<< #81    |    #79 >> If you’ve been around this blog before, you’d know that I’ve written about the legendary synth pop band originally from Basildon, England many times over. So instead of treading and retreading over familiar ground, I’ll tell you a story*. (Mind you if you are looking for more words about the band and this song, have a gander at…

Artist: No Joy When: October 1st, 2025 Where: The 27 Club, Ottawa Context: No Joy is an act that I’ve been waiting to see for well over a decade. Indeed, I had planned to see them in 2015 when they were touring in support of their third album, “More faithful”, and they were hitting a now-defunct local spot that was even more intimate than Wednesday night’s venue*.

<< #17    |    #15 >> For a time back at the end of 2013, I found myself listening to nothing but Black Hearted Brother and their debut album, "Stars are our home". The album was released in October of that year and took me completely by surprise. At the time, I had pretty much given up on any new material from Mojave 3, and well, forget about Slowdive, and Halstead's solo work, while excellent, had never been mind-blowing.

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.) Artist: Operators Album Title: Blue wave Year released: 2016 Details: white The skinny: Here’s an album that hasn’t seen my turntable in some time.

<< #27   |   #25 >> On my old, long defunct blog Music Insanity, I remember writing a post about all those bands that I’ve respected and tried many times over the years to ‘get into’ but ultimately, failed. The list at that time included The Ramones, Skinny Puppy, Husker Du, Bon Iver, Destroyer, Broken Social Scene*, and of course, Sonic Youth.

(I got the idea for this series while sifting through the 'piles' of digital photos on my laptop. It occurred to me to share some of these great pics from some of my favourite concert sets from time to time. Until I get around to the next one, I invite you to peruse my ever-growing list of concerts page.)

<< #9    |    #7 >> We’re pretty sure it was Victoria’s idea. It sounds like something she might have come up with and has definitely had similar ideas a few times during our many years together. She surprised me one day early in 2004 by asking if I would be interested in seeing David Bowie in concert. Neither of us could tell you how she heard that he was coming to town on his latest tour and playing the arena out in Kanata that used to be called the Corel Centre, but perhaps she heard mention of it on the radio.

<< #35    |    #33 >> I’ve written a few words on these pages already about First Aid Kit, the indie folk duo of Swedish sisters, Johanna and Klara Söderberg. I got into them shortly after the release of their second album, 2012’s "The lion’s roar"*, loving their stripped back sound and vocal harmonies, reminiscent of the folk music my parents had me listening to in childhood.

<< #18    |    #16 >> Suede (aka The London Suede) is a band that I didn’t love upon first hearing. I thought their self-titled debut was just… ok. Nevertheless, I grew to appreciate them more with each new album and upon return listens and further reevaluation of their previous outputs. So by the time of their fifth album, 2002’s "A new morning", the album that would ultimately break up the glam rock, erstwhile Britpop outfit, I was a full-fledged fan.

<< #11    |    #9 >> I couldn’t imagine being in a band with my father, whether at 10 years old, 20, or any age really. But that’s the relationship between the two primary members of The Exbats, the band behind our song at number 10 from my list of favourite tunes from 2020. Originally called The Numbats, the band began over a decade ago when Kenny McLain, who had recently picked up the guitar, decided that his 10 year old daughter Inez needed to learn to play an instrument.

<< #10    |    #8 >> "Dear. Catastrophe. Waitress." Back when I first moved to Ottawa, I was employed at a call center taking calls for a utility company that I will not name here. It was unionized and pretty good pay and I was often able to pick up extra shifts to pay down my student debt. And if they hadn’t closed up shop in 2006, I might even still be working there today.

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.) Artist: Oasis Album Title: Time flies... 1994-2009 Year released: 2010 Year reissued: 2025 Details: 4 x LP, orange, green, pink, blue, 15th anniversary, RSD limited edition, 5363/15000…