Top music interviewer and CBC Radio 2 host George Stroumboulopoulos debuted his new House of Strombo music series on Apple Music on Thursday (via Billboard).
The 10-episode show is a spin-off of the Canadian host's radio series The Strombo Show, which is filmed at his Toronto home in front of a live audience. The show is set to feature video segments, artist interviews, and exclusive behind-the-scenes access. Stroumboulopoulos was interviewed by Zane Lowe on Apple Music's Beats 1 about the partnership.
"The bands set-up right in my living room, with a live audience packing the place," Stroumboulopoulos explained in a statement. "Lights, smoke machines and amplifiers stacked high -- it's every gig in a small space that you've ever loved, with the best bands in the world."
The video segment of the first show features a performance and interview with Canadian group A Tribe Called Red, an Ottawa-based First Nations DJ collective. Apple Music subscribers can view it in the Browse section of the app under the Strombo banner, where playlists and other content can also be found. Going forward, videos for the show will be available in the Connect section of the Strombo page.
A longer 30-minute version of each episode can be found on YouTube. Check out the first offering embedded below.
Top Rated Comments
He started out in the '90s as a popular host on an influential Toronto radio station, 102.1 The Edge, and then went on to being a VJ on MuchMusic (Canada's MTV), and also hosting their extremely influential show The New Music. After that he went to CBC, hosting a nightly current events talk show on TV, and running a radio show. At one point he also went to host Hockey Night in Canada (who knows why) for a year, which didn't work out that well.
But ya, he's quite the media personality up here. He's also a great guy, I've met him. I can't think of an American equivalent to him.
(*Note to Americans: Nickelback and Bieber are like gum stuck on the bottom of the Canadian music scene's shoe. It's not our fault the world has a taste for our garbage.)