The North by Northeast Media Conference, May 13 at the Mill St. Brew Pub:
Posted May 15th, 2008 by nxneadmin
Strange animals perched on the gates and the brickwork of the Distillery District, making sure no one got lost amid the cobbles and cornices. Two splashy Mini Club Cars framed the entrance to the venue. And inside, filmmaker Bruce McDonald helped introduce NXNE 08 to a few hundred media, music- & film-biz pros, musicians, and others who scored an invite to the show.
Photo Credit: Phil Ogynist Photo Credit: Phil Ogynist
Great Bloomers opened the evening with a set of melodic, thoughtful pop. Then, while guests munched on generous platefuls of nosh and guzzled the fine Mill St fare on tap, McDonald and NXNE Managing Director Andy McLean rattled off details about this year's festival--by far the biggest and most expansive in NXNE's 14-year history. Highlights:
* 3 weeks of live music at three stages at Pearson Airport
* 3 days & nights of entertainment at Yonge-Dundas Square, including an expanded Indie Music Marketplace and headline concerts each night
* 2 weeks of free outdoor shows in parks and public spaces spread all over downtown
* a killer NXNExtra Series lineup, including shows by Lightspeed Champion, My Morning Jacket, Rough Trade and The Carps
* 500+ performers at 40 club venues, plus an even more eclectic selection of music-related films
The speeches were short and pointed, so people could get right back to boozing and scmoozing. DJ Nasty Nav cranked up the tunes as people flooded the cool Mill St patio. By 9:30, the animals had slunk off into the night and the Minis were gone.
Onward to June!
Great Bloomers
Michael Hollett, Gord Lewis of Teenage Head, Colin Brunton director of The Last Pogo, nice gentleman.
Scott McFadyen and Sam Dunn of Seville Pictures, Bruce McDonald, Andy McLean
Claire Williams, Gillian Zulauf, Yvonne Matsell, Mary Zondanos
Lindy
Pics at NXNE launch
The "nice gentleman" in the pic with Hollet, Lewis and Brunton is Vince Carlucci, ex-lead guitar slinger of the original 1976 Toronto punk/new-wave band The Cardboard Brains (featured in The Last Pogo), currently with Stationtwang, and awesome in all counts. Including being nice, and a gentleman.