Hits ‘n Misses

Sonic Boom, Two Inches to the Left

There is an old episode of That 70’s Show where the Foremans hire Hyde’s stoner pal Leo (played by Tommy Chong) and his contractor buddy (a cameo from Richard Karn, aka “Al” from Home Improvement) to renovate their basement. The pothead contractors do their thing, much to Red and Kitty’s dismay, moving everything in the basement two inches to the left. I was reminded of this episode when I visited the new Sonic Boom on Bathurst today, right around the corner from their old space on Bloor. I had to wonder if the contractors who oversaw the relocation called their creation “Sonic Boom, Two Inches to the Left.”

There goes the neighbourhood–metal/punk record store moves to Queen St W!

A couple months back, on what woulda been my third-latest trip to Rotate This, I noticed a sign in the empty storefront next door: “NEW PUNK/METAL RECORD STORE OPENING SOON.” I had to admire the audacity of opening a record store right next to NOW Magazine’s runner-up for Record Store of the Year (which I’m sure they’ve won in the past), and made a mental note to check this place out once they opened.
Well, it turns out that Hits ‘n Misses isn’t that new, having moved SXSE from the Bloor and Ossignton area…They moved into the new space in November, and I haven’t bought anything but tickets at Rotate This since.