Rock

Grammy, Hard Rock/Heavy Metal January 29, 2026

A Swedish heavy metal sensation is headed to Scotiabank Arena — and boasts a surprising connection to Sam the Record Man

Tobias Forge, a.k.a. Papa V Perpetua, brings his band Ghost to town on Saturday as part of the Skeletour World Tour. By Nick Krewen Special to the Star “Do we need mysterious bands? Absolutely.” So sayeth Papa V Perpetua, a.k.a. Tobias Forge, leader and frontman of the Swedish metal band Ghost, who performs in demonic face paint and dressed in papal robes and mitre. In this modern age of music, where information about artists…

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Americana, Arranger, Artist Spotlight, California, Canada, Canadian Music Hall Of Fame, Composer, Country, Country Rock, Events, Farm Aid, Folk, Garage Rock, Grammy, Grunge, Guitar, Hard Rock/Heavy Metal, JUNO, Kathleen Edwards, Linda Ronstadt, Neil Young, Pearl Jam, Piano, Pop, Producer, Psychedelic, Rock, Rock 'N Roll, Rock 'N Roll Hall Of Fame, Songwriter, Toronto, United States, Voice, Willie Nelson November 9, 2025

Neil Young is about to turn 80 — and these Canadian musicians are throwing him a party at Massey Hall

“NY80: A Celebration of Neil Young and His Music,” hosted by CBC’s Tom Power, will take place Nov. 12.  Nov. 9, 2025 By Nick Krewen Special to the Star On the cusp of 80, few performers have remained as relevant as Toronto’s own Neil Young. He’s been steadily rockin’ in the free world since forming The Squires in Winnipeg in 1965 — and in a career that has seen him thrive…

Americana, Arranger, Blackie & The Rodeo Kings, Bob Dylan, Canada, Canadian Music Hall Of Fame, Grammy, In Memoriam, JUNO, Producer, Robbie Robertson, Rock, Rock 'N Roll Hall Of Fame, Songwriter, Stratford, Toronto, United States January 23, 2025

Music insiders on the extraordinary legacy of Garth Hudson and the Band: ‘It was unlike any other music I’d ever heard’

Colin Linden, Rob Fraboni and John Simon, all of whom worked with the Band, offer remembrances. By Nick Krewen Special to the Star In 1968, when Colin Linden was eight years old, he heard a song on the radio that boggled his young mind. He was at Alexander’s department store in White Plains, N.Y., when rock radio station WNEW-FM played “The Weight” by a Canadian-American band simply called The Band….

Alt. Rock, Canada, Canadian Music Hall Of Fame, Cinema, Country, Country Pop, Country Rock, JUNO, Rock, Toronto January 23, 2025

What do Blue Rodeo and Broken Social Scene have in common? Both are celebrated in new documentaries premiering in Toronto

Blue Rodeo: Lost Together and It’s All Gonna Break will screen at Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema. By Nick Krewen Special to the Star In the next 10 days, new documentaries on two beloved Canadian bands will have their Toronto premieres at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema. They promise to be music to your eyes. On Jan. 24, Stephen Chung’s 89-minute It’s All Gonna Break, the story of Toronto indie collective…

Banjo, Bob Dylan, Canada, Events, Experimental, Festivals, Jazz, Metallica, Music Industry (Trade), Prince, Punk, Rock 'N Roll, Rolling Stones, Toronto November 30, 2024

He helped bring the Ramones, the Police and the B-52’s to Toronto for the first time. Nearly 50 years later, he’s being celebrated in a new book

Nearly 100 key players, including performers, scenesters and other promoters, were interviewed for “He Hijacked My Brain: Gary Topp’s Toronto.”  By Nick Krewen Special to the Star In a career that has lasted nearly five decades and involved thousands of concerts, eminent Toronto promoter Gary Topp has but a few regrets. One of his biggest involved an act he and partner Gary Cormier (known collectively as the Garys) tried to book…