I haven't done one of these in a while, but this band warrants it.

Ra Ra Riot are from Syracuse, NY and have been around for a couple of years now. I first saw them when they opened for Editors in Vancouver last fall. Got the chance to catch them again while working on a photo assignment for Canvas Media and they were incredible!

Listen to "A Manner To Act" and decide for yourself! They have an EP released already and a full-length album is due August 19th.


photo by Blythe Dresser.

I like 'em a lot!

If you're in the vicinity of Chicago on July 26th-27th, check them out at the Wicker Park Festival where they'll be playing with the Most Serene Republic.

I just finished school for the semester this morning (YES!) and today is the first day of a week of complete and total relaxation. I've been super-stressed from a combination of a lack of sleep and a ton of work (I had a big critique this morning), so tonight I'm going to walk up and get some take-out dinner to eat by the lake and maybe rent a dvd or two to watch while I tidy up my apartment and go to bed early.

I lead a life of danger and thrills. Really, I do.

And I'm going to the zoo tomorrow and I couldn't be more excited.

It's been a while since I've rented anything. So does anyone have any recommendations? Nothing too outrageous and no schlocky teen fare (no porn - this means you, Mitch), please.




I can't believe I have nothing that needs to be done for tomorrow.

This is awesome!

#1) Happy Mother's Day to all you mommies out there!

#2) When I called mine today she informed me that she saw something on the CBC that she thought I'd be interested in.

Turns out my ex-boyfriend/one of my closest friends started up a website with a couple of his colleagues (he works for the government now) called Canadians Love Obama! He's a dual citizen and got his Masters in Poli Sci from Acadia University, so he's always been really keen on political current events. I always knew he was an Obama supporter, but I think this is rad!

The website is worth a look, regardless of what country you're a citizen of. It's been gathering a lot of attention in the media at home, which I think is fantastic. Peter and his two friends made their way down to Seattle to see Obama speak and they also filmed a short documentary (that I believe they're looking to expand on). They also raised money to erect a billboard on the main highway out of Victoria on Vancouver Island.

So... yeah. Basically I'm ridiculously proud of the kid. And thus... shameless promotion!



DO IT!

"Say Anything" is gold. Everyone should run out and catch that movie, if you haven't already! This shirt makes me smile.

Lloyd Dobler rules.

Yet another "go listen to this now!" blog:

GRAND ARCHIVES!



They're new to the Sub-Pop label (with label-mates, the Shins). They came together under the leadership of former Band of Horses member, Mat Brooke. My favorite Starbucks barista (and fellow music affectionado) told me about them since he writes part-time for a local magazine here in Chicago and he's going to be reviewing their show at Schubas on March 8th (which I'm now definitely going to). I just got their debut album (self-titled) and it is pretty rad!

"Louis Riel" and "Index Moon" are personal favorite tracks.

So, go buy their record here or here or on itunes!

Um, I like them very much.

It's Sunday night and this Canadian lady is a bit bored.

Are you a hockey fan? Specifically, NHL? Who do you love? Who do you hate? Your favorite player(s)?

I'm just a Canucks fan looking for more of my people.

:)

Yeah, yeah, boring shit, I know...

So I'm moving to the States in a month, which means I need a phone and would like to get that taken care of before I get there. I've talked to a couple of people about this already, but I could use a few more opinions.

I need a decent cell phone provider who offers great coverage and decent rates. I do a lot of texting (internationally) and long-distance, which is pretty key. I'm going to be calling Canada and England quite a bit and I don't want $500 a month in overage.

In Canada there are a couple of good companies and a lot of craptastic ones, so weeding the evil from the more-evil can be tough.

The consensus thus far has been at&t or t-mobile. Does anyone have some great reviews or horror stories from these guys or any others?

Thanks, kids!

"I am going to find your weaknesses and exploit them... on your face!"

I love them and wish they'd tour more. Or, at least, here. Although, they just lost one (of their three) members, so I don't know how that's going to go down.

This is entirely pointless youtube crap, but it reminds me so much of my friends from the UK. They did stuff EXACTLY like this and would make silly home videos that they'd edit together and would be along the same tangent (only some would go up to about 20 minutes which got to be a bit ridiculous). I miss them so much!

:)

Caught his show in a tiny venue last night and it was pretty incredible. He has probably the most beautiful voice I have ever heard. Heartbeats and Lovestain were gorgeous.

I know he's doing a somewhat limited North American tour, but if he's stopping by your city you should most definitely check him out. And I think it's fantastic that he is going to both Toronto and Ottawa, since the latter usually gets skipped over.

And his cover songs are pretty epic.

So, some of you know that I'm going to be going to school in the US as of January 10th to study photography. YAY! I'm incredibly excited about this and I've been preparing for a while.

Here's the little dillema. I'm a Canadian citizen attending an American institution. With my academic visa I can only work FOR the institution I'm attending for a maximum of 20 hours per week. There is the whole 'working under the table option', but I'm not willing to explore that because if I ever got caught (no matter how unlikely the possibility), I would be banned from the US for life.

I've saved up what I've earned thus far and have my tuition covered, but cost of living could end up being pretty steep. So... fundraising?

Taking a leaf out of Adrienne's book, I've considered setting up an etsy shop for my concert photos. I've been doing this for a while now and I've been approached at shows by people interested in buying prints, but I don't know if there's a decent demand out there for that. So... what do you think?

They'd be 8x10 color prints processed in a proper photo lab. Probably selling between $20-$30 each (shipping from Canada is odd so I'm going to try to work around it). These are the artists/bands I've shot:

- The Arcade Fire
- Beastie Boys
- Grizzly Bear
- The Decemberists
- Pete Yorn
- Bloc Party
- Editors
- The Walkmen
- Cary Brothers
- We Are Scientists
- Kaiser Chiefs
- Ghostland Observatory
- Matt Pond PA
- Sufjan Stevens
- The Frames
- Tokyo Police Club
- Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
- Josh Rouse
- Okkervil River
- The Shins
- Common
- !!!
- Stars Of Track And Field
- DeVotchka
- Crowded House
- Silversun Pickups
- Of Montreal
- The Appleseed Cast
- Islands
- Art Brut

Some samples:











So what does everyone think? Good idea? Horrible idea?