The Video Vault: Canadian Pride Edition

There's something really satisfying about seeing fellow Canadians making it big around the world. Little do the Americans know that we've slowly infiltrated their society and soon enough they'll be under our control! We soften them with laughter and then BAM! all of a sudden Lorne Michaels is giving fellow Canadians every spot on Saturday Night Live (Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Phil Hartman, Norm Macdonald, Mike Myers = all Canucks). Next up for Canadian comics: cornering the market on blockbusters. Oh wait, Seth Rogen's got that covered. On that note, here is an amazing 1995 SNL performance by Canadian rock legends The Tragically Hip. Check out Aykroyd's introduction and outfit - totally solid!

The Video Vault

Before I owned a real stereo, my brother and I shared a Fisher Price tape player/recorder which we used nonstop. We would record fake cooking shows, nature sounds, and eventually entertained ourselves on long car trips by bringing along the recorded audio for ABC 'TGIF' shows like Perfect Strangers, and Family Matters. I'm sure my parents loved that. When I first discovered MuchMusic, I used the same Fisher Price player to record the audio from music videos. Circa 1994 my favorites were Canadian classics like the Tragically Hip, and Moist. But I soon discovered the dark stylings of Portishead, and in particular the video for 'Sour Times'. I was drawn to its darkness and mystery - the image of Beth Gibbons mascara stained, and wailing haunted me.