THE ROAD BACK HOME A CONVERSATION WITH LOREENA McKENNITT “I am well, thank you, there’s lots going on, and for the most part we are in good health and doing things we love, so you can’t complain,” said Loreena McKennitt to start our recent [...]
MUSIC THAT FIRED US UP A CONVERSATION WITH THE TAILSPINS’ OSKAR AND JULIA BUIE When we consider the expression ‘everything old is new again’, we are generally talking about addressing the issues of today, by mining the wisdom of the past. [...]
CROSS CURRENTS A CONVERSATION WITH MARK EGAN “I like Toronto, it is a nice city,” said Mark Egan as we began our chat about his new album, a collaboration with drummer Shawn Pelton (Saturday Night Live drummer) and guitarist Shane Theriot [...]
A ROCK AND ROLL SINGER, A REAL HUMDINGER A CONVERSATION WITH SAM ROBERTS Indie-rock icon Sam Roberts and his band have released eight albums, won six Junos (receiving nominations for 15), and are one of the most-played bands on rock radio in [...]
THE 2024 JUNO AWARD NOMINEE CEREMONY @ THE CBC BUILDING, TORONTO FEBRUARY 6, 2024 The atmosphere at the 53rd Juno Awards nomination ceremony was electrifying, brimming with joy and anticipation as Canada’s cherished artists earned nods for [...]
DO IT FOR ENJOYMENT – DO IT AND SEE WHAT COMES OUT OF IT A CONVERSATION WITH GRAHAM PARKER “No snow in London,” reported Graham Parker. “We just got endless streams of storms. The last one came from a confluence of cold and warm air from [...]
DON’T DREAM IT’S OVER: THE REMARKABLE LIFE OF NEIL FINN A CONVERSATION WITH AUTHOR JEFF APTER Neil Finn was born in New Zealand and is the youngest of four siblings. When he turned 18, his older brother, Tim Finn, invited him to join his (Tim’s) [...]
DOTS OF HISTORY AND THE ARTFUL APPROACH A CONVERSATION WITH TOM ALLEN ON JS BACH’S LONG WALK IN THE SNOW The average modern listener probably gives little thought to music that was made 300 years ago. Even so, there is a long list of artists [...]
PLUNGING INTO THE UNKNOWN WITH A SMILE A CONVERSATION WITH NECK DEEP As openers go, it could be a motto for any pop-punk band looking to launch itself into the stratosphere. “If Blink-182 can do it, why can’t we?” smiles Ben Barlow, just seconds [...]
LOVE STORIES GONE WRONG A CONVERSATION WITH LOVELORN DOLLS Lovelorn Dolls are classified as gothic; their music is not simply dark, as those new to the genre may expect, but rather deep, layered with emotion. Daubresse offers, “It’s not [...]
I’M STILL DOING MY THING A CONVERSATION WITH DON McLEAN “I’ve got a lot of albums, a lot of songs, a lot of appearances, because I only did one thing: exactly what it is that I’m doing. I never got diverted away into anything else. I only [...]
HOW FAR BACK IN TIME MUST WE GO A CONVERSATION WITH TERRY DRAPER (EX-KLAATU) “If I hadn’t discovered The Beatles and rock and roll, I would have been an archeologist. I still dream about being Howard Carter and opening Tut’s tomb, and the [...]
GIVE IT TO ME STRAIGHT, SANTA! I CAN TAKE IT! SPILL MAGAZINE EXPOSES SOME OF THE BEST/WORST 2023 CHRISTMAS RELEASES (PART TWO) As The Beatles once sang, “Christmastime is here again, it ain’t been around since you know when.” That means a whole [...]
REWIND A CONVERSATION WITH ALAN FREW OF GLASS TIGER My riveting conversation with the legendary Alan Frew, lead singer for iconic Canadian band Glass Tiger and successful solo artist, took us on a captivating voyage through the archives of his [...]
BUILDING AN AUTHENTIC AND LEGIT MUSIC INDUSTRY A CONVERSATION WITH ANDREW CASH Andrew Cash is a man who has worn many hats over the years. From his early days in the 1980s Toronto post-punk band L’Étranger, to being a solo recording artist, to [...]
GIVE IT TO ME STRAIGHT, SANTA! I CAN TAKE IT! SPILL MAGAZINE EXPOSES SOME OF THE BEST/WORST 2023 CHRISTMAS RELEASES (PART ONE) As The Beatles once sang, “Christmastime is here again, it ain’t been around since you know when.” That means a whole [...]
TORONTO INTERNATIONAL MUSIC VIDEO FESTIVAL @ FOX THEATRE, TORONTO NOVEMBER 12, 2023 Years in the making, the Toronto International Music Video Festival had its first annual run on November 12, 2023, bringing together people from all over the [...]
ALMOST A SATIRE OF WHAT A ROCK STAR WAS A CONVERSATION WITH BOB WEGNER: MUSIC HISTORIAN AND AUTHOR OF MAX WEBSTER: HIGH CLASS Anyone who grew up in Southern Ontario in the mid to late 1970s will remember that it was a golden age of seeing bands [...]
WE ARE A BAND IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD A CONVERSATION WITH ROGER EARL OF FOGHAT “You’re in Canada, right? Ontario? We’re related aren’t we,” laughed Roger Earl at the beginning of our Zoom chat to talk about the new Foghat album, Sonic Mojo. [...]
OUT FROM UNDER THE LAMPSHADE A CONVERSATION WITH JAMES CLARK (THE JAMES CLARK INSTITUTE) James Clark is a very talented writer, musician, and singer. He is also an incredibly nice guy and a well-known Beatle fan. He even played The Cavern Club [...]
PAGES A CONVERSATION WITH BIG WRECK’S IAN THORNLEY Ian Thornley has seemingly led Big Wreck into a renaissance period. Hot off the release of a trilogy of EP’s released between 2021 and 2023 – 7.1, 7.2, and 7.3 – the Canadian rock icons [...]
MAMMOTH HAS BEEN MY CREATIVE ENDEAVOUR A CONVERSATION WITH WOLFGANG VAN HALEN Standing among the most impressive up and coming rock artists is Wolfgang Van Halen, the mastermind behind Mammoth WVH. The band has spent the year supporting Alter [...]
THE RISKS AND REWARDS OF DOING IT SOLO A CONVERSATION WITH JOHN DOUGLAS (TRASHCAN SINATRAS) Deciding to do it solo, just you, your voice and guitar, can be a tricky proposition. You are not only all by yourself, you are completely exposed and [...]
WHO’S MR. LAST CHANCE NOW? A CONVERSATION WITH BUZZ HAGSTROM (AKA PATRICK O’CONNOR) OF THE WOGGLES The Woggles have been around for a long time, over 30 years to be exact, and they continue to produce their own brand of garage, 1960s [...]
