America's Hat Gets Political

Hey there.  Apologies for the late addition of this blog - it's been a crazy week, and what with Ted being in Montreal, handling our show solo was a challenging task indeed.

I did get two stellar call ins, one from Brent Hodge, resident Canadian, filling us in on political parties of Canada and the latter from Ted detailing his Montreal experiences.

Being the Gen Y fool that I am, my immediate impulse to learn more about Canadian politics was to turn to the interwebz.  For those of you above Wikipedia, here's a quick summary on the current stand of the upcoming Canadian election.

Canadians, like the Brits, have a Prime Minister as head of the executive branch, while the legislative branch is comprised of the monarchy, senate, and House of Commons.  The primary political parties of Canada are the Conservative Party of Canada and the Liberal Party of Canada, while smaller groups, like the New Democratic Party, the Bloc Quebecois, and the Green Part of Canada are also popular political parties.


Here is the run-down of candidates for the election on May 2nd:

Stephen Harper - Conservative

Michael Ignatieff - Liberal

Gilles Duceppe - Bloc Quebecois

Jack Layton - NDP

Elizabeth May - Green


This is a great excerpt explaining the wackiness of this year's election.  The full article and more information can be found on the CBC website.

"For an election that many Canadians aren't quite sure they even wanted and that some insist is downright boring, Canada Votes 2011 has provided some unexpected fireworks so far. 

First, there was the Stephen Harper-Michael Ignatieff Twitter fight. Then came Green Party leader Elizabeth May's exclusion from the leaders' debate, and NDP candidate Jack Layton's televised quip about Michael Ignatieff's attendance record. 

In between, there was a leaked auditor general's report, an unforeseen surge in NDP poll numbers and a genuinely surprising lack of apathy in young voters across the country. "

I'll save Ted's stories for next week, but he did mention over the phone a trip to Schwartz's Deli as being quite eatery.


Shows of Interest:

Thursday, May 5
A-Trak
The Mid

Thursday, May 12
Woods of Ypres
Reggie's Live

Friday, May 20
Timber Timbre
Schuba's

Saturday, May 21
Timber Timbre
SPACE
Evanston

Thursday, May 26
Sloan
Subterranean


Track o' the Week:

Joel Plaskett - "Fashionable People"

Incredible lyrics and a simple, driving beat.  Tambourine and high-pitched chorus, plus filtered drums.  Think Mika, but way less annoying.

Artist o' the Week:

Group of Seven

The essence of Canada - its politics, identity, and traditions - has been condensed in the form of one man and his guitar.  Check out "Passport" for a take on what it means to be a Canadian and "Ghost of Tim Horton" for a darker perspective on the legacy of Tim Horton, including hockey and donuts.


Next Week:  Montreal-tastic.  We'll talk about and hear music from those crazy Quebecois.