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Sadly, Swainson wasn't at the gig on the 28th. He also was going to miss the 29th, so I didn't stop back on the 2nd night. Thermo is a pretty good outfit, but I was really hoping to catch Swainson again. He is supposed to be backing Pat LaBarbara at the Rex on June 24, and I should be able to make that show.

Just saw the news this morning and am pre-ordering now. 😊 Discussed here in the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/jun/01/john-coltrane-recordings-lost-in-new-york-public-library-will-finally-be-heard

Managed to catch a few films in the Pop Japan series here at TIFF: A Tale of Sorrow and Sadness and Tokyo Drifter both directed by Seijun Suzuki. I was trying to see Spirited Away but all the showings were sold out. 😢 It's supposed coming back to North America at the end of Oct. as part of Ghibli Fest, and I'll just try harder to get tickets then.

I'm sure he gets a much, much bigger cut through Bandcamp vs. mere pennies (if that) through the streaming sites. But the downside is almost no visibility at all. I had no idea about any of these releases whereas I do find out about new jazz releases every month or so through Apple Music.

I guess this is just the sign of the times. Jason Moran released a full-length CD on Bandcamp back in January - https://jasonmoran.bandcamp.com/album/from-the-dancehall-to-the-battlefield As far as I can tell there is no physical release (or perhaps there was one but it sold out). I also don't think it is available on any of the typical streaming sites, which is definitely unusual. There seem to be two other releases (from 2021 but this is the first time I heard about them) also on Bandcamp. https://jasonmoran.bandcamp.com/album/graves-moran-live-at-big-ears https://jasonmoran.bandcamp.com/album/the-sound-will-tell-you-2 And then some odds and ends from before this.

I'll probably pick this up but agree it is far from ideal.

Going for the first set at The Rex tonight - It's the Tim Posgate Quartet. He plays both banjo and guitar. Not sure which we'll get more of in the first set. My money is on the banjo... 😉 Next week there are two dates by Thermo (Nathan Hiltz on guitar, and Mike Manny on piano) at The Rex. But their recent recording features Neil Swainson on bass, and I'm certainly hoping he'll be at both gigs (May 28 & 29). I'm fairly likely to go both nights if he is playing.

Terrible way to go... I read Money and London Fields quite a long time ago and had been thinking of rereading them. I might do so now, though I am a bit more inclined to read something "fresh" to me. I'm pretty sure I never got around to Time's Arrow, and I might tackle that one next.

I'll go with this performance from 2006. https://www.bimhuis.nl/en/calendar/andrew-hill-quintet-2/ I didn't have the nerve to talk to Andrew himself, but I did speak briefly with Jason Yarde, who said that the "book" for the gig was pretty challenging. However, I didn't jot down what they actually played. 🙁 So in that sense I found it a really noteworthy performance, but not one where I remember the details all that well...

I finished Farrell's The Singapore Grip, completing his Empire Trilogy. I thought the ending was a bit of a strange cop-out, but overall it's a good read. Of the three, I'd have to say Troubles, the first, is my favorite. I'm midway through Vanderhaeghe's Homesick now, which is about a widow returning with her young son to her father's house. After this, I think I start in on rereading Bellow's The Adventures of Augie March.

Agreed. I must have all these albums in one format or another (and possibly even the Rhino CDs - will have to check), so I probably wouldn't have gone for it, but the fact that the vinyl set gets 3 extra bonus tracks really gets under my skin, and now there is no way I would consider it. Not a compelling offering on any level.

In March and April, the Rex has been able to bring in a fair number of Juno nominees and even some winners. I saw Mark Kelso & the Jazz Exiles a couple of weeks ago, and tonight was the Jocelyn Gould Quintet. Gould is a guitarist heavily influenced by Wes Montgomery. She is a Juno winner. If I'm able to swing it, I'll see the Lauren Falls Quintet next Monday evening.

Just saw Bertolucci's The Conformist on the big screen. Definitely a lush, almost dreamlike movie. The visuals are incredible. The actual story, not as compelling to me, particularly as there are several moments I couldn't even tell what was going on (exactly who was shooting at whom, for instance). But still worth seeing for sure.

Read Dangling Man years ago. It is not a typical Bellow novel for better and worse. In a month or so, I expect to tackle Augie March for the second time. Currently about 1/3 into Farrell's The Singapore Grip. It's a bit of a slow-burner to this point, as the various characters are brought together in Singapore and WWII is looming. I had absolutely no idea that this was just (2020) adapted into a TV series by ITV. Reviews have been mixed, and I think I'll pass. It's less surprising that the BBC turned this into a radio play, and that I might listen to one day. We'll see... Also, making my way through Coupland's Hey Nostradamus! Between these two and Augie March, it will likely be some short story collections.

Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this show at all and left after an hour. This wasn't at all what I was expecting based on his last few albums. I suspect I would have much preferred his quartet (with Greg Tardy) but this was the Bill Frisell Trio.

McBride's actually coming back around with a more traditional line-up on Nov. 4, and I am looking forward to that. Am heading over to see Bill Frisell in a couple of hours. At least it isn't snowing today... ❄️

About 1/3 through Farrell's The Siege of Krishnapur. I was lucky enough to score a Folio Society edition, which has some great illustrations. I will say I probably should have waited until the summer to read it (not late winter) as almost every chapter has some comment on the brutal heat and how people are nearly fainting. I do find Troubles was a bit more amusing starting out, but this has many droll passages. I've just hit the siege part, and the action is picking up. Will most likely tackle Baker's A Fine Madness and Percy Walker's The Moviegoer next, and then back to Farrell with The Singapore Grip rounding out his Empire Trilogy.

One single, Willow Weep for Me, from this project has just turned up on various streaming services, which is a good sign that the whole thing will likely be released that way. Whether there will be a CD release isn't as clear.

Weather is not great. Roads should be in better shape tomorrow. Assuming transit (and esp. busses) is more or less back to normal tomorrow, I will plan on seeing Allison Au at The Rex.

This looks really interesting. Any idea on the release date? (More definitive than spring?) Maybe it can be a late birthday gift or something...

Who knew White Noise was actually a documentary? Yikes! https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/06/politics/ohio-train-derailment-infrastructure-what-matters/index.html This looks exactly like a still from the movie.

I finished the Guerney translation of Dead Souls and am about halfway through the Reavey translation, which has a reconstruction of Book II. I'm also about 2/3 through Reuss's Horace Afoot. I'm still waiting for Farrell's The Siege of Krishnapur to show up in the mail (starting to get a bit concerned...), which will probably be the next significant novel I tackle. I might read Kingsley Amis's Girl, 20 in the meantime.

So Plant and Krauss have reunited for a second album, Raise the Roof. It looks like they did a fairly modest 20 stop tour in 2022, and are touring again in 2023. I decided to take the plunge and will see them in early July. I definitely respect the fact that Plant is not resting on his laurels and has no intention of just playing his old material (as great as most of it is). It looks like at most they play 3 Led Zeppelin songs in radically different interpretations, but mostly they are playing material from Raising Sand and Raise the Roof.

I thought these two concerts looked interesting for anyone in the area. Normally if we get a major jazz act, they are playing at Koerner Hall or as part of the summer jazz fest. These are outside those two streams. Christian McBride is presenting his The Moment Revisited at Meridian Hall downtown on Feb. 17. Joe Sealy opens the night with Africville Stories, which sounds like it will also be pretty interesting. https://www.blogto.com/events/christian-mcbride-the-movement-revisited-toronto/ Tickets are through TicketMaster. I didn't even notice the coupon code in the blog posting until now. I have no idea if it actually works (and probably best not to tell me if it does...) 😒 Then in early March (March 11) Bill Frisell is coming to town and playing The Great Hall, which is Queen Street West. https://www.collectiveconcerts.com/event/bill-frisell-gh I've seen McBride in a few settings. I don't think I've ever seen Frisell, but it's possible I have at the Chicago Jazz Fest and just don't remember.

For sure, but I was hoping for (and got!) a signed copy. I believe the entire catalogue is on iTunes and probably Spotify as well, so I've been doing a lot of sampling of the many great recommendations in this thread. 🤩