By Kerry Doole
'Bittersweet' tribute to Gordon Lightfoot opens up folk festival
'Gord will be hugely missed and I think his absence will be really poignant this year,' says festival official of first event without the Canadian icon. – Patrick Bales, Barrie Today
Max Webster, almost Canada’s Next Big Thing in the '70s and ’80s, gets the coffee table book treatment
From 1972 until 1981, the band created five wonderfully idiosyncratic studio albums and toured incessantly — even headlining Maple Leaf Gardens three times within 18 months. – Nick Krewen, Toronto Star
Trudeau tweets invitation to Taylor Swift asking her to bring Eras tour to Canada
PM Justin Trudeau appears to be a secret Swiftie, after tweeting an invitation to superstar Taylor Swift asking her to bring her Eras tour to Canada. Trudeau responded to Swift’s tweet with paraphrased lyrics from her own songs, posting “It’s me, hi. I know places in Canada would love to have you. So, don’t make it another cruel summer. We hope to see you soon.” – CP
Beyoncé's high ticket prices to Taylor Swift’s snub: Why concert tours look different for Canada
'When the Taylor Swifts of the world are used to playing 60,000 seat venues, Canada doesn’t have many of those kinds of venues'– Elianna Lev, Yahoo News
'It ain't right': Jully Black says Hamilton gig was cancelled due to rain-soaked stage, unkept promises
Jully Black was the headliner on Day 2 of the July 1 to 3 It's Your Festival 2023, but things did not go well. – Desmond Brown, CBC News
Myst Milano is everywhere this summer
Iconic producer, rapper and DJ shares their fave live acts in the Toronto Queer scene. – Richard Trapunski, The Grind
A sublime Saturday at Bluesfest, with Robert Plant, Allison Krauss, Daniel Lanois and Blackie and the Rodeo Kings
Rock legend Robert Plant and bluegrass queen Alison Krauss wrapped up their Raise the Roof world tour in Ottawa on Saturday with a sublime concert on RBC Bluesfest’s main stage. Their English-American roots collaboration capped off an evening program that also included a fantastic set by Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, joined by another rock legend, Daniel Lanois. – Lynn Saxberg, Ottawa Citizen
This Halifax band almost broke up due to burnout
Instead, Walrus is launching a triumphant comeback this Saturday at The Marquee. If digging into toxic overwork was the theme of your pandemic, Walrus understands. – Morgan Mullin, The Coast
Concerts are back with a vengeance. How long will the spending spree last?
Sofiane Yetto, 29, says he feels like he’s known pop artist Beyoncé his whole life. This long-standing connection is how he was able to justify spending nearly $1,000 on a trip to Toronto to see the singer perform, perhaps for the last time, at Rogers Centre. – Ana Pereira, Globe and Mail
Join Paul Brandt in a rooftop party for a good cause
A Not So Silent Summer on July 28 promises to be anything but quiet, with performers like Calgary country star Paul Brandt, Mariya Stokes, Marcus Trummer, Matt Blais and local DJ sets. – Calgary Herald
Review: Robert Plant and Alison Krauss put on a magical four-star show
In what can only be described as an enchanting evening, two of music’s most distinctive voices offered up a brilliant set of songs at Budweiser Stage. – Nick Krewen, Toronto Star
Bob Moses heads back to the beginning
When Bob Moses announced they were headlining the PNE Forum, the electronic duo of Jimmy Vallance and Tom Howie posted a photo to Instagram showing a young Vallance posing with Slipknot at the arena in the early aughts. “I still love metal, but I was a huge metalhead then,” Vallance tells us, on the line from New York. – Yasmine Shemesh Georgia Straight
Spotlight: FACTOR’s new leader: Meg Symsyk’s mission to revolutionize music funding
Originally from St. Catharines, Meg Symsyk has helped shape the success of countless local and global artists in her 25-year career as a Canadian music industry trailblazer. She spent her formative years listening to Canadian band Rush and rock station 97.7 HTZ FM, broadcast from a historic building known to locals as ‘The White House of Rock’.– CMRRA
International
Grammys CEO on new AI guidelines: Music that contains AI-created elements is eligible. ‘Period.’
Last month, the Academy announced a series of changes to the Grammys to better reflect an evolving music industry. Of those newly instituted guidelines, protocols involving technological advancements in machine learning sparked headlines: “Only human creators” could win the music industry’s highest honour in a decision aimed at the use of artificial intelligence in popular music. – Maria Sherman, AP
HarbourView buys 'select' recorded music, publishing assets from Wiz Khalifa
HarbourView Equity Partners has announced its second deal with a US hip-hop star this week, following on from Nelly. The company has agreed to purchase what it calls “select recorded music and publishing assets” of multi-platinum selling, Grammy and Golden Globe-nominated artist Wiz Khalifa. – Murray Stassen, MBW
Peloton paid the record industry more than TikTok last year, says Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs‘ annual Music In The Air report is arguably the most influential paper on the music business from a financial giant’s perspective. The theme of this year’s update, published late last month? That might be summed up as “still sunny”. Here are some more revelations from the financial giant’s latest Music In The Air. – MBW
Bob Marley hits the big screen in the One Love trailer
The biopic is due to hit theaters early next year. – The Fader
Bob Dylan gave James Mangold notes on upcoming biopic
Timothée Chalamet plays Dylan in the film, dubbed A Complete Unknown. – Consequence
Anohni searches for hope at the end of the world
The renowned singer-songwriter resumes her role as a radical truth-teller on “My Back Was a Bridge for You to Cross,” a new album that challenges listeners to imagine another world. – Richie Assaly, Toronto Star
For me, the Beyoncé concert was about way more than music — it was joy, healing, release
A Beyoncé superfan shares her concert review of the megastar’s first Toronto Renaissance tour date. – Annette Ejiofor, Toronto Star
Harry Styles seemingly hit in the eye by object during Vienna concert
Harry Styles was hit in the eye by an object thrown at the stage while he was performing in Vienna on Saturday, marking the latest incident in an ever-growing list of similar situations in recent weeks. – CNN
8 new albums you should listen to now
Taylor Swift, ANOHNI, PJ Harvey, and more, plus new releases from Julie Byrne, Rauw Alejandro, Lauren Bousfield, Little Dragon, and K-Lone. – Pitchfork
Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) is here. Here’s how to reconsider Swift’s transformative album
The album served as a close document of her nascent fame and future career ambitions, and now, 13 years on, it’s back. Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), released Friday, is the third release of the six albums Swift plans to re-record. Speak Now is a record built exclusively of her own voice. – Maria Sherman, AP
Lucinda Williams on working with Springsteen, learning from Petty, and the brilliance of Dylan
The legendary songwriter digs into her guest-heavy new album, Stories from a Rock n Roll Heart.– CoS
Blur review – glorious reunion buzzes with energy and ragged joy
The enduring friendship between Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree shines through in a set that veers from lairy capers to bittersweet ballads. – Dorian Lynskey, The Guardian
Swedish city of Malmo to host the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest
The southern Swedish city of Malmo will host the 2024 Contest in the same venue that housed the colourful and eclectic music competition in 2012, the Swedish organizers said Friday. The 68th edition will be held at the Malmo Arena, and the live televised final has been set for May 11, with semi-finals on May 7 and May 9. – AP
