NOW Magazine // Music // The future sound of Toronto
January 29, 2009
The future sound of TorontoDone with dancing to other DJs’ beats, a new wave of local producers are about to crash the partyToronto is finally poised to make the transition from being a great town to party in to being the town that provides the soundtrack for the rest of the world to party to.
DJs all over the planet have noticed there’s something going on here, and it’s high time we recognized this ourselves.
So writing a cover story about a local up-and-coming dance producer, someone on the verge of breaking on an international level, was a no-brainer. Except when the list of candidates was tossed around, it was obvious that picking only one wouldn’t do the scene justice. There’s just too much talent here.
Toronto has had a number of club music success stories. Nick Holder, Hatiras, Deadmau5, MSTRKRFT and Moonstarr all come quickly to mind, and that’s not even touching on all the minimal techno and drum ’n’ bass artists who’ve put out quality records.
But there’s never been such an overwhelming volume of beats coming out of this town before. Still, in many ways, it’s surprising that it took this long for us to get here.
We’ve long had an exceptionally strong club scene, but for whatever reason we’ve always partied to the sounds coming out of other cities rather than trying to forge our own identity.
In the 80s, the Twilight Zone was our respected equivalent of legendary clubs like Chicago’s Warehouse and NYC’s Paradise Garage, and our rave scene in the 90s was one of the biggest in the world. Industry Nightclub was cited by many international DJs as one of their favourite places to play. More recently, the Guvernment and Circa have made a big impression on the global mega-club scene.
On the underground level, you can find a Toronto exemplar for pretty much any niche genre. If you want deep soulful house, promoters like Garage 416 still bring out big crowds after more than a decade; if you want scrappy digital hardcore, you’ve got parties like Embryon. And it’s long been true that lots of international DJs play for bigger crowds here than in their own hometowns.
Despite having so many places to dance, Toronto has never been associated with a particular sound, and likely never will be, thanks to our famously ambiguous, amorphous identity. In the past, that might have held us back, but now that dance music sub-genres are less segregated, there’s finally an opportunity for our crazy-quilt approach to get the attention it deserves.
So we settled not on one artist for our cover story, but 10. The acts we’re spotlighting all have their own sound and influences but aren’t tied closely to any previous established scene. They do, however, often cross paths, and you’ll see many of the same faces in the crowd at each of their gigs, even if Loetech’s throbbing take on dubstep is miles away from Mansion’s upbeat stadium house, and Syntonics’ updated booty bass has little in common with TMDP’s synth disco.
This cross-pollination of scenes and sounds will lead the way for Toronto and the world. The days of trying to emulate the regional genres of other cities are over – people want to dance to a variety of sounds in the course of an evening, and variety is exactly what Toronto excels at.
On that note, here’s who we predict will come out with the next Toronto dance floor anthems. They’re also a reminder to everybody that there’s more to club music than NYC, Ibiza, Berlin, Paris and London.
To prove the point, we’ve teamed up with Circa to present a party featuring most of our picks, commissioned AD/D’s Mario J to do an exclusive online DJ mix featuring all 10 artists, and you can stream individual tracks online from everyone as well.
http://www.nowtoronto.com/music/story.cfm?content=166995
NOW MAGAZINE PRESENTS THE FUTURE SOUND of TORONTO @ Randomland Circa
January 29, 2009
| Host: | |
| Type: | |
| Network: |
Global
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| Start Time: |
Friday, January 30, 2009 at 10:00pm
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| End Time: |
Saturday, January 31, 2009 at 4:00am
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| Location: |
Circa Toronto
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| Street: |
126 john street
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| City/Town: |
Toronto, ON
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| Phone: |
4169790044
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| Email: |
A mega party at Circa featuring the freshest up-and-coming producers out of Toronto NOW!
artists performing that night includes
Autoerotique
http://www.myspace.com/autoerotique
Syntonics
http://www.myspace.com/syntonics
Mansion
http://www.myspace.com/mansiondj
STA
http://www.myspace.com/stafree
TMDP
http://www.myspace.com/tmdparty
PILOT PRIEST
http://www.myspace.com/pilotpries
LOETECH
http://www.myspace.com/loetech
EGYPTRIXX
http://www.myspace.com/africaforyou
This event has 276 confirmed guests
Rekka & Patrick Wilcox join Spark Of Life Djs Roster
January 27, 2009
Spark Of Life DJs is glad to announce that ‘DPX’ has been added to the roster of artists.
DPX is from Sudbury, Ontario:
Rekka:
Check him out on trackitdown.net
Both Rekka & Patrick Wilcox are also apart of the Don’t Look DJ roster.
Check Don’t Look’s Library Here
Don’t Look Official Website
dontlookproductions.ca
Modele joins Spark Of Life artists!
January 27, 2009
Spark Of Life Promo is stoked to announce that Toronto based electronica band Modele has joined the roster.
Like being pulled into a violent kiss, Modele’s songs will haunt you on the dance floor and beyond. Modele drip glamour, drama and sex; what they are putting forth is more than just audio – its an attitude, it’s a lifestyle.
This 3 piece electro rock outfit has put forth an outstanding array of musical soundscapes. With the seductive vocals and non-resistant drum attack of songs like “Pretending” and “Berlin”, to the cutting guitar and synth lines on tracks like “Girl Like You” and “Chemistry”, this is the perfect making for a band of the future.
Modele’s debut record is NOW available, and with tours to follow, be sure to not to miss this live experience; it will leave you feeling an indescribable hunger for more. Music without substance has no sustainment, so lets all get ready for something to remember.
“In an indie dance scene super saturated with sub par musicians who depend upon nothing more than shallow lyrics mashed into instruments played poorly at a high BPM count, its nice to see a band hidden in the mix that actually warrants a listen. “
Eric McBain, Inside E Online
“If you like bands who have a really strong image, are hugely into fashion and are big into their electronica and synths, then you’ll love Modele.”
Aoife Barry, Sweet Oblivion Blog
“Modele’s upcoming full-length release is shaping up to be one of the most addictive records of the year; have YOU heard Modele yet?”
Shirk Magazine
“Modele is pulsating audio shock therapy, a thrashing heartbeat of beats, synths and electro-delights. Haunting and seductive, strobelights and pounding speakers not required”
Lonely Vagabond
“Modele has amazing style, and I think they are all very talented musicians. I think [they] will show people just how ambitious they are and how much their sound and overall style has matured.”
DJ Lawrence, Celery Magazine July/08
You can listen to their music here
Mansion – New Years Eve – Wrongbar
January 10, 2009
Serato ?
Mansion & Nasty Nav
