play that funky music

Put on some short shorts, hop in the car, roll down the windows and rock out to Ida Maria's 'I Like You So Much Better When You're Naked" all summer long.

indie-rock, dream-pop

I've been working on writing a children's book for a class and it involves a lot of poetic language and dreamy scenes. To get in the right writing-mood I listen to the Trespassers William album. Below is a clip of the band live in Paris playing "Different Stars". I first heard it on the movie "A Love Song For Bobby Long" (a wonderful movie!) and fell in love with it immediately.



Curious about the name Trespassers William? The duo got it from a Winnie the Pooh tale: Pooh and Piglet Go Hunting and Nearly Catch a Woozle by A.A. Milne.

"Next to [Piglet's] house was a piece of broken board which had: "TRESPASSERS W" on it. When Christopher Robin asked the Piglet what it meant, he said it was his grandfather's name…short for Trespassers Will, which was short for Trespassers William. And his grandfather had had two names in case he lost one—Trespassers after an uncle, and William after Trespassers."

See more at: www.trespasserswilliam.com

flaherty's wake

Marc Christensen, Megan Cooper, Kels Magill, Jared MacNeil, Aaron Plotner, Andrew Silke
Photos courtesy of Flaherty's Wake Facebook page
Last December in Yellowknife the temperature fell well below -30 degrees. And still, there was a line that wound out the front door of The Raven and around the block. Flaherty’s Wake, a seven person Irish punk band, was enjoying free pints in the green room of the bar more commonly called The Dirty Bird. Through small window slots the band watched the 100-person line up, approximately a third of the bars already packed capacity. The bar that scarcely charges cover was taking ten dollars a head and in the last decade they haven’t seen such lines.

Just after midnight the band crowded on stage, roughly the size of two dumpsters, with a base, guitar, mandolin, fiddle, penny whistle and drum set. The set kicked off with Flogging Molly’s anthem Drunken Lullabies and the bar manager stepped in as impromptu security as fans flocked the stage.

A band that melds punk and Irish music seems out of place in the Yellowknife snow globe but when the band formed in the summer of 2009 Yellowknifers got a taste of something they liked.

“We liked taking the Irish songs we loved and making them more punk,” says manolin player, Andrew Silke. “Some of us are really into punk, others are metalheads, we all love Irish music, so we all bring a different sound to Flaherty’s Wake.”

Halfway through a cover of Against Me’s Pints of Guinness Plotner dove into the crowd.
“Everyone in the crowd was singing so loud that it drowned out everything. I was in the crowd, surrounded by good friends and tons of others and everyone just kept singing. They were so into it. That’s what it’s all about,” lead vocalist Aaron Plotner explains.

When their set finished Flaherty’s Wake stepped down from The Raven’s stage. They cut through the crowd and retreated to the green room for a pint before rejoining the madness. Behind them a sea of roaring fans were left in their wake until next time.


Megan Cooper, Aaron Plotner, Kels Magill, Marc Christensen, Erik Chan, Roger Nendsa, Jared MacNeil
In downtown Yellowknife is a gutted out two-storey building that serves as the groups jam space. It was last a skuzzy bar and flames in the shape of female silhouettes still adorn the walls.

Downstairs is a maze of couches owned by a furniture store across the street. Upstairs amps and speakers sit on top of pool tables and the bar is used for Flaherty’s Wake’s own beer stash. It’s a fitting jam space for a band that formed after several Guinness soaked conversations.

Their performances are mostly covers of bands like Flogging Molly, The Dropkick Murphy’s and The Mahones but Flaherty’s Wake is also working on original material. Their first original Devil In Her Eye can be listened to on their Facebook page.
Their next scheduled show is a St. Patrick’s Day show tomorrow at The Top Knight in Yellowknife. The show starts at 9:00 but you’ll want to show up a few hours early with your dancing shoes and an appetite for green foam Guinness.

this is the first day of my life

I haven't listened to Bright Eyes in quite a while but once I clicked play I instantly missed them. I could go on and on about how special the music is to me, but just click below and see for yourself.

skinny love

Musical crush of the moment: Bon Iver
Below is the video for Skinny Love - check out Blood Bank too!



Come on skinny love just last the year
Pour a little salt we were never here
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Staring at the sink of blood and crushed veneer

I tell my love to wreck it all
Cut out all the ropes and let me fall
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Right in the moment this order's tall

I told you to be patient
I told you to be fine
I told you to be balanced
I told you to be kind
In the morning I'll be with you
But it will be a different "kind"
I'll be holding all the tickets
And you'll be owning all the fines

Come on skinny love what happened here
Suckle on the hope in lite brassiere
My, my, my, my, my, my, my, my
Sullen load is full; so slow on the split

I told you to be patient
I told you to be fine
I told you to be balanced
I told you to be kind
Now all your love is wasted?
Then who the hell was I?
Now I'm breaking at the britches
And at the end of all your lines

Who will love you?
Who will fight?
Who will fall far behind?

stud

the breakup dress

The beautiful Dolce & Gabbana Spring 2011 dresses remind me of Grady McNeil, a character in Truman Capote's "Summer Crossing" who exudes effortless confidence and ease. The dresses are stunning and soft and bound to make heads turn. Best of all, they keep the drama in the dress. If I were facing down a break up, these are the types of dresses that would make me feel cool, calm and confident.

Play:


Read:


Wear:


When I get to Warwick Avenue
Meet me by the entrance of the tube
We can talk things over a little time
Promise me you wont step out of line



When I get to Warwick Avenue
Please drop the past and be true
Don't think we're okay just because I'm here
You hurt me bad but I won't shed a tear



I'm leaving you for the last time baby
You think you're loving but you don't love me
I've been confused out of my mind lately
You think you're loving but I want to be free
Baby you've hurt me



When I get to Warwick Avenue
We'll spend an hour but no more than two
Our only chance to speak once more
I showed you the answers, now here's the door...

Pour votre plaisir...

Unfortunately my French hits a wall after bonjour/ca va?/arrivederci... and1/3 of that is Italian. BUT I do love French music. This may be because a sad majority of music to come out of North America have lyrics that are:

a) as deep as Charlie Sheen
b) so cliche you can finish the line before the singer does
c) dirty/derogatory/dumbfounding
d) all of the above

Not being able to understand what is being sung makes the song much more enjoyable. Check out the videos below of Coeur De Pirate's "Comme Des Enfants" - there's the original and the remix, both are wonderful!

The Best Folk Around...

Folk on the Rocks is an annual music fest in Yellowknife and absolutely the highlight of my summers. This year their 30th anniversary was no exception. My musical crushes, the indie rock group from Calgary, Alberta, THE DUDES came to serenade half-cut Yellowknifers at the folk fest. The guys were even cool enough to take a photo with me and another yk fan.

Below are some photos my talented friend Aryn took of the band. Enjoy!













Also make sure you check out: Mr. Someone Else, Girl Police & Mendoza Line (Whoa Caroline)

A Song to Break the Heart

One of the best things about having friends with good taste is they share their music with you! (Thanks EC). Here's Mumford and Sons - Unfinished business (a White Lies cover). The quality isn't amazing but you'll love the song anyway.