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Ep. #34: Joseph Boyden, Sarah Elton, Thomas King

Joseph Boyden, Sarah Elton, and Thomas King are three of Canada’s most acclaimed authors. Boyden splits his time between Ontario and New Orleans and his first novel, 2005’s Three Day Road, about a pair of Cree soldiers fighting in World War I, received a number of awards and was shortlisted for the Governor General’s Award for Fiction. His second novel, 2008’s Through Black Spruce, was ostensibly a sequel to Three Day Road, following the next familial generation depicted in Boyden’s first book. Through Black Spruce won the prestigious Scotiabank Giller Prize and was named the Canadian Booksellers Association Fiction Book of the Year. On Sept, 10, Boyden’s third novel, The Orenda, will be published by Hamish Hamilton, a division of Penguin.

Sarah Elton is the best selling author of Locovore: From Farmers’ Fields to Rooftop Gardens–How Canadians are Changing the Way We Eat, which won gold at the Canadian Culinary Book Awards. She is the food columnist for CBC Radio’s Here and Now and has written for The New York Times, The Globe and Mail, and Maclean’s among other publications. Elton’s latest book is Consumed: Food for a Finite Planet and it chronicles her examination of people from all over the world who, in anticipation of the increasing strain on our planet by growing populations and climate change, are creating sustainable alternatives to industrial farming by getting to know the food we consume on a personal level.

Thomas King is a Guelph resident and one of Canada’s most respected intellectuals. He has spent the past five decades working as an activist and administrator and teaching at the University of Lethbridge, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Guelph. King was the first Aboriginal person to deliver the prestigious Massey Lectures and has won several awards, including the National Aboriginal Achievement Award and the Order of Canada. He created the CBC Radio One series, The Dead Dog Cafe Comedy Hour and is the bestselling author of five acclaimed novels, a couple of short story collections, some non-fiction work, and children’s books. His latest book is The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America.

All three of these people are appearing at the Eden Mills Writers’ Festival between Sept. 13 and 15 so it seemed like a good time to catch up with each of them.

Related links: edenmillswritersfestival.ca hamishhamilton.ca sarahelton.ca randomhouse.ca

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Ep. #33: Dirty Beaches

Dirty Beaches is the alter-ego of a gifted and prolific artist named Alex Zhang Hungtai. Originally from Taiwan, Hungtai has spent some time living in Montreal among other places and he’s earned a reputation for making some of the most challenging, noise-infused, song-based music of the decade. This past May, Dirty Beaches released two complementary records, the band and lyrically-based Drifters and the more solitary, instrumental endeavour that is Love is the Devil. Both are available courtesy of Zoo Music and the current Dirty Beaches tour includes Canadian stops at the Garrison in Toronto on Sept. 11 and Vancouver’s Biltmore on Sept. 26. In this in-depth Skype chat, Hungtai discusses why he left Montreal for Berlin, how being a nomad influences his art and might be a good challenge for anyone, loving metal, Wu-Tang, noise-rock, Springsteen and Suicide, fitting in vs. going your own way, his relationship with his audience, doing film scores and upcoming releases, the song “Berlin,” and much more.

Related links: dirtybeaches.bandcamp.com killzoomusic.com vishkhanna.com

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Ep. #32: Joel Plaskett

Joel Plaskett is one of the most accomplished, prolific musicians, songwriters, and producers to ever call Halifax home. 20 years ago he made his first great in-roads as an artist in the hugely influential underground rock band Thrush Hermit and, when that group stopped playing together at the end of the last century, Plaskett began a successful solo career releasing some of Canada’s most essential rock and folk albums. He runs his own label, New Scotland Records, highlighting the work of artists he loves, and continues to be a tremendous live performer and engaging storyteller. The Joel Plaskett Emergency released a cool record in 2012 called Scrappy Happiness and they return to Guelph for a show at the River Run Centre on Friday Sept. 13 as part of the 25th anniversary edition of the Eden Mills Writers’ Festival and then play Hamilton’s James St. Supercrawl on Saturday Sept. 14. During this extensive interview, Joel discusses his upbringing, his father Bill, how he first started playing music with his friends, why Family Ties was super distracting, why he’s never left Halifax, how independent culture has changed since he first became involved in it, how he makes sure he’s TCB, the showmanship of Bruce Springsteen, the connection between comedy and songwriting, his new songs, Clayton Park on double vinyl, Thrush Hermit reunions, and his future plans.

Related links: joelplaskett.com edenmillswritersfestival.ca vishkhanna.com

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