Where I find new (old) music: Part 8 - the used record store

I met an out-of-town friend today for lunch who was visiting Toronto for the first time.  We met at the Queen Mother Cafe on Queen West and he had walked past Kops Records on the way there and made a comment about stopping in after lunch.  I hadn't been in Kops for a long time and quickly felt comfy surrounded by very famliar album covers.  I do have a turntable set up at home, but only really use it for nostalgia trips now and again, so I no longer buy vinyl.  However, slipping through the bins I quickly found one of my old favourites that I'd forgotten about.  No I didn't buy the album, but I did just buy it online.

The Streatles @ Tranzac

The Streatles @ Tranzac - #70/365 a photo by PJMixer on Flickr.


Friends invited us to join them to see their children's guitar teacher Edward, perform with his Beatles cover band The Streatles.  Our daughter joined us for a great evening of Beatles songs and good times.  Click here for the full set of photos.

Harry Connick, Jr.

Harry Connick, Jr. intro from Rudy Blair a photo by PJMixer on Flickr.

Harry Connick, Jr. did a brief interview with Rudy Blair from AM680, then signed autographs to promote his new CD/DVD at First Canadian Place on March 4th, 2011. I've seen Harry perform a couple of times, incl. his Toronto debut at Roy Thompson Hall in 1989. Click here for other shots.

Intersecting with The Grammies

I'm not a huge fan of The Grammies for a number of reasons: too American-centric; too pop focused; and all the thanks to God. That being said, there are usually a couple of good performances and a few of my favourites artists to cheer for.

So of the Grammy nominees this year, the following are artists I have been listening to over the last 18 months:

• Cee Low Green
• Jay-Z & Alicia Keys
• Eminem
• Arcade fire
• Ray Lamontagne
• Florence & the Machine
• Mumford & Sons
• Norah Jones
• John Mayer
• Sade
• Groove Armada
• Chemical Brothers
• Robert Plant
• The Black Keys
• Them Crooked Vultures
• Kings of Leon
• Katy Perry
• Broken Bells
• John Legend & The Roots
• Janelle Monáe
• Gorillaz

And lastly, good luck to my old mates from ultimate, Sam Dunn & Scot McFadyen for their Rush movie.

2011 Albums

Here is a list of albums being released early in 2011 that I'm looking forward to (many have singles already available). Some of the dates may be UK dates so it may be a little later here.

• Cage The Elephant released in January.
• Boxer Rebellion just released last week.
• Armistice (a collaboration of Coeur De Pirate and Jay Malinowski) Feb. 15
• Adele Feb. 22
• Beady Eye March 1 (Oasis minus Noel)
• Alex Turner solo album (Arctic Monkeys) March 14th
• The Vaccines March 21st
• Pigeon Detectives April 4th
• Glasvegas April 4th
• The Wombats April 11th

Any others that I have missed or that you are looking forward to?

Blip updates

Caught up on sharing some music via Blip, incl. electronica and dance tracks from Katy B, Groove Armada; smooth vocals from Ray Lamontagne, Belle and Sebastian, Broken Bells and Paloma Faith; and lots more.

Where I find new music: Part 7 - inflight entertainment

In the old days of long distance commercial air flight, you often had the option of listening to various music selections across a wide variety of genres using the armrest dials and an awful pair of airline headphones. With the help of the playlists being published in the inflight magazine, I'd often find some interesting new tracks.  


With the new touchscreen personal entertainment centres and the option to use our own headphones we now have, the ease of browsing and enjoying lots of new music is wonderful.  I'm currently listening to Belle and Sebastian's latest album - Write about love.  Plus, it's worth noting that the decent choice of movies also brings up the opportunity of finding some new music on the soundtrack.