Via Will McGuirk: Critically acclaimed Ottawa band the Acorn has two free EPs for you. The first Ear Worms contains "Ear Worms: 12 - 30 sec. songs written and recorded on xmas eve." the second is Little Elms - "a short 4 song EP inspired by end-of-summer sun-stroke". Both are available at the band's web site theacorn.ca. 
Via CBC comes word that Canadian-Iranian blogger Hossein Derakhshan has been arrested in Tehran. Derakhshan, author of Editor Myself, which has been included in the news and politics section of publicbroadcasting.ca for some time has drawn fire from both Tehran and Washington over the years. International human rights groups and media reports said Derakhshan, a former Toronto resident, was arrested on Nov. 1.There has so far been no response from Foreign Affairs.
"His case is in a preliminary investigative stage at a revolutionary court and he is currently in incarceration at a jail in Tehran," Jamishid said, giving no further explanation of the charges against Derakhshan.
In Iran, revolutionary courts handle national security matters.
Known as "the blogfather" for his pioneering efforts at helping Iranian bloggers post welblogs in the Persian language, Derakhshan was both an outspoken critic of the clerical regime in Tehran, and supportive of his homeland's controversial nuclear program.
In his blog Editor: Myself, he wrote that Iran had the right to defend itself from what he called "U.S. aggression."
Eight days ago, three days before Christmas, I urged people to take a moment out of their holiday preparations and contact new Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff in defense of Canadian arts and culture. Although getting people's attention over this period is a tall order the response has been good. So far, that I know of, more than 280 people have contacted Iggy and urged him not to allow Harper's conservatives to take politically motivated hacks at arts and culture while he prepares a 30 billion dollar stimulus for every other industry. According to the Board of Trade arts and culture, both directly and indirectly employ 1.1 million people, generate 84 billion in economic activity and accounts for 7.4% of GDP.
Arts and culture, according to the Canada Council employs "roughly the same number of jobs as agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, oil & gas and utilities combined".
According to the Government of Canada's website for Trade Routes Canada's cultural exports equal 5 billion dollars annually.
CBC Radio 2 is having a competition. The idea is to come up with 49 songs from north of the 49th parallel to present as a welcome gift to incoming US president Barrack Obama. This is your official heads up: you have a week to consider which song you think best represents and defines our country to the incoming president. On January 5th, we'll invite you to start making your suggestions to us online at our special website, by email or by phone (details to come).If McCain had been elected down south this would have been an easy one, with a clear #1:
On January 12th we'll unveil the top 100 candidates. You'll have 5 days to vote for your favourite entries online (until January 16th), and finally on January 20th - Inauguration Day in the USA - we'll announce the winning songs and play as many of the 49 as we can fit into our daytime shows: Radio 2 Morning, Tempo, Drive and Tonic.
The Machetes who I first saw when they were opening for the Woodhands at their CD release are having a CD release of their own. Their debut EP will be officially unveiled at a free show at the Drake underground on December 7 along with "NXNE 08 DVD release, and a live recording of the whole darn thing!" 
Still going in alphabetical order, today's additions to the podsafe downloads are Toronto's Bicycles and Ottawa's Chris Page as a solo artist as well as with his band Camp Radio. 
Toronto's Dinosaur Bones will celebrate their first anniversary as a band on January 17 at the Horseshoe Tavern with The Junction, Black Hat Brigade, and The Paint Movement playing along. 
I am still amazed at how many people, even in the social media business, don't get social media. I'm not going to provide examples as it is not my intention here to embarrass anyone but the misunderstanding seems especially pronounced with traditional media and people with marketing, advertising and pr backgrounds. I've seen a number of campaigns and even articles on how to do social media that have the same problems as traditional advertising. I mentioned last week that I've gotten permission to add a bunch of artists from Ottawa's Kelp Records and Toronto's Fuzzy Logic Recordings to the podsafe downloads on this site. In total this will mean 23 new artists will be added to the list. 
Friday, December 26
In what appears to be a post directed only to CBC employees they are asking for ideas to improve CBC news as part of the 'CBC News renewal process'. My first thought is that if this is meant only for employees it shouldn't be on Inside the CBC - which is available to everyone (inside and out.) The link for more details leads to IO, which is the internal portal for CBC employees. My second thought is that as the nation's public broadcaster they should be asking the question outside the organization as well. So, although you can't get 'more details' please feel free to send your suggestions to newsrenewal[at]cbc.ca. 
In order to be environmentally friendly you are supposed to buy local. This doesn't just mean local produce but local everything (or at least as much as possible). The basic idea is that the less shipping and transport that is required to deliver a product to your home the lower the carbon footprint of that product. The CBC, like most news networks, have opened a door for people to send in 'newsworthy' pics and videos. This is, for news networks, a tremendous source of free content. Most people who submit 'user generated content' are unaware that some of the truly 'newsworthy' videos and pictures are actually worth money..be aware. 
Relatives coming over? Short on holiday tunes? CBC Radio 2 has your back - if you can run music from your computer, Radio 2 has a whole whack of Christmas concerts you can pop on. Choirs and orchestras and more erm..'contemporary' music, regardless there is a bunch. Have a listen at http://www.cbc.ca/radio2/blog/2008/12/23/christmas_concertson.html.
I got this bit of Christmas cheer from Maylee Todd who will be releasing her first solo work at some point in 09 (finally!). After spending part of the afternoon out and about on Dundas West, seeing people who are almost homicidal with holiday joy I thought I'd pass it a long. It's like 'It's a Wonderful Life' but with more evil and tin foil instead of guardian angels. 
Much thanks to Julianna Yau for the tip: David Topping, Editor-in-Chief at Torontoist announced today that due to overwhelming public support Torontoist isn't going away after all. "...a lot has changed for the better in the past week and a half, and a lot now seems possible for the site's future that wasn't before. And while Torontoist does not yet have the financial support it needs, we do have the support of our readers and our city, and that is what we've always needed most. So I'm happy to announce that up to, through, and past January 1, Torontoist will continue as Torontoist, with its existing name, existing contributors, and new content. (And, for now, it will continue to be supported technically and sustained financially by Gothamist.) It won't just be business as usual: it is the entire staff's shared mission to give the site one big concerted push, one that will see us in far better shape in six month's time and that should ensure not just our survival but our growth and success. We're going to do what we can to make Torontoist better than ever. It might, of course, not work. But we're not done—not yet."This, to me, does not change the fact that Torontonians need to support their own more than we do. It is especially difficult for blogs. I've looked into some of the revenue possibilities for publicbroadcasting.ca and none of them were acceptable. Most would have required me to put up intrusive ads for products I wouldn't buy or to put up blog posts endorsing things I don't like and pretending they weren't ads at all. Some, such as google ads, would have paid so little as to not be worth the column space (50,000 hits in a month would have gotten me near the break even point.) So it will e interesting to see how Torontoist goes about becoming more financially viable but the key thing is that they are still here, for now.
Another batch of new additions to publicbroadcasting.ca's aggregators this morning. 
On Saturday, December 20 Toronto's newest record label and the first (as far as I know) Pay What You Can (PWYC) record label ever launched at juicebox.com. It's first release JuiceBoxDotComp includes tracks from Gravity Wave, Saint Alvia, the Wooden Sky, Spooky Ruben, PDF Format and more than a dozen others. It is available for download for an (optional) donation (hence PWYC). 
This is normally outside the areas covered by this blog but, tis the season. Four year old Hanna Garman or Ephrata, Pennsylvania is suffering from a rare, incurable brain tumor. She is currently bed ridden and her activities are severely limited but she has asked for Christmas cards, lots of them. More information about Hannah can be found at http://www.wgal.com/news/18312086/detail.html?rss=lan&psp=news or http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/hannahgarman but if you have a few minutes, an extra card and a stamp the address is 
So there is apparently a big stimulus package coming from Ottawa. The general guestimate at this point is that it will be around 30 billion dollars with money for auto makers, forestry, oil companies, and just about everyone else. 
So, the other day I mentioned the 2008 CBC Radio 3 Bucky Award winners. I also mentioned that there were a few awards left to go, but I never put them up. So watch the video below to get the last few - most notably at all Laura Barrett was voted the 'Sexiest Canadian Musician for 2008' - This is such a good country. = )
For the last 3 + years I have maintained publicbroadcasting.ca to 'preserve and strengthen the independent and emerging Canadian voice'. As a part of this I have promoted public broadcasting, community and university radio, a free and open internet, home grown arts and culture, and progressive politics. There is alot of overlap and common ground between all of these areas. 
Steve McNabb of the Burning Hell and Radio Free Peterborough recently got in touch to let me know about a couple of things. "For at least 2,000 years the Tarahumara have lived in the mountains of northern Mexico, resisting outside intrusion by retreating, when necessary, to ever more inaccessible territory. In this way the Tarahumara have been better able to retain their traditions than many native peoples in North America.Please take a moment, if you have one or two and check out the site. The other thing Steve mentioned was the new Burning Hell widget. The Burning Hell, like every other indie band out there still needs to sell albums so .. have a listen, watch the video and think about buying some tunes and if you want your very own widget, check out http://www.wearetheburninghell.com/badges/happy_birthday. (widget below the vid)
The past 12 years have witnessed the worst drought conditions on record. The Tarahumara are expected to face another poor harvest this year.
The Sierra Tarahumara, is an immense and diverse region spanning the south and west areas of the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It is home to North America's tallest waterfall, Basaseachi, and also its deepest gorge, Barranca del Cobre (Copper Canyon), which is visited by tourists who ride the Chihuahua-Pacifico train.
Many Raramuri (as they are known in their own tongue) speak Spanish but their native tongue is Raramuri which has a variety of dialects in the region.
The Tarahumara are a native group inhabiting the rugged terrain of the Sierra Madre mountains in north central Mexico. Their original home was on the fertile plains, but they were forced to leave that area for their own survival, and to maintain their culture, several hundred years ago.
The Tarahumara continue to live much as they have for centuries because of their separation and the difficulties in reaching them. They are a people rich in culture, dedicated to their families and extended families, who live in widely scattered collections of small adobe houses or caves.
Their numbers are not well known. It is estimated that there may be up to 130,000 Tarahumara living in over 6,000 communities throughout the Sierra Madre range. Europeans called the tribe the Tarahumara, but the Tarahumara refer to themselves as the Raramuri.
Recent years have been difficult ones for the Raraumuri as a persistent drought has caused repeated crop failures which, in turn, has weakened the population and caused outright starvation in many places.
Gentleman Reg (Vermue) who's next album Jet Black will be released on Arts & Crafts at some point next year has just sent out his first ever video blog along with a note that reads:Watch the first, in what i'm sure will become a regular and ongoing video blog. All to do with things Gentleman Reg. You'll be amazed!If you'd like to hear about these things first hand you might want to join http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=11830434807.
There really is no other video blog on all of the internet with this exact content.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQ64BPJreok
The perfect thing for you and a loved one to do during this holiday season. A little five minute getaway from the hustle, the crowds, the snow, that uninvited guest, the sound of your relatives crying baby, or anything else you're trying to escape.
Trust me. Just Watch it.
xo reg
Ink Canada is an organization for "Canadian Screenwriters & their sketchy friends". They are currently looking for their Creative Citizen of the Year. The criteria:Sometimes, when an artist or cultural industry worker truly sets the bar for caring about more than the bottom line and the credits, we organize a little group virtual standing ovation for them on our wee page, to try to bring eyes, ears & hearts to their efforts to improve the quality of life for human beings in general.If you have suggestions you can get in touch on their facebook group - the discussion is going on at http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=2312266656&topic=7150 you can also add your .02 via Twitter: twitter.com/inkcanada or, if all else fails editorinkcanada[at]mac.com - if none of this works for you I'll pass on any comments left on this post.
We miss more than we applaud on ink canada, largely because these model citizens are generally rather modest about their gigantic Goodness-es.
So. If you know someone who ought to be applauded for the smallest acts of Giving a Damn, or the biggest... please use this space to bring them some luv and us all some lessons on what cool really looks like. Tell us about the people you know - writers, our friends, our collaborators, our companies, our sponsors, our audience members, anybody you know of... who make the world a better place and makes us all look good by the vaguest association.... or here, at the very least, acknowledgement:
Which old witch? How about RIAA lawsuits over Peer to Peer file sharing. From the Wall Street Journal via Michael Geist comes word that the RIAA, which has sued more than 35,000 people since 2003 has decided to abandon it's strategy of suing their best customers. This doesn't mean that they are gone, or that they have decided to be nice:"Instead, the Recording Industry Association of America said it plans to try an approach that relies on the cooperation of Internet-service providers. The trade group said it has hashed out preliminary agreements with major ISPs under which it will send an email to the provider when it finds a provider's customers making music available online for others to take.But a new ISP is less expensive than legal fees! It is also unlikely that most of the RIAA's major clients will survive the current economic crisis.
Depending on the agreement, the ISP will either forward the note to customers, or alert customers that they appear to be uploading music illegally, and ask them to stop. If the customers continue the file-sharing, they will get one or two more emails, perhaps accompanied by slower service from the provider. Finally, the ISP may cut off their access altogether."
Your friends at Fuzzy Logic Recordings have prepared a special X-mas gift for you. A digital EP with special wintery holiday like tunes from Gravity Wave, Prairie Cat, Steve McKay the Bicycles and the Poos and it's all for free at http://www.fuzzylogicrecordings.com/mp3s/Fuzzy_Holidays.zip. You may love it, you may not love it as much but .. um it's free so...go..get. 
Free phone calls are normally well outside my area but times being what they are - if it helps you get through the holidays etc.,: Via the Globe and Mail, starting tomorrow callingamerica.com will let you make free phone calls to anyone in the United States from any computer with "a web browser and a broadband connection" (We'll assume a microphone and speakers or headset would help as well). There is, naturally, a catch. You have to watch an ad before making your call. But if you have time but not money this could save you a few bucks. "Most important, the service works domestically and all over the world. That means you can call the United States free from any cybercafe or Internet-enabled computer virtually anywhere. While it might not be as cozy as a call from a phone booth in London, the service is certainly cheaper."
In case you haven't noticed there is a recession on. A pretty good one too. Some economists are even starting to use the D word (the one that ends in epression and that drugs don't help.) As a result, when companies started cutting costs one of the first things to go was advertising. So traditional media companies are cutting jobs all over the place, even the blog Torontoist is set to close it's doors on January 1. Daily until Dec. 24
Having trouble with sign language? Bob Wiseman can help. No expensive classes, no cost and .. well not all that useful when talking to people who can't hear. But it will only take two minutes and fourty three seconds to learn so what the hell right?
Well not for me. My mac is not Intel based so it won't work for me and I don't have enough problems with iTunes to buy a new machine so I can use this app. If you do have an Intel mac, Windows XP or Vista or a Linux machine check out the new open source music player Songbird and let me know how it works for you. Songbird is, as I suggested, free and open source and comes with a ton of features including:
If you need a last minute gift idea for the children (of any age) on your Xmas list check out Jenni Omnichord's 'Charlotte or Otis: Duets for Children, Their Parents and Other People Too'. If you don't know Jenni Omnichord you probably know Jenny Mitchell (or at least the Barmitzvah Brothers. Jenny's new album of duets for children released to commemorate the birth of her son features duets with Wax Mannequin, Shad, Jim Guthrie, Old Man Luedecke, Andy Swan, Andrew Penner (Sunparlour Players), Mathias Kom (Burning Hell - see below) and many others. "I don't mind telling you I had no idea what to expect from this album. I knew Jenny Omnichord to be the pre-eminent source of Omnichord-powered, quirky pop songs in this country, but I wasn`t sure if an album of her singing kids songs, even with the assistance of Canadian indie stars like Tony Dekker and Old Man Luedecke, would be something I`d prefer to expose my progeny to. It turns out, it is. Often artists tend to overdo the "kid-ness", for lack of a better term, when attempting to make songs for kids, and this usually results in songs most adults would prefer to never hear again after humouring the kids with an initial listen. But Jenny, and her assembled guests, have put together a collection of fun, heartfelt songs, with simple melodies that should appeal to both kids and their parents."Best of all, times being what they are, you can snag this amazing album for about 8 bucks via zunior
Most of the CBC Radio 3 Bucky Awards for this year were announced this afternoon (a few categories will be announced on the next episode of the Radio 3 TV video podcast. Only a few of my picks made it, but my sincere congratulations to everyone who took one home. :: Best Road Trip Song
WINNER: Matt Mays And el Torpedo "Tall Trees"
:: Best Live Act
WINNER: Holy F*ck "Lovely Allen"
:: Catchiest Hook
WINNER: Black Mountain "Stormy High"
:: Best Collaboration
WINNER: Will Currie & The Country French/ F Sloan "Push Pins"
:: Best Lyric
WINNER: Stars "14 Forever"
:: Most Canadian Song
WINNER: Jason Collett "Charlyn, Angel Of Kensington"
:: Best Reason To Learn French
WINNER: Karkwa "Oublie Pas"
:: Top Fan Award
WINNER: Colin Medley
:: Most Unconventional Instrument
WINNER: Fred Eaglesmith "Sweet Corn"
:: Best Band Name
WINNER: Library Voices
:: Rookie of the Year
WINNER: Plants and Animals "Bye Bye Bye"
:: Lifetime Achievement (formally 'Old and Awesome')
WINNER: Teenage Head
:: Best Vocals
WINNER: Mother Mother "Body of Years"
:: Best Beat
WINNER: Woodhands "Dancer"
:: Future Classic
WINNER: Chad VanGaalen "Willow Tree"
I had this idea while talking with someone at a xmas party. Bailout fatigue is setting in but I think that it's possible that such bailouts might not be necessary, and recessions could be a little more rare if governments (federal, provincial and local) took more of an interest in sustainable economics to begin with. So, here is the big what if: 
The folks in Dragon Fli Empire have launched a new blog promising "Calgary from a hip hop perspective". That's a promise I believe and something Canada could use. I've added it to the Music Blogs and Calgary.
According to the CBC the Ottawa library is about to start e-books to borrowers. The books include fiction and non-fiction for all ages and take the form electronic documents, (mostly .pdfs) that can be downloaded to your computer from the library's website. After three weeks, the file is automatically deleted, so there is no need to return it.Online and downloadable books are no doubt good for literacy on a number of levels - in addition to saving trees and trips in the car it makes more books available to more people regardless of where they are.
Wong said that after the library began offering digital audio books, which take the form of a sound file, patrons started sending e-mails to the library asking when it would start offering e-books, like libraries in Toronto, Hamilton, Oakville and Edmonton.
Victoria, B.C.'s Immaculate Machine has posed details about their new album 'High on Jackson Hill. From their Myspace Blog :We have finished a new album, called High On Jackson Hill - 12 songs, all recorded in the comfort of a borrowed home. The relaxed environment compared to a sterile studio helped make the album sound really laid back and creative. Working with producer Colin Stewart was a fantastic experience; he really helped bring out the 70s weirdo music in us. We are anticipating our first show with new material to be at SXSW in Austin March 2009. The official release for the album will come shortly after that, in March or April.Put it on your calendar, their 2007 album 'Fables' was one of the most underrated albums of the last few years and their live shows are amazing! (New album means new tour right?!?). More pics from the studio can be found on their blog.
A plausible explanation has emerged for much of the confusion and anger that surrounded the recent Parliamentary circus in Ottawa. According to a new Ipsos Reid poll shows that far too many Canadians do not understand our system of government. According to the Canadian Press:For example, results of the Ipsos Reid survey show 75 per cent of Canadians asked believe the prime minister, or the Governor General, is head of state. Bzzzz - wrong.To me this is the result of Canada's neglect of the education system. The answers to these questions should be deeply ingrained before a child graduates primary school.
It's actually the Queen...
Given a choice how best to describe the system of government, 25 per cent decided on a "co-operative assembly" while 17 per cent opted for a "representative republic."
Canada is neither.
Only 59 per cent correctly picked constitutional monarchy.
In a similar vein, 51 per cent wrongly agreed that Canadians elect the prime minister directly.
For the second year running Said the Whale is offering a free Holiday EP. This years 'West Coast Christmas EP' can be downloaded at http://www.pop-machine.ca/stw-xmas08.htm and if you missed it you can still grab last year's at http://www.pop-machine.ca/stw-xmas07.htm. Santa may like rich kids better but Said the Whale loves you all.
The CBC and the Canadian Media Guild have reached a tentative agreement on a new five-year deal after seven weeks of negotiations. The deal was signed this afternoon. It is subject to a ratification vote by guild members.
If ratified, the deal would come into effect on January 1st, 2009 and last until 2014.
The details are a bit thin at this point, but here are the highlights:
Wage increases of 1.5 per cent each year;
Improvements in maternity/paternity benefits;
Improved benefits for bereavement leave and layoffs.
There are obviously way more details on the deal, and I’ll post them as I get them.
So I already mentioned earlier today that Torontoist is going out of business because it's not as lucrative as the US cities that have blogs on the Gothamist network. What I said about that relates, in large part, to this:According to a Dave Topping yesterday Torontoist, after thousands of posts and millions of visitors, is shutting down:At the end of this month, I will be stepping down as Torontoist's Editor-in-Chief. I've loved everything about this job since I started it, and my decision to leave was not an easy one to make, but it is, ultimately, the right one at the right time for the right reasons. Gothamist has decided, as a result of both my resignation and the recession, to close Torontoist on January 1, 2009 and concentrate on their more lucrative American sites. That decision is the right one, too: as it exists now, Torontoist can barely be sustained, let alone developed, and it has survived and thrived as long as it has, in spite of modest means, largely because of the ceaseless hard work of that aforementioned collective. Torontoist may return at some later date, if conditions are different; until then, it will remain in suspended animation, its content still public and searchable.It would appear that even in the blogosphere that collaborations between Canadian and US media simply do not work. If Canadians want th;eir own culture, their own media and their own stories told it must be created, maintained and supported in Canada.
CBC Radio 3 is reporting that Joel Plaskett is currently busy producing a new Two Hours Traffic disc. But come February (exact date unknown) he will release a three CD set entitled "Three" - each of the three discs will have 9 songs on it (3 x 3 songs = 9 x 3 CDs = a 27 song song collection called 3). Plaskett actually revealed all of this in an interview which you can listen to in its entirety here.
Calgary band the Dudes wants you to sing on a new song they are recording. Via their Myspace Blog:"hey y'all. the dudes are recording a new song with a wee sing along at the end. it would sure be super nice to have your voices on that track. you want to? you can hear and download the sing along part right here on our myspace page! its just up there with the rest of the songs. a lot of people think that sing alongs are for sissies, but i say eff that junk. i say, tell it to the moustache 'cause my face is busy doing this sing along. seriously. sing that part on your home studio er whatever, and send the file to: istillbelieveinrock@hotmail.com best format would be a wave file but mp3 style is cool. sing alone! sing with your pals! sing with your mom's boyfriend! this is going to be LEGENDARY! good luck! LYRICS: if it hurts, when you bleed... if you need, you can terrify me."I haven't been able to 'download' it myself but to hear the part they want you to sing just go to Myspace.com/wearethedudes and click on "sing this on our next album".
You really cannot blame Stephen Harper for trying to fill the senate while Parliament isn't in session. He is just being Stephen Harper: calculating, petty, opportunistic, undemocratic and hypocritical. The person you can blame is Governor General Michaëlle Jean - who gave a Prime Minister who clearly did not have the support of Parliament permission to act as the Government without restrictions or checks for a month and a half. 