I must ask one of those questions that seems really dumb but may possibly demonstrate the sort of rock insight that's characteristic of our special powers as Townspeople:

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That's weird, right?

(Video of this momentous event now available HERE!)

At Mr. Mod's request, Rock Town Hall's self-proclaimed Official Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics Correspondent, NorthVanCoveMan, is on the scene, bringing you the rocking news from north of the border an attempting to fashion it into a rock-related discussion..with yet to be determined results.

Yesterday I had some dumb luck. As many of you may be aware, and some of you may be avoiding completely, the 2010 Winter Olympics are happening in my fair city. I have made a point of pushing aside any misgivings or general grumpiness and really trying to get out and enjoy the whole thing. It has not been hard to do; the town is electric right now! And there's alcohol!

Tonight is the first night I have nothing on tap (literally and figuratively) but I will be back in the swing of things Wednesday and Thursday with a trip to see some speed skating and hockey. The corporate pavilions, such as the ones set up by Molson and Heineken (50-75,000 sq. foot beer palaces) are at least as much of a draw.

But back to yesterday. A friend from back east who is in town for the games called with an extra ticket to the men's moguls event up on Cypress Mountain. Turns out, the first Olympic event I have ever attended would be the one to break Canada's gold medal drought on home soil (We were shut out in Calgary '88 and Montreal '76). Anyway, It is a really big deal up here. A virtual unknown, a young man from Quebec named Alexandre Bilodeau, took the gold. He seems to have been ordered from Central Casting under "Modest and Respectful Canadian Hero." They gave him the gold tonight in front of a football stadium full of people. Twenty thousand more were singing "Oh, Canada" outside.

Now I'll be the first to admit I don't give a shit about moguls. And like most Canadians I didn't know Bilodeau from Bordeaux at the beginning of this past weekend. But being there in the moment makes me feel different about it, I am drawn in. I'm hooked on the feeling.

Has a charismatic person or unexpected electric moment ever gotten you out of your comfort zone? Find yourself listening to reggae or jazz when you hate reggae and jazz? Who in music came out of nowhere and rocked your world and had you listening to stuff you normally wouldn't?

Who is your Rock and Roll Bilodeau?

To Townsman Northvan and other Townspeople north of the border, we wish you a happy Canada Day! Americans have long had a hard time figuring out who's Canadian in the entertainment world and other walks of life. Along these lines, I'd like to know the answer to the following question: Who is the most Canadian of Canadian rock 'n rollers?

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Never heard of Nardwuar the Human Serviette? Then you haven't been near Vancouver, BC in a long time. I first met Nardwuar in the early 1990s, when he had a radio show Friday afternoons on the local college station. Since then he has become, against all odds, a beloved figure in certain circles; his popularity has steadily risen in Canada for almost 20 years here.

As I mentioned Nardwuar (real name John Ruskin) has made a name for himself as a celebrity interviewer of sorts. He has interviewed Alice Cooper, Beck, Snoop Dog, Sonic Youth, Henry Rollins, Jello Biafra, and Franz Ferdinand, amongst others. His non-music interviews include former Canadian PMs Paul Martin and John Chretien. He once asked faith healer Ernest Angley if there was a cure for the Summertime Blues. Another time, he asked Mikhail Gorbachev which world leader had the biggest pants. A media person once commented that his interviews are fascinating because he is the only interviewer he had met who honestly doesn't care about what his celebrity subjects think about him.

There is probably going to be something about Nardwuar that annoys you. It may be his voice, his clothing or his band, The Evaporators. Like me though, I think you will come to appreciate Nardwuar. His love of music is matched only by his encyclopedic (get ready for some bizarre facts) knowledge of it. Nardwaur has been treated poorly by many of his subjects, but others, such as Snoop Dog, Thurston Moore, Jello Biafra, and Pharrell have really warmed to him.

In 1999 Nardwuar was hospitalized with a brain hemorrhage and the outpour of goodwill towards him was unbelievable. Even David Lee Roth sent a "get well soon" note. Nardwuar got well, dropped a bunch of weight, and continued on. As he enters his 40s he has become something of a squeaky, tartaned, pop culture fanatic national treasure.

Do doot a loot doot! (You'll understand after the first interview.)

Having crossed Canada several times and lived in half our provinces, I can tell the mostly American patrons of Rock Town Hall one thing for sure about rock and roll in Canada. While Ottawa may be our capital, we have a hands-down, undisputed capital of rock and roll: Winnipeg.

In Winnipeg you either play hockey, play in a band, or both. Neil Young grew up there, The Guess Who (also known in Canada as "The Prairie Beatles") were all from The Peg, and more recent artists like Chantal Kreviazuk, Remy Shand, and Bif Naked all picked up and instrument and headed to the basement on cold winter nights.

Whatever you think of Winnipeg, and the reports are not all good, Peggers are extremely proud of their hometown and their is a bit of an island mentality to the place. The best way to illustrate this phenomenon, and the point of this post, is a movie called The Phantom of the Paradise.

The Phantom of the Paradise is a 1974 "comedy-horror-musical tragedy" from a young director named Brian de Palma. The movie is generally regarded (when it is regarded at all) as a precursor to The Rocky Horror Picture Show. The movie flopped across the world and even in the rest of Canada. In Vancouver, Edmonton, and Calgary the film lasted a week and never returned. In Winnipeg, well...

Phantom is the biggest movie ever in Winnipeg. I first learned of this after three rocker friends of mine of a certain age referenced the movie constantly, as though it were The Godfather or Star Wars. They did not know that us non-Winnipegers did not know what the H-E-double hockey sticks they were talking about. I was sat down and forced to watch it. Better than I imagined, with a great soundtrack by Paul Williams. Of course, I didn't like it enough to put on a massive party called "Phantompalooza," like they do in Winnipeg every year. Oh yeah, pretty much the whole cast, including Paul Williams, attends this event. In case you're wondering, this is not "hipper than though" digging on this movie; this is genuine love from people who were 8 to 12 years old when the movie hit.

I wonder, could this phenomenon happen in today's Internet world? Probably not. Did it happen with another movie or record in your town? I am interested to hear...

In recognition of the opening of the major motion picture The Day the Earth Stood Still, a special guest, Klaatu, has entered the Halls of Rock to pose 5 questions for earthlings. These questions can only be answered after listening to the following songs.

Klaatu, "Calling Occupants (of Interplanetary Life)"

Question 1: If this was supposed to be The Beatles, who was supposed to have been singing lead, an infant Carl Newman?

Klaatu, "California Jam"

Question 2: If "California Jam" had appeared on any of those post-Brian Wilson breakdown albums that the brave pop fans among you can stomach, would it have been considered a "triumph of the post-Pet Sounds era?"

Klaatu, "Anus of Uranus"

Question 3: Is the above song's title worthy of the world-renowned standards of "Canadian humor?"

Klaatu, "Sub-Rosa Subway"

Question 4: For you, does the sound of the bass at the beginning of "Sub-Rosa Subway" nearly single-handedly justify the entire song's existence?

Klaatu, "Sir Bodsworth Rugglesby III">

Question 5: If you were casting the major motion picture version of Klaatu's 3:47 EST album on behalf of Robert Stigwood - and death was not a factor - who would you cast in the role of Sir Bodsworth Rugglesby III (remember, appropriate singing ability should be considered)?

On behalf of Klaatu, thank you, earthlings.

Hello, Newman

Although Carl Newman's musical career has taken off since the formation of The New Pornographers, the band/collective he co-leads with Dan Bejar, Newman's work with his lesser-known previous band, Zumpano, is a mine of semi-precious gems worth seeking out. Here's the opening song from their first album, Look What the Rookie Did. Those of you who still wait for that "difficult" leader of The Left Banke to make a comeback should pay particular attention. Inordinate fans of Jimmy Webb, whose song Zumpano covered, should also sit up by the old Victrola and perk up those ears.

Zumpano, "Rosecrans Boulevard"

Here's another one from the debut that better points to what Newman would excel at a few years later, with the lucious and more dynamic Neko Case taking occasional turns at the mic.

Zumpano, "The Party Rages On"

Beginning to ring a bell or two?

Newman is the other redhead in the above video, a handsome redhead at that, but lacking in Ann-Margaret-like, All-American animal magnetism, wouldn't you say?

I've got most of The New Pornographers' albums, and each one has a couple of strong songs, including songs sung by Newman and the Bowie-esque Art Rock trimmings provided by Bejar. (Bejar's own albums, by the way, leading his band Destroyer, have their moments.) His However, the band rarely kicks it out with either of those two at the mic, and Newman's tempered approach often gets lost in a sea of ELO-isms.

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Did you know that as of this March, a group in Japan was awarded as the current record holders of the World's Longest Concert? Beating out Canada (who held it since 2002) in the Guinness Book (to my own chagrin). On Thursday night, when The Fiery Furnaces played, the audience was put to the test for almost an hour and 45 minutes of original concert material. For an indie band, that's kiiind of a long set - especially when you're not expecting it.

Sparks; in a pensive mood. I would expect a long set from Sparks.

With no breaks between songs when your band sounds more like a melodic Trenchmouth or Red Red Meat fronted by a not less interesting Patti Smith or PJ Harvey, it can test your fortitude and rock n' roll strength to stay interested - and I like to think that I've got a pretty good attention span. Double drummers, and lots of on stage action almost trick you into believing that the momentum and excitement could keep up with itself, but all that just falls to the background once it goes way past the hour mark - even the encore is mixed in with the regular set to "save us" from waiting for them to come back out on stage (we are told).

Is it possible that the band may have exceeded even their own expectations in length? Is it simply a practice in showing us who's The Boss? After seeing Yo La Tengo's live show again earlier this year (not having seen them since the mid-90s), I was lamenting to a friend that I really liked most of the band's set, but that the actual length of the show went on forever! He completely understood, having seen Yo La Tengo many times himself in recent years, what I was getting at:

Should experimentation take the live stage or go back to the garage?

Related article:

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"If The Bicycles have a sound it includes happiness, a little weirdness, catchy melodies, lots of harmonies, lots of parts, very short songs, and a kind of upbeat sloppiness." (Dana Snell, Drummer for The Bicycles)

I first started hearing about the fun, quirky, and talented The Bicycles of Toronto, Ontario via my musical friend Dan Bryk who was working on a few different tracks they had recorded with him in North Carolina for their current album, maybe now well over 3 years ago. Apparently there have been a lot of big changes for the group since then, including adding new members, going out on tour with UK artist The Boy Least Likely To... among other highlights, such as making a video, working on a tribute album with Andy Kim, various side-projects and so much more...and I was so confused by the email announcement from my friend Maria's label (Fuzzy Logic Recordings, based out of Toronto as well) for their recent release The Good, The Bad & The Cuddly that I actually thought that this was their first, second album! If that's even possible!

Photo: Beth Hamill (rockpaperpixels.com)

Let me just say that it's been a long time coming for this adventuresome group of B-B-Bicycles! I sent off some quick questions to Maria, and soon their talented drummer, Dana Snell, was able to answer the call and pop in for a short bit of interview Q&A...

First of all, I have to ask: who is the talented naked man dancing in the new Bicycles video?

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