Various

Don’t let the "free for all” spirit of this compilation’s title fool you — this collection of late night performances on alternative variety show ZeD TV is CBC all the way, and that means rehearsed performances, multiple takes and a clean, pristine recording. There’s very little raw about it, and without a studio audience, even "live” is stretching it. Nevertheless, there are some excellent performances here by a host of CBC’s usual suspects. There are the indie bands (The Waifs, Girl Nobody, Radiogram, The Organ, Nasty On); there are the CBC-approved artists (Sam Roberts, Tegan & Sara, The Weakerthans) and there are the "hip with the kids” selections (BrassMunk, Buck 65, Cinematic Orchestra). None of them is unlistenable, but neither is any track going to set your living room afire with raw performance excitement or even infectious enthusiasm. Kinda like the CBC, really.