“I’m over music.” Those are the words of Renata Axler, a card-carrying member of Neon Windbreaker, who’s joined myself and Marianne Madeline Lau, our gutsy photographer, for most of our NXNE journey. Yes, we’re coming off a 12-hour, 12+ drink day, but with the aid of a few electrolyte beverages and espresso shots, we’re back […]
Toronto
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The Coast does NXNE day two: Elliott Brood, Besnard Lakes, Walter Schreifels, Neon Windbreaker
Marianne Madeline Lau Walter Schreifels @ The Bovine Sex Club I’ll admit it: I’m still a little shell-shocked after seeing Walter Schreifels perform last night. Whether via straight-edge pioneers Gorilla Biscuits, the metallic muscle of Quicksand, the grungy indie of Rival Schools or the 60s pop of Walking Concert, Schreifels has been informing my musical […]
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The Coast does NXNE day one: The Grass, Wayfarer and Cavaliers
“Good things are coming our way,” sang Walter Schreifels (Gorilla Biscuits, Rival Schools) last night. He wasn’t lying, but more on him in a future post. I’m writing today from the patio of a Queen street coffee shop at the beginning of day three. My hair’s quietly forming into gross dread-y clumps, I’m covered in cat hair from couch surfing and my shirt still smells like stale booze. I’m not quite Alison Lang at Bonnaroo, but after two long, long nights, we’re getting there. So it begins. After picking up my press lanyard, I scoop up scrappy, talented local photographer
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The Coast does NXNE: A preview
This ain’t Toronto, or at least not the Toronto I remember. There’s a chain link fence cordoning off a large swath of the downtown core. Kites and radio-controlled aircraft, I’m told, are strictly forbidden. Poorly-marked CCTV cameras track every movement south of bustling Queen Street. Two-week summer condo sublets cost roughly $8,400. And there are […]