Results tagged “crystalcastles”

According to the National Post's Ampersand blog, our pals Crystal Castles "were involved in a melee with security while onstage in Barcelona early Sunday morning. Their show...had been marred by technical issues. At some point during the set singer Alice Glass went into the crowd and punched a security guard. She then climbed back on stage, and pulled out the kick drum and appeared to be about to heave it when a sound technician grabbed her. And that's when her bandmate Ethan Kath jumped in and rushed to her aid." (There is, of course, a YouTube video showing part of what happened.) As history shows, the band really doesn't like sound problems.

not allowed to watch our show, at least, not if you live in Dallas. Last night, the Toronto electro-clash duo known for its drama (sometimes more than its music) dropped a sold-out show of more than a thousand due to what they claimed was a sub-par sound system―a setup found suitable by recent performers such as Holy Fuck and Ratatat. According to music blog Gorilla vs. Bear, the "ill-equipped" Granada Theater is refunding ticket costs to disgruntled customers after Crystal Castles refused to play when they didn't like the sound of their kickdrum and couldn't turn up the speakers without the possibility of them blowing out. Yeah, well, that's cool. We'd all rather skip a show that we've waited more than two hours for (like some guests last night) because the bass drum might be a few decibels short. Even though our eardrums would thank us the next morning. Mike Schoder, the Granada's owner, kicked off an email to Gorilla vs. Bear with a few words about certain prima donnas who whine till mommy and daddy give them what they want and finished it by asking the question everybody wants to hear answered: "Why would any band crap on their fans like this?" Mike, we just don't know. Crystal Castles, please―clean up your shit.

                    

Torontoist is ending the year by naming our Heroes and Villains of 2008--the people, places, and things that we've either fallen head over heels in love with or developed uncontrollable rage towards over the past twelve months, with one hero and one villain selected by each participating staff member. On Christmas Day: the heroes. On Boxing Day: the villains. And next week, cast your vote to determine the Superhero and Supervillain of the year.

                     

Torontoist is ending the year by naming our Heroes and Villains of 2008--the people, places, and things that we've either fallen head over heels in love with or developed uncontrollable rage towards over the past twelve months, with one hero and one villain selected by each participating staff member. On Christmas Day: the heroes. On Boxing Day: the villains. And next week, cast your vote to determine the Superhero and Supervillain of the year.

FILM: Ah, Bruce LaBruce, with his blood, penises, more blood, and even more penises (we thought the Santa Claus Parade was missing something this year). Bruce LaBruce: A Retrospective hits the Royal Cinema tonight, featuring classics and the release of his new film, Otto; Or, Up With Dead People. As if that wasn't enough, a little duo named Crystal Castles are opening up for the first-night premier of Otto at 9 p.m. Gay porn and electro-punk? Now that's a Christmas party. Royal Cinema (608 College Street), December 4–6, various times, $5–$11.

Yesterday was a(n?) historic day. Sure, some really well-liked guy won prime minister of the States or whatever they call it there, but—more importantly—Alice Glass, half of Crystal Castles (yeah, we know), was named by British music mag NME as the coolest person in the entire world. The mag described her as "a black hole at the centre of 2008, utterly magnetic yet thrillingly inscrutable." Asked what the coolest thing she owned was, Glass said "slaves." We only wish we could be so inscrutable. [via Idolator and MuchMusic.]

MUSIC: Toronto electro-punk-nintendo-beep-and-bloop duo Crystal Castles are sure to kick ass tonight at CiRCA (copyright infringement issues aside). These guys put on one hell of a show, and their hipness peak is probably approaching fast given that they've gone from performing in Parkdale to rocking the Harbourfront Centre and CiRCA in just eight months. So if you don't want to wait until next year to catch them opening for Kenny Rogers at Casino Niagara, you'd better head downtown this evening. CiRCA Nightclub (126 John Street), 10 p.m., $15.

Photo by Henry Roxas.

As of Friday, the epic, two-year-long dispute between Trevor Brown and Crystal Castles over the band's unauthorized use of Brown's image of Madonna has quickly and decisively come to an end.

WORDS: Chris Carlsson, one of the founders of Critical Mass and the author of 2008's Nowtopia, is speaking this evening at CineCycle as part of Pages' This Is Not A Reading Series. He'll be discussing Nowtopia, which researches social challenges faced by outlaw bicyclists and others looking to get away from urban consumer lifestyles. Spacing's publisher and creative director Matthew Blackett will be interviewing Carlsson, and there will be an audience Q&A following the interview. CineCycle (in the alley behind 129 Spadina Avenue), 7:30 p.m., FREE.

Graffiti, electronica(rt), haircuts, DJs, vogueing ninjas... ah, yet another weekend festival in Toronto. Club beats and street breaks intersect at Queens Quay West this weekend as part of the Harbourfront's World Routes weekly summer festival series. There's a full event listing here, but we've picked and panned out a few points of interest for your pleasure at the pier.

Photo of Alice Glass of Crystal Castles by jean hambourg. Used under a Creative Commons license.

When NOW featured Crystal Castles as their cover story two months ago, implicit in the whole article were three little words that get tossed around again and again when people talk about the band: next big thing.

A historic tour rolls into town this Wednesday, as Jay-Z and Mary J Blige bring their Heart of the City co-venture to the ACC. Since 1996, Jigga has released ten studio albums, two collaborations with R. Kelly, a mash-up album with Linkin Park, and an MTV Unplugged with The Roots. He also managed to squeeze in a three-year retirement, during which he served as Def Jam president. When no major labels would sign him, he gained his indie cred by starting Roc-A-Fella Records. Part owner of the New Jersey Nets, dubbed the CEO of Hip-Hop, dating the hottest chick in the game, and tied with Elvis as the artist with the second most Number One albums in music history, it's safe to say that Jay-Z is the man. From a critical and commercial perspective, the only other music artist in his league in terms of consistency and impact is Radiohead. He'll be joined by the Queen of R&B and Hip-Hop, Mary J Blige. In addition to doing solo sets, the two will do a shared set. If it's half as good as their Unplugged performance, this show will be a classic.

There are tons of great shows for all you concertgoers this week, including a particularly time-sensitive one tonight. Apparently a sold-out Wrong Bar for Crystal Castles last Thursday was not enough for the electro-punk duo. A last-minute show has been booked at the Wrong Bar tonight (alongside LA’s Health) before they continue on with their extensive North American tour. With no tickets to be purchased in advance, you better drop what you’re doing and immediately line up to secure a spot inside. Similar high-energy performances will come this week from Montreal’s Think About Life (includes Graham Van Pelt of Miracle Fortress and Magic Weapon’s Jordan Robson-Cramer), who are playing the Drake on Friday, February 29, and MEN (JD Samon and Johanna Fateman of Le Tigre), who are playing Lee’s Palace on Saturday, March 1—both shows will definitely not disappoint.