At a Toronto show on May 7, Paul Simon offered his guitar to a fan, inviting her onstage to sing. [more inside]
posted by futureisunwritten on May 9, 2011 - 88 comments

The Complaints Choir phenomenon, started by the Finnish artists Tellervo Kalleinen and Oliver Kochta-Kalleinen, has spread all over the world since last we paid it any attention, from Birmingham to Helsinki, Hamburg, St. Petersburg, Poikkilaakso, Bodø, Penn State, Canada, Juneau, Gabriola Island, Sointula, Jerusalem, Melbourne, Budapest, Malmö, Chicago, Florence, Copenhagen, Vancouver (2), Philadelphia, Sundbyberg, Milano, Åland, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Rotterdam, Basel, Umeå, Ljubljana, Gdansk, Arizona State University, Washington, DC, Horace Mann School, Durham-Chapel Hill, Auckland, Toronto theatre students, Kortrijk, Cairo (2), St. Pölten, Maribor, Port Coquitlam, Ústí nad Labem, Columbus & Kauhajoki (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8). For more information, including a 9 step guide to forming your own complaints choir, go to the Complaints Choir website. Finally, here's the Singapore Complaints Choir, whose performance was banned by the Singapore government.
posted by Kattullus on Nov 19, 2010 - 40 comments

The sixth and final Scott Pilgrim graphic novel, subtitled 'Finest Hour' is being released tonight. There is a block party in Toronto to celebrate this fact. While waiting for your copy to arrive or the party to start, why don't you... [more inside]
posted by slimepuppy on Jul 19, 2010 - 47 comments

Tim Perlich was the senior music writer for Toronto's NOW Magazine for 20 or so years. The two parted company for unexplained reasons earlier this year. For those who love or hate him (and there are plenty in both camps), he's now blogging about all things music at The Perlich Post.
posted by You Should See the Other Guy on Dec 4, 2009 - 17 comments

Jackie Shane could rock the Sapphire Club. He was part of the Toronto Sound of the sixties, and made his mark not only for his soulful voice, but also for his flamboyent, gender ambiguous appearance (video). His song Any Other Way went to Number Two on the Canadian Billboard chart in 1963, and was his biggest hit. While his discography was short and he has faded into obscurity, he has been recognized by the queer community and music bloggers as a trail-blazing performer. In My Tenement, Comin Down, You Are My Sunshine, Stand Up Strait and Tall, Don't Play That Song.
posted by kimdog on Jul 27, 2009 - 8 comments

Jackie Mittoo. Wayne McGhie and the Sounds Of Joy. Bob and Wisdom. The Mighty Pope. And many others. A free concert back in July and a series of reissues have begun to tell the story of the Toronto reggae, funk and soul scene of the 1950's, '60's and '70's.
posted by The Card Cheat on Dec 29, 2006 - 3 comments

Aperture Enzyme. Documenting the Toronto indie music scene in pictures.
posted by dobbs on Oct 11, 2003 - 7 comments

Dave Bidini, of the Rheostatics, lists fifty songs that remind him of Toronto. In the spirit of this thread, if your city had a soundtrack, what would it be? [via Boing Boing]
posted by arto on Mar 31, 2003 - 26 comments

O Superman I went to the Laurie Anderson show last night in Toronto. I seriously didn't want to and was praying for a cancelled show. I ended up enjoying it fully. Art really can heal. She began the show by dedicating the music to "everyone who died Tuesday, freedom and sanity." Strangely, many of her songs make reference to airplanes and fire. Spookiest moment of the night: during her signature song "O Superman," the lines "Here come the planes. They're American planes, made by Americans." Read the lyrics - the song is loaded with eerie references.
posted by davebush on Sep 14, 2001 - 10 comments