mattblair.ca » Events

This Saturday: Beats and Brunch at the Gladstone Hotel

Matt — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 19:45:53 +0000

If you’re out and about in Toronto’s west end on Saturday afternoon, I’d like you to come and check out an awesome new event at the Gladstone. It’s called Beats and Brunch, and it’s hosted every Saturday from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM in the newly-renovated Melody Bar. They host a different DJ every weekend – and this time around, that DJ will be me.

I did my first appearance at Beats and Brunch in December, and I’m really looking forward to the next one. It’s a mellow afternoon in a great space with plenty of decent food and drink, and for me it’s a chance to do something a little bit different.

Hope to see you there! It’s a terrific new series, and it deserves all the support it can get. Stay tuned for details throughout the week, and join us on Saturday for an awesome afternoon!

DJs wanted for April

Matt — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 15:29:17 +0000

Spots are currently available for the April edition of Everyone’s a DJ. As always, no experience is required, and any kind of music will do. If you’d like to spin, shoot me an email with your preferred time and the name you’d like to spin under, assuming it’s a name that isn’t your own. As usual, the spots are available on a first come, first served basis, so the sooner you drop me a line, the better your chances are of spinning this month.

I’ll announce the schedule once it’s been confirmed. Stay tuned for updates, and please feel free to spread the word. Thanks!

DJs wanted for March

Matt — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 20:00:02 +0000

Spots are now available for the March edition of Everyone’s a DJ. As always, no experience is required, and all musical genres are welcome. If you’d like to spin, send me an email with your preferred time and the name you’d like to spin under, assuming it’s a name other than your own. The spots are available on a first come, first served basis, so the sooner you drop me a line, the better your chances.

The schedule will be announced once it’s been confirmed, and more information will be posted here shortly. Stay tuned for updates, and please feel free to spread the word.

Lovers and other strangers

Matt — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 06:59:12 +0000

The roster’s been confirmed for the Valentine’s Day edition of Everyone’s a DJ. Normally, I’d post it in the appropriate section of this website, but that section doesn’t exist right now, because I’m still in the process of moving a lot of old content from WordPress to Textpattern. So here it is, in case you’re curious.

9:00 PM – DJ Boomer Loved Tyrol
9:20 PM – EmilyAnalog
9:40 PM – DJ Jessy
10:00 PM – DJ Shagz
10:20 PM – Clide Rockwell
10:40 PM – DJ Snap Jackson
11:00 PM – Vijay
11:20 PM – Dynamite Chris Wright
11:40 PM – Kate Belcher
12:00 AM – Frisbee Pilot
12:20 AM – Ill Choi (Montage)
12:40 AM – Ian Jang (Montage)
1:00 AM – DJ Rudie
1:20 AM – Decade Selector
1:40 AM – Matt Blair
2:00 AM – Andrew Cowan

See you there! Stay tuned to this space for more information between now and then, including details on signing up for future editions.

DJs wanted for Valentine’s Day

Matt — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 17:54:10 +0000

Spots are now available for the February edition of Everyone’s a DJ, which happens to fall on Valentine’s Day. No experience is required, and any old music will do. If you’d like to spin, send me an email with your preferred time and the name you’d like to spin under. Spots are going fast, and they’re available on a first come, first served basis, so the sooner you drop a line, the better.

The schedule will be announced once it’s been confirmed, and more information will be posted here shortly. I’m on my way out the door as I write this, but there’s plenty more to come in the near future, including the online registration form that I promised a little while back. Stay tuned for more.

Looking for a niche

Matt — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 15:10:58 +0000

If you’ve already downloaded the first hour-long episode of the new Babylon Telecom podcast series, which launched early yesterday morning, then thank you. If you haven’t, please feel free to do so – or better yet, subscribe to the feed to receive future episodes as soon as they’re available. A pretty decent number of people have already done so, and the feedback I’ve gotten so far has been encouraging.

To tell you the truth, Babylon Telecom’s been a tough little project to promote. The live sets are a bit of a departure from the usual night out, what with all the noise and politics and such. The people who come to the shows are pretty receptive, but I’m starting to realize that they can’t really be promoted in the same way as a Yo! Jamz night, for example. That comparison sort of ignores the fact that Paul’s a much better promoter than I am, but you know what I mean.

At any rate, some good stuff’s coming up. If nothing else, a lot of these sets are better suited to listening than dancing, and the podcasts will hopefully prove to be a better way to reach an audience than the club shows have been.

Frankly, I’m grateful that anyone cares at all, so thanks to those that do. Stay tuned for more as it develops, and feel free to tell your friends about the weird new podcast you heard about.

The new sound

Matt — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 04:53:50 +0000

For over a year, I’ve been talking about launching a Babylon Telecom podcast series. Well, as of tonight, I’m glad to be able to tell you that I’ve done it. There’s a full moon in the sky, and Parliament is all set to resume in the morning, so it felt like a good night to finally get the Babylon Telecast series off the ground.

The first episode is an hour-long set called “The New Sound”. You can download the file directly in MP3 format, or you can subscribe to the feed. Doing the latter will ensure that you’ll automatically get future episodes as soon as they’re published. A full tracklisting and credits for this episode are available at the Babylon Telecom website.

This is the first time I’ve ever launched a podcast. If you run into any problems, or if you’ve got any tips or suggestions, feel free to get in touch. There are still a few bugs to work out, and I’m not crazy about the sound quality in some places, but I figure I can learn as I go.

Check it out and let me know what you think. Oh, and don’t forget that we’re also relaunching Social Work at the Ossington this Tuesday, with special guest DJs Rob Nice and MFFN. It’s a free night of music with a message. Details are currently available in the events section, as well as the Babylon Telecom website. Stay tuned as always for more.

Everyone’s a DJ, provided they’re single

Matt — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 22:06:32 +0000

Hosting Everyone’s a DJ on the second Saturday of every month is generally a good idea. In February, however, the second Saturday happens to be Valentine’s Day. Call me crazy, but I’ve got a feeling that we’re not going to see as many couples as we usually do.

At any rate, the date’s been set, and bookings will open up shortly. As always, we’ll bring together sixteen DJs doing twenty-minute sets each, with no cover charge, no experience required, and all genres welcome. We haven’t opened up the booking yet, but we’ll do so shortly. I’m currently working on an online form that will allow potential DJs to sign up for the dates and spots they want automatically. If you’d like to spin, you can send me an email, and I’ll be sure to drop you a line as soon as the form goes live.

In the meantime, I’ve also updated the events section, adding details on two upcoming Babylon Telecom performances. The first is the relaunch of Social Work at the Ossington this Tuesday, featuring sets by special guests DJs Rob Nice and MFFN. The second is the Sunday night chapter of the Wavelength Ninth Anniversary Festival, which will feature a slew of great performers. Stay tuned to this site for more information on these events and others.

January has been good to me

Matt — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 01:16:58 +0000

Big thanks to everybody who came out to Yo! Remember the 90s? last night at Augusta House – and apologies to anyone who couldn’t get in. In spite of the nasty weather, we got a much bigger crowd than we expected. We had a lot of people celebrating birthdays last night, which always makes for a bigger night and a larger turnout. It also made us realize that last night was the first party we’ve thrown where somebody could have legally celebrated being born in the nineties. But the less said about that, the better.

As crazy and unexpected as last night was, it wasn’t the first big night this month. The thirteenth edition of Everyone’s a DJ drew an amazing crowd in even lousier weather. Friends and fellow DJs kept asking why there were so many people out, and I didn’t know what to tell them. My best guess is that the holidays were over, and everyone was eager to get out of the house after a long week at school or work. Whatever the reason, it was great to see everyone.

If you live in the Toronto area, you’ll be able to get a glimpse of that night on a show called Our Toronto, airing throughout the week on Rogers Cable. They were kind enough to send a camera crew down to do a short piece on the night. I’m not exactly sure when it’s going to air, but I’ve been told that it’ll most likely be broadcast on Thursday at 9:00 PM. I sure hope I didn’t say anything stupid!

Hopefully, the trend will continue at tomorrow’s edition of Strong Words. It will be the first reading produced by our new co-curators, Devon Code and Spencer Butt, and it will feature readings by Kathleen Phillips, Rebecca Rosenblum and Mike Smith. As always, we’ll be collecting donations of new and used books in resale condition for the Book Ends program at the Toronto Public Library. Check out the website for bios and details, and join us tomorrow night if you’re able.

Everyone’s a DJ will return to Disgraceland on Valentine’s Day. We’ll start booking DJs this week, so stay tuned for details if you’d like to spin. As for Augusta House, Paul is working on something great for February, and I’m sure he’ll announce it on the Yo! Jamz site soon. Stay tuned to the events page for news on all this and more.