"Are you man enough to be a woman?"

Recently, NME blogger Rae Alexandra asked, "What Happened to All the Ferocious Female Punks?" Joel Gibb, Chris Korte and I were asking the same question recently over a casual cup of tea with the artist G.B. Jones.

A living legend, G.B.'s work has been compared to Tom of Finland (with female cops instead of bears) and was a member of the proto-riot grrl band Fifth Column. She has recently returned to music with the band Opera Arcana, with Minus Smile from Kids On TV and Julie Faught of the Pining.

Between G.B., Joel, myself, and Chris, (a curator who has performed with Norwegian opera creators Vinge and Muller), we thought up a seemingly endless list of amazing women in bands from the 80s and 90s- Chris noted Siouxsie Sioux, Exene Cervenka, Belinda Carlisle (who wore garbage bag dresses before superstardom) and Grace Jones, Joel mentioned the L7 tampon incident, and GB told us stories about the Toronto music scene in the 1980s, which, among other things, was home to Carol Pope, Canada's first (out) lesbian popstar. We also sang the praises of Frances McKee of The Vaselines, and Bikini Kill. And it wasn't long ago that the amazing genderqueer presence of artists like Divine and Jayne/Wayne County demanded of audiences "Are you man enough to be a woman?"

Compare that to the situation today, and it seems like apart from wispy folk and eccentric but non-threatening electro, there's not as much of a female presence as there was ten years ago. We have MIA, we have Peaches, but for the most part righteous anger seems to be taking a nap.

While NME blogger Alexandra partly blames the popularity of Suicide Girls for the dearth of angry women on the proverbial mic, there seems to be a deeper root to this regressive wave in music. I hate to be repetitive, as I recently blogged about cultural devolution that has seen the unapologetic and/or unthinking sexism rise like Phoenix from the ashes of the PC 90s, but it's a topic that won't go away.

It's time to take inspiration from the best of the past- not for nostalgia, but for illumination. The following clip is a love song, but let's think of it as a love song for a revolutionary moment, one we just need to get back to. In the spirit of optimism, here's "Right Back Where We Started From", by Maxine Nightingale.

Maybe she was just well raised

On Saturday night at the Opera House I had a memorable encounter with the monitor person, Chantal. Chantal joined my friend John Power and I for fries before the Hidden Cameras gig, and she was concerned about overhearing an intimate conversation. We assured her that, as the monitor person, she was already intimate, and would be the one guarantor of a smooth performance, so it was in fact best for her to know us better. Not only did Chantal do an excellent job on the monitor mix, she also helped us out with a linguistic quandary that had me stumped for at least ten years.

I was chatting with John Power about whether being a faghag is a genetic predisposition. Being a faghag isn't really a choice. Some women just adore gay men, and are equally adored by the gay men they encounter. It's only right and natural. The only bad thing about it is the word itself- 'faghag' just doesn't sound like a nice thing, even though it represents a beautiful reality.

In support of my foolish and dangerous genetic theory, I gave John and Chantal the example of one particular faghag who is the daughter of another faghag. "Maybe she was just well raised" offered Chantal.

Chantal couldn't be more right. Not only is it a terrible thing to assume that people are totally determined by their genes, and by their biology, "well raised" is also a way better term for the Liz Taylor/Madonna phenomenon. The Madonnamenon, if you will.

From now on, this blog will retire that old, dated term that has its roots in the fear of strong, single women, and the prejudice that women should confine themselves to coupledom, rather than deeply intimate nonsexual friendships. A woman who loves gays, a woman who gays love- she is just well raised.

And just to make things crystal clear, while this blog entry is fixed on the death of an exclusive, restrictive word, BB loves all LGBTQ people, and will always love all LGBTQ people, until the sun goes supernova and rains glitter on the dusty remains of the world.

Yours,
BB

A ballad of survival against all odds

Truth is stranger than fiction, especially along the St. Lawrence River, and for people born in towns around its tributaries.

Here is a link to a song of ours about a man from Alexandria, a little town at the North end of Glengarry County, Ontario. He moved out West to work in mining, and had a few unfortunate encounters, the worst of which was with a wrench that fell from high enough above to break through his helmet, and into his brain.

I often try to imagine what must have been going through his head, besides blood and metal, when he was at the bottom of the mine, refusing to die. Maybe the thought of unfinished business, or unresolved matters of faith, kept him going.

Here is "El Dorado"

The footage is from a live performance at The Dakota Tavern in October. The musicians include one of Newfoundland's delicious exports, the rhythm section of Jon Hynes on bass and John Power on drums; the prairies are represented by Saskatchewan's Shaun Brodie on acoustic guitar, and Alberta's Holly Andruchuk on the electric. I'm the one accidentally channeling Jello Biafra. The photo above is of Jon and John.

Thanks to John's excellent drumming, I have to recant the earlier commitment to the 'play only what you can carry' rule. Nobody is an Island, so I guess the rule is now 'play only what we can carry together.' Together we can carry a whole drum kit.

We will be playing a string of dates with some friends from out West in the new year, so stay tuned, as details will soon be posted. Though it has yet to be confirmed, I must confess I've already been using Skype to rehearse a Hank Williams duet with one of said friends, for said dates. Which tune? Which towns? All will be revealed in due time.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope to see you face to face before long!
Love,
BB

A love song, or a moritat, for a stray cat

Bragging about being tough and dangerous has a long tradition in music. There is the moritat- a murder ballad of a dangerous character and his amazing misdeeds- Stagalee, Staggerlee, Tom Dooley, Magali, or one of the most famous examples, the Moritat vom Mackie Messer- Mac The Knife from Brecht and Weil's Threepenny Opera. But at what point did the "I'm so tough," rather than "he's so bad" version of the moritat come to dominate popular song?

When I was young, and even more lost than I am now, I heard a rumor that Bo Diddley is Jesus. He would never have said that of himself, but he did spend a lot of time explaining his fighting skills, his gunslinging ways, and even if he didn't originate the art of bragging about one's toughness, Diddley took it to a whole new level, when he bragged about having a chimney made from a human skull. In Bo Diddley, the murder ballad became something new; when Bo posed as a gunslinger for the album of the same name, an entire alter ego of danger was born. Hank Williams also transformed the murder ballad from mere song into a way of being, and resorted to recording under the pen name Luke the Drifter to release the spiritual songs that clashed with the popular image of a man adrift on the lost highway.

But whether it's Luke the Drifter or Bo Diddley the Gunslinger, cries of "get away, I'm dangerous" often have a tinge of 'wounded cat' about them. You know that cat- it very slowly moves into your house, into your heart, and one night you wake up to find it peacefully sleeping on your chest.

Here is a little tribute I wrote to wounded cats. Holly and I performed it as a twosome the other night at the Gladstone, at the Blocks Recording Club night:

"Suitcase Full of Trouble"

After our set, dreamy Michelle McAdorey played with a band that included Eric Chenaux and Ryan Driver, then The Phonemes took the stage. Magali was backed by John Tielli on kick drum, guitar and theremin, and Stephanie Markowitz on vocals and keys. Magali's new songs are amazing, and the Stephanie and John lineup brings out the other worldly quality, as well as the beat, in Magali's songs. I'm looking forward to the next Phonemes record with anticipation.

Now I'm off to see if that old stray cat is on the front steps again.

We're playing a gig on Thursday!

On Thursday, November 26th Betty Burke will be playing a gig at the Blocks Recording Club night at the Gladstone, with The Phonemes and Michelle McAdorey. With Shaun Brodie and John and Jon (the amazing Newfoundlanders who played rhythm at our last two gigs) away on tour, this show will feature Maggie and Holly as a twosome, ripping it up. "Revolution girl style now!!"

It's been a while since the last blog entry, so there's a backlog of things to address, such as the growing "no pants" phenomenon in pop music, the need for The Kingdom III to be released to the public in some manner, and upcoming gigs with bands that have been silent for years but never really broke up. Now is not the time to address these topics, the wind just isn't right, so I'll sign off with the conversation incomplete, in the hope that a small nagging suspense might grow behind your eyes, leading you to check in again sometime in the future.

xoxo

El Dorado's ghost on a Port Hope pier

My friend Magali and I recently took a Sunday drive to Port Hope, Ontario, to see what we could see. We met some artists, and stumbled on an excellent independent bookstore, which I was compelled to write about for an upcoming issue of Broken Pencil. But there was something I saw in Port Hope I didn't mention in the article- the ghost of El Dorado.

As well as luring a few lost souls through the jungle, and inspiring songs and art, the mythical city of gold once lent its name to a Canadian mining company.

Twenty years ago I paid a visit to the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa, and I had to ask the staff why there was no mention of the bombing Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the World War II exhibit. I was told that Canada hadn't been involved "in that." But the uranium used to make the bombs was refined by El Dorado in a warehouse on a pier in Port Hope Ontario, and today you can walk along that pier on a Sunday afternoon and cast your line into the lake to fish.

Here is a picture of Magali by the fence on the pier, maintained by Cameco, the company that took over El Dorado in the 1990s. The barrels in the shot contain wastes from Cameco's operations, and the little black trefoil symbolizing radiation is stamped on each one.

Q and A with Holly Andruchuk

Betty would call Holly Andruchuk Toronto's best kept secret, except that Holly doesn't belong to Toronto exclusively, she also belongs to a few corners of Alberta, Nova Scotia, and a little Hamlet in Nunavut. She's a great guitar player and, as for her voice, tired metaphors cannot describe it. There's a little interview floating around youtube in which Gram Parsons describes his first time playing music with Emmylou Harris; jamming with Holly gives you a sense of how Parsons must have felt at that moment. After spending the better part of a year (literally) with Holly, Betty realized there was a lot more she wanted to know about Holly Andruchuk, and that it would also be good to share some facts about H.A. with the world.

BB: You are from Standard, Alberta, formerly a town of 300. What was it like growing up in Standard? I hear you taught a lot of girls how to play guitar.

Holly: It's best to think of my developing years in 6's. 6 years in Winnipeg, 6 Years in Calgary, 6 years in Standard.

I was born in Winnipeg at the Grace Hospital. Moved to Calgary after my dad got a job as an industrial arts teacher on the Siksika Nation reserve east of Calgary. Moved to Standard, Alberta to be closer to the rez for dad's commute. Growing up in Manitoba and Alberta was home; big skies, lots of people with similar last names, traditional prairie food, country music and classic rock, countless drives on the No. 1 Highway.

As for the girls and the guitars, extra-curricular activities in Standard are simply referred to as "Hockey and Calving" in the winter and spring months and "Baseball and Harvest" in the summer and fall. A handful of moms approached me about teaching their daughters how to play guitar, and the customary thing to do is say "Yes, of course!" For me and the girls, it was a fun way to pass the time after school.

BB: Between leaving Standard, and settling down in Toronto in 2007, you lived in the Arctic, South Korea, and Halifax. Tell us, Dear Rambler, a little bit about this.

Holly: I think it's the Heinz 57 in me. Each German, Mennonite, Polish, Ukrainian, Czech, Irish and British-Loyalist gene in me possesses the same trait: The eternal quest for the New World. My ancestors traveled the world for farming, politics, religion, mission work, new beginnings, to flee cultural and religious discrimination, and most importantly opportunity. I ramble for the off chance I will stumble upon opportunity.

BB: When did you start playing guitar, and what was your inspiration? What music were you exposed to in Standard?

Holly: The guitar was first introduced to me when I was seven, after a biannual family trip to Winnipeg. My dad re-claimed his 1950s Jumbo acoustic Kay guitar while visiting with my cousins and aunt. On the drive back to Alberta dad tuned down the guitar to an open chord so I could strum and bar the frets. I wrote my first song, "When I First Moved to Cal-gary" and the dream and fantasy began - "I'll strap some wheels on my guitar, so I can be a big, big star...uh huh, ummm hmm, oh yeah."

Music was part of the family culture. You sing in choirs, listen to CBC radio in the car, LP's at home, Gordon Lightfoot on Saturday mornings, Moodie Blues and other rock doc's on TV, and just general excitement from parents and siblings about live music performances. Dad played piano like Jerry Lee Lewis, Mom liked to sing Doris Day's "Que Serra" and the score from "My Fair Lady", and the whole family loved Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers.

Music from Standard, was a mix of country, classic rock, and 90s alternative. My sister would take me to Tragically Hip concerts, and mosh at Metallica and Pearl Jam shows. The high school boys would blare CJ 92 Calgary radio in their trucks and Country 105 in their combines. And my folks would play vinyl at home: Doobie Brothers, Valdy, Beatles, The Band, Fleetwood Mac, Moodie Blues, The Rolling Stones, Stan Rogers and Gordon Lightfoot.

BB: What other bands do you play in?

Holly: In addition to Betty Burke, I play with the following bands:
The Booth Avenue Band
Benjamin Elliott
The Buffalo Builders
Holly Andruchuk & The Brothers Elliott

BB: Tell me about your guitars. Every time I go to a shop with you, you want to buy another acoustic- but you have seven already? What's on your gear wish-list these days?

Holly: Guitar's to Keep Forever:
1950s Kay Jumbo Acoustic
1994 Simon and Patrick Lauthier 12 string acoustic
1980s Norman acoustic 6 string
2000 Taylor 415 Jumbo 6 string acoustic
2000 Gretsch Junior Country Classic electric guitar 179 of 200

Gear Wish list:
Gibson 1950s acoustic auditorium
Gibson SG vintage or re-issue cherry top satin finish
Gibson Les Paul Standard Gold Top front Maple back
Gibson Explorer Dark Maple with white pick guard
3 more solid leather guitar straps
New Harps
Vox AC 30
Rat Peddle

BB: I've been learning a lot about folk and country music from you, but you also have a lot of the rock n roll and blues in your iPod- the Kinks, Elvis, Muddy Waters- so I know you have diverse tastes as far as listening goes, but playing in a more punk/rockabilly style is a change for you. What do you enjoy about this style of music?

Holly: Rambling in new music genres is educational and a wonderful exercise in co-writing and arranging. It also forces me to think about different voicings and concepts for songs. More importantly, I play with Betty Burke because Maggie MacDonald is one of my dearest friends and truth tellers. She is my muse, my artistic sister and mentor, my personal confidant and I really believe in her ability, efforts and contributions to the arts community!

BB: Maggie is one of your biggest fans actually, and you've improved her life a great deal. She told me herself. Oh happy day! Thank you for doing this little interview, Holly. We love you!!

Get Rhythm

We have a couple of gigs coming up that we're super excited about, and the band is expanding in order to make our tall tales sound even taller.

On Sunday, October 4th, we will be playing our first Wavelength at the brand new venue The Garrison, at 1197 Dundas Street West. Comedy rappers Sherpafeast, and Brooklyn/New Orleans band Home Video will be playing, and Sean Ward will DJ between bands. Our set is at 10pm. The new venue is being opened by a former Sneaky Dee's booker, and we're very excited to be part of the festivities.

On Thursday, October 8th, we will be opening for Octoberman at their album release party at the Dakota Tavern, at 249 Ossington Avenue. The Dakota is one of our favourite venues. It's the kind of place you can expect to find great music without consulting listings in advance.

Now about the expansion of Betty Burke... We've been playing as a threesome recently, giving some the impression that we're folkies. As I explained in an earlier blog, we're actually skids (though we clean up real nice!), and when we are hanging around our respective homes amusing our ears, we're more likely to be spinning The Clash or Johnny Cash than Pete Seeger. In order to express what's on the tips of our tongues, we really need a rhythm section, and at the upcoming gigs, there will be drums!!

John Power is a Newfie from Paradise, Conception Bay, who plays with Brutal Knights and The Hidden Cameras. You may have seen him around town, wearing his "Municipal Waste" t-shirt. In keeping with the "play what you can carry" spirit, John will be kicking away at a suitcase and tapping a snare for Betty. We can't wait.

Wiki has the best music writing... probably by accident

What's the difference between Ira Louvin and Bill Monroe?

On the Wikipedia page dedicated to the Louvin Brothers, an unknown author (or authors?) writes the following:

"Ira would sometimes become angry enough on stage to smash his mandolin; otherwise his style was heavily influenced by Bill Monroe"

Take that, Paul Simonon. Decades before the iconic "London Calling" album cover photo was snapped, Ira Louvin beat you to it.

But who would smash a mandolin? That would be like squishing a butterfly or kicking a bunny rabbit. Come to think of it, it pains my heart to watch a guitar getting smashed too. If it angers you that much, give it away! Set it free! Such violence is unnecessary.

What's all this guitar rock aboot?

Due to that curious phenomenon linguists call Canadian raising, Canadians have an accent, imperceptible to ourselves, that makes our "about" sound like "aboot." I have no idea what friends from other countries mean when they talk about this, but apparently it's for real.

This makes me wonder if Canadians have a similar condition when it comes to our guitar rock. As a nation, we're pretty deeply immersed in guitar rock, and bands that might fill a bar somewhere else fill stadiums here. Is this because we can't hear something in our guitar rock that sounds overblown and possibly comic to persons from other nations? Is there a musical version of Canadian raising? Is this why the Hip are worshiped North of the 49th parallel, between the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic waters that insulate us from a possibly transcendental experience of minimalist playing styles?

From the world famous gopher museum

The above image is from the Torrington, Alberta gopher museum. I stopped there to do research for a project that is not yet complete, so I am reserving my commentary for the moment.

Apparently, there's a lot going on in Torrington.

I owe a big thank you to Trevor Anderson from the band The Wet Secrets for telling me about the museum. Trevor often has films showing at festivals in Canada and abroad, so be sure to look him up and check out some of his work, especially if he is passing through your town.

Folk vs. Skid

Last night, when re-arranging the layout of the blog, I noticed some unfortunate subliminal messaging. To the left of the posts, in the photo of the old theatre posters, the work 'Folk' now stands out.

In several languages, 'folk' literally means 'people,' but when the term 'people' is used in English it often sounds like an old communist word, making people nervous in the 'bad memories of the old-country' sense, or excited in the 'I bought this Che t-shirt in college sense.' Using the term 'folk music' to denote 'the people's music' may have been useful during the better dead than red era, but nowadays it's just a catch-all for music without pedals, music without mania, and/or singer-songwriter bard work.

Our band has set certain parameters which might lead people to apply that tired descriptor, . Our band rules are: use no pedals, play only what you can carry, and if a song doesn't tell a story, leave it for the jam bands, avant-(insert genre), better musicians, etc. to handle. But we're not really a folk band. We're more of a skid band, actually. The rules we've set for ourselves are rooted in a less is more, Buddy Holly-inspired approach. The drums on 'Not Fade Away' were played on a cardboard box, after all. And I wouldn't call that folk music!

Bob Wiseman

On Thursday night, July 30th, at the Gladstone, there will be a show to celebrate the re-release of Bob Wiseman's first album, In Her Dream. The album first came out 20 years ago, now the Blocks Recording Club is giving it back to the world with songs that had previously been censored. As part of the festivities, a long list of musicians will be performing songs from In Her Dream, including Final Fantasy and Mary Margaret O'Hara. We will be covering 'Gamma Ray Man,' which is right up our alley, theme-wise.

Bob is a generous and gifted songwriter, a perceptive and hilarious storyteller, and artistically he is a key contributor to a strong collective spirit in the Toronto music community. We are excited to see the show, take part, and celebrate Bob's work.

Hope to see you there,
xoxo
BB

We really are devo now

A moment ago I had a great chat with Alex who works at Ella's Uncle, that great cafe on Dundas West. We were talking about our respective Kathleen Hanna encounters, and how lucky we were to come of age at a time when there were so many strong role models in music (e.g. L7, Salt N' Pepa, continuing torch-bearer Kim Gordon). Does anyone remember seeing Michelle Shocked and her hairy legs in Rolling Stone magazine in 1989? That makes an impression on a kid. These days Rolling Stone describes Lady Gaga as having an unconventional kind of beauty and an "ethnic" nose. Say what? I would hardly call Lady Gaga's physique unconventional. And what is meant by an "ethnic" nose, exactly?

Presently we are witnessing the devolution of values that were at the forefront not so long ago, values that were propelled in part by Riot Grrl, queercore, Guerrilla Girls, and other activist art movements. What's so funny about peace, love, respect and equality? Yes, great strides have been made in some areas- marriage equality for instance- but until I see Beth Ditto replacing the tweeny bop singers in young girls magazines, I'm not going to feel that the Western devolution to a pre-90's sensibility has lost momentum, let alone stopped.

For instance, consider the prevalence of the saying "That's so gay." This phrase gets tossed around all the time by people who don't consider themselves homophobic, who don't actually want to insult gay people, right alongside "those people" who take pride in their homophobia.
In light of this issue, I humbly propose a language action. Instead of saying "That's so gay" try using the phrase "that is delightfully homosexual," and only for things that are indeed delightful. Using homosexuality as a pejorative is ugly, regardless of intent.

What could be described as delightfully homosexual, then? Here are some examples:

"I watched Queen's 'I Want To Break Free' video last night. It's so delightfully homosexual!!"
"Oh my God, you like Klaus Nomi? He's so delightfully homosexual."
"I went to Hot Nuts at the Beaver last night. It was delightfully homosexual."

On that note, happy belated Pride Week, and thanks for stopping by.

Respect,
B.B.

Honest error vs. icy perfections

Inspired by Charles Rennie Mackintosh's rendering of J.D. Sedding's epithet "There is hope in honest error: none in the icy perfections of the mere stylist" I've decided to restructure the look of the blog, despite my lack of design skills. My "if I were a real designer" fantasy is to synthesize elements of Arts and Crafts style with a dash of Peter Saville. Because I am the pen and paper type, and share only a name and no know-how with Mackintosh's life partner/artistic collaborator, that synthesis is not going to happen here. In my own low-tech way, I am pleased to share with you, the visitor, the above photo of old theatre posters hanging in the Folkets Park theatre at Huskvarna, Sweden.

Living in Canada, an administrative nation with a fading attachment to social democracy, I often find myself struggling with questions about the relationship between politics and art. The above posters represent state-sponsored entertainment, some of it the kind of light, cathartic entertainment that gives an audience a sense that things in the world are fine the way they are. But the same system also produced Ingmar Bergman, whose work, I would argue, can be more unsettling than Samuel Beckett's. This puts a pea under the mattress of settled thinking. The source of the work, the system that supports it financially, does not necessarily determine the form of the work, or its effect. With films like "Scenes from a Marriage" and 'Winterlight" Bergman demonstrates that realism can leave the audience with a sense of deep unease.

Cultural critic Theodor Adorno sometimes strikes me as a bit of a jerk (not of the Steve Martin variety), but in the essay "On Commitment" he has several moments of tenderness and clarity when contemplating political art. He writes: "It is not the office of art to spotlight alternatives, but to resist by its form alone the course of the world, which permanently puts a pistol to men's heads."* But to resist the course of the world, the form of a work doesn't have to be 'difficult,' obscure, or inaccessible. It doesn't have to feel bad to be good.

xoxo
B.B.

*Adorno in Arato and Gebhardt, Editors, Essential Frankfurt School Reader, New York: Urizen, 1978; p. 304

Over the Moon and back to Earth

To describe the happiness we felt on Thursday would be like drawing constellations on the night sky through the flickering dark of a thunderstorm, so a simple "thank you" will have to suffice. Thank you to everyone who attended, participated in, worked at, and helped out with last week's show.

Paul Mathew and Betty Burke (Holly Andruchuk, Shaun Brodie, Maggie MacDonald) did some songs as a warm up, then Stevie Jackson and Owen Pallett each played a solo set, followed by a set of Stevie's songs backed by the whole gang, including Sheila Sampath on keys and Stef Schneider on percussion. Eric from Distorsis did the sound, Sarianna Mileski and Ben Stimpson played "bad cop, bad cop" at the door.

At the end of the night, Owen and Stevie played an unrehearsed rendition of Rocket Man, securing a day pass from the underworld for Eurydice, and inspiring the audience to sing along spontaneously- feats of equal prowess in this polite Northern nation. Here is a youtube link to the performance.

I hope you enjoyed the night as much as we did, and if you weren't there, I hope you enjoy the link.

Thanks for everything,
xoxo
B.B.

Tales of the Warm and Cozy with Stevie Jackson (Belle and Sebastian), Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy) and friends

On Thursday, there will be an extra-special little gig at the Imperial Pub. After the 'Tales of the Uncanny' screening with Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy), Do Make Say Think and Robert Lippok in Dundas Square, cross the street to 54 Dundas Street East, Toronto, for a night of singsong with Stevie Jackson of Belle Sebastian, a special visit from Owen Pallett, and friends Paul Mathew (Hidden Cameras, Tuxedo, The Low Notes), Sheila Sampath (The Airfields, CN Power), and Betty Burke (members of The Hidden Cameras, and Holly Andruchuk.)

Stevie Jackson will be in town briefly for the Neil Young tribute at Massey Hall, and we're delighted that he will take the time to swing by The Imperial to share his songs with us before returning to misty Glasgow.

The Imperial Pub is one of my favourite Toronto venues. Opened in 1944, the rustic, cozy feeling between its brick walls brings the warmth of old Toronto, with a welcoming, "steady as she goes" approach that contrasts the high heels and rising prices of the West End.

The Buffalo Builders played a string of Thursdays at the Imperial last year. When I entered the backroom to see them play, I was instantly transported to a roadside venue far from town. Behind the upright piano there is a porthole to the Ottawa Valley, and all airs are dropped. There aren't any baskets of blueberries for sale outside, but there is a late night menu, and a wide range of beverages on hand.

Caveat emptor: this will be a late night event. We will light the candles and open the curtains to the backroom at 10:30 pm, but Stevie will only be ushered onstage when the last Uncanny Tale has been told.

We hope to see you at the Imperial.

xoxo
B.B.

Faith Renewed

Last night, after laying low for a few months, the Kids On TV emerged from their haunted house jam space, dressed as Hibiscus of the Cockettes (featuring sequined eyebrows applied by Margot Keith), to perform two new songs and a Kate Bush "Cloudbusting" tribute at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre. The show, which also featured Gentleman Reg and a new be-wigged Eurosongstress, was a party for the sold out Inside Out screening of "Hogtown Homos," featuring videos by Final Fantasy, Reg, The Hidden Cameras, and shorts by local artists.

The Kids On TV "Cloudbusting" tribute featured arrangements by Katie Stelmanis and a choir that included members of The Pining- a fantastic new local band that plays stripped down songs in a country vein.

But it wasn't only the Kate Bush choir singing: The Kids On TV have become more melodic and tuneful of late, and with "That Man is Just a Man," it seems they have a new song that is every bit as good as Breakdance Hunx, AKA the song we all know the words to. Shout it with me now, from your office, or the cafe where you surf the web: "YOU THINK SO? I KNOW SO!"

That the Kids re-emerged with even more glitter than ever is symbolic of the state of the West end's artistic imagination. For a brief period in the early 00s, Toronto bands and artists were winning hearts and minds around the world, and local labels and collectives were popping up like spring gophers. But it seemed like that scene had sort of fizzled, which anything does as soon as it is called a 'scene.' It is true that Canada's increasingly administrative culture, which prioritizes "mainstream" thinkers (see this Toronto Star article for more info about what counts as "mainstream" in the PMO's office), and general economic malaise have been like carbon monoxide to artists.

But, if the fiery golden glitter in the Kids On TVs' molten beards is any indication, the artistic imagination will not be kept down, nor confined to a past moment that casts occlusive shadows on the future by means of the false light of nostalgia. Like the moon, nostalgia's glow is merely a pale reflection of the future's brilliant possibilities.

Love,
BB

Sneaky Peek

Thank you for a lovely little evening last week. We had a great time at This Ain't The Rosedale Library, and we loved Brian's reading.

There were no microphones. The only thing plugged in was a tiny Squire amp for Shaun's keys. While it was great to walk to the gig with all of our gear in hand, we won't always have such a small set-up. But we do appreciate the Billy Bragg comparisons that resulted from our recent stripped-down renditions of the stories we sing.

A Canadian music blog has posted a little clip from the show, so have a peek if you are curious.

Best wishes,
xoxo
BB

Future!

It's a wet spring day in Toronto, which raises hopes for a green and flowery near-future. When Francis Fukuyama proclaimed the end of history, it shed an unflattering light on the old punk slogan 'No Future.' In times like these, it's more rebellious to believe in the future, a future that has yet to be determined.

Today the words 'swine flu' are on everyone's lips. Whether we're talking about pandemics, war, or other proverbial horsemen, there isn't any corner of North America where one can hide from the peculiar rhythm of our culture- the pounding, relentless anxiety that drives us to work and spend.

Fret not. When you rest your head on your pillow at night, remember that the sound you are hearing is not the trotting hooves of the four horsemen, but the sound of your own worried heart beating. Yes, a hard rain is falling, but a hard rain is better than no rain, so press on, dear friends.

If you're in Toronto, maybe we'll see you tomorrow at This Ain't The Rosedale Library- our show with Brian Joseph Davis will be an early one, starting at 8pm. If not tomorrow, we hope to see you soon!

xoxo
Betty

Late to the dance, or early to the afterparty

Like a squirrel nesting in a hollow tree, Betty Burke has finally carved out a myspace nook. Let's be friends! Our myspace account is so new that we haven't even received any salacious ads disguised as wall-posts yet.

We're getting excited about the show next week at This Ain't The Rosedale Library, so excited that a certain member of the band has been loitering at the shop on a regular basis. On Sunday, while thumbing through the music book section, I found a copy of "Otis! The Otis Redding Biography" by Scott Freeman. It's a juicy read.

The most stunning Otis anecdote I can share so far is about the whistled verse in "(Sitting On) The Dock of The Bay." Otis wasn't finished writing the song yet when he recorded it, and meant for the whistled lines to serve as a placeholder. But before he could return to the studio, he died in a tragic plane crash, which makes the song all the more painful to contemplate.

Whatever the genre- pop, soul, metal, r&b, country- sad songs abound. But "Sitting On The Dock of The Bay" receives my nomination for the best sad song of all time. A broken heart can leave you hopeless, but unemployment can leave you hopeless and homeless. Otis' story of leaving Georgia to look for work in California, and winding up jobless, with nothing to do but watch the waves, is a thousand times sadder than any old hony tonk lament about being left by a woman.

On that note, I'd like to end this blog by thanking This Ain't The Rosedale Library for stocking books Like "Otis!" If you're in Toronto next week, visit the shop Wednesday night for our show with Brian Joseph Davis, and take some time to browse. We hope to see you there, and if not there, maybe we'll see you on Myspace.

xoxo
BB

Free show with Betty and Brian Joseph Davis at This Aint The Rosedale Library

On Wednesday, April 29th at 8pm there will be a special FREE show with Betty Burke and author/artist Brian Joseph Davis at This Ain't The Rosedale Library. This Ain't The Rosedale Library is a Toronto institution, run by father and son team Charlie and Jesse Huisken. Now in a new location in Canada's flaneur capital, Kensington Market, the UK's Guardian newspaper listed This Ain't as one of the top ten best bookstores in the world!

Brian Joseph Davis is an author and artist we admire for his work on paper, on stage, and at the DJ booth. He is involved in the venerable Blocks Recording Club, and ran a Parkdale gallery out of his home with Emily Shultz. One of our more memorable encounters with Brian was at a Republic of Safety show, at which he read from his book Portable Altamont, delighting us with a comedy poem constructed entirely from Canadian band names. This indulged the band's latent MC5 fantasies, hearkening back to the days when oratory and rock and roll went hand in hand to drive people to a frenzy.

Not long ago, Brian released an album version of Theodor Adorno's Minima Moralia (Reflections from Damaged Life). While the album is not easy to find, many Frankfurt School titles are available at This Ain't The Rosedale Library, along with independent books, art books, GLBT books, poetry collections, magazines (including some fun hard-to-find art magazines), and an amazing selection of books on music.

We hope to see you there on April 29th. Doors are at 8pm, thought the shop is open all day at 86 Nassau Street, next to Ideal Coffee.

XoXo,
BB

PS Today is Holly Andruchuk's birthday! Happy Birthday, Holly!

Shaun touring with A.C. Newman, hitting Letterman in April

Where oh where is Shaun Brodie? Since late February, Betty's darling multi-instrumentalist-- that chap with the puckish twinkle in his eye-- has been galavanting up and down the coasts with A.C. Newman. We had the good fortune to catch the A.C. Newman show in Toronto at Lee's Palace and it was fantastic. They band is incredibly tight, which is amazing since the musicians hail from far-flung corners of North America. They will be appearing on David Letterman in mid-April. I hope they feature many close-ups of the trumpet player ;)

Betty will be playing gigs again when Shaun returns from the voyage. Our next show will take place at a super special spot in Kensington Market, Toronto, the details of which will be announced soon.

Until then, look for Shaun in various North American venues with Newman. And check out Holly Andruchuk's blog about the Monster at: http://fencepostsandplainfolks.blogspot.com/
She will be playing at Lee's Palace on April 11th, so don't be a hermit, get out there and hear those prairie pipes- featuring East Toronto's Elliot Brothers on rhythm (by East Toronto, I mean the city of several million that starts at Yonge Street and ends at Scarborough, not an industrial zone in Toronto, Ohio).

xoxo,
B.B.

Talkin' bout last night

We had a great time at the Tranzac last night. I want to extend special thanks to Magali for organizing the show, and to Gentleman Reg, the Metal Kites and The Youngest for being great.

The Youngest is Amy, solo on her guitar, singing tender songs. She has a great voice.

The Metal Kites are harder to describe, and that is a complement. Mysterious lyrics, haunted guitars, creature harmonies and Magali on bass- if that's not enough to make you listen, you are immune to persuasion.

We are planning to do a show soon at a very special spot in Toronto, so I will post more information about that when we firm up details.

Thanks for reading, and have a happy Thursday.

xoxo
Betty

With special guest star Gentleman Reg

Good morning,

Gentleman Reg will be joining Betty on stage tonight at the Tranzac Club for a song. We are very excited about this special treat. The show begins at 8:00, and costs only 6$.

To start your day off on the right foot, here is a cute little Reg photo, taken by Davida Nemeroff.

See you tonight,
xoxo
Betty

Our first gig, tomorrow night at the Tranzac Club, Toronto

Betty's first gig is tomorrow night (February 4, 2009) at 8:00 pm. We are playing with Metal Kites (featuring John Tielli, Magali Meagher and Doug Tielli), and The Youngest as part of the "Wombat Wednesdays" series. The show only costs 6 dollars, which means it is recession-appropriate entertainment. Be sure to arrive at the stated time, as the whole do must end by 11:00 pm.

What can you expect from Betty? At the Tranzac you will see and hear Shaun Brodie (guitar/trumpet), Stephanie Markowitz (micro korg), Dave Meslin (bass/percussion) and Maggie MacDonald (mandola/voice) playing five songs on the theme of post-industrial desperation. The songs are short, melodic and can be enjoyed without any sense of ennui. Our intention is to uplift, not to depress. You will not require a hanky.

Holly Andruchuk will be with us in spirit, as she worked on these songs with us, but she is away up North at the moment and can't be at this gig. We love and miss you, Holly!

Hope to see you tomorrow!

xoxo,
Betty