Music
13 of our favourite new Canadian music festivals
by Mark Teo
April 8, 2015
From D.I.Y. feminist festivals to forward-thinking electronic bills, we want to see them all.
When it comes to music festivals, Canada is surprisingly well covered. The big names continue to deliver solid lineups: Each year, it seems, NXNE, Osheaga, Pop Montreal, Drake’s OVO Fest, TURF, Quebec’s Festival D’Ete, the Ottawa Bluesfest, the Halifax Pop Explosion, and Canadian Music Week and their brethren strive to outdo themselves. One-time emergent festivals, like Vancouver’s Music Waste, Sackville’s SappyFest, and Calgary’s Sled Island have become staples on on our concert schedules. Veld and Time have EDM covered. Countless folk fests, from the Winnipeg Folk Fest to Julie Doiron-approved Bloor-Ossington Folk Fest, dot the nation. Broken Social Scene has Field Trip. Garage-punk fans have the Ottawa Explosion. Punks have Montreal’s Varning and Toronto’s Not Dead Yet. Experimental electronic fans have MUTEK. Metalheads have Heavy MTL. And—
Alright, alright, let’s take a deep breath, here. Here’s the point: There are tons of Canadian festivals worth your hard-earned cash, and there’s even more being developed as we speak. Here are 13 of our favourite newcomers—who are either debuting this year, or have spent a few years building their names. They range from D.I.Y. feminist festivals, to forward-thinking electronic festivals, to genuine heavy hitters—and we want to see them all.
