Author Archives: Abby Hunt

‘Bat Out of Hell’ Singer Dies at 74

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We say goodbye to yet another musical legend. Meat Loaf, the well-known and beloved rock star has sadly passed away at the age of 74 on January 20th, 2022. There are currently no details released on how he died, but we do know we struggled with several health issues in the last several years.

Michael Lee Aday, more well known as Meat Loaf, was born in Dallas, Texas and had a killer rock music career that lasted over six decades. His most successful piece of work was his Bat Out of Hell album trilogy. The first album of the trilogy is one of the best-selling albums of all time with over 43 million copies sold since it released in 1977.

Not only is this album famous for his strong, loud opera rock style but also for the cover art. The dark, gothic imagery is iconic and still loved today.

Meat Loaf was also featured in a number of films and television shows such as Rocky Horror Picture Show where he played Eddie, Fight Club where he played Robert “Bob” Paulson and even made a quick cameo musical appearance in a Rocky Horror Picture Show themed episode of Glee… that one I find very surprising.

One of my personal favourites by him is “Paradise by the Dashboard Light”. Ellen Foley joins him on vocals to perform an operatic duet that tells a bit of a funny story.

If you’re interested in learning more about Meat Loaf’s personal life and successful career, I would recommend reading his autobiography To Hell and Back. He retells some of the craziest stories he’s experienced, and trust me, you won’t believe some of them!

#BettyWhiteChallenge Raises Donations in Her Honour

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January 17th of this year would have been Betty White’s 100th birthday.

In honour of the legend Betty White – a long time animal lover and advocate for animal welfare, a viral trend encourages fans to donate to animal shelters and rescue operations in her name. By using the hashtag #BettyWhiteChallenge, word spread all over social media.

Betty, sadly passed on December 31st, 2021, at the age of 99, had a career in the television and film industry that spanned over 60 years.  She was a pioneer in the entertainment industry, one of the first women to work both in front of and behind the camera. The American comedic actress was most well known for television sitcoms specifically her work in The Golden Girls and The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Back in 2010, she was also the oldest person to ever host Saturday Night Live.

Aside from her entertainment career, she was an outspoken animal lover and was known for her charitable work involving animals. She worked closely with the Greater Los Angeles Zoo ever since it opened in 1966. This zoo was one of the main recipients of the donations receiving over $94,000 in her honour. Even close to home, local foundations saw a huge spike in donations. BCSPCA saw over $400,000 come in.

Many of the foundations, rescue shelters and zoos explain that they are so thankful, and the sheer amount of donations is unbelievable, it is also really about the awareness that this viral challenge has brought.

January is usually one of the worsts times of the year for donations to animal shelters and rescues because most people are tapped out from their holiday expenses so this new trend will hopefully continue over the years to help raise money in Betty’s name.

 

A New Leader in Jeopardy!

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If you’re a fan of the show “Jeopardy!”, you may have heard of the name Ken Jennings, who currently holds the longest consecutive winning streak on the show.

Well, there is a new sheriff in town and her name is Amy Schneider. On Friday, she continued her climb up the leaderboard and tied Matt Amodio who held the second-place record for consecutive wins. She now holds 38 consecutive wins and $1,307,200.

Not only does Ken Jennings hold the longest streak but he is the current host of the game show. Although Amy Schneider looks ahead to beat his streak, she has a long way to go. Ken Jennings holds an astonishing streak of 74 games during a historic run back in 2004.

Amy Schneider is the first woman to break $1 million in winnings on the show. She is also the first transgender “Jeopardy!” contestant to qualify for the Tournament of Champions. But Schneider is not the first openly transgender contestant on “Jeopardy!” A year ago, Kate Freeman, another winner, paved the way.

Amy Schneider has been a huge inspiration for fans and has even been beneficial for older audiences who have had their eyes opened by her beautiful personality, wise words and unconventional mind. Her appearance on the show has had a clear positive impact in the LGBTQ+ community.

Schneider is very active on Twitter where she shares a lot about her personal life, words of positivity and insight to her game play.

Although Amy has a few ideas on how she wants to spend her earnings from the show, such as adding some designer clothes to her wardrobe, she says she is most excited about her overall success and experience on the show.

Amy will be back tomorrow Monday January 24th in hopes of continuing her winning streak.

When We Were Young Festival 2022

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A new music festival has emo and punk rock fans (like myself) floored by a truly iconic and star-studded lineup. It’s not just a phase mom!

When We Were Young festival has over 60 bands performing including some legendary noteworthy names such as Avril Lavigne, My Chemical Romance, Paramore, Pierce the Veil, Sleeping with Sirens, Jimmy Eat World, the All American Rejects and so many more. This nostalgia packed lineup is sure to excite all.

The show will be held at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds on October 22nd and 23rd. Although they initially intended to host a one-day show, there was an overwhelming demand for a second show to be added. Both days will share the exact same lineup to assure fans won’t miss a thing. Tickets have already sold out, but fans can sign up for a waitlist in hopes of snagging a last-minute ticket.

Although the excitement for the festival is evident, a lot of fans have expressed their concerns for safety of the show. The festival is presented by Live Nation Entertainment who was responsible for the planning, staffing and communication surrounding Travis Scott’s Astroworld music festival in Houston, Texas. The popular festival resulted in 10 deaths and hundreds of injuries.

The company is facing multiple lawsuits and an investigation is ongoing looking into how Live Nation planned for potential safety hazards.

The company responded to concerns and assured fans that this concerts safety measures have been thoroughly planned to prevent any casualties.

Let’s hope for the sake of all of us reminiscing on our emo phase, or those still stuck in their emo phase, that this festival is a hit!

If you want to take a time machine back about two decades to lose yourself in sweet punk rock nostalgia, many fans have made playlists on all the popular streaming platforms for hours of listening.

Countdown to the 2022 Winter Olympics

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Start counting down the days, the 2022 Winter Olympics are right around the corner.

With the surge of covid-19 cases and the contagious omicron variant, concerns have come up on whether or not the 2022 Winter Olympics will actually happen. As of right now, the intention is that they will indeed occur, although there is still quite a bit of uncertainty.

This year’s Winter Olympics are taking place in Beijing, China and are scheduled to officially begin on February 4th and close on February 20th. The Paralympics will then take place on March 4th with ten days of competition concluding on March 14th.

Beijing is the first city to host both the summer and winter Olympics and they will actually be reusing several of the venues from the 2008 Summer Olympics for this year.

Normally, the Winter Olympics and the Summer Olympics take place every four years but staggered by two years, meaning we get either a summer or winter edition every two years. If you think that it feels like it hasn’t been that long since the last Olympics, you’re not alone. Since the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics were postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there has actually only been a six month gap between the 2020 Summer Games and this years, 2022 Winter Games.

There will be seven different sports at this year’s Winter Olympics, and also different disciplines for each. There will be biathlon, bobsleigh (which includes both bobsleigh and skeleton), curling, ice hockey, luge, skating (which includes speed skating, short track speed skating and figure skating) and skiing (which includes cross-country skiing, ski jumping, Nordic combined, alpine skiing, freestyle skiing and snowboard).

It comes as no surprise; this year’s Winter Olympics will look a little different due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Protocols like quarantining, social distancing, limited contact and limited spectators will be taking place. According to the International Olympic Committee all athletes will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 at least 14 days before their arrival if they hope to compete.

Check out the full 2022 Winter Olympic schedule here.

Netflix Confirms Season Two Renewal of Squid Game

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Everyone’s favourite Korean Netflix show has been granted a second season.

That’s right, “Squid Game” will be back again to give us another season of violent and horrific entertainment.

The first season of the show premiered in September 2021 and became an immediate global sensation. Soon after the show released, it was the top-viewed series in 94 countries and is officially the most watched show on Netflix.

Of course, when it initially came out, I had to hop on the trend and give it a watch and I do admit, it was worth it. The show’s storyline consists of a large group of financially desperate individuals who compete in a series of children’s games in hopes of winning millions of dollars. Although, this summary makes the games seem harmless, there is a twist: while winning results in earning loads of money, losing could result in death.

The series made quite a splash at the 2022 Screen Actors Guild Awards by becoming the first non-English-language series and the first Korean series to receive a nomination, for cast in a drama series, actor in a drama series (Lee Jung-jae), actress in a drama series (Jung Ho-yeon) and stunt ensemble.

“Squid Game” also won three Golden Globe Awards, including best TV drama and O Yeong-su earned a supporting actor trophy. The show was also awarded three Critics Choice Awards nominations.

Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s Co-CEO and Chief Content Officer, stated that “The Squid Game universe has just begun.”

It shouldn’t be too big of a surprise that a second season is in the works as they did leave us with quite a twist to the ending of season one.

Although the buzz is exciting, we still could be potentially years away from a new season on Netflix.

A New Queen of BC Pop

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This local star is making big moves in the BC music scene and her name is Alexis Lynn. She is native to Surrey, British Columbia and describes her style as sweet pop with a honeyed vocal tone and a little edge underneath. Ever since she was a kid, she knew she was destined to be a singer. She took up song writing as a teenager, and it just clicked. Alexis always found writing came quite easy and naturally to her. She has family roots in Canada’s First Nations which inspired her to take up storytelling and stick with her belief in the importance of sharing our big moments and life experiences.

Her two most played tracks include “Bubble” and “Ghosts”. “Bubble” was released in 2020 and has a bit of a flirty bubble gum pop sound, with the lyrics discussing emotional availability.  “Ghosts” also released in 2020, has a bit of a modern upbeat Billie Eilish feel about vulnerability and insecurity.

Two of the artists she looks up to are Amy Winehouse and Rihanna. She continues to create a unique style and sound while drawing inspiration from the greats.

What’s up next for Alexis Lynn?

With the pandemic, live music has been on the back burner, so she wanted to dig deeper into her writing to offer her audience a bit more to grasp with topics such as mental health and relationships. With restrictions easing up she intends are getting out and performing locally over the next while.

Her most recent released dropped just on November 26th and is titled “December Dreaming” getting us warmed up for a season of Christmas tunes. In this specific song I really compare her sound to Ariana Grande with a unique twist. Two years before this release she offered us, yet another original Christmas song titled “Christmas Cards”.

She will be performing locally at the Trading Post Brewery from 6pm-9pm on November 27th and again on December 18th.

The Cool Kids of The Kastle

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“Musical ADHD” is what this band likes to describe themselves. Sleepy Gonzales is an eclectic indie rock group from Surrey, British Columbia. The collective is made up of twin brothers Cristian, who is on guitar and vocals, and Benji who is on drums and vocals. Added to the mix is their bass guitarist and punk enthusiast Nick who brings a little edge to the bands style. And lastly, Ally, the front person of the group. She’s got an incredible range and versatility with strong hook-filled melodies. Her sound reminds me a lot of Phoebe Bridgers, with her ability to hold a note and her sad soft sound.

Although their style is ever-changing and oh-so versatile, I liken most of their work to The Velvet Underground meshed with Alt-J, and then mix in a little Rainbow Kitten Surprise. Their music is like soft dreamlike melodies or could be described as suburban sadness soaked in reverb. You can only compare to an extent, cause these guys definitely have their own kind of sound.

Their album, Slow Apocalypse, which released in December of 2020 was a big hit for their widespread audience. Songs like “Motorbike” “Sally on the Avenue” and my favourite, “The King of Rat Kastle” have collected a number of listens. Their current Spotify monthly listener count sits at over 15,000.

Their most recent release was an album titled NEW YORK SLUDGE that dropped in October of 2021, and it has a bit of a different sound. I describe it as a grimy, authentic VHS feel. When I listen to these tracks I picture real life experiences, the way that they use this imagery with very few words is magical.

Although they started out as a small-time basement band, they have moved up to bigger and better things and are now touring with the band, The Backseat Lovers. They have multiple shows lined up in December throughout Washington, Idaho and Oregon. They have one tour stop in Vancouver at the Commodore Ballroom on March 14th of 2022. Get your tickets here: https://www.ticketmaster.ca/event/11005B63B39A3361

 

The Hidden Artists of BC

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A few years back, I spent two years living down in Nashville, Tennessee. Now if you know anything about this lovely little city, then you know its nick-named Music City for a reason. While I was there, I attended a literal music school. And yes, lots of noteworthy artists attended, such as Brad Paisley, COIN, Josh Tuner, Judah and the Lion, Chris Young, Florida Georgia Line and many more to name. I’d take a walk to class, bands would be rehearsing outside the building, I would grab an iced coffee at the local café and aspiring writers would be penciling away at their next big hit, I’d stroll through the busy downtown street and artists would be performing a free concert for passersby.

When I moved back home here to Vancouver, I felt that a big part of me missed living in a city where music is so abundant, but I quickly realized that is not true, I just need to dig a little deeper, look a little harder, because they are plenty here in Vancouver but just not in plain sight as they were in Nashville.

So, I started searching, and it doesn’t take too long to find aspiring artists eager to have someone listen. The upside (and sometimes the downside) to making music in this day and age is how accessible it can be for the average joe. Meaning if I sat down right now and said, “I feel like producing a song” I pretty much could, so long as I have access to a computer (but no one said it would be a good song).

In my deep search of good local music, I came across Wet Future, a band built of young rock musicians from Vancouver Island. Their music is alternative rock at the core with strong vocals, charisma and groovy vibes.

When I listen to their tracks, I hear sounds like Cage the Elephant, The Strokes and a bit of MGMT.

At the moment, they only have three singles but to be honest, that was all I needed to hear some true talent. “Bittersweet”, “Peppermints” and “Toughen Up” were all released in 2021 but they assured fans that a full album is in the works, so stay tuned!

A Band Name You Won’t Forget

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A band with a name you won’t forget. The New Pornographers are a Canadian indie/alternative rock group based out of Vancouver, British Columbia. They musical collective formed in 1997 and consists of eight singer-songwriters and musicians.

Allan Carl Newman, also known as A.C. Newman was a member of multiple indie rock bands in the 90s, and after those bands broke up, he became the leader of The New Pornographers. He once stated that he originally choose the name after watching a Japanese film called The Pornographers.

Over the years, the band has come to release eight albums. Their debut album, Mass Romantic, was recorded and created over the course of three years. The style of the album is more of a power pop form of indie rock and individual songs were often compared to artists like The Beatles, David Bowie, T. Rex and Todd Rundgren. Although it was their first real, released album, it was received quite well across Canada where it was nominated and won a Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year. In December 2007, Blender, the American music magazine, listed Mass Romantic as the 24th best indie rock album of all time. It sits at the second highest Canadian album on the list behind Arcade Fire’s Funeral.

In spring 2003, the band released their second album Electric Version. The song “The Electric Version” was included as a playable song in the video game Rock Game. In 2009, Rolling Stone ranked the album number 79 in “100 Best Albums of the Decade”.

In recent music, they released their eighth album In the Morse Code of Brake Lights which contained one of their most popular songs, “Falling Down the Stairs of Your Smile”. Even after 20 years of making music they are still making tracks people want to listen to.

They will be performing in Vancouver at the Vogue Theatre on December 11th and 12th for their 21st anniversary of their album Mass Romantic.