Toronto has always had a remarkable love for live music, but when the Eras Tour rolled into the Rogers Centre, it felt like the city had been swept up in something even bigger than usual. Having attended her Reputation Tour here in 2018, I thought that was the pinnacle of Taylor Swift’s stadium performances—but somehow,…
Read MoreVampire Weekend performed what they pronounced was their largest ever headline show ever in Canada tonight at the Budweiser Stage in Toronto, Canada, as part of the Only God Was Above Us tour. For the occasion, across a two and a half hour show, the New York band performed the OG version of their Contra…
Read MoreOver the last year and a half, Canada’s Porter Airlines has been rapidly expanding its services, debuting a wide variety of new routes on the brand new Embraer E195-E2 aircraft. They started flying those jets (the first in North America to do so) in February of last year. Up until that debut, the airline had…
Read MoreAir Canada have been giving their Airbus 321-200s a much needed overhaul, from head to tail, featuring everything from larger baggage compartments, to a camera on the tail and belly – a first for a narrow body aircraft. This will help bring the aircraft up to the standard of their newer narrow body aircraft, both…
Read MoreOn the final date of her North American tour for her latest album – the brilliant Cyan Blue – Canadian R&B artist Charlotte Day Wilson sold out one of Toronto, Canada’s most popular new venues, History. “You know it’s a big night, right?”, Wilson said as she stared out into a crowd full of fans,…
Read MoreSupported by Portland up-and-comers Spoon Benders, Australia’s own Psychedelic Porn Crumpets gave everyone exactly what they needed in their largest Canadian show to date. You can read my full review HERE, and here are all the photos from the night! Psychedelic Porn Crumpets continue their tour around the US and Canada. Dates are HERE are at the…
Read MoreStopping by Toronto at the half way point of their 26 show stint across North America, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets gave everyone exactly what they needed on one of the first warm Canadian Wednesdays of the year. Originally slated to play the smaller Opera House, a last minute upgrade to the Phoenix Concert Theatre resulted in their largest…
Read MoreWhile most commonly used for Canadians looking to travel abroad, Air Transat do have a number of domestic services in a network dominated by the country’s two biggest airlines – Air Canada and Westjet. One route that just about all these airlines share is the quick hop from Toronto (either Billy Bishop or Pearson) to…
Read MoreI’ve talked quite a bit about Toronto Pearson International of late, and while there’s been plenty in the press about the delays in the airport, not every airline nor terminal is necessarily facing the same issues. Also, across the board, my own experiences have been more positive of late. For instance, take last month’s flight…
Read MoreLos Angeles may have gotten a special appearance from Beck and Kevin Parker of Tame Impala last week, but last night, Toronto fans also received a treat. As Gorillaz kicked off their 5 1/2 song encore at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena last night, Damon Albarn commented “I didn’t think we’d ever play this song again”, before…
Read MoreI haven’t flown American Airlines since before the pandemic, but recently I had the chance to jump on their regional “American Eagle” service between DC and Toronto. So what is their in flight offering now? And what Covid-19 precautions remain in place? Here’s a look at the experience on that service. Flight Number: AA 5667…
Read MoreIt’s no secret that flying out of Toronto Pearson International is currently fraught with issues and delays. In fact, you may have seen the airport make headlines for having the most delays – affecting more than 50% of outbound flights – of any airport in the world. Simply put, due in large part to short…
Read MoreWe’ve spoken a lot over the years about the differing experiences flying Canada’s two main airlines – Westjet and Air Canada – as well as the shorter range journeys with Porter. But on a recent trip between Montreal and Toronto, I decided to try one of Canada’s more recently established budget (“Ultra Low Cost”) carriers…
Read MoreIn Toronto, after enduring the world’s longest continuous COVID-19 lockdown – accumulating almost 400 days by the time indoor dining restrictions came to an end earlier this month – we’re finally coming out of what we hope are the darkest days of the pandemic. Vaccination rates are approaching 80% – placing us amongst the most…
Read MoreEarlier this month, Toronto’s central Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport re-opened for the first time to travellers since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, as the airport’s primary commercial carriers, Porter Airlines, resumed domestic services. The airport – which I’ve previously called one of the world’s most convenient – is unique due to its location…
Read MoreThis year’s Toronto International Film Festival is welcoming back a sense of normalcy after the year that wasn’t. Ticket buyers – both those attending TIFF in person and those staying at home with TIFF’s virtual platform – are spoilt for choice, with over 100 films on the line-up, ranging from blockbuster special events, gala screening…
Read MoreYou don’t think of Trans-Atlantic airlines as being ones where you don’t get a complimentary meal on board. But sure enough, there are plenty that don’t offer the service. Most of them are branded as “Budget Carriers”, however, like Norwegian Air, who fly out of the U.S. East Coast to the UK and Europe. Others,…
Read MoreIt’s not long now until the legendary Elton John returns for Australia for what he promises to be the last time, in his swan song, “Farewell, Yellow Brick Road” tour. It’ll see him take in a mountain of dates across several months – with both major city and regional appearances. So what do Australian fans…
Read MoreIt’s been 7 years since I last saw Seattle based singer/songwriter Noah Gundersen. Then, he had a lot less tattoos. Me, a lot less facial hair. In that time he’s gone on to release four more albums and work with Glorietta. His latest, Lover, hit our headphones at the end of August. It’s a stunning record that deserves to…
Read MoreYou may have heard over the years of the expensive nature of travelling around Canada, especially by plane. It’s a country where internal flights are almost entirely serviced by two airlines – Air Canada and Westjet – both of whom have a mixed reputation, especially when it comes to their ticket prices. And these are…
Read MoreLast night, comedian Eric Andre hit the stage at the Meridian Hall in Toronto as one of the headliners of the annual Just For Laughs comedy festival. Part of his Legalize Everything Tour, the hilarious hour and a half show was something of a tamer affair than what you might have seen on his popular…
Read MoreA surprising mix of artists descended on the Budweiser Stage in Toronto tonight, with Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds shortly into their set when I arrived, after an earlier set from openers AFI. What does link these acts though are ever growing, rabid fanbases. You mat not feel like you’ve heard much new music from these…
Read MoreTransiting from a domestic to an international flight at Toronto’s Pearson International, as we’ve talked about in the past, can prove to be a bit of a nightmare. But how does it compare when you’ve got to connect from international to domestic? You may not have to clear US customs post security, but you still…
Read MoreTwo months back, I talked you through the transfer process at Toronto’s Pearson. One way to bypass some of these difficulties is by flying one of the WestJet “Simplicity” routes, which are their short haul services between Toronto and either New York, Ottawa or Montreal. They promise priority access in the queue, a snack with…
Read MoreOn Saturday night, New York trio Yeasayer hit Toronto, Canada for the third date of their Erotic Reruns North American tour – celebrating the group’s fifth full length record of the same name. Along the ride for the first few weeks of this tour are Olympia based outfit Oh, Rose. The Washington quartet reeked of beauty;…
Read MoreIt it feels like Sydney trio Middle Kids haven’t stopped touring the globe over the last few years, you’re probably not wrong. It’s been one success after another for the group – and a lot of it has been happening quietly overseas. Currently, the troupe are on the road in North America supporting Local Natives,…
Read MoreLast night in Toronto, Canada, iconic New York group The Strokes officially kicked off their 2019 tour – their first since 2017. The headline show was a part of the band’s “global comeback” that also saw the group play a surprise, intimate warm up show in Los Angeles earlier this month. The gig, which kicked…
Read MoreBack in 2009, a band by the name of Passion Pit – hailing from Boston, Massachusetts – made waves around the world with their debut LP Manners, just as their debut EP Chunk of Change had done the year prior with tracks like “Sleepyhead” and my personal favourite, “Cuddle Fuddle”. But Manners was truly a…
Read MoreFresh off the release of the first part of their two part record Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost, UK quartet Foals are on a world tour that tonight saw them play Toronto venue Rebel supported by Canada’s Preoccupations and Atlanta outfit Omni. First up, three piece Omni were singing songs with entertaining lyrics like…
Read MoreLate last year, I flew with Canadian carrier WestJet from Halifax, Nova Scotia to LA via Toronto. It’s a long journey – about as far from one side of North America to the other as you can get. And there’s no way to do it direct. You start off with a two hour flight from Halifax…
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