SATURDAY, JULY 16TH

MUSIC | THE HIGH DIALS (Montreal), MEDALLIONS, THE CAUTIONEERS
Get ready to turn on and tune in - The High dials are in town! This Montreal band, that has been given the thumbs up by notable celebs including Andrew Loog Oldham, plays their own special brand of psychedelic pop-rock. Also in the house are The Cautioneers: an energetic band with a strong front line of horns, and Medallions, a rockin' outfit formed from the ashes of several groups that is quickly gaining momentum and popularity with the local hipsters.
Silver Dollar Room (486 Spadina Avenue) 10PM $6

FESTIVAL | Night It Up!
The 10th annual Night It Up! Asian festival is worth the drive to Markham (that is, if don't live there already). Getting underway last night, the festival will continue today and tonight with street-eats, outdoor movies, martial arts displays, and live music (amongst other things). Former organizers of the "Toronto Night Market," the folks at Power Unit Youth Organization have previously raised over $65,000 for grass root non-profits across Toronto, so it's for a good cause too.
Markham Civics Centre, 12pm to 12am

CULTURE | 39th Annual Festival of India
Since 1972, Toronto has enjoyed an annual Summertime celebration of Indian culture. This weekend, the tradition continues, beginning with a parade down Yonge Street from Bloor down to Queen's Quay. The heart of the festival takes place on Centre Island, which will include a bazaar, a massive pavillion, musical entertainment, dance performances, seminars, philosophical and spiritual discussions and lectures, and a vegetarian feast - free to all who attend.
Centre Island 12PM FREE

CULTURE | Spontaneous Combustion Anniversary Party!
Spontaneous Combustion Magazine celebrates its first anniversary at the Tranzac tonight. This DIY publication is a strong supporter of experimental, jazz, and improvised music, and exists in both online and print versions, which are free and distributed throughout TO. It's hard to overestimate the importance of publications like this, which serve as a vital part of a rather sparse infrastructure to a musical scene and culture that exists largely 'underground.' All the more reason to celebrate its existence for a year, right? Absolutely! Tonight there will be musical performances from Colin Fisher, Pterodactyl, Ulama, and special guests. Your PWYC contribution is a donation to keep the magazine going strong.
The Tranzac (292 Brunswick Avenue) 8:30PM PWYC

MUSIC | John Butler Trio w/ Mama Kin
John Butler and his partner Mama Kin (aka Danielle Caruana) will bring a musical shindig to The Sound Academy tonight. Butler is a highly successful Australian singer/songwriter performing in a funky, rootsy style that has found enthused supporters in the world-fusion and jamband circles. He has been referred to as the "million dollar hippie" due to the dreadlocks he sported for a number of years, and the high reported earnings for his live shows several years ago. Tonight you can find out why he makes the big bucks, and join the party!
Sound Academy (11 Polson Street) 7:30PM $30

OTHER EVENTS ON OUR SATURDAY RADAR

• Mac Miller w/ TFHOUSE at the Kool Haus
• Modernboys Moderngirls/Teenage Kicks/Freedom or Death/Mad Ones
• Fetish Masquerade - 14 Year Anniversary - Corset Theme
• Photography Exhibit - Toronto's Carnival: Festival Photographs from 1967 to Today

SUNDAY, JULY 17TH

MUSIC | Gomez and Zeus @ Phoenix
English indie-rock icons Gomez hits the Phoenix tonight. These guys have had their share of ups and downs since being catapulted into the UK limelight when their first album won the 1998 Mercury Music Prize. They then found themselves on the biggest billls and festival stages, and then their label, a sub-label of Virgin folded! They have risen above these minor setbacks over the years and have a great body of work behind them, including great collabs with producers Gil Norton and Tchad Blake, among others. Tonight's opener, Zeus, is a Toronto band that served as a backing band for Jason Collett for a while. The core of the band is based around songwriters Carlin Nicholson and Mike O'Brien, and Zeus came into being initially as a stylistically versitile studio project helmed by these two. Since then the band has come into its own in a big way, but certainly acknowlege the road skills and stage savvy they acquired while working behind Collett. This will be a great night of music from two awesome bands!
Phoenix Concert Theatre (410 Sherbourne Street) 7PM $26

CULTURE | Yoga Meltdown
Happening as part of the 39th Annual Festival of India happening this weekend, Yoga Meltdown will take place today on Centre Island. This is essentially a sub-festival, celebrating Yoga and its associated culture, which, as one would expect, fits in perfectly with the larger Indian festival. There will be large group Yoga classes throughout the day, meditation classes and seminars, and also vegan cooking demonstrations. This free event is a great way to dig deeper into yoga and its lifestyle, or to get a first taste if you're a beginner and want to see if it's for you.
Centre Island 12PM FREE

MUSIC | Beaches Jazz Festival
This year's Beaches International Jazz Festival began on Friday, and runs until the 24th of this month, with both weekends being the largest-scale portions of the event. This weekend, Woodbine Park is the place to be, with three different stages delivering sweet sounds. The Main Stage has a nice lineup, including Terry Gillespie and Andy Kim this afternoon, and the New Generation features some great emerging artists including the seriously funky and energetic Emerson Street Rhythm Band, and Larra Skye. There is also a Youth Stage with performances by younger ensembles and groups.
Woodbine Park (Coxwell Avenue & Lakeshore Blvd. East) 12PM FREE

ART | Sunday Scene with Bojana Videkanic
The Power Plant's "Sunday Scene" is a free event that goes down every Sunday at the gallery. Each week a different guest from the art world is brought in to share their take on the gallery's goings-on, and regarding art and culture in general. Today's speaker is Bojana Videkanic, a Sarajevo-born curator, artist, and professor at the University of Waterloo. Her area of specialization is Eastern European art, so it will be very interesting to hear what she has to say regarding the exhibition currently running at the gallery: "Rearview Mirror: New Art from Central and Eastern Europe".
The Power Plant Gallery (231 Queen's Quay West) 2PM FREE

OTHER EVENTS ON OUR SUNDAY RADAR

• Humble The Poet Live
• Ron Sparks' Celebrity Roast: Dan Redican
• "The Passion of Kathleen Munn" tour with David Urban and Georgiana Uhlyarik

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events calendar or contact us directly.

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Photo by PLTam in the blogTO Flickr pool