Rilo Kiley may have left Saddle Creek to release More Adventurous (out next Tuesday) on their own Brute/Beaute label, but they still seem to like partying with the Nebraskans. Joining them on their Fall tour will be former labelmates Now It’s Overhead (featuring Maria and Orenda from Azure Ray) and tap-dancing Tilly & The Wall. The October 2 Toronto date still hasn’t been confirmed, but I’d imagine they’ll be playing Lee’s Palace. Apparently the last time they played Canada it was to a whopping 5 people… That apocryphal factoid was taken from the preface of this interview with Jenny Lewis, and isn’t a direct quote. I don’t know what they’re talking about, their last time in T.O. was Fall 2002 at Lee’s Palace opening for Idaho, and while I wasn’t there I have to think that there was more than just the bar staff in attendance. (Photo by Wendy Lynch for Under The Radar)

Speaking of Saddle Creek, Bright Eyes will be releasing not one, but two new albums in January, one “traditional and folksy”, the other “more digital and poppy”. The incomporable Emmylou Harris does backing vocals on three tracks on the first album – now there’s a bizarre combination of voices. Anyway, both albums are intended for release on the same day next year. For the record, Bright Eyes are still on my shit list for cancelling their show in town last summer out of SARS fears, doing absolutely nothing to dispell Conor Oberst’s reputation as a scaredy cat. Hear that Conor? You’re on my shit list. Gonna cry? Gonna write a song about it?

The Morning News had a terrific round-table discussion about MP3 blogs with some of the top names in the game, including Sean from Said The Gramophone and Dave from Largehearted Boy, two of my daily reads. There’s a lot of good discussion about the value and influence mp3 blogs have to promote new music and each blogger’s personal aesthetic. There’s even a shout-out from Dave to your’s truly (thanks, Dave!). If nothing else, it reminded me why my site will never properly qualify as an mp3 blog – I’m lazy and they sound like a helluva lot of work. I have my hands full with daily posting and a weekly mp3.

The Online Film Critics Society has compiled their 100 Most Overlooked Films of the 1990s. I don’t know exactly what their definition of “overlooked” is – I see films that have amassed great critical acclaim and more than a few Oscar nominees on the list – but it’s probably just meant as a list of “films we like that weren’t blockbusters”. I’ve seen a mere twenty of these selections, perhaps I’ve found a new list for when I hit the video store without a clue of what to rent? Oh yeah, glad to see Truly, Madly, Deeply ranked so high up on the list – that’s been a long-time favourite of mine. Alan Rickman’s best role and he’s not even playing a villain! It’s what Ghost could have been if it didn’t suck so hard. If you haven’t seen it, do so. And if you’re making fun of me for liking a chick flick, fuck you.

The Bourne Supremacy was solid – not in the 70s Blaxploitation film hero/heroine sense, but in the ‘that was entertaining and did not have massive plot holes that offended my very being’ way. It’s much less character-driven than the first film and much more action-oriented. Matt Damon pretty much has one facial expression through the whole film, that of stony-faced determination, Julia Stiles cries like a little girl, Brian Cox is a bad guy and Franka Potente probably gets the easiest second-billing she’ll ever have. Much has been made of Paul Greengrass’ hyper-kinetic direction, with super-fast cuts through all the action sequences, and for the most part it works. The shaky-cam does get annoying at times but it’s not so overbearing as to be disruptive. Somehow your brain is able to process all the images being thrown at it and assemble a coherent idea of what is transpiring. That or I was just imagining the car chases out of Ronin instead.

David O Russell’s new film I (Heart) Huckabees will be playing at the TIFF in September. It will be gala premiere, so I would think it’s reasonable to assume that some of the cast will be in town for the festivities – Helloooo Naomi Watts. I’ve found my #1 choice for ticket selections.

So… the Olympics start on Friday, right? I like the Olympics. These sorts of sporting events are pretty much the only time you’ll find me being all “rah rah” patriotic, ever. Not face-painting foam-finger “rah rah”, but following sports and results for Canada that I usually have absolutely no interest in. “How did we do in table tennis?!?”

And finally, witness – Best. Ad. Ever. From TMFTML.

np – Paco / This Is Where We Live

Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.