LOCAL MUSIC SPOTLIGHT: Ted Axe
- jaybroderick
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
By: Jay Broderick - Toronto’s music scene has always had its share of characters like Nash the Slash and Robbie Rox, but few carry the kind of rock‑and‑roll mythology that surrounds Ted Axe. Frontman, punk instigator, glam‑rock disciple, horror‑movie obsessive... Axe has worn many identities over the decades, and somehow they all converge into the shadow‑drenched sound he’s making today.
I first encountered Ted Axe at Indie Night in Canada at the El Mocambo back in June of 2023. As I hectically moved up and down the stairs for the two‑stage festival, I wasn't afforded a ton of time to catch complete sets of the acts on display, but Ted Axe's dark, theatrical presence, and mood drenched vocals was enough to leave a lasting impression. When we finally connected for a long‑overdue conversation, he greeted me with a grin, a story, and a lifetime’s worth of rock history.
Spend five minutes talking to Ted Axe and you’ll quickly learn that horror related cinema for the artist is a lifestyle. “I seem to be watching those almost exclusively every night,” he laughed. Vampires, especially, have a grip on him. It all goes back to seeing The Return of Count Yorga “on acid, a long time ago,” a moment that permanently rewired his artistic DNA.
That influence bleeds into his music today... dark, ominous, theatrical, and steeped in the gothic. Even his cover choices, like his rocked‑up, Bowie‑esque version of Lady Gaga’s "Born This Way" carry that shadowy flair. Originally recorded for a Canada’s Got Talent audition, the track shows how Axe can take a pop anthem and drag it into his own world. "I just kind of liked it" Axe explained when asked why he chose that particular track. "The chorus was repeated over and over. It had connotations of acceptance of different types of people. So I thought that was cool. And we did a rocked up job on it, kind of like KISS doing it."
Long before the current incarnation of Ted Axe, there was The Action, a band that, depending on who you ask, may have been Canada’s first punk band. Axe laughs at the title. “None of us were really punks except in the sense that we were rich kids gone wrong,” he admitted. But the legend itself is real. After returning from England with a suitcase full of punk tapes, Axe staged a chaotic Halloween show at a high school, smashing jack‑o’-lanterns, spewing fake slime, and getting banned from the Ottawa Musicians Union. The next day, the band was all over the news as punk’s arrival in the capital.
From there came a 20‑city tour with The Ramones, a move to Toronto, and eventually a 12‑year stint in Los Angeles during the tail end of the glam‑rock era. Axe remembers Sunset Strip vividly, the flyers, the chaos, the clubs, the bands hustling for a crowd. He even crossed paths with a couple legends. Meeting Mick Jagger and David Bowie at an L.A. after‑party left a mark. “Jagger was intimidating… but Bowie got up, shook my hand. Very cordial. Very alien.”
And now, Axe has settled back into Toronto, playing frequently at The Rockpile, a venue he loves for its 1970s grit and big stage. Axe has found momentum again through charity shows, food drives, and community‑driven events that pack the room with genuine supporters.
After decades of lineup changes, personality clashes, and short‑lived collaborations, Axe finally feels he has a band that works. “It’s taken me basically a lifetime of playing to find a band that doesn’t have huge egos,” he said. As for the current lineup, Axe adds "I have to mention them, because without them I'd be a guy who wants to play live without playing live. Derek Dark, he plays lead and rhythm. Jeff Blackk, with two K’s at the end, he plays lead and rhythm. And they both share solos, just kind of back and forth. It's just like a wall of guitar. Then an amazing drummer called Stefan Sinister. He's a bit of a showman" Axe slyly adds. "It all works for the show." Ted Axe is also certain to call out the band's bassist. "Then on bass we have a Russian guy who we just got named Teemore" adding that the band has that rock and roll attitude without the ego.
With a steady lineup, a growing local presence, and a renewed connection to the community, Ted Axe is carving out a new chapter. It's one that blends decades of experience with the hunger of an artist who still has something to prove. Whether he’s channeling Bowie, resurrecting punk chaos, or conjuring vampire‑movie atmosphere, Axe remains one of Toronto’s most distinctive voices. And in a city that sometimes forgets its rock roots, that voice feels more vital than ever.
Ted Axe Online
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