Farewell, Galileo. Vaporizing over Jupiter is almost as good as a Viking funeral.

Elvis Costello talks about Diana Krall, being in love and North.

Ween play the Kool Haus in Toronto November 3. Curiously, their Quebec tour doesn’t have a Quebec date. All together now… “Where’d the mothafuckin’ cheese go?” “I dunno!” All right.

Pitchfork’s love affair with Toronto bands continues – this time, The Deadly Snakes get some P-Fork lovin’.

I’ve realized why Rachel Goswell’s vocals aren’t so prominent on the new Mojave 3 album – Neil Halstead has perfected his falsetto to the point that their voices sound pretty much identical when he’s in that range. And while I’m hardly an unbiased judge of M3, Spoon And Rafter is lovely. Much of it is slower than the last two albums, more in line with Ask Me Tomorrow, but lusher in sound and more expansive in arrangement. I am waiting anxiously for a North American tour (Rachel reports a full tour in the works for Februrary 2004) – you would never guess, but they are one of the best live bands I’ve ever seen.

np- Mojave 3 / Spoon And Rafter

The fundraising party for Shameless Magazine went really well, I think, and was a lot of fun. If you don’t feel like clicking the link, the Shameless manifesto is as follows:

“Shameless is for young women who want more than the hair and makeup tips shovelled out by typical teen mags. Shameless is for girls who are drastically underrepresented in the mainstream media: freethinkers, queer youth, young women of colour, punk rockers, feminists, intellectuals and activists. Shameless tackles social issues, politics and independent arts with wit and wisdom.”

It’s a good idea and has some really good people behind it. They’re hoping to publish the first issue in or around Februrary 2004.

The party itself featured music from locals The Sick Lipstick, an abraisive-sounding no-wave band that got the crowd up and dancing, The Creeping Nobodies, who likely have more than a few Sonic Youth records between them and Pomegranate Squad, who can lay claim to the title of “finest all-girl Klezmer band in Canada”.

It was good to get out and hang out with some friends I hadn’t seen in a while, meet some new people and have a good night out for a good cause. And I was able to offer a belated Happy Birthday to Kate, since I forgot on Thursday because I’m an idiot.

And yes, I was dancing. I fail to see why that’s so newsworthy.

np – Steve Earle / Ain’t Ever Satisfied – The Steve Earle Collection

Busy busy day. Went to Long & McQuade’s Big Basement sale this morning, as not going to a sale at a music store is not something I think I’m physically capable of. There was nothing interesting there, as expected, and I got some strings. Excitement.

Then went to see Lost In Translation. I really enjoyed it – both Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson are wonderful. Murray’s career renaissance continues, as he continues to expand on the “sad, worn out man” role he began in Rushmore, but with even more depth and character. As the young wife feeling lost in life and Tokyo, Johansson proves she’s one of the best young actresses around today. It was also more laugh-out-loud funny than I expected. Bill Murray’s talents as a physical comedian are used to great effect. If I have any reservations, it’s in how the Japan around them is portrayed. While I understand it’s important to show how alien their environments are to them, I had to wonder if it toed the line or even crossed it into mockery once in a while. Still, a very good movie and worth seeing.

Then I hung around with Kyle and Sarah for a while, grabbed some dinner. Got a copy of the new Mojave 3 album three days early from a source who shall remain nameless.

Tonight I’m going to the release party for Shameless magazine, of which Brad’s wife is publisher. I also somehow know a number of other people going, so it should be a good time and for a good cause.

np – Mojave 3 / Spoon And Rafter

I may have complained about the relative tameness of the storm formerly known as Isabel when it rolled through Toronto but I take that back a bit, having seen some of the damage that was wrought. A house in front of the subway station exit had half a very large tree crash down into the front of it, taking down some power lines and smothering a car and the front door beneath it. Pretty dramatic. I saw some other felled trees on the way home, but nothing on that scale. Yes, some damage was done. Looks like it’s blown through and it’s just a matter of drying up now.

The Belle & Sebastian rock’n’roll machine lays waste to Massey Hall on November 8. This will be good – a proper venue for a band that really needs good acoustics. And seats! This will be an expensive one, though. Mark my words. Go on, mark them. Oh shit, that’s the same night as I was going to go to Weakerthans. Hmm…. think think think. And in related B&S news, former cellist and pouter Isobel Campbell will release her third solo album (but first under her own name) Amorino on October 7. Details here.

Wheat come back to Toronto for the first time in over three years opening for Liz Phair at the Guvernment, November 15. Tickets on sale October 9. Per Second Per Second Per Second Every Second will be out October 28, if it doesn’t get pushed back again. Reviews of Liz’s shows in promotion of Liz Phair have not been glowing, but I really want to see Wheat. I will keep my fingers crossed that it’s a) not too expensive and b) not awful.

Best 404 Not Found page ever.

Got the “Expanded and Remastered” Rhino edition of Uncle Tupelo’s Anodyne. On initial listen, I don’t really hear the remastering, but the bonus tracks and expansive liner notes are worth the price of admission. It’ll be with a slightly heavy heart that I sell off my old copy of Anodyne (and inevitably the Rockville albums), they’ve served me well for the past seven years.

np – Uncle Tupelo / Anodyne

…Just doesn’t have the same ring, does it? Isabel has turned out to be less of a chain-smoking, fishnet-wearing, crab-infested dirty hoor than a drab librarian-type with mismatched socks, a slouch and questionable personal hygiene.

I have no idea what I meant by that.

Belle & Sebastian will be releasing a new single to follow-up their fifth proper album, Dear Catastrophe Waitress, out on the 7th of October. They are breaking from form, however, but using an album track as the lead song for the single. One of the best things about B&S was their penchant for releasing EPs of all-new material, often containing some of their best material. I understand the need to have a charting single to promote album sales, but I am still a little disappointed. Thank you, Rough Trade. The Step Into My Office, Baby single should be out on November 4.

Ever wonder what batch of fifth-graders though of Radiohead? An interesting experiment involving 10-year olds, Thom Yorke, pencil and paper. Some fascinating results. From Donewaiting.

Monty Python & The Holy Grail – The Musical? I dunno, sounds dodgy… but if Mike Nichols and Eric Idle are involved, it could have merit. I dunno.

Lead guitarists rank 38 on Nerve.com’s Unsexy List. Well shit. Uh, I don’t think of myself as a lead guitarist so much as a guitarist who plays a lot of, uh, single-note melodic rhythm… yeah… Fuck it. Like I need a list to articulate my ineffable unsexiness.

np – Jay Farrar / Terroir Blues