Toronto ILM get-together: anyone interested?

plus i don't live anywhere near there.

ps. Ned, are you gonna drop by? Don't you try to make all of these ILM get-togethers? ;)

By the way- are there any good record shops around that area? What about gigs? Are any of the godspeed folk based there?

The worst part is I'm going to have to leave most of my 200+ albums damn it. I'll have to select my 10-15 all time favourities (an impossible task really).

Or instigate them, yes. ;-) And I might just at that -- if it's scheduled well enough in advance.

those are all good record stores that were mentionned. soundscapes being tops. there's also penguin music on mccaul just north of queen st. and the electronic shop at queen and spadina is called "metropolis" - a large collection of stuff, albeit a bit expensive...

Julio, judging by your posts to the board, I think you'd probably find the most to like at Rotate This, Soundscapes and HMV333. Rotate is the biggest indie place in the city, with great collections of punk/alternative/pop/etc, jazz, and electronic stuff, and a huge selection of vinyl too. HMV has probably the biggest depth in the jazz dept, with a fairly big "out" sub-category, and also a small selection of vinyl. My fave is still Soundscapes, because it has the best-edited selection in a number of different categories--as I've said before, it may not have the most CDs, but it has the RIGHT CDs.

Anyone have any preference for the where of the get-together? I'm thinking College might be a good choice, especially if we want to check out Soundscapes and She Said Boom in the process (depending on time of day of course). But you probably all have regular routines for shopping anyhow. Anyhow, here's a couple of ideas to get the discussion started:

Free Times Cafe on College: beer, eats, smoking section if you wanna smoke, and some music later in the night (though that could be a minus if it's one of their amateur nights).
Oasis on College: beer, tapas eats, and an upstairs section for music, if there's anything interesting happening that night.
Hacienda on Queen West: eats, I'm sure there's beer (though I've only ever been there for brunch), and a patio out back, if the weather is nice.
Sneaky Dee's on College: beer, beer, more beer, lots of good cheap Mexican-ish food. And beer. And smoking and beer.

I've heard Toronto is brilliant. Two of my colleages who went there didn't want to go back.

So I'll be there in about three (as long as the canadian high commision don't want any more documentation for my student visa-- bloody bureaucracy!) weeks. So I could contact you lot via a question on ILM. Should be good...

To London, that is.

The amateur nights at Free Times tend usually to be more folky or singer-songwritery...I'm not sure if there are even places to go where you'd find feedback jams on a regular basis. Anyhow, Julio, whether this turns into an actual get-together or not, email me when you're coming, or after you're here, and I can give you the tour if you want.

I am. But I'm in the middle of a road trip right now. I heart Toronto. mean-ass drivers but very friendly pedestrians. Tons of food, record stores, and porn.. often all in the same store.

But still, I'll email you for the tour.

Julio: do you know where you're going to be in the city, yet? Sneaky Dee's is probably a better option if you want a bit of grit, and will be in the College/University area. If you'll be right downtown, I actually don't mind C'est What? for the ambience (and also a good selection of beer too). Further out, there are other options too, but as soon as you get into the areas like Mississauga or Scarborough, I can't offer much.

Sean, I'm still living downtown (car-less) and as such bound to the TTC - so if it's going to be in the core somewhere, there's a pretty good chance that I can make it. Queen W. or King, or anywhere near the Spadina streetcar line would be especially good for me.

Victory Cafe is good, too, just a block away from the rear door or Bathurst station, and pretty close to The Beguiling, perhaps the best comic shop in all of the country, if not North America. Also a couple of antique/vintage places, and a great bookstore with a focus on art.