Category: Music

“There’s a Lenny in my Kravitz that must be removed”-Rheostatics

Crazy weekend, as usual. Highlights:

• Finally got a cable modem at home! Setup was silky smooth. Expect more blogging!
• Concert on Friday night was great. Cake were very tight, and though I really only enjoy them in small doses, they put on a great show. It was a bit surreal, however, to find myself in the middle of a singalong of the song “Satan Is My Motor.” Satan is most assuredly not my motor. More like an occasional backseat driver.
• Spoon were amazing, and Britt gave me his setlist again. I have the entire Toronto Spoon setlist collection, for what it’s worth. Look for an addition to the setlists page soon, once I dig my scanner out of storage.
• The GTABlogger meet was swell, too. My friend Brent and I showed up after the concert and not a single person had bailed yet. Of course, within minutes of our arrival, the exodus began. Actually, we all hung out until after 1, and I met some very cool folks. Rannie has pictures.
• Brent and I are going to see the Rheostatics this afternoon at the Horseshoe Tavern. They are on show 4 of 11, and we might try to catch show 9 as well.
• At some point today or tomorrow, I’m trying to get together with Heather, who is in town for a few days. Man, being two busy people kind of makes getting together for coffee difficult. Delicate negotiations are ongoing.

My favourite Canadian band, the Rheostatics, have released a new album called “Night of the Shooting Stars,” and as always, it’s excellent. I especially like the first track, entitled “These Days Are Good For The Canadian Conservative Youth Party Alliance.” Sometimes it’s not difficult to understand why they don’t get a lot of radio airplay, though 🙂 They’re going to be playing a marathon 11-night stand at the Horseshoe Tavern beginning this Wednesday night (and special guests will include, if all rumours are true, Rush, Stompin’ Tom Connors, the Guess Who, and maybe Neil Young!!!), and if you can catch them, you ought to. They are probably the best live band I’ve ever seen, though it doesn’t hurt that I’ve seen them probably a dozen times. I’m probably going once or twice in the upcoming stretch, though. Contact me and let’s go together. I’m also lucky in that I’m getting to see my favourite American band this Friday, too. Spoon are opening for Cake, who are also not too bad.

Salon profiles Shane McGowan, ex of The Pogues: “So when he missed a gig, we were all just happy to hear that he was still alive the next day.” (via Elise)

Every so often someone will stop me on the street and ask me about the name of this weblog. How did I come up with “Consolation Champs”? It is, after all, a silly name. Well, gentle reader, my answer is that originally it was a name I wanted to use for a band. Most of us walk around with half a dozen or so band names in our heads. Here are a few more that I’ve pondered for many years, although none were ever considered for the name of a web site:

• Robot Pope (eerily close to Robot Wisdom)
• Black Jello
• The Part-Time Jobs (pronounced like the biblical character Job. You can see why this one wasn’t as funny in print as it was out loud)
• Assface (still one of the funniest putdowns I know)
• Fish Pants

Let’s hear some of yours…