April is gone and we didn’t get mich in the way of showers but let’s hope the May flowers still arrive. I (hope) we are past the cold weather now. We have Canadian Music Week and CBC Music Fest to kick off our summer festival season and a whole whack of other great shows. Here is a small selection of all the greatness of this month!
Skepta @ Danforth Music Hall
May 6th, 2016
$35.00-$49.50 | 19+
The Grime king comes to Toronto to play a Canadian Music Week headlining showcase on the night his new album Konnichiwa drops. This will be the hottest party of all of CMW and who knows; maybe his new BFF and rumoured collaborator Drake will make an appearance!
iHeartRadio Fest @ Sheraton Centre Grand Ballroom
May 6th, 2016
$39.50 | 19+
Last LiL Coverage for Tegan and Sara
Last LiL Coverage for X Ambassadors
Tegan and Sara return with some brand new material and they will have some awesome bands opening for them including X Ambassadors, Colmen Hell, Shawn Hook and more. The event is sold out already, but you can always try to win passes!
Death From Above 1979 and Eagles of Death Metal @ Hamilton Convention Centre
May 6th, 2016
$49.50 | All Ages
Last LiL Coverage for DFA 1979
Neither of these bands have anything in common with ‘death’ or ‘metal’ but instead use rock music to make you dance your ass off. DFA are already headliners in Canada, but the recent goodwill spawned onto EODM for surviving the horrific Catalan terrorist attacks make them heroes in the music industry now. Let the two bands remind you of what freedom really is.
Cage the Elephant and Portugal. The Man @ Arrow Hall
May 7th, 2016
$48.50 | All Ages
Last LiL Coverage for Cage the Elephant
Last LiL Coverage for Portugal. The Man
It’s a damn shame this pair of bands aren’t coming through Toronto, so you have to go on out to Mississauga to see this stacked double bill. While the two acts are very different, they are both veterans with a lot of material to draw upon so expect a mix of hits and back catalogue shows as they are more there to impress themselves than someone who just wants to hear Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked.
Pearl Jam @ Air Canada Centre
May 10th and 11th, 2016
$87.50 | All Ages
The classic alt rock titans are so in demand, they booked two shows for Toronto, and unfortunately they are already sold out. It’s a shame they are using Ticketmaster to sell their tix, but that’s the price to pay if you want to play large venues. If you managed to get tickets, enjoy a night away from the kids and crush a six pack before the show.
Zhu and Gallant @ Phoenix
May 16th, 2016
$40.00-$50.00 | 16+
It certainly is an odd choice of venue to host an EDM show, but it’s bigger than The Hoxton and easier to dance at than the Danforth so I guess it works. Zhu has risen steadily in the few short years he has been active and don’t be surprised if in a few years he’s headlining big EDM festivals.
Hop Along and Speedy Ortiz @ Horseshoe Tavern
May 21st, 2016
$18.50 | 19+
Last LiL Coverage for Hop Along
Last LiL Coverage for Speedy Ortiz
Hop Along quietly released on of the best albums last year in Painted Shut and Speedy Ortiz has been very consistent with their output. If you thought girls can’t rock, this is the perfect show to prove what an idiot you are for even thinking that in the first place.
Wolf Parade @ Lee’s Palace
May 24th, 25th, 26th, 27th and 28th 2016
$27.50 | 19+
Holy shit it takes balls to book yourself for a week straight at the same venue, but it takes being away for half a decade and your fan base missing you like crazy to sell all 5 nights out. Good luck getting tickets, but if you are one of the few dozen people who won’t get to see them at Lee’s you can catch them at Wayhome in July.
CBC Music Fest @ Echo Beach
May 28th, 2016
$39.50 | All Ages
Last LiL Coverage for 2015’s CBC Music Fest
The New Pornographers, Alvvays, Hey Rosetta!, Tokyo Police Club, Whitehorse, Maestro, Zaki Ibrahim, Tanya Tagaq, Rich Terfry (Buck 65) and more for only forty bucks and kids get in free. You can not beat this all Canadian all awesome lineup. Just go.
Courtney Barnett @ Danforth Music Hall
May 30th, 2016
$22.50-$26.50| 19+
Let Courtney show you that she’s smarter than you, it really is quite enjoyable. Plus she shreds harder than just about anyone else. You will leave her show with your ears ringing so loud you will be able to reach a meditative state to reflect on her poetic lyrics.
Miike Snow @ Danforth Music Hall
May 31st, 2016
$20.00-$30.00 | 19+
