amoeba.com “There’s some bullshit idea that we’re not gonna sing along to my songs, like why the fuck’d I write them then, anyway?” So spoke Jeff Mangum, leader of influential ‘90s band Neutral Milk Hotel, trying to coax the hushed and sold-out audience at Toronto’s Trinity St. Paul’s to join[Read More…]
Search Results for author "Ryan Taylor"
NXNE
musicvice.com Back for its 17th year, the annual North by Northeast (NXNE) festival and conference brought over 600 bands to Toronto over the course of five sweltering days in June. One of the most anticipated shows was Toronto’s own Fucked Up playing a free show at Yonge and Dundas Square,[Read More…]
Colin Stetson
David Irwin Unless you’re deep into experimental and avant-garde saxophone, chances are you’ve never heard anyone play quite like Michigan-born, Montreal-based Colin Stetson. Between using circular breathing (simultaneously breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth in order play continuously), the keys as percussion, and singing into his[Read More…]
Sweet Thing : Sweet Thing
With their self-titled debut, it’s easy to see that Toronto’s Sweet Thing have Top 40 ambitions. Whether or not they’ll get there remains to be seen. The album certainly contains elements that suggest they will: the punchy guitars of “Gun,” the shimmering synths of “Lazy Susan,” and the soaring vocals[Read More…]
A night at the museum
Perhaps one of Montreal’s best kept secrets is the Contemporary Art Museum’s Nocturnes—a program that aims to combine three Montreal pastimes: music, art, and socializing. The part-gallery exhibit, part-concert series is a cultural hybrid where those interested in both mediums can comingle on the first Friday of each month. The[Read More…]
In Concert: Halloween – Diamond Rings
Miranda Whist Miranda Whist You know you’re onto something when people decide to dress up as you for your Halloween concert, which was exactly the case with John O’Regan’s androgynous, glam rock alter ego Diamond Rings at his show on Sunday. Taking the stage in a relatively subdued matching vintage[Read More…]
PS I Love You – Meet Me At The Muster Station
Let’s be thankful that PS I Love You are better at writing songs than they are at picking band names. While the moniker is ripe for ridicule, the 10 tracks that make up Meet Me At The Muster Station demand far more respect. Hailing from Kingston, Ontario, vocalist/guitarist and bass[Read More…]
Diamond Rings
nyctaper.com The glitzy, gender-bending alter-ego of Toronto’s John O’Regan, Diamond Rings brought his ‘80s-inspired glam pop to Le Divan Orange Saturday afternoon as the not-so secret guest. With his kitschy costumes, cheesy dance moves, and dinky keyboard lines overtop of programmed beats, there’s a lot to not like about O’Regan’s[Read More…]
Think About Life
billions.com The idea of Montreal’s Think About Life playing a free show at the tiny Le Divan Orange during Pop was a great idea. Except that the show was at 4 p.m. on a Saturday. So while the venue was packed for their late afternoon set, the things that make[Read More…]
Holy Fuck
Holly Stewart There may have been a mini-monsoon Thursday night, but that didn’t stop droves of people from making the trek up Park Avenue to Espace Reunion for a 2 a.m. set from Toronto’s Holy Fuck. Taking the stage clad in a “Poo Teens” t-shirt (talk about catering to a[Read More…]
