The Unknown Studio

The arrival of fall heralds all kind of interesting happenings here in Edmonton. The magpies scatter just a little bit further (though not far enough, as those insufferable beasts seem to stick around the whole winter), the leaves turn just a little bit yellower, and in the year of our lord, 2010, fall mean we’re that much closer to the re-opening of the Dawson Bridge, the causeway that links Riverdale to Forest Heights — and downtown Edmonton to the eastern part of the city.

Last weekend, as I drove down Rowland Road, past the “bridge closed” signs and into Riverdale, as I drove to within sight of the almost completely revitalized Dawson Bridge, I saw two kids totally breaking the rules, and driving over the recently paved deck of the bridge.

Now before you blow a head gasket over the safety of these children, who were clearly in defiance of the “road closed” signage at the west side of the bridge, let me talk to your about the significance of the phrase “recently paved.” Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 20% [?]

Election season has a tendency to bring forth all dimensions of crazy. For example, many Edmontonians will remember Tom “Buffalo Terminator” Tomilson, who made many unsuccessful bids for various political positions at the municipal level. You’ll remember he because he was fucking nuts.

I don’t remember some of the specifics of his campaign, except that, according to his Wikipedia profile, he claims to have worked over 85 different jobs. And he can speak Esperanto. Like it matters.

Edmonton’s 2010 election is proving to be just as fruitful in its weirdness, though not in such an overt way as the Buffalo Terminator’s standard election shenanigans. Still, we’re just over one week in and there are some candidates who are already starting to create buzz. In a bad way. Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 12% [?]

It’s no secret that Adam and I are fans of zombies. Or, for that matter, that the circle we run in are fans of zombies. Zombies crop up in conversation with us almost as much as Star Trek does – and that’s saying something.

It even came up in our most recent episode, where we talked about an idea for a zombie survival app for your smartphone.

In fact, we’ve put a LOT of thought into zombie survival. What we’ll do when the zombies come, where we’d hide, how long we think we could hold out, what mistakes the idiots in the movie make. That sort of thing.

Now here’s the kicker: zombies are absurd.

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 11% [?]

On the most recent episode of the Unknown Studio, which you can listen to here or download through iTunes, Scott and I interviewed Joel Jackson and Sean Healy. Joel and Sean are software developers here in Edmonton, and like all good geeks, they share our love for all things Star Trek.

At the end of the show, during the Fast Sixteen segment, Sean threw down the gauntlet and asked me among all the characters in Starfleet in the Star Trek Universe, who would I want to staff a bridge crew. Who is my Star Trek dream team? Of course a question so complex as Sean’s requires a great deal of thought. So, as promised, we’re taking the discussion to the website to sort it all out. Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 60% [?]

Welcome to the seventh episode of the second season of the Unknown Studio! We went all out for you guys this week, scoring an EXCLUSIVE* interview with local software developers Joel Jackson and Sean Healy! Their claim to fame? They won the bronze prize in the Apps4Edmonton contest, with the creation of a texting application that allows users to figure out bus schedules in real-time. If you want to know more, you’ll just have to listen to the episode. And you’ll definitely want to listen if you want to hear my impression of a giraffe.

On that note, here’s a breakdown:

0:00: Show Intro – By the Power of Greyskull.
2:00: We talk software applications with Sean and Joel.
11:36: Edmonton election nomination day check-in with Dave Cournoyer.
22:09: Part 2 of our interview with Sean and Joel.
41:45: After-action report of Vue Weekly’s first annual Blue Revue with Jeanne-Marie Owens.
49:43: Follow-up with Carrie Robinson – will she be on Wipeout Canada?
55:32: Part 3 of our interview with Sean and Joel.
1:11:25: the Fast Sixteen.

Let us know what you thought, everyone! Do you love us? Hate us? TELL US!

The Unknown Studio is a proud member of the League of Extraordinary Media.

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EDMONTON JOURNAL STILL SPONSORS THE UNKNOWN STUDIO
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It’s true! After so much joking and tongue-in-cheek referrals to Edmonton’s newspaper of record on our show, the Edmonton Journal decided to put their money where our mouths are, by sponsoring the Unknown Studio this month!

We’re helping EJ to promote their Blackberry mobile launcher. You can check it out by clicking here on your Blackberry browser. If you have any comments about the mobile launcher or the Journal’s mobile site, let us know and we’ll pass it along!
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*It’s not actually exclusive.

Popularity: 19% [?]

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

In another life, I was the Arts editor at a small newspaper. There, the seedling that was my love for music blossomed. I tried out new genres, venturing beyond my old standby (skate punk) and really embracing rock, folk, hip hop, electronica, and even some country music — though I should note at this point that the only country I listen to is sung by a former punk musician by the name of Corb Lund.

Yes, in spite of my admittedly diverse taste in music, there’s one band I can’t seem to get behind. It’s not that I hate their music, it’s just that when I hear it on the radio, I’d just assume change the channel. And I can’t really explain why. Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 14% [?]