Category: Podcast

Ep. #120: Steve Albini

Steve Albini is a world-renowned recording engineer and the owner and one operator of the stellar Electrical Audio recording facility in Chicago, Illinois. He is also one of three singers and one of one electric guitarists in Shellac, one of the most significant and influential underground rock bands of the past 25 years. On September 16, Touch and Go Records will release Dude Incredible, the fifth official album by Shellac. Here, Steve and I chat about a cool Chicago July and the Polar Vortex revival, his recent interview with High Times who care a lot about drugs, how smoking weed is a young man’s game, how certain things should be experienced by all of us who wish to relate to everyone else, the last time he tripped balls, rolling fatties, Kevin Goldstein and getting the royal treatment at a recent White Sox/Astros game in Chicago, meeting Steve Sparks and talking about knuckleballers, living in Houston, being on-field for batting practice, the Cubs are really embarrassing statistically and otherwise, Wrigley Field is cool but Sox games are more fun, the Steve Bartman incident, baseball and curses, National League versus American League baseball, when he first fell in love with baseball as a kid, the Cincinnati Reds in the 1970s, why baseball might be the most appealing, compelling, and distinctive major team sport, pulling the goalie, participating in events like the World Series of Poker, welcome back Gabe Kaplan, why poker can be so engaging, oddly complex games like baduci, winning, tells in poker versus the dramatic arts, interpreting behaviour, reverse psychology, and pantomime, the honesty of Jamie Gold, streakiness, the significance of the Ramones, laughing at the Clash, the Jesus Lizard’s BOOK, David Yow and cats that demand respect, Gary the cat, making At Action Park 20 years ago, taking time with Shellac, the Shellac albums don’t need to be remastered, why Shellac haven’t released singles in a while, contemplating a Shellac singles compilation album, a one word encapsulation of every song on Dude Incredible with a slight elaboration on that one word, the Evens, his upcoming Pop Montreal speaking engagement, recording symposium with Howard Bilerman, and a cooking exhibition, making a record in Winnipeg this fall, and that’s the end of radio/podcasting.

Related links: touchandgorecords.com electricalaudio.com vishkhanna.com

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News Podcast

Ep. #119: Constantines

Post author By vish
Post date July 29, 2014

Constantines are a powerful and influential band who originally formed in Guelph, Ontario in 1999. After releasing four acclaimed and inspiring post-punk/rock ‘n’ roll albums, Constantines went on indefinite hiatus in 2010. The band have reconvened in recent months and Sub Pop reissued their classic 2003 album Shine a Light this past June. Constantines are playing a number of shows over the coming months, including stops in Sackville, NB (SappyFest, Aug. 3), Peterborough, ON (Peterborough Folk Festival, Aug. 22), Ottawa, ON (Arboretum Festival, Aug. 23), Toronto, ON (The Molson Canadian Amphitheatre w/ Arcade Fire, Aug. 29), Toronto, ON (The Danforth Music Hall, Oct. 2), Montreal, QC (Club Soda, Oct. 4), Vancouver, BC (Commodore Ballroom, Oct. 8), Calgary, AB (Commonwealth Bar & Stage, Oct. 9), and Edmonton, AB (UPDT Festival, Oct. 11). Here, Steven Lambke, Doug MacGregor, Dallas Wehrle, Will Kidman, Bry Webb, and myself discuss playing “Keep On Rockin’ in the Free World” with Jack Layton, Olivia Chow, and members of Barenaked Ladies, Dallas Good calls Dallas Wehrle, the yellow tape, unsafe seasonal tours, the freak hail storm at the Sasquatch! Music Festival, Paul’s Boutique and shows at Who’s Emma, Mike Haliechuk from Fucked Up set up a Captain Co-Pilot show, hardcore bands from the 90s, Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton, the video for “One” by Metallica, Mats Naslund and Wayne Gretzky, skiing, Glenview Park Secondary School, Dallas won the gym award, Rob Pal, I won the French award, Tyler Williams, Dallas liked industrial music, the high school airband showcase and Nine Inch Nails, Ted Lambke, discovering music in skate videos, Doug’s band Shoulder, the Button Factory in Kitchener, Pain Don’t Hurt, Gaffer, “New School Calypso (NSC),” Rob Pal named Captain Co-Pilot, the London hardcore scene, Hoover and Lincoln, why Shoulder ended, why Captain Co-Pilot ended, tiny ladies are time-consuming, the 37 Elizabeth Street house, Tony the landlord, Tom McKnight, bouncer dudes from the Palace, how Constantines started, Cambridge eyeroll, excited about bands like ourselves, Three Gut Records origin show, the song “Arizona,” Dallas recalls the hilarious legend of crusty punk/European road manager Jörg, that Sasquatch! Music Festival hailstorm story again, Dallas thought he might die, Will climbs the rafters, Ayr and Cambridge, Southwood Secondary School, Ayr house show, Patrick Swayze and Road House, this guy Ryan, Cambridge shows would always get shut down, the Mighty Fishermen, that guy Brent who ripped us off, we all had a crush on Jill Holmberg, Dallas and Steve and I played in a band called Dioctave, the Unfuckable Cum Bums, the bands Curb, Ground, and the Mighty Fishermen, Mr. Gouveia’s French class and Tony Tabu, work on your scales, Mr. Carbone’s guitar class got Dallas playing music, judhaynes.com, Metallica again but also Ministry, adding a drum machine to a three-piece punk band, playing in Dallas’ living room and Ted Lambke yelled at us about Black Sabbath, Minnow was a big influence on Captain Co-Pilot, Will became a Captain Co-Pilot fan and gave Steve a tape of his music at that show, Dallas wasn’t into HPX, small women, how Will joined Constantines at a recording session, Who’s Emma, Cons reunion, the song “Insectivora,” Bry’s the most frequent guest on this podcast except for Jon Spencer, acting and fakery, everyone assumes Constantines are very serious, playing the first reunion show in Guelph in June, 106 Huron Street, shy guys, playing in a newly-invented eco-village in Sweden whose design was partially influenced by Guelph, a social night for Swedish teens, dreams come true, being scared to death about selling out, integrity and the end of the Cons, returning with sensitivity, contemplating writing new songs with the Cons, expanding the tour dates to play a show with Arcade Fire in Toronto on August 29 and across more of Canada, as well as Seattle and Portland, the Danforth Music Hall, dealing with Cons stuff and Bry Webb and the Providers at the same time, Sackville and Dawson City, Sandbanks Provincial Park, Massey Hall footage, the song “Time Can Be Overcome,” and then time can’t be overcome.

Related links: theconstantines.wordpress.com subpop.com/artists/constantines vishkhanna.com

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Tags Aaron Levin, Arboretum Festival, Arcade Fire, Ayr, Barenaked Ladies, Black Sabbath, Bry Webb, Bry Webb and the Providers, Cambridge, Captain Co-Pilot, Club Soda, Commodore Ballroom, Commonwealth Bar & Stage, Constantines, Curb, Dallas Wehrle, Danforth Music Hall, Dioctave, Doug MacGregor, Endgame, Engine Down, Fucked Up, Gaffer, Glenview Park Secondary School, Ground, Guelph, Hoover, Inhumanity, Jack Layton, Jill Holmberg, Lincoln, Mats Naslund, Metallica, Mike Haliechuk, Ministry, Minnow, Mr. Carbone, Mr. Gouveia, Nine Inch Nails, Olivia Chow, Pain Don’t Hurt, Patrick Swayze, Paul’s Boutique, Peterborough Folk Festival, Road House, Rob Pal, SappyFest, Sasquatch! Music Festival, Shine a Light, Shoulder, Sleepytime Trio, Southwood Secondary School, Steven Lambke, Sub Pop, Sweden, Ted Lambke, the Button Factory, the Mighty Fishermen, Three Gut Records, Tom McKnight, Tony Tabu, Tyler Williams, Unfuckable Cum Bums, UPDT Festival, Who’s Emma, Will Kidman

News Podcast

Ep. #118: Steve Sladkowski of PUP

Post author By vish
Post date July 24, 2014

Steve Sladkowski plays guitar and sings in a Toronto punk-infused pop band called PUP. Originally called Topanga, PUP changed their name ahead of releasing their first, self-titled debut album, which is out now via Royal Mountain Records. PUP plays Guelph’s Hillside Festival on Saturday July 25. Here, Steve and I discuss staining fences in Toronto, living in Guelph and putting on shows and working for the Guelph Jazz Festival, touring the U.S. with the Menzingers, single A baseball in Iowa, America is weird, this is Texas, talking to Americans about baseball, the Oakland A’s and Moneyball glitches, regular seasons are a drag, why the Skydome sucks and seeing baseball in America rules, I don’t think I like Toronto, talking to people outside of Canada about Rob Ford, playing ska-punk, Protest the Hero, the 3tards, and the Reverb, working with Dave Schiffman on the PUP record, pathetic use of potential, Toronto punk is thriving, when Weezer was wonderful, my membership in the Weezer fanclub and contributing “Mykel and Carli” to its first covers compilation, Rivers Cuomo goes back to the shack, impersonating Fucked Up at the Halifax Pop Explosion, feeling honoured to get to do cool stuff, it comes and goes, self-promotion, not needing day jobs but working harder than ever, their Polaris Music Prize nomination, the status of hard music in Canada, Peter Bradley is in Alaska, Constellation Records, forced conversation, Tanya Tagaq should win awards, PUP’s new songs, throwing down, writing songs in extreme emotional places, marrying real-life with fictional narratives, the song “Guilt Trip,” and then it is outta here!

Related links: puptheband.com royalmountainrecords.com hillsidefestival.ca vishkhanna.com

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