M is for Moose

C is for Charlie. C is for Canada.
C is for Coincidence.


Charles Pachter is a world renowned gifted artist with a penchant for all things Canadian. In the same way that The Group of Seven were famous for their landscapes depicting the beautiful and rustic nature of our homeland, Charles Pachter has become renowned for his social commentary on Canadian values, such as hockey, the Queen and moose.





He recently came out with a gorgeous children's alphabet book full of his favourite images of our country that can also be found in art galleries, private collections and now in the laps of children


(another C!)





C is for Cheer!

Fritz Helder & The Phantoms

What is one of the reasons why Toronto has such a great nightlife/live music/party scene? It's because so many of the talented DJ's and musical acts that are creating a stir, come from Toronto and naturally tend to play at many of the cities' parties and clubs.

Fritz Helder & The Phantoms are a terrific example of a live electronic/dance act that is "making a scene, doing it right, taking the party to another height". Their humourous pop culture songs are full of a raw energy that makes you want to dance, sweat and enjoy living in the moment.

I recently saw them put on a wild & crazy performance at a launch party for a clothing line from L.A., taking place at Lileo in the Distillery District of Toronto. Some of the footage from their performance can be seen by clicking on the link above.

To see this incredibly fantastic dynamic & creative band perform before they get too big, check out Sneaky Dee's tonight, if you live in the Toronto area, for the Shit La Merde 4th year anniversary party.

Be prepared to witness some of the best dance moves since Hammer Time.

A Chocolatey Buzz

I recently tried two different kinds of dark chocolate bars, both offering the exciting addition of espresso. Sometimes one is just too full for a cup of coffee after a meal, which is why a piece from one of these chocolate bars offers the perfect form of dessert, by providing a sweet pick me up to jump start your afternoon, or evening.

The Zing Energizing Maca & Ginseng Espresso Chunk Organic bar, has a 70% cacao content and is part of the Zazubean line of fair trade chocolate bars. It has a rich, delicious, espresso smell but does not have the accompanying bitter taste.


The Ghiradelli Intense Dark Espresso Escape bar, has a slightly lower cacao content of 60% but offers a sharper espresso kick than the former.


As someone who is not an avid coffee drinker, I prefer the Zing bar. As it's name suggests, the Ghiradelli bar is a bit too intense for me and I enjoy reaping the benefits of maca, ginseng and astralagus which are found in the Zing bar. It's nice to know that you're improving your immune system by delighting in a dark chocolate dessert. Seconds please!

Hotel Gansevoort in Toronto

I recently read that the uber trendy Hotel Gansevoort of New York (also with a location in South Beach) will be opening up in Toronto in 2011, most likely at the end of the summer in order to reap the benefits of TIFF.

The picture above is a projection of what the asymmetrical and LEED certified hotel & condo will look like in Toronto.

For those of you who don't follow celebrity gossip, Hotel Gansevoort is a sylish mecca for movie stars, famous DJ's, party girls and high rollers.

Naturally I assumed that the hotel would open in Toronto's trendy King West District which features many upscale dining and entertainment options, but few hotels. Aside from the Soho Metropolitan, the aging Travelodge is the only hotel I can think of in the area and it's truly an eyesore on the rapidly gentrified King & Portland 'hood. With Freed's new high end condo being constructed across the street, the Travelodge would've offered the perfect venue for Gansevoort goodness.

Instead, The Gansevoort will be opening in the John & Richmond Entertainment District which I found quite surprising. Although the notoriously touristy/905ish zone has slightly increased its cool factor with the addition of Circa, drawing hipsters over from Queen West to check out the latest Parisian DJ's, Toronto's Entertainment District is still one worth avoiding if you don't feel like getting your stilletos stuck in puke, or being bombarded with flyers for crappy clubs.

Perhaps The Gansevoort will revive the area with some much needed style? Or will it be transformed by its surroundings and develop a trashy image? Who knows? At least one thing's for sure; it will offer its guests close proximity to the best late night burritos and street meat in town!

Stylish Protection

Love biking, blading, skateboarding and other dangerous sports? Hate wearing a helmet because it doesn't look cool? Thanks to Les Ateliers Ruby, helmets have become fashionable accessories that make extreme sports that much more enjoyable and SAFE!

Made with carbon fibers for ultimate protection and a lightweight feel, Ruby helmets are also kind to the hair, with burgundy nappa lambskin caressing your locks while absorbing sweat.

With an assortment of stylish colours and patterns that appeal to both sexes, it's tempting to buy more than one. Too bad they retail for 500 pounds! High quality fashion does not come cheap. Yes, but according to the Ateliers Ruby Helmets website, "Life is the most precious thing you have."

What about creating life?

In keeping with the theme of safety being fun & original, check out these new condoms from One Condoms. Like Les Ateliers Ruby helmets, which derive their designs from graffiti and urban artists, One Condoms incorporate pop culture into their packaging to help ingrain the idea of wearing a condom into our society.

Each condom comes in a round wrapper and has a unique design on it. Fans of the brand can submit their own designs or vote for the ones they like the best. The condoms also come in a silver tin that can be re-used for other fun small items.

My favourites from the condom collage above include:

Rubber ducky, you're the ONE

Twenty ONE (with the King & Ace of clubs)

ONE Love (with the tennis ball motif, naturally)

Like the fashionable Les Ateliers Ruby helmets, by making condoms fun and creative, there's more incentive to be safe!

Brand New Remix

The 84.85, whom I blogged about last week for having one of their tracks remixed by Toronto's up & coming DJ Barletta, recently played a crowd pleasing film festival show at The Drake Hotel. Jay, the 84 behind the 84.85, has come out with his own remix of OPOPO's popular electro-rock song, "Blast Blast".

Click here for a listen. Caveat: You might get a little sweaty.

OPOPO recently played at Toronto's 3rd annual Virgin Festival where some crazy guy attacked Noel Gallagher from Oasis. (If you're into watching messed up people do stupid things, click on Noel's name to se the attack)

Consequently, Oasis cancelled their New York shows which were supposed to have happened over the weekend. Sorry Toronto fans, but there's no way they are ever stepping foot in our city again and perhaps even our country.

Crystal Castles Craziness

During the recent film festival, I attended the Vice Magazine party at The University of Toronto's Hart House. It was an excellent venue for an excellent party with free booze, hors d'oeuvres and hipster DJ's. Everyone was having a great time and enjoying the beautiful evening in the Harry Potteresque courtyard.

However, in keeping with the magical atmosphere, when the clock struck 12, the mood totally changed. Crystal Castles, the overly hyped electro-punk duo from Toronto, came on stage and turned the civilized chilled crowd into a frenzy of angry and aggressive fans. All of a sudden I was being pushed back and forth like a ping pong ball as Alice Glass, the vocalist of Crystal Castles screamed into the microphone and threw a hysteria fit on stage.

Crystal Castles are definitely a very talented duo and I must admit that I'm slightly addicted to the tracks Crimewave, Magic Spells and Vanished, but I hate the violent undertones in their performances that evoke a similar reaction in their audiences.

To read an incredibly well written and accurate portrayal of Crystal Castles, please check out the blog, Passion of the Weiss.

Fix That Speaker

Mr. Scruff, one of my favourite artists on the incredibly impressive Ninja Tunes label, has come out with a brand new track called "Fix That Speaker" which can be heard at the JusLikeMusic blog, one of the better music sites out there. This song is instantly likable due to its jazzy beat and soulful saxophone solos. It's a great track to listen to in the evening, post dinner with a glass of wine, before heading out for the night or going to bed.

For some reason this song also reminds me of the Fall, which is just around the corner.


Check out this stunning picture of Mount Royal Park in Montreal which I took last October. Even though the Film Festival is coming to an end, at least we'll still have some moving images to look forward to come Fall.

McCain's Mighty Marketing Tactics

An acquaintance of mine from McGill, Jason Maghanoy, has also been following the presidential campaign and analyzing it daily on his Facebook blog. Jason is a Toronto playwright and self-confessed Obamamaniac. He wrote an excellent piece on McCain's marketing strategy which I'd like to share with you.

Man them McCain people are running a wicked campaign. Sure they're not as organized as Obama, and they don't raise the same kind of money and have the same kind of operations across the country. But they're energized and when they throw punches they're the drunk asshole with the trucker hat kind of punches that don't hit you square, but man do they sting. They just graze ya...and leave an annoying mark.

What are the top four punches of the McCain campaign?

1) Picking Palin, Palin, Palin. Man. Those on the right feel the same way about her that Obama supporters feel about Obama. It's a crazy feeling. A maniacal feeling. A feeling that allows you to forgive your candidate's glaring weaknesses. "Inexperience? How about you go fuck your mom?"

2) They've changed the narrative of the election away from the issues, and into the realm of biography, which was one smart, sly move. The GOP don't do issues man. Issues are for suckers. Besides, you can't beat McCain's "I was tortured almost to death defending my country and goddamn it I'm gonna be the best president cause of it" routine. And don't get me started on Sarah Palin's retarded baby. He's gold. Gold I tell you!

3) They've gone negative, and we're talkin bat-shit, crazy, condescending negative. This kind of negative holds on to its humor. So we get Obama's "The One" ads as opposed to "McCain fathered an illegitimate black baby" Karl Rove style ads. We get ads that are horrible, but man are they a laugh at the water cooler. Check out McCain's latest ad blasting Obama's education stance: "sex ed for kindergarten kids? Sex before they can even learn to read?" The ad is utter genius.

4) The McCain camp has bought $500,000 worth of time on the national networks, with an eye towards advertising nationally during daytime TV shows. Among the shows McCain has bought time during: The Price Is Right, Guiding Lights, and Days of Our Lives... Oh my fucking Allah: he's targeting the Sarah Palin's of the world! Holy fuck of Jesus are there a lot of them out there! Imagine all of them, en masse, dropping by their local school to vote for McCain in between their favourite soaps. If them voters don't tip the balance in his favor (you see how close those polls are getting?) I don't know what will.

Like I said. Brilliant (again).

TIFF Updates

Tuesday night I had the privilege of attending the premier of "Toronto Stories", a movie based on 4 different relationship tales centered around a lost boy that all take place in Toronto. The movie was directed by Sook Yin-Lee (pictured above, 2nd from the left, with the other directors & producers) and featured excellent actors and beautiful scenic shots of the different neighbourhoods and people that are part of Toronto.


Considering that new immigrants make up a growing number of the population, it was refreshing to see glimpses of the lives of different people that create our culturally diverse city. It was also heartwarming to hear the actors describe the challenging but wonderful experiences they had when making the film.





The little lost boy, played by Toka Murphy and pictured above in Union Station, was absolutely adorable and is definitely a star on the rise. I was also particularly impressed with the performance of Samantha Weinstein, who played the adventurous red headed Cayle from Riverdale.



Here are some other buzzworthy movies that friends and people at parties have been recommending:

* Faubourg 36 - a tear inducing French film
* Slumdog Millionaire - an extraordinary film shot in India, based on a best selling novel
* RocknRolla - a tough and rough Guy Richie film
* Cooper's Camera - a hilarious Christmas comedy taking place in the '80s


* Medicine for Melancholy - premiered at SXSW in Texas, about the evolution of a one night stand and the regression of life in San Francisco. I was able to make it to this film and although it was quite enjoyable, I preferred Toronto Stories.

TIFF Exclusive: Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist

Last Saturday night my friend Jess (pictured above in the black) and I attended the after party for the TIFF gala screening of Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist, the latest Michael Cera film. The quirky teen romance film has been getting rave reviews and comes out nationwide in October.

The after party was tons of fun as it was full of the young cast members who enjoyed dancing to the classic rock & indie pop music that was appropriately suited to the theme of the movie and the venue of the bash, Tattoo Rock Parlour.

Colour coated candy lined the bar and typical teenage food was served, including mini burgers, pizza, chicken quesadilas, mac & cheese, chinese food in take out boxes and chocolate covered strawberries for dessert.

Rock star sunglasses and headphones were provided for photo ops and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves, especially the adults who were all over the cute & scrawny Michael Cera. I was hoping to get a chance to talk to him as I did with the charming Jason Reitman, director of such fantastic films as Juno and Thank You for Smoking.

I also chatted with Danny Masterson, who is a lot cuter in real life than he is as Hyde on That 70's Show. He has beautiful blue eyes and was covering up his curly locks with a stylish top hat. I invited him to come to The New Deal concert which I was attending later that night, thinking that he would enjoy the live breakbeat house sounds, as he himself is a talented DJ.

Unfortunately I did not see him at Lee's Palace, the location of The New Deal's 10 Year Anniversary show. In typical New Deal fashion, the show was incredible, with tantalizing light, sound & movement captivating the audience. For those of you who missed out, the show was recorded and will be available shortly under the "This is Live" series.

A New Tennis Champion?

Today marks the final day of the U.S. Open in New York and tennis fans around the world can hardly contain their excitement for the championship match.

Nadal is out of the picture for once and Federer is back where he belongs, taking on the UK's Andy Murray, ranked #6 in the world.

I saw Murray lose to Nadal last month at the Roger's Cup Semi-Finals in Toronto and I'm thrilled that Murray, who put up a great fight, was given a second chance to beat the brutish Spaniard. He's a gifted athlete with a lot more grace than the bum picking Nadal. He's much better looking too.

I"m also glad that Federer is out of his slump and back in the finals, where he rightly deserves to be. Even though I'd love to see the underdog win, I miss Federer's reign as tennis champion and I'd like him to continue to be seen as a threat to Nadal.

TIFF '08

The 33rd annual Toronto International Film Festival commenced yesterday leaving us lucky Torontonians with nine action packed days and nights full of movies & parties.

Last night's gala screening, Passchendaele, was a fitting feature to start the Festival as it's full of Canadian content. The romantic war epic was filmed in Calgary and directed by the talented Canuck thespian, Paul Gross who also stars in the drama.




Below are several films which I look forward to seeing over the next week and a half:


Detroit Metal City - about the lead singer of a Japanese metal rock band who really just wants to be the next Backstreet Boy. As someone who studied Japanese film at school, I'm looking forward to watching a comedy instead of the traditional violent sword fighting epics so prevalent in Japanese culture.


Burn After Reading - Brad Pitt. George Clooney. John Malkovitch. The Coen Brothers. Black comedy. Could this be a modern day Fargo taking place in Washington?


Toronto Stories - because I love Toronto and Sook-Yin Lee


Synecdoche, New York - because I love New York and Charlie Kaufman


Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - Michael Cera. Killer soundtrack. Need I say more?


Rachel Getting Married - I'm looking forward to seeing Anne Hathaway's acting skills put to the test in a more serious role than the Princess Diaries crap she is often a victim of. Directed by Jonathan Demme, who's dramatic films are often full of interesting characters, Hathaway plays a sarcastic young woman who takes a break from rehab to create some tension at her sister's wedding.

Remix This

The other night I was at a beach party where I heard Sultans of Swing being remixed with a Justice song! Sounds pretty crazy but it also sounded great. Recently I've noticed other collaborations with classic rock & electro tunes and I've been liking the results. MSTRKRFT has been following this trend for a while and two of my favourite sexy results include The Gossip and Metric remixes (not quite classic but definitely rock).



Also worth checking out is the new single from Southern Rockers' Kings of Leon, who's latest album, Only by the Night, debuts on September 23rd. (Only 20 days left!) Each Kings of Leon album has been amazing and I can hardly wait for their 5th mark of brilliance.



The video for their new single, Sex on Fire, can be viewed at the toolbar on the right. Enjoy!

What's in a Name?

What's the deal with Sarah Palin's children's names? For those of you who aren't interested in one of the most historically fascinating presidential campaigns, the 44 year old Ms. Palin is McCain's surprise pick to run as his VP. The former Alaska governor is the epitome of Republican, with her anti-abortion and anti same-sex marriage viewpoints. Did I mention that she's also an avid hunter and fisher?

So why is she so liberal-hippie when it comes to the names she chose for her 5 children? Bristol, Willow and Piper are the names of her daughters while Trig & Track are the names of her sons. Yes, I am being serious. WTF? It doesn't make any sense to me. Feel free to leave a comment if you can figure out this dichotomy.

Do any of the young ladies above look like a Willow to you? What about a Bristol?