Music
Alan Cross joins Indie 88.1 as station readies to air
Last autumn it was announced that Toronto would finally have its own version of WKRP in Cincinnati in the form of Indie 88.1 with a mandate to "to give Canadian Indie musicians and their hundreds of thousands of fans their own place." As one of the hundreds of thousands I was initially very excited, then I forgot about it completely in like two days...Until it was announced that Alan "The Cross Bearer for Canadian Music Journalism" Cross had been added to the Indie 88.1 team in the capacity of "in house music counseller," which hopefully means he'll be the one filling the Johnny Fever role.
Music
New EP highlights Toronto's techno & house scene
A couple months back the Dovercourt EP dropped amidst an exciting time in Toronto for electronic music. All of the Toronto-based DJs on this compilation played in their home city within a month, sometimes back to back, as did the 3024 label boss himself, early-dubstep-but-now-more-techno Dutch vet Martyn. Music
Vampire Weekend show no signs of slowing down
"This is a great centre," Vampire Weekend frontman Ezra Koenig mused mid-set to a packed house Thurday night at the Sony Centre, where the band energetically zipped through a well-constructed set that culled material from their three album-deep catalog. Flanked by decapitated neo-classical columns and a mystical mirror that flashed with cheeky images of Beethoven and gaudy chandeliers in front of a vibrant floral backdrop, the crowd of urbane youths, bros, mums and kids testified accordingly, dancing in the aisles, singing and generally cutting loose to the irresistibly catchy vibes the Vampires were throwing down. Music
TV, film, music combine for launch of Toronto art party
TV Party was born when filmmaker Doug Nayler saw a gap between Toronto's many niche art scenes. Inspired by the recent Long Winter music and art series, he came up with a simple idea to bring the city's artists together: short collaborations between musicians and film makers based on the dead technology of clunky TVs sets and pre-internet television broadcasts. Music
This Week in Music: NXNE lineup additions, The Shins and Fall Out Boy at the Sound Academy
This Week in Music rounds up the latest news, releases and concerts coming to Toronto. Music
Killers' drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr. steals the show
Drummer Ronnie Vannucci Jr., backed up by his band The Killers, was on fire last Wednesday night. Rock's most exciting drummer was in full form with his trademark enthusiasm and vigour proving that arena rock can still be viable and entertaining.With a big sly smile and hearty wave Vannucci Jr. took the stage with his fellow "Killers" immediately launching into the band's breakout hit "Mr. Brightside" with house lights on. This, no doubt, was a statement, mostly likely crafted by Vannucci Jr. himself, that The Killers needn't employ theatricality to entertain the cordial audience filling the ACC.


