http://kitcairns.com/journal/ a journal of the days of my life en-us Nucleus CMS v3.22 © Weblog http://backend.userland.com/rss http://kitcairns.com/journal//nucleus/nucleus2.gif http://kitcairns.com/journal/ http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=52 No Boundaries Music Entertainment Presents The
"Kit and Marcus Show" North Ontario Tour 2010 - February 16th-28th
13 Days, 11 Cities and 14 Venues

Two independent musicians, 13 days of travelling, 14 great venues, 11 cities and a whole lot of original acoustic folk/rock music - “The Kit and Marcus Show” is official and kicks off in Orillia, Ontario at The Broken Road on Tuesday, February 16th, 2010 at 8:00PM. From there the two seasoned singer songwriters embark on a journey to Thunder Bay and back stopping along the way to share their music and promote their passion. The thirteen day, eleven city tour wraps up at St Louis Bar and Grill in Ajax, Ontario on Sunday, February 28th, 2010.

Although Kit Cairns has more of an edgy folk sound and Marcus White produces more of a rock output, they certainly are no strangers to each other. From being in a band together, to recording songs together, to a special musical energy that flows between them, their journey together is actually one of great length. Solo album releases, radio airplay, a busy Toronto gig schedule, studio sessions, parenthood, life lessons, and an exciting vibe provide these two musicians with a history to write about and talent to get it heard. Come on out to one of their shows to hear Kit Cairns sing truth about the environment, society and his family while Marcus White provides some love with his soulful ballads reflecting life’s hardships and handshakes.

The “Kit and Marcus Show” will consist of each artist performing a distinctly unique and entertaining one hour intimate set. Kit will be performing songs from his two solo releases “This Is Me” and “My World” as well as showcasing some exciting new material destined for his 2010 album release. Marcus will be performing songs from his “From the Soul” solo release as well as promoting his much anticipated new album “Another Suburban Morning.” The last half hour of the show includes an acoustic duo where both artists come together to play a few covers and some historic songs off of their 2004 combined release titled “No Holds Barred.” Merchandise will be available for purchase as well as one free cd given away at each venue. Come on out to enjoy some great food, listen to some awesome original music with meaning, RELAX, and HAVE SOME FUN!!

For more information including complete biographies, pictures, music, videos and a complete list of dates and locations for the tour please visit the following websites: www.kitcairns.com and www.myspace.com/mgwhitemusic.
]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=52 Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:49:43 -0500 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=51
PEACE, CHEERS, and LAUGH LOUDLY!!

Kit Cairns

www.kitcairns.com

contactme@kitcairns.com
]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=51 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 19:20:03 -0500 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=50 KIT ]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=50 Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:44:39 -0400 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=49
Kit Cairns is a musical artist with a lot on his plate. He is constantly juggling between being a father, a teacher, and a musician. While he’s a father first, his passion for teaching and music go hand in hand and compliment each other well. Kit believes that “bringing people awareness of the world is the most important thing”, and he does this through being a father, teacher, and musician. Kit is a teacher in all respects, with the students being his children, his classroom pupils, and his audience. He even has hopes to someday start his own alternative school that provides a down to earth, grassroots education that teaches about the fundamentals of life.

This grassroots belief system comes out in Kit’s music as well. He describes his music as “edgy alternative or edgy folk rock.” And you’ll definitely find that the music is lyrically in line with his values. He frequently writes and sings songs about his perception of the meaning of life, and provides profound messages about why he believes we’re here. His music speaks about rising above the constructed world we’ve built for ourselves, and getting back to our roots in a more soulful and meaningful way. When asked about his passion for music and performances, he stated that whatever inspires him to get up in front of his students is the same thing that inspires him to get up on stage. He believes he has something important to say, and feels an intense need for people to listen to him and hear his message. Surprisingly, Kit used to have stage fright when he first started performing. But once he realized that being a musician is a profession just like teaching, he put those fears to rest.

Kit has come a long way since he first started playing music. He now has two CDs out, thanks to all his hard work put forward in writing, singing, recording, and producing his own songs. He feels having this much say in your own music is “satisfying and rewarding, something that’s completely your own.” He also has a company called No Boundaries Music Entertainment. With this company, he hopes to help out other artists since he knows the ropes and has been there before. His dedication to take other artists to the next level is one of his goals for the upcoming year, as well as getting started on a new album that he hopes will be complete by 2010. Hear more of what Kit has to say, at www.kitcairns.com


Available @:

http://www.planetexclusive.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=169:kit-cairns&catid=55:project-showcase-coverage&Itemid=60

Interview and Article By Ani Artinian - Toronto Exclusive Magazine - June 2009

Kit Cairns is a musical artist with a lot on his plate. He is constantly juggling between being a father, a teacher, and a musician. While he’s a father first, his passion for teaching and music go hand in hand and compliment each other well. Kit believes that “bringing people awareness of the world is the most important thing”, and he does this through being a father, teacher, and musician. Kit is a teacher in all respects, with the students being his children, his classroom pupils, and his audience. He even has hopes to someday start his own alternative school that provides a down to earth, grassroots education that teaches about the fundamentals of life.

This grassroots belief system comes out in Kit’s music as well. He describes his music as “edgy alternative or edgy folk rock.” And you’ll definitely find that the music is lyrically in line with his values. He frequently writes and sings songs about his perception of the meaning of life, and provides profound messages about why he believes we’re here. His music speaks about rising above the constructed world we’ve built for ourselves, and getting back to our roots in a more soulful and meaningful way. When asked about his passion for music and performances, he stated that whatever inspires him to get up in front of his students is the same thing that inspires him to get up on stage. He believes he has something important to say, and feels an intense need for people to listen to him and hear his message. Surprisingly, Kit used to have stage fright when he first started performing. But once he realized that being a musician is a profession just like teaching, he put those fears to rest.

Kit has come a long way since he first started playing music. He now has two CDs out, thanks to all his hard work put forward in writing, singing, recording, and producing his own songs. He feels having this much say in your own music is “satisfying and rewarding, something that’s completely your own.” He also has a company called No Boundaries Music Entertainment. With this company, he hopes to help out other artists since he knows the ropes and has been there before. His dedication to take other artists to the next level is one of his goals for the upcoming year, as well as getting started on a new album that he hopes will be complete by 2010. Hear more of what Kit has to say, at www.kitcairns.com


Available @:

http://www.planetexclusive.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=169:kit-cairns&catid=55:project-showcase-coverage&Itemid=60]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=49 Fri, 10 Jul 2009 08:26:31 -0400 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=48 Laura is also in the midst of selling her hair. She has had long hair all of her life and is even known as Laura Long Hair. She says she needs a change and instead of just going for it she figures she should capitalize on the fact that she has really, really long beautifully natural hair by selling it. She listed it at hairtracker.com yesterday and has already had some inquiries. She is hoping for $2000. You might say “why not cut it for cancer or donate it” well we have done that before and we do contribute to other charities so this time Laura gets to do whatever she wants and have some much needed money to play with for a change. Speaking of which, it wont be long now before Laura will finish school. Actually, today she is taking her application to graduate to her college and only has one more month long placement in May to finish up. Then she can finally begin focussing on the career of her choice. Big steps for her, it has been a long haul and our family is really looking forward to a second income and some regular routines. Hopefully, by September she will begin her career journey. Around that same time I will be taking my second parental leave from work. I will be looking after both of our children for six months while Laura gets her career under way. I am hoping but really doubt I will be able to do it as I will be much more in demand then when it was just with Walden but it would be nice to record another CD around that time. It may have to wait until summer 2010. Whenever it happens I am looking forward to sitting down and working in my new studio.
Now this brings me nicely into the next component of “My World.” The launch of the New No Boundaries Studio and Music Entertainment Company. Officially the business was registered last year and much money was invested throughout 2008 to get ready for the official launch of the new Studio which took place March 1st, 2009. Some neat recording packages are be offered right now like the “3 day 2 night rustic recording retreat” as well as “recording starting as low as $15.00/hr.” and “Free recording for friends for a limited time.” I have had a few inquiries and this week I will be in my first recording session with a “new” musician friend of mine Shawn Crozier. He will be my first client this year. Marcus White, Scott Stiles, The Black Suits and another Lady have also inquired about recording and will likely happen soon also. Why for free you might ask? Well the new equipment comes with a three hour DVD and a 400 page manual so trying to figure it out will take awhile. It took me 4 years to master the smaller older Roland DAW and this one is so much more intense so I am offering free recording until I get good enough at it not to have to keep referring back to the DVD and manual instructions. I have put a lot of work into making the studio as professional as possible on a very tight budget. The last item still needed for the studio is the electronic drum kit. It is a big investment and as soon as I get my first paying customer of 500+ I will purchase the drums which are much more expensive then $500. Anyway, I will be patient and have to remember that my family comes first and if I cannot afford it right away then just be patient the time will come. That is the philosophy behind my business as well. I have not made any good money yet but that time will come. It may take several years before I build the business and get the recognition needed to make a go of it but I am just building it one day at a time - brick by brick so to speak. The problem is that the business services are quite extensive in that I can provide music entertainment services in all regards of the music industry. I am offering EVERYTHING that could possibly be offered so it will take quite awhile to build the needed recognition. Hence the Name NO BOUNDARIES MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT - meaning that there are no boundaries to the services that I can offer- DJ, MC, DATA TRANSFER, RECORDING, PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION, PRINTING, STAGE MANAGEMENT, FUNDING, RENTAL, ETC, ETC, ETC. I think the business will take some larger steps forward in the coming years when I finish the business plan and secure some business grants etc and can really focus on marketing. Right now it is just word of mouth and its hard because nobody has any money. Also, many people who are into music do what I do in terms of building their own home studio. That is why my business is so much more then that and I will end up having to do weddings, dances, and all that other not so fun stuff in order to generate some income. So if you planing a wedding or having a party and need some music please remember me. I have 1500 Watts of sound and amps and close to 4000 songs categorized by genre. I can meet any of your music likes. (Small Or Big I Will Fit Your Gig).
I have to remember that it is only a part time business as my primary focus is and always will be my teaching career and family. I love teaching and I love my family and those aspects are what have shaped my life and will continue to do so for at least another 25 years or so. Maybe by the time I retire from teaching I will have built up the business enough to keep me busy full time. It’s a long range plan (lol). One really cool part of it all is that when Walden is ready he will have his own studio for recoding and because he has such an interest in instruments and playing and singing and well music in general, along with all the live gig experience he is getting, maybe he will be able to make something out of it if he so chooses. Canyon too - but we do not yet know what he is like so have no idea where he will go. I can see Walden taking the steps to success though that is for sure. I think Laura even has the recording bug and might lay down some tracks on my next album also. Oh what fun it will be. I am sooooo looking forward to it.
On that note lets talk about gigs. I recently had an amazing show at The Opera House, in Toronto and it was a lot of fun. Big stage, lights, smoke, dressing rooms etc. A real gig experience. Another big one coming up in Owen Sound at the Bayshore community Center. I am trying to put together a summer festival tour but am not having much success. Peterborough folk festival, Summerfolk, Maripossa, Go, etcetera have already rejected me on their main stage so I am looking for other avenues into the festival scene - maybe my business will lend me to this over time. Overall I have had 4 shows this month and that is good because once the baby comes I will certainly be laying low for awhile. One or two if possible but that will be it until the summer. It has been quite a ride so far this year with some really fun gigs, not like it used to be - much more professional and larger scale shows. Some awesome venues which is a nice break from the pub scene. I am currently in the process of making DVD compilation, getting some of my music on some professional compilation CDs, always till looking for licencing in film and TV and constantly building my personal website. Bare with me on this though as I am not the mastermind behind my web design and updates. Some of you have cemented on the fact that it is a little outdated and behind the times (not the same house we live in and not updated frequently enough) but it is a big project and takes some time to do an overhaul like that. It will happen when it happens and the positive feedback that I have received about www.kitcairns.com is much
appreciated. Dave Mader does a great job at putting my ideas into motion. I look forward to seeing a new video section, calendar section, business section and canyon section sometime this year Please check out the website and sign my guestbook. I love reading peoples comments. Now on to our homestead. We have recently submitted a proposal to our neighbour about extending our property behind us to include his old barn. We need a little more space for our boys to run freely and taking ownership of the barn is something we have wanted to do since we moved in. I really hope he seriously considers our offer and we can begin to initiate the process. The barn is big, beautiful, right behind our house but very old and in need of some attention. If it is not restructured soon it might actually collapse and then it wont be so pretty, it would actually be quite a problem with regard to property value etcetera. We would like to have the barn for a number of other reasons also. A few farm animals and a bigger space for a showroom for our retro and antique collection. The loft is just running out of space. So we keep our fingers crossed and hope the barn that was once part of this homestead can be put back to it once again. Also, with regard to our house we are looking into capitalizing on the home reno tax credit. We would like to renovate the room I am in right now (the office) along with some paint in the kitchen and the living room needs some refreshing also. Floors, cupboards, walls, ceiling etc. Hopefully we can afford to do some of this before the end of the year.
Well I think that is it for now. I will be posting some exciting baby updates soon I am sure. I wanted to end with big thanks for all those friends, family and fans who have supported my music endeavours so far this year. My music goes nowhere without support and you are all certainly helping me live out a dream. Anytime I can help with your dreams just let me know. Until next time.....
Cheers and Good Luck
KIT]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=48 Wed, 18 Mar 2009 11:44:27 -0400 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=47
Cheers
Thanks
Peace
Love

Kit Cairns
Independent Musician
www.kitcairns.com
Owner/Operator
No Boundaries Music Entertainment
contactme@kitcairns.com
705-794-0350]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=47 Sun, 18 Jan 2009 15:12:36 -0500 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=46

]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=46 Thu, 13 Nov 2008 19:21:18 -0500 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=45 All right then, the big news that I have kept secret for so long now is that Laura, Walden, Sister, Blue and Myself are going to be having a new addition to our family. We have told most of our family and friends but I wanted to wait until around the three month mark just in case their were early complications and until we knew what we were going to have. Well we now know beacuse on Thursday we had the ultrasound and although there are no guarantees it looks as though we will be having another boy. Walden will likely be having a little brother to play with. We are very excited about this news. I guess we were kind of hoping we might have a girl but now that we know it’s going to be a boy I think we are a little relieved. It just seems that it will be a lot easier to have two of the same in the sense that they will be able to share clothes and bunkbeds. We were not sure how it was going to work. We thought we might need to dismantle the music studio and move our bedrooms into the upstairs but now we can just put a set of bunk beds in the nursery and everything else will be able to stay the same. When it comes to the point of bunk beds (3-4 years down the road) Laura and I might decide to move our bedroom upstairs.
Because we thought it might be a girl, due mostly to the fact that Laura’s pregnancy has felt much different that the last one, we had really only picked out girl names. Willow was our first choice for a girl along with Dorri-Antha but now that we know it’s a boy we are thinking along the lines of Clifton James Robert Cairns. We are not 100% sure yet but that is where we are at for the now.
The due date was April 1st but I think according to the most recent ultrasound that the date is closer to March 29, 2009. I would be happy with that date because it kind of has some flow to it like April 27, 2007 which is Walden’s birthday. I sure hope Walden will be gentle with the new baby. He has seemed to develop a unique relationship with Blue our cat and he does like to play with his Teddy, Bun Bun and a few dolls that we have. He loves to cuddle and play gently with Blue but then he also likes to chase him around, pull his tail and bite him. I really wonder where he gets that from???? Lol!!
Anyway, Laura is doing quite well although she is exhausted most of the time as am I. Walden has started getting up again in the middle of the night and it is really taking a toll on us both. Finally, things have slowed down a little for me except at work where I am busier then I have ever been in my five years as a teacher. It seems like I am just barely staying a float at work and with report cards and a Tree Top Trekking Outbound adventure happening this coming week I am sure I will be pulling some late nights. I am really looking forward to our vacation over the Christmas holidays where we will be going south to catch some rays and spend some much needed extended family time. Thank you to Lorryn for making this a possibility for us. We sure have been lucky with everyone’s support!! I wanted to take the time to thank my Mom and Dad also for helping us out recently, it was much appreciated and muchly needed.
Well I guess that is it for now!! I do have a lot more to say but I will have to write again later. Remember that Laura and I are having our wedding ceremony on Saturday July 25th, 2009 in Tobermory, Ontario and so all of our family and friends need to keep that date free for next year. We are planing a really fun, adventurous and casual time so please make sure to leave that weekend open as you will need to plan to spend Saturday night in Tobermory in order to experience the whole occasion. I can tell you now it won’t be a typical wedding ceremony so plan to HAVE FUN!!!
In more recent news, I have a gig coming up on November 22, 2008 at the Royal Canadian Legion in Barrie, Ontario. This is going to be a very big gig but it is mostly for the younger generation. I will likely be one of the oldest musicians performing at this event. This will be really good exposure for me and although I am nervous I think it will be a great opportunity for both my music and my music business. There are about eight bands competing in the Supernova, Randy River ‘The Last Cut’ music competition that is currently touring Canada. The headlining band is called Rebel Emergency which is a pretty heavy rock band out of Toronto who is not competing in the event but is basically touring and have a contract with Randy River and Supernova and so well it will be a big event. The funny thing is that I have to sell a minimum of thirty tickets to even stand a chance of moving on to the finals in the competition. The tickets are like $12.00 each so that is highly unlikely. It would be neat if I could sell them to some of my students because this is really more of an event for highschoolers and young bands just starting out but that is totally against policy and just can’t be done. It is an all ages event and I would love to be able to sell the thirty tickets to at least have a chance of moving on. Are there any sponsors out there that would like to purchase some tickets that I can give away for free just so I can have a chance of moving on??? It does not really matter I guess as my main goal for this show is to promote No Boundaries Music Entertainment as an Indie Label looking for business opportunities and young talent wishing to make a demo and swing through the ropes that I have so strategically hung in the right places. Hopefully I will get a few bands who want to make a demo so that I can start to make some money from my newly developed music business. I have just purchased a new computer and my recording, mixing, producing, printing and distributing capabilities have just grown by leaps and bounds???? What is that suppose to mean anyway? Lol.
Well I guess that is it for now, I hope to hear from some of you soon. I am in the process of working on my Live Video DVD that will hopefully be completed before the end of the year. If you have any music video footage of me performing please send an email to contactme@kitcairns.com and let me know when and where the footage was from and I may consider using it in my Live Music DVD. On a downer note, I am no longer heading to LA in Novemeber as I had hoped. Although the momentum has been good, it’s not financially possible for me right now to attend this years Taxi Road Rally. I really need to find a sponsor that can help me continue to move forward with my music, as it has just gotten sooooo costly. Hopefully my business will start to take off soon. Check out the contact me section on my website too read all about No Boundaries Music Entertainment. Bye for now, drop me a line in my guestbook at www.kitcairns.com. It means so much to go back and read the entries from time to time.
Thanks
KIT]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=45 Sat, 1 Nov 2008 18:43:11 -0400 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=44

Enough about them, the Hollywood ex and his new squeeze. Sunday night at the National Arts Centre was a chance to reacquaint ourselves with the real Alanis Morissette, rock star, Ottawa gal and the queen of the emotional rollercoaster.

After the sun set on a sunny Thanksgiving Day, the Grammy-winning, zillion-selling artist wasted no time demonstrating her rock-star chops in front of a hometown audience. First, her disembodied voice came through the speakers, and when she finally strode purposefully on stage, one arm raised in greeting, her nimble band was fully cranked.

In a haze of purple lights, the song Univited unfolded with a Zep-like display of majesty; hard on its heels was the equally heavy Versions of Violence, one of the few songs on Morissette's latest disc, Flavors of Entanglement, not directly associated with a break-up.


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Alanis Morissette and her band in concert in Southam Hall at the NAC in Ottawa, October 12, 2008.
John Major, The Ottawa Citizen

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Font:****As the guitars blazed, bass thundered and drums rolled, Morissette carried an air of rock 'n' roll elegance, sporting an outfit that featured tall boots and something dark and sparkly on top. Her long brown hair trailed to her elbows, and neatly trimmed bangs framed her smiling face.

Although she said few words to the audience, the 34-year-old looked to be at ease with her place in the music-industry food chain, no longer stadium material but happy to be connecting with a couple thousand fans each night along the tour. She thanked the crowd, introduced the band members and slipped in a few hometown references.

"I'd like to dedicate this to all Ottawa girls," she said with a smile, because the song in question was the not-entirely-flattering Everything, "and all the people who love them."

The emotional peak of the well-paced concert was Flinch, the stark confessional from Flavors, in which our heroine's voice appeared to tear a vein and let the guts spill. Morissette's voice oozed with such pain and heartache that even Scarlett would shed a tear.

From there, the recovery process clicked into gear with the mystical beat of Moratorium. Her voice as sweet as honey, Morissette began the song with her hands clasped at her neck. As the band rocked, her body language followed, jumping, twirling, spinning around and around until everyone on stage ended up playing Morissette's 1995 breakthrough hit, You Oughta Know. The crowd leaped to its feet, and went nuts as Morissette snarled the lyrics, making no effort to blur the f-word.

By the time Alanis wailed out Tapes, a creepy-crawly song from the new disc, she could do no wrong in the eyes of the audience. Their spirit became even more generous with the sit-down segment of the concert. Morissette perched on a stool, and the rest of the band, in chairs, formed a tight circle around her, a seating arrangement that pulled in the audience, too. It was Alanis' job not to cave to the love-in.

She succeeded. Her laidback demeanour made everyone comfortable, and as the band settled into a hot campfire jam, we were one big happy family, singing along to some of the biggest hits of the 90s, the likes of One Hand In My Pocket, You Learn and Ironic. The playing was terrific, though it would have been nice to hear a bit more from Morissette between songs, maybe a joke or anecdote about growing up in Ottawa.

For opening act Alexi Murdoch, who's from Scotland, it was his first visit to Ottawa. The young, scruffy singer-songwriter bore a musical resemblance to Ottawa son Bruce Cockburn, with the same oaky drone of a voice and a similar resonance to his guitar sound. The effect was hypnotic. Unfortunately, on top of a big turkey dinner, it seemed to come with a built-in snooze factor.



OTTAWA SUN ARTICLE REVIEW OCTOBER 13, 2008

Being Thanksgiving, it made perfect sense that Alanis Morissette should throw a gig at the National Arts Centre last night.
Thanksgiving, after all, is a holiday you go home for, and for Ottawa's favourite daughter, this homecoming was a long time coming, given the recent emotional turbulence of her personal life, including her split from fiance Ryan Reynolds and the death of her grandmother.
POSITIVE ZEN
But for the spiritually voracious Morissette, all events, even bad ones, have a certain positive zen about them, and as she's proven in the past with Jagged Little Pill -- an album that featured the breakup song You Oughta Know and sold nearly 30 million copies -- the 34-year-old songwriter can turn salt into something very sweet indeed.
In fact, as breakup albums go, Flavors of Entanglement begs comparison to the all-time classic heartbreak album, Joni Mitchell's Blue.
Last night's show, however, didn't live up to the hype.
The concert began with Morissette's band of five men playing in the dark strobe lighting while Morissette's prerecorded vocals played over the speakers.
Ironically, that was the only time that Morissette's vocals were not buried below the band in the sound mix.

Unlike Mitchell's odes to grief, Morissette's songs show she is also comfortable with a little rage. And so the night went, heartbreaking ballads countered by post-industrial rock.
After that short intro, Morissette stomped out on stage, looking sullen in black but still attacking her microphone with ear-ringing vocal power on The Couch and Uninvited.
Yet, all the while, Morissette looked out of sorts and vaguely uncomfortable, as if she was singing a sexy song in front of her family. On the sweet, single-piano ballads such as Not As We, she stood quietly in a half-embrace and sang with strong heartfelt emotion.
Then, with a flick of her long black hair, she threw herself into heavy industrial rockers such as Versions of Violence, Flinch, Moratorium, Hand In Pocket, Citizen of the Planet and You Oughta Know, jumping spasmodically as if doing cathartic calisthenics.
Morissette is not the most polished or rhythmic physical presence I've seen, and I found all of her physical antics distracting.
But there aren't many singers around who can turn up the vocals the way she can.
HALF-HEARTED
Alas, horrible sound issues rendered much of Morissette's energetic performance moot.
After all, if you can't hear her, what's the point?
The acoustic dead zone picked up marginally after Morissette and her band formed a song circle to play Ironic for her encore.
In the end, I thought it was a terribly uneven concert, only half-hearted, as if she was keeping the best part of her show for later.
All the elements were there for a successful performance. Her band was terrific and the hall was full.
Yet for some reason, it all kind of fell apart.
But Ottawa still loves Alanis Morissette.
---
Alanis Morissette
NAC
Sun Rating: 2 1/2 out of 5




ANOTHER ARTICLE BY LYNN SAXBERG - OTTAWA CITIZEN OCTOBER 6th, 2008

One would understand if Alanis Morissette felt a tad insecure about facing the world on her extensive North American tour. This is her first headlining excursion since her break-up with actor Ryan Reynolds, a split that inspired many of the songs on her latest disc, Flavors of Entanglement. As celebrity gossip goes, what made it even more juicy was the speed at which Reynolds moved on, to none other than Hollywood babe Scarlett Johannson. They were married last week.

While Alanis never names names in either songs or interviews, fans know she writes openly about her relationships and are tickled to assume that songs like Moratorium, Not As We and the venom-filled Straitjacket have a connection to one of Hollywood's hottest couples.

But it must be noted that the wound is not fresh. Morissette's breakup happened two years ago, the songs were written and recorded last year and the Ottawa-born rock superstar is not one to waste her life moping. During a recent conference call interview, there was no hint of lingering heartache. It sounded like she has kept herself busy.


Alanis Morissette performs in Washington, D.C., an early stop in the North Americn tour that brings her to Ottawa's National Arts Centre Oct. 12.

The first half of the year was spent preparing for the disc's release. A band was assembled, and Morissette made sure they were roadworthy by taking them on a spring tour as the opening act for matchbox 20. After the album came out in June, there was a summer of television appearances and select concert dates.

No matter what the scrutiny entails, by the way, Flavors of Entanglement stands up as an excellent album, sure to be included on a few year-end lists. The first single, the bittersweet, breezy Underneath, was one of the summer's most ubiquitous songs, a lilting staple on top-40 radio stations. The next single is the quiet, vulnerable Not As We, a poetic number about starting over.

As you will recall, it's not the first time fans have played name-the-dude in an Alanis song. The identity of the ex-lover in her 1995 breakthrough hit, You Oughta Know, is still the subject of speculation, despite comedian Dave Coulier's recent comments about recognizing himself in the song. He dated Alanis in 1993.

When asked about Coulier's assumption, Morissette reiterated her policy.

"Well, I've never talked about who my songs were about and I won't because when I write them, they're written for the sake of personal expression," she says. "So with all due respect to whomever may see themselves in my songs, and it happens all the time, I never really comment on it because I write these songs for myself. I don't write them for other people."

The fall tour started in Charlottesville, Virginia, last month and ends in Oakland, California, on Nov. 17. Along the way are stops in five Canadian cities, including hometown Ottawa on Oct. 12.

It's her first big tour in years, and Morissette felt it called for a renewed perspective and a fresh round of rehearsals.

"I wanted to start from scratch and throw the entire setlist out and start over, because ... I don't like to repeat myself," she said in a pre-tour interview. "During rehearsals, there's a lot of heavy lifting but (it's) really worth it for me, because now I'm teeming with excitement and that helps for me.

"It is, I think, hands down, my favourite setlist, a combination of wonderful self-indulgence that keeps me and everyone on stage really happy, and then the songs that I want to make sure that I communicate with people because it will be like a familiar kind of home to some people."

In addition to the heavy lifting required to fine-tune the band is the necessity for Morissette to be at the top of her game on tour. She says it's a far more "physical" setlist, and she has been running and bicycling to train.

Physically, that was a bit more difficult this time, as Morissette was recovering from a bum heel that had sidelined her from her usual workout routine.

"I was kind of disabled in a way, so I couldn't work out for about almost eight months, and that was torture for me because that's how I get a lot of things out of my system," she said. "My heel is kind of back in action, still in pain, but I can operate, so I'm very happy to be back in the saddle in that way."

Morissette's last concert in Ottawa was an NAC appearance in 2004, though she did pop in to sing the national anthem at a Senators game during the 2007 playoffs. After the death of her grandmother last year, "I've been staying away from Ottawa a little bit out of fear of the immense grief that I would be reminded of, so this will be my way of coming back through music."

She says she was determined to return this time. "My touring agent and I and my manager talked at great length trying to figure out logistically how to make it happen, and I wouldn't stop until we did, so I'm excited," Morissette said. "We're playing a lot of Canadian dates this time around, so I'm really excited to get back home."

Alanis Morissette plays the National Arts Centre Oct. 12. Tickets & times:

Ticketmaster.com

]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=44 Wed, 15 Oct 2008 14:04:26 -0400 http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=43

On the surface of her songs, Alanis Morissette projects herself as somebody lost in self-contemplation, wracked with inner turmoil and, frankly, flying off the rails.
In concert, however, the Ottawa-born singer songwriter certainly is in complete control, a master of the elements. On Saturday night, Morissette took the near-capacity crowd at Hamilton Place on an emotional roller coaster, plunging her adoring fans into an abyss of despair -- bitter, angry and helpless -- before lifting them back into the driver's seat, self confident and ready to take on the world. Morissette's 1995 blockbuster Jagged Little Pill helped a generation of young women survive the agony of adolescence and brutality of unbridled love.
The album and its unplugged followup still sell well, counting sales of well over 30 million and picking up a new generation of fans facing the same growing pains in life as their mothers.
Back in the Jagged days, Morissette was barely out of her teens herself. On Saturday, Morissette, at the age of 34, let her fans know the trials never really stop and perseverance always pays off.
Mixing songs from the classic Jagged Little Pill with her most recent CD, Flavors Of Entanglement and, to a lesser extent, 1998's Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, presented a cohesive psycho-drama of songs, wringing out hyper-emotion into a cup from which her fans drank deeply. With a high-grade four-piece rock band backing her up, Morissette opened in command with Univited and then stated her needs with All I Really Want, before the uncomfortable self-analysis of The Couch and Not The Doctor.
Not As We, chronicling her recent breakup with former fiance, actor Ryan Reynolds, ached with insecurity and Head Over Feet gave way to surrender.
At the halfway point, Morissette brought us to the bottom, spinning out into the Indo-electric psychedelic nightmare of Sympathetic Character. It's a horrifying song of near-suicidal devotion. With her arms outstretched, Morissette performed her dervish dance, using the strobe lights to full effect, only to retreat at the song's climax to a crouched fetal position.
She found new power in the get-back-at-you singalong of You Ought To Know, perhaps the angriest pop song ever written. The crowd was eating it up as she tossed out lyrical barbs at every guy who has ever betrayed a woman.
Life is not all bad, however. For the final acoustic set Morissette sat centre stage, legs crossed, smiling and self-confident to sing the feel-good anthem One Hand In My Pocket, eventually spilling into the opening encore of You Learn.
It just goes to show how ironic life can be -- how everything can seem so bad, but be so good. And, yes, she did include Ironic in the encore.
grockingham@thespec.com
905-526-3331
]]> General http://kitcairns.com/journal/index.php?itemid=43 Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:54:29 -0400