Canada

The Monks’ Bad Habits hard to break

An anomalous punk hit in Canada gets a loving tribute at the Horseshoe. By: Nick Krewen Special to the Star, Published on Wed Jul 25 2012 “Nice legs, shame about her face.” If you’re old enough to remember those lyrics, you’ll recall that circa 1979-1980 there was a band named The Monks that owned Canadian Top 40 radio for a spell with the novel ditty “Drugs In My Pocket.” The…


Taking The Reins

Story by Nick Krewen | June 28, 2012 For SOCAN Words And Music.   Control. It’s a treasured commodity, the ability to call your own shots, and when you consider it in the context of a recording artist in the music business, as rare as liquid plutonium. But with its fifth album Synthetica, Toronto’s Metric have achieved the unthinkable: Singer and synthesizer player Emily Haines and guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Jimmy…


Sarah McLachlan with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra: review

Nick Krewen reviews the show as Sarah McLachlan kicks off her 13-date Symphony Tour Friday night at the Molson Amphitheatre in Toronto. Nick Krewen Special to the Star Published on Sat Jun 23 2012 Whenever you play with an orchestra, it’s good to remember that there are strings attached. It was a notion that seemed lost for the first half of Sarah McLachlan’s hit-and-miss two-hour concert with the Toronto Symphony…


Dan Kanter on mad life at Bieber’s side

Toronto guitarist and pop megastar’s right-hand man has had best seat to watch his rise. Nick Krewen Special to the Star Published on Fri Jun 15 2012 Life with Justin Bieber is never boring. Just ask Dan Kanter, the Toronto guitarist, producer and musical tour director who has been the Stratford pop phenom’s right-hand man since The Bieb’s meteoric rise to the top began three years ago. “It’s been quite…


Thousand Foot Krutch gets extra support online

Entertainment / Music Kickstarter appeal to Christian band’s fans yields $105,000 for new album. Thousand Foot Krutch got closer to their fans with new financial relationship forged online.   Nick Krewen Special to the Star Published on Wed May 16 2012   Is crowd funding the new music industry paradigm? When Christian hard rock trio Thousand Foot Krutch split from its label after 10 years and selling nearly one million…