Pat Blythe – Indie Week – Act I

Crikey!!!! Where the hell did the day go?!? It was a crazy week last week….Indie Week style.  Launch on Tuesday, judging (and shooting) on Wednesday, hitting the clubs on Friday, Saturday and Sunday…..oh my aching trigger finger…… I saw so many bands around the city I’ve lost count. There were others I missed simply because I couldn’t be in two (or three) places at once….not even Zippy can do that. I take no prisoners driving from one end of the city to the other. There is no time to waste and parking to be found. But what a great week…..so much incredible talent out there, local and international, and these music makers love what they do….so I hope they all keep on “doing it”. I ran into so many people I know, reconnected and also made some new friends. I just LOVE this!

The Stories Behind the Songs – Part Two

It’s snowing!!!! Not those big, fat, fluffy flakes where one can almost cover your face. But it’s snowing…. Sigh. The grey, dull days of January with just a mere hint that the sun actually exists…..which begs the question, why doesn’t Bell Canada hold their “Let’s Talk” campaign on Blue Monday? That makes infinitely more sense than say, Robbie Burns Day. Why in heaven’s name would you pick the 25th of January for mental health awareness??? According to a number of sources, the term “Blue Monday” was coined by holiday company Sky Travel in a 2005 press release. Cliff Arnall, at the time a tutor at Cardiff University, had come up with a light-hearted formula to determine the most depressing day of the year which commonly falls on the third Monday in January. It’s now a worldwide phenomena. Everyone has jumped on the bandwagon and the term is used repeatedly by companies and organizations (there’s even a BlueMonday.org) and stories in all sorts of media abound. Newspapers recommend taking the day off, there are various sites that will calculate, on a yearly basis, which Monday is going to be “blue” so you can prepare…..the power of suggestion. Although the entire idea is considered pseudoscience by the scientific community, Blue Monday is not going away anytime soon. Did you know mosquitoes are attracted to the colour blue twice as much as any other colour?

Roxanne Tellier – Put On Your Dancing Shoes, Toronto!

Jennie is a party. Jennie will brook no voyeurs on the voyage. You must be involved, you must eat, you must drink,you must dance! You must participate, because “Fun doesn’t just happen! You have to make it happen!“Jennie turns the world on with her smile.

Roxanne Tellier: CMW 2015 … And So It Begins

Finally, after a long, cold winter, I’m coming up for airto a bright spring promisinga musical overload. Perfect weather, indeed, for enjoying Fergus Hambleton  at Hugh’s Room on Wednesday, where he showcased his sunny signature sound and new CD “Written on the Wind. “