By Ken Clarke
New Orleans-based bluesman Bryan Lee’s 11th solo recording is a swinging mix of original blues tunes and carefully chosen covers. Lee, known as ‘The Braille Blues Daddy,’ proves his unique guitar and vocal prowess are fully intact. His well rounded band delivers the goods with gusto and charm. Most notable are the soulful sax solos… Continue reading Spun: Bryan Lee
By Richard Lam
English indie rock band The Heavy return with The House That Dirt Built, their second album in two years. Having garnered some attention from their first release on both sides of the Atlantic, this follow-up further justifies their reputation with violent race car derby rock, soul stomps and a myriad of other influences. This is… Continue reading Spun: The Heavy
Michael Buble transports the music of jazz lounges to a modern audience. On his fourth studio album Crazy Love Buble — most known for his powerful voice and new twist on the old big band style — proves that he deserves his reputation. Some of the songs are dramatic, like opening track “Cry me a… Continue reading Spun: Michael Buble
By Ken Clarke
With each Norah Jones release, her sound changes enough to “be new but not so much the listener feels like it’s a radical departure. This is a difficult thing to do, but Jones’ fourth album, The Fall, builds off her previous efforts familiar sounds and successfully integrates some unexpected twists. There are new grooves on… Continue reading Spun: Norah Jones
No one wants, nor needs, a manicure set for Christmas. This is the peril of the typical newspaper shopping guide — they suck because the gift recommendations are for old people. In the interests of keeping families together this Christmas, the Gauntlet offers these suggestions. For the artist Head over to Nation, in the basement… Continue reading Gift cards suck: the Gauntlet gift guide
It takes a lot to be a famous musician in the modern age. Gone are the days when one could rely solely on talent to achieve success. Mainstream music consumers require a visual dimension to their favourite musicians. Artists in the past three decades have had to produce music videos and increasingly extravagant concerts. With… Continue reading Decade in Review: Music
By Ryan Pike
The past 10 years of cinema has seen a great deal of progress and peculiarities. In the 2000s, for better or worse, a glut of films have been released. Some of them were flat-out awful.Unfortunately, because of the sheer number of films released during the decade, a lot of bad films saw the light of… Continue reading Decade in Review: Film
Long live the days when wizards and wands reigned, casting the hearts of innocent fans into an obsessive fictional abyss. Yet, like an overplayed magic trick, the invisible cloak has been drawn over poor Harry Potter, dusting over the stormy trend of lightning bolt tattoos and circular glasses with shimmering body glitter and gold contacts.… Continue reading Twilight parody is a sparkling book of utmost quality
In order to relate to teenager’s lives, adults need to venture into the past and recapture that specific mindset. Remember the angst, the excitement and the curiosity about life? It’s still there in modern youths. Recall walking around the neighbourhood with 15 of your friends when there is nothing else to do, or riding around… Continue reading The New Black and the all-ages venue crunch
By Jon Roe
Predicted standings: Washington Capitals Boston Bruins Pittsburgh Penguins Carolina Hurricanes Philadelphia Flyers New Jersey Devils Montreal Canadiens Toronto Maple Leafs Actual standings: Washington Capitals Pittsburgh Penguins Buffalo Sabres New Jersey Devils Atlanta Thrashers Boston Bruins Ottawa Senators Tampa Bay Lightning The Penguins and Capitals have clicked along as expected, despite injuries to stars Evgeni Malkin… Continue reading Winter break NHL picks review: Eastern Conference