Hmm, all a bit quiet round here...

I really have been negligent, haven't I? Two posts in June and nothing, NOTHING, in July. Shocking, frankly.

There is really no excuse. It's not like it's been an amazing summer or anything. In fact, it's been the wettest in decades. That should be put in some context however. What that really means is that it's been like an awesome summer in UK terms. Largely sunny, some cloud cover and some rainy days. Not many, but some. Still, really not bad at all.

All manner of things happening in north America. In Canada we've had the most amazing and horrific murder story. A guy getting randomly beheaded by a crazy on a Greyhound bus. Beheaded!! And then the guy started eating the corpse. What the f*ck?? I have no idea why this hasn't made international news.

The American election is interesting. It seems that Europe is pretty convinced that Obama is a slam dunk. America, who actually votes, is not so sure. There's something about 200,000 Europeans loving him that really doesn't work with middle America. That and the hubris that seems to seep out of his every pore. In America, like Europe, no-one likes a guy who can't laugh at himself. Just look at the Boris - Ken election. Despite McCain's laughable campaign, Obama's hogging of the coverage and the nation's repulsion with the Republicans, Obama is just five points ahead. Now all the talk is about why this is. It seems pretty obvious - America hates being told what to believe. They're a stubborn nation and the fact that the New York Times and Washington Post think it's inevitable means nothing in Ohio.

My friend Melissa is back at the moment from Oz. Bless her. I love that girl and am delighted and relieved that her boyfriend is a Northerner from Newcastle. Well done Mark! Oh, and my lovely friends Marty and Sarah (pictured) got married at the best wedding EVER. Drinking at the service - it is the future. Love you two! x

 

House Hippo

You want one, don't you? But did you really think it looked real? Did you, really? If you actually believed in the House Hippo, is there anything at all you wouldn't fall for?? Be afraid, world, this country is voting for a new President in a few months time...

Magnificent Seven

My good friend Paul over at The Look - great blog, amazing book - has set a challenge. It seems that this all came from UK music journo Simon Reynolds. Here's what he has to say...

"List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if they're good or not, but they must be songs you're really enjoying now, shaping your spring. Post these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs. Then tag seven others and find out what they're listening to."

Well I like Simon's writing and Paul is one of my oldest friends, so here goes. Obviously a bit late on this - summer is most definitely here in Toronto - but whatever. Here is my seven song playlist.

1. David Bowie - Sweet Thing/Candidate/Sweet Thing (reprise)

OK, it's two or three songs, really, but this highlight from Diamond Dogs is perfect mid-70s Bowie. It's the point where Ziggy was morphing into the Thin White Duke - part glam, part coked-up Spaceman, part plastic soul boy. "Is it nice in your snowstorm, freezing your brain? Are you sure that your face looks the same?" What could he be talking about?

2. Sally Shapiro - He Keeps Me Alive (Skatebard Mix)

My friend Elliot introduced me to the Europop lovliness of Sally Shapiro. She's Scandinavian and the Scandinavians know a thing or two about pop music. Ms Shapiro has been a constant companion to and from work, pretty much all spring and summer. But this song starts almost every morning for me. To steal a term from Popjustice, Emotronics at its most sublime.

3. Saint Etienne - Hobart Paving

One from back in the day. I always loved this song and found it again the other week when I was making a playlist for the summer. "Rain falls like Elvis tears". We've all been there. This reminds me of rainy days in Kentish Town pubs. There were a lot of those. I think I should have been in work...

4. Talk Talk - Renee

Remember this one? It's all getting a bit 80s, isn't it? I was always a Spirit of Eden type back when I was a pretentious music student. These days though I'm all It's My Life. Not the cheeriest of songs this, I admit,  but come on -  it is awesome.

5. Semi Precious Weapons - Magnetic Baby

A recommendation from The Look. I love this band. I saw them just the other day when they ripped up NXNE (think SXSW but not as good). Bowie and The Ramones having a fist fight in a MAC store. A song to smear dirty glitter over your humdrum day.

6. PIL - Rise

There are days - bad work days, bad vibe days, just a little bit pissy days - when this song, and only this song, will do. Anger is an energy...

7. Dragonette - Take It Like Man

Dragonette momentarily restored my faith in Canadian pop music. Unfortunately, Canada pretty much rejected them. This is fairly typical. They tend to treat Nelly Furtado as a leper since she went disco slut. I don't care though. Dragonette cheer me up every time shuffle chances upon them. So here's to pop in Canadia. It's not all bad.

The people I'm tagging are...

Neil Mason and Ben Knowles

Oisin Lunny

Katie Bates

Sophie Baudrand

Cary Parker

You may know them, you may be them or you may have never heard of them. They have good taste though, all of 'em.

Oooh, it's been ages...

Sorry, got a little distracted by Spring. Sunshine, greenery, beer. Ahhh...nice.

Now, what has been going on. Frankly too much to cover in one entry and so I may just skip over it and move on. Ok, some highlights:

Two amazing concerts. The first was British Sea Power and Yo La Tengo in a tiny converted church with less than a hundred in the audience. The second was Feist at the Hummingbird Centre. If you get a chance to see any of those bands, just go. Particularly British Sea Power - simply amazing.

The double. Both against Chelsea. John Terry in tears. There is nothing more to say...

Watching Gordon lose it from across the pond. It's just hilarious. What a loser, really. How did people miss that he would never be up to it, that to be PM you really do need a personality. I do miss Newsnight at times like this.

Lowlight:

The Mars Volta live. Like going into a music shop with no soundproof rooms and everyone showing off at once. A truely, truely horrible experience.

Bed wetters

How bad is this? Seriously. Eno produced it - what happened? No wonder they're giving it away for free..

A great man

I just watched an interview with Sidney Poitier on Larry King. What an amazing man. It's rare to see someone of such intelligence, humility and righteous, yet controlled, anger. He lived through extraordinary times in America, from segregation to Obama, and produced an astonishing body of work. So many brave and important movies. It was a wonderful interview - Larry King is obviously a fan - but it covered everything from acting to family to the civil rights movement. I'm not sure if it's on the internet somewhere, but if it is, search it out. 

I went on the radio again today to flog a cymbal signed by The Cult. Now goth seems to go down well here in North America. Not sure why and they don't do the whole goth look so much - or at least they don't do it the same. Like a lot of fashion it's done in a far less camp way than the UK. Is camp the right word for UK goths? Maybe not but you know what I mean. Goth over here isn't as comfortable with its feminine side. Anyway, we'll see how it goes. I don't actually understand memorabilia - does it really make people feel closer to their heroes? And are rock stars (David Bowie aside, naturally) really heroes?

The weather has been horrid all week, hopefully it's going to get back to being at least spring next week. Typical Canada - they fool you thinking it's all over and then hit you with London in November.

Weirdness in the Us election - Rev Wright decided to go all 'I'm a star' on national TV. The guy is an asshole. Thankfully Obama finally denounced him and cut him off. Hilary continues to get more and more shrill. It's down to North Carolina and Indiana next week - if she loses both, surely to God this thing will be over...

Oh Dear..

Well, there goes the basketball season. The Raptors limped out of the post season, being nailed 1-4 by the Magic in Orlando. They just weren't ready for the play-offs and blew the first two games by going up to 20 points down in the 1st quarter of each. Then they won the first ACC game but fell apart in the 4th in the second game. And tonight, they collapsed in the second half. A sad way to go out.

And talking of which...

This really should do it for Obama. And you can't really say that this is all about this stupid, arrogant, egotistical preacher man. Clearly Rev. Wright has fallen in love with his own image as the 'righteous firebrand', but Obama has not dealt with it. He just won't disown this idiot. This presents two questions - does he, deep down, kind of agree with this nonsense, or is he just lacking the ruthlessness to lay into Wright. And, if it's the second then he's applying for the wrong job, frankly. Because if you can't dump a twit like this, what the hell are you going to do when the sh*t really hits the fan? And if it's the first answer, then, hey, that's not we what all signed up to when we first got excited by this guy.

So, I guess the issue now is Hillary or McCain. And how depressing is that as a choice. I guess you gotta go for Clinton, if only because of McCain's total blind spot on the economy (a bit of a major blind spot right now). But, jeez, the Clintons back - really, is that what anyone wants?

Oh, and after two weeks of glorious, 20+ sunshine, the winter coats are out again this week. Good times...

Politics and Religion

Anyone wanting to know just how different America is from the UK should be watching CNN right now. We have 'The Compassion Forum' - a debate of sorts where Obama and Clinton are questioned, separately, about their religious views and how those views would affect their policies and decision making. To UK viewers who haven't really been exposed to much US politics or media, this must seem an odd and slightly embarrassing concept. Can you imagine Brown and Cameron putting themselves through this? Or that snake-oil salesman, Blair? It would be cringe-worthy for them and horrific to see for the viewers. But this is actually one of the most insightful election programmes I've seen.

You see, Americans really do believe. And they really want their leaders to believe. And even a hard-nose like Hillary does take the God thing seriously. The questions are intelligent - on a range of subjects - abortion, obviously, Darfur, Iraq, relations between faiths, human rights in China, and the division between faith and government. And rather than hectoring and accusing, Hillary, at least - Obama hasn't been on yet - is giving apparently honest and thoughtful answers to some extremely difficult questions.

It's another example of how much more open and transparent US politics can be, despite the attack ads and the spinning. There is so much probing into what matters and what the candidates really think, that the American people can never truthfully say that they didn't know what it was they were voting for. And I don't think you can say that in the UK, certainly not in the age of New Labour.

That was all a bit serious, wasn't it. Sorry.

Mountie action!

Now, Canadian politics has always struck me as a little dull. There's the slightly terrifying Stephen Harper, of course, the last man to jump on the neo-con bandwagon just before it plowed into a ditch. And Stephane Dion, a man who makes Gordon Brown look like one of the world's most decisive politicians. Oh, and Dion's deputy, Michael Ignatieff, a weird cross between Daniel Day Lewis and Lloyd Grossman.

But today, Canadian politics came close to being exciting. Or at least funny. First up, Gen. Rick Hillier, head of the Canadian armed services, announced his retirement, claiming to have accomplished all the goals he set himself three years ago. You've got to think he set the bar a bit on the low side, given that Canada is up to its waist in the quagmire that is Afghanistan. Hillier, however, leaves a catalogue of exceptional quotes (see side panel). He got in terrible trouble for describing Bin Laden and is chums as 'detestable murderers and scumbags'. I'm not quite sure what the problem was, seems fairly accurate, but liberals thought it might cause problems in the Islamic community. Well, tough shit, frankly. However this description of the military is my personal favourite: 'We are the Canadian Forces and our job is to be able to kill people'. Which is just a little bit Borg, isn't it?

Anyway, after that - and I can assure you that was what passes for a major political story over here - we got this. Yes, the RCMP raided the ruling party's headquarters in an election fraud investigation. This was a proper political story. But let's not get distracted. The RCMP are The Mounties and The Mounties are, inherently, funny. And, by the look of the picture above, just a tiny bit gay?

So, a day of great excitement, then. And it was sunny. 

Avoiding the sweep

I know, I know, same picture again. Until I take another one (and given my record, that will be next season), this will be my baseball picture. Sorry.

So, it's 10.30 at night and, as usual on a cloudy cold evening, I'm watching the Jays again. 11th innings, one run each and the Jays trying to avoid being swept by Oakland. Now 1-1 after three and a half hours might seem dull but it just so isn't. Pitcher battles are sort of what it's all about. Baseball fans point out that baseball is the only game where the defense has the ball. Obviously, they've never heard of rounders or cricket or possibly croquet. Not sure about croquet - not sure if croquet has either defense or offense. Not sure anyone knows the answer to that one. Anyway, defense is what makes baseball so much better than rounders. Pitching is what makes baseball a bit like chess. I have a feeling no-one is buying this...

So, a quick update - the Jays have two on base - one at second, one at third - and two out. They had this last innings and blew it. All they need is a long fly ball. It's two balls, two strikes. Come on, just one hit...oh. Another terrible ground ball out. This game will run and run and I'm staying up until it's over. However, I don't think anyone needs my running commentary so, non-baseball fans, you'll just have to look up the score tomorrow.

For some reason the Jays have decided that they will randomly wear their old sky blue uniform at certain home games. They are using exactly the same design as the original. Imagine Man City in the eighties, onlt without the disturbingly tight shorts. Nice look...

And another thing...

..it's Lake Ontario! Note Toronto's wonderful waterfront developments. Oh.

Ladies and gentlemen...

...Toronto from the roof. Nice, isn't it?

Opening day and an amazing show

So, this is the view from the box at the Rogers Center on opening day. Blue Jays pitching to the Red Sox, packed house and the Jays winning. And win they did. An amazing atmosphere, almost like October baseball for game four. The Jays did well against the Yankees but lost the series 2-1 but went on to sweep the World Champions. Could we have a contender team this season? Maybe. The pitching staff is strong and the offense is hitting the ball out of the park. Oh, those heady dreams of spring...

After recovering from Ed Rogers' generosity (well it's not like he doesn't get enough of our money the rest of the year), we all woke up on Saturday to warm sunshine and a cloudless sky and...the rooftop has opened! This may not seem so big a deal but after the winter we've had this was like rebirthing. Finally, the snow has gone and we can change from red to white. At least for now. The snow may come back.

Last night i saw what was possibly the greatest show I've ever seen. British Sea Power and Yo Le Tengo. It was a free live TV shoot, so I was thinking, you know, six songs each? Oh no, two complete sets in front of a hundred or so people in a converted church. British Sea Power - one of my all time favourite bands - were astounding. Yo Le Tengo did a two hour acoustic(ish) set that included questions and requests from the audiences and covers of Shakin' All Over, Sonic Youth and Dylan. Amazing. It was a weird night - we kept expecting someone to tell us it was all a big joke, but no, it was real. Three and a half hours of stunning, stunning music. Sometimes something happens that restores your faith. Last night was it.

Wedded bliss?

Someone bought a print of this picture from work today. As a wedding present. Isn't that a weird message to give to a couple on their wedding day? Isn't that more the kind of thing you'd get from a guidance councillor? 

Anyway, moving on. Sorry for the silence. I'd assumed that no-one was reading, so was becoming a bit slack about the whole bloggery thing. But then I got a complaint from my reader - hello Soph - and felt slightly guilty. So, here we are,  New Entry.

It's now spring. Another reason for the lack of writing. You can go outside after dark without your toes falling off! It's sunny and quite warm! The parka has gone back in the cupboard. There's baseball on the telly every night.

Spring is officially good.

This is actually the one time of year where it would be possible to employ a sense of style. In winter you wear as much as possible and normal rules don't really apply. In a couple of months it will be 35 and humid, at which point you resort to shorts and t-shirts. But now and in fall the temperature is just right. Sadly, this potential for stylistic flamboyance is lost on your average Torontonian. Unless you count the punk 'look' of course - black tee for a band with 'F*ck' in the name, grotty jeans (boys) or ripped goth tights (girls) and tattoos. Always tattoos. They love a good tattoo or in Canada. All a bit grim. Not true of everyone - I have some very stylish friends - but really, New York seems a long way away.

It is also Juno weekend. Oh calm my fluttering heart. Yes, the most boring awards ceremony of the year and, this year, held in Calgary, the most boring city in the world. Celine Dion is nominated in nearly every category. Apparently she had two albums out last year - who knew? Celine is the Canadian equivalent of Annie Lennox. She could retire and still be up for best new album every year.

Changing the subject for the final paragraph, we've been having a little debate at work. Who would do a good Clash cover and what song should they do? There have been some totally ridiculous suggestions and a possible winner. But who do you think it should be? And yes, this is a blatant attempt to solicit a comment. Just one will do. It will reassure me that there really is someone out there...

It's above freezing, it must be spring!

It's warming up, very slowly. By warming up I mean it's generally above zero during the day. If you don't have to wear gloves to walk home, it must mean spring is round the corner. Hopefully. The weather forecasters are still talking about four weeks to go. At least the snow has pretty much gone for now...

One sure sign that this freezing hell is almost over is the start of the baseball season. It started yesterday. In Japan. The Japanese love baseball and have a thriving league, so this isn't about expansion, just making money. It's the American Dream on tour. 

The season properly starts next week. Toronto get to start with an away series at the Yankees, followed by the Red Sox - the World Champions - at home. This is not an easy way to begin the year. But hey, it's a long year. At least my tickets for opening day are in the bag - and it's the Rogers' box for me (that would be the owner's box, HA!). Weird way of watching a game though, surrounded by Toronto's rich elite supping cosmos and downing oysters. Baseball is all about the beer and hotdogs - but hey, you gotta do what you gotta do!

Now UK readers (and, to be fair, many Canadians) don't really get the appeal of baseball. It is, after all, rounders. But that's not fair - baseball is much more than that. It really is a great game - no, it is! It's also part of America's psyche, part of what makes it tick. That's why there was so much fuss about the steroid-taking report earlier in the year. It was as if America itself was in some way being violated by it. Only America could investigate a sport at Senate level - it would be like football being investigated by the House of Lords. Not that bad an idea, actually... 

So, take me down to the ball game and let's play ball!

A More Perfect Union

Everybody should listen to this. This is not just a politician but a Presidential candidate in an incredibly tight race. Amazing. I don't think Gordon Brown's got one of these in his back pocket...

It's forty minutes long, by the way, so you may need to make a cup of tea before you press play.

Wrote For Luck

So, Toronto is warming up. Well, it's over freezing and that's positively roasting. I had to go home and change jackets because the mental Canadian Goose duvet was too much. This is, officially, a good sign.

And I've discovered the wonder and horror of 6 Music this week. Great on some fronts - music you don't get on Canadian/American radio. Shocking on others - hello Lilly Allen, you have a lot to answer for. Kate Nash, OK, kinda your fault but, you know, a one off. NO! Russell Brand and now this tosser, George Lamb. I mean, really? Surely the only, THE ONLY, point of 6 music is people who love music. People who understand Word and the importance of buying the NME when you're growing up. People like I know in London. And we get this asshole. Jesus, how many reasons can there be to not go home?

Anyway, listened to Guy Garvey's show. I love Elbow, and his show was, well, right. Also, he had the best Sting joke for a long time. And Paul Morley's FAC 501 was amazing. My brother just sent me the two Hacienda comps - you've got to love nostalgia. It made me dance like it was 1991. A Guy Called Gerald - I had forgotten and I am sure I'm not the only one...

Back to FAC 501. Tony Wilson - what can you say? Manchester was his for a while. He made it. We lived in it. Now it's gone. I met Paul Morley a fair few times. He was the first person to introduce me to the wonder of melancholy. Thank you Paul - finally got it the other day. And that radio show confirmed it. 

This week (and, to an extent, last Saturday) made me miss old Manchester, when it was more raincoat than WAG. OK, so the unemployment figures were displayed on the town hall, it rained all day, every day, and you were as likely to get mugged as walk out of Affleck's Palace with a '061 - State Of The Nation' tee but, hey, it was real. And there was The Fall, Joy Division, the Smiths, The Buzzcocks, New Order, Happy Mondays, Stone Roses, 808 State, Inspiral Carpet and so many more before Oasis poisoned the well. But that city has gone. Long live Rio Ferdinand. Tony would hate it and love it at the same time.

Walk away, in silence...

Canadian Music Wake

Last week was Canadian Music Week - a grim few days where the great and the good of the conference merry-go-round converged on Toronto to discuss ways in which they could screw their constomers. The latest ruse is to remove file-sharers' internet access. The cunning plan is to make the ISPs responsible for policing online piracy with a three strikes and your out law. If you're caught trying to download an obscure northern soul track that is commercially unavailable three times, that's it, no more internet access for you sunshine. Overlooking the obvious marketing benefits of P2P, the fact that most P2P users buy far more music than your average Joe and the sheer insanity of persecuting people who still consider music to be a vital, exciting, life-affirming thing of wonder, who the f*ck do the music industry think they are? Is there any hope that this bunch of pen-pushers and money lenders will be able to drag their sorry faces out of the sand before the game is well and truly up? Unlikely. It seems that all the people who know why the Clash matter have been shoved aside and replaced by people who really don't see the problem with shoving another Jessica Simpson clone down the throats of the masses. Hopefully it won't be long now before the whole shambolic, delusional edifice collapses around their cloth ears.

Anyway on a brighter note, I did meet a friend of, it turned out, lots of friends who was in town to observe the whole sorry mess. It's always a worry when someone tells you that their friend is in town and you should meet them.  But my new best friend Nicola turned out to be fantastic. Like most of my friends in the UK, she's a journalist, and a music journalist to boot. You don't get music journalists in Canada. You have to save up the $14 for Word. We had a lovely afternoon hiding in a pub from the worst storm of the winter. I'm used to it now but she couldn't quite believe that anyone would voluntarily live through a Canadian winter. 

It was the nicest afternoon I've spent in a long time and reminded me of the things I genuinely miss about London. Pubs, for one. And talking about music in that way that only the British do. Oh, and the sense of humour - it's very different from north America. After she'd flown out to Austin I felt quite melancholy for a while. Then I listened to half of Question Time over the internet and realised exactly why someone would do what I've done. Still, cheers Nicola - come back soon, maybe not in early March...

Got home on Saturday evening and within an hour the power went out in the building - all very 70s Britain. It occurred to me that an afternoon down the pub followed by an evening surrounded by candles was slightly dangerous. They should make a public information film about it.

I did quite enjoy melancholy - it's a very misunderstood state.

Go Leafs Go!

So tonight I finally saw a live hockey game. I'm now just Curling away from becoming Canadian. It was, one has to say, awesome - I now get hockey. But boy, the Leafs suck. It was like watching Man City vs Milan. New Jersey barely broke sweat apart from the odd moment when they thought they really ought to score. And they did. Four times. The Leafs are ridiculously over-supported and ridiculously overpriced. As a result, the management can't quite see the point in investing in the team. They sell out EVERY GAME. Crazy, really. As my friend Elliot pointed out, this is a true Torontonian right of passage - Jays can't beat the Red Sox, Leafs can't beat anyone and the Raptors think that the playoffs count as success. As I said, Man City...

Looks like Hillary is becoming the comeback kid (again) tonight. Inevitable really, negative still works well. Obama's speech tonight was still amazing though - however much mud they throw at him, he still stays above the fray. It will probably do for him in the end.

Something astounding I saw today - the UK Tory party's new campaign. Look up 'Conservative UK' in facebook and you will find the most sophisticated political page I have ever seen. They have clearly been watching Obama but are doing it better. Really - the Tories! It is a vision of the future of political campaigning and I plan to steal from it for my online strategy. I am very, very impressed. Well done the boy David...

Anyway, CNN is going on throughout the night but I can't. CNN have given up pretending that this election is anything but the latest US sport. Their daily political show is called 'Election Bowl' and uses graphics from football play books. And they described their coverage tonight as 'flooding the zone'. You've got to love it, really...

In silence...

Going here - not sure why. Well, to be honest, I do, but not going to say. Anyway, later.... Deep down, deep, deep down as E17 used to say...

Goldfrapp and the Smurfs

I decided that this new Goldfrapp hippy folk thing sounded like it could be better than many people were saying. So off I trotted (well skidded - snowing again...sigh) to the record store to buy it in quaint old CD format. And it's a very, very lovely thing. So lovely I got to the end and listened to it again. Yes, it's not the amazing quirky pop we all love her for but, hey, she's Goldfrapp. It's still pop, still has choruses, still has beats - it's just quieter. That's all. Is that so bad? Go buy it or 'borrow' it. I like it a lot.

So back to the election (sorry, I'll be brief). Hillary, bless her, put out a terrible attack ad on Obama. Weirdly, can't find the original on YouTube but did find this spoof of it:  

Doesn't it show out of touch campaigning that when you search for 'Hillary phone ad', you get this? On the day the original ad first airs? It's all a bit sad. Obama has made a much better counterattack ad but Hillary is really dragging the whole thing into the gutter. She's still winning in Ohio though...

Let me leave you with this - when charity gets it very, very wrong:

Apparently, you're not supposed to laugh. Oh.

Is Goldfrapp a fashion cheat?

Well, is she? Fashionistas should check out this entry on The Look. Another fine entry by Paul - part time LA tour guide.

Is it lazy to simply reference other people's blogs? Yeah, I guess so, but you don't care, do you??

And the Oscar goes to...

There's been a lot of criticism of 'Britain's own' Tilda Swinton over her Oscars look. No make-up? Are you a crazy woman?? But haven't we seen seen this look before?

So Bowie can't really remember much about this time. We all know that feeling. But it doesn't make it a bad look. Well, does it?! 

It's not like she's the first:

Americans can be so bitchy.

Katie says...

So, Katie (whose fault this whole sorry mess is) has complained that this blog is far too 'USA! USA! USA!' and nowhere near 'Oh Canada' enough. Well, given that it's been minus something revolting and snowing outside for as long as any of us can remember, this should come as no surprise. But, in the interest of inter-north American fairness, this will be a post about that little known area of interest, Canadian politics. This is Katie, by the way, going through her brief but always jolly British Nationalist phase. She went all Serbian after this and, as I write, is probably burning down some embassy or other.

There's going to be more than one election over this side of the pond this year. Oh yes. Canadians, too, will soon be 'going to the polls'. Rumour has it that said election will be called any day now. And once it's called, all mention of Senator 'so-called' Obama and Hillary 'Bill' Clinton will be just a vague memory. And then a few weeks later the whole thing will be over. Some would say that a Canadian general election is no election at all. Where are the endless debates, the months of campaigning? Where are the attack ads and the ugly rumours? Where is the super this and super that??

Canada does things a little differently, thank you very much. A month or so and it's done and dusted. This is probably due to the cold - who wants to open the door to a political campaigner when your nose might fall off? 

"But hey!" I hear you shout above the whistle of the tumbleweed, "who is going to win?". There are two main candidates - Stephen Harper and his Tories (yes, they have tories here too, except they're still scary and neo-con and don't hug hoodies) and Stephane Dion and his Liberals (they're all lovely and liberal, hence the name). Now you would think that, given Canada's reputation for general niceness and global citizenry, Dion would be a shoe-in. But no! Whisper it, somewhere out there, somewhere in the tundra, there lives not only a yeti but a whole slew of nasty right-wing Canadians. I know, shocking. But there's loads of them and Harper will almost certainly be voted back into office. Canadians will then, once again, wring their hands in angst while the rest of the world will, admittedly, fail to notice. It's the curse of Canada - everyone likes them but no-one really cares that much. Maybe if they met some of these nasty Canadians, they would like them slightly less. But they still wouldn't be bothered either way, if they were honest.

So there you have it, Katie, some proper (ahem) Canadian political punditry. Can we get back to the Democratic debate now? They're in Texas and talking cobblers about Cuba. Hillary wouldn't meet Castro's brother, apparently. To be fair, he probably wouldn't want to meet her very much, either.

Blimey...

There's a lunar eclipse going on tonight. Brilliantly, the local news predicted it was going to happen in seven hours time. Glad they're as good at astronomy as they are at meteorology...

Tevez

My very great friend Sophie called me tonight from Milan airport - she was at the Armani show don't you know! Anyway, she then texted me from Heathrow to ask the score in the Man Utd-Lyon game - Sophie is from Lyon and London and supports Liverpool (go figure!). Anyway, I thought it was funny that someone who lives in London had to phone Canada to find out the result of a sport we can only really follow through the Guardian Unlimited minute by minute report. United grabbed a draw in the last five minutes, if you're interested (although if you were interested you know that by now...). 

Thank you Tevez, you were a good buy.

Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip

How did this show get cut?

I never saw it when it was on TV - I didn't really have a TV in the UK and I am still to work out TV schedules over here. But I read that it was great on, I think, either the Guardian or the Times website. So I bought the DVD set. It's just awesome. Of course it is - it's written by Aaron Sorkin (of West Wing fame) and has great actors. It's funny, it's an exaggerated version of reality and it's serious. Nothing this good gets made in Europe, ever. But it wasn't watched. Why?

I know I'm on a bit of an LA trip right now but really, buy this series. I can only think that it is a little too close to reality in Hollywood and some overly sensitive TV exec decided to get it off the air. Or it is too Hollywood for the average American. Who knows? But buy this series, you won't be disappointed...

The democrat race is getting ugly and will only get uglier. More of that later but if you want better reporting than I can give you, subscribe to the NY Times and Washington Post mailings. It makes the British electoral 'battle' look a bit sad. 

My hotel

In case you didn't get how great LA was...

Why does CNN love Obama?

Why does Clinton always start her speech a few minutes before Obama? She's done it time and time again. And all that happens is that she gets past her thank-yous and suddenly Barrack is on stage and CNN ALWAYS switch to him. Even when he's just thanking local workers. Why is that?

There are a number of possible reasons. CNN may have decided that Obama has this in the bag. This is unlikely - the Super Delegates might easily screw the voters - it's close enough for the establishment to blow it. It could be because they think that Obama is McCain's best chance - let's face it, CNN is a tad right wing. But that's unlikely too because every Republican hates he Clintons. So maybe it's just that he's much better TV. Her speeches are policy dirges - tired old ideas from the last decade. His sound like MLK and JFK combined. McCain sounds like a tired old uncle at the end of a party. He sounds like the future. It may be a vague future but it is inspiring in a way you could only get away with in America.

So, Obama has, it appears, won yet again in Wisconsin - you have to wonder where Clinton can go next. Dirty, you have to assume. She's already started. She has, to her credit, sent Bill to the side-lines (he sounds like a grumpy old man these days). But Obama has momentum, you can't see it being stopped by anything other than the democratic party. That isn't to say that the Republican can't destroy him as a crazy left-winger. They have a lot of time to paint him as way left of George McGovern. And if anyone doesn't know what that means, read Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing On The Campaign Trail '72 - the best American political book out there.

But for now, let's enjoy Obama's rhetoric, even if he has borrowed some of it from his friends...

Sweet Dreams My LA Ex

Well, technically there is no LA ex but, you know, it was either that or 'Ain't Nobody Straight in LA'...

So, Los Angeles, what a fine place to celebrate your birthday. And what a great place to meet up with pretty much your oldest friend. 

I loved LA. And sometimes I hated LA. Quite often the dislike was sparked by yet another overheard conversation (all conversations in my hotel were designed to be overheard). They normally involved some old guy and a young blonde girl, with the old guy promising a part, a shoot or an introduction to "this guy Larry who's working on this amazing project...".

But between that (and, let's face it, what do you expect in Hollywood?) I loved it. I loved the sunshine - everything is in colour! I loved the music - I have had a soft spot for Laurel Canyon for a while but I didn't expect the quality dance music, the weird covers (who covers Bowie's Repetition in a house stylee?) and those moments when you're sitting in a bar and go 'What is THIS?!' And I loved the weird, cool boutiques and bric-a-brac shops. 

So, after two days in the sunshine state it was back to chilly Canada and two lovely evenings with my friends. Two timezones, four days of partying, a 30 degree temperature change (twice) and now I've broken the forty barrier. And I'm glad to say, I don't feel any different.

On an entirely different note, two of my very good friends have recently started my new favourite music blog: mynewfavouriteband.com. It is to be highly recommended to anyone who loves music and great music writing - there's not too much of that around these days. Actually, there's none of that in Canada but that's the great thing about the interweb, eh?

Clinton weirdness

Two posts in a day, keen or what?

Clinton just came out to speak in Texas. She looked a bit mad and a bit like she might break down. She also came out to U2's 'Street With No Name' - isn't that an odd choice of song? I want to run, I want to hide? I'm sorry, what was that? Our love turns to rust, blown by the wind, trampled in dust? Erm...ok...  She also came out with the most uncomfortable 8 year old latino kid dressed in the most cliched Mexican outfit. He looked like he just stepped out of a school play of Blazing Saddles. Please, please don't make this the candidate.

And now she's getting all weird and emotional while reading her thank-you list off a cue card. Oh, and she's in El Paso - my god, she's going to make a burrito in a minute. She sounds desperate and slightly mental and the face-lift looks like it's slipping. Then again, she's in Texas, a crazy, crazy state. The place where they have billboards with the classic sell: 'Buy yourself a big juicy pig'. To eat, obviously. 

Come on America, come on. This 'I am a human being, really, I am' rubbish can't work, can it?

Meanwhile, Obama looks like he'll overtake her in delegates. But not super delegates. Everything is 'super' in America. The super delegates (or the democratic establishment as they are otherwise known) could decide this race.

You need to look this speech up on YouTube - it's kinda disturbing... CNN just got bored or freaked out by it and cut her off for a commercial break. 'Burning down love' indeed...

 

Winter blues

So, Toronto is conspiring to keep me here. We're in the middle of the third bad snow storm in two weeks. It's the most snow for twenty years, or something. My plane had better not be cancelled tomorrow. However, if it does take off, what better time to get out of here. This winter sucks.

Going to LA for my birthday is going to be a bit sad without my perfect friend, Melissa. If ever there was a trip we should be taking together, this is it. If anyone knows how to party like a rock star, Melissa is that girl. I miss her a lot but she's in Oz and, quite frankly, is having a much better time than we are right now!

But still, I really can't wait to get out of here. It's 75 and sunny in LA - coming back on Saturday is going to be 'interesting' (i.e. miserable). The best we can say is that at least we'll appreciate the summer...

Three more Democrat primaries tonight and Obama is killing Hilary in Virginia, as he has been in all the primaries since 'Super' Tuesday. Come on, America, make the right choice. Make us proud. Please. Do. Not. Screw. This. Up. Huckabee might embarrass McCain in Virginia (he's winning right now). That would be funny until you realise that behind the folksy charm is the mind of a mad man. He doesn't believe in evolution and he could become the leader of the 'free' world. Nice.

Running to the sun

It is ridiculously cold right now. It's a cold you don't ever get in the UK. Yesterday, for example, the ten minute walk back from the video store left my face stinging - it almost felt like it was burnt in an odd way. Hibernation time.

But who cares about that - I'm off to LA! Admittedly, this will be a short trip, just three nights and two whole days. But still, two days of sunshine and 20 plus temperatures is going to seem like heave (albeit a slightly strange Los Angeles heaven). I'm meeting my good friend Paul Gorman and his girlfriend Caz. They're flying back to the UK from Oz, via a stop-off in LA. Paul lived there for a while when he was a journalist at Music Business International (I think that's what is was called), so he knows his way around. Paul is also my party buddy from London - Paul's parties are legendary in west and south-west London.

Paul taught me the martini are like nipples rule. One is not enough, two is perfect, three is one too many. You have to go to three to properly learn this rule...

This LA trip is well timed, because Saturday is my (ahem) 40th birthday. Forty. Cripes. So, what better way of celebrating this minor milestone than by partying like a rock star - two nights in LA then back to Toronto for a long weekend of debauchery (or hiding from the ice with a bottle of wine and whatever duty free I bring back. And maybe a little poker...). 

Enough for now. Next time I will have tales of Hollywood to impart. Hold on Britney, I'm on my way!!

 

And Manning gets away...

yes, the Superbowl was amazing. Not just a good game, an amazing game. Nobody gave the Giants a chance but nobody thought the Giants defense would do THAT to Brady. And then there is that play. I'm not going to try and rewrite what proper sports journalists have written - just check out the NY Times post-game articles and read why American sports journalism beats the UK. Partisan? Yeah! An understanding of why sport can be a great thing. Oh yeah...

And now it's Super Tuesday tomorrow. Who knows what will happen? Hillary cried again today - surely to god no-one will fall for that again? But, you know, it's California. Obama is catching her though, according to the polls. Then again these are polls that said he'd take New Hampshire by 10. I saw an Obama speech on CNN the other day (don't remember where). He really is good. There's not much there in terms of policy but so much in terms of that most shallow thing - vision. And you get the impression that the USA and the world could handle a bit of optimistic vision right now. McCain seems to have the Republican party nomination sewed up - that's a bit of a relief. Romney is a bit odd. And a bit wrong. So it could be Obama against McCain, which might be the best two options America has. Personally, I think either Rebublican candidate could kill Hillary because nobody really wants Bill in the White House again.

But let's go back to the Superbowl - what a game! The Giants killed them. Superbowls are normally a bit rubbish - game over by the end of the second quarter, people moving away from the TV to the poker table after the half time show. This time, no-one will remember Tom Petty's show from this year. And that, ladies and gentlemen, can be nothing more than a victory for us all. 

Super This, Super That

So, it's Superbowl weekend. This is very exciting, UK reader(s). Football (American) is a much maligned sport in the UK. Rugby fans are particularly sniffy and patronising about it. Rugby fans have no idea what they're talking about (a general rule for life). While rugby is a bunch of slightly over-weight public school boys and Australians running about and bumping in to each other, football is a proper contact sport. There is a reason for the body armour - it's really, really dangerous. And yet - and this is a truth for sports generally here - cheating, play acting and illegal play is considered an affront, almost, to America itself. Even in hockey (where fighting is part of the game) any block that looks like it was made with the intention of hurting another player is met with huge fines and bans. Football is also the perfect TV sport. If a sport was to be designed by TV people, football would be it. It lasts just the right time to get slightly drunk and has natural breaks in play just long enough to sell viagra to slightly drunk men who can't get it up any more.

Anyway, just take it as read that the Superbowl is a good thing. This year it is being spoilt only by the fact that Prince's astonishing half-time performance last year is being followed by, erm, Tom Petty. Hmm, thanks.

Also this week is Super Tuesday. Or Super! Tuesday!! as CNN would have it. This is, as you know, when 20 odd states hold their Primaries or Caucuses. This is almost as exciting a contact sport as football. NBC certainly think so. During the last championship game a preview for Super Tuesday was shown at half time - followed by the classic line - 'football and politics, what more do you need - all here on NBC'. And they may have a point.

American TV calls politics using sports language. 'Obama needs to keep moving the chains', 'McCain hit him out the park on that point', 'when Bush gets the ball back after November he's not going to take a knee. He's going to step back and throw it long'. This last one is a football analogy, meaning Bush isn't going to play out time on his presidency, he's going to want to end on a big play. In this case, the 'throw it long' bit is football speak for 'he's going to bomb Iran out of existence'. It's nice to know these things are taken as seriously as football...

I heard that the UK got shut down this week because it got a bit windy. It's a bit embarrassing really, isn't it? It's as if the UK infrastructure was designed and built on a wave of heady optimism generally missing from the British character. "It'll be fine! The summers will be sunny and the winters benign. Trust me, wind and snow in England? Not going to happen, mate". Bless Britain. I miss it a bit.

The upside of cold weather

So, it's far too cold to go out, so what do you do? Well, tonight has been spent drinking red wine and finding amazing free music. Tonight's legal haul included the amazing album by Semi Precious Weapons. I'm probably several months behind but hey, I live in Canada. New York may be an hour away but it may as well be another planet. Semi Precious Weapons are from Brooklyn, managed by BP Fallon, exec produced by Tony Viscontti and described by Alan McGee as 'the most important band in America right now'. And he should know. Perez likes them too, apparently, which is neither here nor there, really. Anyway, their album is free (well it will cost you your email address) from their website (it's in the Shop bit of their website) and it is well worth every typed letter.

Also, a splendid (2 year old) mix from Nag Nag Nag. As anyone who ever saw me out with Paul Gorman would know, I've always been partial to a bit of solid gay club music. Talking of Paul Gorman, I would highly recommend his The Look blog, and indeed his fashion bible, The Look: Adventures In Rock and Pop Fashion - a book that everyone in Toronto would benefit from reading. Obviously its not available here.... It was Paul's blog that introduced me to SPW - they make lovely jewelry too. And yes, that's the American spelling of jewelry.

So, back to snow and glam punk awesomeness. No-one is reading this but somehow I can't help feeling that the internet isn't quite full enough of stream of consciousness drivel yet....

Oh lord, why?

Well, why is because a very good friend of mine insisted, and given that I couldn't possibly say 'no' to someone who kept me entertained for months with her blog, here's mine. Not that anyone will ever see it.

Hmm, odd thing to do this but I'll give it a go.

So, this will be a few random messages whenever anything happens that i want to write down. As of now, I have no idea what that might be - possibly very little (it's too cold to go out right now). But for now, it's enough that I've actually set this up, so should anyone ever read any of this, enjoy....