Bumping into... Andrew Pulsifer

Bumping Into... is a series of mini-chats with a variety of peeps that you might run into in some of our local music communities. (There's a bit of an intro and my thoughts behind the series here.)

---

How are you? Where are you?

Hi Joe! I'm okay! I feel like I'm handling this situation just as fine as I can. I'm in my two bedroom apartment in Toronto hanging out with my cat, at this exact moment.

What have you been up to since March or so?

Ohhhhhhh, you know. Working from home, which took a really big adjustment. I'm just not really that good at it! DJing monthly virtual parties, which have been a huge source of comfort for me (and hopefully others!). Video games, books, movies, TV shows, music, Zoom hangs, Park hangs when the weather allowed (and more than a few times when it didn't!), backyards. All of those things that has made this bearable.

Have you found any new ways to do old things? How are you feeling about the shifts in how music is being made/shared/listened to?

Virtual DJing has been the biggest new thing. At first I poo-pooed the idea! I thought it would be the worst. But then all it took was one really fun friend's birthday party and I was hooked! I feel bad for my downstairs neighbours though.

I've seen a few shows, and they've been great! Rapport stands out to me as a highlight. But I haven't been keeping up with shows as much as I would have liked.

Bandcamp Friday has been one of the best shifts in how music is shared! I look forward to it every week.

Any works of art that have been a light for you in these times? Anything that's just been a good diversion?

It seems that all of my favourite Toronto artists decided to release records this year! Castle If's latest is just a wonderful space disco odyssey. The Scott Hardware record is a must listen. Loji's first ever EP is all we could have ever dreamed of. So much!

How are you feeling about 2021?

I'm feeling good! Maybe naively!

Anything else we'd chat about if we bumped into each other?

I would have talked more about the NDP in general. Proud of the work Jagmeet and Andrea are doing, though I expect you would have OPINIONS about that (which I would welcome!)