Wednesday, April 26, 2006

What happened to political retreat?

A favourite aphorism of my brother-in-law: there are two things I hate in life- intolerance and the Dutch. That’s how I feel when Americans get angry with me about how hostile Canada is towards the U.S. What am I supposed to do with these comments? I am no Canadian apologist, nor should I be; it needs no defending. Nations, and the individuals who inhabit them, have a right to be vocal in their opposition to another nation’s policies, especially if that nation acts unilaterally, without accountability. We should always welcome criticism of our leaders and government.

But to get mad at me because you heard a story in the newspaper about how much Canadians hate Americans; that’s unfair. I know for a fact that at least one in 30 million Canadians don’t feel that way, but here I am, learning about how much I hate Americans. It’s irritating and it’s unbefitting of any host to assail his/her guest with accusations like that. Canada and the U.S.- both great countries, with their own accomplishments and failures. Let’s just leave it that way.

I guess I just had a bad night.

Sunday, April 16, 2006

This is my political retreat.

(This is not a very appropriate Easter/Passover post, but here it is).

There has been little time for posting of late. Between apartment searches, gig preparation and that thing I do M-F 9-5, I've had little time to bestow my wisdom on the world.

I will say that lately I've been a little disheartened, politically speaking. Some conversations go very well, and some don't. In any case, being an apple in the midst of oranges can be very difficult, no matter how sweet and agreeable the oranges may be. Sometimes people are open to foreign ideas and sometimes they're not (myself included). Often times, I've encountered people who talk past each other, or try to convert each another to his or her own point of view, rather than listening and learning.

I've often maintained that it takes an immense external influence to get a person to change, and I still believe that most of the time. An extension of this idea is that I don't think most people want to change. I think people form their intellectual arguments and philosophies to reinforce what they feel inside. To elaborate, I don't think we are political blank slates who look at the world around us, weigh the intellectual arguments and then form a belief. I think the process is more instinctual, and thus reversed.

Right now I’m speaking only of the grey areas. The fundamental truths are things that all but the fringe members of society agree on: murder is wrong, love is good- these kinds of concepts. But before we know anything else, we know what feels right and what feels wrong. This is the stage when a person adopts or rejects religion, environmentalism or any other belief. After this adoption, when confronted with a moral quandary, we use that foundation of belief (the fundamental truths plus the personal truths and adopted beliefs) and surround these beliefs with an intellectual argument, rather than the other way around. Put more succinctly: our arguments fortify our beliefs, rather than the other way around.

If correct, this would mean that people are more automatic in the way we embrace our beliefs. Thus when critics panned Letterman during an interview with Bill O’Reilly for saying, “it just feels wrong,” they were really criticizing him because he had not yet researched the stats and facts which would appropriately bolster his beliefs, like they had already done. Granted, this kind of laziness is repugnant. But it seems Dave is just demonstrating my thesis here.

Those rare moments of change occur when logic influences belief; when all other arguments seem moot, and the naked intellectual truth is staring you in the face. During these rare moments, our beliefs align with our intellect and we adopt them into our personal theology- the seemingly irrefutable.

But the world is as polarized as ever, and we will continue to research the facts that sit well with our beliefs, to eschew the ones that don’t, and we will argue more fiercely than ever before. Well, most of us will.

Sunday, April 09, 2006

Ozma vs Rooney



Ozma vs. Rooney In the dynamic environment of a modern day rock concert, it’s difficult to properly weigh the relative merits of each band that plays. Comparing two bands is a bit like comparing apples to… something that isn’t an apple, but is somewhat similar to one. Let’s say an orange.

The bands of comparison for this evening were Ozma and Rooney. Both are energetic Southern California rock bands, but each band has a different approach to the craft. At the behest of my good friend Tom, I took a trip to see the former, but on my own initiative, I thought it would be fun to compare them to the latter. You see, Tom saw both bands play in Toronto some time ago, and he claimed Ozma was the stronger band, but because we have different standards of what makes for a great live show, I thought I would apply my own test to the two bands. Make no mistake: Tom went in as an avowed Ozma fan; I went in as a Rooney fan.

The first thing that requires attention is the differentiation between the Rooney/Ozma portion of the show and the opening bands (whose names I don’t remember right now). What a difference a professional band makes. Mature bands like Ozma and Rooney are able to let the songs breath a bit more, allowing room between parts in the song, which in turn creates anticipation and dynamic strength. But, like the opening bands before them, Ozma spent a lot of time between songs tuning their guitars and interrupting the flow between songs. It’s really important for bands to build a solid set, and Ozma hurt this with the drawn-out tuning breaks. Rooney flowed from song to song. 1 point: Rooney.

The next category of comparison involves showmanship. One thing that interested me when Tom and I were talking about the Ozma show (that he had seen) is that Tom wasn’t necessarily drawn to their showmanship; it was some other indefinable quality and coolness that drew him to the band. I could see that. Ozma was a cool band. But Rooney was owning the crowd. The singer was charismatic, drawing the audience in and interacting with us. Ozma was aloof and slouchy; very rock-starish. 1 point: Rooney.

Stand-out moments: This is a bit vague, but I’m talking about those muscular moments in a show when a guitarist breaks out a really cool chop, or a drummer gets in a good drum fill. I’m talking about the moment a singer holds that extra long note, or when the band pulls out a really cool arrangement that surprises everyone. Although Rooney had a really consistent show, they didn’t have too many of these. It was a safe approach, and it was solid, but there were no muscular moments. Ozma had a really cool funk moment, plus their Tetris song, and of course, their flagship song, Eponine. 1 point: Ozma.


As for the category of songs themselves, I admit a bias on my part because I’m familiar with Rooney songs, and less familiar with Ozma songs. I think the Rooney songs are simpler and more direct. I think their melodies are stronger and rudimentary, relying on the inspiration of the 70s. Ozma’s songs can be these big opuses; vast creative movements sandwiched between a lot of down strokes. But for all their complexity, the Ozma songs (again, I’m biased) lacked the same cohesiveness and beautiful simplicity. 1 point: Rooney.


I want to throw Ozma a bone here, especially because I liked them and I thought they had some good material, but for singing ability, I’m going to have to give judgment to Rooney yet again. The singer looks like he’s about 18 years old, but he has good timbre, good pitch and good vocal control. What else can you ask? Ozma’s singers were less accomplished, although their melodies were often obscured under the din of down strokes and brash guitar tones. 1 point: Rooney.


Understand, I enjoyed Ozma. I thought they put on a decent show. But I found Rooney far more consistent, far more ironed-out. Their show had obviously been honed from extensive touring, which is an advantage due to their success. On the whole, they seemed less moody and introverted, electing to have the opening band come on stage and perform a Beatles cover with the band (a very well-performed Helter Skelter). However, Rooney held back their very best song; their most biting satirical song: Pop Stars. Why they would choose to withhold their most exciting, most popular song, is beyond me. It would be like watching Tears for Fears, and them not playing Shout. What the hell? For that: 1 point Ozma.

So as you can see, Rooney wins out by a margin of 4:2. To be fair, Ozma is just getting their touring legs back after an extended hiatus, while Rooney has been going strong through that time, so we’ll see what the future brings. For now, 4 out of every 6 doctors recommend seeing Rooney over Ozma, if you have to see just one. Just don’t expect them to sing Pop Stars.

--Sorry Tom.

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

Happy Birthday Mom


In the absence of a Mother’s propinquity, a boy my age is forced to improvise, cuddling and finding motherly nurturing wherever he can; digging in trash cans for moral fortitude and bits of maternal guidance. You get by. But I’m getting a little sick of cuddling with that English midget, on loan from the government. Oh sure, he keeps the couch warm, and he’s got a cute accent, but it just doesn’t replace the friendship and love only a mother can give (sorry, Nigel).

That is why, with great happiness, I am pleased to announce to my ever-growing audience (2 people strong and growing everyday!) that my dearest mother, Sandra Heskes, and her hobbit-like husband, will be joining the growing entourage in Hawaii. Of this I am glad. Mom (and Evert) has had a really difficult time lately, (she should try cuddling with Nigel) and it warms my heart to see her happy, especially on her important day.

Today is the first day of the last year before my Mom turns 50. She will probably look at this event with alarm--or perhaps resignation, I’m not sure--but she should be proud of the years she’s collected and I hope she looks forward to the years she has left (if the robust genes of Grandma Mae say anything- there will be many). In the reckoning of my friends and colleagues, I still have the youngest mother around. So there.

Mom, you deserve a happy day, and I hope you had it. You are well-loved and very missed. We’ll see you soon. Happy Birthday.