Paper's Monica LoCascio spent the weekend in Toronto for North by North East, the sister festival to South by Southwest. Here, we get the details about day two of the festival, which featured Dirty Beaches, Dum Dum Girls and an all-girl Weezer cover band among other highlights.

 After having a serious breakfast to soak up all of the fine Canadian Labatt 50 from the previous evening, I headed to a panel to start the day off with a little education. Entitled "Sound Capital," the panelists were as amusing as they were engaging, and I learned the process behind getting your music on TV. Later, I made my way to Lee's Palace excited to finally see Dirty Beaches live. Alex Zhang Hungtai's awkward, lo-fi minimalist set and his Presley-like swagger was like watching a teenage boy in his bedroom, mugging with his guitar in front of his mirror. Then came Dum Dum Girls, who were dressed in oh-my-gawd-can-you-see-what-I-see short skirts, whose '60s-inspired harmonies -- an act that might seem contrived if it weren't for the fact that they are so tight musically. The only member who didn't seem to be having a blast was the bass player Bambi, who was apparently too cool for the band's choreographed guitar moves. Cults came on next, who, with their '70s Manson-family-meets-Nirvana fashion sense, weren't as charismatic as the previous bands but got me gogo dancing none the less. Next, it was off to Sneaky Dee's for what must have been a gig everyone at NXNE circled on their schedules: Sheezer. The all-girl Weezer cover band nailed it and completely packed the house. With the line snaking down the block and around the corner, every single person inside sang along and jumped up and down -- a mass dance move that prompted the guy next to me to yell "Sheezer is breaking the floor!"

Greetings from Toronto: A Report from the NXNE Festivlal, Day 1