Live! MUSICA Stories
Thunder and lightning: Rock & roll’s climatologists
In the middle of July 2026, before the wildfires & heat domes had taken over the news forums, the intrepid MUSICAlive contributor Polina Tognonmegni, photographer painter & graphics diva, travelled with another enthusiast to the northern wilderness to experience . . . Rockin’ Thunder Music Festival. Which claimed “a high-voltage festival experience where the guitars are louder, the energy is wilder, and the rock never stops! We’ll be rocking out with you at the Exhibition Lands Racetrack in Edmonton AB July 11-12, 2026.”
AFK is NOT ‘Away From Keyboard’: They’re pwning Glitch-Hop transformation
And part of that ritual is that MUSICAlive! stands in a parking lot next to the passing C-trains, with small crowds of musically sated enthusiasts swirling about (and occasionally joining in) as we talk with musicians about what’s to come, what’s happened so far, and where they exist here on the gravel today. …
Having an Opinion About Music, or Not
I have nothing to say about music today. It’s kind of a strange thing, when you consider that my ears are continually massaged throughout the day and evening by rhythms and harmonies, the wide variety of styles that give me great pleasure: whether there’s the live U2 playing (from the movie I’ve never seen); or the 12” …
When music is the Preacher: Dharma Guns step into their Punk role!
Pete wraps up our conversation with the phrase that immediately gets into the title of this article, which is certainly not where we expected to end when talking with the Finlandian hard rocking band Dharma Guns, that sounds like it escaped from the 90’s with it’s heart intact! Here’s the guitars the songwriter plays which kind of explains some of this: …
Not A Doppelbock: the Bach Double, tasty, rich and satisfying!
Actually, “doppel-bach” would kind of work in a travellers’ “I’m trying to speak German” kind of way: the word is doppelbock. And the metaphor stands up to scrutiny as it refers to the stronger beer which originated in Munich, and from which most other beers pale in comparison. Not unlike most other composers compared to Bach. …
Autistici is David, but is David Autistici? The perceptual empathy of the ambient experimenter
When we ask Autistici to tell us his favourite instrument from his latest recording released on Audio Bulb Records, his reply (because it’s 2026, after all!) is: …
Dreams and chiefs and magical instruments: From tradition to today with Mbira Renaissance Band
A recent conversation with another musical obsessive (because that’s really what we are!) finished with MUSICAlive! wishing that our interviewees included more artists from south of the equator and east of Europe: not because of any talent lack in our pages, but simply because of an exposure lack on our behalf. His response was “How about Zimbabwe?” …