A vibraphone primer with Paul Aucoin
The first time I heard a vibraphone, it was like floating on a fluffy cloud with freshly baked brownies and Gael Garcia Bernal. Okay, maybe it wasn't that awesome, but it certainly was very pretty. I had heard this unusual instrument intermittently throughout the years, mainly in jazz songs, and several scarce occasions in pop songs. But there was something different about its presence in pop songs - it was almost as if these scarce moments were something of a luxury, to be enjoyed like a fine vintage wine on a very special occasion. How could I find out more about this instrument? [Read more here...]
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Coming of Age Haikus, Part Deux
Due to popular demand (when I say popular demand, I mean 3 people), I have returned with another set of haikus.
Haikus about lost love (Whitney and Bobby), delectable treats (Popeye's biscuits), deceit (eating whale sushi), hurt (sunburnt scalp), avoiding people (facebook stalkers), and looking your best (not being able to wear eye makeup).
[Read more here...]
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A working class puppeteer is someone to be
Let's say that you are a puppeteer in Los Angeles. Let's say that all of a sudden, Beck Hansen asks you to pack your bags and tour with him and make the likenesses of him and his 5 band members in 12 days. Let's say that this happened to Rob Saunders, and you can read more about his adventures [here...]
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Benji Feldman's Shabbos Salmon
Imagine this. You're a devout Jew teaching English in Japan, and you find you're at a loss with ingredients to make a proper Shabbos dinner. Rather than kvetch about the lack of challah, Dalwhinnie, or gefilte fish, Benji Feldman made some alterations to the traditional menu. Enter the masterpiece that is... the Shabbos Salmon. [Read more here...]
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The Secrets of Cadence Weapon
Just look at that face! Rollie Pemberton, aka Cadence Weapon, can often be found politickin' about music of all sorts on his blog and in publications galore. But how about his take on less popular topics, like keeping it regular, the Oilers, mystery meats and his secrets of getting the ladies?
..... [Read more here...]
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At a Loss for Words: Keetologue visits the Toronto Scrabble Club
Hidden under the shroud of night, droves of dark figures gravitate towards a building, carrying large, strangely shaped bags. Some are circular, others square, all are equally unusual. I follow these fleeting figures and shapes down a dimly lit hallway, to a room nondescriptly marked "4".
I was at the weekly meeting of .... [Read more here...]
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The Font-tastic World of Ray Larabie
I have always had a secret love affair with type, as the underdog field of the art world. Although it is ubiquitous, it is something that we still take for granted. In the literate world, we come across it every day in newspapers, magazines, advertisements, word processing programs; anywhere you see words, you will see fonts. There are not many reference books out there about type relative to other fields in art, and no one in their right mind would devote gallery space to showcasing different fonts nor covering a retrospective of a font designer. Sure, to everyone else on the planet, fonts are just a way of conveying the alphabet. Upon closer look however..... [Read more here...]
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FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD: Toral's Masala Fries
People always front like bastardized things aren't good. I tend to disagree. Look at mules. They have the most stamina of any domesticated animal. Mutts. They are least prone to birth defects amongst dogs, particularly "purebreds". New Jack Swing. One of my favourite eras of music. So it's no surprise that Toral Padia, my friend from Kenya, presented to me an amazing bastardized Indian food recipe. It goes by the name of Masala Fries, and it's the pinnacle of comfort food. [Read more here...]
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AROUND TOWN: Hot Beats and Delicious Treats with Circle Research
To start off the Around Town section for Keetologue both in style and on the right foot, what better place than right at my own doorstep? I enlisted the help of Astro the Guillotine (aka Gil Masuda) and Nix the Finger Prince (aka Nik Timar), collectively known as Circle Research, to shed some light on what they're up to, as well as some of their favourite spots in the city of Toronto. [Read more here...]
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All hail Hot Chip!
Joe Goddard of West London-based band Hot Chip helps me overcome my fear of electronic music concerts, while discussing who would win in a
producer show-down between Phil Spector and Dr. Dre, hot dance moves, ideal rides, why Hulk Hogan isn't so appealing,
and the key to a killer pop tune.
[Read more here...]
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Overcoming Rice-phobia with Alison Ronson
WHOA WHOA WHOA. It's Keetologue's first writer, my good friend Alison Ronson.
During a stint of NGO work in India, Alison learned the tricks of how to ditch
Uncle Ben to cook rice the traditional way, and no, not with a rice cooker. Accompanied by a fried rice recipe, because honestly, you can never have too many fried rice
recipes.
[Read more here...]
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The Lazerines step it up
They've hung out with rappers from the hardest projects, R&B ingenues, rhymesayers who have done their time,
and bootylicious video divas.
On weeknights and weekends, they spend their time talking with with Common, David Banner, M.I.A., Lil' Kim, Ciara, Q-Tip, or whoever they happen to be doing a story on.
Oh yeah, they are also two Jewish college kids from the suburbs of Los Angeles (and not Inglewood). Just who are these guys anyway?
[Read more here...]
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FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD SPECIAL: The Four Pillars of Montreal Cuisine
Although I only lived in Montreal for a short period of time, people still ask me, "Keet, what should I
do while I'm in Montreal?" Really, I could lead you astray by telling you to go to some retardedly trendy
bars
on St. Laurent or head to the Biodome, but the real loot in Montreal is the food. Food is great there, but really, what is most important
are the four pillars. That is,....
[Read more here...]
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Keetologue's Coming of Age Haikus
In grade 5 or 6, one of our units was on Japan, and of course, one of our assignments was to write haikus, poems with a 3 line,
5-7-5 syllable pattern with no rhyme scheme. Subject matter, we were told, was supposed to be
about nature. Pastoral. You know, rocks being shaped by the gentle trickling of the river,
the wind, setting suns, oceans, green hills, and the like. I would like to think the following are about nature of a different sort.
[Read more here...]
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FASHIONNED/FASHUNNED: Sun damage, Incan Peanut Necklaces, Flesh-Toned Pantyhose
Inside: why the old ladies with the umbrellas up on sunny days are laughing to themselves (other than poking your eye out with the spindly metal parts of their umbrella),
Incans as style mavens, and why pantyhose is not appealing.
[Read more here...]
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 Lunch with Simahlak
One thing you'll often hear about Simahlak is that he's a hermit. Which, for the most part, is true. Sim does spend many hours every day in his basement, churning out beats. Another thing you'll often hear about Sim is that his talent is completely underrated. Which is also true. Up until a year and a half ago, I barely knew his music existed. When someone mentioned that I interview him for a Montreal hip hop article, I picked up some of his work and was amazed at what I heard: tuneful melodies made from a pastiche of soulful funk and R&B samples, and lived-in, head bobbing drums. There was something different about his
beats....
[Read more here...]
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 Catching up with the Frere-Jones'
Sasha Frere-Jones' has every music nerd's dream resume: music writer for The New Yorker and formerly for
the Village Voice, Slate, as well as a musician
in his own right. And he's even interviewed Beyoncé.
SFJ (sarcastically [Editor's note 04/14/05: received an email from SFJ, clarifying that for the record, he was not being sarcastic. His answers, he says,
always fall into two categories: dopey and not-quite-as-dopey. He is looking
for a new category.]) answers questions posed to him about blogging, writing, photography and Beyoncé. [Read more here...]
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 FOR THE LOVE OF FOOD: Accidentally Delicious Baguette Sandwiches
There you are, cursing to yourself because you have a potluck to go to and nothing to bring. BADA BING! That's when you bring these babies over
and impress the pants off of everyone. No jokes.
[Read more here...]
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 FASHIONNED/FASHUNNED: Acute and Obtuse time pieces and clothing that is too tight
There's no reason to be wearing wrist watches.
There is also no reason to be wearing clothes that are too tight.
[Read more here...]
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 Pony up, up and away!
My interview with Pony Up was supposed to unfold like this: I would breeze into Euro Deli casually
right at 7PM, grab a table of 6, and then they would show up late, as musicians do. "Oh, we were
just finishing up practicing at our space," they would say.
Instead, I skidded and skated to Euro Deli in the notoriously cold Montreal winter weather, and
when I got there, the ladies were already seated. Shoot. I introduced myself, and then, in all
my nerd glory - my glasses fogged up from the heat. [Read more here...]
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 IDEA: 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon Potluck
Did you ever wonder who that guy is, Mark, your friend Lise keeps on mentioning?
Did you want to meet one of Sally's hot friends?
Did you want to get to know the indie rock nerd guy that you're on a nodding basis with?
Do you want to con your friend Ellen into making her famous
latkes?
If all signs point to yes, it's time for you to have a
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon potluck. [Read more here...]
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 FASHIONNED/FASHUNNED: Suit Accessories and Prude American Missionaries
The paradox of the suit. Women love men in a suit, and men hate wearing suits. What's the next
best thing? Suit accessories, of course!
You know those humungous flowery dresses that you see women wearing in Hawaii? Those were no
Polynesian invention, my friend.
They were brought over by puritanical American men. Eeek.
[Read more here...]
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 KEET VERNACULAR: COIF
coif(kwäf) (n.) someone who puts an unnecessarily large effort into their appearance.
example 1: Lauren is such a coif. Who actually
comes to 8:30 morning class with straightened hair and stilettos?
example 2: The Arcade Fire concert was filled with coifs.
[Read more here...]
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recent:
05/16/07 paul aucoin, vibraphone
05/16/07 haikus, part deux
12/05/06 rob saunders, puppeteer
12/05/06 benji's shabbos salmon
06/23/06 cadence weapon
06/19/06 scrabble
06/04/06 ray larabie
06/04/06 masala fries
03/01/06 circle research
02/02/06 hot chip
02/02/06 riceophobia
10/27/05 the lazerine bros.
10/27/05 four pillars of mtl cuisine
10/27/05 20-something haikus
10/27/05 sun damage, pantyhose, incan peanut necklaces
04/09/05 simahlak
04/09/05 sasha frere-jones'
04/09/05 baguette sandwiches
04/09/05 timepieces and too tight clothing
01/24/05 pony up
01/24/05 6 degrees potluck
01/24/05 muumuus/bark cloth
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