Name: Punk Talks: Post-Punk and Toronto's Queen Street West Scene
Start: 2026-04-26T14:00:00-04:00
End: 2026-04-26T17:00:00-04:00
Location: Peach Berserk

Punk Talks: Post-Punk and Toronto's Queen Street West Scene

Join us for a discussion about local punk history where we'll hear how Toronto's early punk movement shaped Queen Street West.
About this Event

Celebrate the 50th anniversary of punk with an intimate, interactive discussion. Learn about the influence of punk on Toronto's Queen Street West neighbourhood, and hear from artists and innovators about the enduring legacy of punk in Toronto.

Meet:

John Borra, solo artist and prominent figure in Toronto's post-punk scene. In the 1980s and early 90s, Borra was a member of A Neon Rome, Groovy Religion, and Change Of Heart). John has also played with the Viletones, Cheetah Chrome (Dead Boys) and more.

Kingi Carpenter, founder of the fabulous Peach Berserk. Kingi has been a fixture of Queen Street West since the 1980s. She credits punk as a major influence on her work in fashion and silk screening. Even though Queen West has changed dramatically since Peach Berserk started, Kingi is still there, keeping its original spirit alive.

Bruce Eves, who was assistant-programming director at the Centre for Experimental Art and Communication (CEAC) in the 1970s; in the 1980s was the co-founder of the International Gay History Archive. Eves has since expanded his work to include spoken-word projects at the Black Eagle’s Dirty Queer Poetry Nights.

Nick Smash, author of Alone and Gone: The Story of Toronto's Post-Punk Underground. Smash has deep roots documenting punk history thanks to his fanzine Smash It Up, which captured Toronto's emerging hardcore and new wave scenes. He was also drummer for the Toronto post-punk band the Rent Boys.

Learn about punk's roots in art, counterculture, and more, and how the punk movement shaped Queen Street West and Toronto's underground art scenes from the 1970s-1980s and onward.

Moderated by author Liz Worth (Treat Me Like Dirt: An Oral History of Punk in Toronto and Beyond).

Hosted at Kingi Carpenter's famous Peach Berserk silk screen studio! Your entry fee includes refreshments.

Hang out after the talk to silk screen your own Toronto punk-inspired souvenir, which Kingi will teach you how to do.