This week has been amazing; filled with adventure and new experiences. One of these experiences includes an extraordinary new talent in an unusual jam space. Check back monday for the third installment of Shot at the Dark.

If you’re a dog owner or a dog walker, you’ll be happy to know The City of Calgary recently added off-leash dog areas to the eMapping feature on calgary.ca:

GO HERE to find an off-leash area near you!

The calgarysun.com Red Rocks concert series continues with Calgary’s own Get Through Summer, July 12th at The New Black Centre. Check the poster for more details.

The Union, Ill Movements and Vibe 98.5 present one of Canada’s best hip hop artists with one of Calgarys’s best on July 7th at Flames Central. Kardinal Offishall will be in town applying his northern touch with Calgary’s own $truck. Come out and support local hip hop with what should be a great show, and a nice break from all the typical Stampede concerts. Doors at 8, 18+. Tickets available at Sloth, Giant 45 and The Gallery.

“My favourite thing was definitely getting to show my interviews on the big screen and being given the freedom to organize my own ‘Video Vault’ at Sled Island  with such cool bands as Quintron, New Danger Kids and Hot Panda. Plus I was honoured that Quintron ended up jamming with the Evaporators!”

and other plants from our garden, hopefully coming soon to CIA. Let’s see how our Calgary climate is for growing plants on an often shady patio.

Let me just preface this entire post by saying the Music Director here at CJSW has been playing KNOTS’ album The Blistering Sun, The Pale Moon, Hahahaha for weeks on repeat - in particular what he calls the ‘best song of the year’ - “Woodsmoke.” Granted it truly is a lovely album filled with lyric-heavy gems and “Woodsmoke” is catchy, whiste-able and all the other magical things I love about music.

But I’m not here to review albums.

You must see KNOTS (aka Neal Moignard) live before he leaves on tour with BRAIDS in August. He seems nervous and shaky but, luckily, it’s absolutely charming. So charming, in fact, I wouldn’t mind being able to fit him in my pocket and pull him out whenever I feel down and he can sing my blues away.

Calgary truly is becoming the home to some extremely talented musicians and, although he plans to stay in Montreal after the tour, I will be proud to say KNOTS is from my town.

That is why KNOTS, and Calgary, is so awesome!

See KNOTS on July 11th at the Grace Presbyterian Church (1009 15 Avenue SW)

I’ve been sitting at the computer for the past twelve hours  trying to think of the most appropriate way to introduce Aaron and Leni, and can’t seem to find the words to describe one of the most talented couples I have ever heard.

Aaron is a man of many stories, with an old soul in a well travelled body. With his musical talents dipping their roots into the hardcore scenes of Calgary, Aaron has brought his voice into a new genre, where his experiences speak of love and sorrow.  I was fortunate enough to meet Aaron after only knowing his brother Reuben for a short time. Aaron and I got along instantly, and I easily became a fan of his company and his music.

It wasn’t much longer afterwards that I was privileged enough to meet his musical partner and other half, Leni Navarro-Whyte. With a glowing personality, and a timeless voice, Leni is a woman that I will never forget. Her child like innocence transcends into her performances, and is so inspiring to listen to.

I am so happy to have been able to meet Aaron and Leni, and am not looking forward to their upcoming move out east, but I know it will only lead them into new aspirations.

This week’s episode is a two parter, thanks to the inspiring locations we stumbled upon during our visit to the rural jam space Aaron and Leni took us out to.

A very special thank you goes to Ben Bullock for sharing this treasure of a location. You’re an amazing man, my friend.

part two:

Thanks again to Aaron and Leni.

Thank you so much for watching. Stay tuned for a new episode next week.

Everybody has their summer spots around town. Seebe is a short distance out of Calgary and trek into the wilderness.

Seebe Cliff

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Photo by Andree Lau of are you gonna eat that?

Calgary’s biggest party is fast approaching, which can mean a lot of different things for different people. The rodeo, the Grandstand Show, free concerts, cowboy hats, mini donuts, getting drunk at 10 AM, rides, temporary employment, the Westside Express… the list just goes on and on. But for some, the most exciting part of Stampede is the prospect of scoring FREE BREAKFAST FOR 10 DAYS. To make this easier for all the pancake and sausage lovers out there, local design company Karo has come up with the Flapjack Finder (http://www.flapjackfinder.com) for all your flapjack finding needs.

If you’re a planner, you can search ahead by date or by location - punch in the postal code of your home or workplace, then click on whether you want something that’s a stumbling distance (up to 1 km) or up to a quest (10 km or more) away.

If you are someone who flies by the seat of their pants, just click “Today’s Flapjacks” and see if there’s a pancake breakfast near you. If not, the Flapjack Finder also comes equipped with recipes in case you’re stuck celebrating at home.

Hope to see you out there!