November 6th-11th Indie Week @ various locations. Over 200 musical artists take the stage at venues across Toronto as part of Indie Week.
November 9th-11th Syria Film Festival @ Art Gallery of Ontario (Jackman Hall), 317 Dundas St. W. Now in its 4th year, the Syria Film Festival is a three-day event showcasing Syrian and Syria related films. This year’s program includes four features and one short documentary.
November 9th-11th Whole Life Expo @ Metro Toronto Convention Centre, 255 Front St. W. Canada’s largest showcase of natural health and green living, hosting over 200 exhibitors and 80+ speakers from across North America and beyond.
November 10th-11th Parkdale Flea @ Northern Contemporary Gallery, 1266 Queen St. W. A flea market featuring local vendors and artisans selling handmade, vintage, and antique items. Four-legged friends welcome! Open 11-6 pm both days.
WEDNESDAY
7 pm Music Bingo @ The Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen St. W. A FREE weekly event combining the love of music with the traditional bingo format. Each player receives a Music Bingo card which consists of an assortment of songs. Instead of calling out numbers, they play the music! Singing along encouraged.
8 pm Drake Trivia @ The Drake Hotel, 1150 Queen St. W. Teams of four or less put their random knowledge to the test as hosts Megan Griffith-Greene and Jeromy Lloyd fire off questions ranging from sporting records and celebrity scandals to geographic discoveries and culinary lingo. $2 to participate. Email host@thedrakehotel.ca or show up early to reserve a spot.
THURSDAY
7:30 pm Question Blocks Trivia @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. A night of themes, laughs, music, and reasonable drink specials! Come for the rivalries and stay for the fabulous prizes. Teams of 5 preferred, but all are welcome.
8 pm The Throwback @ The Drake Lounge, 1150 Queen St. W. DJ Gramera and Dennis P of SoulSkank take over the Drake Hotel lounge and fill the air with smooth beats and silky saxophone sounds. End the night in a fun groove as they take you through classic music eras in true throwback Thursday fashion.
9 pm Boosie Fade Film Club Presents: JUICE on 35mm @ TIFF Bell Lightbox, 350 King St. W. 26 years after its premiere, Boosie Fade Film Club presents Ernest Dickerson’s 1992 film, JUICE, on 35mm. $14 tickets available online.
10 pm Eighties @ Swan Dive, 1631 Dundas St. W. DJ Ol’ Nerdy Bastard plays a collection of songs exclusively from the 1980s, including some of your very favourites and stubbornly obscure overlooked gems!
10 pm Sister Mister @ The Piston, 937 Bloor St. W. A queer dance party bringing some much-needed heat, body, and swish to the West End. Every Thursday, they welcome a new DJ (female, male, and beyond the binary) to get you dancing and always blurring gender lines in Toronto’s nightlife universe.
FRIDAY
7 pm Friday Night Live: Fact or Fake? @ Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queen’s Park. Start your Friday nights on the dance floor with top DJs and live artists, or explore the ROM’S galleries with tasty food and drinks. $17 (plus tax) tickets available online; limited amount available at the door.
8 pm Astronomy On Tap @ The Great Hall, 1087 Queen St. W. Quench your thirst for astronomy! A fun evening of pints, astronomy news, mind-expanding talks, games, and prizes. Following the talks, you’ll have all your cosmic questions answered by astronomers from the Dunlap Institute and University of Toronto. Doors at 7 pm.
10 pm Afro Haus @ Revival, 783 College St. Express, release, and GET DOWN to the grooviest, freshest dance music coming out of Sub-Saharan Africa and her diaspora. DJ Sarah Jane Riegler and guest DJ Damiger will be serving up a delicious elixir of Afro House, GQOM, Afrobeats, Soca, Kuduro, Sgubhu, Kwaito, and dancehall. $5 before 11 pm, $10 after.
10 pm Crash Bang Pow @ Handlebar, 159 Augusta Ave. DJ Starboy plays classic cuts and rarities from the ’60s and ’70s.
10 pm Freaky Friday @ The Boat, 158 Augusta Ave. Get freaky with DJs B BAD and M4RS! Funk, disco, hip-hop, dancehall, reggae, trap, throwbacks, top 40, mashups, RnB, Motown, and more. Free before 11 pm.
10 pm Fuck It @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. Guilty pleasures dance party with Bangs & Blush! Drake, Hanson, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears, Missy Elliott, Vengaboys, Bieber, Will Smith, Spice Girls, Eminem, Jay-Z, Disney music, and more. $5 with student ID, $10 without.
10 pm Gold Chain @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. DJs Aoki and Snack will have you dancing all night long to the best hip-hop of today and yesterday. You don’t wanna miss this display of supreme DJing – it’s the gold standard.
10 pm Very Special @ The Shop under Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. DJs Big Jacks and Jenno play rap, R&B, and dancehall (now and ’00s classics).
10 pm My Bad @ Stones Place, 1255 Queen St. W. ’80s and ’90s guilty pleasures dance party with DJ Blush! $5.
10 pm DJ Crunch Bandicut @ Swan Dive, 1631 Dundas St. W. Rock ‘n’ roll, weirdness, cheap drinks, and good times with DJ Crunch Bandicut.
10 pm Sunset Culture Club @ Farside, 600 Gerrard St. E. All vinyl rare party jams and audio explorations with DJ Morgan Yew.
10 pm Beam Me Up Disco @ The Piston, 937 Bloor St. W. A disco jam that celebrates the underrated and the obscure of funk, jazz, soul, boogie, rare groove, reggae, gospel, proto-house! It’s an evening of tuneful transcendence, supplied by residents Patchouli Brothers and Cyclist. $10.
11 pm Sucio @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. The dirtiest reggaeton, dancehall, trap, and world rhythms are showcased by DJ Grump and rotating guests with Blxck Ixn on the mic keeping you moving. $10.
SATURDAY
10 pm Bar Phlie @ Farside, 600 Gerrard St. E. Rapper/producer/DJ More Or Les plays tunes with a hip-hop slant to move you, whether it’s just a head-nod or a full-on shake-a-thon. Expect to hear stuff like A Tribe Called Quest, Dibia$e, J Dilla, Bonobo, TLC, Art of Noise, Roisin Murphy, The Internet, MF DOOM, Bob James, Strange U, and CZARFACE.
10 pm What A Girl Wants: Britney & Christina Dance Party @ The Mod Club, 722 College St. All the Britney and Christina jams you can handle, plus a few other pop bangers you know and love. $5 advance tickets available online.
10 pm Knockout @ Disgraceland, 965 Bloor St. W. A night of strictly 1960s reggae and northern soul on original 45s.
10 pm Saturday Night Jukebox Dance Party @ Stones Place, 1255 Queen St. W. Sweat it out to the sweet sounds of the golden age of rock ‘n’ roll and soul music! DJ Blush plays rock, soul, funk, pop, and disco from the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s.
10 pm Queens of the World @ Super Wonder Gallery, 584 College St. A drag celebration of culture! Toronto’s exciting diversity will be represented by drag queens honouring their respective backgrounds, including Gay Jesus, Naomi Leone, MangHoe Lassi, and Molly Kewl. DJ Uglee spinning into the night. $10.
10 pm A Drag Tribute to Toys @ The Beaver, 1192 Queen St. W. Each month, The Beaver welcomes Fisher Price to pull together a menagerie of ghastly creatures to entertain you and pay tribute to whatever themed nonsense Fisher pulls from her highly caffeinated brain. This edition features Tash Riot, Sapphire Titha Reign, and The FranDiscos blasting the best from your Hit Clips. $5 before midnight, $10 after.
10 pm Synthesexer @ The Piston, 937 Bloor St. W. Toronto’s synthesexiest sexy synthy alternative electro dance party! Expect to hear stuff like: Tiga, Annie, Chromeo, M.I.A., Holy Ghost!, Robyn, Daft Punk, Little Dragon, Pet Shop Boys, and more. $5 before 11 pm, 10 after.
10 pm One Leg Up @ Swan Dive, 1631 Dundas St. W. All vinyl, all night dance madness with DJ Precious Brett! Pop, rock, and soul (classic and rarities) from any decade.
10 pm Worst Behavior @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. This Saturday, be on your worst behavior. Bangs & Blush play past and present bangers all night long from Drake, The Weeknd, Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Notorious B.I.G., Nelly, TLC, Missy Elliott, and more! $5 with student ID, $10 without.
10 pm Funk Off @ The Boat, 158 Augusta Ave. Chicago’s finest, Tim and Teddy, spinning the best and boldest funk across the decades. $5.
10 pm Moon Hop @ Lucky Shrike, 850 Dundas St. W. Move and groove to the finest ska, reggae, and rocksteady!
10 pm Tired Of Being Alone: Al Green DJ Event + Motown Night @ Sneaky Dee’s, 431 College St. Dance to Motown hits from the Jackson 5 to The Supremes to Boys 2 Men and Al Green! $5 advance tickets available online.
10 pm Whatever You Like Feat. Sgt Garbage @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. All hits, all night with spicy DJs that’ll really get you moving and shaking. It’s the good stuff – the prom that never was!
10 pm THE BRTHDY PRTY @ The Shop under Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. Who doesn’t love a birthday party?! Music selections by DeMiggs.
11 pm Racks & Bands @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. Jay Jolliffe and guests take you on a rollercoaster ride through the biggest songs in hip-hop and RnB. $10.
SUNDAY
1 pm Islamic Relief Canada’s Charity Souq @ Artscape Wychwood Barns, 601 Christie St. A special Souq in support of refugees! Featuring a diversity of artists, vendors, flavours, and more, the event aims to create a space that celebrates the best of our community and inspires us to live our shared values of social justice, mercy, and custodianship. $7-20 tickets available online, with a portion of proceeds from all sales going towards Islamic Relief’s international refugee projects.
1 pm Love Toronto Pop-Up Market @ 187 Augusta Ave. Pop-up market showcasing all-Toronto merchandise made by Torontonians, including Lovetoronto, @416cess, LOYAL to a TEE, @originalgenes_to, YYZ Preservatory, NA Stock Company, and Ave Mariabell Designs. Until 7 pm.
7 pm Brass Facts Trivia @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. Test your knowledge and win prizes! Hosted by Famous Kirk Hero. Until 10 pm.
10 pm Sinful Sundays Burlesque: Scorpio Season @ Cherry Cola’s, 200 Bathurst St. Cherry Cola’s weekly burlesque event gets extra spicy and dangerous with an all-Scorpio cast: Allysin Chaynes, Daisy Badcock, Dolly Berlin, El Toro, Sadie Mae Glutz, Betty la Bourbon, and host Dainty Smith. Free entry; tipping encouraged.
10 pm Love Shack @ Swan Dive, 1631 Dundas St. W. DJ DangerCat spinning all your favourite rock and roll, indie, garage, surf, and new wave hits all night.
~ For event submissions, email Caitlyn Holroyd at caitlyn_holroyd@hotmail.com