March 21st-25th Canadian Music Week @ various locations. Over 900 artists perform at 60 venues across the city! Tickets and more information available online. Check out our picks here.
March 23rd-25th Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour @ Bloor Hot Docs Cinema, 506 Bloor St. W. Highlights from the annual Banff Mountain Film Festival. Three screenings of short films exploring adventure sports, mountain culture, and environment. $20 tickets available online.
WEDNESDAY
10 pm Creep @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. DJ Max Mohenu plays rap, hip-hop, R&B, reggae, dancehall, grime, hyperdub, remixt, and redux.
11 pm Grilled Cheese / Classic @ Crawford, 418 College St. Special late night editions! Upstairs, DJs James Redi, Jon Chetty, and WLFPK play Motown, disco, hip-hop and reggae while Fundament holds it down front and centre with a mic, a George Foreman grill, a stack of Cheesy slices and a fresh loaf. Yes, FREE GRILLED CHEESE ON THE DANCE FLOOR! Downstairs, DJs Cozmic Cat and Lucie Tic + special guests Boots Boogie and Michael Black drop fire sets of classic house, disco, funk, hip-hop, and party anthems (this party kicks off at 12:30 am). 4 AM LAST CALL. Free before 11 pm, $5 after.
THURSDAY
7 pm “Mirage” Opening Exhibition @ Forgetus Collective, 163 Sterling Ave., Unit 29. “Laura-Lynn Petrick’s series ‘Mirage’ tampers with the notions of strange and natural optic effects which occur as a Utopian spectacle, through the medium of film photography. The series explores the beauteous within the landscape of the 21st century.” Until 11 pm.
10 pm (ALT)Night Presents: Thrust @ College Street Bar, 574 College St. (ALT)Night brings their party vibe to College Street! DJ Dislexia turns up some goodies on the decks so you can DANCE DANCE DANCE.
10 pm Homegrown @ Crawford, 718 College St. Upstairs, Toronto’s own Starting from Scratch & Grouch play a special 4 turntable set! Downstairs, DJs Frezza Chin and Shai hold it down with the best in reggae, rap, and RnB followed by DJ Law’s famous video music dance party. $8 before midnight, more after.
10 pm Myth Paradise Music @ Unit, 1198 Queen St. W. Old and new soul, disco, and house music.
11 pm 92 BPM Presents: Dabrye @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. 92 BPM brings an evening of forward-thinking music to the Underground as part of CMW. With Ghostly International legend Dabrye spinning alongside local talents Pho, Kevin McPhee, and Mymanhenri. 4 AM LAST CALL. $10.
FRIDAY
2 pm Don’t Touch That Dial Presents: A Free CMW Daytime Show @ The Garrison, 1197 Dundas St. W. Performances by Spencer MacEachern and the Fabulous Yawn (2 pm), The Oh Wells (3 pm), Paint (4 pm), and Teeth & Tongue (5 pm). Raffle with prize packs from Eyesore Cinema, Hot N Dog, Marie Rupolo (graphic design), Rachel Lee Tentcher (photographer), tickets for upcoming shows and more!
6 pm “Our City” Opening Reception @ 44 Wide Gallery, 171 East Liberty St., Unit 122. “The Toronto Liberty Project proudly presents ‘Our City’, a celebration of Toronto in the everyday. Rediscover the city we often take for granted in our day-to-day lives and appreciate the beauty of the many fleeting moments that pass us by.” Until 10 pm.
10 pm That Shit Cray @ Crawford (upstairs), 718 College St. DJs Mensa and Amy Traphouse play current south bangers, classic regional hits from all over and anthems about material wealth and possession, all at 75 BPM. It’s also Mensa’s b-day, so wish him well. 4 AM LAST CALL. $8 before midnight, more after.
10 pm Spun @ Hotel Ocho, 195 Spadina Ave. Music by DJs James Redi and Charlie Murphy + artwork by Justin Babin, Zaque C, Jessica Crupi, and Jeff Blackburn.
10 pm Me Gusta Augusta @ Augusta House, 152-A Augusta Ave. House, techno, deep, and minimal with resident DJs Pavel, Dirty Blonde, and Twin Soul + guest DJ Boots Boogie. Free before 11 pm, $5 after.
10:30 pm Fuck U Fridays @ Buddies In Bad Times Theatre, 12 Alexander St. In celebration of CMW, guest DJ Care Failure from Toronto’s own Die Mannequin stops by to play Motown favs, old soul, dance, rock, and guilty pleasures. DJ Triple-X throws down some retro tunes from the 60’s. 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s along with some 21st century grooves tossed into the mix. Erotic cabaret at midnight featuring burlesque babe Dolly Berlin, and live musical performance by Man Chyna. Your hostess for the evening is the dazzling, dirty-mouth vixen Lexi Tronic. $5.
11 pm Edumacation @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. Come get learned… proper, real proper! With special guest DJ Ed Lover _ resident DJ Fase teaching you the values of hip-hop, funk, soul, old school, house, reggae, and club anthems. $10.
SATURDAY
12 pm Swap – Don’t Shop! Clothing Swap Party @ Beaver Hall Gallery, 29 McCaul St. Show up with all of your out-of-season and unwanted clothing (in good condition), and leave with a fabulous new haul! On-site alterations available + yummy refreshments. $8 admission (with at least 5 swap items) or an extra $5 with no items. All leftover clothing will be donated to local charities.
8:30 pm Tight ‘N’ Bright & Ready to Fight @ El Mocambo, 464 Spadina Ave. Presented by the GTA Roller Girls, with all bar proceeds going to Serving Chairity to help out the homeless. Two rooms of DJs, dancing, raffles, crazy lights, free giveaways, and roller girls! Hip-hop, dubstep, house, electro, and dirty beats. $10 regular admission, or $8 with a canned food item.
10 pm (The Return of) Shake, Rattle & Roll @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. After a short hiatus, the girls are back! A sexy, sweaty dance party with Bangs & Blush playing 60’s pop, soul and rock n’ roll. $5.
10 pm Lick A Shot @ The Red Light, 1185 Dundas St. W. DJs 84.85, Geoff Snack, Andrew Roti, and friends play millennium-era rap, R&B and maybe a few current hits because they tend to pander.
10 pm True School Hip Hop @ The Shop under Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. DJs Fathom, Ef Sharp, and Romeo stay true to the school of hip-hop. Pick-A-Piper DJ set upstairs at midnight (Brad Weber from Caribou plays disco, funk, afro-beat, and more). Free before 11 pm, $5 after.
10 pm Action Hero Dance Party @ Fox & Fiddle, 27 Wellesley St. E. Explosions! Muscles! Guns! Muscles! Action heroes! DJ Playea plays 80’s retro, funk, and pop. Dress like your favourite Action Movie Star and win awesome prizes. $5, with all proceeds going to Oxfam Canada.
10 pm Happy Endings 1 Year Anniversary @ Forestview Chinese Restaurant, 466 Dundas St. W. With DJs Machinedrum, Monolithium, and Kevin McPhee. $3 beers before midnight and $5 drinks all night long, $5 dim sum platters and free birthday lobsters. 4 AM LAST CALL. $10 advanced tickets at Rotate This, Soundscapes, Play De Record and online. For $10 reduced guestlist (subject to capacity), e-mail names to guestlist@themansioninc.com.
10 pm Chronologic @ The Boat, 158 Augusta Ave. A dance party through the ages! Pop and antipop from since the end of history (i.e. music from 1890 to 2012, played in chronological order). $5.
10 pm Dancehall Queens @ Cold Tea, 60 Kensington Ave. DJs Signourney Beaver and Joe Blow play dancehall, hip-hop, and reggae.
10 pm Ice Cold Dranks @ Crawford (upstairs), 718 College St. DJs Ry-Fi and FBomb + special guest DJ Blaster from Montreal play hip-hop, old school, R&B, reggae, and party anthems to make you shake that booty all night long. Drink specials all night! 4 AM LAST CALL. Free before 11 pm, $5 after.
10 pm Electric Dreams @ The Henhouse, 1532 Dundas St. W. DJs Neal Twosixzerozero and Murderess Margot bring you dark dance, new wave, and electro.
10 pm Satisfaction: Going Back to Cali Edition @ College Street Bar, 574 College St. Resident DJ Sanga Genesis and guest Mister Mike provide Satisfaction’s signature eclecticism with a west coast twist. $5 before midnight, $10 after.
10 pm Party for a Purpose 2 @ CineCycle, 401 Richmond St. W. G-Roots presents a classic win-win situation: support an awesome cause while dancing your face off! G-Roots is a Toronto based non-profit that assists self sustainable poverty alleviation projects in Kpikpaluk, Ghana. $10, with all proceeds going towards agricultural sustainable development in Ghana.
10 pm The Hoxton Saturdays @ The Hoxton, 69 Bathurst St. Special CMW Edition! With Resident Team DMT + special guest DJs Stereotronique and CAL. 4 AM LAST CALL. For guest list and bottle service, call Jonathan C (416-520-4753) or Zale T (416-897-7187).
SUNDAY
2 pm WORN Fashion Journal Presents Unbinding Binaries: Clothing & Gender Identity @ The Gladstone Hotel Ballroom, 1214 Queen St. W. A panel discussion explores the present realities and the future possibilities of getting dressed without boundaries. Panelists include Alyssa Asomani (editor-in-chief and co-founder of The Stud Magazine), Erika Neilly (a young Canadian artist currently finishing a BFA at Ryerson University in Toronto), Lucas Silveira (front man, songwriter and founding member of Canadian rock band The Cliks), Rae Spoon (a country and indie singer-songwriter), and more TBA. Free! Until 5 pm.
8 pm Chicka Boom @ Free Times Cafe, 320 College St. An all-female comedy show! Improv by Alicia Douglas and Lara Johnson, clown by Sandra Battaglini, stand-up by Amber Harper-Young, comedy music by Leah Pollock, fan dancing by Nancy Hitzig, and headliner Sara Hennessey. PWYC.
9:30 pm Crosswires #5 @ The Garrison, 1197 Dundas St. W. A new Sunday night series brought to you by Doc Pickles, co-founder and emcee of Wavelength. Featuring performances by Trematron and Queen Licorice, General Chaos Visuals, and DJ selector Acacia Christensen. Sponsored by Steam Whistle. PWYC.
10 pm Free Carnival / Eff Emm Ell @ Crawford, 718 College St. Free Carnival upstairs featuring slushies and popcorn, balloon animals, card tricks, stunts, games, and more! Downstairs, hear the best in dirty south, booty shaking east coast and gangster rap. Special sizzurp drink specials. 4 AM LAST CALL.
~ Caitlyn Holroyd
Follow Us On Instagram
