vking
New Member
The list is big nonetheless!
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JasonParis
Moderator
Actually... Lake Shore Boulevard.
NorthYorkEd
Active Member
Yonge Street south of Bloor, north of Dundas
What do the locals think of this stretch? Aside from a few respectable patches, this section of Yonge seems generally seedy and decrepit. It's a shame, as it could be so much more. I'd like to see it refreshed and cleaned up, get rid of condom shacks, jewelry/pawn shops, and all those scuzzy looking stores that sell nothing but cheap junk. Maybe these add character, I don't know, but when friends and family visit we always walk south from Bloor down University or Bay, through Queens Park, etc, as the Yonge sidewalks on that stretch are often full of vomit and spit and mentally-ill people. Not the best face forward when trying to impress visitors.
What do the locals think of this stretch? Aside from a few respectable patches, this section of Yonge seems generally seedy and decrepit. It's a shame, as it could be so much more. I'd like to see it refreshed and cleaned up, get rid of condom shacks, jewelry/pawn shops, and all those scuzzy looking stores that sell nothing but cheap junk. Maybe these add character, I don't know, but when friends and family visit we always walk south from Bloor down University or Bay, through Queens Park, etc, as the Yonge sidewalks on that stretch are often full of vomit and spit and mentally-ill people. Not the best face forward when trying to impress visitors.
Register123
Active Member
Wasn't Platinum Blonde just a cover band for Duran Duran? Blech
Celeste
New Member
Um no. They were compared to Duran Duran and were nicknamed the "Canadian Duran Duran" but there are several things in common that I can see this band had and Duran Duran had and that is that they were pretty boys like Duran Duran, wore nice clothes, wore a lot of makeup, and they had the mile high, albeit a slight exaggeration, blonde hair, and they had the same hordes of screaming girls that Duran Duran had. But Mark Holmes told me that the music wasn't even close to sounding like Duran Duran's music and I'm inclined to agree with him.
[video=youtube_share;I4SOnBDe7qs]http://youtu.be/I4SOnBDe7qs[/video]
Nice clothes? Check!
Hair? Check!
Makeup? Check!
All they need now are the screaming female fans.
Attachments
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ehlow
Senior Member
What do the locals think of this stretch? Aside from a few respectable patches, this section of Yonge seems generally seedy and decrepit. It's a shame, as it could be so much more. I'd like to see it refreshed and cleaned up, get rid of condom shacks, jewelry/pawn shops, and all those scuzzy looking stores that sell nothing but cheap junk. Maybe these add character, I don't know, but when friends and family visit we always walk south from Bloor down University or Bay, through Queens Park, etc, as the Yonge sidewalks on that stretch are often full of vomit and spit and mentally-ill people. Not the best face forward when trying to impress visitors.
The negative things you mention don't really bother me as much as you or many people that have discussed this issue earlier in this thread.
I don't mind seediness or "decrepitness" (sometimes described as grittiness). Although, I've lived near there in the past and I didn't find it filled with vomit like you describe, or as bad as you seem to perceive it.
On the other hand, I value liveliness, vibrancy, high pedestrian activity and things like short storefronts, so I prefer that stretch of Yonge over say a clean but sterile street full of large banks or big stores. I also prefer it over a clean & new but suburban environment.
It also probably wouldn't be the place I would take visitors however. I usually take people to places like Kensington Market, Distillery District, Little Italy etc.
I think there are a lot of different cultural values in Toronto and they tend to end up liking or disliking different things. For example, I've noticed that some groups of people tend to only prefer newer large suburban houses and consider anything older than 20 years to be too old. On the other hand, I consider older houses to generally have more charm and character, even if they need more work, and I prefer older neighbourhoods.
Similarly, I don't really find Yonge to be as offensive as others, because I guess I value different things. I grew up in North York, so I've always found the vibrancy and urban-ness (for a lack of a better term) of downtown Yonge to be exciting and a fun place to be.
Having said all that, it will gentrify, like Queen West has, and Yorkville has before that, and condos will likely replace all of the buildings many find unappealing, so regardless of our opinions it will inevitably lose most of its grittiness/character/decrepitness/dirtiness.
freshcutgrass
Senior Member
Actually, I think they began their careers as a Police cover band. But yea...they were just another 80's New Romantic, synth-pop band that sounded like Duran Duran. Honeymoon Suite was another local one in the same vein.
But there was plenty of local talent in the 80's...
Jane Sibbery
Robbie Robertson
Nash the Slash
Alannah Myles
Kim Mitchell
Alta Moda
Blue Peter
Killer Dwarfs
Blue Rodeo
Martha and the Muffins (is there a more 80's Toronto tune than Echo Beach?)
Messenjah
Red Rider
The Pursuit of Happiness
Pukka Orchestra
The Parachute Club
Rough Trade
The Sattalites
Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet
The Shuffle Demons
Gowan
Toronto
Coney Hatch
Lee Aaron
Rush
Triumph
Handsome Ned
Spoons
Chalk Circle
Teenage Head
The Tragically Hip
Helix
Celeste
New Member
Funny you should ask.
[video=youtube_share;os4eWX88OxA]http://youtu.be/os4eWX88OxA[/video]
And not quite.
Duran Duran are new wave and new romantic. Platinum Blonde are new wave and glam rock.
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Torontovibe
Senior Member
Toronto has had lots of great musical performers/bands, it's just that few of them have had international success. How many of them have reached the top 20 on Billboard? I know Alannah Myles went to # 1 but probably only Rush has had international success. (of the ones listed above) Drake is probably Toronto's biggest world-wide success, although with The Weekend is doing pretty well too.
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ehlow
Senior Member
Toronto is doing well in hip hop. Besides Drake, a lot of Toronto producers have been becoming very successful producing for US rappers. A Brampton teenager produced a track on Jay Z's latest album for example.
Personally, I like Drake when he raps, but I don't like when he sings. He's not my favourite rapper either. However, he is Toronto's rapper like Eminem is Detroit's and Kanye is Chicago's, and unlike NYC or LA, he will likely be our only internationally successful rapper for a while, and he clearly loves Toronto and represents it more and better than many have. While other Toronto rappers tried not to mention Toronto much (ex Maestro Fresh Wes), he constantly references and talks about what a great city it is. Although he does mention it less than say Kendrick Lamar does for Compton, but there are probably still more Toronto references in his songs than any other internationally successful artist before.
I'm also hoping that OVO Fest becomes Toronto's big summer music festival like Osheaga for Montreal, but focused on hip hop. Outkast is performing at OVO Fest as well as all the other summer music festivals, so that's a good sign.
freshcutgrass
Senior Member
Since when does not charting in the top 20 on Billboard mean you can't be internationally successful? Besides...I prefer "good" to "top 20". But I'm sure many Toronto acts have been more popular than you imagine.
What a sad thing to think about. Toronto's current claim to fame...a worthless POS mayor and a talentless rapper (a redundant statement I know).
Celeste
New Member
It is sad to think that Canada's talent is based on someone who wasn't even alive when most of these bands were popular. At the very least when Platinum Blonde were young they seldom let anybody tell them which way to piss unlike these young kids now.
Celeste
New Member
Not true.
[video=youtube_share;B10rFFlLF3I]http://youtu.be/B10rFFlLF3I[/video]
This was a lone US hit for Platinum Blonde.
I used to watch Good Rockin Tonite and Video Hits on CBC just to see if they were going to be interviewed.
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freshcutgrass
Senior Member
A good barometer of taste these days..."Sitt'n on the toilet" has 80 million views on Youtube, while Blue Peter's Don't Walk Past video has...roughly 80 million less views. ha ha
I always thought Blue Peter had a great 80's sound...I saw them live a few times.
[video=youtube_share;G7hsxTN1Vow]http://youtu.be/G7hsxTN1Vow[/video]
I always thought Blue Peter had a great 80's sound...I saw them live a few times.
[video=youtube_share;G7hsxTN1Vow]http://youtu.be/G7hsxTN1Vow[/video]
Johnny Au
Senior Member
There is now a Kickstarter for the Pono Music Player: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1003614822/ponomusic-where-your-soul-rediscovers-music
It brings back memories of 70s and 80s music, according to many reviewers.
It brings back memories of 70s and 80s music, according to many reviewers.