Lady Gaga Live in Vancouver

I went to the Lady Gaga concert a week or two ago courtesy of Chris, and it was a pretty fun night!

Compared to seeing her last March at a small club venue, this show could not compare. I mean, that one was much more intimate. I was hoping that with more money behind her, she'd have a bigger show this time around. And some elements definitely delivered, from the screen and imagery she presented, to of course, the newer songs.

I freaked out on Monster, lost my mind during Beautiful Dirty Rich, and screamed my heart out to Bad Romance. But I did find her ordering of the setlist a bit off. Near the end of the show, she sang Paper Gangster, a relatively unkown song and also one that's mid-tempo/slow. She followed it up with Poker Face, which I think deserved a much better lead in. At that point, I was like, "Oh yeah, Poker Face. That's nice." Sorry Gaga, but Paper Gangster totally took the wind out of the sails!

Another observation I made was that she talked a lot to the audience, which somewhat interuppted the flow of the whole show. I mean, it's nice that an artist will talk to her audience, compared to some others that don't even say one word to them (paging Madonna!!) but between every song was a bit much. I think she was trying to keep that intimate vibe she had last Spring, but in this bigger venue with a bigger show, it just wasn't working.

And why the heck didn't she perform Telephone!?! RIGHT?!

But overall, an entertaining evening and a fun night out with friends, dancing and singing along to the vibes of Lady Gaga!

Vancouver Specials Redone

I grew up in a Vancouver Special. This was a type of house that dotted the city because it was cheap to make and made maximum use of space. Aesthetically speaking though, they weren't that nice to look at, especially when you had entire neighbourhoods full of them.

But now someone has gone and did a major renovation of one of them and come up with something absolutely fabulous!!



It's unbelievable the facelift that they've given to an old Vancouver Special!!

Check out more photos of the interior here!



Who knew?!

An Afternoon with Stuart McLean

Last week I went to a reading by Canadian author and radio personality, Stuart McLean. If you listen to the CBC's Vinyl Cafe, you'll know who I'm talking about.



For those who don't know him, well he has written several "Vinyl Cafe" books that are light and fun reads. Definitely wholesome entertainment. It might be a bit too vanilla for some folks, but that's his appeal. He's no David Sedaris or Augusten Burroughs. Rather, his stories are about a family in smalltown Canada and the misadventures they go through. If you're interested, check his radio show or download the podcast.

A Swell Evening

Last night the rain was relentless. In fact, there was no reprieve all day. It made it the perfect evening to go for some mellow out music with The Swell Season.



Their show was lengthy but good. I'm glad I got to see them. Marketa is super cute live, borderline shy, it's endearing. I guess compared to Glen, he would make anyone look shy.

Here they are on Letterman from 2007, singing their Academy Award winning song, Falling Slowly, which they did last night in one of their encores:



The sun poked out today, and it's been dry so far. Fingers crossed!

Here Comes The Rain Again

It has been raining for about three weeks straight here in Vancouver. Oy. Today is a torrential downpour. It's just disgusting. I don't like it. We've had a few reprieves but for the most part, it's either drizzle, mist, or downright cats and dogs. Tomorrow the sun is supposed to make a cameo. Keep your fingers crossed.

Evil Dead : Vancouver Edition

Last night I went to the Vancouver production of Evil Dead: The Musical.



It was complete fun!! Total camp, and of course, blood splattering everywhere! Including all over me, since I was in the "splatter zone"! I made sure I bought Splatter Zone tickets.

So, there is a bit of controversy going on around this production. They bought the rights to put it on, and so they are doing so. HOWEVER, one week later, it gets announced that the touring company of this show is also coming to Vancouver at the exact same time that this production is going on.

That really sucks for these guys. I mean, the touring production has a way bigger budget, bigger venue, and more advertising. I've seen full page ads and heard their cast on radio stations, etc.

It isn't right that they would do that to this little theatre company like that. Basically screwed them over, you know? I mean, these people put their time and energy and money into this production, only to have the big guys come in and take all that possible business away?

So, if you're in Vancouver or have friends here, please encourage them to go see the local production of Evil Dead: The Musical. Support local theatre, local arts. This production was fantastic! Why pay double the price when you can enjoy the exact same thing for less? Buy your tickets here!

Jay Brannan - New Album and Coming To Vancouver!

I'm so mad I won't be able to go see Jay Brannan when he arrives in town next Thursday at the Biltmore Cabaret. Tickets are only $17, so it's a total deal to go check him out! He's awesome live and will probably be doing songs from his latest release, In Living Cover.



The last time I went, he did Jann Arden's Good Mother and it was soooooo heartbreaking, I fell in love with it. I'm so glad he included this song on the new album. In addition, he's done this brilliant cover of The Cranberries' Zombie:

Jay Brannan - Zombie.mp3

Buy his CD here or download through iTunes. And tickets for next week's show are still available.