Pre-recorded cassettes first appeared in the mid-60s and reached their commercial peak in the mid-80s before slowly fading away over the next couple of decades. This brings me to the problem of the disastrous EMI cobalt cassettes of the 90s.

They seemed to use high-tech ferric-cobalt technology, but in fact, highly compressed audio to mask the fact that EMI was using poor-quality tape. Marketed as xDR cassettes, they were duplicated so that they sounded good on boomboxes and portable cassette players but terrible everywhere else. The music sounded harsh and rough on something like a good car stereo. Listener fatigue was a problem. Not only that, but because the base tape was substandard, xDR tapes degraded fast, especially when it came to treble frequencies.

So, if you’re a collector of vintage cassettes, stay away from these things. They are not worth your time.

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

We’ve all been faced with end-user license agreements or “EULAs.” They come in the form of dialogue boxes that pop up when we’re installing new software or hoping to use a certain product online. To get it working, we have to click “agree.” By doing that, you’re now a party to a legally binding agreement between a software vendor and you that protects the developer from—well, everything that could go wrong.

And let’s face it, no one ever reads those things because they’re long and incomprehensible. We don’t know what we’re agreeing to. Here’s my favourite.

The EULA to download a single song on iTunes has a word count greater than what Shakespeare needed to write Macbeth. But it gets even better. This is a real clause from the document. “You also agree that you will not use these products for any purposes prohibited by United States law, including, without limitation, the development, design, manufacture or production of missiles, or nuclear, chemical or biological weapons.”

For downloading a song on iTunes? Talking about covering your butt, huh?

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Last time, we went through a list of important artists in the history of smashing instruments onstage. The 80s were a quiet time for guitar destruction, probably because synth-based music was in the spotlight, and you didn’t destroy such expensive equipment—unless you were Trent Reznor in the early days of Nine Inch Nails. There was often plenty of carnage.

In the very late 80s and early 90s, Kurt Cobain was very good at this. He went through a lot of guitars in various fits of punk rock pique. But the all-time champion in this regard is Matt Bellamy of Muse. On the band’s 2004 tour, he set a record that was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records. On that tour, he destroyed—are you ready for this?—140 guitars.

That’s not in a career. That’s on one tour.

© 2026 Corus Radio, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

REGINA – The Saskatchewan Roughriders will honour crash victim Bhishma Rajyaguru before their game Thursday night against the Edmonton Elks.

Rajyaguru, 22, was killed Saturday night when the car he was driving collided with a vehicle driven by Roughriders linebacker-team captain Jayden Dalke on Highway 11 near Lumsden, northwest of Regina.

“We are profoundly saddened by the loss of 22-year-old Regina resident Bhishma Rajyaguru on Saturday,” the Riders said in a statement Tuesday night. “We will honour Bhishma as part of our pre-game ceremony on Thursday evening and are working with his family on the best way we can support them.

“We will share more information when it is available.”

The RCMP said Monday that Dalke, 30, of Leduc, Alta., was driving on the wrong side of a highway, with alcohol and cannabis in his SUV when his vehicle crashed into another, killing himself and Rajyaguru. There were no passengers in the vehicles.

The RCMP also said autopsies and toxicology tests would be done in the investigation. They added that before the crash, Dalke’s SUV left a gas station with unpaid fuel.

“In speaking with one of Bhishma’s loved ones, he shared with us that he was a caring friend, a devoted son, a supportive brother, and someone who was always there for the people in his life,” the CFL club said. “A gifted percussionist with a deep love of music, Bhishma’s passion and presence left a lasting impression on everyone who had the privilege of knowing him.

“Our hearts are with his family, friends, and all those mourning his loss. We also hold in our thoughts everyone who is supporting those affected during this incredibly difficult time.”

Riders general manager Jeremy O’Day has already said the team plans on holding a tribute for Dalke before Thursday’s game.

Dalke helped the Riders win the 2025 Grey Cup over the Montreal Alouettes in November.

Players are to wear Dalke’s initials on their helmets on Thursday, O’Day said.

An online fundraiser for Rajyaguru has collected about $80,000.

Tonish Patel said funds raised through GoFundMe for his friend are more than enough to cover the cost of repatriating the body to India.

Patel said the money will also help Rajyaguru’s parents in India as they navigate the loss of their son. Rajyaguru came to Canada from the Indian state of Gujarat as an international student in 2022 and had been living in Regina.

Patel said he remembers his friend as a talented musician and a polite, hard-working man who enjoyed watching cricket.

He added that Rajyaguru’s body can’t be transported to India until the autopsies and tests are complete, and he didn’t know when that might be.

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said in a social media post Tuesday his heart remains heavy.

”We mourn the loss of 22-year-old Bhishma Rajyaguru, whose life was taken far too soon,” Moe said. “We extend our deepest condolences to his family and loved ones as they navigate their grief.”

Saskatchewan selected Dalke in the sixth round of the 2022 CFL draft out of the University of Alberta. The six-foot, 200-pound Dalke appeared in 68 career regular-season games, registering 69 tackles, 31 special-teams tackles, three forced fumbles, an interception and a sack.

Dalke appeared in all 18 regular-season games for Saskatchewan in 2025 as well as the West final and the club’s 25-17 Grey Cup win over the Alouettes.

The Roughriders were on a bye week at the time of the accident.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 21, 2026.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Calgary city council will decide whether hundreds more properties across the city should be exempt from the repeal of citywide rezoning.

The exemptions stem from the original motion, co-signed by six city councillors and Calgary’s mayor to kick-start the process of repealing citywide rezoning.

According to city administration, an additional 247 properties could be exempt from the policy’s repeal and retain their higher density zoning, which allows for more housing types on a single property including rowhomes and duplexes.

The properties could be exempt because they have an approved development permit, or a development permit application has been submitted or under review ahead of the repeal of citywide rezoning, city administration said.

Although city council voted to repeal citywide rezoning after a lengthy public hearing in April, it won’t take effect until Aug. 4.

The move re-designated more than 306,000 residential properties across the city back to their original low-density residential districts, but properties that met the criteria for development applications submitted or approved between August 2024 and Dec. 31, 2025 were already exempt from the repeal.

According to city administration, the 247 properties included in the exemption discussion met the exemption criteria between Jan. 1, and April 8, 2026.

“Obviously, I don’t love that we’re in this situation,” said Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas. “But from my perspective, I want to make sure that we’re in compliance with our legal and our legislative obligations.”

More than 100 people signed up to speak at a public hearing Tuesday to have their say on the matter, with many voicing concerns over properties in their neighbourhoods retaining higher density zoning.

Janice Grant told Global News she didn’t think she’d be back at city hall to discuss citywide rezoning after the repeal earlier this year.

“We felt really relieved when all of that was (repealed), and thinking this was behind us,” she said. “Here we are again, just really trying to make it go away.”

Grant is among several residents who are concerned about a proposed property exemption in Lake Bonavista that residents claim is strictly to keep the lot upzoned.

“There’s no plans in place so what he’s doing is preserving future development rights at the expense of the neighbours,” said Maureen Haight.

However, city administration told councillors that development permit applications continued to pour in, even when council scrapped the policy.

“The files did not stop coming, so even on the day the repeal went, we received… 76 development permit files for any number of different things in our city,” said City of Calgary director of community planning, Teresa Goldstein.

“That is a right of the landowner to make a development permit and the land-use bylaw also says that we, as administration, where it’s deemed to be complete, we must review it.”

City officials claim a change in zoning midway through a project may impact the legality of a development that is in progress, and could place the city in a risky position.

“The blanket rezoning repeal has continued, the challenge always was the projects that were in mid-flight,” Farkas said. “Us as a council, we need to weigh the community concerns but also the legal risks to the City of Calgary.”

Citywide rezoning was approved in May 2024 by the previous city council after the longest public hearing in city history, in which the majority of speakers voiced opposition to the plan.

The move meant Calgary’s land-use bylaw was amended to make residential grade-oriented infill (R-CG) the default residential zoning district across the city.

R-CG allows a variety of housing types including single-detached, semi-detached, duplexes and rowhouses.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Any residents remaining in the Boston Bar area, the Boston Bar First Nation, North Bend and Canyon Alpine must leave the area immediately due to a fast-moving wildfire.

The Fraser Valley Regional District has issued an evacuation order for the area after a new fire sparked on Tuesday afternoon.

Residents are being told to evacuate north via Highway 1.

Highway 1 is closed between Anderson River Mainline and Jackass Summit due to the burning near Hell’s Gate.

The fire is an estimated 300 hectares in size and started across the Fraser River, but only a few hundred metres from the southern edge of the Brunswick Creek fire, which has been burning since July 2.

The Brunswick Creek fire triggered an evacuation order on Tuesday for properties on Scuzzy Creek FSR.

More to come.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

As another stretch of hot weather grips the Okanagan, a new report is asking a simple question: How hot is too hot to work?

Researchers with BC Policy Solutions say B.C.’s heat exposure regulations have not kept pace with increasingly frequent extreme heat. According to the report, heat exposure regulations have not been substantially updated since 2005.

The report points to a sharp rise in heat-related illness claims following the 2021 heat dome, arguing that stronger protections are needed before more workers are injured.

For workers who work outside like roofers, the dangers are all too familiar.

“We get really drained on the roof. We try to drink as much water as possible, or Gatorade, anything with electrolytes. We try to stay as hydrated as possible,” said Simranpreet Singh, a senior roofer with Pinnacle Roofing.

Victor Neilson, a site supervisor with the company, says the warning signs come on quickly.

“The most common thing is dizziness. When you get heat exhaustion, you get brain fog and dizzy spells. Things just don’t feel quite right.”

He says nearly every member of his crew has needed to take a day off this year after working through extreme heat.

The report recommends introducing clear temperature triggers that would automatically require employers to provide protections such as water, shade and paid rest breaks.

But the recommendations go well beyond temperature thresholds. Researchers also call for mandatory heat illness training, acclimatization plans for new and returning workers, better access to cool drinking water and washrooms, stronger enforcement, protections for vulnerable workers, and broader government measures such as hazard pay during extreme heat and improved housing for migrant workers.

WorkSafeBC says protecting workers is more complex than simply setting a maximum temperature, noting factors like air circulation, radiant heat and ventilation all affect a worker’s risk.

For roofers like Singh, surviving the heat means adapting. Crews start as early as possible, take frequent breaks in the shade, and even use soaked towels around their necks to stay cool.

“Up there it’s about 10 degrees hotter than it is normally. If there is no breeze, it feels even hotter. A little breeze helps a lot,” Singh said.

Until new rules are in place, roofers say the best defence is recognizing the warning signs before the heat makes the decision for you.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Another round of storms has brought renewed flooding to Edmonton’s roads, as crews continue repairing sinkholes and replacing infrastructure damaged by what’s now been nearly two months of heavy rainfalls.

The region needs a stretch of dry weather to allow its stormwater system to recover, EPCOR said on Tuesday, after a days-long heavy rainfall event in June to more recent thunderstorms dumping a deluge in a short period of time.

“The cumulative effect of those is that the system, essentially, doesn’t have time to recover completely — i.e., drain the water away from stormwater management facilities,” said Craig Bonneville with EPCOR’s project planning department.

The city-owned utility provider said saturated ground is no longer absorbing water as it normally would, sending larger volumes of runoff into drains and contributing to flooded underpasses, sinkholes and washed-out roads.

Recent flooding has affected major routes, including underpasses on Yellowhead Trail and Whitemud Drive, and led to sinkholes popping up around the city.

“The only thing that will help us out here is, really, the weather to take a turn and give us an opportunity to get our system operating not under these emergency scenarios,” Bonneville said.

Alireza Bayat, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Alberta who specializes in underground infrastructure, said the recent storms have highlighted weaknesses in Edmonton’s aging stormwater network.

“These pipes, we don’t see them, but we depend on them every day,” Bayat said. “The infrastructure we have, we built in the 1960s, 70s — now this same infrastructure that has to deal with 2026 rains and climate.

“We are putting too much on the infrastructure — so at some point, it’s passing its capacity.”

He said extreme weather events often expose infrastructure that has not been adequately maintained.

“Always, these types of events find the weak points — and the weak points are typically unmaintained points,” he said.

While replacing aging infrastructure takes time, Bayat said municipalities must focus on getting the most out of existing systems through maintenance and operational improvements.

“We are left right now with the infrastructure we have, so we have to use them better, maintain them better,” he said.

The city said in the last week alone, parks and road services has received more than 1,400 calls about flooding and storm damage.

In 2019, Edmonton city council approved a $1.6-billion program aimed at making the city’s stormwater system more resilient.

“What used to be a one-in-100-year flood is now one-in-10-year flood,” Mayor Andrew Knack said when explaining the reasoning for 20-year program.

In hindsight, he admits the flood resiliency should have been started decades earlier.

The city has spent about $350 million so far on projects including dry ponds and maintenance work on pipes and manholes.

Much of the program’s work is still scheduled for future years as Edmonton continues adapting its stormwater infrastructure to handle increasingly frequent periods of heavy rainfall.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Montreal police are investigating a suspected hate crime after a package was found outside an Islamic centre in the city’s Verdun borough on Sunday.

The Canadian Muslim Forum said the package contained what appeared to be an imitation severed human hand covered in fake blood.

Police said they received a 911 call around 2:30 p.m. reporting that one or more suspects had left a plastic bag containing an object covered in a red substance at the entrance of the Islamic Centre of Verdun. The substance is being analyzed.

The centre serves as a mosque and community hub, offering daily prayers and religious, educational and community programming.

Police met with the centre’s director and transferred the case to the force’s hate crimes and incidents unit, which is reviewing surveillance footage from the area. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.

The Canadian Muslim Forum said the incident occurred during a weekend gathering attended by families, children, women, and worshippers.

“Children were frightened, families were shaken, and a place of worship and community gathering was turned into a scene of anxiety and intimidation,” it said.

“This incident does not occur in a vacuum,” the organization said, adding it comes amid “a troubling rise in Islamophobia, online hate, and divisive rhetoric that increasingly targets Canadians of Muslim faith.”

Statistics Canada said in March that hate crimes reported to police in Canada increased from 1,817 in 2018 to 4,882 in 2024.

Incidents involving Islamophobia in Canada nearly tripled, growing from 84 reported crimes to 229, over the same period.

–with files from The Canadian Press

 

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.

Alberta Wildfire says the 2026 fire season has seen an improvement, noting there are fewer blazes across the province compared to the previous five years.

On Tuesday, there were 13 active wildfires in the province. Twelve were marked as under control and one is being held, meaning it’s not expected to grow outside its existing boundaries.

This has freed up Alberta Wildfire crews to put out flames elsewhere.

Derrick Forsythe, Wildfire Information Officer with Alberta Wildfire, says, “We have about 95 wildfire fighters and some aircraft in Ontario. We’ve got aircraft and about 70 crew members and support staff in the Northwest Territories and about 81 people in Quebec helping out as well.”

The recent rainstorms in Alberta have kept some of the flames at bay, but it hasn’t stopped poor air quality from wafting across parts of the province.

Fort Chipewyan and Grande Prairie are among some of the areas measuring a 10+ on the Air Quality Index. This is the highest ranking for poor air quality.

Most areas are forecasted to return to a low risk level 3 by Wednesday night.

The Calgary Region Airshed Zone collects and monitors air quality data through three hubs scattered throughout the city. It records the air quality in different environments, including urban and industrial, to capture an average reading.

While recording air quality can’t change the data, CRAZ executive director, Jill Bloor, says it’s the best way to know when air is safe.

“You really do want to pay attention to that number if you’re planning to be outside,” Bloor says. “I know most sports leagues in Calgary have that at a 7, they will cancel games. That’s very proactive on their part.”

The smoke is expected to drift away soon, but officials warn that wildfire season is far from over.

© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.