Photo by Darryl Scott. Danger! The Mothership descends onto the Phoenix this Monday, bringing George Clinton and his ace group of funkateers, Parliament Funkadelic, into town to tear the roof off the mutha sucka. Meer mortals are powerless to Dr. Funkenstein and his bop gun. All attempts to fake the funk are punishable with potential exile to the Zone of Zero Funkativity. Accept that it's one nation under a groove. (Note: resistance to groove......

Photo by Daniel Kahn. Last night, amidst the falling snow, the torrid wind, and the downtown lights, a sizable contingent of ironically-dressed hipsters, amateur figure skaters, tiny tots, and bewildered parents skated to the sounds of Stars, Major Marker, and Kevin Drew. All the while, Craig Norris froze his ass off while hosting the R3-30, CBC Radio 3's weekly indie rock countdown, at the Natrel Skating Rink at Harbourfront. Besides the music, there was......

Torontoist is ending the year by naming our Heroes and Villains of 2007––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. Get your dose, starting Boxing Day and running into the new year, three times a day––sunrise, noon, and sunset. Toronto is a city full of great venues and great people helping to put on great shows. Sure, we're......

Torontoist is one of fourteen cities in the worldwide Gothamist network. Once a week, the editors of each site—from LAist to Londonist—compile some of their most interesting posts into a brief blurb. It's Elsewhere In The Ist-A-Verse, and it appears, across the network, every Sunday. Austinist attended a town hall meeting about proposed noise ordinances that could undermine the city's future as the Live Music Capital of the World, and lamented the possible loss of......

Recalling an exciting time in Canadian indie rock when bands sounded less like accordion-totting balladeers and more like Dischord Records discography-totting caustic rockers, Republic of Safety are easily one of the most exciting bands currently making music in this city. Fronted by the charismatic (and Torontoist interviewed!) Maggie MacDonald, the band boasts the creative, angular guitar work of scene veteran Jonny Dovercourt, along with bassist Marlena Kaesler, saxophonist Martin Eckart, and former Quebexico drummer Steve......

Toronto’s Five Blank Pages have been making delightful, rough-edged indie rock for the last four years, and with the release of Last Blush this Friday, the band enters an exciting new stage in their sonic development. Their first full-length record since morphing from frontman Noyan Hilmi’s solo project noyz in 2003, Last Blush promises to deliver the same fragile-voiced power of their 2004 EP, Spaces to Occupy and Abandon, a well-received slice of Brampton-bred......

Photo of Smoosh by absolutwade. This week, Musicologist is a bit biased since we've been helping organize Ladyfest, taking place this weekend. Even if we weren't, we'd still recommend it. But this week we'd also suggest heading to the El Mocambo tonight to check out Donkey Punch, if you're not an indie rock snob and like classic rock/blues-influenced songs and catchy, catchy melodies. It's free, so you don't have anything to lose. Ulrich Schnauss......

The last time Torontoist saw local rockers The Guest Bedroom, it was in a tiny dive bar in Mississauga. Warm summer weather had driven most of the patrons to a large outdoor patio, and it was there that the band launched into a passionate set for the lucky few who stuck it out in the dank bowels of the bar. The Guest Bedroom is not an immediately likable band, and this is huge part......

Years spent on the Indie Rock scene should be measured in dog years: if a band manages to maintain its original line up for an entire trip around the sun, it should count as seven. Toronto’s Talladega has featured many members over the years, but the original core-duo of Stewart Whitehead (ex-Grace Babies) and Sean Bettam (ex-Chicklet) guides its flight path with endurance. Tonight, with new members Mark Buffone and Dave Cyr, they launch their......

Between fake terrorist alerts and scandals big and small, this just might be the Best Best of the -ists ever. We're exhausted just thinking about it. First up, SFist, who saw their little 'ole site be the center of what was a nice little scandal (even getting their editor on TV) only to find their scandal dwarfed by the even bigger scandal caused by their Mayor boffing one of his aides' wife. We're not just......

Carnival enthusiasts unite this evening at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre for The High Fashion Show, touted as a "runway cabaret" with the spirit of an antiquated midway. Part fashion show, part indie rock concert and part charity gala, all proceeds go to Camp Ten Oaks, a one-week summer camp for children with LGBTQ parents. Admission to this big top is $7, or $5 with the donation of warm hats and scarves for youths in......

Eleanor Friedberger, one half of the sibling duo that forms The Fiery Furnaces, is setting up the merch stand at the Opera House. The indie rock band from New York are just wrapping up soundcheck for their show Monday night, in support of their latest album Bitter Tea. While her brother Matt stays on stage testing out a keyboard, Eleanor comes over to introduce herself, before setting about the t-shirt display. New tour percussionist......

Canadian rapper k-os has questionably hinted at a racist agenda at NOW Magazine after receiving a mediocre review. This week, NOW published a review of the new k-os album, "Atlantis: Hymns For Disco." Writer Jason Richards commented that the abundance of mainstream guests- including Sam Roberts and Buck 65 - "will only strengthen [k-os's] detractors' case that he's a crossover pop artist disguised as a true-school b-boy." Even so, Richards gave the album three N's......

Tonight, the Horseshoe Tavern plays host to the Pitchfork/Secretly Canadian Indie Rock Triple-Header. This is a chance to see three awesome bands you've probably never heard of... but who everyone will be talking about in a few months. If you want to get ahead of the curve, read on. San Francisco's Birdmonster headline the night. Their sound is giant. Their guitarist famously declared: "Our main goal is to rock so hard one of us faints."......

Back To School* Cheat Sheet: Thursday, September 21st @ The Tranzac (292 Brunswick Ave.) Doors at 9pm ▪ $5 cover ▪ 19+** Featuring: Dollarama ▪ Idiots! The Ghost is Dancing ▪ DJ Wes Allen Summer is all but done. The sun's gone into hiding. Sure, the Film Festival is going strong, but when Brad Pitt leaves, what's left? Evenings of studying, or, worse, working, reminiscing about how much you miss studying? Another long, depressing......

If it weren't for our life as an -ist, we're not sure we'd ever leave our apartment. Fortunately, to fully -ist, one must seek out the new, the fresh, and the unknown. Brand new, or just new to us, that's what we're all about this week. Phillyist keeps it fresh by getting a new motto, learning to prioritize, and taking in an experimental indie rock show. Torontoist does their first post in franglais, gets ready......

A day late this week, but when you see the crazy number of new shows recently announced, you’ll understand why. With so much variety, there should be something for everyone coming up in the next month or so. Due to the large number of show listings, there will be no links this week (hey, it takes a LONG time to link up this stuff, my friends). As always, if there’s something we’ve missed and......

Anyone who accuses indie rock darlings The Futureheads of somehow becoming boring after the release of their second album, News & Tributes, need only see them live. At a sweat-filled Phoenix on Wednesday night, the boys from Sunderland, England pulled off a terrific show and proved that ‘energetic’ is still the best word to describe them. As if scoring the set list that night wasn't a great enough feeling, Torontoist got to catch up with......

Ryan McLaren has been a booker for the long-running Wavelength music series, and a fixture of the Toronto indie rock scene. Lately a lot of his time has been spent getting a new project off the ground. ALL CAPS! is a new series of all-ages concerts, because why should Toronto's great live indie music only be accessible to those 19 and up. Torontoist chatted with McLaren about why the kids are more than all right......

It's a well known joke among indie rock fans that there are tons and tons of "wolf" bands. Everyone from Wolf Parade to Aids Wolf to Guitar Wolf. There's something about the lupine animal that just attracts musicians trying to come up with a band name. With the success of wolf bands the backlash is going to be inevitable. Which makes Torontoist wonder which animal will be de rigeur for struggling indie musicians everywhere. We......

Torontoist started snickering when he put this under the sports category, but hey, indie rock kids have to get their exercise somewhere. Toronto Kickball starts back up again this Sunday 6:30pm at Alexandra Park (Bathurst just south of Dundas, Free!). Kickball, for the uninitiated, is essentially soccer baseball but without the bats. Getting beaned probably hurts a lot less and chewing tobacco is optional.......

It's not Canada-Russia '72 but did that mythical series have an awesome indie rock soundtrack? No, didn't think so. Today marks the start of the annual Exclaim! Hockey Summit. More than 20 teams made up of some of Canada's rock royalty. Thankfully Nickelback won't be there. Although I'm sure many would love to beat Chad Kroeger on the ice, we'd also have to deal with their set at Lee's Palace. Each of the bands will......

Toronto doctor Gino Bucchino will be representing Italian ex-pats in the Italian parliament after winning a tight election. He'll be representing all of North America. West side cheesemaker Mario Pelosi makes damn good ricotta. Actually he makes the world's best ricotta, and that's not just Torontoist being proud of fellow Torontonians. Judges at the World Cheese Championship gave the nod to Mr. Pelosi of International Cheese Co. He led the Canadian delegation to a third......

Abuse, dancing, destruction, disappointment, death and Laffy Taffy, in that order: 8 year-olds, dude. The soooper-annoying Keith's Scottish guy is up on child porn charges - including pictures of infants. SNL goes Narnia Rap Redux with a new viral video. Or at least an attempt. Meanwhile, eye writes about Queen Street Man this week. We just wrote that so we could write this: New look, new OUTlook. Spitz destroys Destroyer. Indie-rock cheerleader Helen Spitzer breaks......

In daily newspapers, politics, radio and TV, hip hop music dominates this city. One explanation: Those who didn't join the ranks of plaid-shirted in 1994 formed a subculture that hip hop still thrives on; with tonnes of underground material and a very unavoidable stigma attached. That generation, raised on Cypress Hills, the Wu-Tangs and Ice Cubes, is now approaching (or in) their 30s and remain unflinching purveyors of the genre. Diverse Toronto rap acts......

So tonight is the big opening of the Festival, with certain sections of the city all abuzz with poseurs yammering into cell phones, except now not in Canadian accents! All the staff and hardworking volunteers will be hoping it all goes off without a hitch, terrified and excited at the thought of nearly two weeks of celebrities, parties, networking… oh, and films, I guess. The opening night Gala tonight is Deepak Mehta’s Water, a......

Upstart OCAD grad mag Eat Your Friends is throwing a launch party for its third issue tonight. It'll feature the dazzling sounds of Henri Fabergé and the Adorables, considered by some to be the most adorable conglomerate of musicians on the indie rock block. Indeed, those some may have been drunk and given to hyperbolic outbursts, but hey, let no man say that drunken hyperbole isn't a valid incentive for getting oneself out of......

Opting for two $5.50 cans of Labatt Blue at Pride Parade over the $48.50 price tag of the Olympic Island throwdown, Torontoist missed a good show for the second year in a row (rhyme alert). Luckily for us, though, Mr Mason Wright of Propeller was able to get us the scoop. Above is a picture of the Most Serene Republic, and below is his review: Few things, I find, get fans at rock shows......

Torontoist has always been a little concerned at the health of Toronto's indie rock community. The bulk of the crowd at indie rock shows seem to never get enough sun, fresh air and healthy exercise. Something to do with staying out till 4:00 AM, hanging outside with cigarette smokers and wrestling a Labatt 50 induced hangover the next morning. So when we heard of Track and Field, the weekend mini festival that takes place on......

It’s great living in a city that attracts such a diverse cross-section of musical acts every weekend. From indie rock to loser rock, from hip hop to hop-scotch, from classical to jazz, you’re bound to find something. Tonight Old Soul are playing the Santa Cruz party at Lee’s Palace tonight, $8. See here. Zoilus’ site says that “live-video-feed make-out (and sometimes more) booth, Mars Volta apres-festivities” are part of the show. Eye’s got the story......