November 4th, Venue, Vancouver
Strolling down Granville Street to Venue, I couldn’t help but notice the somewhat historic 50-foot “Plaza” sign still hanging outside the newly renovated room. That sign was a beacon of nostalgia...
This is the Sleep Factory, Trish Shwart’s exhibition at Martin Batchelor Gallery that opened on November 7th, with a persuasive performance by the artist as a marketeer, and continues with a visual smorgasbord of parodies that explore the commodificatio
August 14, 2008
Honey Lounge
I was shocked at how many people filled Honey Lounge to see the B-lines and the Defektors off on their tour of the West Coast, especially since the club is usually reserved for dancing college kids. The nig...
Friday June 6, 2008 @ the Railway Club
Expectations were running high for this CD release. Swank’s epic new CD/Karaoke DVD release Campfire Psalms has been greeted with banner press all around. Punters filled the Rail early, imbibing...
Thursday, November 13 at Honey Lounge
The crystal chandeliers and velvet couches of Honey Lounge are the perfect backdrop for an eclectic band like Vonnegut Dollhouse. Formed two years ago by keyboardist James Ford and vocalist/guitar...
Perhaps more so than any other artist of his generation, Beck is a master of mutation, reinventing himself with each tour and album. Recent Beck tours have featured lavish, gimmicky stage shows, including life-size marionettes and kitchen t...
The Sweatshop, June 22nd
I walked into the dimly-lit Sweatshop to catch the tail end of System Shit’s wonderfully sloppy set. Who would have thought that a punk gig would start at 7pm? Fear of Tomorrow hit the stage and began to sonica...
Dick's On Dicks, Wed.June.18th
With the 2008 Vancouver International Jazz Fest getting under way, the illustrious Commodore Ballroom is pretty well taken for a month or so solid at this time every year. As such, I was not so much surpris...
Saturday November 15th 2008
What was supposed to be a review of one show has been altered by restless feet and a desire to see a couple of shows if possible in one night. Canucklehead punk veterans SNFU pinned the audience to the mat at...
With the Christmas and New Year festivities well and truly over it’s time to shake off the January blues and for our first gig of the year we are once again heading off to The Underworld in Camden. On tonight’s bill there are death metal acts from thr
Royal Unicorn Cabaret
April 25th, 2008
A pointless evening, overall; I came for Black Betty – Black Betty did not come! Ana was sick. They were replaced by the comparable, admirable Hezzakya, with huge double-stacks of amps-amps-amps ...
The Pack AD / Cadaver Dogs / The TVees / Valerie Graham
ANZA Club
June 20th, 2008
Dave Bertrand
So we swagger in with our free stamps and I'm feelin' good – old friends in the house, old friends at the bar, fist of beer; I enjoy the...
Agent Orange, China Creeps, Life Against Death, Plus Perfect
The Cobalt, Sun Feb 22nd
It’s not very hard to be the hot ticket on a Sunday night, and when Agent Orange was in town what would you rather be doing? Watching some ‘Simp...