Goddamn Bell Canada. As I’ve implied, I’ve been having telephone problems. There’s been static on the line for a few days now, and on Monday I came home to a dead line. It miraculously recovered later that evening and I called and made an appointment for a technician to come by and fix the static. That was to be last night. So I leave yesterday morning after reconnecting a couple jacks I had disconnected last year (long story) and all was well. I come home and my phone is again dead. Great. Good timing, I think, since I have an appointment with the technician scheduled for that evening anyway. The window given was 5pm-9pm, and since I only get off work at five, I nearly killed myself biking home to get back just before 5:15. No note indicating I’d missed the guy, so I figured I was good. Fast forward four hours and still no tech, no dial tone, and I’ve had to bail on any number of things I could have been doing. Me very unhappy. As soon as 9pm ticks by, I get my coat and hoof it down to a payphone at the subway station where I call Bell’s repair line and get a little snarky – justifiably so, I think. Turns out the repair person had come by in the morning and found no problem, and left me a message saying so. A message I would have gotten if, say it with me, MY PHONE WASN’T DEAD. And it doesn’t even address the point that the appointment was for him to check for problems in the wiring IN THE HOUSE, which isn’t something you can really discern from OUTSIDE THE HOUSE WHEN I’M NOT THERE. Fuck’s sake. It’s a damned lucky thing no one ever calls me… but if I’d wanted to order a pizza, there would have been Hell to pay. So now the Bell people are outside as I type, checking out my lines and getting me sorted out. Which is all well and good, but I was just about to leave for work and now I’m going to be late as I wait for them to finish up. Even when they help they don’t. Sheesh. I am going to look long and hard at switching to Sprint – does Candace Bergen still shill for them? I’ve always liked her. I’d trust her to advise me on my telephony needs.

Gret Kot’s upcoming book on Wilco has its own website. Learning How To Die hits shelves June 15, one week before A Ghost Is Born comes out. And in less happy news, the band has cancelled the first eight dates of their North American tour including their May 1 appearance at Coachella. They will be fulfilling their massive European tour commitments from the end of May through July, though.

Aimee Mann has finally run out of ways to re-package and re-sell Lost In Space and will be hiting the road this Summer and a new album this Fall in order to pay the rent.

4AD has the artwork and tracklisting for Rachel Goswell’s debut solo EP The Sleep Shelter, out May 10 in the UK.

Some concerts taking place in our fair town – The Wrens are coming back to the Horseshoe June 5, $10.50 advance, and The Dears are at Lee’s Palace May 7, tickets $15.00. Sadies/Blue Rodeo/Elevator psych-rock side-project The Unintended play the Horseshoe May 7.

The ‘Shoe will also host the Three Gut fourth anniversary parties May 28 and 29. The entire label roster will be making an appearance – Royal City, Gentleman Reg and Cuff The Duke play the first night, The Constantines, Oneida and Jim Guthrie the second. Tickets are $12 per night, on sale now. And as a sidenote, Royal City’s new one Little Heart’s Ease is out June 8.

Tom Verlaine is also coming to town, but it’s not with Television. He and Jimmy Ripp will play Music for Films at Innis Town Hall tomorrow, April 16, at 9:15. eye talks to Verlaine about the project here.

The joke is a little dated now, but William Shatner riffs on the old “I am Canadian” ads. From LHB.

The Exorcist in 30 seconds, re-enacted by bunnies. It is what it is. From Neil Gaiman(!).

np – The Shins / Oh, Inverted World

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