Category Archive: Video

R.E.M. at Gooseshit Lake

Posted by Michael Klassen on May 22, 2008

We're gearing up for a fun night out tomorrow. R.E.M. + Modest Mouse and The National at Deer Lake Park. The weather forecast is warm and clear for this outdoor show.

I've never seen a gig at there, but I know every inch of that goose shit beach from my youth. I probably spent every summer in a paddle boat growing up at Burnaby's Deer Lake when you could swim in it. Forget that today. Coliform is too high.

I won't bore you with my R.E.M. reminiscences, the best of which is here. It was good enough way back when that a webmaster working at whitehouse.gov decided to drop me a line in response back in 1996.

R.E.M. have had some frustrating highs and lows in their career, but I can vouch for the quality of Accelerate, their latest disc. I quite like this acoustic version of the opening track, recorded spontaneously in a drive through Athens, GA back in September.

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UPDATE: R.E.M. put on a very fine show at Deer Lake Park. Set was filled with a lot of early gems, and quite a few new songs. The venue was remarkably nice, a grassy amphitheatre a good distance from the messy beach area the Canadian Geese have made their hangout.

Tagged: burnaby, live music is better, rem

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Bettie Serveert - Ray Ray Rain

Posted by Michael Klassen on May 22, 2008

I've always had a huge soft spot for Bettie Serveert, who put out some very good records in the early/mid 90s. Pick up Lamprey and see if you can put it down. Dust Bunnies and Palomine are equally charming.

Critics say that the band never lived up to it's debut, but I think that most of the music biz had moved on from good bands with girls fronting them. I remember how frustrating it was that the best rock records came out from Liz Phair, Luscious Jackson, and Juliana Hatfield and no one wanted to play them anymore.

Singer Carol van Dyk gets extra high marks for being born in Vancouver, BC, then becoming part of one of a handful of Dutch bands to break out internationally.

Tagged: 90s music, girl rockers

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Taylor Effin Hawkins on the Drums!

Posted by Michael Klassen on April 1, 2008

Two words that describe Foo Fighter's fabulous show at the Pacific Coliseum (I think I had the same seats as the 1980 Queen tour) on Sunday night are: Drum Solo. The 1970s rock convention has made a comeback with the Foos, who revel in over-the-top rock histrionics. Search YouTube and you get 3 pages of links to TH's drum solos. Here's a 2 min. clip with passable audio below.

I said to my wife as we left the show that most of the 20-something crowd would have barely remembered Dave Grohl's other band Nirvana, which broke up 14 years ago this month after Cobain had his little incident with a shotgun. This is the first time Stacey and I have seen the Foo Fighters since Grohl's original line-up played the Commodore Ballroom during MusicWest in 1995.

Tagged: drum solos, foo fighters, rock gods

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Separated at birth, Italian style

Posted by Michael Klassen on July 10, 2007

I wasn't the first guy to rip old Italian movie soundtracks for the sake of comedy, but when I saw this very cool corporate holiday card from Big Spaceship, I couldn't help but notice that it was very similar to my (1993) video the Film Fest Schmoozer.

In my case the voices are from Fellini's first film, La Strada with Anthony Quinn supplying the baritone male voice. The sub-titles are cute, if a bit dated thanks to references to Premier Harcourt, etc. You can see Vancouver cultural heroes Lincoln Clarkes, Mac Parry and the late great Daryl Duke among others in this little flick. Here's the video again for your viewing pleasure.

Continue reading "Separated at birth, Italian style" »

Tagged: cinephile, fest-o-vision, film festival

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When Yellow Meets Blue

Posted by Michael Klassen on November 19, 2006

or, What I Do When Phone Directories Arrive at My Door

Involuntary deliveries of Yellow Pages and all paper phone directories should be abolished. They have outlived their usefulness for most of this decade. If you are a creature of habit, or just refuse to be wired, you might like to have them handy. This should be a matter of choice though.

With local internet search and Craig's List, printed phone directories are just an absurd waste of dye, ink and trees.

Tagged: yellow pages

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Mount Seymour, a view from the top

Posted by Michael Klassen on October 14, 2006

Took last Thursday afternoon off, a rare indulgence, knowing that our amazing Indian Summer was nearing an end. I took one of my favourite hikes, to the top of nearby Mount Seymour on Vancouver's North Shore. Here's a short video taken at the peak.

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Tagged: favourite, hiking, mount seymour, north shore, north vancouver

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The New Seats

Posted by Michael Klassen on November 23, 1994

Originally aired on CKVU television as part of a series, this video kicked off the 2001 Vancouver International Comedy Festival video night.

Tagged: favourite, jb shayne, tv

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The Cinephile

Posted by Michael Klassen on September 20, 1994

This poem on cinema and life in Vancouver was written and performed by the legendary J.B. Shayne, and photographed and edited by Michael Klassen - soundtrack composed by Gavin Froome.

Tagged: fest-o-vision, jb shayne

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