Weekend frenzy

Well, Regina is officially buzzing thanks to this weekend's release of Chinese Democracy, the album by Guns n' Roses frontman Axl Rose that now has a reputation as one of the best rock albums of the year, as well taking the longest time to make.

I got my hands on a copy of it on Thursday, and I've listened to it about five times. I wrote a review of it, which is to be published in Saturday's Leader-Post. The review will also be online at www.leaderpost.com.

I won't scoop myself here, but I will say that it's very, very good. As I posted on Thursday, it's available for online streaming on the band's Myspace page.

So I did some old fashioned investigative journalism and I learned the following.....

The CD is available on Sunday in Regina at BestBuy and HMV, but Zeus at Victoria Square Mall will be open at midnight to sell the thing to eager fans at 12:01 a.m. Sunday. The Wolf radio station is giving away copies of the CD to listeners today (Friday.)

I called over to HMV at the Cornwall Centre and they said they have about 600 copies ready for buyers, and while the nice fellow who answered the phone said he wasn't sure how much the CD would sell for, he expects it to be between $12-$15. It seems 600 copies are how many they have for a CD they expect to sell well. For instance, that's how many that arrived before Nickelback's Dark Horse went on sale earlier this month.

HMV and Best Buy were in a dispute in recent weeks over exclusivity, so it appears Best Buy isn't the only place you can buy it. Competition is (almost) always a good thing.

If you buy it from Best Buy, you get a pair of Guns 'n Roses coasters.

For fun, I called over the helpful people at XRay Records on 11th Avenue, and was told that the CD won't be sold by them (they're not open on Sundays anyway) but they will be selling the vinyl version. He was unsure as to when it would be available, but he was certain that it would get shipped to him in the coming weeks, and most certainly before Christmas, which I hear is a popular holiday celebrated here in the Queen City.

I think that just about covers it. Email me and tell me what you think of it.

A.M.

Guns are drawn

Well, the excitement over the release of Chinese Democracy by Guns and Roses and Axl Rose has hit a fever pitch. It should be in stores on Sunday, and hundreds of critics and insiders have heard it and have had their say. Seems that it's a very good record, but not without its issues. And it's impossible to live up to the hype created by an album a decade in the making.

Anyway, we got word that, beginning Sunday, the album will be available for live streaming at the band's Myspace page -- www.myspace.com/gunsnroses.

I may get a copy of it today (Thurs.) and if it surfaces, I'll make sure you have access to my review. It will likely be in Saturday's Leader-Post, and at leaderpost.com.

In the meantime, here are a few of reviews that I've read.....

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1818247,00.html


http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/24024297/review/24161281/chinese_democracy

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2008/10/chinese-democra.html

Let the weekend begin.....

Here's where to go to see music this weekend....

THURSDAY:
- David Clayton Thomas at Casino Regina Show Lounge.
- Radio For Help (pictured), guests - The Exchange

FRIDAY:
- The Herbaliser with Grand Analog at The Distrikt.
- The Art of Dying at The Drink.
- Orbital express, Vos, Nick Faye - The Club.
- Red Beard presents: Shade of Blue Showcase - The Exchange.
- Nick Faye Vos (CD Release Show) Orbital Express at The Club, 8 pm. $5.
Regina Jazz Society presents: Dan Sillijer at Le Bistro, 8:30 pm. $10 members/ $15 non-members/ students half-price.
- Two Hours Traffic with The Danks at O'Hanlons.
- Cadilac Rags at McNally's, 10 pm. $5.

SATURDAY:
- Cadilac Rags at McNally's, 10 pm. $5.
- The Bicycles, Andrew Ens - The Club
- RSO Mosaic Materworks Concert Series presents: Motzart, Mahler, Magic! - with guest artist Cécile Denis (Harp) and Marie-Noelle Berthelet (Flute) at the Conexus Arts Centre, 8 pm.

Christmas colours

How can you tell that Christmas is coming? Well, record companies are beginning to talk up their new releases, special CDs, concert DVDs and other "products" they hope will wind up in Christmas stockings all across the land. If you read my Monday post, you'll remember me talking about the new Rush Retrospective III. I'm not an expert, but we can all agree that the pre-Christmas timing of all of this sure is suspicious.

Anyway, I got an email today from the folks at Listen Harder (see below) that talks about a special issue of Dallas Green's Bring Me Your Love, which was released earlier this year to rave reviews. It's a really neat, moody record with some well-written songs. The Tragically Hip's Gord Downie appears as a guest.

Green has a high profile here in Regina - his Friday night after-hours show at the Regina Folk Festival a couple of years ago was a big hit. I remember interviewing him a couple of years back when we chatted about his other job as lead singer of Canadian punkers Alexisonfire. I liked that his enthusiasm for music and performing seemed really genuine. "I get to get up on stage, scream and jump around like an idiot. What better way to learn a living is that?" he told me before a Buffalo Days show a couple of years back.

Anyway, here are the details about the new release.... Sounds like it's a little much for your average fan, so maybe the original version might make a better gift.


Platinum-selling City and Colour is set to release a limited edition version of the sophomore album "Bring Me Your Love" on Dine Alone Records, December 2, 2008.

The Special Limited Edition of "Bring Me Your Love" features revamped album artwork, all new packaging, and includes two discs. Disc one will include the original Gold-certified album "Bring Me Your Love", plus two unreleased tracks. Disc two includes demos of all the BMYL album tracks, including demos of the two unreleased songs from disc one. The demos are especially unique as they are a collection recorded over a year during the writing process of BMYL. All of the demos were recorded personally by Dallas Green, whether on the road in venue dressing rooms, on the back of a tour bus, in friends' basements, and at his home. Guest appearances by friends Dan Romano (Attack in Black) and Dan Smith (Dear and Departed) are featured. The demo version of Constant Knot also features Dan Stoppelman from Big D and the Kids Table on horns. A beautifully handwritten 28 panel booklet with behind-the-scenes photos captured by photographer Vanessa Heins rounds out the package.

A special digital bundle package of both discs will be made available through all of the usual digital outlets, and for those fans who already own "Bring Me Your Love" , the bonus demo CD will be available as a stand-alone digital bundle. Only 5000 copies will be manufactured and available to fans in North America, with an additional 1000 available on Dine Alone/Shock in Australia and its territories.

Tracklisting | Disc 1 | Studio Recordings

1. forgive me
2. confessions
3. the death of me
4. body in a box
5. sleeping sickness
6. what makes a man?
7. waiting...
8. constant knot
9. against the grain
10. the girl
11. sensible heart
12. as much as I ever could
13. faithless (previously unreleased)
14. I don't need to know (previously unreleased)

Tracklisting | Disc 2 | Demo Recordings

1. forgive me (demo)
2. confessions (demo)
3. the death of me (demo)
4. body in a box (demo)
5. sleeping sickness (demo)
6. what makes a man? (demo)
7. waiting...(demo)
8. constant knot (quiet demo)
9. constant knot (horns demo)
10. against the grain (demo)
11. sensible heart (demo)
12. as much as I ever could (demo)
13. faithless (previously unreleased demo)
14. I don't need to know (previously unreleased demo)

For more information on City and Colour,
visit: www.cityandcolour.ca | www.myspace.com/dallasgreen

Tuesday releases ....

Hello friends...

Here is what's released today.....

Beyonce, "I am ... Sasha Fierce",(Columbia)
Nickelback, "Dark Horse",(Roadrunner)
David Cook, "David Cook",(RCA)
Il Divo, "The Promise", (Sony)
Dido, "Safe Trip Home",(Arista)
Above & Beyond, "Anjunabeats Vol. 6" (Ultra)
Ricardo Arjona, "Quinto Piso" (Warner Bros.)
Belle & Sebastian, "The BBC Sessions" (Matador)
Zac Brown, "The Foundation" (Atlantic)
Miley Cyrus, "Breakout Platinum Edition" (Hollywood)
The Doors, "Live at The Matrix" (Rhino)
Sammy Hagar, "Cosmic Universal Fashion" (Roadrunner)
Randy Houser, "Anything Goes" (Universal)
Ricky Martin, "17" (Epic)
Mudvayne, "The New Game" (Epic)
Laura Pausini, "Primavera Anticipada" (Warner Bros.)
The Priests, "The Priests" (RCA)
Blake Shelton, "Startin' Fires" (Reprise)
Rod Stewart, "The Definitive Rod Stewart" (Rhino)

Monday's missive

There are lots of things rock nerds Rush do well, and among them is selling CDs, concert DVDs and other stuff. So there's no surprise that there's new "product" about to be released. Retrospective III is a sort of best of the last few albums, and is presumably the last of three similar releases. There's also a DVD that's part of the package that is made up of performances from the recent tour and videos made while Rush was with Atlantic. There's very little that's new here, save for a remix of a couple of songs. While Rush has released two studio albums since 2001, there have been at three concert DVDs, archive collections and a CD of covers.

I bring all of this up is that there is interesting, simmering news in Rushland. There is chatter that Rush may tour, again, in 2009. They toured lots in 2008 and 2007 in support of Snakes and Arrows, including a great show at the Brandt Centre in Regina. The scuttlebutt comes with speculation over what Rush will do now that it has left Atlantic and has plans to begin anew with Rounder. A statement made to an interviewer last year by guitarist Alex Lifeson has fan sites buzzing over whether the band will release songs as they record them and then offer them for sale only online.

I really don't know anything else other than what I've read online, but it is all interesting -- of course, if you're a Rush nerd.