Today we’re going to do things a little differently; add some paint, maybe some candles, and a nice dress to top it all off. Anand’s wearing the dress, by the way.

But seriously, today marks a small shift in the way we do things on the Not-So Horrible Podcast, beginning with our very first consumer report episode. It all sounds very business-like, and as much as we love wearing suits during our casual time, it’s a fun episode – we promise.

This is the time of year when both manufacturers and retailers bring out the latest and greatest in their technological arsenals. Everything from notebooks to cameras, first introduced at the expos and conventions of this past spring, finally begin trickling out to consumers en masse. With it comes the realization that the iPod you bought but a few weeks previous is now obsolete. But if you’re anything like us, this is the time of year when us geeks scoff in the face of obsolescence, and both drool and fawn over the press leaks and releases that flood the tech blogs.

If you’re looking to buy new tech in the coming months, we’ve got your back. We’ve sifted through some of the latest releases from manufacturers across the board to give you an idea how to buy smart for the back to school and the months beyond. Some of the things we touch upon this episode include…

Netbooks, Laptops and Desktops

• Dell’s Mini 10v and the HP Mini 10
• The Acer Aspire 10″ and 8.9″
• Toshiba has some new budget laptops, as well as multimedia-centric machines as well
• Dell is always a great bet for highly customizable desktops and laptops
• For the accident prone amongst you, Lenovo, as always, offers a great line of indestructible laptops

Phones

• Two new cheap and eco-friendly phones, including the Samsung Reclaim and Fido’s Motorola Renew
• Other cheap phones include the LG Masterpiece on Telus, and similar models on Rogers
• For smartphone users, Bell is getting the Palm Pre on August 28th

Storage, Mp3 Players, Cameras

• Anand swears by his rugged LaCie external hard drive
• I’m a fan of the 2.5″ variety, including Western Digital’s Passport
• Enclosures are also a great way to take hard drives you already own, and make them portable
• Creative has their own iPod Touch equivalent that should be launching soon
• Sandisk has some surprisingly cheap and capacious MP3 players on the market
• Archos has some very nice media/internet players, while Apple continues to sell it’s iPod classic
• Nikon has a great new entry level DSLR, the Nikon D3000
• Pentax, and other manufacturers often have cheap Point-and-shoot cameras nowadays, with reasonable quality, and added features like this model’s water-proofing

And there you have it! We should probably note that this episode weighs in at a whopping 50 minutes of witty banter and discussion, so you may want to save this one for a lazy evening on the couch. Assuming that our listeners have lazy evenings. Or couches. Nevertheless, leave us comments, questions, and conspiracy theories below!

Meanwhile, keep your eyes peeled as well for iTunes/proper RSS integration as well! Both are in the works, and should be good to go an episode or two from now.

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Canadian Music Week, 2009.

Despite the fact that Canadian Music Week came to a close this past Saturday, I didn’t actually get a good night’s sleep until last night. Such is the life of a busy journalist. But seeing as the sleepless nights have subsided for now, and the last vestiges of sanity are slowly returning, I think it might finally be safe to offer a few thoughts

Quite frankly, I had no clue what to expect going into this year’s festival; it was my first CMW, and any preconceived notions were based entirely upon pictures and stories from years past. And even then, that offered but a limited and skewed selection of what the program guide claimed to offer.

My travels this year were split into two very distinct parts; in the evenings, I found myself running across the city, usually seeing bands and shows, while Thursday morning was spent locked away in conference rooms and keynotes to discuss the sorry state of Canadian Music. If there’s any sarcasm in that last sentence, I sincerely apologize.

The morning keynotes were less than stellar, and honestly, pretty dissapointing. I had the chance to sit in a room, largely surrounded by record executives and industry types, and was talked at for a couple hours on how Canadian music was dying, and it was all our fault. That’s right, kids – because we’ve been buying less, and downloading more, the industry is in a tailspin.

Nevermind the fact that they could be attempting to find new ways to adapt to a form of distribution that is quickly outpacing the industry’s best efforts; instead, they cling helplessly to their ancient business model, a model which has existed relatively unchanged since the record industry’s inception.

Ahem. But, alas, I’m rambling again. I’ve already spoken at length about the dismal keynotes over at BlogTO. I know its really the shows you’re all interested in.

I actually ended up seeing nearly all of the bands I hoped to see throughout the week – a fact of which I’m quite proud of. Wednesday had both the beautiful Laura Barrett (who is, much to my dismay, still not single), and Charles Spearin’s The Happiness Project play at the Music Hall – which is, in fact, an old church out on John Street.

Thursday was yet another treat, as I had the chance to see Hexes and Ohs once again, Will Currie and the Country French, and the highlight of the night, Sloan. Saturday proved to be an exceptional close to the festivities, finally giving me the chance, not only to see Young Galaxy, but to interview and hang out with Steve Ramsey and the band for over an hour before the show.

Yet, if there was one element of CMW I enjoyed most, it was the photography. Press pass in hand, I made it my mission to snap as many pictures as possible, from all the venues and shows I passed. The result is a superb collection of CMW photos now on Flickr, and probably some of the best concert shots I’ve ever taken.
This is but a small, and haphazard taste of how my first Canadian Music Week experience went done; expect more in the next little while. After all, I’m not going to go through all the trouble of renting a lens without reviewing it here as well!

After what seems like weeks of nagging, I’ve finally given in, and decided to get my act together for Canadian Music Week. It’s no exaggeration to say that there’s hundreds of bands playing in Toronto this week – and my friends want to know exactly which of those bands I’ll be seeing. It’s a tall order, sorting through more artists than I can shake a stick at, scattered across a multitude of venues; but without further ado, here’s The Horrible Fanfare’s Canadian Music Week Itinerary.

Also known as THFCMWI. Frankly, it’s the prettiest acronym I’ve seen in ages.

Wednesday. I’ll spend the morning, wandering the streets in a sleepy-eyed stupor, in search of my media credentials and complementary wristband. Later in the evening, Canadian Music Week kicks off with a bang, which means I’m apparently supposed to brush shoulders with other journalists and artists in the industry. Yet, I plan on eschewing the whole “socialization” thing, because it reminds me of socialists, and CMW is clearly run by communists. Instead, I’ll most likely be seeing Sloan, who will be playing a show at the Mod Club, starting at 8PM. If all goes according to plan, I might even be able to get a last minute press pass. At the very least, I can woo drunken women with my expensive camera.

Thursday. There’s a lot of bands playing tonight, and quite a few have names I don’t quite recognize. Others still have names that scare me. Then there are the unfortunate few who possess both. Nevertheless, I may just venture out to see Charles Spearin’s Happiness Project, at some obscure bar apparently located near John Street. I’m told this isn’t actually an official part of CMW, but I don’t quite care, because it’s Charles Spearin, of Broken Social Scene fame. As we all know, that band is the musical equivalent of a warm bowl of soup, which makes them pretty damn awesome. It would be more awesome if my friend Melody was there, but she seems to think the Wednesday show will be cooler. Little does she know, there is no show cooler than one in which I am attending.

Friday. Not much going on tonight. Rather, there’s lots going on, but I won’t be there. I hear there is a party going down, and I can’t keep the women waiting, can I, now? Though, should all the women really turn out to be my male friends posing at women, in a feeble attempt to convince me to hang out and talk about my feelings again, I might check out Green Go at the Wrongbar.

Saturday. This is where the magic happens, people. I’ve got two choices in the afternoon; The Rural Alberta Advantage is playing an all-ages, CMW showcase in the afternoon, somewhere around dinner, apparently. Unless my memory is faulty, Lisa Lobsinger, who’s toured with BSS, apparently played with them at one point. (It appears my memory is faulty indeed – she’s from Alberta, and that’s about it!) Or, perhaps she still does! Nevertheless, I liked what I heard on the internets earlier today. Otherwise, I can catch one of CMW’s premiere film screenings – specifically, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Undead. Come on, people – it’s Hamlet, with vampires.

Moving into the evening, I’d like to check out Hey Rosetta, at the Canadian Room showcase. Part of me simply wants to hear the band members sporadically speak in different tongues, though I recall they make some half-decent music. It may also be part of the trend I seem to be following this year, which states that I should see as many east-coast bands as possible. But later on, I’ll move back over to the Horseshoe Tavern, where I’ll reunite once again with Melody for some Young Galaxy. Part of the Arts&Crafts family of musicians, I’ve been listening to these guys and girls for a couple months now, so I’m looking forward to finally seeing them live. I’m also looking forward to using my media pass to its full potential. Meeting bands is always a cool experience.

So, there you have it! To all those who have nagged me, I’m truly sorry that I didn’t quite post this until the week of. But take solace in the fact that you know exactly what I’m doing, and now have the ability to appropriately stalk me during this weeks festivities. And to those who I don’t know personally, I invite you to do the same! It’s always nice meeting new people; drop me a line!