THEATRE: Parts fit the actors in new Lemoine
There are many ways we can try to describe rebel playwright Stewart Lemoine – as a modern Noel Coward, for his witty dialogue; or as Edmonton’s theatrical Christopher Guest, for using almost the same set of actors again and again in one quirky comedy after another. Occasionally, a new actor is invited into the fold. […]
JR. GONE WILD: Dumb enough to quit, smart enough to start over
Hate to burst your bubble, but the Jr. Gone Wild reunion was motivated by money. Give thanks to local promoter Frank Klemen, a longtime Jr. fan who felt it was so important that his favourite Edmonton alt-country band get back together that he wouldn’t take no for an answer. “It was up to me,” he […]
Zac Brown Band brings new face of country to Edmonton
While we’re on the subject of folk music’s amazing crossover powers, the highly decorated Zac Brown Band will be bring its honest to goodness Southern roots sound to Edmonton for the first time – playing Rexall Place on Sunday, Sept. 22. Tickets go on sale Friday, May 31. Gifted with serious guitar chops, though known […]
Big top goes up as Cirque du Soleil takes over Edmonton
Local media were recently given a sneak peek of an amazing demonstration of strength, grace and agility as more than 80 people gave their all in the service of the popular human circus Cirque du Soleil – and that was just the construction crew raising the big top at Northlands on Thursday. The actual show […]
Jewish film asks awkward question: What DID grandpa do in the war?
You’d be upset, too, if you discovered that your Jewish grandparents partied with Nazis – an astounding example of “temporary mutual interest.” Playing at the Edmonton Jewish Film Festival that runs May 26-29, The Flat starts with a very ordinary scene familiar to everyone of a certain age, and not at first something you’d think […]
Monster Energy salute for those about to rock in September
Important disclaimer: Drinking Monster Energy drink will not turn you into a monster, though it might keep you moshing continuously through four monstrous rock bands coming to Edmonton on Monster Energy’s Rock Allegiance Tour. It’s a five-hour energy drink, right? Pulling into Rexall Place on Tuesday, Sept. 10 will be Volbeat, HIM, All That Remains […]
Queens of the Stone Age return to Edmonton in August
Every generation gets the prog rock band it deserves – or needs. Which is why there is great rejoicing among members of the so-called “Generation X” that Queens of the Stone age is returning to Edmonton – playing Wednesday, Aug. 7 in the Shaw Conference Centre; tickets go on sale Friday. This trippy California band […]
Record Store Reunion to celebrate coolest job ever
Like steam locomotive repairmen, harpsichord tuners and silent movie title card calligraphers, record store clerks are nearly extinct. People of the future will look back upon four decades, the 1960s to the 1990s, and no doubt have a few questions: What were “albums?” What’s a record store? Why was being a record store clerk such […]
Brad Paisley, Accidental Racist, plays Edmonton in October
Oh, man, we’re going to have some fun with Brad Paisley when he comes to Edmonton this fall on his “Beat the Summer” tour. The proudly redneck country singer – a mean guitarist and clever songwriter who knows how to push people’s buttons – plays Saturday, Oct. 26 at Rexall Place. Tickets go on sale […]
Surviving punters assemble first and last Joe Bird album
If you believe in life after death, you could imagine Joe Bird in heaven laughing at his friends left to deal with all the recordings he made before he died suddenly in 2009 – music that was never released. His good friend Jason Kodie knows what he’d say: “I think Joe’s laughing. He’s pissing himself […]
Fringe festival to tee off on James Bond
And the Fringe theme of the year is … Bond, James Bond. Doesn’t “From Fringe With Love” open a whole can of fun and adorable worms – the classic Bond film from 1963, made at the height of the Cold War. Fringe themes rarely coincide with actual content of the plays – but the fact […]
Goddo finds muse, falls in love, settles down – in Calgary
Fact: Hot young women fall for wrinkly old rock stars all the time. It’s not just the rock stardom itself. It’s the character and stamina and ego required to become a rock star in the first place that’s so attractive. It’s obviously hard-wired. One so rarely gets a chance to explore this topic, so it’s […]
