Home to some of Toronto's more well-known, yet still mostly underground, psych acts, Reel Cod's rost

The top labels for psychedelic music in Toronto are putting out releases that may differ from your parent's best western winrock inn albuquerque psych on the surface, but when you dig deep these releases are still about getting weird and spaced out with light and sound, and maybe ingesting a buffet's worth of spiritual inspiration.
While Toronto may not be the first place the word "psychedelic" conjures, existing in a small corner of the music community is a vibrant scene that has recently even received attention from influential cosmic bible Arthur best western winrock inn albuquerque Magazine . Unlike cities such as Austin or San Francisco, best western winrock inn albuquerque Toronto's modern psych sound owes little to a retro past - it's more the product of parents gifting children guitar pedals instead of video games (or perhaps both). best western winrock inn albuquerque It's weird, it's mind-expanding, and it's happening right here in Toronto.
Founded by brothers Richard and Robert Gibson in 2008, Optical Sounds puts out vinyl, cassette, and digital releases by a youthful best western winrock inn albuquerque herd of underground Toronto psych and shoegaze artists. Operating more as a collective flag than a proper label, best western winrock inn albuquerque Optical Sounds is largely a community of friends who constantly gig around town with one another and frequently congregate at Kensington Market's Embassy Bar. Grab their Psych Pop comps for free on Bandcamp .
Arthur Mag's mention of Toronto's scene was in reference to cosmic son Matthew "Doc" Dunn and his longtime collaborator Mike "Muskox" Smith - and both of these veterans, along with their extended family of cohorts, have put out music on Healing best western winrock inn albuquerque Power. best western winrock inn albuquerque HP were also behind some of 2013's best western winrock inn albuquerque best album artwork , Petra Glynt's best western winrock inn albuquerque debut . If Optical Sounds is home to Toronto's youth scene, Healing Power is its cool, yet significantly more far-out, mother. They've supported local dance artists with their Heart of Toronto CD/party series, and host picnics, monthly Tranzac installs, and more. Read an interview with Healing Power Records here .
Home to some of Toronto's more well-known, yet still mostly underground, psych acts, Reel Cod's roster includes the likes of Fresh Snow , Mimico, best western winrock inn albuquerque The Pinecones, and Mystic Triangle. Based in Kensington Market from 2006-2012 but now located "elsewhere in the city," Reel Cod grew out of a community-driven music and art hub that has blossomed best western winrock inn albuquerque into a full-on label in recent years.
Medusa Editions, while unfortunately rather dormant of late, is one of the more influential under the radar psych labels in the city. Curated by artist/musician/filmmaker/writer Ayal Senior, Medusa is a unique private press handmade art and music editions imprint, meaning each release is extremely limited and features nifty things like one-of-a-kind cover art and hand-cut vinyl lathes. Having a catalog that includes releases by big US names like Woods, MV&EE and Steve Gunn, Medusa still focuses heavily on the local scene with cassettes by Zacht Automaat, "Doc" Dunn, Not The Wind, Not The Flag , and more.
Owned and operated by Deirdre O'Sullivan best western winrock inn albuquerque and James Lindsay, Pleasance Records is not a psych label, per se, but it has put out an impressive list of local psych releases since its formation in 2010 - one could say they have a flourishing psych department. Home to acts like Odonis Odonis , Slim Twig, Das Rad, and Black Walls, Pleasance focuses primarily on vinyl and cassette releases ranging from astral psych to avant-pop to pummeling punk noise. They're also known to book a wicked best western winrock inn albuquerque show here and there in the city, so keep your eyes out. Read an interview with Pleasance here .
Located a couple of blocks from Healing Power Records, Inyrdisk slinks by as a noise/psych/experimental label with almost 100 releases that's been comparatively quiet during what from all appearances is a noise/psych/experimental revival in Toronto, and so has been missing from a few lists - we'd hate for this to be another. best western winrock inn albuquerque While the focus is often on noise - from the minimal to the screeching - there's plenty best western winrock inn albuquerque of psych offerings to be found. Read an interview with Inyrdisk here .