Back when Pearl Jam was at their height, they had the clout to do anything they wanted. Anything.

On September 26, 2000, the band released 25 double CD live albums—what they referred to as “official bootlegs”—featuring performances from virtually every show they played on European tour in support of their Binaural album. Of those 25, five immediately made the top 200 album chart. This was the first time any act ever saw more than two new albums show up on the chart in the same week.

Two other sets just missed the cut. Had they made the charts that week, Pearl Jam would have joined The Beatles, The Monkees, and U2 as the only acts to that point with seven albums on the charts at the same time.

This was decades before Taylor Swift came along.

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A question from new parents: “Should I expose my baby to live music?” The answer is “yes.”

A recent study at the University of Toronto revealed that infants have longer attention spans when experiencing live music. Sure, you might want to give them an iPad to stare at, but that apparently doesn’t work as well as live music. Videos don’t captivate them a whole lot but live music elicits physiological changes like a synchronization of heart rate to the music.

The final conclusion? “Findings suggest that performer–audience interactions and social context play an important role in facilitating attention and coordinating emotional responses to musical performances early in life.”

The big caveat? Volume. The live music cannot be too loud for those delicate little ears.

© 2023 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

The Flaming Lips are certainly unconventional and experimental. One of their weird projects was a very, very long song called “7 skies H3” which, in its original form, ran for 24 hours.

It consisted of several separate pieces, each running anywhere from 25 minutes to seven hours. If that wasn’t enough, just 13 copies were released on flash drives that were encased in actual human skulls. They went on the market (appropriately) on Halloween 2011 and cost $5,000. And yes, they sold them all. If you can’t find your own copy—imagine that—they also set up a website with the song on a continuous loop.

And if you would rather have a physical copy, there is an edited version that runs 50 minutes and was released for Record Store Day 2014.

© 2023 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Back in the 1930s during the Great Depression, there was a phenomenon known as the dance marathon. Basically, couples would take up a challenge to see who could remain dancing longer than anyone else. They were held in ballrooms and auditoriums and could continue for not just hours, but days and even weeks.

Spectators paid to watch, too. The longer the marathon went on, the higher the admission price. Couples had to stay in motion continuously resulting in blisters, injuries, and collapse from exhaustion.

Why would anyone subject themselves to such a thing? Like I said, it was during the Depression. Many people signed up for these marathons because it meant food, shelter, and a place to sleep, even if it was just a few minutes an hour. Those who won were given a cash prize. Hey, the Depression was rough. People were willing to do anything to survive.

© 2023 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Some recommendations can be quirky things. U2 on a flatbed truck in Las Vegas? A member of Spinal Tap going off on the Barbie phenomenon? And is emo really back? These things and more with this week’s Five Songs.

1. U2, Atomic City
Single (Universal)
Recommended If You Like: Whatever U2 is up to these days

This Friday, U2 will open their residency at the MSG Sphere in Las Vegas. Fans had been expecting some kind of new music ahead of this—hey, it’s just the kind of thing U2 tends to do—so “Atomic City” debuted as part of a pop-up thing on the back of a flatbed trailer on Freemont Street. Bono described the song as being the spirit of late-70s post-punk. And yes, that’s is Larry Mullen playing drums. He won’t be at the Sphere shows because he’s still having post-op therapy on his back, but it was nice to see him with the rest of the band.

 

2. Lowest of the Low, Hey Kid (You Got Soul!)
Single (Independent)
RIYL: 90s memories

Just as U2 is preparing for their Sphere gigs, there’s a documentary on Lowest of the Low entitled Subversive: The History of Lowest of the Low that has started having screenings. (Yes, I’m in it.) It’s nice that there’s a new LoTW single to go along with that. You’ll definitely feel the need to skank along with this.

 

3. Derek Smalls, Must Crush Barbie
Single (Bottomland Productions/Immortal Records)
RIYL: Barbie hate

I didn’t see this one coming. Spinal Tap bassist Smalls has decided that enough is enough with the whole Barbie phenomenon and wants to eviscerate it with a song that he describes as “an excoriating attack on the pink sensation … that advocate of everything pink and fluffy, Barbie. The self-described embodiment of lukewarm water reaches boiling point with Smalls’ first track in five years.” The bio goes on for quite a bit, too. No word on the status of David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tuffnel, or which drummer died during the sessions. (Yes, yes, it’s actually Harry Shearer, but just go with it, okay?)

 

4. The Moss, The Place That Makes You Happy
Single (Hollywood Records)
RIYL: Feel-good songs

Coming out of Salt Lake City, The Moss is a four-piece that specializes in straight-ahead anthemic and poppy guitar rock (for this song, anyway) and has the slightest bit of country twang to it. A number of publications have tagged them as a band to watch.

 

5. Taking Back Sunday, S’Old
152 (Fantasy Records)
RIYL: The current emo revival

There’s no question that after hiding its bedroom for the last decade or so, emo has returned, let by some of the stars of the early aughts including My Chemical Romance, Thirty Seconds to Mars, and now Taking Back Sunday. We shouldn’t be surprised, really. Emo goes well with a tough economy and lots of political uncertainty. And yes, emo is definitely a nostalgic sound, but the times are right for this revival. This TBS record—their eighth and first since 2016—will be out October 27. Oh, and the title of the album comes from a section of a road between Highpoint, Chapel Hill, and Raleigh where the band and their friends would meet up as teenagers.

© 2023 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

All the original Ramones are no longer with us. While Dee Dee died of a heroin overdose, his three bandmates suffered from different forms of cancer. Joey died of lymphoma. Johnny? Prostate cancer. Tommy suffered from bile duct cancer. Coincidence? Maybe not.

Some suspect these cancers are the result of the conditions of a loft on East 2^nd Street where the Ramones rehearsed and printed t-shirts. It was the former home of a plastic flower factory and some believe that the toxic residue left over from the chemicals used in their manufacture. They permeated the entire building.

Oh, and one more thing: Arturo Vega, the Ramones’ art director and the guy who designed and pressed up all those t-shirts in that loft? He also died of cancer.

© 2023 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Hundreds of community and law enforcement members gathered Sunday afternoon in Victoria to pay respects to fallen officers.

The British Columbia Law Enforcement Memorial Service 2023 event was held outside of the BC Legislature in Victoria.

The memorial honours 130 law enforcement officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice serving B.C. communities, including Burnaby RCMP Const. Shaelyn Yang, who was killed in the line of duty on Oct. 18, 2022. She was attending a homeless campsite with park workers when she was fatally stabbed.

A number of other events are being held in conjunction with the memorial service.

The ninth annual BCLEM Ride to Remember is a three-day event that started in Abbotsford on Thursday and ended in Victoria. Riders cycled more than 385 kilometres in three days finishing at the BC Legislature on Saturday.

The fifth annual BCLEM Run to Remember also ran from Thursday to Saturday. Runners started in Abbotsford on Thursday and ended in Victoria on Saturday.

On Friday the tenth annual BCLEW Golf Tournament was helped at the Bear Mountain Golf Club in Victoria.

The B.C. event coincides with the National Police and Peace Officers’ memorial held in Ottawa.

The BC Law Enforcement Memorial (BCLEM) committee has decided all future memorial service events will be permanently held in Victoria.

The event comes just days after Const. Rick O’Brien was fatally shot in Coquitlam while on duty. He was part of a RCMP team conducting a search warrant at a home in relation to a drug investigation. Homicide investigators announced that 25-year-old Nicholas Bellemare has been charged with first-degree murder in relation to the fatal shooting.

More to come …

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Several Jewish advocacy organizations condemned members of Parliament on Sunday for giving a standing ovation to a man who fought for a Nazi unit during the Second World War.

During Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Ottawa on Friday, MPs honoured 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka in the House of Commons.

Hunka was invited by Speaker Anthony Rota, who introduced him as a war hero who fought for the First Ukrainian Division.

“I am very proud to say that he is from North Bay and from my riding of Nipissing, Timiskaming,” the Ontario MP said as an introduction.

“He is a Ukrainian hero, a Canadian hero, and we thank him for all his service.”

MPs cheered and Zelenskyy raised his fist in acknowledgement as Hunka saluted from the gallery during two separate standing ovations.

The First Ukrainian Division was also known as the Waffen-SS Galicia Division or the SS 14th Waffen Division, a voluntary unit that was under the command of the Nazis.

The Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies issued a statement Sunday saying the division “was responsible for the mass murder of innocent civilians with a level of brutality and malice that is unimaginable.”

“An apology is owed to every Holocaust survivor and veteran of the Second World War who fought the Nazis, and an explanation must be provided as to how this individual entered the hallowed halls of Canadian Parliament and received recognition from the Speaker of the House and a standing ovation,” the statement said.

B’nai Brith Canada CEO Michael Mostyn said it is beyond outrageous that Parliament honoured a former member of a Nazi unit, saying Ukrainian “ultra-nationalist ideologues” who volunteered for the Galicia Division “dreamed of an ethnically homogenous Ukrainian state and endorsed the idea of ethnic cleansing.”

“We understand an apology is forthcoming. We expect a meaningful apology. Parliament owes an apology to all Canadians for this outrage, and a detailed explanation as to how this could possibly have taken place at the centre of Canadian democracy,” Mostyn said.

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, which represents Jewish federations across the country, said it is deeply troubled by the incident.

“Canada’s Jewish community stands firmly with Ukraine in its war against Russian aggression. But we can’t stay silent when crimes committed by Ukrainians during the Holocaust are whitewashed,” the group said in a statement published Sunday on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Members of Parliament from all parties rose to applaud Hunka. A spokesperson for the Conservative party said the party was not aware of his history at the time.

“We find the reports of this individual’s history very troubling,” said Sebastian Skamski, adding that the Liberals would have to explain why he was invited.

A spokesperson for the Prime Minister’s Office directed The Canadian Press to the office of the Speaker for comment.

Rota’s office did not immediately respond to questions.

Monuments to honour the First Ukrainian Division have caused controversy in recent years.

In 2021, a statue of Ukrainian military leader Roman Shukhevych and a monument to the fighters of the Waffen-SS Galicia Division in Edmonton were vandalized by someone who spray painted them with the words “Actual Nazi.”

The Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center said at the time that it had been advocating for their removal for decades.

In 2020, a monument to the Waffen-SS Galicia Division in Oakville, Ont., was vandalized in a similar way.

The decision to admit Ukrainian immigrants who had served in the SS Waffen Division in the post-war period was contentious, with Jewish groups arguing they should be barred from the country.

The International Military Tribunal in Nuremburg declared the SS to be a criminal organization, including the SS Waffen in that declaration.

The Waffen-SS Galicia Division surrendered to the British army in 1945, and just over 8,000 men were moved to the United Kingdom in 1947.

In 1950, the federal cabinet decided to allow Ukrainians living in the U.K. to come to Canada “notwithstanding their service in the German army provided they are otherwise admissible. These Ukrainians should be subject to special security screening, but should not be rejected on the grounds of their service in the German army.”

In 1985, then-prime minister Brian Mulroney called for a royal commission to examine whether Canada had become a haven for war criminals.

The Deschênes Commission found there were about 600 former members of the Waffen-SS Galicia Division living in Canada at the time. But Justice Jules Deschenes said membership in the division did not itself constitute a war crime.

© 2023 The Canadian Press

Ottawa Senators goaltender Anton Forsberg says he feels good after returning from two major knee surgeries.

His play would seem to back up his words.

Forsberg made 35 saves in a tightly contested game as the Senators defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-2 Sunday in the pre-season opener for both teams. It was Forsberg’s first game action since suffering medial collateral ligament tears in both knees Feb. 11 in a 6-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers.

“I’m happy to be back and I feel good. There was a lot of scrambling the first two periods trying to find my game again,” Forsberg said. “It took a period to calm down a little bit but it felt better the longer it went.”

“To be honest, from day one I was just happy that it was what it was,” Forsberg said of the knee injuries. “I kind of felt the whole time that it wasn’t hard because it could have been a lot worse, so I’ve tried to stay positive and I’ve worked towards this day. It’s tough because a lot of the time you’re here by yourself and not with your team, so that’s probably the toughest part.”

Tim Stutzle scored twice and Brady Tkachuk had the other goal for the Senators. Jake Sanderson chipped in two assists.

William Lagesson and Alex Steeves scored for Toronto. Keith Petruzzelli made 25 saves on 28 shots through two periods, while Dennis Hildeby turned aside all four shots he faced in the third.

The first two periods were almost mirror opposites of each other. The Senators had a 24-7 shot advantage and 2-0 lead after the first period. The Leafs outshot the Senators 17-4 in the second period and tied the game 2-2 before a late power-play goal gave the Senators a 3-2 lead after two periods.

“We just stayed with it and we had an opportunity to take a breath between periods and realize where we were going wrong,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said.

“I thought we got off to an excellent start, we had a good penalty kill early and a good power play got some momentum for us, then we took a couple of penalties in a row and their best players got rolling.”

Tkachuk opened the scoring for Ottawa with a power-play goal almost halfway through the first period. Tkachuk collected a rebound at the side of the net and tucked it past Petruzzelli for a 1-0 lead.

Stutzle increased that lead to 2-0 with a snap shot from the top of the circle at 18:01.

Lagesson beat Forsberg high to the stick at 9:32 of the second before Steeves scored from the slot on a power play at 17:50 to tie the game.

Stutzle scored his second of the game, this one on the power play, just 50 seconds later with a quick shot off the post and in past Petruzzelli.

“We had probably two good periods. The second period, they won the territorial battle, we turned too many pucks over, our line changes weren’t good and that’s something we discussed in between periods,” Senators assistant coach Jack Capuano said.

“Short training camp and as we get going we’ll emphasis more the little things that we need to.

The Senators finished 2-for-4 on the power play, while the Maple Leafs were 1-for-6.

NOTES

Senators forward Shane Pinto remains out of camp as he and the Senators have yet to come to agreement on a new contract for the unrestricted free agent…Senators forward Josh Norris didn’t dress as he has worn a yellow non-contact jersey since camp opened.

UP NEXT

The two teams meet again Monday night in Toronto on the back half of a home-and-home. Following that, the Senators next play Wednesday in Montreal against the Canadiens while the Maple Leafs host the Buffalo Sabres that same night.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 24, 2023.

© 2023 The Canadian Press

A 34-year-old motorcyclist is in critical condition after a crash in Whitby on Saturday afternoon.

Durham Regional Police said at around 4:10 p.m., officers responded to Dundas Street West and Swordfish Drive, just east of Highway 412, for a crash involving a motorcycle.

The female motorcyclist was travelling east when she lost control and collided with a vehicle heading west, police said.

She was taken to a Toronto-area trauma centre and remains there in critical condition.

The driver of the other vehicle did not suffer any injuries, police said.

The crash is still under investigation.

© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.