Sean Michaels (born 1982) is a Scottish-born novelist, music critic, and

blog A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order ...

ger. Based in Montreal, Quebec, he has written about music for publications such as ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', ''

McSweeney's McSweeney's Publishing is an American non-profit publishing house founded by Dave Eggers in 1998 and headquartered in San Francisco. Initially publishing the literary journal'' Timothy McSweeney's Quarterly Concern'', the company has moved to n ...

'', '' The Believer'', ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'', '' Maisonneuve'', ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'', ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...

'' and ''

The National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with Mo ...

''. His weekly music column, ''Heartbeats'', debuted in ''

The Globe & Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'' in 2015. His novel ''

Us Conductors ''Us Conductors'' is a debut novel by Canadian writer Sean Michaels. Published in 2014 by Random House in Canada and Tin House in the United States, the novel is a fictionalized account of the relationship between Léon Theremin (also known as Le ...

'' won the 2014

Scotiabank Giller Prize The Giller Prize (sponsored as the Scotiabank Giller Prize), is a literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English (including translation) the previous year, after an annual juried competition be ...

Early life

Michaels was born in Stirling, Scotland. He was raised in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. He relocated to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

to study at

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

Early career

Michaels initially came to prominence as founder of

Said the Gramophone Said the Gramophone is an mp3 blog launched in 2003, one of the first of its type. Founded by Montreal novelist Sean Michaels, as of 2016 the site is maintained with contributions by poet Emma Healey, zine-maker Jeff Miller and Mitz Takahashi. ...

, one of the first mp3 blogs, where he was among the first music critics to write about

Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's current touring line-up also includes former core member S ...

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

Nicolas Jaar Nicolas Jaar (; ; es, Nicolás; born January 10, 1990) is a Chilean-American composer and recording artist based in New York. Among his notable works are the albums ''Space Is Only Noise'' (2011), ''Sirens'' (2016), and '' Cenizas'' (2020). H ...

and Feist. His music criticism is known for a dreamy, literary writing style, contributing to his work as a writer in residence for events like the

Dawson City Dawson City, officially the City of Dawson, is a town in the Canadian territory of Yukon. It is inseparably linked to the Klondike Gold Rush (1896–99). Its population was 1,577 as of the 2021 census, making it the second-largest town in Yuko ...

Music Festival and, since 2009,

Sappyfest SappyFest is an annual independent arts and music festival held in Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada. Started by Paul Henderson, Jon Claytor, and musician Julie Doiron as an extension of Sappy Records, the festival launched 2006. The festival is ...

. Six years after its founding, Said the Gramophone was recognized by ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' as one of the world's 25 best blogs. His articles about travel, food and culture have appeared in ''

Brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...

'', ''

The Walrus ''The Walrus'' is an independent, non-profit Canadian media organization. It is multi-platform and produces an 8-issue-per-year magazine and online editorial content that includes current affairs, fiction, poetry, and podcasts, a national s ...

'', ''

Resorts and Great Hotels A resort (North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term ''resort' ...

'', and ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wi ...

''. In 2010, Michaels was awarded a gold prize at the

Canadian National Magazine Awards The National Media Awards Foundation (NMAF) is a Canadian charity whose mission is to recognize excellence in the content and creation of Canadian magazines and Canadian digital publishing through two annual awards programs: the National Magazine ...

for a feature concerning the Parisian art guerrillas

Les UX The ''UX'' (short for ''Urban eXperiment'') is an underground organization that improves hidden corners of Paris. Their work includes restoring the Panthéon clock, building a cinema — complete with a bar and a restaurant — in a section of the ...

; this article first appeared in ''Brick'' and was later re-published by

Gizmodo ''Gizmodo'' ( ) is a design, technology, science and science fiction website. It was originally launched as part of the Gawker Media network run by Nick Denton, and runs on the Kinja platform. ''Gizmodo'' also includes the subsite ''io9'', whic ...

. He received a second

National Magazine Award The National Magazine Awards, also known as the Ellie Awards, honor print and digital publications that consistently demonstrate superior execution of editorial objectives, innovative techniques, noteworthy enterprise and imaginative design. Or ...

in 2013, for an article on Canadian circus, published by ''The Walrus''. Michaels also writes short fiction; his short stories has been published in '' Maisonneuve'', ''

The New Quarterly ''The New Quarterly'' is a literary magazine based in Waterloo, Ontario that publishes short fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction from emerging and established Canadian writers. History and profile ''The New Quarterly'' was established in ...

'', ''

The Lifted Brow The Lifted Brow is both the name of an Australian not-for-profit literary organisation (also less well known as the TLB Society Inc.), and the quarterly print literary magazine/journal it publishes. It also publishes its books through its Brow B ...

'', and the anthologies ''We Are the Friction'' and ''The Art of Trespassing''. Since 2009, Michaels has given several lectures on contemporary journalism and the music industry, including appearances at

Emerson College Emerson College is a private college with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts. It also maintains campuses in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California and Well, Limburg, Netherlands ( Kasteel Well). Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a ...

Concordia University Concordia University ( French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...

, and the

Pop Montreal POP Montreal is an annual music festival occurring in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in the early fall, usually at the end of September or the beginning of October. More than 400 bands are scheduled to play in more than 50 venues across the city, most ...

Symposium. He is a member of the

Polaris Music Prize The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 with a $20,000 cash prize; the prize was incr ...

jury and assisted on the grand jury which selected

Godspeed You! Black Emperor Godspeed You! Black Emperor (sometimes abbreviated to GY!BE or Godspeed) is a Canadian post-rock band which originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation, an independent record label also located i ...

's ''

'Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend! ''Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend!'' (sometimes stylized in ''all caps'') is the fourth studio album by Canadian post-rock band Godspeed You! Black Emperor, released by Constellation Records. It was their first album since 2002's ''Yanqui U.X.O.'' ...

'' as the best Canadian album of 2013. In 2010, Michaels formed an absurdist improv duo with Vinny Francois called Venezuela. They performed several early shows at the Montreal Improv Theatre. In 2011, they were featured at the Montreal Fringe Festival and opened for

Tig Notaro Mathilde O'Callaghan "Tig" Notaro (born March 24, 1971) is an American stand-up comedian, writer, radio contributor, and actress. She is known for her deadpan comedy. Her acclaimed album ''Live'' was nominated in 2014 for the Grammy Award for Be ...

. His most recent theatrical credit is in Mark Slutsky's acclaimed short film '' Sorry, Rabbi'' as Hasid #5.

''Us Conductors''

Michaels' debut novel, ''

'', was published by

Random House Canada Random House of Canada was the Canadian distributor for Random House, Inc. from 1944 until 2013. On July 1, 2013, it amalgamated with Penguin Canada to become Penguin Random House Canada. Company history Random House of Canada was established i ...

and

Tin House Books ''Tin House'' is an American book publisher based in Portland, Oregon, and New York City. Portland publisher Win McCormack originally conceived the idea for a literary magazine called ''Tin House'' in the summer of 1998. He enlisted Holly MacArt ...

(US) in 2014. This book is inspired by the lives of

Léon Theremin Leon Theremin (born Lev Sergeyevich Termen rus, Лев Сергеевич Термéн, p=ˈlʲef sʲɪrˈɡʲejɪvʲɪtɕ tɨrˈmʲen; – 3 November 1993) was a Russian and Soviet inventor, most famous for his invention of the theremin, one o ...

, inventor of the

theremin The theremin (; originally known as the ætherphone/etherphone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox) is an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer (who is known as a thereminist). It is named afte ...

, and the musician

Clara Rockmore Clara Reisenberg Rockmore (9 March 1911 – 10 May 1998) was a Lithuanian classical violin prodigy and a virtuoso performer of the theremin, an electronic musical instrument. She was the sister of pianist Nadia Reisenberg. Life and career Early ...

. ''Us Conductors'' was named the winner of the 2014

. In his acceptance speech for the award, Michaels said that as a new author, it was an "unimaginable gift" to receive support from writers and publishers. He also addressed recent scandals surrounding abuse in arts communities - notably claims against former Giller host

Jian Ghomeshi Jian Ghomeshi (born June 9, 1967) is a British-born Persian-Canadian broadcaster, writer, musician, producer and former CBC personality. From 1990 to 2000, he was a vocalist and drummer in the Thornhill-based folk-pop band Moxy Früvous. In ...

. "There are people in our little corner of culture who behave monstrously," he said. "We have to reckon with that, and change it. Each of us does." The novel was also subsequently awarded the Hugh MacLennan Prize for Fiction and named as a nominee for the

International Dublin Literary Award The International Dublin Literary Award ( ga, Duais Liteartha Idirnáisiúnta Bhaile Átha Chliath), established as the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1996, is presented each year for a novel written or translated into English. ...

, the

Amazon.ca First Novel Award The Amazon.ca First Novel Award, formerly the Books in Canada First Novel Award, is a Canadian literary award, co-presented by Amazon.ca and ''The Walrus'' to the best first novel in English language, English published the previous year by a citize ...

, the inaugural Kirkus Prize and the

CLMP The Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP) is an American organization of independent literary publishers and magazines. It was founded in 1967 by Robie Macauley, Reed Whittemore (''The Carleton Miscellany,'' ''The New Republic''); Jule ...

's Firecracker award for fiction.

References

External links

Said the GramophoneOfficial website for ''Us Conductors''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Michaels, Sean 1982 births Canadian bloggers Canadian male non-fiction writers Canadian male novelists Journalists from Montreal Journalists from Ontario Male bloggers Writers from Montreal Writers from Ottawa Living people Canadian male short story writers Canadian writers about music People from Stirling Scottish emigrants to Canada 21st-century Canadian short story writers 21st-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian novelists