Artist: Toronto Improvisers Orchestra
Song: Word Building
Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), July 12, 2026.
Toronto Improvisers Orchestra - Word Building
There was the usual range of approaches in this TIO session — conducted pieces, freely-played pieces, three-bar loops, approximations of jazz. And also, from noted lexophile Del Stephen, a couple word-game pieces, including this one, which starts off like a round of free improv Password.
Artist: Wilderness Adventure Ride
Song: [excerpt]
Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Track Could Bend #118), July 7, 2026.
Wilderness Adventure Ride - [excerpt]
With the evening short a performer, a last-minute invitation to round out the proceedings was accepted by this pair of representatives from the Ministry of Phonic Services, who brought a short set of percussive electroacoustic noise. Moving from a crinkled-up plastic water bottle to other bricabrac, Colin Cudmore's sunds were being squeezed and processed by Owen Kurtz's Kaoss Pad magick and other electronic interventions.
You can check out the full set over on youtube:
[Track Could Bend is back at Wenona on September 1st (before the long weekend!) with sets from Dave Grenon's Indistinctive Gait w/ Ayesha Lye and Caution Wet Floor Signs.]
Artist: Mike Gennaro
Song: [2nd piece]
Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Track Could Bend #118), July 7, 2026.
Originally slated as a reprise of a shredtastic duo alongside Doug Tielli, circumstances modified this to a Mike Genarro solo set. Which was a loss and a small sadness, but also opened a window to a rare oportunity to hear Gennaro in solo mode. Unsurprisingly energetic, the highlight was the more restrained part heard here, with some swell resonances from small cymbals, bowls, and metal discs buzzing against each other.
You can check out the full set over on youtube:
[Track Could Bend is back at Wenona on September 1st (before the long weekend!) with sets from Dave Grenon's Indistinctive Gait w/ Ayesha Lye and Caution Wet Floor Signs.]
Artist: Ubersuck
Song: unknown*
Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Track Could Bend #118), July 7, 2026.
With her Dorky & Best project, inventive percussionist/composer Germaine Liu has been turning her eye towards songcraft; this duo, alongside soprano saxophonist Kayla Milmine is on a parallel pop path. Expressing a shared love for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the pair presented a set of mostly original material, with songs about the show's characters as well as some memorable moments.
You can check out the full set over on youtube:
* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!
[Track Could Bend is back at Wenona on September 1st (before the long weekend!) with sets from Dave Grenon's Indistinctive Gait w/ Ayesha Lye and Caution Wet Floor Signs.]
Concert announcements:
Free Improvisation Thursdays (feat. Brent Tanemura/Tania Gill/Lauchlin Wood/Aidan Miller) / Water to Wine 2026-08-20 (Thursday). $pwyc. [more info]
Masahiro Takahashi presents Chanoyu (feat. Masahiro Takahashi / Trustfall / Nick Storring) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-21 (Friday). [more info]
Partitions illimitées / Unlimited Scores (feat. Julie Lassonde/Sonia Leung/Sully Malaeb Proulx/Marilyn Yogarajah) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-23 (Sunday – 12:30 p.m.). $pwyc (sugg. $10-$20). [more info]
The AMBiENT PiNG & Imaginary North present: 27 Years of Ambient Love! (feat. Cheryl O / Nanotopia / Jim Field) / Handlebar 2026-08-24 (Monday). $PWYC. [more info]
Joni Void ["two sets of improvised electronics and sample-based soundscapes, merging into an exclusive collaborative finale between both acts"] (Liz Hysen) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-30 (Sunday – noon). [more info]
Cosmic Homeostasis XXXIII / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-30 (Sunday – 2:30 p.m.). $pwyc, all-ages + family-friendly. [FB event]
Track Could Bend #120 (feat. Dave Grenon's Indistinctive Gait w/ Ayesha Lye / Caution Wet Floor Signs) / Wenona Lodge 2026-09-01 (Tuesday). $pwyc. [FB event]
Not Dead Yet presents (feat. Otto Benson / Potions) / Monarch Tavern 2026-09-08 (Tuesday). $27.82, 19+. [tickets + more info]
Burn Down The Capital presents (feat. Picastro [Double on Time album release] / Bernice / Granny Smith) / Gloves Up Boxing Gym 2026-09-26 (Saturday). $28.27, all ages. [FB event]
Project Nowhere × Burn Down The Capital presents (feat. Horse Lords / Common Earth Mineral / Stefana Fratila) / The Garrison 2026-10-01 (Thursday). $32.31, 19+. [FB event]
Thiante: Spiritual Senegal (feat. Ibrahima Diop / Seydina Ndiaye / Talla Kane) / Trinity-St. Paul's Centre 2026-10-17 (Saturday). $25 (advanced)/$30 (doors), all ages. [FB event]
Not Dead Yet presents (feat. Weird Nightmare [Hoopla record release shows]) / Osler Records 2025-11-18&19 (Wednesday & Thursday). $24.94, 19+. [tickets + more info]
Is your show missing from this list? Submit it via this form!
Shows this week:
Toronto Electronic Music Open Mic (feat. Ibrahim / Jades James / Ben Green / Chin Beats / gaussian_acid / Todd MacDonald / A/K/C / Inchoate / Jonah Gryfe / Phurniture / Broken Pink Umbrella / Big Steve / mylesofdude / Gruve Collective) / Handlebar 2026-08-10 (Monday) [more info]
Harry Vetro and Friends [Harrison Argatoff/Jay Yoo/Jack Johnston/Harry Vetro] / The Emmet Ray 2026-08-10 (Monday). $20. [more info]
new works for improvising musicians (feat. Josh Cole/Lina Allemano/Jaron Freeman-Fox/Nick Storring/Owen Kurtz) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-10 (Monday). $10/notaflof
Rondo Projects (feat. Ehsan Sadigh & Dhaivat Jani) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-11 (Tuesday). $pwyc. [more info]
Kiwi Jr. / Sonic Boom Records 2026-08-12 (Wednesday – 6 p.m.). $free, all-ages. [FB event]
Brodie West presents (feat. Brodie West Double Basses Quintet [Brodie West/Patrick O'Reiily/Nick Fraser/Josh Cole/Rob Clutton]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-12 (Wednesday – early). $pwyc
Joyshape (Mira Martin-Gray) / Houndstooth 2025-08-12 (Wednesday). $15/PWYC
Never Was [Brandon Davis/Bea Labikova/Racha Moukalled/Patrick O'Reilly/Adrian Russouw/Joe Sorbara] / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-12 (Wednesday). [more info]
YEARN ["a powerful one-hour work for solo piano by Dutch composer Lieke van der Voort"] (feat. Cheryl Duvall) / Canadian Music Centre 2026-08-13 (Thursday). $20 General Admission, $15 Arts Workers
Free Improvisation Thursdays (feat. Brent Tanemura/Lauchlin Wood/Mason Wallington/Nick Fraser) / Water to Wine 2025-08-13 (Thursday). $pwyc. [more info]
Kurt Newman presents (feat. The Binoculars) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-13 (Thursday). $pwyc
Constellating (feat. Mas Aya & Khôra) / Capsules Artist Resources 2026-08-14 (Friday). $11.98. [tickets + more info]
Shaaane (Battle Milk / Sound Effects / Dame Cook) / The Tranzac (Living Room) 2025-08-14 (Friday). $10, 19+. [more info]
Diane Roblin’s Life Force [Diane Roblin/George Koller/Tim Shia/John Johnson/Alex Dean/John MacLeod] / The Rex 2026-08-15 (Saturday – 2 p.m.). $pwyc. [more info]
Re:Stacks (feat. Stacks) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-15 (Saturday). [FB event]
Bandcamp corner:
It happened this week...
DATU x HATAW - World Gong Crazy
Ali Berkok + Diane Roblin - [third piece]
[Do remember that you can click on the tags below to go back and find the original posts (and often, more stuff) from these artists.]
Community notes:
Music Africa of Canada Inc. announces that AFROFEST will not take place in 2026. This decision follows months of planning, extensive discussions with the City of Toronto, and a careful assessment of public safety considerations related to hosting the festival at Woodbine Park.
AFROFEST is one of Toronto’s most celebrated cultural festivals, shaped and sustained by the strength of its community. Earlier this year, Music Africa submitted its permit application and began working with Parks, Forestry & Recreation to clarify requirements for the 2026 event. However, final direction was not received until June, creating significant time constraints for an event of AFROFEST’s scale.
When the mayor's office became involved, communication improved, and dedicated city staff worked closely with Music Africa to explore solutions. Despite this collaboration, a critical challenge remained: the operational capacity of Woodbine Park for 2026. While the park’s longstanding safe capacity is approximately 17,000 people, the city advised that the site’s operational limit for this year would be 5,000 attendees.
AFROFEST regularly attracts up to 40,000 people in a single day. Even with our 2026 planned improved safety initiatives, including ticketing, fencing, controlled entry, and enhanced security measures, thousands more would still travel to the park expecting to attend. This presents a public safety risk outside the festival gates that cannot be responsibly managed.
You can read the full statement here. (And anyone seeking great African music should remember that the Habari Africa Festival is taking place at Harbourfront Centre this weekend, August 7th to 9th.)
Concert announcements:
new works for improvising musicians (feat. Josh Cole/Lina Allemano/Jaron Freeman-Fox/Nick Storring/Owen Kurtz) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-10 (Monday). $10/notaflof
YEARN ["a powerful one-hour work for solo piano by Dutch composer Lieke van der Voort"] (feat. Cheryl Duvall) / Canadian Music Centre 2026-08-13 (Thursday). $20 General Admission, $15 Arts Workers
Shaaane (Battle Milk / Sound Effects / Dame Cook) / The Tranzac (Living Room) 2025-08-14 (Friday). $10, 19+. [more info]
Re:Stacks (feat. Stacks) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-15 (Saturday). [FB event]
4 Weeks for Sonny Rollins (feat. Mark Hundevad Quartet [Shawn Nykwist/Chris Pruden/James Thompson/Mark Hundevad]) / CONTXT by Trane 2026-08-22 (Saturday). $30.79 advance, $40 door. [FB event]
4 Weeks for Sonny Rollins (feat. The Bridge Quartet [Shawn Nykwist/Lee Wallace/Chris Banks/Mark Hundevad]) / CONTXT by Trane 2026-08-29 (Saturday). $30.79 advance, $40 door. [FB event]
Marker Starling (Tean Dream) / BSMT 254 2025-09-12 (Saturday). $22.84, 19+. [FB event]
Is your show missing from this list? Submit it via this form!
Shows this week:
Chris Banks presents (feat. Chris Banks/Mateos Labbé-Phelan/Dafydd Hughes/Maxwell Stover) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-03 (Monday). $pwyc
Justin Orok presents (feat. Simone Hope with Anna Atkinson/Tiffany Wu/Audrey Mae/Ryan Dugre/Justin Orok) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-04 (Tuesday – early). [more info]
Blank Hellscape (CUTE / not a band / Greydini) / Osler Records 2026-08-04 (Tuesday). $15.37, all ages. [tickets + more info]
Track Could Bend #119: An Evening of Graphic Scores co-presented with Public Library (feat. Public Library [Mira Riselli/Elisabeth Dorion/Liz Anthonisen/Pat O'Reilly/Jackson Welchner/Robert Diack] and very special guests) / Wenona Lodge 2026-08-04 (Tuesday). $pwyc. [FB event]
Peripheral Vision (The Adjacence [Karen Ng/Lina Allemano/Nick Fraser plus special guest Brodie West]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-04 (Tuesday). [more info]
Holy Oak Family Singers present (feat. Madeleine Ertel/Michael Davidson/Thom Gill / Alex Samaras [solo] / Nate Renner [solo] / Fan Wu & Friends) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-05 (Wednesday – early). [more info]
Free Improvisation Thursdays (feat. Brent Tanemura/Max Stover/Andrew Frost/Nick Fraser) / Water to Wine 2026-08-06 (Thursday). $PWYC. [more info]
More Noise Please x Coward Patrol present: A Fundraiser for Severe Exposure (feat. Secrétaire Particulière / Fossils / Twin Mask / Iradiated Sac / Harmpit / Miracle Blade) / BSMT254 2026-08-06 (Thursday). $17.31. [tickets + more info]
Analogues of May (Westelaken / Moriah Bailey) / Dina's Tavern 2026-08-06 (Thursday). $15. [more info]
Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Sounds of the Maghreb [Maryem Tollar/Hassan El Hadi/Fethi Nadjem/Naghmeh Farahmand] / Lorraine Klaasen / Indanga Dance / Rhythm Section) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-07 (Friday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]
Tania Gill presents (feat. Tania Gill/Victor Bateman/Lina Allemano) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-07 (Friday – early). [more info]
Humbucker Music Residency (feat. Humbucker Music [Nick Storring/Mira Martin-Gray/Colin Cudmore/Jason Doell] / Sandy Ewen) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-07 (Friday) [FB event]
Oval Window Records: Dual Album Release Celebration (feat. Steve Sladkowski & Joe Sorbara / NOPE [Richard Marsella & Joe Sorbara] / The Lollipop People) / The Rex 2026-08-07 (Friday – 11 p.m.)
Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Aron Nitunga / Girma Woldemichael feat. Melat Mengesha / Boblée Cirque Danse / Jonathan Nvita / ILAM / ZahraMoves / Keïla) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-08 (Saturday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]
Link Music Lab: A/V Lab (feat. Dastgâmachine / Farbod Maeen / Ester Shiner / Sina Shoaie / Amir Parsa + Parallel / Ali Phi / Oyl) / 75 Pelham Av. 2025-08-08 (Saturday). $22.10/$27.65. [FB event]
Toronto Improvisers Orchestra / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-09 (Sunday – noon). [more info]
Ayal Senior & Friends (feat. Ayal Senior & Kurt Newman / Nick Flanagan / Del Stephen / Jessie Ecklerlin / Harold's Snack Shack) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-09 (Sunday – 2:30 p.m.). [FB event]
Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Toronto Burundi Drummers / Boblée Danse Cirque / Soul, Folk & Sun feat. Kunle, Ṣẹwà, Dipo / Zale Seck) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-09 (Sunday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]
Summer Music in the Garden (feat. Tara Kannangara and Chris Pruden) / Toronto Music Garden 2025-08-09 (Sunday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]
Bandcamp corner:
It happened this week...
Eric Landry - The Life I've Never Had
Brodie West/Reg Schwager/Marilyn Lerner/Evan Cartwright - If I Should Lose You
[Do remember that you can click on the tags below to go back and find the original posts (and often, more stuff) from these artists.]
Artist: André Ethier
Songs: Are You Going? + Nature Compels Me
Recorded at Dina's Tavern, July 5, 2026.
André Ethier - Nature Compels Me
It's always a treat to hear André Ethier at work. Every few years he puts out another set of finely-observed, low-key tunes, increasingly delivered with breezy avant-mellow arrangements for synth and drum machine. This set, which saw him joined by a keyboardist as well as cellist Eliza Niemi (who also helped open up the night), gave some tastes of that, but left plenty of space for his songs to shine.
Artist: Cows in Rain
Songs: Shania Twain Hat + I Am Enough For Myself [Sinéad O'Connor cover]
Recorded at Dina's Tavern, July 5, 2026.
Cows in Rain - Shania Twain Hat
Cows in Rain - I Am Enough For Myself
This new trio is another spin-off from the Holy Oak Family Singers scene, with Thom Gill (guitar, vox) joined by Edwin De Goeij (keyb) and Mira Martin-Gray (vox, laptop). Although a range of genres were essayed here (jazz and country among them) they were all tackled along similar lines — that is to say wispily and theoretically. (Similar territory to the is-this-THOMAS? days of sanctified whisper-grooves.) In any case, with the zzozy textures and Martin-Gray's abstracted laptop percussion, this is a group that induces a feeling akin to dipping your cotton candy in codiene-laced cough syrup — and finding out afterwards that there was some steel wool mixed in.
Artist: Eliza Niemi/Avalon Tassonyi/Andrew Pearl
Songs: unknown* + Yes or No + New to Love [Beetsblog cover]
Recorded at Dina's Tavern, July 5, 2026.
Eliza Niemi/Avalon Tassonyi/Andrew Pearl - unknown
Avalon Tassonyi/Eliza Niemi/Andrew Pearl - Yes or No
Andrew Pearl/Eliza Niemi/Avalon Tassonyi - New to Love
Sometimes the show you end up at isn't quite the show advertised on the poster — especially when the border makes its presence felt. Billed as a chance for locals to get to know Greenfield, Massachusetts' Beetsblog, things went sideways in the absence of songwriter Taggie Coppins, forcing some re-organization on the night. Cellist Eliza Niemi, friend to Beetsblog (and already on the night's bill backing André Ethier) swooped in to put together this fine last-minute opener, "a fun variety show-style set" that saw her joined by guitarist Avalon Tassonyi and Beetsblog's Andrew Pearl on winds. Niemi took most of the leads, but there was a bit of a songwriters' circle vibe at hand, with evertyone taking a turn or two and coming up with arrangements on the fly.
* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!
Artist: Caution Wet Floor Signs
Song: [1st set, 3rd piece]
Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), June 27, 2026.
Caution Wet Floor Signs - [1st set, 3rd piece]
An edifying and/or confusing debut from this collective, convened by bassist Yoshi Maclear Wall and "taking rough discursive cues from the Fluxus and Loft Jazz scenes of the 1960s and 1970s". The "taking cues" was quite literal, as the members took turns drawing slips from a collection of text prompts to guide the pieces — which were "obtuse" (i.e. concealed from the audience) for the first set and "transparent" in the second. The cues ranged from pre-emptive clapping to starting arguments to pausing for snacks to a performance of Van Halen's "Jump" — which might make this sound like free jazz as sketch comedy, but was intended to break down what a "performance" "should" be (albeit with full self-awareness of how goofy that could be).
Musically, the ensemble was essentially a double rhythm section with bassist Alex McPherson joining Wall, and Dame Cook (frequently seen as a laptopist) adding percussive clatter to Mark Gerlai's drumkit via tap dance. That left space for Will Hunt on keys to provide textures and colour to the proceedings. By the second set's end, alibis were provided, audience participation was encouraged, and craft time broke out.
You can check out the full affair over on youtube:
[Just as an early warning, you can expect to see Caution Wet Floor Signs at September's Track Could Bend.]
Community notes:
Concert announcements:
Justin Orok presents (feat. Simone Hope with Anna Atkinson/Tiffany Wu/Audrey Mae/Ryan Dugre/Justin Orok) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-04 (Tuesday – early). [more info]
Blank Hellscape (CUTE / not a band / Greydini) / Osler Records 2026-08-04 (Tuesday). $15.37, all ages. [tickets + more info]
Peripheral Vision (The Adjacence [Karen Ng/Lina Allemano/Nick Fraser plus special guest Brodie West]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-04 (Tuesday). [more info]
Free Improvisation Thursdays (feat. Brent Tanemura/Max Stover/Andrew Frost/Nick Fraser) / Water to Wine 2026-08-06 (Thursday). $PWYC. [more info]
More Noise Please x Coward Patrol present: A Fundraiser for Severe Exposure (feat. Secrétaire Particulière / Fossils / Twin Mask / Iradiated Sac / Harmpit / Miracle Blade) / BSMT254 2026-08-06 (Thursday). $17.31. [tickets + more info]
Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Sounds of the Maghreb [Maryem Tollar/Hassan El Hadi/Fethi Nadjem/Naghmeh Farahmand] / Lorraine Klaasen / Indanga Dance / Rhythm Section) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-07 (Friday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]
Oval Window Records: Dual Album Release Celebration (feat. Steve Sladkowski & Joe Sorbara / NOPE [Richard Marsella & Joe Sorbara] / The Lollipop People) / The Rex 2026-08-07 (Friday – 11 p.m.)
Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Aron Nitunga / Girma Woldemichael feat. Melat Mengesha / Boblée Cirque Danse / Jonathan Nvita / ILAM / ZahraMoves / Keïla) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-08 (Saturday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]
Toronto Improvisers Orchestra / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-09 (Sunday – noon). [more info]
Ayal Senior & Friends (feat. Ayal Senior & Kurt Newman / Nick Flanagan / Del Stephen / Jessie Ecklerlin / Harold's Snack Shack) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-09 (Sunday – 2:30 p.m.). [FB event]
Batuki Music presents: Habari Africa Festival (feat. Toronto Burundi Drummers / Boblée Danse Cirque / Soul, Folk & Sun feat. Kunle, Ṣẹwà, Dipo / Zale Seck) / Harbourfront Centre 2026-08-09 (Sunday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]
Diane Roblin’s Life Force [Diane Roblin/George Koller/Tim Shia/John Johnson/Alex Dean/John MacLeod] / The Rex 2026-08-15 (Saturday – 2 p.m.). $pwyc. [more info]
Is your show missing from this list? Submit it via this form!
Shows this week:
Jazz Rat Mondays (feat. Patrick Smith/Anthony D'Allesandro/Max Simpson/Ernesto Cervini) / Dina's Tavern 2026-07-27 (Monday). $pwyc
Colin Fisher/George Koller/Jeff Luciani/Diane Roblin / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-27 (Monday). [FB event]
Solitary Shrew Presents: A fundraiser for Toronto Indigenous Harm Reduction (feat. Ever Since We Met / Public Library) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-28 (Tuesday – early). $20/pwyc. [more info]
Agnes [live studio recording!] [Rob Clutton/Bea Labikova/Mira Martin-Gray/Doug Tielli/Kevin Turcotte/Mark Zurawinski] / Annette Studios 2026-07-28 (Tuesday). $20 or pwyc
Zevon (Blunderspublik / Dorky & Best [Germaine Liu feat. Karen Ng/Heather Saumer/Mark Zurawinski]) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-29 (Wednesday – early). $pwyc. [more info]
Madeleine Ertel/Dan Fortin/Juliuss Jahn/Nick Fraser / The Emmet Ray 2025-07-29 (Wednesday)
Kathryn Merriam with Bea Labikova/Raphael Roter/Heather Saumer) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-29 (Wednesday). [more info]
Summer Music in the Garden ["a program of 16th and 17th century music"] (feat. Arparla and Elixir Baroque Ensemble) / Toronto Music Garden 2025-07-30 (Thursday). $free, outdoors, all ages + family-friendly. [more info]
Ghost Quartet [Brent Tanemura/Brodie West/Reg Schwager] / Water to Wine 2025-07-30 (Thursday). $pwyc, 19+. [more info]
lightsweetcrude presents: An Evening of Visual Music (feat. David Sait / Del Stephen / Jason Steidman) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-30 (Thursday). $pwyc. [more info]
Ian Sinclair Quartet [Ian Sinclair/Harley Card/Mark Godfrey/Nick Fraser with special guest Alex Samaras] / The Emmet Ray 2026-07-30 (Thursday). $15. [more info]
Body Help [Colin Fisher/Josh Cole/Kieran Adams with special guest Hugh Marsh] / Dina's Tavern 2026-07-30 (Thursday). $10. [more info]
Ministry of Phonic Services presents (feat. Stephen Parkinson/Allison Cameron/Karen Ng / Owen Kurtz & Callon Murphy) / United Unlimited 2026-07-30 (Thursday). $pwyc
Patrick Smith Quartet [Patrick Smith/Jen Lo/Julian Anderson Bowes/Angelica Zavala] / The Rex 2026-07-31 (Friday – 5 p.m.). $pwyc. [more info]
Imaginary Lines Quartet [Walter Gershon/Jonathan Kay/Brandon Davis/Joe Sorbara] (Walter Gershon & Reagan Mitchell) / The Emmet Ray 2026-07-31 (Friday – 7 p.m.). $15. [more info]
All-Set! Presents (feat. Tania Gill/Jake Oelrichs/Mike Smith) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-31 (Friday – early). [more info]
Exit Points #74 (feat. Ankita/Turk Himself/Adam Dilouya/Brianna Maltais / MJ C./R Grunwald/Connor Kurtz/Stefanie Proulx / "switchemups") / Array Space 2026-07-31 (Friday). $20 (advance)/$25 (door). [more info]
The Ryan Driver Sextet With Thom Gill As Ryan Driver [Thom Gill/Martin Arnold/Rob Clutton/Nick Fraser/Brodie West/Michael Davidson] / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-07-31 (Friday). [more info]
The Passport Sessions (feat. K2 [Kayla Milmine & Jonathan Kay] / Imaginary Lines Quartet [Walter Gershon/Joe Sorbara/Jonathan Kay/Brandon Davis) / Gerrard Art Space 2026-08-01 (Saturday). $20/pwyc (snacks included). [FB event]
C'est la fête [album release show!with special guests special guests Bill Bisset, Karen Ng and Mark Hundevad] / The Tranzac (Main Hall) 2025-08-01 (Saturday). $25/pwyw. [more info]
Dave Clark presents (feat. Eiyn Sof / Jessica Spurrell) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-02 (Sunday – early). [more info]
Adjacent Spheres (feat. Michael Davidson/Angelica Zavala/Michael Herring/Miles Cakebread-Kraus) / The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge) 2026-08-02 (Sunday). [more info]
It happened this week...
Karen Ng/Philippe Melanson/Joe Moffett/Sandy Ewen - [1st piece, excerpt 1]
Jim Lewis/Jean Martin/Andrew Downing - [1st piece, excerpt]
[Do remember that you can click on the tags below to go back and find the original posts (and often, more stuff) from these artists.]
Artist: Ayal Senior/Nathan Yell/Marilyn Yogarajah
Song: unknown*
Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Ayal Senior & Friends), June 14, 2026.
Ayal Senior/Nathan Yell/Marilyn Yogarajah - unknownAs is frequently the case, this afternoon at Ayal Senior's residency ended with the spontaneous formation of a new band, with Senior enlisting Nathan Yell (who had opened things up earlier) to play drums and drafting Marilyn Yogarajah from the crowd to play piano. There were some mutual drift zones in the set, but this bit sounds like Senior slipping in something from his book of songs to see what embellishments the others coud come up with.
* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!
[Ayal Senior & Friends will be back at The Tranzac on the afternoon of August 9th.]
Artist: David Sait
Song: unknown*
Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Ayal Senior & Friends), June 14, 2026.
David Sait - unknownAs always, David Sait's work for solo guzheng was a beautiful experience, with an underlying austere formality that's never at the expense of feeling the energy of spontaneous composition.
* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!
[David Sait will be taking part in an "Evening of Visual Music" next week (Thursday, July 30th) in the Tranzac's Living Room alongside Del Stephen and backed by Jason Steidman's live projections. Ayal Senior & Friends will be back at The Tranzac on the afternoon of August 9th.]
Artist: Nathan Yell
Song: unknown*
Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Ayal Senior & Friends), June 14, 2026.
Nathan Yell - unknownIn this set, Nathan Yell sometimes just worked out some weird songwriter mojo (this number has some "funky Jandek"-type vibes), but also brought out his best one-man-band moves, building some guitar loops before shifting over to the drumkit to jam with himself.
* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!
[Ayal Senior & Friends will be back at The Tranzac on the afternoon of August 9th.]
Artist: Colin Fisher/William Hunt/Jack Johnson/Cal Adam
Song: #7
Recorded at Wenona Lodge (Track Could Bend #117), June 2, 2026.
Colin Fisher/William Hunt/Jack Johnson/Cal Adam - #7
This working quartet saw Colin Fisher bringing his guitar — as well as a set of new compositions. Similar to his work with C'est la fête (where keyboardist William Hunt is also a member) this sees Fisher sharing space with younger musicians, though here the target is a more stylized take on fusion.
You can check out some more from this set over on youtube:
[A variant version of this quartet (with Adrian Russouw on bass) will be playing on the lovely back patio at Pamenar Café tonight (Tuesday, July 21st).]
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