December 21st-23rd Addams Family Christmas Bazaar @ ArtSquare Gallery, 334 Dundas St. W. Shop local odd crafts, fashion, and other accessories at the Addams Family Christmas Bazaar. Food and drinks will also be offered in addition to a Christmas in Halloween theme. Vendor schedule here.
WEDNESDAY
9 pm Parts & Labour is Closing Party @ Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. Come say goodbye to Parts & Labour before it closes its doors for good at the end of this month. Performances by Metz and Teenager. $5 at the door with a non-perishable food item for Parkdale Community Food Bank (no advance tickets).
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.
THURSDAY
7 pm Mint Condition Beer Release Party @ Northern Maverick Brewing Co., 115 Bathurst St. Drink beer for charity! Be one of the first to taste Mint Condition, a new imperial stout with chocolate and mint created by Society of Beer Drinking Ladies and Northern Maverick. $1 from every pint will be donated to the Canadian Women’s Foundation. Complimentary snacks will be served, and don’t miss the SOBDL pop-up swag shop!
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.
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.
10 pm Back On @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. A weekly Thursday night party playing all the brand-new Top 40 tracks you can handle. Casual dress, casual feeling. $5.
10 pm Wipe Out @ Swan Dive, 1631 Dundas St. W. Surf, rock, psych, and soul with DJ Luke Harley.
FRIDAY
10 pm Shadows of Motown @ The Boat, 158 Augusta Ave. DJs Well Said, Slater, and Ty play the biggest and best Motown, doo-wop, and booty shakin’ hits.
10 pm Stereo Ferment @ Farside, 600 Gerrard St. E. DJ Oreku spins global grooves and afrobeat.
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 Jungle @ The Shop under Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. Sounds by Huey Bogart, NOSTVLGIC, RXCKZ, and Wavy Oasis. Hosted by StayOutLate.ca.
10 pm DJ Granny Pantys @ Swan Dive, 1631 Dundas St. W. Rock, psych, post-punk, and oddities. Come shake your pants!
10 pm Decade: A 1995-2005 Dance Party @ Clinton’s, 693 Bloor St. W. Relive your best life at Clinton’s newest dance party, Decade! Anthems from 1995-2005 all night. $10.
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 Collectif Nude Presents: Pawty Time @ The Drake Underground, 1150 Queen St. W. Featuring new lineups with Toronto’s best DJs every month + specially curated hosts and photographers, Pawty Time aims to bring together many elements from the arts and music community and to empower them with a stage to do their thing! $10.
SATURDAY
11 am Toronto Etsy Street Team Christmas Marketplace @ Church of St. Stephen-in-the-Fields, 365 College St. The Toronto Etsy Street Team presents their fifth annual Christmas Marketplace. Featuring handmade goodness, Santa, snacks, and two rooms of crafts! Until 5:30 pm.
6 pm 12 Beers of Christmas @ The Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen St. W. The Gladstone made a list and checked it twice – of 12 local breweries, naughty and nice – for their annual beer-drinking extravaganza! Throw on your ugliest Christmas sweater and cross a beer (or 12) off your list. There will be live music, DJs, and a lot of beer. $35 tickets available online.
8 pm DJ Skate Nights: 1 Love T.O. @ Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queen’s Quay W. Celebrate our city in all its winter glory as 1 Love T.O. spins funk, hip-hop, R&B, and house. Featuring DJ DLUX. Skate and helmet rentals available. Until 11 pm.
9 pm Shipwreck’d: Holiday Tiki Party @ The Shore Leave, 1775 Danforth Ave. ’Twas the Night Before The Night Before The Night Before Christmas, and all through Shipwreck’d Island, all the creatures were stirring because Blue Suede Sue was hip shakin’ and Captain DJ Swankenstein was spinning his vinyl by the palm trees with care, in hopes surfin’ Santa soon would be there. Santa hung ten on a mighty swell as he rode into sight, “Alo-hohoho-ha to all… and to all a Merry Mai Tai!”
10 pm Fancy Footwork @ The Piston, 937 Bloor St. W. What do you get when you have Tuxedo vs. Jackson 5? The Supremes vs. Flight Facilities? Cassius vs. Eurythmics? Mike Don’t, Mista Jiggz, and special guest Kill Them With Colour will be playing a mix of indie dance, nu disco, disco, funk, new wave, and more. $10.
10 pm Home Alone: 90s Dance Party @ Velvet Underground, 508 Queen St. W. While the rest of the family is in Paris for the holidays, why not come dance to your favourite ’90s tunes? Velvet Underground will be playing all the best the decade has to offer, and they’ll even toss in a Christmas tune (or 10). Wet Bandits need not attend. $5 advance tickets available online.
10 pm The Final Boosie Fade at P&L @ Parts & Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. Join Boosie Fade for a jam of titanic proportions that’ll say goodbye to the place that has been the site of countless legendary nights. Your DJs are Yung Adult and Jordan Sowunmi, and they’ll be spinning the latest and greatest in hip-hop, from artists like Cardi B, Travis Scott, City Girls, Meek Mill, Octavian, Lil Baby, Tierra Whack, Pressa, Lil Wayne, and lots more. $10.
10 pm Hacker @ The Baby G, 1608 Dundas St. W. Hip-hop, club, techno, breaks, and abstract with DJs Myst Milano b2b Vaughan, Wizard Of, Noclip, and Sonja. $5.
10 pm Faded @ The Rec Room, 255 Bremner Blvd. Family Business presents a night of your favourite hip-hop, R&B, and dancehall tunes. DJs FBomb and Ry-Fi will keep you wildin’ all night long with classics and new bangers.
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 Whas Good @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. Good vibes dance party! Hip-hop, R&B, soul, reggae, and dancehall – old school to new school.
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 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! $10.
10 pm Princemas Dance Party @ Sneaky Dee’s, 431 College St. Dance the night away to your favourite Prince tunes! $5 advance tickets available online.
10 pm W A V E S @ The Boat, 158 Augusta Ave. A party for the crowd by the crowd and curated by two DJs that will make sure your feet never stop moving. All decades/genres.
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
10 am Ontario Vintage Market: Indoor Holiday Edition @ Evergreen Brick Works, 550 Bayview Ave. Shop from a selection of vintage design, art, and antiques. Until 5 pm.
7 pm Rose Beef @ Glad Day Bookshop, 499 Church St. Sunday evenings from 7-9 pm, Glad Day serves up a curated comfort food menu to accompany a suite of episodes of Our Favorite Ladies. There will be Golden Girls-themed menu items and drink specials, post-episode quizzes with prizes, and a Talk-Back to figure out if there is any relevance to the Girls’ parables from these shows in our post-truth cultural moment. Hosted by Mikiki Burino, Toronto’s ‘Aging-Out’est Drag Queen.
7 pm Brass Facts Trivia @ The Ossington, 61 Ossington Ave. Test your knowledge and win prizes! Hosted by Famous Kirk Hero. Until 10 pm.
9 pm Krampus Karaoke @ The Painted Lady, 218 Ossington Ave. Heart made of coal but voice of gold? Lose your voice singing so you don’t have to talk awkwardly with uncle Robert over the holidays. Sign-up starts at 9 pm. Lots of holiday vibes and drink specials! PWYC.
9:30 pm Home Alone Quote-Along @ Bloor Hot Docs Cinema, 506 Bloor St. W. Calling all ladies, gentlemen, and little jerks: It’s time to don your ugly Christmas sweater for the fifth annual Home Alone Quote-Along! In true holiday tradition, it will be shown with subtitles, karaoke-style, so you can get rowdy and shout out your favourite lines (“Buzz, your girlfriend, WOOF!”), scream with Kevin, and enjoy some lovely cheese pizza. Doors at 8:30 pm, screening at 9:30. $11.50 advance tickets available online.
10 pm Sinful Sundays Burlesque: Pageant Spectacular @ Cherry Cola’s, 200 Bathurst St. Come be entertained at TO’s weekly “temple of tease.” This edition celebrates the holidays with cocktails, cuties, and dirty Santa striptease. Featuring Dolly Berlin, Rhapsody Blue, Saffron St. James, and host Tanya Cheex. Free entry; tipping encouraged.
~ For event submissions, email Caitlyn Holroyd at caitlyn_holroyd@hotmail.com