiden.
Comprised of lead singer and guitarist Jeremy Gaudet, drummer Andrew Woods, Isaac Neily on keyboard and Richard MacLeod on bass, Boxer the Horse is a home-grown Canadian band with lots of kick. The boys hail from Charlottetown, where the music is crude and the coastal vibe is real.
In celebration of Priority Records’ 25th anniversary, hip-hop legend Snoop Dogg runs through his catalogue of West Coast favourites in The West Coast Blueprint. With a few well-placed interludes, Snoop guides the album along like a radio DJ, providing insight and commentary on California hip-hop’s golden age.
The eighth studio album from Luke Doucet, and the second to feature The White Falcon, Steel City Trawler is an unabashed portrait of the magic in the everyday. The album’s straightforward guitar riffs and upbeat melodies, combined with Doucet’s earnest lyrics, form an enjoyable and thoughtful record.
Thailand. Guatemala. Panama. Fiji. Micronesia. The list goes on. Any television show filmed in these places is automatically cool in my books. Of course I’m talking about Survivor, the best show on television. I usually get the same reaction when I talk about the show; “You still watch that?” Or eve; “That’s still on?” Yes, Survivor is still on and I still watch it.
Released earlier this year, the Chemical Brothers’ seventh effort, Further, can start to sound like a concert album after a few plays. Unlike many of the Brothers’ earlier releases, the album captures the raw intensity and structureless flow of a live set, filled with unexpected drops, blips, and volume shifts.
With their self-titled debut, it’s easy to see that Toronto’s Sweet Thing have Top 40 ambitions. Whether or not they’ll get there remains to be seen. The album certainly contains elements that suggest they will: the punchy guitars of “Gun,” the shimmering synths of “Lazy Susan,” and the soaring vocals of “A Change of Seasons” are all perfectly pop rock enough to satisfy any fan of the genre, but they still have a long way to go.
