Asper: Recession Not to Blame for TV woes

In a Report on Television report CanWest CEO Leonard Asper is quoted as saying that neither the recession, nor debt is responsible for the current woes of broadcast television.

" Neither the bad economy nor debt taken on by broadcasters are to blame for profit declines at Canada's major television networks, the head of CanWest Global Communications Corp. [CGS-T] told the federal broadcast regulator Tuesday.

Instead, chief executive officer Leonard Asper said the cause of the problem is a regulatory system that has allowed cable companies to get rich while network television erodes. The other forces are making the problem worse, but they are not the culprit, he said."

This is of course a political statement. CanWest Global, like all broadcasters in Canada, would like cable companies to pay carriage fees to broadcasters. Cable companies aren't interested and the CRTC doesn't appear to be interested either.

The recession has certainly had a profound impact on ad revenues which has hurt broadcasters. They have certainly taken on too much debt - CanWest recently bet the house on an acquisition of Alliance Atlantis: a move that was widely regarded as suicidal. So Aspers statement were certainly disingenuous but there is some truth to them.

The problems of broadcast television did not begin with the recession. It is primarily a refusal to adapt to the world of media as it is. A world that means smaller, fragmented audiences who insist on convenience and choice. Canada's television broadcasters have not made good choices, they have not tried to understand the audience or adapt to changing conditions and, although the writing has been on the wall for over a decade, none of them have taken more than baby steps toward the inevitable future.

From a 'vision' perspective, television is in much the same boat that auto manufacturers were a year ago. I have heard, from several different people in the last few years the statement "television is for boomers" (or statements to that effect.) and until that perception is corrected and steps are taken to adapt to the new environment all the carriage fees in the world will not save them.

CD Review: Metric - Fantasies

The press release for Metric's new album, Fantasies, stated that the title was intended to evoke a dream-inspired feeling. The suggested feeling does occur as the material seems to be motivated by subconscious thoughts. Listening to Fantasies in one sitting is very similar to an actual dream. The album's tone and emotion changes frequently, even in the middle of a song. It also depicts the feeling of waking up. For example, the album's fourth track, "Twilight Galaxy," is very calming and encourages one to fall into a trance. This is followed by "Gold Guns Girls," which is the literal equivalent to a noisy alarm clock.

But in all honesty, there's nothing really special about Fantasies. This is not meant to be a slight against Metric. The new album is enjoyable and the band upholds their acclaimed style. The music is original and doesn't conform to any commercial conventions. However, Fantasies does not break any new ground. It's a typical indie-rock album; something that we have come to expect from a band like Metric.

"Help I'm Alive," the leadoff track, was the first single released from the album. It's a good choice as the song describes the feeling the band was going for. There are various moods and the vocals by lead singer Emily Haines registers on several fronts. There's also the delightful fuse of hard rock and New Wave. However, "Help I'm Alive" doesn't come close to the powerful and attention-grabbing "Monster Hospital" from 2005's Live It Out album.

Fantasies will have its success. There will certainly be praise for it. But expecting the album to be monumentally noteworthy is outlandish. It's a great album, but not one that will revolutionize the Canadian indie-rock scene. Expectations should be set a respectful level; neither high nor low.

For more information on Metric, please visit www.ilovemetric.com.

The Key to Media Profitability is Respect

I talk to alot of people in various media. Most of them don't really care about file sharing one way or another. The thing I've found, with music, is that most of the people I know buy alot of CDs (physical or digital) from artists that they like because they respect the artists and they know how hard they work. They know that most artists (unless you're U2 or Coldplay) are not wealthy and make their money by a combination of recorded music sales, merchandise and concert attendance. So the fans show respect to the artist by buying something. Some may download the music for free but they go to live shows and buy t-shirts. The artists, in turn, respect their fans and will accept this partial payment - the artists know that their fans are also not made of money. The artists also know that there is little they can do about file sharing and would rather remain on good terms with the audience that create an adversarial relationship over a few dollars.

This is the kind of relationship, based on mutual respect, that needs to exist for your media company (in whatever medium) to survive. Sometimes it is the audience that needs to show more respect. To download an unreleased album or an unreleased film shows a lack of respect for the artists. It is up to the creator of the content to decide when it is done and when it is available to the public. You wouldn't want someone reading your rough drafts - or making them available to the public at large.

Most of the time though it is a lack of respect on behalf of the media. To actually expect fans of your film to pay to see it in the theatre and then to buy it on VHS, and DVD, and Blu-Ray and then to buy another .mp4 copy for their iPod shows a lack of respect for the audience and it should come as no surprise if that lack of respect is returned.

I have bought Sandanista by the Clash three times - on Vinyl, then on CD, then on CD again. If something should happen to my copy I should be able to download another one. I have shown my respect to the creators of the album three times over. But according to the big record labels I should not only buy it again, I should buy the CD and then buy it in digital form if I want it on my computer and then buy it yet again if I should if I want it on my portable MP3 player. That shows an intense lack of respect for the audience and it should come as no surprise if that lack of respect is returned (especially when the record companies have a poor track record on supporting artists.)

I pointed out in my last post that the problem that big media is facing is not due to downloading, it is due to their inability to adapt to the increased competition of the million channel universe. Taking your problems out on your fans and your best customers (and taking $222k from a single mom because you lost $8) is the ultimate show of disrespect and if that disrespect is returned at the same level your company will not survive.

To date big media (record labels, movie studios, and others) have shown almost no respect to the audience, but they demand back full and total respect, even a little bit of awe. I do not, at this moment, believe that most of these companies will survive. If one day I rent a DVD and, instead of an anti-piracy advertisement, see the head of the MPAA on his knees begging forgiveness and offering free downloads of all films made prior to 1990 - I may change my mind. I'm afraid though that it would take something on that level for me to have any confidence that Fox, Vivendi, Universal, etc., are going to be around in 20 years.

If you, as a content producer in any media want to have a lasting career and a growing audience that is willing to pay - not because they have to but because they support you - try earning the respect of the audience. If you create intelligent, meaningful, worthwhile media and show respect and appreciation for everyone in your audience you'll be fine.

MPAA Declares Victory: Pirate Bay Insurgency Begins

In case you somehow missed the news the Pirate Bay's founders were fined and sentenced to prison earlier this week. The action touched off immediate protests - but now it is going beyond that. The Twitosphere is buzzing with calls for a full media boycott. At this point any reasonable person can only hope that it is successful.

Independent studies of downloading in the U.S., U.K, and Canada have all shown that file sharing is good for media. The problem the media is having has nothing to do with torrents or piracy - the problem is competition. We now live in the million channel universe (it's actually far more than a million but we can skip that.) Big media hasn't learned to live in a world where they don't have a monopoly on the audience. As that audience fragments and their share gets smaller big media has opted to sue their fans and customers - not out of any kind of moral right and wrong but purely to try and grab some easy cash from an easy target. That kind of irrational and irresponsible behavior cannot and should not be rewarded.

Additionally, as a supporter and consumer of intelligent, meaningful arts and culture the product produced by the larger media companies in all areas (television, film, music, news, etc) is deteriorating rapidly year over year. In an effort to make a "safe" profit they have gone to the familiar and formulaic over anything new, interesting or progressive. These conglomerates are failures both as business' and as providers of arts and culture and there is no conceivable reason for the public to lift a finger to save them.

As for the Pirate Bay itself, it is business as usual. From their

"So the first verdict finally came, almost 3 years after the raid. You might have heard about it in the news...

You, our beloved users, know that this little speedbump on the information super highway is nothing more than just, a little bump. Todays verdict has already been appealed by us and will be taken to the next level of court (and that will take another 2 or 3 years!)

The site will live on! We are more determined than ever that what we do is right. Millions of users are a good proof of that.

We have seen that some people that we dont know have started collecting donations for us, so we can pay those silly fines. We firmly ask you NOT to do this. Do not gather or send any money. We do not want them since we will not pay any fines!"

So, if things continue on their current trajectory - when 2015 arrives Pirate Bay will still exist but many of the companies currently suing them will not and the world, including the arts and culture sector, will be fine (probably even better off) for the change.

CBC News Sunday Earns Misplay of the Week

Back on February 24 I pointed out that, apparently, more journalists need media literacy when it comes to 'scientific studies.' Today on CBC News Sunday I learned that the problem runs far deeper than that. Aside from bad health and science reporting - arts reporting was today called into serious question.

On News Sunday today Evon Solomon and Caole MacNeil along with two guests (didn't get names, I think one of them was from cbc.ca) were discussing Susan Boyle's appearance on Britain's Got Talent. There were three chief points in this discussion that I think are meaningful.

• 1. That we were set up for the reaction to Boyle's performance because reality television is heavily scripted.


• 2. That we expect our musical performers to be better packaged - pretty, well groomed, well dressed and well marketed


• 3. That we are not used to natural talent - we are used to people who sing with digital enhancement etc.,

Point one is obvious. I just hope that journalists repeat it more often. There is very little that is real about reality television. It is just as scripted and packaged as comedy and drama. There are no surprises in reality tv.

Points two and three are deeply troubling and call into question whether arts journalists are actually doing journalism anymore. It was unclear who the 'we' they were referring to was but it obviously included themselves. It certainly does not include the people at CBC Radio - who have been doing an excellent job of covering Canadian music (especially Radio 3 and the new Radio 2). If the people at CBC sunday expect or are used to pre-packaged artists, who use digital enhancement and have large marketing teams then they have no idea whatsoever what is going on in Canadian music. It indicates that they are relying solely on press releases and marketing contacts for information and that they aren't actually practicing any journalism (in the sense of going out and doing their own research and finding things out for themselves.)

This wouldn't really be surprising. Canadian television does, on the whole, an incredibly poor job of covering the arts in this country. They are far more likely to cover the latest American blockbuster, the latest U2 tour, and anything that enables them to say "Hannah Montana" than they are to cover Canadian film, music, art, literature etc. They will say that this is because they have to appeal to a mainstream audience but that in itself is appalling. The 'mainstream' as it is called, is just another niche audience and they know it. The group referred to as mainstream is, due to audience fragmentation, no larger than the gay community in Canada - it is probably not that big (9.5% of the country at the best of times.) That everything on television is intended for less than 10% of the country may help explain the current financial woes of Canada's broadcasters.

Taken all together, the bad (or lack of) arts reporting combined with the narrowness of focus, it is certainly the "misplay of the week"

Coming Up in Toronto

Friday, April 17
Steam Whistle Presents: WOODHANDS + THE CARPS + FAMOUS PLAYERS + MORE!
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Brewer's Plate Toronto
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WHITNEY SPEARS
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THROBBIN HOODS@ GRAFFITTIS
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NACHO LOVERS & DIRTY DALE @ WRONGBAR
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SOUND AFFECTS FRIDAY ✖ DEE JAYS: TOM WRECKS, MEDLEY, FAWN B.C, REAL TALK ✖
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Saturday, April 18
Better Day Gala Fundraiser 2009
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Great Bloomers Wish You A Happy Record Store Day!
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SHADOWRIBBON: performance and DVD release
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WWF CN Tower Climb woo!
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DINOSAUR BONES - Toronto @ The Legion
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TWM 39: La Casa Muerte, The Love Machine, Whale Tooth & Burn Planetarium
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Brazilian Band " fourSamba" + Maninho Costa + Special Guest Musicians
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Mother Tongue DJs
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DJ MEDLEY & VIOLCA MANSION & NASTY NAV @ WRONGBAR
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Sunday, April 19
WL 459 - New Feelings + Flowers Of Hell + Snowblink
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HTC Listening Party @ Gather 'Round
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Canada Screens presents Advanced Screening of "ONLY"
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the piano salon
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Monday, April 20
Spacing spring-summer '09 release party
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CLAY & PAPER FUNDRAISER
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Tuesday, April 21
*Showcho*
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Earth Day Vibrations
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Wednesday, April 22
Toronto Greenhouse "Earth Day Edition"
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PWYC Weds w/ Dancefloor Refraction, Thresh, Higher Rites
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Ronley Teper's Lipliners
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Thursday, April 23
TWM Presents: The Sideshow Tragedy , Little Foot Long Foot, Blanc & White
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Friday, April 24
APRIL 24-25 Film and Screenplay Festival - NFB (150 John St.) 7pm !!
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TWM: Leonids, Chang-a-Lang, Half Baked, Cedar
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Sketch Does...Stand Up?!?
An assortment of Sketch Comics out of their element!
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KIM ANN FOXMAN of Hercules and Love Affair | DJ SET @ WRONGBAR
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Saturday, April 25
How to Launch Your Film Career?
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President Obama, faced with his first global security crisis: North Korea
Learn how to turn your breaking news story into a lucrative script
Facebook Event Page


Toronto Centre NDP Neighbourhood Clean-Up
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Favianna Rodriguez "Transformation/Agitation"
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TWM: Sandman Viper Command (CD Release), The Antiqs & Left of Zero!
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Sunday, April 26
WL 460 - THOMAS + Univox + The Skeletones Four
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RSVP For The "OUTSIDE THE BOX" FUNDRAISER SHOWCASE
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Tuesday, April 28
Mountains (Thrill Jockey DRONE duo) + Doc Dunn + Ayal Senior
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Green Heroes Focus Group Session
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Wednesday, April 29
Reporting in Afghanistan
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PWYC Weds w/ Honest I's, The Ministry of the Environment & Airheart
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Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bible! by Jonathan Goldstein
A 'This Is Not A Reading Series Presentation'
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Thursday, April 30
April 30 @ The Drake: Immaculate Machine album release
Immaculate Machine, Will Currie & The Country French and The Elwins!
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No Shame: GREEN GO 'Borders' CD Release Party THURS April 30th
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indiecredit 2.0 -- raising funds for Kiva.org
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Pouch Cove Foundation Art Auction & Party
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Pouch Cove Foundation Art Auction & Party
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Art Attack Toronto
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Friday, May 1
TWM 40: Black Diamond Bay (CD Release), Make Your Exit, the Dress Whites!
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Kollage/The Rhythm Section with special guest Michael Danso
CD Release Party - A Night of Great Jazz!
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Friday Night Magic - May 1st
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Saturday, May 2
No Shame: GREAT BLOOMERS 'Speak Of Trouble' CD Release Party MAY 2ND
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Karmageddon Two
LOVE!... It's in us to give
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An Evening of Conversation with Carlo Petrini
Founder of the Slow Food Movement and author of Slow Food Nation
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Sunday, May 3
Paula Poundstone in Toronto
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WL 461: Josh Reichmann Oracle Band, Cursed Arrows, Stop Time
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Tuesday, May 5
THE BALCONIES Play Bookie's New Music Night May 5th @ The Horseshoe
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Thursday, May 7
50 Artists, 50 Photos
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BOWZER ATTACKS TORONTO!!
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Friday, May 8
FAITHDOWN live @ Hard Rock Cafe- Club 279, Toronto
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Saturday, May 9
LIVE @ The Brunswick House with Faith Of A Martyr
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MUCK AND THE MIRES * THE PRIMORDIALS * THE SUPERSTITIONS
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Sunday, May 10
Commedia Dell'Arte Workshop
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TIN STAR ORPHANS & BOYS WHO SAY NO
"ALL-AGES MATINEE!"
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WL 462: METZ, Little Girls, Pacific Trash Vortex
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Wednesday, May 13
Battala Rockstars Toronto kick off show
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Saturday, May 16
BLUE ASH ... '71 POWER-POP TYME WARP!
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Sunday, May 17
WL 463: Katie Stelmanis, Emma McKenna, Braids, Diamond Rings
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Tuesday, May 19
Toronto Launch of The Peep Diaries
Hal's Multimedia Presentation on How We're Learning to Love Watching Ourselves and Our Neighbors
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Saturday, May 23
OTAKU O-TANJOBI PARTY
celebrating the 1st anniversary of the Toronto J-Film Pow-Wow blog
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Friday, May 29
VIVER BRASIL & DEBUT PERFORMANCE by BRACATUM!
A night of live dance & music at LULA
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Saturday, May 30
1001 NIGHTS BOLLYWOOD BOAT CRUISE
APPEARANCE BY MISS INDIA CANADA & PERFORMANCE BY MISS PAKISTAN EARTH 2005!!
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Swingin' at the Dominion
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Sunday, May 31
WL 465: Dwight Schenk, Bent by Elephants, The Max Woolaver Band
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Friday, June 5
Circus O Burlesque A Mania Insania 3
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Explosive growth in Internet Radio and Digital Media

A new study from Edison Research shows amazing levels of growth in internet radio specifically and digital media in general. These stats are for the United States, not Canada, but until someone does a similar study for Canada (which tends to be more digital friendly anyway) it is useful as an approximate yardstick.

For example:

Own a portable MP3 player age 12+: 2008 37% 2009 42%
Have listened to a podcast age 12+: 2008 18% 2009 22%
Online Radio Listeners age 12 +: 2008 13% 2009 17%
Online Radio Listeners age 25-54: 2008 15% 2009 20%

That means that (in the U.S.) the estimated internet radio audience has gone from 33 million to 42 million in one year. Once again Viva Radio 3!

You can see the full study here.

Canwest's Ship Starts to Sink

Yet another reason why a fully funded CBC is necessary: the CBC was originally created as a uniting force in a large and sparsely populated country. Even today there is very little that unites this country from coast to coast to coast and reminds us that we are not part of the United States. Some will argue that that we no longer need the CBC, that it's function has been taken over by private broadcasters. Those people are wrong. First of all the private broadcasters primarily show American programs, second of all they are not financially viable: BMO Capital Markets analyst Tim Casey wrote in a note to clients today that CanWest's stock is essentially worthless and, whether his analysis is correct or not the company is so deeply buried in debt that its survival in its current form is nearly impossible.

"Canwest has another debt deadline looming Tuesday, by which time it must pay $30.4 million (U.S.) in interest to holders of its 8 per cent senior subordinated notes. The payment was originally due March 15, but the company missed it.

If it doesn't pay Tuesday, the investors can demand the repayment of about $761 million of outstanding principal on the notes. This could further exacerbate the crisis facing the company...
While critical, the looming interest payment is only the tip of the iceberg for Winnipeg, Manitoba-based Canwest, which has a debtload of about $3.7 billion (Canadian), some of it dating back to its 2000 acquisition of newspaper assets from Hollinger International."

Canada still needs a voice of it's own, and a uniting force for the country. A fully funded CBC is the only way to insure that we have that.

Plan B for the CBC

In theory the Government should support the public broadcaster and private advertisers should support the private broadcasters but in the bizarro world of Stephen Harper's Canada the Government is ignoring the will of parliament and the will of the Canadian people

and refusing to provide additional funds to the CBC while, at the same time contemplating a bailout of private broadcasters

So it appears that things need to be done backward. Since the Government will not fully fund the CBC this new Facebook group will urge Canadian and international companies to shift ALL of their television advertising dollars to CBC television and away from the private broadcasters.

Please join and tell a friend (or 100)!

Movie Debate - An Open Thread

Since we're on the subject of CanCon movies at the moment, here's hoping you'll forgive a bit of nosiness by way of this question:

What's your current Favourite Canadian Movie? Any particular reason(s)? Got more than one?

Surprise! Canadians are Interested in Canada

It appears that the new key to success for Canadian films is to be unapologetically Canadian. Two of the biggest success stories (financially) in recent years Passchendaele and Bon Cop, Bad Cop have both focused, not on stories that could happen anywhere but on distinctly Canadian stories and Canadian perspectives.

With Michael McGowan's film 'One Week' continuing to pick up steam (largely through word of mouth) even Variety has noticed this trend.

"The pic features such Canadiana as the Stanley Cup, Tim Horton's coffee, a cameo by Gord Downie from popular Canuck rock band the Tragically Hip and pit stops at some of the country's cheesier tourist attractions, including the world's largest nickel in Sudbury, Ontario, and the dinosaur provincial park in Alberta.
"It references things that are dear to us and has a nostalgia for landmarks that we love," says Charlotte Mickie, exec VP from E1 Entertainment, the company selling the pic internationally."

This can only be seen as good news for Canada and the Canadian cultural community as any claim by broadcasters or production companies (especially when applying for grants and credits) that Canadians are not interested in Canadian stories is clearly not true and after centuries of neglect there are plenty of stories to tell.

Coming Up in Toronto

Friday, April 10
The Hard Rock Cafe Rockin' for Sick Kids...
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mission 70: fps vs. lee's palace 04.10.09
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TWM 38: Azeda Booth, Braxton Clover, Sound & Structure
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DIRTY DALE | NICK HOLDER| TYRONE SOLOMON @ WRONGBAR
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Golden Ghetto@ The Hideout
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LIVE IMAGES 6: FEEDBACK LOOP
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Saturday, April 11
Wavelength & Images Festival present: CLOUD EYE CONTROL + AMMO FACTORY
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spread the laughter
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TWM Presents: Your Volunteer (CD Release), Racoon Wedding & Rep By Pop!
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The Ugly Bug Band Plays The Local!
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TOSS MY SATURDAY!
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Retro Bash/EBM Party
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DJ BARLETTA & NASTY NAV & MEECH @ WRONGBAR
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Sunday, April 12
Sideshow Classes at Sunnyside tattoos
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WL 458 - Olenka & The Autumn Lovers + The Thing Is + Tight Ship
Wavelength 458
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TWM: The Bronzed Chorus, The Cast, Sleep for the Nightlife &
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Tuesday, April 14
Circus Mini at Mitzis Sister- Open Mic Night 2
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DD/MM/YYYY Perform at Soundscapes
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Recession Therapy
come out for the experience
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Wednesday, April 15
PWYC: Shotgun Wedding Band,Wilderness of Manitoba & Magnificent Sevens
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REELWORLD FILM FESTIVAL - OPENING NIGHT
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Thursday, April 16
B'MO Crazy's Album Release w/ NinjaFunk Orchestra,Sounds Like BS, HushMoney
Facebook Event Page

Friday, April 17
iLunch 7.04
Facebook Event Page

Steam Whistle Presents: WOODHANDS + THE CARPS + FAMOUS PLAYERS + MORE!
Facebook Event Page

Brewer's Plate Toronto
Facebook Event Page

WHITNEY SPEARS
Facebook Event Page

THROBBIN HOODS@ GRAFFITTIS
Facebook Event Page

Saturday, April 18
Better Day Gala Fundraiser 2009
Facebook Event Page

WWF CN Tower Climb woo!
Facebook Event Page

DINOSAUR BONES - Toronto @ The Legion
Facebook Event Page

TWM 39: La Casa Muerte, The Love Machine, Whale Tooth & Burn Planetarium
Facebook Event Page

Brazilian Band " fourSamba" + Maninho Costa + Special Guest Musicians
Facebook Event Page

Sunday, April 19
WL 459 - New Feelings + Flowers Of Hell + Snowblink
Facebook Event Page

HTC Listening Party @ Gather 'Round
Facebook Event Page

Monday, April 20
CLAY & PAPER FUNDRAISER
Facebook Event Page

Tuesday, April 21
*Showcho*
Facebook Event Page

Wednesday, April 22
Toronto Greenhouse "Earth Day Edition"
Facebook Event Page

PWYC Weds w/ Dancefloor Refraction, Thresh, Higher Rites
Facebook Event Page

Thursday, April 23
TWM Presents: The Sideshow Tragedy , Little Foot Long Foot, Blanc & White
Facebook Event Page

Friday, April 24
APRIL 24-25 Film and Screenplay Festival - NFB (150 John St.) 7pm !!
Facebook Event Page

TWM: Leonids, Chang-a-Lang, Half Baked, Cedar
Facebook Event Page

Saturday, April 25
How to Launch Your Film Career?
Facebook Event Page

President Obama, faced with his first global security crisis: North Korea
Learn how to turn your breaking news story into a lucrative script
Facebook Event Page

Toronto Centre NDP Neighbourhood Clean-Up
Facebook Event Page

Favianna Rodriguez "Transformation/Agitation"
Facebook Event Page

Sunday, April 26
WL 460 - THOMAS + Univox + The Skeletones Four
Facebook Event Page

Tuesday, April 28
Mountains (Thrill Jockey DRONE duo) + Doc Dunn + Ayal Senior
Facebook Event Page

Wednesday, April 29
Reporting in Afghanistan
Facebook Event Page

Thursday, April 30
No Shame: GREEN GO 'Borders' CD Release Party THURS April 30th
Facebook Event Page

indiecredit 2.0 -- raising funds for Kiva.org
Facebook Event Page

Pouch Cove Foundation Art Auction & Party
Facebook Event Page

Friday, May 1
Kollage/The Rhythm Section with special guest Michael Danso
CD Release Party - A Night of Great Jazz!
Facebook Event Page

Saturday, May 2
No Shame: GREAT BLOOMERS 'Speak Of Trouble' CD Release Party MAY 2ND
Facebook Event Page

Sunday, May 3
Paula Poundstone in Toronto
Facebook Event Page

Thursday, May 7
50 Artists, 50 Photos
Facebook Event Page

Friday, May 8
FAITHDOWN live @ Hard Rock Cafe- Club 279, Toronto
Facebook Event Page

Saturday, May 9
LIVE @ The Brunswick House with Faith Of A Martyr
Facebook Event Page

MUCK AND THE MIRES * THE PRIMORDIALS * THE SUPERSTITIONS
Facebook Event Page

Sunday, May 10
Commedia Dell'Arte Workshop
Facebook Event Page

Wednesday, May 13
Battala Rockstars Toronto kick off show
Facebook Event Page

Saturday, May 16
BLUE ASH ... '71 POWER-POP TYME WARP!
Facebook Event Page

Friday, June 5
Circus O Burlesque A Mania Insania 3
Facebook Event Page

Jian and the Burn Out

With all of the talent in Canada you have to wonder why Jiam Gomeshi decided to have the Boxmasters on at all. The Boxmasters, in case you don't know, are a thoroughly mediocre country-ish band headed by burned out actor Billy Bob Thorton. It turns out that Thorton is not only burned out as an actor but is pretty burned out in general and is still egotistical/douchy enough to think that he deserves credibility as a musician without having to mention his acting career.

Jian if you ever need suggestions I can give you 100 bands who will do the show, answer any questions you may have about their current or previous jobs (waiting tables etc) and will actually perform with their bands. If you happen to be going to see the boxmasters in Toronto, Montreal or London please throw things, they like that (preferably at them, try mashed potatoes and gravy.)

Do Canada's Private Broadcasters Need a Can of Whoop-Ass?

With over 121,000 people petitioning the government people rallying in Sudbury, Cape Breton and other Canadian cities in support of the CBC it is almost unthinkable that the government would bail out the private broadcasters and not help the CBC.

The CBC is Canada's national public broadcaster. It is owned by and paid for by Canadians. Why would any government even contemplate give taxpayers money to private corporations but fail to help the broadcaster owned by those taxpayers? It may not make any sense but it is apparently being contemplated. The government has not actually said, at this point, that the bailout wouldn't include the CBC, they just haven't indicated that it does include the CBC either.

What is truly appalling though is that the private broadcasters, according to the Canadian press, are vigorously lobbying the government not to include the CBC in the plan. That means that private companies are telling our government that they are more deserving of Canadians tax dollars than the public company we own. I would strongly urge the private broadcasters to start lobbying hard in the opposite direction.

If there is a bailout for private broadcasters that does not include help for the CBC I will once again rally supporters of the CBC and start a campaign aimed at the private networks advertisers: A letter writing / email campaign urging those advertisers to abandon the private broadcasters (and all of their associated properties) and shift their ad dollars to the CBC. I won't even urge people to boycott the private networks, people are not the customers of commercial TV, advertisers are their customers so I'll simply urge people to watch the privates and boycott the products advertised on them.

Associated Press Declares Itself Obsolete

Considering the line of work they are in it's somewhat ironic that the Associated Press has, apparently, not being paying much attention to what is going on in the world for the last few decades. That is, apparently, the case though. From Bill Doskoch and the New York Times comes word that the Associated Press has adopted litigation as a method of protecting it's intellectual property from the internet.

"Taking aim at the way news is spread across the Internet, The Associated Press said on Monday that Web sites that used the work of news organizations must obtain permission and share revenue with them, and that it would take legal action against those that did not.
A.P. executives said they were concerned about a variety of news forums around the Web, including major search engines like Google and Yahoo and aggregators like the Drudge Report that link to news articles, smaller sites that sometimes reproduce articles whole, and companies that sell packaged news feeds.
They said they did not want to stop the appearance of articles around the Web, but to exercise some control over the practice and to profit from it."

Asking for compensation from people who copy their articles in whole is fair and reasonable but going after those who link to articles, or who quote them and link to them shows a complete lack of understanding of how the internet and the modern information economy works. It is a policy that essentially says that if you do free advertising for them, they will sue you. Perhaps when visited by the AP's lawyers Google should ask for compensation from the AP for all the publicity they have been getting?

In the interim, until the Associated Press figures this out or goes out of business you might want to find another news source to link to online.

If God's On Your Side

I'm a little embarrassed to say that I just heard this song for the first time today on Lisa Christiansen's show on CBC Radio 3 and it has instantly become my favorite Danny Michel song (and is rapidly rising on the overall charts). This particular version was recorded in March 2008 for Stuart Mclean's Vinyl Cafe.



Danny Michel - If God's On Your Side




cross posted from NxEW

The CBC is Cool Again in Rural Ontario

Take note Mr. Harper: The Conservatives, having all but given up on Quebec seem to have miscalculated on the reaction to their passive-aggressive attack on the CBC. The loudest cries against the recently announced CBC cuts are coming - not from Toronto (where Conservatives aren't even serious contenders) but from rural ridings that Conservatives will need if they have a payer of even seeing another minority.

In Sudbury hundreds rallied on Sunday including many young people (not the CBC's core audience in recent years. From the Sudbury Star:

"On Sunday, however, scores of teenagers and young adults, such as Holson, represented one of the largest demographics in a boisterous rally at Sudbury city hall, where more than 400 people demanded a reversal of proposed cuts to CBC Radio service in Northern Ontario.
"Half the people I hang out with are in bands and in the arts and they're connected to and supported by the CBC," Holson said during the rally at Tom Davies Square.
"CBC is the voice for a lot of Northern Ontario," he said. "And it's extremely important to keep local news intact in Sudbury and the rest of Northern Ontario, because (private) radio stations don't cut it."

Sudbury, as far as I know, is the only place with street protests but the editorials are turning against the conservatives in places like Guelph

"Over the past 25 or 30 years, so many public institutions have been forced to conform to a business model: public art galleries, universities, school boards, municipal governments, hospitals, and the CBC. But these institutions are not businesses. They are essential social entities, things we collectively need for our sense of identity, for our health, for our knowledge, for our life.
We pay for these things through our taxes. We have a right to expect they will be available to us when we need them. And we have a right to expect governments will rescue them when they falter."

and Brantford

"The Canadian wing of the Fox News crowd can't wait for the demise of the CBC. These folks prefer to focus on pure cost and ignore all value that comes from a well-funded, truly national, public broadcaster. The Foxes really want control of news and commentary to pass from the professional editors and their staffs to the purveyors of advertising revenue. No thanks, Mr Gutfeld.
So if you were, in fact, having too good a day and counting on another rant against the CBC, you're probably disappointed. On the other hand, if you were looking to hook up with fellow supporters of public broadcasting, try the website www.friends.ca. These folks are pretty serious and well organized. Good luck to them. The sheer size, geography and history of our great country makes nation-building a complex and challenging enterprise. CBC/Radio Canada with committed long-term funding is the best vehicle we have to do this, warts and all."

The Conservatives, if they are going to have any chance in this country are going to have to get used to the idea that arts and culture are important to Canadians, that we value them and believe in government subsidies for them and that the CBC is an important part of the Arts and Culture spectrum in this country.

CD Review: Peter Project - The Peter Project LP

Peter Project's self titled album is a fascinating experience. It is also an album that will have its supporters and opponents.

This recent release by the Toronto-based DJ features electronic sounds with a hip-hop influence. Peter Project himself refers to it as "electro 60s a go-go." The album has many creative mixes, as well as a broad range of samples from obscure films, television shows and children's recordings. The artist, who's also known as Peter Chapman (The Midways), has certainly created a unique fuse of music and technology.

Those who love the album will celebrate Peter Project's ability to take random sounds and turn them into tracks that blend together flawlessly. They will enjoy the movement-inducing songs, which follow in the footsteps of DJ Shadow and Kid Koala.

Those who dislike the album will point to its lack of musical originality. They will describe Peter Project as someone who simply takes the work of musicians and uses an industrial-inspired machine to create new variations. These people might even go as far as to define each track as an exhibition of sound, rather than an actual song.

In all fairness, the album does have original aspects. This comes in the form of rhymes by hip-hop artists More or Les, The World Burglar, Masia One and Zaki Ibrahim; all of whom make guest appearances on the album.

Out of all the tracks, the strongest one is called "Two Cups." It has a pleasant blend of beats and synthesized notes, as well as a hypnotic Sesame Street-esque vocal track that is repeated over and over.

An artist like Peter Project will always stir debate. However, any argument has no relation to the actual presentation. The Peter Project LP is energetic and full of ingenuity.

For more information on Peter Project, please visit www.myspace.com/peterproject

If Things Seem Slower

You may have noticed that I haven't been writing as much on publicbroadcasting.ca lately. The reality is that I've been insanely busy lately. Part of it is the new NxEW blog (which now has nearly 60 people signed up to write about Canadian music. So, I'm certainly not abandoning publicbroadcasting.ca - it may just be a little slower for awhile. In the mean time, as I said, 60 people have signed up to write for NxEW, but the invitation to write for publicbroadcasting.ca - on music or anything else (arts, progressive politics, literature, film, theatre etc. etc.,) is wide open and has been for over 3 years now.

If you are interested in writing for publicbroadcasting.ca or nxew.ca just give me a shout!

Arts and Politics at the Genies

You can't level the same critisizm at the Genie's that you can at the Juno's. There is no 'mainstream' Canadian film industry (actually there is no more mainstream period but the Juno folks are still in denial about that.)

Still there were a few things to make you worry. Contrary to the opinions of most critics Paul Gross' Passchendaele took best picture. In all Gross' film took six awards and the star of the evening, Mr. Gross, failed to show. All fairly Juno like behavior. But, as I said, there is no mainstream Canadian film industry. Beyond Passchendale (which also took awards for Best Art Direction, Costume Design, Best Sound and Best Sound Editing, and the Golden Reel Award) awards also went to Inuit Actor Natar Ungalaaq who won best actor in a lead role for the Necessities of Life, Kristen Booth took the Award for Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role for Young People Fucking, Ellen Burstyn took Best Actress for the Stone Angel, and Callum Keith Rennie took the supporting actor award for Normal. A full list of awards and winners is available here.

The big story of the night though, and the one that distinguishes the Genie's the most from the Juno's was the industry's willingness to stand up for themselves, their industry and ultimately their country. From the Globe and Mail:

"“Oh glorious leader, please save the CBC,” said Wendy Crewson, a well-known Canadian actor, as she took the stage to present the award for best actress. She mischievously announced the after-party was at 24 Sussex Dr., where she would be standing on a burned-out car with a megaphone...
“Clearly a strong message was sent over the last few months to the Conservatives … that their mockery of the Canadian arts wasn't necessarily serving them well with voters,” said Ms. Polley. “I think they've certainly changed the way they are talking about the arts, but their actions in terms of the CBC are not encouraging.”

More on this is available at the Globe and Mail.
Currently no area of arts and culture in Canada enjoys the support that our music industry does (and by that I don't mean the Juno awards). Canadian independent music and small labels, while still far from where they need to be financially enjoy a large, growing and fantastically loyal audience. We can hope that this spirit and enthusiasm can rub off on other areas of the arts in Canada. There are even signs that Canadian film and television may be next in line but a truly healthy industry is going to require a government that appreciates the arts and, in fact, a government that likes Canada.
Until we get there though I'd encourage everyone reading this to join the First Weekend Club and keep up on the films that are being made and shown in Canada.

Godsend Timesaving Sites for Musicians

I've talked to many musicians and managers of musicians about which social media sites they should be on: Twitter? Facebook? Myspace? YouTube? etc.

The answer of course is all of them. Each of these sites have millions of users and, when you are promoting yourself, anytime you can reach millions of people for free you really should do your best to do it.

Now there is a tool that makes it all much, much easier. Artistdata is a new site (still in beta mode) that lets you update all of your sites at once - so you send a update to artistdata and it updates Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, LastFM and a dozen or so other sites for you. So instead of going to all of these sites to update your info you do one simple update on artistdata and artistdata updates everything for you. (Thanks to Artists House Music for the heads up on this!)

Also, in case you don't already know about it there is another site you should check out that does the same for video. Tubemogul takes your video and puts it on YouTube, Myspace, Yahoo Video, Vimeo, Blip.tv, and about 20 other video sites.

So, now you can be everywhere while investing the same time it would take you to only be on Myspace!

cross posted to NxEW

Some random notes: Politics to Comics to Movies

I note an opinion piece in yesterday's Toronto Star by James Travers on the present state of our democracy. I have some concerns of my own about some of the issues Travers raises, and it makes me happy to note the elements of constructive-minded hope he included in that article. If there's anything we need right now, it's hope and useful advice.

On what may be a related note, you might want to look at some thoughts of one of our saner and more attentive neighbours in the States, science fiction author David Brin. Whether or not, it's part of a shared problem is something worth a bit of debate.

Moving on to less worrisome issues...

Believe it or not, someone's trying to keep track of comics/manga/BD/graphic novel sales in Canada, of Canadian-produced work. The latest instance of that can be found care of the Sequential Blog. You might find something worth reading therein.

Closing out: congratulations to all the nominees and winners at the Genie Awards last night! You people sweated the sweats of the damned and the blessed alike to get that far, never mind whether or not you got the statuary, and you deserve a lot more than you're getting!

Coming Up in Toronto

Thursday, April 2
The Phonemes and Laura Barrett
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1950's GHOST SHOW- "CHASM OF SPASMS"
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Second Annual Feast of Authors
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Alright Alright play Kensington Market
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Walter Yarwood - The Art Of Living-
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TRANSVISION w/ DJ Shannon~ LADYTRON & THE FAINT Ticket GIVEAWAYS..Th Apri 2
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DanceLikeYouFuck THURSDAY APRIL 2ND @ STRANGELOVE Ft. TOM WRECKS!!!!
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Friday, April 3
Contact meets the Element Choir / The Flowers of Hell (Double Bill!)
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ONFF at Horseshoe w/ Inflight Safety
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BIG PRIMPIN! @ WRONGBAR
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Throbbin Hoods at Duffys
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Transfigured Night
A Sinfonia Toronto Masterpiece Concert
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NO SHAME : The Whitsundays / Pick A Piper / The Superstitions @ Sneaky Dees
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TWM Presents: The Bad Guys, We Take Lovers & Sandman Viper Command
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RokENDRoll Mayhem @ Rok Boutique!!!!!
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Candy Sounds
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Saturday, April 4
daps all-ages vol. II! - BONJAY, KATBURNS, BOXES&BAGS, PIXELATORS, MORE
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Persist live at the Hard Rock Cafe
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TWM: William Del Ray & the Sexy Moving Parts, Jay Crocker & Cheap Speakers
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VIDEODROME
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TWM: William Del Ray & the Sexy Moving Parts, Jay Crocker & Cheap Speakers
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Pay It Backward Day
Help Toronto Break The World Record For Acts of Kindness
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RYNECOLOGIST & MEECH & NASTY NAV @ WRONGBAR
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Sunday, April 5
WL 457 - Dancefloor Refraction + Young Rival + My Flea Circus
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Monday, April 6
Trampoline Hall ~ April 6, 2009
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Tuesday, April 7
Overqualified by Joey Comeau launches in Kensington Market
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The Imponderables and Acquaintances!
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Wednesday, April 8
PWYC Weds w/ Slow Down Molasses, Before the Flood, Debbie Suede
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Amir ElSaffar's Two Rivers Ensemble
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Debating 101 Workshop
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I love Wednesdays
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AOR Battle Of The Bands @ The Hard Rock Cafe / Toronto
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Thursday, April 9
See Your Midnight Breath in the Shipyard - Toronto release party!
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FOXFIRE & ALIXANDER III & DIRTY 30 @ WRONGBAR HOLIDAY PARTY
WITH JAIME SIN, DINAMO AZARI, PRODUZENTIN. HOSTED BY MARY MESSHAUSEN OF Facebook Events Page

The Miles CD release w/ Sadie May Crash! ...plus special guests...
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Friday, April 10
The Hard Rock Cafe Rockin' for Sick Kids...
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mission 70: fps vs. lee's palace 04.10.09
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TWM 38: Azeda Booth, Braxton Clover, Sound & Structure
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DIRTY DALE | NICK HOLDER| TYRONE SOLOMON @ WRONGBAR
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Saturday, April 11
Wavelength & Images Festival present: CLOUD EYE CONTROL + AMMO FACTORY
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spread the laughter
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Sunday, April 12
Sideshow Classes at Sunnyside tattoos
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WL 458 - Olenka & The Autumn Lovers + The Thing Is + Tight Ship
Wavelength 458
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TWM: The Bronzed Chorus, The Cast, Sleep for the Nightlife &
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Tuesday, April 14
Circus Mini at Mitzis Sister- Open Mic Night 2
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DD/MM/YYYY Perform at Soundscapes
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Wednesday, April 15
PWYC: Shotgun Wedding Band,Wilderness of Manitoba & Magnificent Sevens
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Thursday, April 16
B'MO Crazy's Album Release w/ NinjaFunk Orchestra,Sounds Like BS, HushMoney
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Friday, April 17
Steam Whistle Presents: WOODHANDS + THE CARPS + FAMOUS PLAYERS + MORE!
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Brewer's Plate Toronto
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Saturday, April 18
Better Day Gala Fundraiser 2009
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WWF CN Tower Climb woo!
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TWM 39: La Casa Muerte, The Love Machine, Whale Tooth & Burn Planetarium
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Sunday, April 19
WL 459 - New Feelings + Flowers Of Hell + Snowblink
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Sunday, April 26
WL 460 - THOMAS + Univox + The Skeletones Four
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Tuesday, April 28
Mountains (Thrill Jockey DRONE duo) + Doc Dunn + Ayal Senior
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Thursday, April 30
No Shame: GREEN GO 'Borders' CD Release Party THURS April 30th
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indiecredit 2.0 -- raising funds for Kiva.org
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Pouch Cove Foundation Art Auction & Party
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Saturday, May 2
No Shame: GREAT BLOOMERS 'Speak Of Trouble' CD Release Party MAY 2ND
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Sunday, May 3
Paula Poundstone in Toronto
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Friday, May 8
FAITHDOWN live @ Hard Rock Cafe- Club 279, Toronto
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Saturday, May 9
LIVE @ The Brunswick House with Faith Of A Martyr
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MUCK AND THE MIRES * THE PRIMORDIALS * THE SUPERSTITIONS
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Sunday, May 10
Commedia Dell'Arte Workshop
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Saturday, May 16
LUE ASH ... '71 POWER-POP TYME WARP!
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Beware the Wounded Animal

By turning their back on the CBC against the will of the public and then trying to kill the long gun registry against the wishes of Canada's police forces the Harper government is showing all the signs of a group that knows they will soon lose power. Ever since Ignatieff replaced Dion as Liberal leader the Liberals are moving up in the polls and the Conservatives are moving down. To make matters worse (for the Tories) the Liberals are up in Ontario and Quebec and both the NDP and the Bloc have been losing some ground.

So, with it looking more and more like the Tories will lose the next election (whenever it comes) and the Liberals gaining more and more traction with each poll Harper's conservatives are starting to push their real agenda, trying to gain what they can before being forced from office or, failing that, to get the Liberals to force an election while the polls are still close.

Scary times may be ahead.

So the rumours are true?

Nuit Blanche in London!

No joke!

The organizers are giving themselves lots of time to create an amazing event. I've checked Nuit Blanche out in Toronto a couple of times and always leave mesmerized. It'll be nice to have something like this in the beautiful Forest City. Can't wait for 2010!