A number of years ago I ran a site called Canada Noise. I used to be big into the independent Canadian punk scene and there was no outlet, at least that I enjoyed reading myself, for keeping up with the bands I loved. I had a team of writers and we would post our own reviews of albums we would get sent to us, as well as posting news we would find elsewhere online. It was a poor attempt at a webzine that ultimately crashed and burned due to my lack of vision and fading interest in the genre.

Before it all came crashing down, Kyle and I had begun making a podcast featuring some of the artists we were covering. We would spend hours chatting on Skype trying to get our lines just right which was an extremely arduous process. All in all, we created 9 episodes before calling it quits, mostly due to our inability to access the music we wanted to play in a legal fashion, and our collective lack of attention span.

Since I want to have these available for years to come, and with Canada Noise no longer alive and kicking, I figured I would post them here to archive them, and who knows, maybe some of my readers might like to experience them as well. They are obviously very heavily influenced by the CBC Radio 3 podcast however I hope you, my dear readers, will derive some kind of pleasure from listening to them, whatever kind of pleasure that is.

I honestly don’t remember the tracklisting for these podcasts but if I do remember I’ll update the post.

EDIT: Here’s the tracklisting for this episode.

1. Protest The Hero – Blindfolds Aside
2. Broken Social Scene – 7/4 Shoreline
3. Choke – Breathing Won’t Come Easy
4. The New Pornographers – The Bleeding Heart Show
5. Bend Sinister – Hell or Shelter
6. Comeback Kid – Wake The Dead
7. The Most Serene Republic – Content Was Always My Favourite Colour
8. Sleeper Set Sail – Lifejacket
9. City and Colour – Save Your Scissors
10. Boys Night Out – Medicating

Without further ado, here is Episode #01.
Download Canada Noise Podcast Episode #1

Today, Google made an announcement that I was unaware was coming: The Nexus One is now available for Rogers in Canada.

Starting today, an additional version of the Nexus One is available from the Google web store that is compatible with AT&T’s 3G network. This new model can be purchased as an unlocked device without a service plan. In addition to AT&T’s 3G network, this device will also run on Rogers Wireless in Canada. And like the first version of the Nexus One, it can be used with most GSM operators globally.

Additionally, Nexus One devices can now be shipped to Canada from Google’s web store, and will work with a SIM from Rogers Wireless. To find out which version you should purchase, based on your mobile service provider, please visit our Help Center.

For those of you who follow me on Twitter, you’ll know that I was severely disappointed back at the beginning of January when the Nexus One was released and did not support the Rogers 3G bands. Well, today that all changed with the addition of a Nexus One that supports the AT&T/Rogers 3G/2G bands, and that they will be shipping to Canada.

Less than two weeks ago I detailed that I would be purchasing the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, if/when it was released. So much for that now.

It’s really Rogers/Sony Ericsson’s fault I ordered the Nexus One today. If they would have given us (the collective “us”) a release date for the Xperia X10 I would have waited to buy it as I’m eligible for a hardware upgrade. I would have had to re-up for 3 years (good for Rogers) and would have probably been trying to upsell my friends to the X10 who have cell contracts about to expire (good for Sony Ericsson). Unfortunately “Q2 2010″ is far too vague of a “release date” for a guy with a phone that shuts itself off for no reason at least once per day.

Now I’ve got (arguably) the best Android phone on the market, which will be directly supported/updated by Google directly (no waiting for Android 2.1 on the X10), and when my current contract is up I’ve got a phone that is 3G compatible with all three major carriers in Canada that I will not require a contract for. And if Heather keeps her iPhone, which I’m sure she will, we can unlock it at the end of our current contract and find the plan that suits us best.

Now let’s crunch some numbers just to see if this turns out to be a worthwhile purchase:

Google Nexus One: $529
Sony Ericsson Xperia X10: ~$199 (probably on a 3 year contract)
Contract extension: $675 ($75/mo for 9 additional months)

The x-factor here is the plan we sign after this current contract is over. If I can save the difference between the price of the phones (~$330) within those 9 months ($37/mo), then this deal is a no-brainer. But finding a plan, in Canada, where I would save $37/mo might not happen. I may only save a few dollars per month but the plans by then may have more/better features, plus, the advantages of having a Google phone can’t be overstated.

Needless to say, I’m ridiculously excited for this thing to arrive in the mail.

Leo Laporte: The Tech Guy

Lately I’ve found myself listening to podcasts rather than just mindlessly pressing shuffle on my iPod and letting the gods of Apple decide what I should be listening to

For those not aware of what podcasts are, they can be described as “on demand radio programs”. Anyone can create a podcast and put it on the internet and feel like a radio DJ/host in the process.

The podcasts I’ve been listening to for quite some time, and I’ve mentioned multiple times on this blog already, are the CBC Radio 3 podcasts: The CBC Radio 3 Podcast with Grant Lawrence, The CBC Radio 3 R3-30, and the CBC Radio 3 Track of the Day.

But, Podcasts don’t necessarily have to be about music. In fact, because of copyright worries, the majority of podcasts are talk based, whether they be about movies, video games, technology, etc.

I’ve been asking my Twitter friends for some suggestions on new podcasts to listen but again, my requests have gone unanswered. I’ve done a bit of research myself, and I’m now enjoying podcasts such as The Unknown Studio, Stuff You Should Know, The Nerdist, Septic Acres, Memories of the Futurecast, Radio Free Burrito, and a couple of newer CBC Radio 3 podcasts, The Breakfast Club, and Extended Play.

The Unknown Studio is a local Edmonton podcast covering a wide array of topics. I’ve only just begun listening to it but I like what I’ve heard so far. It seems they have a local Edmonton personality as a guest on each episode. Septic Acres is another podcast based out of Edmonton, generally about 10 minutes per episode. This one is a new project by Sonic 102.9 morning show host Garner Andrews, and he brings his normal brand of humour to each episode.

Memories of the Futurecast and Radio Free Burrito are podcasts by Wil Wheaton, yes THAT Wil Wheaton. In Memories of the Futurecast he reads and comments on his book, Memories of the Future. Radio Free Burrito is a podcast he’s resurrecting while Memories of the Futurecast is on hiatus where you just listen to Mr. Wheaton talk about whatever he fancies.

Stuff You Should Know is a podcast produced by HowStuffWorks.com where they literally take 20-30 minutes once or twice a week to talk about stuff you should know. Podcasts I’ve had a chance to listen to have included “Was Mesopotamia the cradle of civilization?”, “How Bounty Hunters Work”, and “How Scabies Works”. Very interesting stuff and well presented.

The Nerdist podcast is a comedy podcast produced by Chris Hardwick, a comedian/musician/tv host (Attack of the Show and Web Soup on G4TV). Each episode him and his cohorts interview another comedian/actor/celebrity such as Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Adam Carolla, and Drew Carey. It’s a very funny podcast however hard it can be to follow at times.

There is literally a million different podcasts out there and the iTunes podcast directory is a great place to start. Try out some of the ones I’ve pointed out, try out some of the top rated and featured podcasts and you’ll soon be singing the podcast praises.

One of my good friends, Jacob, is getting married this weekend and I felt I was in need of a new suit.

Robin Sparkles – Let’s Go To The Mall!

I really love Banana Republic so that was the first, and only, stop on this trip for me. Heather and I quickly found the perfect suit and after a few shirt/tie combos found the right fit for the weekend. I’m going to look awesome (but not as awesome as Heather). I’m not 100% sure this is the exact suit I bought, but if not it’s close:

Modern chalk-stripe two-button suit blazer

That’s also the exact tie I bought in the picture on the left, however I’ll probably be wearing it with a white shirt. Heather says I look like someone from Mad Men in the suit. Not Don Draper tho, she made sure to point out. I’ll take what I can get.

This is also going to look awesome on International Suit Up Day.

THE UPDATE

There’s a big update on the cellphone front. I reported my HTC Magic stolen in the hopes that I could just get a new one. The problem with that? Rogers had discontinued the Magic due to the 911/GPS issue and the only Android phone they had available was the LG Eve. Nuh-uh. I bought a new SIM card “for use with an old phone” but just put it back in my Magic. I decided to give updating my Magic to the latest firmware one more try and lo and behold it worked! Not only did it update my phone to the latest firmware, which includes the incredible HTC Sense User Interface, it fixed my accelerometer! I’ve experienced far fewer random shutdowns, however they do still occur.

THE IMPENDING UPGRADE

And if it weren’t for those few random shutdowns, I probably wouldn’t be upgrading to the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10. While talking with Rogers about my “lost cellphone”, it turns out I’m eligibile for a hardware upgrade, so as soon as the Xperia X10 is released I’ll be first in line to make the switch. I’ve even decided that it will become my mp3 player, thus leaving my beloved iPod Touch by the wayside. I hope to repurpose it, and may have found a great way to use it in the kitchen as a timer/recipe book courtesy this post on Unplggd. We may have to use Heather’s old iPod Touch instead since hers is a second generation Touch with external volume control and a built-in speaker, whereas mine is a first generation.

I CAN HAZ COVER ART?

And actually, that sorta leads to the next problem I’m tackling. Last night I began the painstaking process of using iTunes to embed the cover art into my mp3s. It’s a simple yet arduous task, and one I will simply do by default from now on. The problem is that iTunes doesn’t automatically embed artwork into the mp3s, it simply stores it in the library file. Friggin stupid. Well, when I start using my Xperia X10 for an mp3 player, it’s going to get the artwork from the mp3′s ID3 tags where the coverart is embedded, not read from the iTunes library file. If it weren’t for Heather having an iPhone I’d ditch iTunes entirely.

PODCASTS

I was worried that part of the problem of moving from iPod to Android for my mp3 player would be the ability to play podcasts. I don’t subscribe to any video podcasts, but the management of podcasts in iTunes is obviously so simple. Luckily, Google has their own podcatcher for Android called Listen and it’s great so far. Being a Google product, it will only get better with time. There are other Android podcatcher apps available (some free, some not) but with Listen being a Google product, it’s sure to be well supported.

Now the only problems I have are waiting for the Xperia X10 to be released, and whether or not to get it in White or Black. Hmmm.