Celebrating the birthday of Totó La Momposina, Colombia's Queen Of Cumbia!

Raising a glass to Colombia's cultural ambassador and cumbia icon Totó La Momposina on her 86th birthday! Cheers Sonia!

R.I.P. Jeff "Monoman" Conolly of The Lyres, DMZ, 1956-2026

Sadly, Boston garage punk great Jeff Conolly aka "Monoman" has lost his battle with bladder cancer. He'll be greatly missed. 

Catl rocks the Upper Deck @ Toronto Island Marina, August 1

Don't miss Catl's shack shakin' return to the Toronto Island Marina's Upper Deck for a swingin' Saturday night  getdown! It's free!  

Tommy Stinson celebrates reissue of One Man Mutiny @ the Bovine, August 6

Tommy Stinson of The Replacements is hitting Hamilton, Tillsonburg, Windsor and Toronto to mark the reissue of One Man Mutiny

Here's the scoop...

To mark the reissue of his 2011 solo album One Man Mutiny – out via Yeah Right! Records on August 7th (available here) – Tommy Stinson is playing a few shows in Ontario with Little Venom and Karla Rose. Starting with Hamilton's Corktown Pub on August 5th, Tommy makes a Toronto stop at The Bovine on August 6th, then it's over to Paddy's in Tillsonburg August 7th, followed by an in-store meet 'n' greet at Speed City Records in London at 1 pm on Saturday (August 8) before finishing up at the Lion's Head in Windsor later that night.  Watch a clip about the tour posted by  Tommy while he was in Montreal mixing a new record right here. Listen to the Stonesy "It's A Drag" off One Man Mutiny and a chat with Otis Gibbs below. 

Happy Caribbean Carnival weekend!

Celebrating Caribbean Carnival weekend with a Enrico's Linstead Market mix of vintage calypso and mento. Listen after the clips. 

Listen to Enrico's Linstead Market mix right here. 

LINKS
Toronto Caribbean Carnival 2026 https://torontocarnival.ca/

Happy Birthday James Spaulding!

Raising a glass to alto saxophonist James Spaulding on his birthday with a couple of stellar performances.

Rare 1972 Seattle proto-metal recording by Grand Theft gets reissued

Inspired by Led Zep and Sabbath, Seattle's Grand Theft recorded a one-take session in '72 just issued by Ancient Grease Records.

Here's the scoop from Ancient Grease Records...

Grand Theft was a one-shot explosion of heavy rock madness out of Seattle in 1972. What began as a tongue-in-cheek jab at the bombast of bands like Grand Funk Railroad quickly spiraled into something raw, real, and entirely their own. Dave Baroh’s snarling guitar riffs, Kevin Marin’s thunderous bass, and Phil Klitgaard’s primal yet sharp drumming cut through like a cracking whip on a stormy night.

Their sole LP, recorded in a single chaotic session, captures a moment of unfiltered energy. Tracks like “Scream (It’s Eating Me Alive)” and “Closer to Herfy’s” erupted from caffeine-fueled late nights, inside jokes, keen wit, and a new devotion to abrasiveness. With radio DJ/manager Burl Barer steering the mayhem, the album gained regional buzz, a “dream date” promo contest, and even praise from Lester Bangs.

Live performances were rare—spontaneous, earsplitting blitzes—but Grand Theft’s legend grew long after the band dissolved. What began as a fleeting joke became a proto-metal curiosity, a wild card in the deck of early ’70s rock. Grand Theft remains a testament to rock’s untamed spirit and a primal scream in the face of convention.

Get a vinyl reissue of Grand Theft's ultra-rare private press recording – mastered from the original tapes with liner notes by Steven Krakow on black or sunburst scream coloured wax – directly from Ancient Grease right here. 

Listen to a couple of tracks below along with a discussion of the record on the Vinyl Piper podcast.