Author: Gruesome Greg

  • What’s in a band name, anyways?

    Toronto hard rockers Ape have made it their New Year’s Resolution to go after A Primitive Evolution, a local band that goes by the acronym A.P.E. Presumably, they don’t have the cash to pull a Satriani and serve them at their next public performance. So they’ve decided to post on every message board they can…

  • The last all-ages punk show at the Kathedral…

    …that I’ll ever attend took place last nite, when the Dayglo Abortions made their annual January cross-country trip to the Queen Street venue. That’s no knock on The Matadors or Oi Polloi; between my work and radio commitments, twas the gig that best fit onto my calendar.

  • 2009 Year in Review on Smokin’ Green TONITE!

    A little FYI for ya: I’ll be ringing in the New Year on CKLN tonite with my Top 10 albums of 2009.

  • Too much Cowbell is never a bad thing…

    White Cowbell Oklahoma is now 10 years old, which makes them the same age as a fifth-grader. As a collective unit, that is; there are at least a couple geezers in the band. I wasn’t aware that the oldest of them, the skullet-headed Sergeant, had left WCO, giving them one less voice, guitar, and rhinestone-studded…

  • Hotter Than Hell: Chicken Wings on Bloor St. (Toronto)

    When I heard that a chicken wing joint was opening two doors down from St. Louis on Bloor, I thought that was a dumb idea. A few months later, when another bar specializing in wings opened at the corner of Bloor and Walmer, well, I figured that was a really dumb idea. Yet I found…

  • ZZ Top: The Most Unlikely Arena Rock Band

    Back before the “Steven Tyler falling off the stage” incident, ZZ Top and Aerosmith were scheduled to tour the football stadiums of the CFL’s Western Division. What with the pissing match that ensued, Aerosmith haven’t made up the dates yet, but ZZ Top came to Calgary for a headlining gig at the Pengrowth Saddledome, just…

  • My return to radio starts TONITE!

    After an eight-month hiatus, Gruesome Greg returns to the airwaves with Smokin Green’ now occupying a new timeslot: 1-3 am Saturday nites on CKLN 88.1 fm!

  • My pre-teen dream was nearly dashed by a shitty soundsystem…

    When I was 10, the holy trinity of hard rock bands consisted of AC/DC, KISS, and…wait for it… Nazareth. The Scottish rockers had a shoulda-bin stadium stomper in “Hair of the Dog” and turned Joni Mitchell’s “This Flight Tonight” into a hard-rockin’ hit. I actually used to draw pictures of myself wearing a Nazareth T-Shirt.…

  • My AllThat’sHeavy haul has arrived!

    Labour Day Weekend is gonna be another Long Weekend of Doom for me. There aren’t any shows going on, but I’ll be slow-motion headbanging to the large shipment of CDs I just got from AllThat’sHeavy.com.

  • NEBULA vs The Entrance Band? That’s not even a fair fight!

    And in this corner, with 12 years, five albums, three EPs and countless tours under their belts, NEBULA! And in the opposite corner, with 3 years as a trio, touring in support of their first album, The Entrance Band!