The "Significance" of the Red Bull Races.

I'm not taking sides here - the workers or the City...but I can't help but comment on the first few lines in the Windsor Star this morning:

Mayor Eddie Francis thinks Windsorites don't quite realize precisely how big the upcoming Red Bull Air Race over the Detroit River will be.
"They're sold out on the American side, which is a great sign," Francis said Thursday. "And sales are also going well here. However, I don't think people in this community have an appreciation yet in terms of how significant these races are going to be."

I think some of us DO get how big this is/could be for Windsor.
I get it. I really, really get it.
The races go down at the end of this month. Which is in - oh - about two weeks time.
It's going to be very big for Windsor.
Tons of tourists flocking - perhaps many who will be getting their first taste of Canada.
Windsor.
Where you can't get a cab at the moment.
Where the grass is sky high and kids can't play in parks.
Where trash is piling up, rats and skunks and racoons are actually stepping out in broad daylight, chowing down on the garbage and bags of dog shit that people are piling up everywhere.

I'm ashamed of the dump we are making out of Windsor right now - and you can triple that sense of embarassment if this bullshit is still going on when the Red Bull races hit the sky.

I'm not going to take sides.
Well wait, that's not true.
I am going to take a side.
OUR WELL-BEING.

That includes everyone.
This city strike is going to end in a board room over fierce negotiations. It will.
One day - it will end.
Of course - this begs the question:

Why are we waiting?

I don't like to be rude - but frankly, I'm sick of sitting in the STINK and fruit-fly infested MESS that is slowly becoming my house because I can't get rid of my garbage.
If I take it to Tecumseh, I'm a scab. If I drop it off in a pile - illegally in some dumpster - I'm contributing to the rotten, trashy decay this city is becoming.
If I let it sit in my house to prove a point - how much we NEED city workers - I get maggots and fruit flies and a disgusting rotting stench.
Lovely, this time of year - and perfect for hosting parties!

How about this for a solution?

Get your asses in the god-forsaken negotiation room - scream and yell and fight and bitch and name call - then - when you get all that bullshit out of you and you take a day to breath it out and you get your security back and one of you or both of you have won the pissing contest: Solve this fucking problem.
Because it is a problem.
The city is rotting from the inside out.

Then - I read that we don't have an appreciation for how "big and significant" these races are??
Here's a news flash you might not find plastered across the front page of the Windsor Star:
We get it.
Trust me - we get it.

I also think we have a VERY strong grasp on how big and significant the piles of dumped, rotting garbage in all our over-grown, rat-infested parks are as well.
And how they play a ...shall we say "significant" role in this Red Bull event.
Because it better be cleaned up by the time the Red Bull races hit - or we're fucked more than ever.
Pardon my french.
But - I'd say - "Yes indeed - this is very 'significant'..."
Significant is an under-statement.

This is an emergency.

Not taking sides - except OUR OWN.
We all live in this city - and I might know shit-all about how to negotiate a contract - but I sure as hell know just sitting here - festering in our own filth like some disgusting self-fullfilling prophecy, hell-bent on self-destruction - is CERTAINLY not the way.

Trying to stay positive - but I'm sick of this.
Can't wait til the heat and humidity hit.

So yeah.
I think we "get it" - what this race means for Windsor.
The way things are now - it's pretty crystal clear EXACTLY what is going on here.

Take a deep whiff and smell that garbage.
Nice, eh?

Red Bull: It gives ya wings.

Show Review: Leonard Cohen - Live at the Fox Theatre Detroit - May 9, 2009

I wrote this for 939 the River...but figured I'd post it here too.


There's a reason he's a legend.
Now that's not to say I wasn't worried about this show.
Hear me out.
I have nothing but respect for Leonard Cohen as a writer and performer...but the circumstances of this tour, they were a little sketchy. Long story short: After returning from a hiatus from the music scene (he was a Buddhist monk for years!) he discovered his manager embezzled all his savings. Brutal. So - he agreed to do an international concert tour - so he could get his finances straightened out. His first major tour in 15 years. Think about the scenario: A man in his seventies, who really hasn't shown much interest in music for nearly a decade and a half, give or take (at least not on a very big scale) decides to take his show on the road to ride the cash cow.
I was bracing myself for a dinosaur act - or worse: Snippy remarks and a half-assed performance - I was worried it was going to be about money - and when money is the main focus, usually - the art suffers.
Not the case.
Something very special happened at the Fox when Cohen took the stage...
Well - when he RAN out on stage.
He joined his band and broke into Dance Me to the End of Love. Flawless. His band - there were about 9 or ten musicians - made it all look effortless.
It was mind-blowing - hearing the music just pour out and fill the room - the entire audience was dead silent, leaning forward - completely captivated and just given over to what was happening on stage.
The respect he showed not only to the audience - but to the theatre, the city, his musicians and the songs - it was awe-inspiring how humble and gracious he was.
His voice still sounds like sandpaper and whiskey, deep and booming and it filled the theatre - the sound tech seriously needs to be applauded here (even Cohen himself thanked the sound engineeer - not to mention the rest of the crew right down to the caterers on the tour) and Cohen's delivery and timing was bang on with the band.
His set was hit-heavy - The Future, Waiting for the Miracle, Ain't No Cure for Love, a beautiful rendition of Bird on a Wire which recieved a standing ovation, Hallelujah - a song I incorrectly thought Jeff Buckley could do better...but Leonard Cohen reclaimed it as his own at the Fox.
His back-up singers, the Webb sisters, harmonized perfectly and vocalist Sharon Robinson performed a solo version of Boogie Street which was a true show-stopper. In my opinion: She needs to work with Massive Attack.
He show-cased and continuously lauded his musicians throughout the night - introducing and re-introducing them several times.
It was a magical synergy. The respect they showed to Cohen was evident, but the respect was returned to them equally - almost as if he was thanking them for keeping the true spirit of the songs alive.
Without sounding stupid: This concert was soo good, it was borderline ridiculous.
Something about seeing so many talented musicians on stage, working together - making these flawless and beautiful sounds...the art of performance just shone last night at the Fox. It was truly something to see.
Who By Fire was given a long, Spanish-tinged mandolin intro and his delivery of Tower of Song was both ferocious and gentle...just him and the girls and a keyboard.
Simple and beautiful.
His between-song banter was hilarious and witty - and grounded. He didn't take the audience for granted.
He didn't demand our attention and respect...he earned it - even after all this time - he was first and foremost a performer.
He pushed himself - he delivered - hit after hit with such enthusiasm, there is no way I can believe this was just a "tour to make money".
I'm gushing now, but I have to continue:
The musicianship just glowed on that stage - and his three hour set (yes - he played for THREE HOURS) was absolutely perfect.
Not a single missed note. Not a single incorrect key.
Not a single mistake. Perfection.
Democracy, I'm Your Man, First We Take Manhatten, Everybody Knows and the beautiful If It Be Your Will - he made the songs just dance, he warmed the entire Fox Theatre - and whether or not he'll ever return to Detroit - he left his mark on everyone who was lucky enough to be a part of the audience.
Most importantly: He proved that at the spry old age of 74 - he is still very much in his prime.
Perhaps moreso now than ever before.
This is going to be a hard show to top...and I have a complete new depth of respect for this enigmatic performer.

Missed the show? Pick up the double disc "Leonard Cohen: Live in London" - very similiar to the glory he delivered at the Fox.

Metric - Fantasies

Super slick, super glossy - but it works. Wonderfully. I threw this album in my mp3 player about a week and a half ago and I've been hooked ever since. Like so many other Metric-enthusiasts - I was miraculously transformed into a fan the SECOND I first heard the chorus to 2003's ridiculously catchy Combat Baby. It's that crunchy, new wave-ish, decadent...bite...of... electro-something...
When I heard they had a new one - I was a wee bit nervous, I admit. Technically - since 2007's Grow Up and Blow Away was recorded 10 years ago, Fantasies is their first record in 4 years and they kind of had a lot to live up to, tons of critical acclaim, and some high-expectation, at least on this fan's part.
The long and short of it: I think they sound better than ever. The lead single - Help I'm Alive - instantly catchy. Sick Muse has crazy cool B-52's surf guitars and this...GIGANTIC chorus that's just as much Yeah Yeah Yeahs as it is No Doubt.
Pure pop - but it's shameless and so well executed - it's almost awe-inspiring. Twilight Galaxy has that same rich electronic heart beat we first fell in love with on Hustle Rose and On a Slow Night from Old World Underground Where Are You Now. The track Gimme Sympathy is a true high-point, building drums, electronic guitars and lyrics like "Who'd you rather be...the Beatles or the Rolling Stones?" - it makes me insanely excited to check them out live.
Front Row is raunchy and fuzzy with flawless Mazzy Star-esque vocals....it's like Hope Sandoval meets Garbage. Brilliant. Especially since neither Hope or Shirley Manson have released anything worth listening to in the last decade.
Eighties new wave influences are all over the place - but once again - it's the fusion of that...New Order-vibe with bubble-gum guitars that blows my mind...each song is like a gigantic stadium anthem - they all sound like they're screaming for confetti drops and the energy is sky high...but not once do they show any ego.
As far as slick, pop albums go - this is how it's done.
Welcome back, Metric!

PS - the final track: Stadium Love...almost too good to be true. Words can't describe so I won't even try. Just pick up the record.

Metric bring their brilliant, sonic bliss to Saint Andrew's Hall - June 15th.
Far too yummy to miss.

This Little Piggie.

I was in Shoppers Drug Mart this morning and saw they had a nice big box of medical masks - front and centre for the taking.
You know...because of Swine Flu.
*sigh*
I know it's serious...but...it's also sensationalized.
Personally, I'm sick of being afraid of things.
Imaginary things. Not to say the swine flu isn't real. It's very real.
But - anything can happen. Nothing is planned.
When that kid was murdered on that Greyhound bus - they beefed up security.
Headlines read: "Busses...they arent' safe anymore!"
Shit - NOTHING is safe if you look at life that way.
We are random little ants. Blind sheep. Little consuming piggies.
The present - today - right now - this second - it's never been done before.
it's never been tried.
I could be sitting in a restaurant and the guy at the next table could have a psychotic break, grab his steak knife - which is readily available - and stab me in the throat. I'd never see it coming.
So if that happened, what would that mean?
Plastic knives for us cattle at all restaurants from now on?
An anyeurism in my head could burst at any second. A piece of an airplane could fall on my house, through my roof and land on me right now, crushing me.
Shit - lightening could strike me dead! It hit just about 1 block away from my house two days ago!
But imagine living your life - terrified of that happening?
Petrified that any minute, someone is going to fly a plane into the big ole sky scraper that is your life?
Could it happen? Of course it could. Anything can happen - we have no control over it.
If I'm going to catch some disease - I'm going to catch some disease.
A piece of cotton isn't going to stop it from getting to me.
I'm not saying we shouldn't take precautions in things we do...but the mania on TV about this thing...it's getting me sick. We're supposed to be afraid. And I'm sick of being afraid.
We're alive - and if nothing else - our one and only job is to LIVE.
On the flip side - it's insanely delicious, reading all the conspiracy theories.
Endlessly entertaining.
You hear it's a cover up - to distract us from the economic crisis, or maybe to divert our attention from the recent public debate in the US over the torture allegations against the military during the Bush administration.
Speaking of Bush - some people say it's HIM - George W himself who personally saw to it that the swine flu goes viral, quite literally.
On the flip-side, others say it's Al Quaida, others still blame the Mexican drug cartels.
Some think it's the folks competing with the pork industry (beef and chicken, I assume?) to cause a stink against the consumption of pig meat.
Hell - I'm even responsible for it, according to the conspiracies.
Some say it could ONLY be the work of animal activists - that our evil, horrific, sick and twisted minds created this flu because we have just HAD IT with humans and the despicable treatment of pigs.
Well - you caught me.
Just kidding.
It's like being afraid of tap water - so we buy bottled water - which half the time - was nothing but tap water, in a plastic bottle.
Good on them, in a business sense - for being able to sell that to us.
Bad on us for buying into it.
But we do. Because when someone tells you the water coming out of your tap is poison - we believe it. It eclipses the fact that we are LITERALLY swimming in the middle of the freshest water supply in the ENTIRE WORLD - and we have one of the most ADVANCED water processing plants in North America.
But...it just takes a few headlines to tell us to buy bottled - and we do.
But I'm drifting. Swine flu.
Could be labour unions. Could be surgical mask producers. Could be drug companies - (did you know Rumsfeld is a HUGE share-holder in the drug that is supposedly the cure to swine flu?) - or...perhaps it's the pigs themselves - pissed off and deciding to finally fuck with us - payback for all those honey glazed hams and pork chops we've devoured over the years.
Probably none of the above.
People die from stuff every day. One day - something - be it a disease, an accident, a medical condition - it will take us out.
Why should we be frightened of dying, there's no reason for it, no one ever said this was forever, right?
That's the most basic lesson of life: It's temporary, at least as far as planet earth and human beings are concerned.
I don't see this as depressing...I think if anything, it's liberating.
It just reinforces EXACTLY how important EVERY single moment right now - this second - is.
What can we do to make sure we utilize the time properly - and "properly" is relative.
John Lennon had a pretty cool take on life...and right now - this second - this little piggie is gonna sign off with two bits of wisdom from Mister Lennon.
Here goes:

1) "Reality leaves a lot to the imagination."
and
2) “Time you enjoy wasting, is not wasted.”

Enjoy.

Dan