Toronto events on Saturday, October 22

DEAD PEOPLE | Toronto Zombie Walk
If you see a group of gory-faced zombies lumbering toward you today, don't panic! With the 9th annual Toronto Zombie Walk taking place this afternoon, there will be thousands of the living dead wandering the city. The increasingly popular event gets underway at Trinity Bellwoods Park at noon, and hits Toronto streets at 3:00 p.m. Word is there's even going to be a formal zombie wedding ceremony this year. I wonder what would make for an appropriate bridal gift? Brains?
Trinity Bellwoods Park — Festivities start at 12pm; walk departs at 3pm, FREE

CULTURE | AvroFEST!
Billed as a "celebration of music, community, and Jack Layton", this is a party that will be enjoyed by all who attend, regardless of your political leanings. No festival is complete without music, and AvroFest has this covered: Still Life Still, Shit La Merde, and Gay And The Break Down will deliver a memorable soundtrack, while some otherworldly entertainment will be provided by Zero Gravity Circus, Damn Aykroyd, and Alex Mcleod. There will also be visual art to enjoy, a giant moustache, and more surprises!
The Opera House (735 Queen Street East) 8PM $15

CLUBS | Midnight Mix at Revival
At Revival tonight, this special Midnight Mix event has a built-in philosophy: you are encouraged to "Remix your style, mash-up your music, [and] blend your cultures". You know that's what the DJs will be doing, too! In the house tonight, Skratch Bastid, P-Plus, and J-Class will be working things their way with Hip-Hop, R&B, and Reggae sounds - the best blending action won't be coming from the bar! There's also going to be a 'second space' for a change of pace, change of scenery, or both: Tricky Moreira will be spinning House treats in the Stone Lounge. Big Philly hosts this bad boy! Enjoy the mix!
Revival Bar (783 College Street) 10PM $10 before 11PM

BOOKS & LIT | The Wrecking Ball: Autumn Edition
This event will mix up your media like no other! Jessica Westhead and Jamie Popowich will be reading tonight. Both are short fiction writers with "collections" currently going strong: Westhead's "And Also Sharks" is out with Cormorant Books, and Popowich, who has also produced a documentary, has his much-anticipated short fiction collection "Metraville" launching later this month with Insomniac Press. There will be films projected during the performances as well, and two heavy metal-ish bands: Kosmograd and Black Faxes will be performing.
The Trash Palace (89B Niagara Street) 8PM $6

MUSIC | The Parlotones Live At the Mod Club
The Paroltones are a South African band, who have shared the stage with many heavies. They recently opened for Coldplay, hosting the UK band's tour through South Africa, and have shared the stage with Alicia Keys, The Black Eyed Peas, and others. These guys are huge in South Africa, and the word is stating to spread far beyond those borders. They have received many awards for both their albums and videos, and have ad their music used in commercials, and films. Being the entrepreneurs that they are, they have taken a page from many a modern music celebs' book, and started their own 'brand' for a unique line of merch, but this time it's not clothing - they have their own line of wines! Gotta love the music business - raise a glass to them tonight!
The Mod Club (722 College Street) 6:30PM $15

• Brendan Canning DJs at The Piston


• Scientists of Sound w/ Chameleon Project
• The Last C'mon Show
• Slids with Most People, Young Doctors In Love & The Artful Vandelays
• Not Dead Yet Punk Record Swap

Sunday, October 23

MUSIC | Amon Tobin 'ISAM' Live
The legendary Amon Tobin hits town tonight, with a new set that has been described as a major departure for this artist, now adding and exploring the added dimension of visuals to complete the picture, so to speak. His latest album, "Isam" is the thrust of his visit tonight. Album 'concept' is a big part of this thing it would seem, complete with narravtive threads that bind, and the live show for this new work has been getting kudos from the establishment, and folks with serious cred like Deadmau5 and Calvin Harris. This could be the place where the edge is getting cut tonight, if that's your thing.
The Opera House (735 Queen Street East) $35 9PM

ONGOING | Toronto After Dark
The Toronto After Dark film festival began its "8 nights of horror, sci-fi, action, and cult movies" on Thursday, and is going strong throughout the weekend. You can click here for the full schedule and deets. Today, things get "dark" quite early! "Some Guy Who Kills People" starts things off at 1:30PM this aft, and this John Landis-produced thriller is getting plenty of buzz! Also showing today: William Eubank's "Love," "The Theatre Bizarre" - a scary anthology, and "Midnight Son". All these films are introduced by a short film to get your adrenal glands fired up.... Very very scary!
The Toronto Underground Cinema (186 Spadina Ave) 1:30PM

BOOKS & LIT | Canzine Festival of Zines and Underground Culture
Canzine Toronto happens this aft! This is the place to check the largest gathering of Canadian indie 'zine publishers, small presses, and other related cultural output. This event runs until 7pm, and there's plenty to check out! There will be a fast paced Punch Book Pitch panel, where participants must sell a panel of judges on their book in two minutes! Then the judges get only one minute to respond to each submission - could be hilarious! New this year to Canzine is a food fair - so coming hungry is a good thing. There will also be plenty of other workshops, demos, panels, films, and more.
Bathurst Centre (918 Bathurst Street) 1PM $5 (includes a copy of Broken Pencil)

ONGOING | X AVANT Festival
The Music Gallery's X Avant festival has been going strong since last weekend, and ends tonight. This has been an adventurous and eclectic musical affair, showcasing artists who make music with an experimental edge. Tonight, Contact Contemporary Music will perform New York-based composer Michael Gordon's 60 minute epic, "Trance". This ensemble also regularly programs concerts, and is active in the underground and experimental music communities, fostering collaboration between different media with a socially conscious edge. Tonight's headliner, The Nihilist Spasm Band, is a group first formed in 1965 in London, Ontario, claiming to have founded the "noise" genre. With a claim like that, they likely have something substantial to bring to the table tonight, so get ready!
The Music Gallery (197 John Street) 7PM $30 / $15 members

• Carole Pope Live at the Flying Beaver
• The Altobeelays, Large LIVE n' Direct, Yuka and Maccie
• Get It Together

Photo by Zun Lee in the blogTO Flickr pool