How It Went Down - August 3rd and 10th

Busy times in TGIFR land. So busy that I'm just now catching up on playlists. August 3rd featured an interview by phone with Katie Cooper of Australian band An Horse (who came to town with Cursive and Brand New) where we talked coffee and baseball caps. Former Winnipegger Linda Holeman was back in town to launch her lastest historical novel, The Lost Souls Of Angelkov and we sat down for a lengthy interview, and Bobby Desjarlais of The Bokononists came in for an awesome live session that saw him playing a whole bunch of brand new songs (written within days of his performance!).

Here's what was played:

Set One: 6:30 PM - 7 PM

Lyrical Militant - "Humanity's Tragedy (feat. Flo & Silly Willy)" [Independent]
Aesop Rock - "Fryerstarter" [Def Jux / World's Fair]
Interview with Katie Cooper of An Horse
An Horse - "Leave Me" [Mom + Pop]
Leah Hunter - "Lilac" [Independent]


Set Two: 7 PM - 7:30 PM

Interview with Linda Holeman

Set Three: 7:30 PM - 8 PM

Elk - "Before The Sun" [Indoor Shoes]
Pop Crimes - "City Head" [Independent]
Bobby Desjarlais - "I'm In" [Live at UMFM]
Bobby Desjarlais - "Mile Away" [Live at UMFM]
Bobby Desjarlais - "Failed To Paint A Door" [Live at UMFM]
Bobby Desjarlais - "Simply Not Good Enough" [Live at UMFM]
Bobby Desjarlais - "Pretending" [Live at UMFM]
Ondatropica - "Gaita Tropica" [Soundway]

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Last Friday the focus was on festivals as I spoke to the organizers of the resurrected Rainbow Trout Music Festival and the Lockport Dam Family Festival. RTMF runs this weekend so there's still time to get your tickets but you missed the boat at Lockport if you didn't catch the show when it aired on Friday.

Here's what was played:

Set One: 6:30 PM - 7 PM

Prince Rama - "So Destroyed" [Paw Tracks]
Dum Dum Girls - "Lord Knows" [Sub Pop]
Interview with Ben Jones of Rainbow Trout Music Festival
The Bokononists - "How Come Your Eyes Are So Big?" [Live at UMFM]
Tame Impala - "Apocalypse Dream" [Modular]

Set Two: 7 PM - 7:30 PM

Alexander Tucker - "The Glass Axe" [Thrill Jockey]
David Daniell and Douglas McCombs - "Rialto" [Thrill Jockey]
Balmorhea - "Pyrakantha" [Western Vinyl]
d'eon - "#109" [Arbutus]
Icebreaker with BJ Cole - "Always Returning" [Cantaloupe Music]

Set Three: 7:30 PM - 8 PM

New Hands - "Tulips" [Independent]
The Luyas - "Fifty Fifty" [Paper Bag Records]
Interview with Lockport Dam Family Festival organizers
Sol James - "What You're Gonna Do" [Live at UMFM]
The Wilderness of Manitoba - "Morning Sun" [Killbeat]
Alice Russell - "Heartbreaker (Live)" [Unreleased]

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This coming Friday (August 17th), I'll be talking to the organizers of another summer festival, and celebrating my birthday the next day with some of my favourite new tunes.

Brace yourselves, tomorrow's a marathon...

Well tomorrow's show is chock-a-block with talk and some music crammed into every nook-and-cranny. I rarely do this because it makes my ninety minutes a juggling act, but due to a jam-packed calendar of events in and around Winnipeg in the next week there are 5 (yup, 5) interviews on the show tonight. Justin Olynyk - host of Play It Again on UMFM - joins me for the second straight week to discuss the Winnipeg Fringe Festival. The man has been holed up in various venues for several days watching and reviewing fringe plays and he'll be giving me the rundown on the best and the rest of the fest.

Earlier this week I had Saint Kris in to do a live session and interview (co-interviewed by Roger Kimbeni of the great new show The College Draft). Kris dropped a brand new song and talked about where he's headed musically after the B.Y.O.B. mixtape. Kris will be opening for The Happy Unfortunate's July Never Dies CD release show at the Urban Forest this Friday.

Speaking of The Happy Unfortunate, I spoke with one half of the hip-hop duo by phone amidst his busy schedule getting ready for the release show. Malcolm-Jamal Wilson talked about the more balanced split of production and lyric-writing that he and his partner Envoy (Daniel Caneda) managed on this new record. After playing their release show, The Happy Unfortunate will be helping to kick off Islendingadagurinn in Gimli on August long - and on that note, we have our annual talk with Robbie Rousseau about Icelandic Fest and all the free entertainment on the docket [** full disclosure: I'm responsible for programming the Friday night at the pier "Islendingarock" for the first time this year. Little House, The Happy Unfortunate and Cannon Bros. will all be playing that night].

My final interview is with BBQ legend Ted Reader - seriously the dude has BBQ sauces with his name and face on them, that makes him a legend in my book. Ted's coming to town next week (July 31st and August 1st) to promote his new cookbook, Beerlicious Vol. 1 which is all about combining beer and BBQing - who can't get behind that? The cookbook is great and includes lots of recipes involving microbrews and even a few things you can find at the MLCC on the regular. I'll be doing a giveaway on air so definitely keep your dialing fingers primed to call in to win.

How It Went Down - July 13, 2012

This was a particularly talk-heavy show after a few weeks concentrating on new music that has crossed my plate. Gabriel Akinminrade dropped by to talk about his latest release under the Box Of Wolves moniker, Illusions. Had hoped he'd do a live session as well, but his MPC has been acting up so he'll have to come back to do that! After playing the Tall Black Guy remix of her track "Hieroglyphics" I connected with Maylee Todd on Twitter and we set up a phoner to talk about all the remixes that have been done to material from her debut record, Choose Your Own Adventure, and what she's working on as a follow-up. And finally, I spoke to Fresh Kils by phone from Halifax where he was about to play a Deltron 3030 afterparty before hitting the road to join Relic and Birdapres on the Extra Miles tour, which landed in Winnipeg at the LO Pub on Tuesday, July 17th.

 Here's what was played:  

Set One: 6:30 PM - 7 PM

Drums and Wires - "Stop For A Drink" [Independent]
SonReal - "Sweet (dub)" [1812 Recordings]
Interview with Fresh Kils
The Extremities - "Dial Tones (feat. Lushlife, Ghettosocks and Ambition)" [Kil Zone]

Set Two: 7 PM - 7:30 PM

Interview with Gabriel Akinminrade
Box Of Wolves - "The Wake Up" [Independent]
Box Of Wolves - "Say It" [Independent]

Set Three: 7:30 PM - 8 PM

Dub Pistols - "West End Story (ft. Akala & Dan Bowskill)" [Sunday Best Recordings]
Maylee Todd - "Summer Sounds" [Do Right!]
Yopeckummah - "Love Affair" [Independent]

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This week (July 20th) is another busy one. I'll be talking to Joe Klymkiw about his documentary Hip Hop Eh, examining the history and current state of the Canadian hip-hop scene, Joshua Hyslop will be discussing nearly dying before creating Where The Mountain Meets The Valley, Chris from Hot Panda will be talking about the new record Go Outside and Justin Olynyk - host of Play It Again on UMFM - will be joining me by phone for the first of two live reports from the 25th annual Winnipeg Fringe Festival.

How It Went Down - July 6, 2012

Well, it's been ridiculously hot lately, and though my brain is somewhat fried, I've still been able to process a lot of great new music that has crossed my desk (thank you a/c at work...) and tonight's episode was chock-a-block with great stuff, including three new live tracks from A Waste Odyssey. The I'm Trying Records band is releasing the follow-up to We Are Mourning People in August and the album was recorded at UMFM's very own live studio so the group was no stranger to the set-up when they came in to record their live session with me this week. I also spoke to the band Fish & Bird by phone from Drumheller as they made their way across the west to get to Birds Hill Park in time for the Winnipeg Folk Festival.

Here's what was played:

Set One: 6:30 PM - 7 PM

Yeasayer - "Longevity" [Secretly Canadian]
Frank Ocean - "Pyramids" [Island/Def Jam]
Dirg Gerner - "My Queen" [Ho Tep]
Dirg Gerner - "Rubies & Diamonds (feat. Fatima)" [Ho Tep]
Yosi Horikawa - "Bubbles" [First Word Records]
Belleruche - "Wasted Time (Ross PTH mix)" [Tru Thoughts]

Set Two: 7 PM - 7:30 PM

Sidi Toure - "A Chacun Sa Chance (To Each His Own Luck)" [Thrill Jockey]
Fish & Bird - "Well Run Dry" [Independent]
Breagh MacKinnon - "Harbourtown" [Independent]
Calexico - "Para" [Anti-]
MV & EE - "Sweet Sure Gone" [Woodsist]


Set Three: 7:30 PM - 8 PM

Ancient VVisdom - "Necessary Evil" [Prosthetic Records]
Shotgun Dolls - "From The Roots" [Independent]
Gold Fields - "Treehouse" [Astralwerks]
Communist Daughter - "Heart Attack" [Grain Belt Records]
Grand Beach - "Joanna" [Independent]
A Waste Odyssey - "Grey Balloon" [Live at UMFM]
A Waste Odyssey - "Devil" [Live at UMFM]
A Waste Odyssey - "Weather Eye" [Live at UMFM]
Advance Base - "Goldfish In A Robin's Nest" [Orindal Records]
Two Wounded Birds - "My Lonesome" [Holiday Friends Recording Co.]

How It Went Down - June 29, 2012

Pretty quiet show compared to the last several weeks. No interviews, no live sessions, no sweat. Just a whole lot of music including a sneak preview of the new album July Never Dies from The Happy Unfortunate, some sweet beats from Detroit courtesy of Tall Black Guy, and a bunch of other great stuff.

Here's what was played:

Set One: 6:30 PM - 7 PM

The Happy Unfortunate - "Just A Minute" [Independent]
Tall Black Guy - "Drift Away To Where I Don't Care (The Al Jarrea Flip-Up) [Independent]
Gang Colours - "On Compton Bay" [Brownswood Recordings]
Cosmo Jarvis - "Love This" [The End]
Esthero - "Never Gonna Let You Go" [Unreleased]
Dojo Cuts feat. Roxie Ray - "Easy To Come Home" [Record Kicks]
Spherical - "My Baby" [Independent]

Set Two: 7 PM - 7:30 PM

Gt. Dane - "Your Welcome" [Independent]
Chris Forsyth - "Downs & Ups" [Northern Spy]
Evening Hymns - "Arrows" [Shuffling Feet Records]
Dirty Projectors - "About To Die" [Domino]
Fiona Apple - "Valentine" [Epic]
Louise Burns and the Moonshiners - "Lodger" [Light Organ Records]


Set Three: 7:30 PM - 8 PM

TV Girl - "I Wonder Who She's Kissing Now" [Independent]
Bruce Haack - "National Anthem To The Moon (Stepkids remix)" [Stones Throw]
Maylee Todd - "Hieroglyphics (Tall Black Guy remix)" [Unreleased]
Rich Kidd - "You Had To Be There" [Independent]
Disciples of Soul - "Together" [Now Again]
Muneshine - "There Is Only Today" [Droppin' Science]
Rich Kidd & Drake - "Easy 2 Please (feat. Richie Sosa)" [Independent]
John Smith - "Thirstday" [Urbnet]
Bruce Haack - "Stand Up Lazarus (Peanut Butter Wolf remix)" [Stones Throw]


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This week I'll have an interview with folk act Fish & Bird who are playing Winnipeg Folk Festival, and I'll be spotlighting some of my own 'must-see' picks of the fest including Sidi Toure.

How It Went Down - June 22, 2012

Another week, another busy show. I had a lengthy interview with educator/author Paul Keery about Canada At War, the graphic (as in graphic novel) history of Canada's role in World War II that has just been published by Douglas & McIntyre. A fantastic read and the artwork by Michael Wyatt is pretty stellar. Brian Dunn stopped by UMFM earlier in the week and did a live session and interview with me (the live session is HERE) - he'll be back in town playing Le Garage on June 30th. And I had food specialist/nutritionist Leslie DePodesta on to talk about Chex mix recipes as the fine folks at Chex gave us prize packs featuring their gluten-free products. I led things off with the debut airing of Box Of Wolves new single "Sunlight" - you can grab it HERE.

Here's what was played:

Set One: 6:30 PM - 7 PM

Box Of Wolves - "Sunlight" [Independent]
Dinosaurus Rex - "CNLVYBTTR" [Independent]
Silkken Laumann - "House Of Common Problems" [Independent]
Interview with Leslie DePodesta
Stars - "The Theory Of Relativity" [ATO Records]
Yeasayer - "Longevity" [Secretly Canadian]
Grizzly Bear - "Sleeping Ute" [Warp]

Set Two: 7 PM - 7:30 PM

Interview with Paul Keery

Set Three: 7:30 PM - 8 PM

Brian Dunn - "Crash" [Live at UMFM]
Brian Dunn - "Country" [Live at UMFM]
Brian Dunn - "Slow Learner" [Live at UMFM]
Interview with Brian Dunn
Brian Dunn - "Winnipeg" [Cosmic Dave's Record Factory]

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Still hammering out details for this week's show, but since Canada Day is right around the corner, I expect there'll be a lot of new music from our nation's citizens.

How It Went Down: June 8th and June 15th

Busy few weeks at UMFM with the 2012 TD Winnipeg International Jazz Festival kicking off last Thursday and a slew of other acts rolling through town (except for Russian Circles; thanks to you Emerson border-crossing). Several live sessions have been recorded with acts playing the opening weekend kickoff at Old Market Square, and just yesterday Toronto act the Heavyweights Brass Band stopped by for a blazing session that will get its debut on Sounds of Science tomorrow between 3:30-5:30pm. TGIFR has been particularly chock-full of guests as a result of this and so the past two episodes have featured interviews aplenty and some fantastic new music.

Here's the scoop:

June 8, 2012

Set One: 6:30 PM - 7 PM

Abdominal - "Pedal Pusher" [Do Right!]
Interview with MEC BikeFest organizers
Brasstronaut - "Falklands" [Unfamiliar Records]
Norrin Radd - "Will To Survive" [Lotus Audio]
School of Seven Bells - "The Night" [Ghostly/Vagrant]
Wintersleep - "Resuscitate" [EMI]

Set Two: 7 PM - 7:30 PM

Interview with Jeff Rubin about his latest book, The End of Growth


Set Three: 7:30 PM - 8 PM

Moonwood - "Invite Me To Stare Into The Darkness" [Arachnadiscs]
White Lung - "St. Dad" [Independent]
Interview with Flo
Flo - "Tell Me Why" [Independent]
Sonnymoon - "Flit, Fleet, Float" [Plug Research]

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June 15, 2012

Set One: 6:30 PM - 7 PM

Poolside - "Slow Down" [Echo Park]
Bry Webb - "Rivers Of Gold" [Idee Fixe]
Elizabeth Shepherd - "Lonely House" [Pinwheel Music]
Cassandra Wilson - "Almost Twelve" [E One]
Interview with Anna MacDonald, director of the documentary Fight For Freedom
Michael Rault - "The Things You Said" [Pirates Blend]

Set Two: 7 PM - 7:30 PM

Interview with Jon McKiel
Jon McKiel - "Iceman" [Youth Club Records]
Conveyor - "Short Hair" [Paper Garden Records]
Interview with Goose Hut
Goose Hut - "Bad Time" [Independent]

Set Three: 7:30 PM - 8 PM

Way Yes - "Singing" [Lefse Records]
Interview with Parlovr
Parlovr - "4000" [Dine Alone Records]
Teen Daze - "Late" [Lefse Records]
Conn-Shawnery - "Ain't No Way (feat. Wayne Tennant & blurum13)" [Independent]

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This week, I'll be talking to Paul Keery, educator and author of a graphic novel history of Canada's role in World War II called Canada At War (with illustrations by Michael Wyatt). It's a fantastic book that brings a piece of the country's past into the present.