<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<rss version="2.0" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/">
<channel><atom:link href="http://www.spinner.com/rss.xml" rel="self" type="application/rss xml" />
<title>Spinner</title>
<link>http://www.spinner.com</link>
<description>Spinner</description>
<image>
<url>http://www.spinner.com/media/feedlogo.gif</url>
<title>Spinner</title>
<link>http://www.spinner.com</link>
</image>
<language>en-us</language>
<copyright>Copyright 2012 Blogsmith, LLC. The contents of this headlines and excerpts feed are available for limited commercial distribution. You may repost this feed to your site provided you link back to the original story, do not edit the material, and do not remove this copyright notice.</copyright>
<generator>Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/</generator><item>
     <title>Paul Rodgers: Classic Rocker Talks 'All Right Now,' Adam Lambert and Becoming Canadian</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2012/04/10/paul-rodgers-all-right-now-adam-lambert/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2012/04/10/paul-rodgers-all-right-now-adam-lambert/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2012/04/10/paul-rodgers-all-right-now-adam-lambert/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2012/04/paul-rodgers-456-040212_thumbnail.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; border-style: solid; margin: 4px;" /><span>Gareth Davies, Getty Images</span></p>
</div>
<p>
	<br />
	<em>Platinum selling singer-songwriter <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/PaulRodgers/">Paul Rodgers</a> has one of the most distinctive voices on classic rock radio. His unique timbre earned him the nickname "the Voice." It's a fitting handle; as frontman for English blues band Free, '70's supergroup <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/BadCompany/">Bad Company</a>, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/JimmyPage/">Jimmy Page</a>'s post-<a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/LedZeppelin/">Led Zeppelin</a> project <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Firm_%28rock_band%29">the Firm</a>, and more recently a revamped version of <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Queen/">Queen</a>, he has voiced some of rock's most memorable tracks.<br />
	<br />
	Rodgers has released 30 albums, sold over 90 million records, and is a rock radio staple. In fact, <a href="http://www.bmi.com/">BMI</a>, an organization that collects royalties for songwriters, reports that Free's 1972 single "All Right Now," has logged a staggering four million spins in the U.S. alone.</em></p> ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Bad Company</category><category>Free</category><category>Paul Rodgers</category><category>PaulRodgers</category><category>Queen</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2012-04-10T13:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Bush's Gavin Rossdale Calls Tabloids 'Sour Vicarious-Living Parasites,' Blames Readers</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2012/04/09/gavin-rossdale-bush-tabloid/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2012/04/09/gavin-rossdale-bush-tabloid/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2012/04/09/gavin-rossdale-bush-tabloid/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/q-a/" rel="tag">Q + A</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2012/04/gavin-rossdale-456-040912_thumbnail.jpg" style="border-width: 0px; border-style: solid; margin: 4px;" /><span>Pascal Le Segretain, Getty Images</span></p>
</div>
<a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/GavinRossdale/">Gavin Rossdale</a> is the handsome leader of the <a href="http://www.spinner.ca/2010/06/25/bush-reform-new-single-afterlife/">reformed</a> '90s alternative rock band <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Bush/">Bush</a>. His wife is <a href="http://music.aol.com/artist/gwen-stefani">Gwen Stefani</a>, the fashion designer, perfume purveyor, and lead singer for beloved and enduring '90s rock act <a href="http://music.aol.com/artist/no-doubt">No Doubt</a>. They are a high-profile Hollywood couple and therefore produce plenty of fodder for the lifestyle-obsessed masses.<br />
<br />
Reports of Gavin's teenage love affair with British transgender singer Marilyn, his alleged affair with singer Courtney Love, and predictions of the couple's inevitable divorce were just recent supermarket-tabloid <a href="http://blog.music.aol.ca/2012/01/25/gwen-stefani-gavin-rossdale-marriage-divorce/">headlines</a>.<br />
<br />
The persistent paparazzi stake out their home snapping pictures of the couple and their sons Kingston, 5, and Zuma, 3, and the tabloids publish the minutia of their personal lives. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Bush</category><category>Gavin Rossdale</category><category>GavinRossdale</category><category>Gwen Stefani</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2012-04-09T15:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Books on Tape: The Top 10 Collabs Between Authors and Musicians</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2012/03/02/books-on-tape-top-10-collabs-authors-musicans/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2012/03/02/books-on-tape-top-10-collabs-authors-musicans/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2012/03/02/books-on-tape-top-10-collabs-authors-musicans/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/the-hit-list/" rel="tag">The Hit List</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Rush" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2012/03/rush-clockwork-angels-010312_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Roadrunner Records</span></p>
</div>
Can you imagine a world where, instead of fossil fuels, modern machinery runs on the power of steam and everyone's favourite band is <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Rush/">Rush</a>?<br />
<br />
If so, you've glimpsed into the alternate reality that unfolds in the forthcoming steampunk novel from sci-fi author Kevin J. Anderson. The best-selling scribe of over 100 genre books, including titles for the '<a href="http://www.moviefone.com/movie/star-wars-the-clone-wars/32885/main">Star Wars</a>,' '<a href="http://www.moviefone.com/movie/star-wars-the-clone-wars/32885/main">Dune</a>,' and '<a href="http://www.aoltv.com/show/xfiles/183870">X-Files</a>' franchises, is writing a companion novel to 'Clockwork Angels,' the upcoming studio album from Canadian prog-rock giants Rush.<br />
<br />
"I take my inspiration from many sources, but music has always been a key to my literary imagination, more than just a soundtrack but a trigger for images, scenes, and strange worlds," Anderson tells Spinner. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Allen Ginsberg</category><category>beck</category><category>ben folds</category><category>bono</category><category>Dave Eggers</category><category>David Eggers</category><category>Hunter S. Thompson</category><category>kurt cobain</category><category>Margaret Atwood</category><category>nick hornby</category><category>paul simon</category><category>Rush</category><category>Salman Rushdie</category><category>stephen king</category><category>the clash</category><category>u2</category><category>william s burroughs</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2012-03-02T12:30:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Dave Bidini: Rheostatics Icon Chases Gordon Lightfoot, Lands 'In the Rock Hall'</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2012/02/09/dave-bidini-rheostatics-in-the-rock-hall/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2012/02/09/dave-bidini-rheostatics-in-the-rock-hall/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2012/02/09/dave-bidini-rheostatics-in-the-rock-hall/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Dave Bidini" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2012/02/dave-bidini-456-090211_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Courtesy of Pheromone Recordings</span></p>
</div>
Rock music and literature usually inhabit separate ends of the arts and culture spectrum but <a href="http://music.aol.ca/artist/dave-bidini">Dave Bidini</a>, founding member of seminal Canadian art-rock outfit the <a href="http://music.aol.ca/artist/rheostatics">Rheostatics</a> and current leader of the <a href="http://music.aol.ca/artist/bidiniband">Bidiniband</a>, is determined to bridge both worlds. The musician has authored 10 books -- including '<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Cold-Road-Tales-Adventure-Canadian/dp/0771014562">On a Cold Road: Tales of Adventure in Canadian Rock</a>,' which was a finalist for Canada Reads 2012, a respected Canadian book competition playing out this week -- and draws on his literary talents for his latest album with the Bidiniband, 'In the Rock Hall.'<br />
<br />
The title track about a trip to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is based on a poem by author Paul Quarrington -- a name that's probably familiar to Rheostatics fans (in 1992, the band released 'Whale Music,' an album based on a Quarrington book). "I like the way it talks about feeling like a misfit in this world," Bidini tells Spinner, referencing the <a href="http://www.paulquarrington.org/friends/78/moving-stories-in-winnipeg">poem</a> they turned into a free-flowing, eight-minute album closer that pays tribute to the late Quarrington. "It touched on my feelings about rock, and rock history." ]]>
     </description>
     <category>canada reads</category><category>dave bidini</category><category>DaveBidini</category><category>GordonLightfoot</category><category>rheostatics</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2012-02-09T13:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Leonard Cohen: 'Old Ideas' Icon Celebrated by Rufus Wainwright and Others</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2012/01/31/leonard-cohen-old-ideas/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2012/01/31/leonard-cohen-old-ideas/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2012/01/31/leonard-cohen-old-ideas/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Leonard Cohen" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2012/01/leonard-cohen-456-310111_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Joel Sage, AFP/Getty Images</span></p>
</div>
If a cover is the highest compliment one songwriter can bestow upon another, then few songwriters command as much respect as <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/LeonardCohen/">Leonard Cohen</a>. It seems like thousands of artists have interpreted his work, especially his signature late-career song 'Hallelujah' which Cohen once told the CBC could use "a break."<br />
<br />
With the release of '<a href="http://www.spinner.ca/2011/11/22/leonard-cohen-new-album-old-ideas/">Old Ideas</a>,' his 12th studio album and first since 2004's 'Dear Heather,' the 77-year-old icon adds 10 original compositions to his illustrious canon. Critics and bloggers are calling the album his best since 1984's 'Various Positions,' even comparing it to <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/BobDylan/">Bob Dylan</a>'s comeback, 'Time Out of Mind.'<br />
<br />
Has a senior citizen ever created such a hullabaloo amongst the indie rock crowd?<br />
<br />
<div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<em><a href="http://www.music.aol.com/new-releases-full-cds/spinner#/1"><img alt="Old Ideas" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2012/01/leonard-cohen-old-ideas-cover-200_thumbnail.jpg" /></a><span>Amazon</span></em></p>
</div>
<br />
<strong><a href="http://music.aol.com/new-releases-full-cds/spinner#/1">Listen to Leonard Cohen's 'Old Ideas'</a></strong><br />
<br />
Cohen isn't doing much press for the album -- and he doesn't have to because other artists are more than happy to promote his album for him. Spinner chatted with three singer-songwriters (including <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/RufusWainwright/">Rufus Wainwright</a>, the father to Cohen's granddaughter) and one rapper about the man's infamous baritone and how, despite his age, Cohen still delivers the goods. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Buck65</category><category>Leonard Cohen</category><category>RonSexsmith</category><category>rufus wainwright</category><category>sarah slean</category><category>sarahslean</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2012-01-31T11:30:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Jason Collett Heads Back to the Basement for His Annual Holiday Revue</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/12/16/jason-collett-basement-revue/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/12/16/jason-collett-basement-revue/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/12/16/jason-collett-basement-revue/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/concert/" rel="tag">Concerts and Tours</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Jason Collett" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/12/jason-collett-456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>M Barnes</span></p>
</div>
On stage, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/BrokenSocialScene/">Broken Social Scene</a> alumnus <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/JasonCollett/">Jason Collett</a> watches apprehensively as Canadian celebrity chef Michael P. Clive mixes brown sugar, nutmeg, sliced bananas, and a generous helping of rum in a sizzling saucepan. Moments later, he sets flame to the concoction generating a spectacular fireball.<br />
<br />
"Does anyone else smell burning hair?" Clive jokes as he tops tiny cups of vanilla ice cream with the flamb&eacute; and begins serving members of the salivating crowd.<br />
<br />
The dish is Bananas Foster, a holiday classic usually prepared in fine dining establishments than on a stage where musicians spill equal parts beer and sweat. However, fans of Collett's annual Basement Revue have come to expect the unexpected. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Broken Social Scene</category><category>BrokenSocialScene</category><category>jason collett</category><category>JasonCollett</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-12-16T17:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Meaghan Smith Is Wishing for a 'Christmas Kiss' This Holiday Season</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/12/09/meaghan-smith-it-snowed/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/12/09/meaghan-smith-it-snowed/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/12/09/meaghan-smith-it-snowed/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Meaghan Smith" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/12/meaghan-smith-456-081211_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Nettwerk Records</span></p>
</div>
On stage at the Rivoli, a tiny club on Toronto's hip Queen St. strip, Halifax, NS, singer-songwriter <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/MeaghanSmith/">Meaghan Smith</a> does her best to inject Yuletide spirit into a room full of big-city hipsters. With only a single guitarist as accompaniment, Smith -- looking more <a href="http://www.moviefone.com/celebrity/zooey-deschanel/2009263/main">Zooey Deschanel</a> than Mrs. Claus in her high black boots and vintage lace dress -- serves up modern renditions of holiday classic and self-penned contemporary Christmas tunes from her latest release, 'It Snowed.'<br />
<br />
Smith's 2010 debut, 'The Crickets Orchestra,' won accolades from old-time jazz aficionados and electro-pop fans alike, and helped her snag a Juno Award for Best New Artist. A holiday-themed record might seem like a strange follow-up, but if you love the holidays as much as Smith, it's a no-brainer.<br />
<br />
"I try not to be annoying, but I'm one of those people that start thinking about Christmas in January," she tells Spinner. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>meaghan smith</category><category>MeaghanSmith</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-12-09T13:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Broken Social Scene + Stills Refugees Hit the 'Refresh Button' With Eight and a Half</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/28/broken-social-scene-the-stills-eight-and-a-half/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/28/broken-social-scene-the-stills-eight-and-a-half/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/28/broken-social-scene-the-stills-eight-and-a-half/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/rpm/" rel="tag">RPM</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Eight and a Half" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/11/eightandahalf-band-456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Arts &amp; Crafts</span></p>
</div>
While killing pints at a cozy pub in Toronto's funky Kensington Market, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/BrokenSocialScene/">Broken Social Scene</a> drummer Justin Peroff reveals a bumper sticker slogan he thought up while touring with the storied indie rock collective.<br />
<br />
"I wanted to get one that said, 'My other band is a trio,'" he jokes with Spinner's RPM.<br />
<br />
At some point, it seemed like every Toronto-based musician claimed some connection to Broken Social Scene. At their most bloated, the supergroup boasted nearly 20 members so one can only imagine the bureaucracy that plagued that pirate nation.<br />
<br />
Peroff was taking the piss. But now that <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/KevinDrew/">Kevin Drew</a> and crew have put Broken Social Scene on <a href="http://www.spinner.ca/2011/11/11/broken-social-scene-kevin-drew-hiatus/">indefinite hiatus</a> -- and Peroff has hooked up with keyboardist Liam O'Neil and singer-guitarist Dave Hamelin, from the <a href="http://www.spinner.ca/2011/04/15/stills-call-it-quits/"> now-defunct</a> Montreal band the <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Stills/">Stills</a>, to form the electro-pop-influenced trio Eight and a Half -- the joke seems weirdly prophetic. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Broken Social Scene</category><category>BrokenSocialScene</category><category>eight and a half</category><category>eightandahalf</category><category>the stills</category><category>TheStills</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-11-28T14:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Gym Class Heroes Bounce Back After Singer Travie McCoy's Stomach Infection</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/25/gym-class-heroes-papercut-chronicles-ii/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/25/gym-class-heroes-papercut-chronicles-ii/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/25/gym-class-heroes-papercut-chronicles-ii/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/concert/" rel="tag">Concerts and Tours</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Gym Class Heroes" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/11/gym-class-heroes-456-251111_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Kevork Djansezian, AMA2011</span></p>
</div>
This October, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/GymClassHeroes/">Gym Class Heroes</a> cancelled their North American tour explaining that an undisclosed illness had sidelined singer Travie McCoy. Now, drummer and co-founder Matt McGinley reveals a combination of a persistent virus and a grueling tour schedule forced the hip-hop-inspired rock group to blow out the shows.<br />
<br />
"I don't want to be gross and graphic, but the root of it was a stomach infection," he tells Spinner. "There was a lot of fatigue and other symptoms that come along with a virus like that -- it wasn't pretty." ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Gym Class Heroes</category><category>GymClassHeroes</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-11-25T16:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>William Shatner Goes Where No Man (Except David Bowie) Has Gone Before</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/04/william-shatner-seeking-major-tom/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/04/william-shatner-seeking-major-tom/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/04/william-shatner-seeking-major-tom/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/concert/" rel="tag">Concerts and Tours</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="William Shatner" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/11/william-shatner-456-041111_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Smith, Newspix/Rex Features</span></p>
</div>
Moments before <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/WilliamShatner/">William Shatner</a> takes the stage at Toronto's Massey Hall, a large video screen flickers to life. Shatner, alone in a white room, sings 'O' Canada' in a way that only he can. Deadpan yet sincere, <a href="http:// http://www.nfb.ca/film/william_shatner_sings_o_canada/">Shatner re-imagines</a> Canada's national anthem as a politically-correct soliloquy while an off-screen director tries vainly to elicit a more traditional take.<br />
<br />
But the film and television star, Shakespearean thespian, author, director and budget travel pitchman has never followed tradition throughout his long career, not least when releasing albums like his latest longplayer 'Seeking Major Tom.'<br />
<br />
Thursday night, the man who began is journey as as James Tiberius Kirk on '<a href="http://www.aoltv.com/show/star-trek/183885">Star Trek</a>,' beamed into Toronto to stage his one-man show 'How Time Flies: An Evening With William Shatner.' ]]>
     </description>
     <category>william shatner</category><category>WilliamShatner</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-11-04T15:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Zeus Makes Lightning Strike Twice With Anthemic Single, Next Up New Album</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/01/zeus-are-you-gonna-waste-my-time/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/01/zeus-are-you-gonna-waste-my-time/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/11/01/zeus-are-you-gonna-waste-my-time/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Zeus" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/11/zeus456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>M Barnes</span></p>
</div>
It's been almost two years since Toronto retro-rockers <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Zeus/">Zeus</a> fired off their <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/PolarisPrize/">Polaris-nominated</a> and <a href="http://www.spinner.com/2011/03/04/zeus-new-album/">Verge-winning</a> debut 'Say Us.' Well, the band named after the head honcho of all Greek gods has finally come back down the mountain to bequeath us mere mortals with new music.<br />
<br />
'Are You Gonna Waste My Time,' the first single from its forthcoming sophomore release on Canadian mega-indie Arts &amp; Crafts is "our rock 'n' roll anthem," Carlin Nicholson tells Spinner.<br />
<br />
Indeed, the high-energy track brings to mind classics from the <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Band/">Band</a>, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/DavidBowie/">David Bowie</a> and the <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Beatles/">Beatles</a>, features some nice <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/JoeWalsh/">Joe Walsh</a>-style Southern-fried guitar licks, then breaks down to make room for the cowbell, the most righteous instrument ever forged on Mount Olympus.<br />
<br />
"It's actually two of them. It's a whole cowbell section," Nicholson notes. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Zeus</category><category>Zeuz</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-11-01T17:38:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>The Barr Brothers Credit Backstage Fire for Bringing Band Together</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/10/26/barr-brothers/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/10/26/barr-brothers/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/10/26/barr-brothers/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="The Barr Brothers" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/10/barr-brothers-456-261011_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Andre Guerette</span></p>
</div>
In life, major mishaps often trigger surprising opportunities. Case in point, if it wasn't for a backstage fire, Brad and Andrew Barr may have never moved to Montreal, hooked up with a classically trained harpist, and revealed a folksier side on the Barr Brothers' excellent eponymous debut.<br />
<br />
During a recent tour stop in Toronto, the band sat down at Saving Grace, one of the city's hippest brunch spots, to break bread with Spinner. (And we know it's hip 'cause we spotted hipster poster boy <a href="http://www.moviefone.com/celebrity/michael-cera/2070186/main">Michael Cera</a> enjoying a late breakfast.)<br />
<br />
While waiting for our Eggs Benedict, the Barr Brothers reflected on that fateful Montreal gig.<br />
<br />
Back in 2004, when brothers Brad and Andrew Barr were members of the Boston-based avant-rock trio the Slip, a cigarette butt recklessly tossed into a backstage garbage can produced some unintentional pyrotechnics.<br />
<br />
"We were doing a sort of <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Squarepusher/">Squarepusher</a>-version of <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/LeonardCohen/">Leonard Cohen</a>'s 'Hallelujah.' It was a pivotal moment, when the crowd was singing along, and all of a sudden, smoke starts billowing out of the back of the club," drummer Andrew Barr told Spinner. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>barr brothers</category><category>The Barr Brothers</category><category>TheBarrBrothers</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-10-26T17:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Lights Launches 'Siberia' in Toronto With Help From Holy F--- and Shad</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/10/05/lights-siberia-toronto-concert/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/10/05/lights-siberia-toronto-concert/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/10/05/lights-siberia-toronto-concert/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/concert/" rel="tag">Concerts and Tours</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/rpm/" rel="tag">RPM</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Lights" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/10/lights-456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Jeremy Chan Photography</span></p>
</div>
For her sophomore effort, 'Siberia,' Canadian electro-pop maven, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Lights/">Lights</a> teamed up with indie-electro band <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/HolyFuck/">Holy F---</a> and Juno-winning rapper <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Shad/">Shad</a>. The result is a record more sonically adventurous than most were expecting given her slick, radio-ready 2009 debut.<br />
<br />
When we crashed the singer's intimate release party in Toronto, Lights told Spinner that she chalks up the direction of new record to letting go -- and letting people in.<br />
<br />
"I used to be afraid to let people into the creative process," she told Spinner. "This record is such a great triumph because of the artistic talents that put their mark on the album." ]]>
     </description>
     <category>HolyFuck</category><category>lights</category><category>shad</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-10-05T12:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Lights Joins Forces With Holy F--- and New Sound Scares Off Her U.S. Major Label</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/29/lights-siberia/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/29/lights-siberia/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/29/lights-siberia/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Lights" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/09/lights-456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Universal Music</span></p>
</div>
Siberia is a frozen wasteland in eastern Russia where criminals and political prisoners once endured years of hard labour in Gulag prison camps. It's also the title of the suprisingly edgy new album from Canadian electro-pop star Lights, which is also making people uncomfortable -- but in a good way.<br />
<br />
'Siberia' is more sonically adventurous than its predecessor, 2009's 'The Listening,' which went Gold in her native Canada and won accolades around the world. Lights' new sound comes from collaborating with <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/HolyFuck/">Holy F---</a>, the Toronto-based duo who create electro music using analog equipment without the aid of computers or sequencers. Their signature distorted bleeps, thundering saw-tooth bass lines and strange noise-rock soundscapes helped Lights break out of the pop mold. But not everyone is in on the celebration<br />
<br />
"We made a record we were incredibly proud of, but the U.S. label didn't feel the same way," she tells Spinner. ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Holy Fuck</category><category>HolyFuck</category><category>lights</category><category>shad</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-09-29T13:30:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Jim Cuddy Feels 'Sympathy for Toronto,' Slags City's Right-Wing Mayor</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/27/jim-cuddy-skyscraper-soul/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/27/jim-cuddy-skyscraper-soul/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/27/jim-cuddy-skyscraper-soul/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Jim Cuddy" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/09/jim-cuddy-456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Pollock Heather</span></p>
</div>
Like Madrid and Paris, Toronto is "one of the great cities," according to <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/BlueRodeo/">Blue Rodeo</a> co-frontman <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/JimCuddy/">Jim Cuddy</a>.<br />
<br />
Some Canadians don't share his affection for the Big Smoke, though. But until now, the long-established rivalry between Torontonians and the rest of the nation hadn't really bothered Cuddy.<br />
<br />
"Recently, I've felt sympathy for Toronto," he tells Spinner.<br />
<br />
With the city now under siege by a right-wing mayor who seems intent on making deep cuts to arts funding and social programs, Cuddy (an active supporter of Canada's socialist-leaning New Democrat Party) is standing up for his stomping ground.<br />
<br />
"It was funny for a while that everybody hated Toronto but now I don't think it's funny. And I don't think [mayor] Rob Ford is funny -- that's a waste of four years." ]]>
     </description>
     <category>blue rodeo</category><category>BlueRodeo</category><category>jim cuddy</category><category>JimCuddy</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-09-27T13:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>The Human League Blast 'X-Factor,' Shocked by 'Weird' Lady Gaga Love</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/01/human-league/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/01/human-league/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/09/01/human-league/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Human League" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/09/human-league-456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>David Ramos, Getty Images</span></p>
</div>
When the <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/HumanLeague/">Human League</a> dropped their juggernaut hit single 'Don't You Want Me' back in 1981, the synthpop trio were among a small group of innovative artists pioneering the use of electronic instruments in mainstream music. Now, as the band prepares a sweeping tour in support of their recently released ninth studio album, 'Credo,' singer Susan Ann Sulley says she blames televised talent competitions such as '<a href="http://www.aoltv.com/2011/06/02/the-x-factor-youtube-auditions/">X Factor</a>' and '<a href="http://www.aoltv.com/category/american-idol">American Idol</a>' for making the new generation of music-makers less willing to push boundaries.<br />
<br />
"Nowadays it's all about vocal acrobats and a wide vocal range, but I don't think you need all that," Sulley tells Spinner. "You don't all have to be the same, you can be a bit more individual."<br />
<br />
"None of my heroes would get past the audition round," she adds. "<a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/DavidBowie/">David Bowie</a>, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/GaryNuman/">Gary Numan</a>, and <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/BryanFerry/">Bryan Ferry</a> just wouldn't stand a chance." ]]>
     </description>
     <category>human league</category><category>HumanLeague</category><category>LadyGaga</category><category>TheHumanLeague</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-09-01T16:30:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Jim Cuddy Commemorates Royal Wedding on Solo Album 'Skyscraper Soul'</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/23/jim-cuddy-blue-rodeo-royal-wedding/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/23/jim-cuddy-blue-rodeo-royal-wedding/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/23/jim-cuddy-blue-rodeo-royal-wedding/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Jim Cuddy" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/08/jim-cuddy-456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Heather Pollock</span></p>
</div>
'Everyone Watched the Wedding,' the lead-off single from <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/JimCuddy/">Jim Cuddy</a>'s forthcoming solo release, 'Skyscraper Soul,' is a heartfelt ballad inspired by the recent <a href="http://royalwedding.aol.com/">royal nuptials</a> of Kate Middleton and Prince William. Cuddy, who co-fronts Canadian titans <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/BlueRodeo/">Blue Rodeo</a>, claims he's not usually much of a "royalist" but the song wrote itself.<br />
<br />
"I was trying to write a rock song, and I know when it's not working, because I start to get sleepy," he tells Spinner. "I was about to give up and lay down then I picked up my new guitar and boom! The song was almost complete in about half an hour; it's very rare they come like that for me." ]]>
     </description>
     <category>blue rodeo</category><category>BlueRodeo</category><category>jim cuddy</category><category>jimcuddy</category><category>RoyalWedding</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-08-23T15:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>The Midway State Keep the Faith After Label Issues and Lady Gaga Leak</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/10/midway-state-paris-or-india/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/10/midway-state-paris-or-india/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/10/midway-state-paris-or-india/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-releases/" rel="tag">New Releases</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="The Midway State"  src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/08/the-midway-state-456_thumbnail.jpg"  /><span>Ivan Otis</span></p>
</div>
Part of growing up is realizing that in life there are no guarantees. Juno Award-winning band the <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/MidwayState/">Midway State</a> learned that lesson the hard way.<br />
<br />
In 2007, when the Midway State's members were fresh out of high school, the band was the subject of a major label bidding war that saw the small-town Ontario boys flying around the world hobnobbing with the likes of legendary producer Jimmy Iovine (<a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/BruceSpringsteen/">Bruce Springsteen</a>, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/JohnLennon/">John Lennon</a>, <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/U2/">U2</a>).<br />
<br />
Eventually, they signed with Interscope records in the U.S., with the band believing they were destined for international rock stardom. Who could blame them? Everyone claimed the quartet was "the next U2"; singer Nathan Ferraro even <a href="http://www.spinner.com/2009/06/23/lady-gaga-covers-kate-bush-peter-gabriel-with-canadian-rockers/">recorded a duet</a> of the classic <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/PeterGabriel/">Peter Gabriel</a> and <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/KateBush/">Kate Bush</a> song 'Don't Give up' with <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/LadyGaga/">Lady Gaga</a>. ("It was really exciting doing that collaboration with Nathan," Gaga told Spinner at the time). ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Lady Gaga</category><category>LadyGaga</category><category>MidwayState</category><category>the midway state</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-08-10T15:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>The Beauties + Broken Social Scene's Kevin Drew Spend a Wild Day With Spinner</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/03/beauties-broken-social-scene-kevin-drew/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/03/beauties-broken-social-scene-kevin-drew/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/08/03/beauties-broken-social-scene-kevin-drew/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/concert/" rel="tag">Concerts and Tours</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="the beauties" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/08/the-beauties-456_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Courtesy of the Beauties</span></p>
</div>
<em>Through their popular and long-running Sunday night residency at Toronto's Dakota Tavern as well as similar weekly gigs in both New York and Ottawa, and by serving as the go-to back-up band for a slew of solo artists, the <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Beauties/">Beauties</a> have built a reputation as a hard-working, blue-collar rock and roll band.<br />
<br />
On a recent Sunday, Spinner tagged along with the Toronto five-piece as they logged an impressive five sets, on three stages, in two cities -- all in one day. Come along for the ride as we spend a day with the Beauties.</em> ]]>
     </description>
     <category>beauties</category><category>Broken Social Scene</category><category>BrokenSocialScene</category><category>Kevin Drew</category><category>KevinDrew</category><category>SerenaRyder</category><category>thebeauties</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-08-03T14:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
<item>
     <title>Bjork's Noisemakers Discuss the One-of-a-Kind Instruments Heard on 'Biophilia'</title>
     <link>http://www.spinner.com/2011/07/29/bjork-biophilia-instruments/</link>
     <guid isPermaLink="true">http://www.spinner.com/2011/07/29/bjork-biophilia-instruments/</guid>
     <comments>http://www.spinner.com/2011/07/29/bjork-biophilia-instruments/#comments</comments>
     <description>
     <![CDATA[<p>Filed under: <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/news/" rel="tag">News</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/exclusive/" rel="tag">Exclusive</a>, <a href="http:///www.spinner.com/category/new-music/" rel="tag">New Music</a></p><br/><div class="photo-slim">
	<p class="cap">
		<img alt="Bjork" src="http://www.blogcdn.com/www.spinner.com/media/2011/07/bjork-456-082811_thumbnail.jpg" /><span>Courtesy of Bjork</span></p>
</div>
<em>For a musician, there is nothing more frustrating than imagining a sound that can't be replicated. So what do you do if no instrument on the planet can create the symphony that's looping in your head? If you are <a href="http://www.spinner.com/tag/Bjork/">Bjork</a>, you call on a team of scientists, instrument makers, and sound designers to invent new ones.<br />
<br />
The music on the Icelandic singer's latest album and multidisciplinary art project, 'Biophilia,' was created using massive, imaginative, one-of-a-kind instruments, and Spinner spoke to the brains behind Bjork's bespoke noisemakers.</em> ]]>
     </description>
     <category>Bjork</category> 
     <dc:creator>Lonny Knapp</dc:creator>
     <dc:date>2011-07-29T13:00:00 00:00</dc:date>
</item>
</channel></rss>
