A thousand years ago, I read an interview with Tom Hamilton, the bass player of Aerosmith. He was asked why he chose that instrument over anything else, and his reply stuck with me.

Paraphrasing Tom, he said that the bass is the bridge between the drums and the guitar. The bass has percussive elements and is often used to emphasize the beat. A bass player and a drummer who can lock together is an amazing thing and can turn an okay band into something awesome.

But the bass also has melodic characteristics. A great bass player can also underscore what’s happening with the guitar and even the vocalist. Listen to what Paul McCartney did with the Beatles or how John Paul Jones subtly and effectively added more power to Jimmy Page’s riffs.

If you’re gonna rock, you need bass. That bottom end is the sonic scaffolding upon which everything is built. Without it, things sound thin. And I’m looking at you, Metallica, and your ...And Justice for All album.

Like, come on. I mean, it’s a fine metal record, but it would have been so much more powerful if you’d turned up Jason Newsted in the mix. But noooo! James and Lars ordered that Jason be pushed way down in the mix, so he’s pretty much inaudible. They said, “Oh, our ears were just fried from touring, and we just kept pushing up the treble so we could hear it. And in the process, the bass just disappeared. Sorry… our bad.”

Right. It was ego, and you know it.

If you want an alternate universe for this album, just look for a fan project called And Justice for Jason.

Anyway, I digress. What we’re here for is part two of a look at the most important bass players in the history of alt-rock. And you’ll be able to hear each and every one of them.

Songs  heard on this show:

• The Stranglers, No More Heroes
• Talking Heads, Life During Wartime
• The Smiths, This Charming Man
• Primus, Tommy the Cat
• Radiohead, The National Anthem
• Green Day, Longview
• Pearl Jam, Jeremy
• Rage Against the Machine, Killing in the Name

Here’s Eric Wilhite’s playlist.
The Ongoing History of New Music can be heard on these stations:

• 102.1 The Edge/Toronto – Sunday night at 7pm
• Q107/Toronto – Sunday night at 9pm
• Live 88-5/Ottawa – Saturdays at 9am and Sundays at 6pm
• 107.5 Dave-FM/Kitchener – Sunday nights at 11pm
• FM96/London – Sunday nights at 8pm
• Power 97/Winnipeg – Sunday nights at 10am and 10pm
• 107-3 The Edge/Calgary – Sundays at 10am and 10pm
• Sonic 102.9/Edmonton – Sunday at 8am and 8pm
• The Zone/Victoria – Sunday at 9am and 9pm
• The Fox/Vancouver – Sundays at 10am and 10pm
• The Goat Network/Interior BC
• WAPS/WKTL The Summit/Arkon, Canton, Cleveland, Youngstown – Mon-Fri at 9pm

 

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

Is there a correlation between being a psychopath and the music they like? That’s what a study at New York University set out to explore.

About 200 students were given a questionnaire designed to gauge their level of psychopathy. Among the questions were “For me what’s right is whatever I can get away with.” That’ll give you an idea of what character traits they were looking for.

After determining who in the group had psychopathic tendencies, researchers then gave everyone a music preference test. Those with the highest psycho scores tended to like “Lose Yourself” by Eminem and “What Do You Mean” by Justin Bieber. Non-psychos preferred “Money for Nothing” from Dire Straits and “My Sharona” from The Knack.

Does this mean music preference can be used to determine whether or not you’re a psychopath? Not yet, but more study needs to be done.

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

Scientists are fascinated by how the brain processes music. How, for example, was Gord Downie able to eventually relearn the lyrics to 90 Tragically Hip songs for the band’s final tour even though he had a temporal lobe and hippocampus were surgically removed? Maybe it’s because musicians have better memory abilities than non-musicians.

And we’re talking about both short-term and working memory. They also have a slight edge when it comes to long-term memory. This came out of a study in Italy that used data collected back to 1987. But here’s the thing: scientists can’t explain why musicians’ memory is superior. The only thing they can come up with is “the multi-sensorial nature of music training.”

Another reason to make sure your kid takes music lessons, right?

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

When David Byrne was with the Talking Heads, he was determined that the band always be ahead of their time. But there was one occasion when the band was too far ahead.

The 1988 album Naked was released “graphics ready.” This meant that if you were to buy a CD player with a special decoder, you could watch the lyrics of the songs pass by in real-time on your television. You could also watch a list of which instruments were playing when.

Unfortunately, these special CD players were not available in 1988—and many people have totally forgotten about this.  And come to think of it, technology and technological standards have changed so much since then.

Today, there might not be a piece of consumer electronics anywhere that can properly decode this part of the Talking Heads disc.

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

Rescuers in southern Ukraine continued an intense search Tuesday for survivors at a bombed-out aid facility and shelter where at least 31 people were killed and dozens were still missing.

Teams of emergency workers and volunteers picked through debris at the cratered blast site in Komyshuvakha, a village in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region where bodies were pulled from the rubble and carried away in white plastic sheeting. More than 45 residents are still missing.

“The scale of the tragedy is terrifying,” Mykhailo Semikin, acting head of the region’s military administration, wrote in an online post.

“This is one of the worst tragedies in terms of the number of civilian victims in our region since the start of the full-scale war.”

As Ukraine prepared for a new round of U.S.-brokered peace negotiations next week, a wave of overnight strikes targeted power plants across the country, damaged hospitals and wounded scores of people.

Russia launched 289 attack drones, 17 ballistic missiles and 59 cruise missiles across nine regions, triggering emergency power cuts, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an online post that noted the barrage coincided with U.S. elections.

“The Russians think America won’t notice this signal of theirs,” he said. “But we need to notice and stop such terror. We need to help Ukraine defend its skies; otherwise, Russia will never stop its missile strikes.”

Three days of mourning were declared in Zaporizhzhia, where Russian bunker-busting bombs, some filled with nearly 1.5 tons of explosives, were used in Monday’s attack.

The dead included four police officers and two rescue workers, Semikin said Tuesday. At least five people were hurt.

In the northeast region of Kharkiv, a combined Russian missile and drone attack wounded at least 62 people, local authorities said.

A strike damaged a medical facility in the Nemyshlianskyi district, shattered windows in four apartment buildings and damaged cars. More than 200 patients were transferred to other medical facilities, Oleh Syniehubov, head of the regional military administration, said.

In the Dnipro area, rescuers pulled a woman alive from the rubble Tuesday morning, after a Russian attack killed one person and wounded 17, local authorities said.

The attack damaged an outpatient clinic and a hospital. Patients were transferred to other hospitals, Oleksandr Hanzha, head of the regional military administration, said.

Moscow kept up its nightly attacks on power plants and energy infrastructure ahead of winter, causing extensive damage and electricity outages as it carried out 20 strikes in 10 regions overnight, Ukraine’s energy ministry said.

Ukrainian power utility DTEK said three of its power plants halted operations after significant damage from intense attacks. No injuries were reported.

Russia’s Ministry of Defense said Tuesday that it had shot down 856 Ukrainian drones overnight. Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 493 drones were fired toward the Russian capital.

A Ukrainian drone attack wounded two employees at an oil refinery in the Russian city of Yaroslavl, regional Gov. Mikhail Yevrayev said Tuesday. He added that there was damage to the refinery’s infrastructure.

Rolling blackouts have been instituted in the south, west and east of Russian-occupied Crimea following attacks on energy infrastructure, Moscow-installed officials said Tuesday.

President Zelenskyy travelled to Germany Tuesday, beginning a new round of consultations with European leaders ahead of U.S.-mediated talks Nov. 10-11 in Abu Dhabi to try and end the war.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, confirmed the date of the talks late Monday, with negotiations to focus on postwar security arrangements, de-escalation and humanitarian efforts.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed Tuesday that a Russian delegation will attend the talks.

Russia had agreed last month to resume three-way negotiations with Washington and Kyiv aimed at ending the war, setting up the first such talks since February.

The European Commission said it would host a meeting Wednesday with officials from France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the European Union, NATO, Ukraine, the United States and the World Bank to discuss postwar reconstruction in Ukraine. Commission spokeswoman Paula Pinho did not comment on whether Zelenskyy would attend.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

The University of Toronto cancelled classes at its Mississauga campus Tuesday after a 19-year-old man was found dead in a student residence following a police response Monday night.

Ontario’s police watchdog is investigating the circumstances because Peel Regional Police officers were at the scene when the man died.

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said Peel police received reports that a man had assaulted a woman in Brampton. Officers located a suspect around 9 p.m. at a student residence near Dundas Street West and Mississauga Road.

The university issued a shelter-in-place order for students near McLuhan Court, a residence complex housing hundreds of first-year students, while police responded.

“A gunshot was heard and the man was found inside with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The man was pronounced deceased early this morning,” the SIU said.

“As Peel Regional Police officers were in and around the scene at the time of the man’s death, the SIU was notified and invoked its mandate.”

No other injuries were reported.

The university said it cancelled classes out of compassion for more than 2,000 students living in residence and others affected by the incident. The shelter-in-place order was also lifted.

“Employees who were likewise required to shelter in place on campus last night will also take the time they need for their wellbeing,” the school said in a notice.

“UTM recognizes that over the coming days there will be many questions from members of our community. Please know that we are here to support you and our community.”

Peel police said in a statement Tuesday officers entered the unit after making multiple unsuccessful attempts to communicate with the man. He was found dead, bringing the incident to an end at approximately 1:30 a.m.

Police said they would hold a news conference at 10:30 a.m.

The SIU said four investigators and two forensic investigators have been assigned to the case.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the SIU.

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

The Curator independently decides what topics and products we feature. When you purchase an item through our links, we may earn a commission. Promotions and products are subject to availability and retailer terms.

A great gift doesn’t need a big price tag to make an impression. From little luxuries to beauty favourites, accessories and practical home finds, we’ve rounded up gift-worthy picks for everyone on your list — all under $100. Explore finds from YSL Beauty, Ninja and Quince, with something for every personality and interest.

Gifts for her

This YSL beauty duo pairs a dusty-rose blush with a matching plumping lip oil gloss for a chic monochromatic moment.[/product_listing]

 

A fun gift for any skincare enthusiast, this limited-edition rhode set includes three fan-favourite essentials: a hydrating face mist, depuffing under-eye patches and a minty lip treatment for a fresh, glowy look.[/product_listing]

 

A lovely gift for any beauty lover, this limited-edition ILIA set features three bestselling mini lip glosses in wearable shades, each delivering a glossy finish and up to 24 hours of hydration.[/product_listing]

 

A thoughtful gift for anyone who loves a little sparkle, this 14k gold-plated Pandora ring features a row of shimmering cubic zirconia for delicate shine.[/product_listing]

Home gifts

Designed to enhance your wine-drinking experience, these Bordeaux glasses feature a wide bowl that allows aromas to fully develop – ideal for bold reds and dinner parties.[/product_listing]

 

Give the gift of a healthy new habit (and delicious juice). This compact Hamilton Beach juicer is perfect for smaller countertops, but still packs enough power to juice everything from carrots and apples to celery and leafy greens. Homemade ginger shots, anyone?[/product_listing]

 

Make family meals and snacks in less time with this Ninja Air Fryer, which features five cooking functions, a 4-quart capacity and hot-air circulation for crispy, golden results with little to no oil.[/product_listing]

 

A great gift for the coffee lover, this Ninja single-serve coffee maker brews both pods and grounds, with three brew styles and multiple cup sizes, including an iced coffee setting and a travel mug option for busy mornings.[/product_listing]

 

Gifts for him

Give him an upgrade to his grooming routine with the Manscaped Lawn Mower 3.0 Plus, a waterproof body trimmer featuring SkinSafe ceramic blades, adjustable guards and a built-in light for precision trimming.[/product_listing]

 

Give him a wardrobe staple he’ll reach for again and again: this 100% organic cotton quarter-zip features a soft ribbed knit and a classic fit that works for everything from the office to weekend outings.[/product_listing]

 

A seven-pack of Calvin Klein boxer briefs is a practical gift he’ll appreciate, featuring soft, breathable cotton-stretch fabric, a supportive contoured pouch and a flexible waistband for stretchy comfort.[/product_listing]

 

Compact yet powerful, this portable Bluetooth speaker packs impressive sound into a small package. Its built-in carabiner easily clips onto backpacks, golf bags and coolers, plus the waterproof design makes it great for camping trips, cottage weekends and outdoor adventures.[/product_listing]

 

This sleek timepiece makes a stylish gift for him. The polished silver finish complements everything from everyday outfits to more dressed-up looks.[/product_listing]

 

Gifts for kids

For the little car enthusiast, this LEGO Technic Ferrari is packed with hours of building fun. With 897 pieces, working steering and realistic engine details, kids can bring their dream sports car to life and proudly display their finished creation.[/product_listing]

 

Little bakers will love this festive wooden cookie set, complete with 12 sliceable cookies, colourful toppings, a baking tray and oven mitt for hours of pretend holiday baking.[/product_listing]

 

Give little ones something fun to unwrap this Christmas with this 5-in-1 toddler bike, which transforms from a tricycle into a balance bike for hours of riding fun while helping develop coordination and confidence.[/product_listing]

You may also like:

Kitsch Satin Heatless Hair Curler Set – $24.99

Cricut Explore 4 – $319

De’Longhi La Specialista Opera Espresso Machine – $899.99

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

What comes to mind when you think of Manchester: the Smiths, the Stone Roses, Oasis, New Order, Joy Division, karaoke.

Wait–what? Karaoke?

Along with some great music, Manchester was also the birthplace of the karaoke machine.  In 1975, an inventor named Roy Brooke built something he called “Roy’s Sing-a-Long Machine.”  The concept was simple.  A cassette machine played an instrumental version of a popular song while someone sang along into a microphone.  Both the music and the singing were funneled into one amplifier and one speaker—and suddenly, anyone could be a singer.

A Japanese company then picked up on the idea, renamed the machine “karaoke,” which means “empty orchestra”–and life, as we know it, has never been the same since.

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

When Volodymyr Kravchuk visits the Daily Bread Food Bank, he’s constantly thinking about his two young sons.

The Toronto resident is often looking for milk, eggs and vegetables such as potatoes or carrots, to make sure his children get the nutrition they need.

Kravchuk and his family moved to Canada from Ukraine in September 2023 and he remembers having to start his life over from scratch. While he holds degrees in psychology and marketing, Kravchuk said it’s been difficult finding stable employment and there are essentials that he has to turn to food banks for.

“Sometimes, somebody can lose their job (and) need more money to feed his family,” Kravchuk, who sometimes volunteers at Daily Bread, said. “In one day, everything can change.”

A new report from Daily Bread Food Bank says the number of children struggling with food insecurity in Toronto has risen, as food bank visits held steady at more than 4.1 million visits for the second year.

The non-profit’s latest Who’s Hungry report, released Tuesday, says more than one in eight children living in Toronto rely on food banks, which is nearly double the rate from 2022, when one in 15 children relied on them.

The report says 67 per cent of parents have given up a meal to make sure their children had enough food to eat while 17 per cent had a child in their household go hungry at least once a week in 2026.

Neil Hetherington, CEO of Daily Bread, said this rise in child hunger is “alarming,” as children became the most overrepresented group in food bank clients across the city. He says the roughly 220 food banks his organization services across the city have been feeling the strain.

“The fact that it’s more children than ever before is what’s changing and that it is the working poor,” he said. “It’s a horrific tax on each of the food banks.”

One in 10 Torontonians are still regularly relying on food banks but Hetherington said the city has “risen to the occasion to be able to meet the need.”

However, there are ongoing challenges, especially with the U.S.-Canada tariff war and the cost-of-living crisis.

One in four food bank clients spent all of their income on housing, an increase from one in five clients in 2025.

“We know why they’re coming to food banks and we just have to have the courage and leadership and fortitude to be able to make those policy changes,” Hetherington said.

The report includes several policy recommendations aimed at all three levels of government to address growing food insecurity, such as a provincial establishment of a Shelter Allowance Reserve Fund to help social assistance recipients regain housing and a municipal investment of $100 million to preserve Toronto’s affordable housing.

Kitty Raman Costa, executive director of the Parkdale Community Food Bank, said they’re serving more than 15,000 food clients through delivery and community drop-ins since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Many members of the Parkdale community who are employed still rely on the food bank because of the cost-of-living crisis, Raman Costa said. She’s also seen an influx of families with two working parents come in, who are struggling to balance rent and increasing food costs.

“We need to prioritize items like school lunch supplies, snacks, easy meals that young or older kids can prepare when parents are working,” she said.

© 2026 The Canadian Press

Paramedic students at a career college in northern Ontario who were approved to receive funding through a signature government program aiming to boost health-care staffing have been swept up in the provincewide pause on student aid.

More than 40 affected students have already dropped out, their school says.

Members of Premier Doug Ford’s government have often boasted about their Learn and Stay Grant, which covers the cost of tuition for nursing, paramedic and medical lab technology students who agree to work in underserved areas.

But it is funded through the Ontario Student Assistance Program, which Colleges and Universities Minister Nolan Quinn has paused for all career colleges and other private post-secondary institutions.

Quinn has tasked KPMG with auditing OSAP usage in career colleges and said that preliminary findings were of such concern that he enacted the OSAP pause sector-wide to protect the integrity of the system until the audit is completed.

Between 2023-24 and 2024-25, the amount of provincial OSAP grants to career colleges nearly doubled, to about $1 billion in the latter year, a previous freedom-of-information request by The Canadian Press showed.

A second FOI shows skyrocketing usage at a relatively small number of schools, and the ministry says it now has broad concerns about the integrity of the system.

Only one career college is eligible for the Learn and Stay Grant – CTS Canadian Career College, which offers a paramedic diploma program in North Bay, Sault Ste. Marie and Sudbury.

Some of the career colleges under suspicion saw increases in OSAP usage of more than 1,000 per cent over three years. CTS saw a 14 per cent increase over that time, according to the data obtained through FOI.

Aaron Madgett is at the CTS campus in Sault Ste. Marie, trying to become a paramedic after getting laid off from Algoma Steel. He said his stomach dropped when he heard the funding was paused, and wondered if he would have to quit school.

“It kind of ripped away all the goals and aspirations that I had for me and my family, and I was gutted at the time,” he said.

Madgett said the school is helping, such as giving students chapters of textbooks they need, but he is now behind on property tax and electricity payments and has been making use of food bank services. Still, he said he is trying to stay positive.

“I have a positive outlook that things will work out,” he said. “I believe the government — there’s got to be something that they can do. There’s always something. That’s my belief.”

Quinn’s office said in a statement that “work is underway to reassess” Learn and Stay Grant eligibility at CTS Canadian Career College.

“As the OLSG has a separate, rigorous accountability process in place, including in-person instruction and return-of-service commitments, work is underway to reassess OLSG eligibility at this institution,” Bianca Giacoboni wrote.

Quinn touted Monday in the legislature that the Learn and Stay Grant is “supporting students pursuing in-demand health-care careers in communities that need them the most.”

He was speaking to the broader OSAP pause in responding to an NDP motion calling on the government to provide a plan within 14 days for relief for affected students.

Quinn said his message to “impacted, legitimate students” is that he is working efficiently to bring forward a stronger OSAP for all.

“You deserve an education that is free from fraudulent, abusive, and malicious actors, so that you can get the high-quality, legitimate skills you need to launch successful, fulfilling careers,” he said.

CTS said that 41 students who were supposed to be receiving the Learn and Stay Grant have already dropped out, while 115 grant-funded students are left.

Interim Liberal leader John Fraser said the government is making students pay for a problem they did not cause.

“The government’s failing,” he said. “It is cutting its nose off to spite its face.”

Fyonna Vanderwerf is in the CTS paramedic program in North Bay. The Learn and Stay Grant was supposed to pay her tuition and other school costs, and she intended to rely on an OSAP loan for living expenses while she studied.

“Mortgage, food, gas, money — there’s nothing there, and there won’t be anything there for the foreseeable future,” she said.

“I really want everything investigated. I really do. But I also want accountability for the employment commitment that we signed for.”

NDP Leader Marit Stiles said the government should be transparent about the funding streams affected by the OSAP pause and the impacts they are having.

“These communities desperately need those students,” she said. “We need those paramedics, and we need those workers out there.”

© 2026 The Canadian Press