Photos
-
Budweiser Stage was taken over by four alternative acts this past Wednesday night as both 30 Seconds to Mars played to a crowd of 15,000 lucky fans with a bevy of pals in tow. The venue was a centre of bombast that night as Jared Leto and his buddies spent their time on stage consistently upping the ante. Up first were alternative act…
-
The expectations were high for the Aurora Illumination Concert Series event at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on May 31st, but they far exceeded everything that we had hoped for! Aurora put on a FREE show with Death From Above, and the night is sure to leave you green with envy if you weren’t there. The…
-
The summer concert season has officially been kicked off as Budweiser Stage has now opened its gates for the next few months. The honours of 2018’s inaugural show go to a pair of eclectic alternative rock groups – Portugal. The Man and Broken Social Scene. Alaska’s biggest musical export ever graced the stage first with psych-pop crew Portugal. The Man…
-
If you were to step into Massey Hall this past Friday night you’d be forgiven for thinking that you stepped into a 1950s prom dancehall. Adorned with white curtains and vintage lighting, the hallowed venue was steeped in the past with both these visual cues and the music of Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats….
-
It is hard to believe that it was barely a year ago that we found out about a powerful little rock quartet hailing out of Toronto’s East-end, and now they are wrapping up their own national headlining tour across Canada. It’s safe to say, The Beaches are here to stay! Ending their cross-country Late Show…
-
A burst of energy hit the Opera House this past Wednesday night as indie pop sensations AJR and some of their musical pals took to the stage to deliver a dose of sweet tuneage. Opening were Hundred Handed and MAX. Californian duo, Hundred Handed, started things off with some clean, slick dance tunes in the…
-
After months and months of below seasonal temperatures and random ice storms, the weather in Toronto finally changed for the better. And to celebrate, the very appropriately named Mt. Joy played the Velvet Underground with their upbeat brand of alternative folk. Opening was Hamilton act, Dan Edmonds. Edmonds and his crew kicked things off with music…
-
New record, new hopes, same Cancer Bats. On the weekend that hometown-heroes, Cancer Bats, came to town to celebrate the 10th anniversary of their sophomore album, Hail Destroyer, they surprised fans by releasing a brand new record, The Spark That Moves. With a stretch of shows on the horizon, and plenty of rehearsal time to…
-
Playing tunes and telling tales: that was UK songwriter George Ezra’s modus operandi this past Friday night at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto, as he went into full troubadour mode for the duration of the night. Ezra regaled the crowd with a story for every song, mostly about his travels through Europe and how…
-
Bruce Springsteen has become somewhat of a patron saint for many modern acts, including The Hold Steady, The Gaslight Anthem, and The Killers. Jack Antonoff’s Bleachers set themselves apart by drawing not from the heartland, working-class anthem Boss, but the candy-coated, new-wave Boss. Songs like “Rollercoaster”, “Shadow”, and “You’re Still a Mystery” are full of…
-
Two Canadian alt-rock institutions rocked Massey Hall this past week when Matthew Good and Our Lady Peace played the similarly legendary venue as part of their cross-country tour. It was a night full of surprises that had Massey Hall reaching sky-high decibel levels. Opening were 2017 CASBY winners Ascot Royals, who kicked things off loud with their brand of heavy rock…
-
In 2018, nostalgia is big business. With the return of bands from our early music-listening days, it is hard to not get caught up in the hype. No truer a statement could be made about Dashboard Confessional. The soundtrack to our summers, the background music in our favourite TV shows, or even listening on our…
-
To say that up-and-coming Australian singer-songwriter Amy Shark wears her heart on her sleeve would be an understatement. The rising star lays bare every last feeling she’s ever felt on stage; it’s this unadulterated earnestness that’s made her so popular. There are few artists right now who aren’t afraid of dredging up the nitty gritty details of past ordeals for material, but…
-
It’s always a wild time when those Saskatoon boys roll into town, and Friday night’s show by The Sheepdogs was no different. In celebration of their Changing Colours release, The Sheepdogs brought a memorable performance to Massey Hall, along with some help from their friends, and local favourites, Sam Coffey & The Iron Lungs. Kicking…
-
It might not be the frigid wasteland we were trying to survive in just a few weeks ago, but it is still fairly chilly outside right now. That’s why (almost) hometown punks Silverstein and a few of their friends put on the Stay Warm Festival at the Danforth Music Hall this past Thursday night, heating…
-
It would be impossible to talk too much about COIN’s show at the Mod Club on February 16th. It was nothing short of an incredible performance, and the energy that they brought to that stage made everybody want to move. Fresh off of the release of their third album, 2018’s Growing Pains, they were ready…
-
The legendary rock star/outspoken critic of…everything, Noel Gallagher, descended upon Toronto’s Sony Centre for the Performing Arts this past Tuesday with his band the High Flying Birds, and delivered everything his fans wanted – in terms of both music and personality. In fact, it would almost be appropriate to review the show as a concert…
-
After a 3-year wait, electro-indie pioneers AWOLNATION have returned with the new album Here Come the Runts, and Toronto was lucky enough to be the very first city on the supporting tour. An absolutely wild show at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on February 10th made for a very appropriate kick-off party, with fellow noisemakers Irontom and Nothing But Thieves. Irontom are an…