Bovine Sex Club

The Bovine Sex Club is a bar on Toronto's Queen Street West strip. In operation since January 1991, the Bovine Sex Club (often shortened to 'the Bovine') has at various times found itself at the forefront of Toronto's rock, punk, alternative, and rockabilly music scenes.

The Ugly performing at the Bovine Sex Club in July 2008.
Bovine Sex Club
The Bovine Sex Club exterior in July 2007
Address542 Queen Street West
LocationToronto, Ontario, Canada
Coordinates43.647636°N 79.402666°W / 43.647636; -79.402666
OwnerDarryl Fine
TypeBar
Genre(s)Rock, punk, alternative, rockabilly
OpenedJanuary 1991 (1991-01)
Website
www.bovinesexclub.com

A haven for independent musicians and artists since day one, the Bovine also became well-known for being one of the first establishments to serve Jägermeister on tap.

History

The club opened in January 1991 with a trio of Toronto nightlife enthusiasts behind it in ownership capacity — Wesley Thuro a.k.a. Happy Dog who had already had some organizational experience with Toronto nightlife establishments having launched the all ages rave club 23 Hop just a few months earlier in 1990,[1] colourful CFNY radio personality Chris Sheppard who in addition to achieving a measure of local fame as the voice of CFNY's weekend live-to-air broadcasts from various Toronto clubs also performed under the 'DJ Dogwhistle' moniker,[1] and Darryl Fine.

Those who have visited the club include members of U2, Guns N' Roses, Metallica, Foo Fighters, The Offspring, Rage Against the Machine, Mötley Crüe, The Strokes, Lenny Kravitz, Perry Farrell, Kings of Leon and Pink. As well, the Bovine has hosted countless actors, including Bruce LaBruce,[2] Mickey Rourke and Nick Nolte, filmmakers, TIFF parties (including annual parties for the Wild Bunch film production and distribution company), festival after-parties, tattoo artists (favourite of both Kurt Wiscombe and Bob Tyrrell) and festivals.

In 2013 the club opened a rooftop patio bar known as the Tiki Bar.[3]

Art

The Bovine's facade was built by a small group of local artists including Dave Grieveson and Great Bob Scott (also the drummer for The Look People).[4] They worked under the creator of the Bovine, Happy Dog (real name - Wesley Thuro). The exterior and interior were an art installation made solely from discarded items.[5] Long rumoured to have been modelled after New York City's "The Scrap Bar" in fact owes more of its heritage to a 70s Toronto club called "Brandy's" whose reputation for as a 'meeting place' inspired both Thuro and the Bovine's eventual sole owner, Darryl Fine.

References
  1. Benson, Denise (18 October 2011). "Then & Now: 23 Hop". The Grid. ThenAndNowToronto.com. Retrieved 24 December 2016.
  2. LaBruce, Bruce (1997). The Reluctant Pornographer. Gutter Press. pp. 25–26. ISBN 9781896356129.
  3. https://www.blogto.com/bars/bovinesexclub/
  4. http://musicshebloggedinterviews.blogspot.ca/2011/02/interview-with-darryl-fine-from-bovine.html
  5. Jepson, Tim; Lee, Phil (2004). The Rough Guide to Canada. Rough Guides. p. 110. ISBN 9781843532668.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.