I Heart Edmonton

Starlite Room by emil tiedemann I T ALMOST looked like a medieval church, depending on where you were standing. Brick walls, an arched entrance, and a flock of bohemians, beatniks, and beirdos waiting for the large castle-like doors to swing open and grant them asylum from the cold.  It was the middle of February in Edmonton and so the sooner the better. I had been invited by some publicist because of my blog about “everything Edmonton,” and in fact had never even heard of headliner Michael Bernard Fitzgerald prior to this invite, nor had I ever been to a show at the Starlite Room .    Calgary's Michael Bernard Fitzgerald (left) performing at the Starlite Room, with Andrew Ball on drums. I had at least heard of the Starlite though, and was excited to finally check it out, sort of a hidden gem, unless you’re a fan of any music that Pitchfork or Spin magazine might praise. I hope I didn’t paint a picture of pretentious and arrogant hipsters staring you down ...

Jasper Avenue by emil tiedemann I was sixteen when some friends and I went downtown to the Paramount Theatre on Jasper Avenue to watch Tom Cruise in the original Mission: Impossible movie. I can’t really explain it, but there was something invigorating about that particular night. Maybe it was the big cozy seats, or the flashing lights on the marquee, or perhaps it was a buff Tom Cruise?!  The former Paramount Theatre was a Jasper Avenue highlight. But it wasn’t just the aging Paramount Theatre, it was the Avenue, it was downtown, it was this whole new world I had barely gotten to know yet.  Over the years, Jasper Avenue has been the scene of many of my more memorable moments growing up, getting to know the idiosyncrasies of my hometown’s main drag: the intimate Michael Bernard Fitzgerald concert in a parked van just outside of the Starlite Room with my sister and a few strangers; my goodbye party at The Druid before I left Edmonton to spend far less time in ...

Visionary independent musician festival shakes up Old Strathcona, exposing 150 of the most talented artists of our thriving music scene BY EMIL TIEDEMANN I N a town synonymous with a rich festival legacy, virgin events better have the chutzpah to garner any real recognition or relevance to stand out from the crowded surplus of summertime goings-on in Edmonton. By all accounts, the maiden SOS (Sounds of Old Strathcona) Music Festival did just that. Without a hitch, no! But the 3-day Whyte Avenue extravaganza was a definite triumph for its organizers, the artists, the venues, and the thousands of local and not-so-local patrons who took in the 150+ shows from July 9-11 . Last Friday (July 9) was the kickoff of the first-ever SOS Fest, when acts like Captain Tractor , Ann Vriend , Ten Second Epic , Mustard Smile , and Politic Live blistered huddled barrooms and cramped lounges with the best indie music this province has to offer. The following morning (July 10), I arrived on the infamou...

Dozens & dozens of indie acts will merge in Old Strathcona for Edmonton's newest festival, simultaneously highlighting our diverse music scene BY EMIL TIEDEMANN I KNOW what some of you are thinking. Do we really need ANOTHER festival in this city? Well, if that was what you were thinking, then I'm here to tell you: YES! I mean sure, we have the Fringe , Folk Fest , Capital Ex , the EIFF , Street Performers , Heritage days, The Works , Blues Fest , the Dragon Boat Fest , Global Visions , the International Jazz Festival , the White Light , A Taste of Edmonton , NextFest , Symphony Under the Sky , Ice on Whyte , DEDfest , Cubamemucho , Exposure , Creative Age Festival , the North of Nowhere Expo , Chante , the Literary Festival , dEdmonton , Improvaganza , Ink Fest , Original Fare , the Vocal Arts Fest , Summer Solstice , PoFest , the International Children's Festival , Silver Skate , Serca Fest , the Alberta Drama Festival , Dreamspeakers , the Feats Festival of Dance...

MBF & the Loud Love Choir reminded me of just how much I love music...and they couldn't have come at a better time! BY EMIL TIEDEMANN T WO weeks ago I didn't even know who Michael Bernard Fitzgerald was. Fast forward to last Thursday night (Feb. 11) and I can tell you what kind of beer the man drinks (his concert-sponsored Big Rock , for the record), the names of at least three of his former loves ( Maxine , Suzie & Caroline ), and that he autographs his CDs with an accompanying heart. That's quite the transition! Now let's just rewind back again to a time when I lived in a world without Fitzgerald, MBF for short. All the regulars would take turns singing comparable melodies whenever I turned on the radio, so I stopped turning on the radio. And all the CDs in my car had overstayed their welcome. Then, about two weeks ago, I recieved an email about some "folksy" musician named Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, 23, and that the next stop on his 5-city tour o...

Calgary's next big thing will orchestrate a concert like no other at the Starlite Room What: Michael Bernard Fitzgerald & The Loud Love Choir concert When: Thursday, February 11th @ 8:00PM Where: The Starlite Room (10030-102 St.) A S of late I've noticed that many of the discs making the rounds of my car's CD player are already exaggerated over the radio stations I turn on as an "alternative" from time to time. Not that these acts are unworthy of my Neon's stereo, but every now and again it's good to lend an ear to something fresh, something that's not playing on The Bear or The Bounce , but should be. Something like Michael Bernard Fitzgerald ! This Calgary singer-songwriter has a "knack for writing catchy songs and his willingness to create and texture an album with the feel and sound he is looking for," according to that city's Avenue magazine, which reviewed Fitzgerald's latest album The MBF Love LP (2009). "In this...