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This may sound odd, coming from a guitarist, but it’s true: upward of 90% of all guitar solos ever recorded are unnecessary, add nothing to the song and in many cases actually detract from the music.

Alas, guitar solos (and their purveyors: guitarists) can be loosely analogous to commercials flogged by ad agencies. Many of them are created for the singular purpose of gratifying their creators and (ostensibly) to demo their virtuosity.

Rarely does it happen that a guitar solo can be a building block to a song. Most of them are pure wankfests. continue

Noise is a very smart bass player. He said last year “if we record a Christmas song, it’ll get played every year as DJ’s and podcasters scramble for anything Christmas-like for their Christmas shows”, so we recorded Have a Parkdale Hookers Christmas Time last year which was today selected as CBC Radio3′s New Music Canada Track of the Day

Good work Phil. Take the rest of the day off.

…even if you’re not a drummer.

1. 9V batteries
2. a power cable and adapter
3. a drum key
4. pliers
5. a roll of toilet paper (don’t ask)
6. guitar strings of the proper gauge for every member of your band
7. drum sticks
8. duct tape
9. blank CDW’s (most sound boards can burn the stage sound straight to disk these days)
10. ….the current gig’s set list

Canadian Heritage has just released their Report on the Canadian Music Industry and finds (surprise) that things are quite a bit different from the imminent collapse of civilization routinely predicted by the major label sock puppets at the Canadian Recording Industry Association.

It is nice to feel vindicated by this report. Although being a nobody in the music industry, I take a certain pride in having made certain calls about where things are going and being right about it.

A long time ago I said:
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Direct from the band and just in time for the holidays, feast your ears on Have A Parkdale Hookers Christmas, think Motorhead fronted by Bing Crosby.

We recorded this song at Green Door Sound, where we started practicing this year. John Critchley, who runs the studio, was behind the board and we have to say, we’ve never been happier. This is probably the best sound I have ever come out of a studio with. Sounds like I had a wall of Marshalls in my pocket.

Anyway, have a Parkdale Hookers Christmas Time and enjoy.

Absolutely brilliant via Boing Boing:

P2P insurer will pay your fines if RIAA sues: $19/year!

“Apparently, a company in Sweden is offering file-sharing insurance – they’ll pay your fines if you’re sued by the RIAA. The /. submitter translates the link as follows: ‘For a mere 140 SEK ($19 USD) per year, they will pay all your fines and give you a t-shirt if you get convicted for file sharing.’”