Sounds Great - Seetorontonow.com

City Confidential
Sounds great
Enjoy Toronto’s live music
and nightlife
Music-scene insider Kim Hughes provides the lowdown
on what to hear and where to find it.
Photography: Doug Brown
By Kim Hughes
A
lthough Toronto is a must-stop on the tours of all the major stadium players,
it’s also an incubator for new talent and purveyor of some of the hottest
contemporary rap, rock and pop going. Witness hometown heroes Drake,
Metric, Death from Above 1979, Crystal Castles, Hidden Cameras, Broken Social
Scene and Peaches (plus electronic-music hero DeadMau5, if we may borrow from
our Niagara Falls neighbours). But as any live-music or clubland devotee knows, a
good night out is as much about the vibe as the sound. For most aficionados, part and
parcel of knowing where to go is knowing the dress code (stated or implied). What did
you pack? It says loads about what TO music scene you’ll love.
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Toronto 2013 • 31
IF YOU PACKED
An
ironic
tee and
skinny
jeans
Two well established annual music events
fête indie up-and-comers of all stripes:
Canadian Music Week (cmw.net),
March 20 to 24, and North by
Northeast (nxne.com), June 10 to
16. Each showcases over 800 bands
in 50+ venues across the city.
Also noteworthy:
The Queen West strip; try the
Cameron House (thecameron.com),
Horseshoe Tavern (horseshoetavern.com)
and, further west in Parkdale, arty hotel/
nightspots The Drake (thedrakehotel.ca)
and The Gladstone (gladstonehotel.com).
Ossington Village (Ossington from Dundas
to Queen) is home to The Garrison
(garrisontoronto.com), plus the Dakota
Tavern (thedakotatavern.com), a must
for alt-country.
Hot
Hangout Tip
The Descendants at NXNE
Photography: Jackman Chiu
Your
black
turtleneck
Summer brings jazz-fest fever, with the starstudded TD Canada Trust Toronto Jazz
Festival (torontojazz.com, June 21 to 30), the
grassroots Beaches International Jazz
Festival (beachesjazz.com, July 19 to 28)
and the Brampton Global Jazz & Blues
Festival (artofjazz.org, summer 2013).
Also noteworthy:
The Rex Hotel (therex.ca) on Queen Street West
offers bands that swing, skronk or scat. Or try The
Reservoir Lounge (reservoirlounge.com) for jump
blues, swing and boogie woogie. Finally, Massey
Hall (masseyhall.com) is a legendary jazz institution,
site of the one-night-only gig in 1953 that brought
Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Charles
Mingus and Max Roach together on one stage.
Robi Botos Trio at the
TD Canada Trust Toronto Jazz Festival
— Jake Gold, music
producer and CEO of
The Management Trust
Photography: Doug Brown
IF YOU PACKED
Your
opera
glasses
The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (tso.ca) at
Roy Thomson Hall is the place to enjoy the
classical oeuvre of Mozart, Sibelius and Dvořák
this year. Or revel in the Canadian Opera
Company (coc.ca) performances of Wagner’s
Tristan und Isolde (Jan. 29 to Feb. 23) and
Strauss’s Salome (April 21 to May 22) at the
architecturally stunning Four Seasons Centre
for the Performing Arts. Meanwhile,
Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra (tafelmusik.org)
enlivens the George Weston Recital Hall at
Toronto Centre for the Arts.
Toronto Symphony
Orchestra at Roy
Thomson Hall
Photography: Doug Brown
IF YOU PACKED
“The Cameron
House is the
true birthplace
of the Queen
West scene; it
launched Blue
Rodeo and many
of their peers.
There are just 60
seats in the back
room, and you
never know
who’ll show up.
It’s where bigtime artists try
out their new
songs for fans…
and there’s
no cover.”
Also noteworthy:
The Glenn Gould Studio (cbc.ca/glenngould),
housed within CBC Radio’s HQ on Front Street,
and Koerner Hall at the Royal Conservatory of
Music (rcmusic.ca).
Meal
tickets ps
Why settle for chi
and beer? These
live-music venues
offer decent eats
alongside their
solid beats.
Lula Lounge
Have some steak and
chocolate cake with
your jazz, salsa and
world beat tunes.
lula.ca
32 • Toronto 2013 l www.SeeTorontoNow.com
Free Times Café
The famed Sundaybrunch buffet at this folk
haunt soars on authentic
Jewish food, just like
bubbie made.
freetimescafe.com
Hugh’s Room
Varied à la carte and
dinner menus augment
folk, blues and
world sounds.
hughsroom.com
City Confidential
IF YOU PACKED
A giant
mouse
head
Target the lakefront Guvernment
Entertainment Complex (theguvernment.com)
for consistently jaw-dropping electronic dance
music with superstar DJs from around the globe.
Wrongbar (wrongbar.com) is a small but mighty
EDM hotspot in eclectic Parkdale.
Also noteworthy:
Check online for much-anticipated
repeats of killer EDM festivals
Digital Dreams (digitaldreamsfest.ca),
VELD (veldmusicfestival.com) and
WEMF (wemf.com). Dates hadn’t been
announced at press time, but if public
demand is any indicator, we can expect
to see three-peats in ‘13.
OVERWERK at Chroma nightclub
Photography: Brian Morton (Chroma), Drew “Rukes” Ressler (Mouse)
Hot Hangout Tip
“While the Horseshoe, Lee’s Palace, the Music Gallery and
Harbourfront are enduring musical landmarks, the Dakota Tavern
offers a decidedly Toronto-centric experience. The sound is clear
and clean, the food’s decent and the talent’s almost always local.
Added bonus for true live music lovers: no mobile reception!”
— Steve Jordan, founder and executive director, Polaris Music Prize
Laura Repo at the
The Dakota Tavern
IF YOU PACKED
Your
designer
sneakers
Hometown hero Drake’s hip-hop OVO
Festival, which in past years has brought
the likes of Jay-Z and Eminem (2010), Lil
Wayne, Stevie Wonder and Nas (2011),
and Snoop Dogg/Lion and Nicki Minaj
(2012), promises more A-list performers
in its 2013 iteration. Dates are TBD, but
stay in the loop via the OVO Fest
Facebook page.
Also noteworthy:
Although it’s not a hip-hop
venue per se, the waterfront’s
Sound Academy (soundacademy.com) hosts a number
of urban music acts; likewise,
downtown’s Phoenix Concert
Theatre (phoenixconcerttheatre.com).
Check out hiphopcanada.com and
megacityhiphop.com for the late-breaking
news and just-announced concerts.
Drake at the MuchMusic Video Awards
Photography: Doug Brown
Rivoli
Excellent Thai-fusion
out front, eclectic music/
comedy/spoken word
in the back.
rivoli.ca
The Drake Hotel
Outstanding locavoreapproved fare in the
dining room, café and
Sky Yard, amid various
bands and DJs.
thedrakehotel.ca
The Rex Hotel
Jazz is the main draw,
but decent pub grub
abets the improv
and brews.
therex.ca
The Beaver
This funky, ambitious
diner morphs nightly
into a hipster-friendly
hot spot.
beavertoronto.ca
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Toronto 2013 • 33
IF YOU PACKED
Your
rainbow
flag
Partiers looking for a queer-centric music scene
during PRIDE week should aim for the heart of
the Village (Church Street between Bloor
Street East and Carlton Avenue). Keep an
eye open for block party par excellence
Blockorama, traditionally held in the
parking lot across from Wellesley subway
station, and helmed by top-flight soul, R&B
and house DJs, plus headline chanteuses
like Keshia Chanté. Meanwhile, all year round,
Church on Church (churchonchurch.com) offers
mighty fierce drag shows and DJs spinning into
the night.
Also noteworthy:
During Pride, look for the wet ’n’ wild Aqua Party
(prismtoronto.com)—held at Sugar Beach in
2012—featuring DJs of the internationally renowned
ilk. Year-round, try the Village’s Fly (flynightclub.com)
(“Babylon” on Queer As Folk), which features local,
Canadian and international DJs. Or visit hipster West
Queen West, where The Beaver (thebeavertoronto.
com) is known for an arty-punk, pansexual vibe.
Guest DJs spin disco, house and new wave.
Pride Party on Church
Photography: Jeff Speed
After
Hours
The Big Slice
The Thompson Diner
7 West Café
7 Charles St. W.
at Yonge,
Where bleary-eyed
publicists take post-gig
rock-star clients for
penne arrabiata or
Moroccan chili.
7westcafe.com
Burrito Boyz
Various locations,
The large veggie soy,
halibut and steak
burritos taste like love
feels, especially at 3
a.m. on a Saturday.
burritoboyz.ca
34 • Toronto 2013 l www.SeeTorontoNow.com
Burrito Boyz
Swatow
The Big Slice
385 Yonge St.,
Truth in advertising
rules at this perennial
Yonge Street pizza
fave, which slings
pie until 5 a.m.
thebigslicepizza.com
Thompson Diner
550 Wellington St. W.,
At this 24-hour
retro-luxe diner the St.
Lawrence sandwich—
peameal, Swiss cheese
and fried egg on a
kaiser—is the perfect
late, late dinner or early,
early breakfast.
thompsondiner.com
Swatow
309 Spadina Ave.
Chinatown boasts
plenty of fabulous
cheap late-night
eateries, and where
else can you enjoy a
middle-of-the-night
snack of four
balls soup?
Photography: Gabriel Li (Thompson), 7westcafe.com (pie), Ian Muttoo (The Big Slice), Klwatts (burrito), spDuchamp (Swatow)
7 West Café
Last call came and
went, the bars are
ly’s
closing and your bel
e
hollering for fuel. Her
are five spots where
you can eat
great late.
City Confidential
IF YOU PACKED
Shades
and a
harmonica
Get your folk and blues on in Brockton
Village; Hugh’s Room (hughsroom.com)
is the place to enjoy legends like Judy
Collins and Ron Sexsmith in a
dinner-club environment. CBC Radio 3
has proclaimed it one of the country’s
best live venue spaces.
Also noteworthy:
The Monarch’s Pub (monarchspub.ca) in
downtown’s Delta Chelsea Hotel is another
great bet, with live blues Thursday nights. Or head
to Chinatown’s Silver Dollar Room
(silverdollarroom.com), which has been serving up
the best indie blues and folk (not to mention
bluegrass, alt-country and rock) since 1958. Also
hit Port Credit’s annual early-September Tim
Hortons South Side Shuffle (southsideshuffle.
com) festival for blues by the lake.
Hemingway Corner playing at Hugh’s Room
Photography: dn.zeroproductions
Te gusta bailar salsa? If the answer is sí,
head to Yorkville’s Babaluu Supper
Club (babaluu.com) for DJ-hosted salsa
throughout the week. Or head to Lula
Lounge (lula.ca) for their muy caliente
live salsa bands, plus Latin jazz.
?
IF YOU PACKED
Photography: Taub
Your
dancing
shoes
Also noteworthy:
Show off your firiest dance moves at the
les-gay-bi-queer-trans-positive El
Convento Rico (elconventorico.com),
where Spanish Top 40, hip-hop, salsa,
merengue, cha-cha, plus weekend drag
shows, make for a fun, inclusive vibe. Or
hit Embrujo Flamenco Tapas
Restaurant (embrujoflamenco.com) on
Danforth Avenue for live flamenco and
guitar performances.
Dance floor moves
Hot Hangout Tip
Photography: r.d.i.
Karaoke at The Duke in Leslieville Wednesday and Thursday nights
and Saturday afternoons with Sweet Daddy Siki. “They must have
the largest selection of songs—and characters—anywhere.”
— Teddy Fury, drummer with the Royal Crowns and longtime bartender at the venerable Horseshoe Tavern
IF YOU PACKED
Something
sparkly
The Mosaic South Asian Heritage Festival of
Mississauga (mosaicfest.com) is a four-day
arts–and-culture festival that lures some of
the subcontinent and diaspora’s hottest
performers. The 2012 event boasted
Pakistani superstar Shafqat Amanat
Ali, and Brooklyn-based “bhangra funk
dhol ‘n’ brass” faves Red Baraat.
Also noteworthy:
Celebrating its 46th year,
Scotiabank Caribbean Carnival Toronto
(torontocaribbeancarnival.com), the Toronto street
carnival/parade formerly known as Caribana, winds
its way along a lakeside parade route with festive
revellers dressed in eye-popping costumes. Dancing
in the streets to a non-stop soundtrack of live
calypso, soca, reggae, hip-hop, chutney, steel pan
and brass bands is de rigueur. The celebration starts
early, and after-parties linger deep into the night.
Caribbean Carnival
Photography: Doug Brown
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Toronto 2013 • 35