Haven’t posted lately and certainly haven’t posted daily like I said I would in earlier posts. If any of you are on my Facebook page (which I encourage you to do) I posted what Paul McCartney makes in royalties every single day (something like $USD600.000) and my asking $30 from SOCAN in November. I thought it was amusing. For the past couple of years I have been working on my memoirs. I was approached to do them by a friend of mine in Melbourne who is a digital marketing specialist. For months I would send him audio files via the net for the proposed project, but then I get interested in other things such as a Canada Council for the Arts grant to write and record new music. That didn’t work out but I will try again. The fatal flaw in my application was I forced Erica Veltmeyer to write the application. All things considering she made a valiant attempt but it caused her to have a meltdown in the process. Next time that I apply to Canada Council I will write the application myself and h...

  Here I found “Babies Run My World” by Cardboard Brains as discussed in an earlier post. (As I write I’m listening to “A Song for Europe” by Roxy Music off, I believe the Stranded album.) The last post I entitled “The Life of Ermie Scub (Dogsitting)” because I was indeed dog-sitting at The Veltmeyer Estate for ten days. I live the quiet life now, thankfully free of the drama that permeated my life. Especially the years 2002-2012. The dog in question Emmy-Lou, a rescue pup from Texas. She gives me solace, something to love and care for in my new found modest peace. Here my friends, is a pic of Emmy Lou: Just sayin’. And above a better pic of The Last Pogo (BOMB)(1979). In September 2002 GODS GAMBLING and LSD premiered at the Isabel Theatre at The Toronto International Festival of Festivals. I appear as myself with the Director, my friend Peter Mettler. GODS GAMBLING and LSD subsequently won a GENIE award for BEST DOCUMENTARY. It’s won other awards internationally but I haven’t real...

  Here we have on YouTube my 1980 LP THE LIFE OF ERMIE SCUB in its entirety. I had intended to post BABIES RUN MY WORLD (1978) released 1979 on BOMB RECORDS: THE LAST POGO (Live at The Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto), but I couldn’t find it on YouTube. It’s somewhere in that cyber abyss of the likes of Harry Styles and Adelle. Or Adel or whatever. I’ll find the LAST POGO Babies Run My World, or perhaps someone will find it for me, eventually, and I’ll post it. It’s a lo-fi recording but I feel confident in saying its one of the best tracks on this release, at least Paul McGrath of The Toronto GLOBE AND MAIL thought so. To paraphrase Paul McGrath’s article in said newspaper: “CARDBOARD BRAINS should sign for respectable money on prominent dotted lines and stand heads held high in global new wave predominance”. A bold statement but I’m actually not making it up. The comment was great for our egos but always left me kind of embarrassed and uncomfortable, but all these years I might as well...

  Around the early years of the season of my discontent I noticed a strange phenomena on the internet. Something called a Nardwaur and apparently a band called THE EVAPORATORS had somewhat of a hit song called CARDBOARD BRAINS. By about 2005 I had put the pieces together to learn that NARDWAUR, The Human Serviette, was a MuchMusic VeeJay and legendary interviewer had a band called The Evaporators and a song entitled CARDBOARD BRAINS a homage of sorts to my band. In 2005 ( I’m Guessing the year, it was a blur) I was living on top of The Rex Hotel at Queen Street West across from the practice space we shared with John McLeod (Johnny and the G-Rays), down the street from The Horseshoe. It just so happened that I read in NOW magazine that the Evaporators were playing The Horseshoe that night, so I swallowed my beer and headed down to introduce myself to NARDWAUR. He said in a gentlemanly fashion: “ It’s an honour!”  Took a publicity photo with himself, yours truly and the bass pla...

  Sloth.There is much  for me to tell but  most of  the time  I don’t feel like doing anything. I would like to post daily because the search engines like to sniff the keywords. This Apple Magic Keyboard is pretty neat  but the space bar the is malfunctioning in that I must hit the shift key in between words. Which is much more than you need to know. Previous posts have been brief and vague because I am just getting used to blogging and the limitations of my technology. Topics such as Curriculum Vitae have been pretty vacant, I haven’t even included my filmography. Days go by. Canada Day July 1,2022 went by and I wanted to post. My birthday July 16, 2022 (66). Eventually I posted something but not much. Eventually I want to explore the Cardboard Brains history with an analysis of the various releases, including my solo LP “The Life of Ermie Scub “. I want to address my filmography including Metal Messiah (1978), The Gate (1986), Johnny Mnemonic (1996), Kill...

  Pauline Groen, John Paul Young and Vincent Carlucci the incarnation of Cardboard Brains that opened for The Stranglers. No drummer just one of the first LinnDrums.

 And here is the song off the ever popular Cardboard Brains White EP (1977).

  Cardboard Brains poster from 1978.

Propaganda is typically misleading or biased in nature. However in this blog I will relate the world in my eyes, and I will post only what I know or hold to be true. As Tony Montana wisely stated in Scarface (1983), “I always tell the truth, even when I lie.”. So far this blog has been experimental. I am becoming accustomed to the nuances of Blogger, and the bots and crawlers that sniff keywords have discovered it. It’s now recognisable to Google, Bing, Duck Duck Go search engines as ermiescub.com and I am glad. I still have some way to go. I will try to post everyday in the future. I must overcome the lethargy  and inertia that has enveloped me for years and exact some discipline on my mind and body. Further expect this blog to become more structured. I will write less with an attitude of just blurting out anything and I will write more with a view to actually making some kind of point. Maybe this blog will be my ticket to ride and save me from the powerful discontent I feel from ...

 I remember being on the set of CINOFRENIC and having to go to open for The Screamers later that night. Cathryn Gilday of the Toronto Globe and Mail gave us a very nice review entitled “Cardboard Brains Just Fine”.

 This is in response to a comment by unknown. I “star” in CINOFRENIC, as “Paul”. To the best of my knowledge Cardboard Brains does not perform in the film but Mike Nightmare and The Ugly does. I think The B-Girls also perform, and I can’t remember who else does. I probably wasn’t there that day. IMDB probably has more info on CINOFRENIC. Vince Carlucci would remember if Cardboard Brains performed in the film. I’m occasionally asked about it and if a copy is available. Again I don’t know. Eventually one will surface. Apparently it’s got some good footage of bands like The Ugly. I will always remember seeing Mike Nightmare spinning his mic around and singing: “Your not living in the real world!”. RIP Mike Nightmare. Thanks for the comment. JPY . And no, I don’t perform any music in the film. However we did in The Gate (1986). More about that shortly.

 Well yesterday’s post got seven views so far. At least somebody is paying attention. So far I’ve been using my 10.5 inch seventh generation iPad and Magic Keyboard. It’s a great little device and as I may have stated earlier it baptised me into the Apple ecosystem. But it’s sort of like typing on a toy because its so puny. I suppose I have to bite the bullet and get a 24 inch M1 iMac if I am to get anywhere in life. Apple should sponsor me. I was ripped off for $CDN180.00 today. But when you’ve lost as much money as I have you don’t sweat the small stuff. Purchased www.johnpaulyoung.org. The goal is to get a Wordpress website up and get back in the game. It’s hard to believe that I have been in Halifax Nova Scotia for coming up ten years. Living in relative obscurity. It’s been nice and peaceful in comparison to the last ten bullshit years circa 2002-2012 that I spent in my hometown of Toronto, Ontario. I spend 50 per cent of my time at my bachelor pad and the rest  of my tim...

 This  morning started with my usual Breakfast of Champions: two Vyvanse, a pickled egg and a cup of coffee. The only thing missing is a high octane energy drink, but that shall surely come. Whatever gets you through the night or day I say. I didn’t write anything  that day.Thought a lot about it. Curled  up in a ball, lied and bed and confined myself to my thoughts as is my usual fashion. Today breakfast du jour was a Java energy drink, two Vyvanse and a half pack of smokes. I’m going to go on a health kick. I’m 65 years old now. I came to Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada ten years ago as healthy as a horse, still a man reminiscent of the stud of his youth. In 2013 I was diagnosed with prostate cancer which thankfully is in remission as well as diabetes. However, my mobility is impaired and I have a small basketball for a belly with sticks for arms and legs. I reckon I look like a pregnant spider. Of course this blog is in its infancy and will go through growing pains. ...

 Canadian punk band Fucked Up covered Cardboard  Brains “I Want To Be A Yank” from the 1977 White EP. A version of their cover is on CBC Music. Here is the original:

The concept of reinventing oneself appeals to me. After enduring prolonged despair and adversity, I cling to the belief that I can escape my afflictions and constraints to thrive. A dim light within my soul insists that despite my age and frailties, I can still grasp happiness, health, and self-actualization. A New Day Has Dawned. The phrase resonates with me. Today, I am unwell. The cause is unclear, but a discomfort lingers in my gut. Simultaneously, my mind wrestles with the chaos that has plagued me for over two decades. Optimism may seem illusory, yet my quest for joy is unyielding. While I may not always find it, my desire for it remains insatiable. Murder Mayhem Madness. The title is bold, and I inwardly smile at the reactions it provokes. Yet, it fittingly encapsulates the essence of my tentative memoirs. It's as sensational as it is factual. A New Day Has Dawned. I just like the sound of it. I don’t know what it is but there is an uneasiness in my gut. In conjunction my mi...