Canadian Blast BBQ @ SXSW
Wednesday, March 15th @ the Big Top in Brush Square
TORONTO, March 3, 2017 – With a couple of weeks left till SXSW Music kicks off, fans, bands, and industry are starting to get excited for the annual pilgrimage to Austin, TX. With everyone ready to join the celebrations, our friends to the north will be celebrating Canada’s 150th Anniversary by once again offering up a hearty welcome with the much-anticipated Canadian Blast BBQ at Brush Square on Wednesday, March 15th. The Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA) is excited to announce a stellar lineup of Canadian talent that will showcase at this annual epic bash, the perfect start to an unforgettable week. Come grab a bite, mingle with some of Canada’s best and brightest and listen to your future-favorite artists while thawing out in the Texas sunshine.
The Canadian Blast BBQ is the official kick off of three days and nights of performances, networking and business development activities led by the Canadian Independent Music Industry Association (CIMA). For 12 years, the Canadian Blast showcase and B2B initiative has travelled the globe to bring 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, Asia and Australia. The stellar lineup at SXSW features: Busty and the Bass, Digging Roots, Les Deuxluxes, Royal Tusk, Belle Game and headliner Tokyo Police Club.
Busty and the Bass have come a long way in a short time. The nine members of the band connected in their first week at McGill University’s jazz school in Montreal and started jamming. Casual house party gigs soon led to scorching live performances in front of thousands on stage across the U.S., Europe and their home country of Canada. The group’s natural chemistry and an ability to create a sound that Complex says is “best described as a lovechild between jazz, hip-hop and electro-soul” has been a major hit with audiences, bouncing along and chanting “Bus-ty!” in unified delight.
Led by the hypnotic vocals of Andrea Lo, Belle Game weaves ethereal soundscapes into blown out, crush-pop confessions. Their debut album Ritual Tradition Habit earned the band critical praise from the likes of Pitchfork and Rolling Stone, while their emotional live performances prompted Paste Magazine to name them one of the ‘10 Great New Bands from CMJ.’ Their forthcoming full-length features the band’s new single, “Yuh” (produced by Dave Hamelin, executive produced by Kevin Drew).
Formed from rock ‘n roll soul, blue-collar charm and a renegade attitude, it’s no surprise this quintet of bearded prairie men made a lasting impression with audiences on their well-received 2014 EP, Mountain. Two singles off the EP, “Shadow of Love” and “Smoke Rings” saw significant radio-play and helped earn the band a 2015 SIRIUSXM Emerging Artist of the Year nomination, an “Artist of the Month” nod from Sonic 102.9 and a short-list spot for CBC’s 2014 Rising Star Award. Royal Tusk’s full-length debut, Dealbreaker, is out now via MapleMusic Recordings.
Hailing from Montreal, Les Deuxluxes are armed to the teeth with powerful vocals, primal rhythms and two raging guitars. The two-piece band has attitude and the chops to back it up as they mix glitter and sweat into their own fiery blend of rock ‘n roll. Winners of the Télé-Québec award for their show at the FME (Rouyn Noranda) and nominees for Breakthrough Band of the Year and Rock Album of the year at the 2014 GAMIQ, Les Deuxluxes’ sensual, wild performances are guaranteed to shake you to the core. On September 2016, they released their critically-acclaimed very first album, Springtime Devil.
Musical partners Raven and ShoShona are the creative team and inspiration behind the JUNO-winning band’s five piece ensemble. Digging Roots brings on global-blues infused music and are animating audiences from Australia to Europe with their ‘round danes.’ Producing their latest album The Hunter & The Healer in Australian and Canadian recording studios, their new video “AK-47” explores the concept of love as a weapon in reclaiming our humanity.
5:00PM: Tokyo Police Club
When you start a band as a group of teenage best friends in your small Canadian hometown, it’s hard to imagine that a decade later you will not only still be together and making music but also touring the world, playing shows to legions of fans, and putting out a steady stream of acclaimed albums, including 2014’s Forcefield. As the years have worn on, Tokyo Police Club continue to defy the odds, having pushed themselves and their art to the limit. And with the two-part and recently self-released Melon Collie and the Infinite Redness EP, the band have harnessed their primal and instinctual joy to make Tokyo Police Club’s tightest, brightest, and certainly raddest batch of songs to date.
CANADA HOUSE – March 16-17 12-6pm at Swan Dive (615 Red River)
Canada House has moved to a new venue in 2017. Find your favourite Canadian bands alternating between the inside stage and outdoor patio stages at Swan Dive. Doors open at 12pm and the bands play on until 6pm on both Thursday, March 16 and Friday, March 17. Come by and hang out at Canada House and enjoy some great Canadian music, hospitality and spirit! Thursday kicks off with bands from Western Canada presented by BreakOut West, including Living Hour, Slow Leaves, Supermoon, Close Talker, Port Juvee, Duotang, Yes We Mystic, Royal Tusk and Belle Game, then concludes on Friday with our Eastern Canada day presented by Bring it ONtario (OMDC and MusicOntario), Women in Music Canada with FACTOR, and the City of Toronto featuring Cat Clyde, Digging Roots, The Shanks, Sam Coffey and the Iron Lungs, Casper Skulls, Twist, Forever, KROY, Belle Game, Wild Rivers, ShaqIsDope and more! Canadian beer, hangover snacks with Matt & Steve’s The Extreme Bean™-loaded Caesars (our national breakfast drink!), plus lots of swag and giveaways. Meet your new fav bands and new BFFs at Canada House this year during SXSW!
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CIMA gratefully acknowledges the generous support of our Canadian partners and sponsors: Canadian Music Week (CMW), Corus Entertainment, the Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings (FACTOR), the Government of Canada (through the Canadian Music Fund and Global Affairs Canada), Harvard Broadcasting, Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC), Stingray Music, the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) and the Radio Starmaker Fund.
About CIMA The Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA) is the national trade association representing the English-language, Canadian-owned sector of the independent music industry. CIMA works proactively to assist the independent sector to expand business opportunities and partnerships in the international marketplace by providing strategic support for Canadian companies at trade missions, key international trade shows, and conferences around the world.
About Music Export Canada & Canadian Blast As a not-for-profit association, CIMA annually executes an industry-wide global economic development and investment strategy, wherein we facilitate targeted business and showcasing opportunities, under the Music Export Canada and Canadian Blast export brands.