If you're not getting tickets from the "Safe Cycling" cops this week, spend that extra cash and get them for this week/end's Bicycle Film Festival. Now in its eighth year, the round-the-world celebration of two-wheeled transport careens into Toronto this Wednesday night, June 18, through Saturday, June 21. First up, pedal over to Ourspace/Studio Gallery, 294 College Street, for Bikes Rock, a jams-packed opening bash with local indie-bop headliners—any guesses? Uh-huh—The Bicyles. Also on......

This Friday's Steam Whistle Unsigned is already the fourth in a series of independent music showcases at the Roundhouse, but it's the first we're really excited about. Really excited. Check out this lineup: The Carps are the best thing to come out of Scarborough since... er... hmm. Right. Anyway, the punk-soul duo recently opened for MIA at the Kool Haus, and if they're good enough for Maya, they're good enough for you. Opopo sound like......

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......

Torontoist finished Book 7 last night, and we're feeling a little down about the Harry Potter saga being over. Sure, everything turned out alright (and Mrs. Weasley said the B-word!) but we can't help feeling like the wizarding world no longer needs our support. Under normal circumstances, we would be binge eating and watching Prisoner of Azkaban on repeat. Thankfully, Toronto will be flooded with Harry Potter fans this weekend, keeping the wizarding spirit......

Weekly indie institution Wavelength started in 1999, setting up shop at Ted's Wrecking Yard, then bouncing between venues until landing at its current home, Sneaky Dee's, in 2002. Past performers read like a who's-who of home grown indie music: Great Lake Swimmers, The Bicycles, Cadence Weapon, Julie Doiron, Peaches, Final Fantasy, Feist—and the list goes on. After a Canada Day hiatus, the Sunday night series is back with a stellar July lineup for its live......

Let's just get this over with right off the bat -- Arcade Fire have announced their Toronto show dates. Hurrah! They'll be at Massey Hall on May 15 & 16, and tickets go on sale on Feb. 23rd. Predicted time to sell out? 1 minute 49 seconds. If you have no luck with those, the next closest location is Montreal on May 12 & 13. In other big concert news, unless you've been living......

WARNING: The following report may shock and offend some readers. The Toronto Hug Coalition, one of many local factions of the global Free Hugs Campaign, claimed full responsibility for Saturday afternoon's Hug Day uprising at Nathan Philips Square. Total strangers of all ages made eye contact, shyly said hello, and HUGGED each other while a band of young men called The Bicycles played indie pop music. Skating at the nearby rink was disrupted when......

While we vehemently disagree, many people believe Torontonians to be an unfriendly bunch: impossible to approach, quick to end conversations with strangers and constantly averting their eyes. This has been the motivation for a number of excellent projects like Loosen Up Toronto and a recent free hug event on Yonge Street, inspired by the original Free Hugs Campaign by Juan Mann. Toronto just can't get enough of the meme that keeps on giving, however: a......

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......

The year is winding down and so is the music, which is kind of nice, actually, because there seem to be a lot of tours already gearing up for 2007. Hopefully Alexisonfire isn't one of them...we have no idea how they can manage to go onstage and scream for 7 solid days (they have a few more shows this week). Insanity. Best bets for this week include Royal Wood tonight at the Cameron House......

As the weeks draw closer to the holidays, we're seeing less and less shows listed -- which really sucks, because one can only take so much Christmas music...and we've already heard enough of it to drive us insane. Yeah, yeah, bah humbug. That said, it's quite possible we'll be checking out Twisted Sister's 'A Twisted Christmas' tomorrow. The vision of Dee Snider in full makeup and crazy hair, possibly wearing a Santa suit and......

We realize that we probably talk about Owen Pallett, aka Final Fantasy, way too much. So we're not going to talk about his free show on Saturday night at North York Central Library, also featuring The Creeping Nobodies, Hank, Ninja High School, and Bob Wiseman. Nope, not a word. Instead, what we do want to tell you about is the Toronto Public Library's stellar new local CD selection - the whole reason that the......

Hoooo boy! Looks like somebody fed us way too much turkey this weekend. We've just come out of our tryptophan-induced comas and realized we lost an entire day. Not only do we have to deal with our tardiness, but also figure out what to do with that permanent dent in the couch. If you can manage to roll out of the house after stuffing your face all weekend, you can burn off some of......

This fall is shaping up to be a busy one, as everyone and their dog seems to be touring right now. If you haven't spent all of your OSAP money yet, might want to stash away a few pennies for some concert tix. However, if you've already blown your student loan on cheap beer and (even cheaper) Ikea furniture, take comfort in the fact that you can visit your local public library to catch......

Everyone recovered from V-Fest yet? No? What's wrong with you? Better take your vitamins and Red Bull then, because there's a lot going on this week. Notably, Ms. Emily Haines will be playing four (that's right, 4!) shows in a span of three days (incl. V-Fest), so if you think you're tired... If this isn't enough music for one week and you know of other shows, as always, we want to hear about it......

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......

Looking to check out some live music this week? Here's your listing of what's happening around the city between July 31 and August 6. In addition, we are now including recently announced shows, so you have no excuse about missing out on ticket opportunities. If you know of any good shows this week that we missed below, let us know in the comments. Feel free to also let us know about upcoming shows that......

And the joke was: Dylan Reibling, he of the fake prom and (formerly?) of Wavelength, has recruited local talent for a night of tribute to Sloan. Tomorrow night, Thursday February 16, Sloan classics will be reinterpreted by the likes of Eric Warner's Dollarama, thumb-plucker Laura Barrett, an Adorable band called The Chris Murphies, a strip-tease from Penny Whistleton, The Bicycles, Disgrimination and funnily-named Cry Cry Papsmear. Chris Murphy of Sloan knows where the Boat is,......

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