Photo: Untitled by Carl W. Heindl, member of the blogTO Flickr Pool.

Events on Toronto's Radar for FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 18, 2009... lovingly handpicked from blogTO's events calendar.

FILM | Spike and Mike's Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation
Don't bring the kiddies to this cartoon festival, which omits Bugs and Porky in favour of fornicating dogs and pencil-drawn convenience store clerks on acid. Spike and Mike's festival brings you the best in crude cartoons, including a short about a man sawing his own tongue off and an animated battle between a cow and a sheep. Spike and Mike have been around for nearly 20 years, and have built a reputation on the back of being the first ones to show big-screen audiences Beavis and Butthead, South Park, and Wallace and Gromit. Runs til next Saturday.
Bloor Cinema, 506 Bloor St. W., $10, 9:30

MUSICAL THEATRE | Le Cyc
Le Cyc has to be seen to be believed. It's a graphic novel turned indie opera about a bike-powered utopia corrupted by an evil dictator. Over 400 pieces of visual art painted using coffee and red wine are also utilized to tell the story which mixes dark humour with political satire. The musical narrative is told by a six-piece orchestra, who jump from genre to genre as the story unfolds. There's also a talking parrot, an ornate but out of tune piano, and a bike race on which the fate of democracy itself depends. Its last performance in Toronto sold out the Tranzac, so get there early.
The Music Gallery, 197 John St., $10, 8 pm

PARTY | Explicit Fantastic
This multi-media one-night exhibition explores ideas of sexuality in contemporary culture and features work by artists who use different mediums but share the common trait of employing sexuality and the body as forms of expression. Work by Bruce La Bruce and Peaches will be on display and Henri Fabrege and the Adorables will be playing a live set. This isn't your typical stodgy gallery exhibition though, as it's being held in the super-crusty Metro porn theatre and attendees are asked to show up dressed as 80s porn stars. There's also a rumour of a giant tub of Jell-o. Bet you can't guess what it's for.
Metro Theatre, 677 Bloor St. W., $10 before 10 pm, Doors at 9 pm

GALLERY | The Rated R Show
Between this show at the Gladstone Art Bar and the Explicit Fantastic art party at the Metro Theatre, you've got the makings of a very dirty Friday night on your hands. Artists participating in the Rated R Show were encouraged to explore adult subject matter, namely juvenile humour, dark themes, and brazen sexuality. Different mediums are employed, including video, fine art, and comics. The opening reception tonight is the kick-off party for the Queen West Art Crawl, which turns Queen Street between Spadina and Roncesvalles into an outdoor gallery. Saucy gift bags for the first 100 guests!
Art Bar at the Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen St. W., Free, 7 pm

MUSIC | Modernboys Moderngirls CD Release
Modernboys Moderngirls have been gearing up to release a record for some time. Since 2007 the band has been playing regularly in Toronto and was invited to play NXNE and Edgefest in 2008 despite the fact they'd yet to put out a record. Hopefully all the hard work will pay off tonight when they unleash I Might As Well Break It, a collection of the sort of hard-driving pop rock that's gained them a loyal following in this city. Black Hat Brigade and Clothes Make the Man open.
Sneaky Dee's, 431 College St., $8, 9 pm

PHOTOGRAPHY | I am Sorry. Sincerely Frankenstein
This photography show would get our recommendation for its awesome name alone, if it weren't for the fact that Gordon Ball's photos are so cool. The promo shot for the exhibition shows a naked man obscured under a stream of water, typical of Ball's raw and sexy style. Lately the Montreal-based photographer has been doing shoots for some big name clients including Nike and Audi, so this show is a return to the kind of work he calls his "first love" and deals with the theme of self-destructiveness. The opening reception is tonight, and the show runs til next Friday.
Sleeping Giant Gallery, 789 Dundas St. W., Free, 7 pm

FILM | Free Friday Film: CQ
Innis extends its excellent record of presenting interesting films for no cost with its screening of Roman Coppola's CQ tonight. The directorial debut from Francis Ford Coppola's son, the movie is a film-within-a-film send-up of space boob classic Barbarella. CQ divided critics when it was released in 2003, but it includes a dance sequence that was directed by Jason Schwartzman of Rushmore and I Heart Huckabees fame, which in itself probably makes it worth a look. No tickets, no passes, just first come first serve.
Innis Town Hall, 2 Sussex Ave., Free, 7 pm

For full listings, head on over to our events calendar.
Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO calendar, contact us directly, or use our handy Facebook app.

For Toronto movie showtimes, view our Movie Listings section.