Some stuff I've been learning:

1. Catatonia's "Equally Cursed and Blessed" has not aged well. In particular, the lyrics for "Dead From the Waist Down" are horribly daft, and I can't imagine how I didn't notice it before. Chorus = "make hay, not war" = stupid, stupid, stupid. Releasing this as the first single was a huge career mistake, because the song was a departure (for them) sonically, and the charts had already been clogged for five years with "To the End" weepy epic soundalikes, and nobody was clamouring for any more of them. Releasing "Londonium" would have been far smarter -- livelier tune, better singalong factor, radio friendly at any time day or night, yet the subdued subject matter clearly signaled their shift toward a more introspective agenda. That's not to say that Catatonia's spectacular fall from grace wouldn't have happened anyhow (after all, they did have the gall to use the phrase "fall from grace" in a song, instant karma, yadda yadda) ... oh, and did I mention that "Dazed Beautiful and Bruised" remains one of only two decent power ballads in the history of music (Suede's "The Chemistry Between Us" is the other, and these days it's leaving "Dazed" in its dust).

However, "International Velvet" is still a boatload of fun, even though. 1998 was such a shit year for music, which makes memories of this album seem fonder, if anything.

2. Richie Hawtin is a very busy man when he's spinning. He spun for an hour at a free performance at the HMV on Queen Street, and it was the first time I've ever seen him work at floor level (and with the lights on). His weapons of choice are two turntable, TWO iMacs, a mixer that ressembles the dashboard of a fighter jet, and an effects controller. His literally moving all the time, always tweaking a knob or tapping a button. He also spends almost no time cueing records/beats. His mixing is as seamless as any DJ I've ever heard, a trait which obviously comes with a lot of practice, but the guy literally didn't spend more than seven or eight seconds cueing anythings, freeing up 97% of his time for shaping the mix with his multitudes of toys. These synching abilities can't be tought, it must be like with perfect pitch. You're just born with the ability. Richie Hawtin could walk into a parking lot, pick out two cars at random, smash their windows, and have the car alarms synched in less than five seconds.

He signed autographs afterward and I'm proud to report that I now have a signed white label of the classic "Loop" by LFO/FUSE. Boo. Yah.

3. When did CD's get so cheap? How am I supposed to save my money if such a situation sustains itself. First, there was the rack of ten dollar old-school techno compilations at Metropolis. Then there was the (seemingly inevitable) liquidation of all non funk, dub and hip-hop discs at Kops. I even scored a nice two-disc reggae compo at HMV for just ten bucks. And today, I spent a hefty chunk of time flipping through the racks in the ginormous Sonic Boom, which may be turning into the Amoeba Records of Toronto. Massive space, posters adorning the walls (albeit at 1/10 th Amoeba density), cheap used gem after cheap used gem. Not bad at all. If I never step foot in Amoeba again, that'll be oka .... all right, it damn well won't be okay, but my music needs are well attended to in right here in Toronto nonetheless.