MUSIC | Spoek Mathambo at The Drake
Spoek Mathambo hits The Drake tonight! This South African rapper, now based in Sweden, is currently touring his album Father Creeper, recently released on US label Sub Pop. He has been called an "Afro futurist," and this might be alluding to the modern sounds that make up the sonic landscape of his tracks, which act as a compelling counterpoint to the groove-oriented underpinnings that are always holding things down. There is also some 'darker' influence from post-punk and early alternative acts like Sonic Youth in some of his recent tracks. Tonight, Mathambo will be joined on the bill by Pegasus Warning.
The Drake Hotel (1150 Queen Street West) 8PM $15

FUNDRAISER | Through the Gates Fundraiser
A special event happens tonight to raise funds for a new Canadian musical, Through the Gates. Daniel Cummings and Scott Christian's play is slated to appear at the Summerworks: Musical Works in Concert series in August. The play is essentially an adaptation of a Buddhist 'departure' tale, with the added dimension of music. There will be prizes to be won at tonight's event,= and plenty of music, provided by the likes of Alex Samaras, Laura Jean Elligsen, Kelly Holiff, Jonathan Tan, Evan Alexander Smith, Tracy Michailidis, Adam Brazier, Jeff Madden, and others.
Dominion on Queen (500 Queen Street East) 8PM $20

BOOKS & LIT | The Limb-O, a night of poetry at Trane
Tonight's spoken word event at The Trane Studio is intended to raise funds and awareness about the AvantGarden reading series. AvantGarden is a TO performance series which features all forms of art related to sound, text, and words, and engages the audience in an examination of the shortcomings and challenges of 'language' in general. Tonight's special onstage contributors to the cause include: Gregory Betts, Nilan Perera, Jenny Sampirisi, Liz Howard, and Susan Holbrook.
Trane Studio (964 Bathurst Street) 7PM pwyc ($10 - $20 suggested)

CLOTHING | Give your old threads anew home!
Although The Bovine might not be the first place you'd think of for a clothing swap and sale, it's a venue that could make such an event a bit more of a party, especially with their excellent bar staff contributing their talents. Tonight, exactly this sort of shindig goes down, with both new and 'previously enjoyed' clothing and accessories up for grabs for purchase or trade. The house band will be Thinly Veiled Double Entendres.
Bovine Sex Club (542 Queen Street West) 9PM

OTHER EVENTS ON OUR RADAR

Celebration of Sybil
DENT MAY w/ IDIOT GLEE

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Photo by jtinphotos in the blogTO Flickr pool