Saturday August 21stPARTY | APE SODOM w/ Black Lips' Jared Swiley
King Khan and BBQ's Mark Sultan is moving his weekly vinyl party from Thursday nights at Unloveable to Parts & Labour tonight, for one night only. Why? Because Jared Swiley, the bassist from a little band called Black Lips is guest DJing the night. Side note: Together, Sultan and Swiley also make up 2/6ths of The Almighty Defenders. There's no advanced tickets for this so get there early because with two guys from garage rock royalty DJing, it will no doubt be packed.
Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St W, $5, 10pm

MUSIC | Queen West Music Fest
Trinity Bellwoods Park won't exactly be the usual dog walking, beer drinking, frisbee throwing, Saturday afternoon hangout this weekend. The second annual Queen West Music Festival is setting up shop there this afternoon. The idea is to give musicians from the area the opportunity to be heard outside of small, "in-the-know" venues and possibly find a record deal. Indie acts Chris Caddell and The Wreckage, The Junction, Lazybones, Grand Analog and Stereokid perform, while Nova Scotia (Queen West?) act The Trews headline. Didn't they have a big hit like seven years ago? I guess they're looking to get rediscovered...
Trinity Bellwoods Park, Free, 1pm

SPORTS | Roller Derby 241 Double Header
I bet you don't even know how Roller Derby is played, let alone ever seen one. Seeing Whip It! doesn't count... If you really want to get some experience in it, tonight the Toronto Roller Derby League is putting on a double header, two shows for one! You've got the CN Powers vs. Lake Effect Furies and D-VAS vs. Classy Trashy Rollergirls. You'll know doubt get your $18 worth, with more hits, checks and bruises then you'll know what to do with. Later, make sure to swing over to The Garrison for the after-party plus Pillow Fight League which you'll get into for only $5 with your Derby stub. More girl power then you can handle!
The Hangar @ Downsview Park, 75 Carl Rd, $18, 5pm

SPOKEN WORD | Poetry Slam
It's just a fact that poetry can be a little dull. How often can you listen to half rhymes about a landlord or a million metaphors for a vagina? Well tonight's poetry slam at The Drake promises to be a lot different, a poetry slam for people that aren't really into poetry. Prepare for an evening of entertaining rhymes and spoken word. If you think you have what it takes you can sign up to get your chance at the $75 prize, just make sure to bring your sense of humour - no depressing stories allowed.
Drake Underground, 1150 Queen ST W, $5, 7pm

PARTY | Slayer Party
Remember yesterday when I said psychedelic is a music choice you don't often hear at a dance party? Well I found one a little more out there. How about some death metal. 751 is no stranger to hard music, but tonight they've handed over the reigns to a few DJs who will play nothing but speed, trash, black, hair... any type of metal. Bust out your crusty leather jacket, down way too much cheap 50 and dance (or mosh) to some of the fastest music around. I wonder how many horrible puns about wanting to "slay-her" will be thrown around?
751, 751 Queen St W, $5, 10pm

Sunday August 23rd

COMEDY | Sunday Night Live w/ Graham Chittenden
The thing about Saturday Night Live is that it's on Saturday night, and unless you're still recovering from Friday night, you're never home to see it. That's where Toronto's Sunday Night Live got it right - they host their show on, wait for it, Sunday. Every week The Sketchersons write and perform a new 90 minute long sketch show with a different host and and musical guest. It's identical in concept to Saturday Night Live, from the News portion to the abbreviation SNL. The acts might have a bit of a lower profile - instead of Jon Hamm, this week comedian Graham Chittenden hosts, but it'll still be good.
Comedy Bar, 945 Bloor St W, $8, 9pm

FILM | Empire Screening
It seems crazy to ride a bike without breaks, right? But tons of people ride them - they're called Fixed Gears or Fixies. You've probably seem them darting through traffic, always peddling and refusing to stop. They were originally designed for track cycling but have been adopted by bike messengers and hipsters as a regular means of transportation. For the closing night of the Bicycle Film Festival, Cinecycle will be showing Empire, a film about New York's craziest fixed gear riders and judging from the trailer it looks like a completely different style of biking than most have ever seen.
Cinecycle, 401 Richmond St, PWYC, 8pm

RECORD SWAP | Unlovable Record Swap
As great as buying new vinyl is, nothing beats getting a weathered, vintage album that's impossible to find anymore. Dundas West's newest watering hole, Unlovable, is hosting a their first ever record swap with local vendors Frantic City, Hits & Misses and Play De Record will be setting up shop. Beer will also be served so come back, drink away the hangover you got their the night before and swap some records.
Unlovable, 1415 Dundas West, 11am-7pm

Upcoming/Sponsored Event:

FREE CONCERTS | Lexus Live at the Distillery
From August 27th - 29th, the Distillery District will be home to four free live concerts featuring The Stills (Friday 8-9pm), Lily Frost (Saturday 12-1pm), The Midway State (Saturday 5-6pm) and The Paper Lions (Sunday 3-4pm). Complimentary refreshments will be served and Lexus will be there showcasing two prototype vehicles including the Lexus CT 200h hybrid. For complete details check out this event page.

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

For Toronto movie showtimes, view our Movie Listings section.

Photo: "Danger: Deep Water" by Vic Gedris, member of the blogTO Flickr group.