Spring rounds that inexorable corner and the undergrowth plays a symphony in the key of green. 

Our next mix comes courtesy of resident Chris. We met him shortly after opening in summer 2019 when his genre jumping set had the whole room swaying softly under the mirror ball. Subsequent nights with Chris as musical host pulled an emotional thread through the room that had folks popping in for a drink and being washed over with a warmth that girded them for the grey ahead. 

This selection of records- like the tail end of such nights; a few puffs in after the last drinks have been served. Minds suspended in that between-time to the words: 

‘Maybe I’m afraid, I’m not giving enough, 
   Or taking much too much. 
   Teach me,
    I want to know,
    How to love.'

So start to unfurl your folded leaves. Let the night wrap around you,
 and make your way home.


*Art by Dmitry Bondarenko 
IG: @handdrawndmitry

MARCH 2021 - MIXED BY CHRIS

Our next mix comes courtesy of Private Gardening: selectors Privatepressed & Joel Garden 

DJ and record collector Privatepressed (Kathryn Firanski) tirelessly hips the Toronto scene to gorgeous under the radar jazz, soul, and boogie pressings. Known for her mind-expanding all vinyl sets, she lends her talent to music collectives and dance floors in Toronto, the USA, and abroad. 

DJ, musician, and producer Joel Garden (Belerique) always turns the floor with turntablist techniques and holy grail offerings mixed with discoveries in samba, bossa nova, spiritual jazz, and hip-hop. He’ll fast-cut four fire dollar bins you’ve never heard with an OG pressing of Spread Love and make it all look lemon squeezy. Joel’s latest self titled release can be found via band camp in the link below. 

Here they entwine sensibilities to take us on a ramble through Soul, Jazz, Bossa-Nova, Psych and Boogie badness. Pull on your gardening clogs and traipse through the funky topography.

We can’t wait to resume Joel & Kathryn’s all things jazz night: ‘The Jazzhole’ when we (eventually) re-open!

Big Love from everyone at The Little Jerry.

Kathryn’s Insta: @privatepressed

Joel’s Bandcamp: https://joelgarden.bandcamp.com/

Art by the inimitable Dmitry Bondarenko
www.dmitryillustration.com
@handdrawndmitry

Private Gardening

Up next in our on again off again series of lockdown mix downs is Toronto DJ and sound designer Sakiko Nagai. Known for her floor-filling mixes of disco, rare groove, city pop, and hip-hop, Sakiko blends technical precision on the decks with a keen ear for those lesser rinsed bombs that’ll have you hovering over the booth for an id. Sakiko can be found in the booth at The Little Jerry, various Toronto gigs such as Subtle Blend and gigging internationally- most recently the Soul in the Horn Global Vibrations Live Stream on Friday Jan 14, 6pm-LATE EST. 


Here she cuts us a thick slice of lemony summer soul with chuggy horn and rhodes-laden disco, beckoning us off the beach and onto the dance floor. In from the left with vocoded funk and balmy groove and hitting us in the chest with string-heavy, minor key floor-fodder and flautist’s revenge city pop. 

Pull up in the sun patch dream your dreams. 

Sakiko’s soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/sakiko-nagai

Instagram: @sakikonagai27

JANUARY 2022 - MIXED BY SAKIKO NAGAi

It was a windy night on the cusp of the icy winter about to descend. There was a mic amp & a space-echo. There was toasting galore. There were several requests for those that have gotten their drinks to move down to the dancefloor area. Someone had bought a new car *four wheel drive! A door knob went missing. But most of all there were nearly 7 hours of freaky records thrown down by residents Mike Medow (Detroit) and Raf Reza (College Street). Relive that fateful eve with us in the comfort of your respective abodes as we hunker down through another blustery weekend. Much love to Mike and Raf and much love to you all from everyone @ The Little Jerry!

Mike Medow & Raf Reza Live @ The Little Jerry Sat Nov 13, 2021

Our next mix comes courtesy of sweet friend and Jerry alumni Akash Bansal AKA Tender Buttons. Akash has been flogging his distinctive mingle of fourth world, italo, new wave, freak folk and disco at vaunted TO party ‘Pillow Talk’ (with fellow selector Kourosh Deghani AKA Ensoul), as part of the Seance Centre crew, in the booth @ The Small Gerald, and on his radio show Automatic Writing. His philosophy: play weird, play whatever the f#*k you want, and play where your heart takes you has translated into some of the most ecstatic, emotional dance floor moments we’ve ever been a part of and we are super stoked to dive in the deep with Tender Buttons and Mike Medow (Detroit) again tonight (March 12) at The Little Jerry. 

Here he takes us on a hazy 80s sunset stroll into a dusky bar where everyone is putting their pants on (or taking them off?), we take the milk from the coconut and breeze into Dad-rock guitar in a place where True Love Can Be Hard To Find. Street soul struts into Euro-Beat bliss, spinning the spot into house lamentation as the dinosaur bangs the dancefloor drums. We’re rippin’ one now into rap a la Italia and detuned choral jazz-funk as Akash tenderly spins us into a luscious disco mind meld where love is deputized and we don’t have to worry no more. 

Listen while you prepare your dinner and get your mind right for the night. 

Akash’s Insta: @my_bodys_in_troubleshoot

Youtube Channel: https://youtube/com/c/AkashBansall

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.app.goo.gl/Vbsg7d8JhdqETrR77

Art as always, by the inimitable Dmitry Bondarenko- @handdrawndmitry

Big Love from the LJ Crew

JERRY SIZED - MIXED BY TENDER BUTTONS

The long awaited next installment of our mix series comes courtesy of left field sonic coordinator, disc jockey, producer and radio host Andrew Ross. Andrew’s been steering listener’s ears into the weirder waters of Balearica for time with his long-running party Love Below, regular radio appearances on n10.as, and FSR, and DJing both solo and as half of duo The Loveblock with local wizard Linus Booth. 

Recorded live @ The Little Jerry: nearly 3 hrs of shimmering new wave, vocoder dub, slo-mo Goa, dreamy piano house, breakbeat industrial, kraut, and modular electronica. Put yer earbuds in tight and roll down that hill. 

Catch another live edition of The Love Block @ The Little Jerry tonight- Fri June 30

Andrew’s Soundcloud:
https://soundcloud.com/andrew-ross-1

Mixcloud:
https://www.mixcloud.com/AndrewRoss/

Insta:
https://instagram.com/andrew___ross?igshid=MzRIODBiNWFIZA==

Art as always by the fabulous Dmitry Bondarenko: 
https://www.instagram.com/handdrawndmitry/?hl=en

Little Jerry mix series

Andrew Ross live @ The Little Jerry - 03-31-2023 -

After a long, hot summer sojourn we are back with another mix courtesy of none other than Ali Black. AliBlack416 - the oft imitated never duplicated deejay, collector, producer, radio host and rave facilitator, who lives rent free in so many of our most resonant dancefloor memories. Ali's been holding the scene down for over 25 years with his productions, radio Nite Beat Radio, vaunted Toronto party Over + Over, and DJ appearances in a host of diverse Toronto and int'l venues. 
When you talk about style- the ineffable way in which a dj makes you move and makes you feel that  you can't quite put your finger on- Ali's got it in spades, diamonds + hearts. Mixing deep house into Serbian pop into sleazy disco, new wave, boogie and anything else you might conjure up- Ali's sets literally bring people to their feet and bring them together. He's also one of the best technical deejays in the game but you're really not thinking about that as you're gettin' down with wild abandon. We hate to use the word legend cause that infers he's not still doing it. 

So here it is- just over 90 mins of dance floor wax from an artist we are lucky to know and have in this city. Big big love from everyone at the Jerry- oh wait- GUESS WHAT??? He's playing here THIS SATURDAY!!! You best reach if you know what's good. 

Ali's Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/djaliblack (https://soundcloud.com/djaliblack)

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ali_black_416/?hl=en (https://www.instagram.com/ali_black_416/?hl=en)

DJ Ali Black mix for Jerry February 2023.mp3

It’s been a long, lonely winter and it’s just getting started. To help us all along the way here's a monthly mix series featuring DJs who held it down @ the spot. These selectors hauled their bags of wax into the bar and spun their threads of aural fantasy; we really wanna thank them for setting the scene. 

First mix comes care of resident Cam Hildebrandt, known for his perfectly executed sets of trainspotty dub, boogie, house, and ??? that get rooms glowing in Toronto, NYC, and Londontowne. 

Here he ferries us through a corridor of foggy morning soul and dub shot through with tough boogie and quivering synths, opening the window to clarinet and breakbeat strewn dance floor bliss.  

Pop the hatch and climb on in... 

-xx Big love to one and all from everyone at The Little Jerry


Cam’s Soundcloud: @camhildebrandt
Youtube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC4gmnsjf…GcyMUA-H4w/videos
Instagram: www.instagram.com/cam___h/

*Art by Dmitry Bondarenko
http://www.dmitryillustration.com/

JANUARY 2021 - MIXED BY CAM

Next up in our mix series is Automaticamore (Diana Chan McNally): Toronto’s authority on esoteric Italo/Disco/New Beat/Synth-Pop, & purveyor of weirdy dance-floor capers at her LJ residency ‘Body Heat’. Diana holds down several nights here and afar and can be found carting her eye-watering rarities from spot to spot to share live with lucky punters in Canada, Euro-land and South of the border. 

Here she transports us to a misty Montreal disco playing Canadian tracks/rare Canuck pressings exclusif. It’s a hook-down/off the ground twinkling piano lift-off, into cronky Quebecois sleaze, riding the slap bass into that gitchy-ya-ya goblin voiceover. The cowbell/laser/buzzsaw party invites sensuous saxaphone narration to the function and caps it off with a vocoded appeal to sway. 

Descend the narrow stairway and bathe in the fog machine fumes…

-xx We miss you all big-time and can’t wait for the next Body Heat. Love to one and all from everyone @ the Small Jerry.

Diana’s Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/automatic-amore
Youtube: (let’s be real, you’ve all taken notes from it already) https://www.youtube.com/c/DianaMcNally
Radio: https://n10.as/  (Every 3rd Tues @8pm EST)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/automaticamore_music/?hl=en

*Art by Dmitry Bondarenko @handdrawndmitry

Popular tracks by Small Jerry