Don’t Miss the Canadian Blast BBQ at The Bungalow During SXSW 2019


Make The Bungalow Your Home Away From Home at SXSW with the Canadian Blast BBQ & 2 Days of Canada House Showcases!

Canadian Blast BBQ @ SXSW Wednesday, March 13 at new location The Bungalow!

Canada House @ SXSW Wednesday, March 13 and Thursday, March 14 at The Bungalow.

In two weeks our legendary Canadian Blast BBQ will be returning to Austin, TX as the kickoff for Music Export Canada’s mission at SXSW! This year the BBQ will move to a brand new location – The Bungalow (92 Rainey St, Austin TX)! The showcase will be presented by Audiogram, CIMA, the City of Toronto, Laughing Heart Music and Ontario Creates/MusicOntario.

The Canadian Blast BBQ will launch two days and nights of performances, networking and business development activities. For 14 years, the Canadian Blast showcase and B2B initiative has traveled the globe bringing vibrant and trend-setting talent and industry from Canada to international export markets through festivals, conferences, trade shows and independent missions in the US, Europe, Latin America, Asia and Australia.

Come grab a bite, mingle with some of Canada’s best and brightest and listen to your future-favourite artists on Wednesday, March 13 from 1PM-530PM while thawing out in the Texan sunshine. The BBQ is open to all SXSW badge holders.

The stellar Canadian Blast BBQ lineup at SXSW features: Goodbye Honolulu, Hillsburn, Kai Exos, Liza, Melanie Brulée, Soran, Tallies and The Dirty Nil.

Following the Canadian Blast BBQ, make sure to join us at Canada House (also at The Bungalow) for two days and nights of Canadian music. On Wednesday evening, Canada House will be taken over by an official SXSW showcase hosted by Canadian indie record label Dine Alone Records.

On Thursday, BreakOut West will present 8 Canadian acts kicking off at 12:00PM straight through until 5:30PM. The daytime showcase will feature: Altameda, Art D’Ecco, Close Talker, Dead Soft, Living Hour, Taylor Janzen, The Small Glories and Tunic. The showcases will wrap up on Thursday evening with another official SXSW showcase hosted by Toronto-based independent artist services company Arts & Crafts.

Get to know the Canadian Blast BBQ artists:

Goodbye Honolulu

Toronto’s Goodbye Honolulu might be one of the most well connected bands
you haven’t heard…. yet. They’ve toured the USA twice with Hinds; Selena Gomez is a fan; they just released a record on Burger Records; they’ve also toured with Kate Nash, SWMRS, Miya Follick, Together Pangea and their live show is a rambunctious ball of energy.

Hillsburn

Hillsburn is a five-piece, indie-rock band from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Their sophomore album, The Wilder Beyond, was released on February 2nd, 2018. Hillsburn doubled down on their independent ethos for their second record, The Wilder Beyond. Deciding to forego a formal studio setting, they produced the album collectively and recorded it in singer Paul Aarntzen’s Halifax apartment. Aarntzen, also the band’s songwriter, took on the roles of engineer and mixer. Perhaps partly as a result of the new approach, The Wilder Beyond departs sharply from the folk-rooted sound of Hillsburn’s award-winning In The Battle Years debut. The group’s soaring three-part harmonies are intact here, but densely-layered arrangements and more electronic instruments signal a move in the direction of indie rock.

Kai Exos

Kai Exos is a singer and songwriter from Toronto, a native from Miami and currently writing and producing in LA. An advocate and soul music savant, Exos delivers universal messages through his work and the artists and brands he creates for. Across 2013 and 2014, he went on his first ever world tour for the critically-acclaimed debut album, Telegraph. Exos has played shows across North America and oversees including House of Blues, Rockwood, Piano Bar, Soho House, Sundance Film Festival, London UK, Indie Week Ireland, Sofar Sounds, Camp Wavelength, NXNE’s Main Stage among other legendary venues. Most notably, Exos performed as the headliner of Cannes Lions Festival. The self-titled R&B iconoclast EP followed in spring 2018 along with tracks, “Hold Out The Light” and “Fire & Brew” – which accumulated 5MM+ worldwide streams and appeared on #14 on Billboard’s Next Big Sound.

LIZA

Liza is an R&B singer/songwriter hailing from Toronto. In 2017, Liza released her debut EP, February 29, and, most recently, Liza released two singles this year, “Here to Stay” & “Passes Me” in anticipation of her forthcoming project. Paired with strong vocals, pensive lyrics, & progressive production, Liza draws from a Ethiopian/R&B/Neo-Soul culture, creating a modern, yet, resonating feel, inviting listeners into her raw, authentic reality.

Melanie Brulée

What most might call Americana, folk-rock or country music,
Toronto-based Melanie Brulée colours her own, bringing a vintage respect to a modern sound by intertwining surf-style guitar tones and catchy melody hooks – all with the vibe of a speakeasy cabaret. Her music has been on regular rotation on CBC and Sirius XM and her third album Fires, Floods & Things We Leave Behind, exploring themes of family, loss and addiction, was released in October 2018.

Soran

Born on the south shore of Montreal from a Japanese mother and a French father, Soran grew up surrounded by his dad’s musical instruments. He experimented with them, even though his father didn’t accompany him during this learning process. At age four, Soran played drums, but his brother refused to join him on bass, so he abandoned music for the first time. After a few years playing percussions in high school, he once again moved on in order to focus on visual arts. In the fall of 2018 Soran presented a first EP of six original songs on which he plays all the instruments and co-produced with Connor Seidel (Matt Holubowski, Elliot Maginot, Charlotte Cardin). Since its sold-out record launches in Montreal and Quebec City, the EP’s songs have garnered over 10 million streams around the world.

Despite his increasingly busy tour life, the young sensation continues to record content to share with its audience on social networks, where it all began. With 120,000 subscribers on YouTube and 100,000 on Instagram, expectations are high but Soran never ceases to amaze.



Tallies

TALLIES are a Toronto 4 piece who blend elements of shoegaze, dream pop and surf rock. The band was founded by singer and rhythm guitarist Sarah Cogan and lead guitarist Dylan Frankland. In a year since relocating to Toronto, the quartet have played shows with bands like Mudhoney, Hatchie, Sloan, and signed to Kanine Records, HDD Records and FOMO Records.

The Dirty Nil

The Dirty Nil “has boiled rock down to its purest form—effortless riffs,
knobs-to-11 volume, and feedback for days. And then there’s quintessential frontman Luke Bentham, a born rock star… Rounded out by the wrecking crew of drummer Kyle Fisher and bassist Ross Miller, the trio is a high-voltage machine—an opening act that blows away every headliner with ease and a smile.” – Vice Noisey