This Monday, February 20, check out the second instalment of Robo Harb at Bar Robo. The new monthly hangout featuring music curated by Ali Harb is being held between 7 p.m. and midnight, giving you the chance to enjoy a night out without having to worry about losing sleep. Dress to express!
Ottawa’s Gongfu Boa Cart is doing a takeover at one of Ottawa’s best diners, Fontenelle Restaurant, this Tuesday night in collaboration with amazing local artisans & producers. Enjoy baos, noodles, dumplings and more either by eating-in or as take-out, and kungfu movies all night. No reservations.
From the creators of My Fair Zombie comes Ottawa’s next comedy musical sensation: Phantom of the Opry, a comedic take on an old classic written and directed by local cult filmmaker Brett Kelly. The production also features 10 original songs written by local artist Jumpin Joel Flash and will be presented at the Gladstone Theatre February 22-25.
Join One World Arts this Wednesday, February 22 for a special one-night-only screening of the award-winning Canadian documentary KONELĪNE: our land beautiful at the ByTowne Cinema. The screening will be followed by a discussion with Ugo Lapointe, Canada Program Coordinator at MiningWatch Canada, and Ben Powless, a Mohawk citizen and Ottawa resident with a background in human rights, indigenous rights and environmental advocacy. Proceeds ill go to support the 28th annual One World Film Festival, Ottawa’s longest running documentary film fest.
Toronto indie folk band Midnight Vesta will be performing at Live on Elgin this Wednesday night in an effort to to expand their audience as they prepare to release their first LP. The trio will be sharing the stage with Ottawa blue rock group Cold Capital and Toronto indie folk musician Brooklyn Doran.
The Mercury Lounge is cooking up a very interesting event for foodies and music lovers alike. This Thursday night, experience a fun evening spent tasting the warmth of tropical cuisine and learning a few cooking tricks from Guga Rocha, one of Brazil’s finest chefs and TV hosts. The event will include great live Brazilian music and an amazing stand-up cooking show. Sounds amazing!
If hardcore is your thing, you’re gonna want to head over to House of Targ this Thursday night to catch Montreal hardcore band Hopeless Youth, Ottawa metallic sludge group Opium Winter, Ottawa metal outfit Ooluu, Ottawa ritual industrial project Wychdoktor as well as visual artists Kaylie Seaver, Kathleen Axam and Squish Lessard.
If you enjoy visual arts, start your weekend at the Ottawa Art Battle this Friday night at Arts Court. The unique event organized across Canadian cities, brings 12 local painters together for a live painting competition held in front of an audience.
There’s a house show happening this Friday night that’ll feature live sets by London, Ontario electro mope pop project Shhh, Montreal ambient soundscape noise duo Intervention and Ottawa experimental synth star Lovecraft.
UK indie/folk musician Benjamin Francis Leftwich will be making a stop in our nation’s capital this Friday, February 24. The Dirty Hit Recs artist will be playing live at Zaphods alongside Sacramento ambient indie-folk project Brolly and Ottawa singer-songwriter and dedicated member of the local music community Amanda Lowe.
Toronto punk/post-hardcore? (they’re not sure) band Sparrows will rocking House of Targ this Friday night and they’ll be sharing the stage with Niagara emo/alt-rockers Heavy Hearts, KW post-punks Life in Vacuum and Ottawa rock band Old Rules. Gotta love the event poster.
This Friday night at City, AVA Recordings invites you to join them as they celebrate their 10-year anniversary. As one of the trance scene’s biggest labels, AVA Recordings has long been at the forefront of releasing top quality music and spearheading the Trance movement and this Friday they’re marking the occasion with guest DJs Somna and Sheridan Grout.
The new monthly dubbed Strange People dedicated to happiness, good times and curiosity is back this Friday night inside Mercury Lounge. Party people are invited to come as they are and enjoy the sounds of house, disco, techno and more. For the latest edition, resident DJs Mat Thibault and Teknobrat will be on the mix with Lock City Groove, and together they’ll take you on an eclectic musical journey that’s bound to stimulate your imagination.
Saturday, February 25, celebrate the rhythms and movement of Africa and the Caribbean with Kallaloo, a one-day festival of Afro-Caribbean dance and culture featuring three workshops and an Afrocentric Marketplace.
This Saturday afternoon, House of Targ is putting on a clothing swap for anyone and everyone who has used clothing and accessories to donate and exchange. Bring clean clothes, shoes and/or accessories you no longer wear and swap for something you want while DJs Ska Jeff and DJ Felix spin tunes.
Gatineau hip hop artist CZA will be releasing his album Pied de vent this Saturday, February 25 at l’Avant-Première in the Hull sector of Gatineau. The local rapper will be sharing the stage with guests Kode, Selekwa, Outside I’m a Giant, Anka and others.
Make no mistake: the absolute best party in the city to be at this Saturday night is TIMEKODE’s Special Patreon Launch Celebration going down inside D’Afrique Resto & Bar with none other than internationally-renowned DJ Skratch Bastid. Don’t miss your chance to get down up close and personal with one of the best DJs in the game, period. There’s a limited amount of tickets for this event so grab yours quick! (Full disclosure: I now take care of communications for TIMEKODE.)
If you’re in the mood to play pinball and arcades while you check out some live punk bands, then House of Targ is where you’ll want to be this Saturday night for the Voice of a Generation Punk Night Vol. 3 featuring Make No Gains, Toxic Thoughts, Cansoc and more.
If you’re a fan of the Souljazz Orchestra and enjoy the sounds of salsa, cumbia, disco and sambafunk, head over to the Petit Chicago on Saturday to check out a new collective called Tropikombo. The Ottawa-based 5-piece conjunto led by Phil Motion has given a few live performances around town since its inception, and although I haven’t caught their set yet, I’ve heard nothing but good things about this new project.
A monthly party dedicated to the 6 God? Drake fans, you read correct. The Drake Night popular dance party, at which you can expect to hear nothing but Drizzy jams and tracks from OVO affiliates courtesy of DJs Max Zims and Laocapone, is now a monthly and it’s going down this Saturday night inside Babylon.
There’s an all-vinyl tribute to NYC’s CBGB going down at Bar Robo this Saturday night. The PWYC event will feature Showbox and Roadhaus DJs spinning Ramones, Velvet Underground, The Clash, Talking Heads, Patti Smith and lots more.
Ottawa-based soul-infused pop duo leMeow will be performing live at the always-fun Atomic Rooster this Sunday and they’ll be jamming out a mix of covers and originals. It’s an early evening show and a great way to end the weekend.
The latest instalment of the new WAVES series is happening at Overkill this Sunday night. The format for WAVES III is solely grip tape. What you do on your sheet is totally up to you. Submissions can be painted, stencilled, cut outs…whatever you want. E-mail falldowngalleryot@gmail.com to request your sheet ahead of the event. Skate videos will projected on the big screen and there will be music courtesy of DJ Laocapone.