Allstar Weekend is easily one of the most down to earth bands I’ve ever interviewed. And that’s a lot coming from me.

I met the band at The Sutton Place Hotel, which, if you know the selection of luxury hotels in Toronto, is a modest choice. Not too fancy. Pretty low key.

The band just finished a show last night at the Sound Academy, one of the last legs of their Canadian tour before heading up to London, ON.  I ask how it went.

“It was really awesome seeing how many kids came out,” says Zachary, the lead singer and guitarist. “Toronto just seems like a cool city for bands, all the kids are really into it which is really exciting for us. We can’t wait to come back.”

“Fans here know our lyrics more than in America, it’s crazy. They know all the words,” says Cameron, the bassist.

Leave it to us crazy Canadians to leave an impression on them. The band also paid a visit to the MuchMusic studios a day earlier, which was of course, met with a sold out audience.

So between sold out television appearances and a passionate, driven fan base, how does the band prepare themselves for their shows?

“I like to light a bunch of candles, sit in a dark room. I’ll put on the Spice Girls,” says Nathan, the guitarist.

“I literally just get my sleep on, you know? I think it’s refreshing to wake up and just go on stage right after,” says Cameron.

“Yeah, Cameron pretty much sleeps till about 10 minutes before we go on,” adds Zachary.

“I gotta get my body flowing, so I jump rope, I warm up and do some singing. Stay calm, be quiet until 5 minutes before the show,” says Zachary, “then we all listen to rap music and get pumped.”

“Chris Brown. Anyone that’s black,” adds Nathan.

The band’s drummer, Michael, doesn’t say one word during the interview. He doesn’t share his pre-show rituals. The strong silent type, I presume.

The band got their major break on the Family Channel, where their music videos are constantly featured. Their latest hit, ‘Not Your Birthday,’ is synonymous with the release of the film ‘Prom.’ Guaranteed you’ve heard the song or seen the commercial.

Although this kind of coverage implies a certain pristine image onto them, the band isn’t rebelling or bothered by this image just yet though. Miley Cyrus, you could learn a thing or two from them.

“Our whole career kicked off from the Disney channel, so we owe it all to [them],” says Nathan. “We can’t be like ‘Screw that!’”

“It’s amazing the opportunities they’ve given us. A lot of people wouldn’t know about us if it weren’t for what they’ve done. So people can have a weird perception of us, but all you have to do is come to a show and see what it’s all about,” says Zachary.

That’s right – the band actually plays their own instruments, the singers can actually sing, and they aren’t a manufactured image. I would know – I’m a good judge of character.

The band has actually been touring solo for a quite the while now. After this tour, they are embarking on yet another tour, but this time with teen-favourite Selena Gomez & The Scene. Their lives are literally spent on the road. And they wouldn’t have it any other way.

“It’s crazy because, when we’re at home, we don’t know what to do with ourselves. We’re so used to having a schedule and doing one thing after another, so when we’re at home we’re just so bored,” says Zachary.

Although the band admits that touring has its ups and downs, like being away from family and friends, they also say it is never dull. Especially in Canada.

“I remember the first time we came here. Cameron and I had to be Superman at one show and save Zach,” says Nathan.

Nathan refers to a time when Zachary got pulled into a crowd during a concert by some more-than-excited Canadian fans.

“Those girls are vicious,” says Zachary. “I had a small t-shirt on, and they were starting to grab so much that it was like a big shirt.”

“He went to a size small to a size XL,” adds Cameron.

So with girls constantly throwing themselves at them, you’d think the gig is as glamorous as it can get, right? Guess again.

“Honestly, it’s not that as glamorous as people think. It’s mainly a lot of work and a lot of driving around and just a lot of roughing it,” says Zachary. “I remember the first tour we were on. We spent all our money, got this used van and drove all around the country… we had 30 dollars to our name. There was a time where I was literally eating half a peanut butter and jelly sandwich a day, that’s all we had.”

“We had Chef Boyardee,” adds Cameron.

“I’d say every three days I’d treat myself to Chef Boyardee,” says Zachary.

See – nothing manufactured about that. In fact, the band is thankful for this experience, as it apparently helped them grow better as a group.

“I’m so glad we did that because now, we’re so appreciative. We literally started from nothing and did it all ourselves,” says Nathan.

Because of this hard work, the band is now up for some big things in the future. They’re releasing a new album in the summer, they’re touring with Selena (who is a good friend of theirs) and they are doing an appearance on ‘Live With Regis & Kelly.’

“Are we doing an interview with Regis?” asks Nathan. “Because I feel like he wont be able to handle us.”

“He might explode,” says Cameron.

He just might.

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For what seems like forever, Adele has been dominating the charts. But after reviewing UK sales, it seems as though soul-singer Adele may lose her number one spot on the charts to Kate Bush.

The iconic singer just released her new album, ‘Director’s Cut,’ which is already expected to top the UK artist album sales this week and potentially beat out Adele’s ’21′ for the first time in 15 weeks.

Bush’s album has sold 17,562 copies this week, compared to the Adele’s 14,645.

Adele is currently number one on the Canadian and American charts. It’s so crazy how big of a hit Adele has become – literally everyone loves her. And I don’t blame them, because I love her too.

I don’t think Bush will beat out Adele in Canada and America, but it looks as though she’s about to be dethroned in the UK.

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Hobo With A Shotgun – a pretty self explanatory title. Dutch actor Rutger Hauer is a hobo who tries to clean up a crime infested town that’s full of drugs, guns, pimps and prostitutes. The film is directed by Jason Eisener who won a fake-trailer competition for Quentin Tarantino, which lead to the development of the movie. If you like blood, guts, and the idea of a hobo delivering justice, you may want to check this out!

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What is the foundation of a great TV show? A great TV cast. Shawn Doyle, who has appeared in “Big Love” and “Lost,” along with Patrick Gallagher, who has appeared in “Glee” and “True Blood” star in the new Showcase series “Endgame.” The show follows a Russian World Champion chess champion (played by Doyle) who is traumatized by his finacee’s murder, and left a prisoner to his Vancouver hotel room. To pay his hotel bill, he helps the police solve crimes.

Will it be a hit? We will see.. Check it out on Monday’s at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Showcase.

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There are a ton of amazing Canadian bands, however not many make a living creating music. So it’s pretty exciting when a band from Burlington, Ontario makes it big in Canada, and then explodes in the United States, and then starts making the big money. It’s even more amazing when they become the theme song for WWE. We spoke to the guys from Finger Eleven about their new release “Life Turns Electric” and their struggle to the top.

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Canadian audiences missed out on a piece of Michael Jackson history by not being able to see the documentary “Gone Too Soon.” Now the owners of the film are going after the distributor who did not live up to his contractual obligation.

TMZ reports Objective Films, LLC has filed a lawsuit against a company headed by Pierre Turgeon. In the lawsuit Objective claims they sold the French and Canadian distribution rights to Pierre’s company in exchange for $100k back in 2009.

Objective claims they received $50,000 but Pierre reneged on the other half. Objective was able to get the flick distributed in France … Canada wasn’t so lucky. Objective further claims Turgeon never really wanted to do legitimate business with Objective, however he just wanted the MJ affiliation to inflate his stock price.

Turgeon tells a different story to TMZ — saying, “The movie was bad  … so we applied the clause (in our contract) that enabled us to not pick up the rights to the movie.”

He adds, “We paid in advance in good faith $50,000 for the project  … We plan to get back our $50,000.”

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As per usual, Jordan did his due diligence before interview Chromeo. When doing so, he learned that Chromeo defies a genre. These guys are just so over the map, you really can’t compare them to anybody. Anyways, David and Patrick from Chromeo sat down to explain their “secret sauce” to making music.

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K-os has already proven himself as one of the most original hip hop artists, but we ere even more impressed by his ideas about music and knowledge of music history. Especially when he dropped the bomb that Justin Bieber is Black! See for yourself!

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Almost every major broadcaster in the U.S. has it’s own reality dance show. ABC airs “Dancing with the Stars,” MTV has “America’s Best Dance Crew,” FOX shows “So You Think You Can Dance” and Paula Abdul is the star of an upcoming CBS reality dance show.

But it’s not just a mere coincidence. The reason is simple: audiences are craving them. “So You Think You Can Dance Canada” is proof of this north of the boarder. Premiering in 2008, the Canadian reality show became an instant hit. The following year it ended season two with 11 per cent more viewers and an average audience of 1.43 million viewers.

“So You Think You Can Dance Canada has discovered some amazing talent over the past two seasons,” said CTV’s Susanne Boyce. “Show alumni are performing with Janet Jackson, Katy Perry, Alicia Keys, Ke$ha, and Adam Lambert, among others, making a statement about Canadian dance around the world.”

The third season kicked off Sunday at 9 p.m. EST. Performer and choreographer Blake McGrath — who’s a judge on the show — thinks this will be their biggest season yet. “I think it’s gonna be a stronger season for sure all around, from the choreography to the contestants,” he shared. “I’m really excited for it.”

For dancers hoping to make it onto the show, McGrath says the first step is training. Having confidence is a close second.

The reality show kicks off with Toronto auditions. Fans can catch weekly highlights and behind the scenes footage on demand at CTV.ca.

Keep track of the season three audition episodes with the list below:

·         Sunday, August 15 at 9 p.m. ET (two hour premiere) – Toronto Auditions
·         Monday, August 16 at 9 p.m. ET (two hours) – Calgary and Halifax Auditions
·         Tuesday, August 17 at 8 p.m. ET (one hour) – Vancouver Auditions
·         Wednesday, August 18 at 9 p.m. ET (two hours) – Montreal Auditions
·         Thursday, August 19 at 9 p.m. ET (two hours) – Finals Week
·         Sunday, August 22 at 9 p.m. ET (one hour) – Top 20 Reveal

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Ivana Santilli is a music industry veteran who has seen and done it all. A member of the hugely successful R&B/pop group Bass is Base in the 90′s, Ivana now has focused her energy on her growing solo career. Now signed to CP Records, Ivana has just released a new album called “Santilli.” Ivana caught up with us to talk about the ever changing music business, along with all the female artist rivalry going on!

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Don’t say you’ve seen an electro-group perform live, until you’ve seen DUBBS.

It’s only fair really.

Instead of going up on stage like most groups only to then just press a play button on a laptop, DUBBS re-creates every aspect of the beat-pumping tune with a variety of equipment- giving the audience the most real-live dynamic electro-concert experience possible.

The three-man Canadian team consists of brothers Alex (Vocals) and Chris (Drums) Van Den Hoeff, and Ottawa producer Martin Sinotte, who hope to make a name for themselves with their revolutionary club-bopping tracks and unique live sound-experience.

“Most DJ’s just turn knobs to play a hit song. That’s it,” says Sinotte. “But then you have us who play the song with a live beat pad, live keyboard, live everything. You have Alex singing, Chris on drums. It gets wild.”

Adds Alex, “It’s a poppy-techno sound with a twist. We call it a new age of electro-house.”

The recognition so far has been a small fraction of what the unsigned group can do in less than a year: over 130,000 MySpace views, winners of MuchMusic’s disBAND Audition Tour competition, an upcoming gig performing alonside Canadian Pop singer Danny Fernandes, and an invitation to play at the COCA showcase festival this summer.

“It’s honestly been crazy,” says Alex. “But we’ve been working 24/7 over the past few months, just networking, planning the next steps, so we’re just really psyched to show people our potential.”

One of the reasons for their success so far is their uncanny bro-manship and the credentials that each of them brings to the table.

At 13-years-old, Alex and Chris began working with Canadian producers such as Steve Rizun (Illscarlett, Alexisonfire), and Mitch Hall and Martin Davis Kinack (Brocken Social Scene, Stars, Feist).  Over the next few years they would release their first demo and full length album which brought hundreds of live performances and radio air-play.

The up-and-coming duo then ended up being introduced to on-the-rise Canadian producer Sinotte, known throughout Ottawa as the “Beat Chemist.” Sinotte’s well-rounded 15-year background experience in the production scene was a perfect match, as he’s worked/recorded with Juno Award Winning artist Belly, Capital Prophets Records artist Danny Fernandes, and D12′s Bzarre- to name a few.

The trio hit it off immediately, and went to work in Sinotte’s brand new recording studio that he opened up in his house a year ago.

“The first night we met, we wrote a hit song,” says Chris. “We were just messing around until four in the morning.

“Ever since then, when we crash at his place, we wake up, go downstairs into the beat chemist’s ‘laboratory,’ and start recording stuff. And the best thing is that we have a relationship where if one of us has a beat that doesn’t really fly well, we’ll just be like ‘nah, scratch it man,’ but we’ll understand.”

As they anxiously await for the release of their debut album in the summer, the group agrees that it’ll be a contagious array of party-rocking tunes- modeling after artists like DeadMau 5, Black Eyed Peas and David Geutta.

“It’ll have a pop radio friendly vibe,” says Alex, “something that will get people partying for sure. It’s also got a few instrumental stuff for DJ’s to mess with and a few upcoming hip-hop artists featured too.

“Even though we wanted to get that house sound, we wanted to also incorporate a hip-hop vibe too.”

It’ll boast their raging singles so far like Here We Go Again, Generation Party, And We Don’t Stop, and Dance Bitch. Add in the music video that they hope to release at the same time too, and the group hopes that it’ll set them on course to eventually take on the international scene.

“Worldwide recognition man,” says Sinote.

Adds Alex, “we’re just starting out, but we feel like we have so much to show everyone, just non-stop tunes to get the crowd wild. I know we can do it.”

Check out all DUBBS info at www.dubbslive.com for new songs and all their upcoming shows:

May 27, 2010, 8:00 p.m, Rockpile Nightclub- Shock Thursday’s Party Night, Toronto, ON

May 28, 2010, 8:00 p.m, Private Yacht Party, Toronto, ON

June 16, 2010, 8:00 p.m, Nightlife with Danny Fernades, Sault Ste. Marie, CA

June 24, 2010, 8:15 p.m, COCA Showcase 2010, London, ON

June 25, 2010, 4:00 p.m, COCA Showcase 2010, London, ON

July 9, 2010, 10:00 p.m, Mansion Nightclub, Ottawa, ON

August 27, 2010, 1:00 p.m, North Bay Festival, North Bay, ON

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The average Canadian wears one coat at a time in winter. Granted it’s probably the warmest coat ever known to mankind, but it’s still just one.

But to get Cameron Potts, one-fifth of the Sydney, Australia’s band Dead Letter Chorus, through the season, he needed three.

“It’s been a shock for sure,” Potts told andPOP of the Canadian cold. “I’m a bit of a wimp … I think I brought three jackets and at one stage I was wearing all three.”

Dead Letter Chorus, made up of Potts and four others, is on a cross-Canada tour in support of their debut album, The August Magnificent. It was the band’s first time seeing snow fall from the sky.

“It was pretty overwhelming,” he said. “We were just sitting having breakfast, and all of a sudden it started snowing!”

Dead Letter Chorus is made up of unique sound and equally unique dynamic. Mixing country, alternative, folk and pop, their music is often described in Australia as “new folk.”

Another feature that sets this band apart is the fact that they have two lead singers: Potts and Gabrielle Huber (who is also Potts’ girlfriend of over five years). Add Michael Faber on guitar, Lee Carey on percussion, and Tristan “T-Bone” Thorne on bass, and you’ve got a sound both powerful and serene, unique and relatable.

“It’s really good for us because it breaks up the set. It doesn’t ever feel like we’re doing too much of the one thing,” Potts said of sharing the lead singer duties with Huber. “We write songs with each other in mind with what they could be doing in the song.

“We write songs for each other lyrically as well. It’s kind of good in that way. It helps us be a bit versatile.”

The August Magnificent, which was just released in Canada a few weeks ago, has been out in Australia since 2008. Touring Canada gave the band a chance to re-connect with the songs that were going slightly stale.

“They feel good again,” Potts said of the songs. “Probably six months ago we’d been playing them for 18 months and we’d done so many shows in Australia that we were ready to do something new. We weren’t too sure how we were going to go coming back and playing some of the same songs but they’ve been great.”

And fans can look forward to more Dead Letter Chorus music very soon. Currently working with Canadian producer Les Cooper, the band already has about 17 songs to choose from for their sophomore album. And getting new music out, both here and back home, is a major priority for them once this tour wraps up.

“We’re going to go home and record,” said Potts. “We’re definitely going to release a single mid-year.”

Still, the band is enjoying being immersed in Canadian culture for the time being. And while they prefer sinking into the swing of a city instead of doing the tourist aspect of travelling, Potts admits they would have loved to go to a baseball game if time had permitted.

“We wanted to go to the Rogers Centre to see a baseball game indoors because that would have been hilarious,” he said, a look of childish wonder and curiosity in his eyes. “That blows my mind: baseball indoors!”

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It looks like being a good dancer runs in the family.

According to geneology researchers at Ancestry.ca, Ellen DeGeneres and Madonna are 11th cousins through a Canadian link.

“It’s rare to discover that two icons are related, but when they are similar in their successes and even their interests, it makes the discovery even more fascinating,” said Lesley Anderson, a genealogist at Ancestry.ca.

The missing link between the two Hollywood superwomen is a shared 10th great-grandfather: Frenchman Martin Aucoin. According to the records, Aucoin’s daughters Jeane and Michelle (9th great-grandmothers to Madonna and Ellen) left France to settle in Nova Scotia. The families lived in the East coast for many generations, until both relocated south of the border in Louisiana and Michigan, now the homes of Madonna and Ellen.

Other interesting links that Ancestry.ca uncovered include the discovery that Harry Potter star Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) is related to a 16th-century woman accused of witchcraft.

As for Madonna and Ellen, it’s pretty obvious to Canadians that anyone with their level of talent must have some roots above the 49th parallel.

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andPOP is now on TV and so is Pure Pwnage (do we see a trend here?) What started as a nerdy hobby has turned into a TV series. The television series cleverly takes viewers into the world of gaming by integrating elements of gamer speech, gamer technology and gamer social scene. Week after week viewers can live vicariously through ultimate gamer, Jeremy, as his obsessive gaming hilariously interferes with his relationships with family, friends and co-workers.

Jenn spoke to the creators of Pure Pwnage. You can also check out the show 10 p.m. EST on Showcase on Friday’s.

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Fred Ewanuick is just happy to have his own TV.

The Canadian actor, best known for his role as Hank Yarbo in Corner Gas, has been spending the past few weeks in his own private, fully-equipped chalet in Whistler.

“I’m like in heaven. I don’t have cable at home.”

Ewanuick, 42, scored his Rocky Mountain pad when he was selected by the Vancouver Olympic Committee (VANOC) to host the Olympic Victory Ceremonies in Whistler: a set of live performances each evening starring some of the world’s top acts.

“It’s such a blast. I think they said that the capacity is 8000, and we’ve been at capacity every night.”

Ewanuick has introduced artists such as Feist, The All-American Rejects, K’naan, Estelle, Usher, and The Fray. However, Ewanuick argues that some of the best music comes from the Olympic fans.

“You walk through the Olympic village at night and people just break out into ‘O Canada.’ It’s just crazy up here, the atmosphere is awesome.”

Raised in Port Moody, B.C., the actor has spent most of his career working on Canadian films and television shows.  He doesn’t plan on migrating south to Hollywood as is common for many Canadian performers.

“I suppose I made a decision that I wanted to make a living here in Canada. Doing that, you don’t have much of a name for yourself anywhere else, so you take whatever you can to pay the bills. Then, Corner Gas came along and now I can pick and choose a bit.”

In Corner Gas, Ewanuick co-starred as Brent Butt’s best friend, Hank Yarbo. He built up his acting cred during the smash hit’s 106-episode run. Corner Gas confidently hung its hat in April, 2007, on the sixth season’s finale.

This was not the end for Ewanuick. The actor finally scored the opportunity to play the lead in his own television series.

The show, Dan for Mayor, is about a thirty-something man whose greatest achievement in life was graduating high school. In a spur-of-the-moment attempt to impress his ex-girlfriend Claire, played by Mary Ashton, Dan announces that he will run for mayor in the fictional town of Wessex, Ontario.

In a unique mash-up of politics and performance, the show took three actual mayors out of office and threw them into the world of acting.  Viewers can expect a cameo by Toronto Mayor David Miller.

“It’s funny, I guess politicians don’t get shy in front of the camera. They loved it, and we had a lot of fun.”

Dan for Mayor is set to premiere March 1, 2010, on CTV at 8:30 p.m. ET.

In a show where actors are mayors and mayors are actors, Ewanuick brings his small town charm to televisions across Canada.

Read more at andPOP. andPOP - POP Culture with Substance

What is andPOP’s TV show going to look like? This! Check out andPOP Presents Something New every Tuesday @ 9pm on AUX TV starting March 2nd!

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Elly Jackson of La Roux sits way in the back of her tour bus. Quiet. Secluded. Curled up. On first glance, seemingly trying to shut out the blistering cold Toronto November day outside, and maybe even the world along with it.

But can you blame her?

As one of the United Kingdom’s most popular new artists in 2009, Jackson finds it hard to trust people these days. Her tendency to be honest and opinionated have often been taken advantage of by media haters. But the singer can’t help it, she’s always been an individual with real thoughts and feelings- a leader rather than a follower. Even back in Elementary school, the 21-year-old London-born says she was a tomboy, and always had a bit of an assertive and free-spirited tendency.

But that ability to not succumb to peer-pressure is one of the main reasons for the raving success of her debut self-titled album last June, her flooding international fan-base, and why she will keep pushing strong past the negative hurdles in her career.

“You really have to be careful in this industry,” Jackson tells andPOP in her tour bus. “Obviously it’s impossible for us to like everything. So when you can get asked your thoughts about something, and say we don’t like or agree with something, it’s like a total shock to the world.”

Maybe the reason for the constant badgering is that people always try to find the worst in the clean-slated successful. Or maybe people just try to find the worst in Jackson’s unorthodox “organic” style of music- like how she chose to decline using a big-shot producer and studio for her debut album La Roux, and instead opted to use the basement of her house in South London.

“I couldn’t see it work any other way,” recalls Jackson, “I can’t understand how people go with big-shot guys and studios who always have to have their input and at the end of the day, their decision. It just fucks it all up.

“We had everything we needed in my house, and we just made it happen. And the only reason I can think of why people would go with big studios, is because they can’t do it themselves.”

Jackson’s Yin to her Yang is 29-year-old producer Ben Langmaid -the other half of La Roux, who the singer has been working with since 2006.  Together, the duo have dominated the music scene back home in the U.K. since their album’s release-  bringing back eighties Synth-Pop, taking the No. 2 spot on the Albums Chart, and having girls look up to Jackson as a role model, mimicking her iconic ginger hair-do.

“I love having the opportunity to affect people like that,” says Jackson. “I think sometimes musicians just forget that they have a responsibility to everyone who looks up to them. I hate it when you idolize somebody, and then find out something terrible- which then diminishes your view of them.

“As a fan, you just don’t wanna hear stuff like that. We all know that when we pursue this profession, one of the strings attached is that you will be looked up to by thousands.”

With that spotlight though comes the inevitability, according to Jackson, to always be stripped of privacy and be classified in a group or trend.  It’s not a surprise then that she’s not a fan of social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and MySpace- instead praises the days when there was a mysterious separation between the artist and the audience.

“Now its come to a point,” says Jackson, “where someone can find virtually almost anything about artists, actors and celebrities. But it’s not alright, when it comes to a point where fans feel like they have a right to your personal information.”

Later on tonight, Jackson is performing at Toronto’s Club Guvernment, where she would attract a packed house- while on tour to further promote her Platinum-status album in Canadian territories.

Despite it only being her second time here, Jackson enjoys the Canadian scene. Her first time here was actually this past summer for five days- one of which she spent performing at the Montreal Osheaga Music and Arts Festival. On the down-side Jackson says she became a bit homesick -considering it was the furthest she’d ever been away from home on tour- but on the up-side the experience introduced the singer to her growing North American fan-base.

“I was a bit surprised by the outcome at that festival,” says Jackson, “didn’t really expect that. It was a shock because I thought it was going to be like we come all the way to Canada to play in front of nobody- but it was the complete opposite.”

Although the festival’s 30-thousand-person outcome were mostly there too see the headliner Coldplay, Jackson still gathered an impressive crowd turn out.

After her show though, Jackson was told that there was one guy who missed her performance that really wanted to meet her in person.

That guy was none other than Coldplay front-man Chris Martin.

“We we’re so excited,” says Jackson, “but we had to leave immediately to catch a plane.”

“Fortunately we were playing the next day at the same festival as him in New York, so he asked us to meet him there. So the next day, we all went behind the stage to this huge village that he had to himself, and we waited at his cabin, and finally got to meet him. He was just coming back from Yoga, and he was saying how he really liked us and wished he could have seen us perform.

“He’s such a brilliant songwriter and performer,” she adds.

According to Jackson, the sole problem with that first trip to North America, was the act of traveling city-to-city by airplane- it didn’t mesh well with her fear of flying.

But when the singer found out that she would be touring all across the country this fall by tour-bus, she was immediately ecstatic. Not too mention that the set of wheels would also happen to be Barack Obama’s former 2008 Presidency election-campaign bus.

“I was definitely looking forward to it more,” she says with a wide smile, giving a quick look all around the inside of the bus.

Jackson turns beside her. Leaning against the window is Langmaid with big headphones over his ears, busy listening and configuring new beats for the band on his laptop. The duo is scheduled to begin writing material for the second album in their manager’s house, but they haven’t actually sat down to brainstorm anything yet- too much being out n’ about performing around the world.

They do have a small break in January to wind-down though, only to then hit the road again on their 34-show 2010 spring tour. In order to give some more face-time back home, the band decided to include a slew of 11 shows within the main circuit that will be played in the U.K, and dubbed The Gold Tour.

“For all we know it won’t live up to it’s name,” Jackson says laughing about the U.K. tour title. “It sounds like something Prince would use for his final tour. I kind of wanted to save it for when I’m like 50-years-old, but I can’t, I just want to pull it off now.”

The band will begin the spring tour on February 1 with seven North-American shows (three of them Canadian), trek all across Europe starting on February 20, kick off the exclusive U.K. Gold Tour from April 25-May 11, and then finish off the overall circuit on May 13 in Paris, FR.

But despite the epic sounding spring tour, and despite the probability that the band’s eventual follow-up album will cling onto music charts across the globe- someone, somewhere, will still try to bring Elly Jackson down for her choice to find her own way to success, rather than follow industry instructions.

But she’s begun to accept it. She admits that it can’t be avoided, “no matter how hard you try,” Jackson says with a smirk on her face.

The singer takes a peek again outside at the grey skies and blustery winds. At first glance, she’s the girl who’s trying to shut out the world, but look a bit closer and you’ll see that she’s just embracing life to its fullest.

Free-thinking, writing successful music, and rising high above the haters.

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The Wooden Sky are one of Toronto’s most exciting acts. I caught up with the band while they were touring in support of their latest release, entitled “If I Don’t Come Home, You’ll Know I’m Gone.” I highly recommend you watch the stunning ‘Documentary In Pieces’ videos, which follow the band on their tour through Canada, performing in intimate and unconventional places. Check out the videos at http://www.vimeo.com/channels/thewoodensky

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If you mixed “The Hills” with TSN, you’d get “Over the Bolts,” MTV Canada’s brand new reality show that documents the country’s national snowboard team as they vie for 18 Olympic spots.

The show premieres this Sunday at 10 p.m. on MTV, but we got to see the first two episodes before its debut. And let’s just say you can already set the Tivo because “Over the Bolts” is as addictive as they come!

Michael Lambert, one of the country’s top snowboarders who stars in the show, admits there’s just something about reality TV that gets you hooked. “One of my friends was on the show ‘The City,’ Duncan Davies, so I enjoyed watching it and watching him interact with his girlfriend and stuff like that,” shares the athlete. “I think the dangerous thing about any of those TV shows is you can say ‘even though I may not watch them, every one of them is addictive.’ I could just watch two episodes and I could be hooked on any of them,” he laughs.

So when Lambert was asked to be a part of one, it was almost a no brainer. “I think right off the bat I was all over it,” he says. “As an athlete, this kind of opportunity is so rare, you know what I mean…if you’re my age or your age or in your early twenties, nothing is bigger than being part of a reality show.”

However, everything comes at a price. “I gave everything I had and that’s why it’s so hard for me to watch something like that…it takes you back to a place eight, 10 months ago, to a person that I hated and a person that didn’t have a chance at succeeding, a person that nobody respected. That’s the toughest part,” says a candid Lambert. Rest assured he has since changed.

Lambert was so open throughout our interview that he even talked about what it was like having a relationship while filming the show. “I find it really awkward,” he admits. “I think the worst part is that you’re basically asking something of somebody that doesn’t have anything to gain…it makes for something that’s very strange.”

After seeing the show, you’ll understand that Lambert and his confidence play a key part in “Over the Bolts” and making it interesting. But the confidence in the first few episodes is fake according to the alpine snowboarder. “I think that the confidence that I was displaying in the show there, I think it’s fake,” he reveals to andPOP. “I think it’s me just saying the word ‘confident’ and thinking that that’s what’s gonna get me the end result. Whereas now, it’s a completely different confidence that I have beginning in the next episodes… where I got my best results in my life,” Lambert shares. “That confidence was from me being humbled by these types of things and starting to be respectful with myself and just preparing the best that I can which is obviously the most boring athlete story ever, but unfortunately it’s actually what works.”

And for any aspiring snowboarders out there who want to practice the sport professionally, Lambert’s advice is quite simple: go out and compete. “You wanna take it, it’s not some sort of crazy dream. You just go and you do it. I think that’s my advice; compete.”

As for the 2010 Olympic games, it’ safe to say Lambert is more than excited, in fact he’s “very very excited”. “It’s something I’ve always dreamed about doing, and it sounds stupid but you know, I’ve really always wanted it and I think it’s just really really cool to be there and I want it. I’m doing everything in my power to get it this time but if I don’t, I’m going again you know what I mean? I’ve wanted that and I’m not going to die without it.”

“Over the Bolts” airs Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on MTV with encore presentations every Saturday at 5:30 p.m. ET on CTV.

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Are you excited for EA Sports NHL 10? If you’re Canadian, probably.  The #1 selling console game in Canada has it’s launch parties in Toronto and Vancouver Monday, September 14.  The Toronto party will be at the Yonge and Dundas Future Shop with Wendel Clark and Ian White (of Maple Leafs fame) from 9pm to 11:45pm, and in Vancouver’s Granville and Robson Future Shop with Trevor Linden of the Canucks.  The Future Shop locations will be open until 1am, so check it out if you’re not too busy… and on a Monday night, what’s your excuse?

Cheers!

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