Results tagged “spiralbeach”

It's hard not to feel a bit of affection towards Spiral Beach; they've always unabashedly embraced their youth and the restlessness (and awkward fashion) that goes with it, and in their element they've carved a genuine place into both the brains of moody music critics and the headphones of young Canadian music fans. The Only Really Thing, the band's second full-length (out today on Sparks Music), has a few hints of an experimental maturation, but mostly stays a little too close to the retro-beat pop that defined them.

SEX: Pleasure emporium and sex-toy shop Good For Her presents the fourth annual Feminist Porn Awards, showcased tonight with a big party hosted by Deb “Dirk” Pearce in—irony of ironies—a church. The party includes award presentations; clips from winning films; music from Raging Asian Women, Daddy K and the Rhythm Method, and DJ Nik Red; burlesque from Coco La Crème; raffles; and a silent auction. Berkeley Church (315 Queen Street East), 9 p.m., $22.

Photo of A Neon Rome (Neal Arbick, Ian Blurton, Kevin Nizel, John Borra, Bernard Maiezza) at the Beverly, 1985, by Bruce Lam.

Spiral Beach have found themselves in a spot of trouble. As detailed a week and a half ago in both NOW and Eye, the band got hit with a $1470 bill [PDF] from EcoMedia Direct for putting up eight posters for last month's Opera House show on eight of the company's "SilverBox and Heritage Box Recycling Bins." Again, that's $1470 for eight small posters, like the one above made by Spiral Beach singer/keyboardist Maddy Wilde. As the letter from EcoMedia CEO Erich Genseberger emphatically points out, the bins "constitute private property," and the unauthorized postering is a "serious breach of [EcoMedia's] rights." The bill, sent to the Opera House and passed on to the band, listed the cost of "cleaning and removal of posters on boxes" as $780, "inspection and collection of evidence" as $320, and an "administration fee" of $300, plus $70 for GST.

Some musicians are professional wallowers. Others are professional romantics. And still others are professional fun-havers. Both Toronto's Spiral Beach and Brighton's The Go! Team fall into that last category—performers who embrace the sheer joy of performing. But more than that, they are young, talented, and famous, they know they are young, talented, and famous, and they're grateful for being young, talented and famous. Although Beach's Maddy Wilde and the Team's Ninja may strike diva...

Photo of Architecture in Helsinki by Zach Klein.

For a band with an entire album named for Mississauga, The Hidden Cameras and Toronto sure haven't seen much of each other of late. Friday night at the Phoenix was the band's first full-length show within the GTA's walls in almost a year, the too-long hiatus forced by (pictured) lead man Joel Gibb's Berlin exile; as he goeth, so goeth the band.

Whoever booked the bands for the Wintercity Festival this year definitely earned their paycheque. Typically these free shows consist of bands that are either Canadian Idol runners-up or musicians you've never heard of. While there are still some bands listed that'll make you say "who??!" there are a number of great acts that will make it worth the trek to Nathan Phillips Square and freeze your ass off for. Just remember to wear your longjohns and toque, and hit up your favourite cafe for an extra large hot chocolate first...oh, and be sure to get there a bit early for a decent view.

i (heart) music has just released their list of the 33 hottest bands in Canada for 2006, as selected by a more than forty Canadian music bloggers (including yours truly, current Torontoist contributor Carrie Musgrave, Said the Gramophone, former Torontoist contributor Frank Yang from Chromewaves, and lots of others). We don't mean to gloat, but it looks like we're still the best city for music in the country.

As everyone’s favourite girl-about-town Tyler Clark Burke says, “This is really complicated.”