Desire & Johnny Jewel light up Project Nowhere @ St. Anne's Parish, Oct 2

The dynamic IDIB duo of Desire & Johnny Jewel join the expansive Project Nowhere event at six west end T.O. venues Oct 2 to 4.   

Here's the scoop...

Project Nowhere returns for a third year to Toronto's west end on OCT 2-4, 2025. The full lineup of artists has arrived, promising the best of underground heavy hitters and up-and-coming talent from Toronto and beyond!

 

The festival's multi-venue format will span six spaces along Dundas West - Nineteen Seventy Eight (Expo Vintage Outlet), St. Anne's Parish, The Garrison, The Baby G, BSMT254, and Hank's Liquor. Show-hopping with a 3-day pass (for $119.60) is highly encouraged - the only way to experience all the shows one's heart desires, all weekend long. 

Tickets for the Desire's highly-anticipated show with Johnny Jewel and Kat Duma at St. Anne's Parish Hall on Thursday, October 2 at 7:30 pm are $32.31 advance and available right here. Tickets for Friday night's boffo blast featuring Teke::Teke with Orbital Ensemble and Miserable Weekend also at St. Anne's Parish Hall at 7:30 pm are $32.31 and available here. Saturday's main event will be The Mystery Lights sharing a bill with Detroit's Shadow Show and The Mersey Sound at The Garrison at 8:30 pm. Tickets are again $32.31 and available here. Check out Project Nowhere's full-lineup, schedule and info at the event site right here: https://www.projectnowhere.org/. 

PROJECT NOWHERE VENUES

St. Anne's Parish Hall - 651 Dufferin St.

Nineteen Seventy Eight - 1978 Dundas St. W.

The Garrison - 1197 Dundas St. W.

The Baby G - 1608 Dundas St. W.

BSMT254 - 254 Lansdowne Ave

Hank's Liquor - 1415 B Dundas St. W.

Here are a couple of clips of Desire accompanied by Johnny Jewel along with some performance footage of Teke::Teke, a stylish Shadow Show video and a KEXP performance by The Mystery Lights followed by a listing of Project Nowhere's scheduled shows for October 2nd and 3rd. 

Lima's Ballet Mecánico builds on the 80s coldwave sound of Peru

Ballet Mecánico, the latest project of Fernando Pinzás features guest vocals from Gomas singer Susan Fátima and many other Perruvian indie stars. 

Here's the scoop...

Buh Records has just announced the release of "Primera Secuencia,", the debut album by Ballet Mecánico, the latest  musical project of Peruvian keyboardist Fernando Pinzás. After his time in the popular Lima synth-punk band Varsovia, Pinzás embarked on a new phase as a solo artist and producer.

While "Primera Secuencia" retains elements of the EBM and techno punk sound  that shaped Varsovia, the new project expands into other 80s electronic styles such as synthpop, Hi-NRG, Italo disco, and techno pop. Suffice it to say, there's a load of synth involved in Ballet Mecánico's concept however there's a much darker vibe than might be expected from the aforementioned influences which makes sense when you consider that Primera Secuencia" against the backdrop of a global pandemic and protests for social justice. 

And it's not really a coincidence that Gonzalo de Montreuil's sleeve art recalls the Italians Do It Better releases of Johnny Jewel and company. The Chromatics, Desire and Glass Candy were clearly inspirations for the work of Pinzás on Primera Secuencia. Each song on the album features a guest singer: Susana Fátima (best known as a member of the group Gomas), Noelia Cabrera (associated with Blue Velvet and Silveria), Kat Kathia, Luxsie, Luminiscencia, Anabhell (vocalist of the punk band Las Ratapunks), Laura Rosales (member of the dream pop band Solenoide), and Elva Cío (singer of the gothic rock band Specto Caligo)—all  prominent vocalists from the Peruvian independent music scene.

The album was produced by Fernando Pinzás in collaboration with Antonio Ballester, Oman Morí, Rafael Benavides, and Juancho Esquivel. The album also includes a remix of "No cederé" contributed by  Italoconnection, the duo formed by Fred Ventura and Paolo Gozzetti, key figures in the Italo disco scene. 

Ballet Mecánico's debut "Primera Secuencia" will be released digitally and in a limited vinyl edition on May 9th through Buh Records. Get a digital version of"No cederé" via Bandcamp here and watch the video following the album's tracklisting below. 

Ballet Mecánico – "Primera Secuencia"

1.- No cederé (feat. Susana Fátima)

2.- Rosa era inocente (feat. Laura Rosales)

3.- Mascarilla (feat. Luxsie)

4.- Como la última vez (feat. Noelia Cabrera)

5.- La ciudad de los incendios (feat. Elva Cío)

6.- La memoria es un acto político (No hay perdón ni olvido) (feat. Kat Kathia)

7.- Fábricas del miedo (feat. Anabhell)

8.- Testamento (feat. Luminiscencia)

9.- No Cederé (Italoconnection remix)

Midweek Mixdown: Johnny Jewel

Check out a selection of rare IDIB recordings and mixes put together by Johnny Jewel for NTS Radio right here. 

Johnny Jewel: Music From The Cutting Room Floor

JOHNNY JEWEL "ANOTHER SLEEPLESS NIGHT"

Unreleased

DESIRE "THE BLACK WIDOW"

Unreleased

SALLY SHAPIRO "FORGET ABOUT YOU (JOHNNY JEWEL'S DRUMLESS REMIX)

Unreleased

JOHNNY JEWEL "THE MISFITS"

Holly Soundtrack

CHROMATICS "THE LONG ROAD HOME (NIGHT DRIVE VINYL DOWNLOAD CARD)"

Unreleased

CHROMATICS "STREETLIGHT RUNNER (COLLAGE)"

Unreleased

JOHNNY JEWEL "NECROMANCER"

Holly Soundtrack

JOHNNY JEWEL FEATURING FARAH "DON'T AT ME INTO ETERNITY (COLLAGE)"

Unreleased

JOHNNY JEWEL "LUCIFER"

Unreleased

THE WEEKND "BLINDING LIGHTS (JOHNNY JEWEL'S SERENADE REMIX)"

Unreleased

FARAH "THE LIVING DEAD"

Single

OMAR S & DESIRE "HARD TIMES (JOHNNY JEWEL'S FILM MIX)

Unreleased

CHROMATICS "ENDLESS SLEEP"

After Dark 3

JOHNNY JEWEL "CICCADAS & OWLS AT NIGHT"

Unreleased Sound Design From The Lost River Film

After Dark 4 comp shows off expanding Italians Do It Better label roster

Italians Do It Better breakout star Glüme is featured on the label's 27-track After Dark 4 collection of previously unissued music. 

Here's the scoop...

Today, Italians Do It Better have released the next edition of their legendary After Dark compilation series with After Dark 4, which features unreleased music from Desire, Sally Shapiro, Glüme, Mothermary, Farah, Joon & more. On After Dark 4, Megan Louise & Johnny Jewel of Italians Do It Better note:

"It is with immense pleasure & excitement that we share After Dark 4 with you. 30 artists from 11 countries deliver 27 tracks for the endless summer of your dreams. Clocking in at just under two hours, the melodies have been soundtracking our weekly night drives between our studio in the desert & our offices in Los Angeles. The rhythms have been working their magic as secret weapons on the dancefloor in our DJ sets.

Recorded around the globe...our roster of artists explores Italo Disco, Electro, AOR, Film Score, Minimal Wave, Punk, Dream Pop, Spoken Word, Outrun & more.

 It's real...It's intimate...It's Everything you ever needed...

 Thank you for listening."

xo

Megan Louise & Johnny Jewel

Get a copy of After Dark 4 via your platform of choice right here: https://idib.ffm.to/afterdark4. 

Check out Glüme's recent performance of her contribution "Dangerous Blue" at L.A.'s Resident followed by audio clips of Desire's "Silver Machine" (not the Hawkwind classic), Double Mixte's “Château D’Eau," Love Object's "Epicur," Sally Shapiro's "Purple Colored Sky" and Cigar Cigarette's "Come Correct" after the track listing. 

 

Various Artists – AFTER DARK 4 

1. Wolfram ft. Desire “Sad Ibiza Song”

2. Orion “Call A Psychic”

3. MOTHERMARY "Coming For You" (NICOLAAS Remix)

4. Double Mixte “Château D’Eau"

5. Love Object “Epicur”

6. The Operator “Danser”

7. Talvi “The Day We Met Never Ended For Me"

8. Kid Moxie & NINA “Waiting For Tonight”

9. Farah “Loosing My Religion”

10. Sally Shapiro “Moonlight Dance” (Tommy ’86 Remix)

11. Glüme “Dangerous Blue”

12. Cigar Cigarette “Come Correct”

13. Desire “Silver Machine”

14. Causeway “I’m Falling Apart”

15. Esper Star “Boys Of Summer”

16. Juno Francis “Romantica”

17. Sally Shapiro “Purple Colored Sky”

18. Club Intl “Hazel Eyes”

19. Mesh Kimono “Afterburn”

20. Dlina Volny “Saturday”

21. Annie-Claude Deschênes “Electric Light”

22. Cameron Romance “Meet You On The Other Side”

23. Joon “I Think They Call It Love”

24. Lovelock ft. Orion “Riders On Dark Horses”

25. PYNKIE & Social Media “Zoom”

26. Body Double “Telescope”

27. Double Mixte “Am I A Fool To Love You”

Midweek Mixdown: Megan Louise's Music Is Medicine 3

Listen to the fab third instalment of the Music Is Medicine series from Desire's Megan Louise right here. Check the tracks below. 

Johnny Jewel shares After Dark 3

After Dark 3 features tracks by Chromatics, Club Intl, Joon, Double Mixte, Desire, Orion, Pink Gloves and others. Listen below. 

Various Artists – After Dark 3 

Desire - Boy

Orion - Higher

Johnny Jewel - Surgery (Feat. Glüme)

Double Mixte - Chambre 48 (Feat. Desire)

Farah - Boyz R Bad

Chromatics - TOY (ATRIP Remix)

Love Object - Holodnoe Solnce

Joon - Cruel Summer

Glüme - Don't @ Me 

MOTHERMARY - Resurrection 

Orion - Space Girl 

Guy Gerber - Cameo 

Causeway - We Were Never Lost

Club Intl - Crush 

Double Mixte - Tirage En Croix 

Joon - Worse Things Than Feeling Lonely 

Pink Gloves - Fading Stars (Johnny Jewel Remix) 

Chromatics - Endless Sleep 

Links

https://italiansdoitbetter.com/store/

https://instagram.com/italiansdoitbetter

https://twitter.com/IDIB

https://italiansdoitbetter.com/

https://soundcloud.com/johnnyjewel

The Chromatics w/ Desire, In Mirrors, Tess Roby play Danforth Music Hall, Monday

Johnny Jewel's Chromatics crew, his side project Desire, Jesse Taylor's In Mirrors and Tess Roby hit Toronto tonight. Watch the Time Rider clip below.

In "Time Rider," Johnny Jewel's Chromatics employ the metaphor of a motorcycle as an inter-dimensional bridge between the future and the past. In this dream, the motorcyclist mirrors myths of the grim reaper as Ruth Radelet eerily asks "Can I take your hand? I want to ride with you into the storm."

Chromatics will play their first public concerts in over five years. The last time Chromatics was on stage was for the filming of their Roadhouse appearances in David Lynch's Twin Peaks. This six-week North American tour will be the first time the band performs live with vocalist Ruth Radelet in many of the cities. Onstage, the group will be playing their favorite moments from Night Drive, Kill For Love, Cherry, and Dear Tommy.

Montreal's Desire will be performing in direct support of Chromatics. Frontwoman Megan Louise sings in French and English over Italo disco laced dream pop. Their single "Under Your Spell" made a splash on the silver screen in Nicolas Winding Refn's cult classic Drive alongside label mates Chromatics, Electric Youth, & Kavinsky.

From Vancouver, B.C., Italians Do It Better labelmates In Mirrors open the nights with their hypnotic brand of minimal wave, krautrock, and post punk.

Visually, the entire night features films directed by Johnny Jewel mixed live by video artist Danny Perez (Antibirth, Panda Bear). Bringing a cinematic experience to the concerts, the bands will be blurring the line between stage and screen.

Watch the videos for Chromatics' "Time Rider," Desire's "Tears From Heaven," followed by In Mirrors' "Take Your Movement Away" and Tess Roby's "Given Signs" below.