chumptastic dot org

since i’ve moved to toronto, i’ve done the following:

1. started a new job

• it can be summarized by stating that the group i work for handles any and all computer questions from any administrative person at the university. there is a lot of hand holding, and it’s 99% onsite. probably not the most sustainable business model…

2. travelled back to kingston twice, to peterborough once, and to trenton once

• yes, that’s a lot of travelling for a time span under two weeks.
• thankfully, i’ve officially finished moving, and have even unpacked some stuff….

3. saw joel plaskett in fine form

• joel plaskett loves hugh’s room, and now, so do i. it’s tough to beat a nice dinner followed by a few hours of good music.
• he played a 2+ acoustic hour set that included LOTS of old and new…plus 2 encores totalling 6 songs? maybe more…
  
• pete elkas opened and he’s spiced up his normal set with some new songs and new arrangements, most notably with pedals. loops are good.

• matt barber also played a short opening set. nothing too special. pleasant, but forgettable. he’s much better with the union dues, in my opinion.
• i can’t imagine a better start to my new life in toronto.

4. saw amy millan + jon rae and the river + the most serene republic

• i like any show at which i’m standing next to gentleman reg and kevin drew from broken social scene.
• the most serene republic definitely have some good songs, and i’d like to see them again sometime. their stage presence, however, needs work. for example: the keyboardist’s “rocking out” consisted of head bobbing with his tongue sticking out. awkward, but they were good.
• jon rae lulled me to near sleep. yawn.
• amy millan finished the job with a very mellow alt.country set. she told us up front that she intended to put us to bed, and she wasn’t kidding. the songs weren’t bad, but i think i’d have appreciated them more if i wasn’t ready to keel over.

5. saw enron: the smartest guys in the room. if you like documentaries, this one’s a good one.

and likely lots more. who can remember past yesterday though, really?

upcoming: decemberists this weekend, spoon in early june, broken social scene + stars + metric + others at bluesfest in ottawa and the wolf island music fest with the constantines + apostle of hustle + cuff the duke in kingston. fantastic.