Kicking off the week, I saw an advanced screening of Power Ballad starring Paul Rudd and Nick Jonas, out in theatres June 5. TIFF Lightbox, home of the Toronto International Film Festival, holds a bit more magic than your standard Cineplex — and the perfectly buttered popcorn is worth every penny of the egregiously high movie theatre price.

The movie itself follows Rudd as a washed-up rockstar turned wedding singer, who spends a spontaneous night jamming out with an ex-boybander (Jonas) trying to find his feet as a solo artist. When Rudd finds out Jonas stole his song and turned it into a No. 1 hit, he embarks on a comically absurd journey to prove the song is his — and to get Jonas to admit it. The plot felt a bit familiar at times, but the charming moments between Rudd and his Irish bandmates/sidekicks got big laughs from the whole theatre. If anything, the movie kept me entertained; I had already polished off my whole bag of popcorn before the credits rolled.

The louder the guitar amps screech, the better

cherry pick performing at the RANGE Magazine showcase on May 7, 2026 at the Garrison.

RANGE’s showcase at The Garrison featured a stacked bill of emerging indie bands, including Vancouver’s cherry pick, who absolutely crushed her Toronto debut. On the smoky stage with bright red hair covering most of her face, Cherry and her band delivered a lush sound bath of heavy guitars and drums. Wearing a long plaid dress over jeans, her ’90s femme-punk influences could be heard and seen as she played songs like “asleep with the fishes” and “doe-eyed” from her new EP. 

Performances by fellow Vancouver band Concrete Vehicles (fka Computer) and Toronto groups The Neverminds and Rosewater Park all leaned into noise-core, shoegaze-y elements, filling the venue wall to wall with layered sound. While synchronized headbanging kept the tempo, the guitar amp feedback in each set punctuated the beginning and end of each song. There’s something exciting about the whine of an amp; the electric anticipation signalling the loud, crashing chords soon to follow. 

More saxophones in punk bands, please

Concrete Vehicles performing at the RANGE Magazine showcase on May 7, 2026 at the Garrison.

In the same vein as my thoughts on guitar amp sounds, Concrete Vehicles’ inclusion of a saxophonist in their band stood out to me. The group, formerly known as Computer, played two shows during their time in Toronto at Departure Fest — their first being to a fired-up crowd at the Garrison. From the moment they stepped on stage, it was chaos in the best way: guitars hanging low, band members perpetually swaying, jumping and bumping into each other.

Their inclusion of the saxophone contrasts their hardcore sound against a background of experimental jazz, the fast-paced playing of the woodwind instrument adding texture and depth to their songs. The addition of a seemingly non-traditional instrument in a punk band is reminiscent of early releases from Viagra Boys, and it definitely sets Concrete Vehicles apart from other bands in their realm. If you missed them in Toronto this time around, they’ll be back in August for two nights opening for Alexisonfire.

The best music venues are the ones you didn’t know existed

Gladstone House

While Departure led me to some familiar and beloved venues, I also got the chance to venture to parts of the city I hadn’t yet explored. I spent a sunny weekend afternoon at Cassette, a small bar tucked inside the Gladstone House in the Parkdale neighbourhood — a little gem of a venue I hadn’t known existed.

It ended up being the perfect setting for a daytime acoustic show by Georgia Harmer, Braden Lam, and AVIV. The black-and-white checkered floor and mood lighting added to the vintage piano bar vibe, and the dreamy folk and alt-pop stylings of each artist were the perfect soundtrack. By the time Lam played the opening notes on his harmonica, the bar had filled up with groups of people cozily sipping midday cocktails.

Live music will always find a crowd

The thing that stuck with me most from my Departure Fest experience was how dedicated and excited the crowds were at every event. Each room I entered, day and night, was filled with an impressive turnout of people passionate about art and live music. People pressed up against the stage in platform boots and spiky jackets, groups of friends squished together in a bar booth — it was a testament to the unifying power of live music.

The hordes of people showing up to support different Canadian artists made me optimistic that music scenes are, and will continue to stay, alive and well. If there’s one thing AI can never replicate, it’s the uninhibited feeling of jumping around in a mosh pit with a bunch of like-minded strangers.