Music Export Canada Presents
Canadian Blast at the Great Escape Festival 2016
Mount Up to see Canada’s Finest Musical Exports this Spring!
The Canadian Blast – hosted by the Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA), returns to the Great Escape festival May 19-21,2016 to showcase some of the finest players of Canada’s thriving independent music scene.
Over 3 days of the Great Escape Festival the ‘Canadian Blast’ will present a hand-selected crop of Canada’s brightest emerging artists to excited new music fans and industry folk on the hunt for fresh talent. Brighton’s esteemed Green Door Store venue will once again host the Canadian Blast and will be known as ‘Canada House’ over the full festival weekend.
All acts have been selected for their rising domestic popularity, media praise and burgeoning interest from fans and industry bods in the UK and abroad. Last year’s Canadian Blast showcases at the Great Escape were hugely popular with packed crowds and queues stretching around the block. Many of the artists go on to tour the UK and EU with their Canadian Blast showcase acting as a springboard into new European territories.
The Great Escape Festival is the UK’s premier new music showcase event, giving artists the opportunity to reach crowds of savvy new music fans, and for their teams to network with the great and good of the music industry, which they might not usually get a chance to do. Here, Canadian businesses can rub shoulders with influential music industry folk and make introductions that provide routes into the all-important UK music market.
Canada has an exceptional reputation for supporting its arts, and structures are in place to export its cultural output to other territories. CIMA has spearheaded this by working with its Music Export Canada partners to provide international export, showcase, b2b, networking and marketing opportunities to selected Canadian music companies and artists.
Always bringing exceptional musicianship and solid work ethic, past performers have gone on to sign record deals, tour the EU, perform at festivals, find UK management and gain coverage from UK music press, due to their Canadian Blast showcases. Successful alumni include Ben Caplan, Ria Mae, Jenn Grant, Arkells and many others. Hip-hop outfit The Lytics in particular have played 29 EU dates since their Canadian Blast showcase last year, and their popularity and live bookings in the UK continue to grow.
Canadian Blast artists performing this year are:
Thursday 19th May
Bring it ONtario presented by MusicOntario and OMDC & BreakOut West presents:
Pyramid Tropic, Frigs, Coleman Hell, The Zolas
Friday – 20th May
Music Nova Scotia, Pop Montreal and Bring it ONtario presented by MusicOntario and OMDC presents:
Nap Eyes, Ben Caplan, Wake Island, LA Foster, Sway Clarke
Saturday 21th May
BreakOut West BBQ presented by Alberta Music, SaskMusic, Manitoba Music & Music BC featuring:
Joe Nolan, The Velveteins, Queen City Stoop Kids, Surf Dads, Living Hour, Yes We Mystic, We Are The City
We hope to see you there!
For more information see cimamusic.ca/event/the-great-escape-showcase-b2b/ and www.facebook.com/canadianblast
Please RSVP for VIP media entry. All artists are available for press, live sessions and promo. Media enquiries to BAM! +44 20 3397 0947 ben@benallenmedia.com +44 7884 368168 and karen@benallenmedia.com +44 7787 404918
The Green Door Store venue is located directly underneath Brighton Rail Station. Address: Trafalgar Arches, Lower Goods Yard, Underneath Brighton Station, BN1 4FQ
Schedule: (subject to change)
Thursday 19th May Music Ontario OMDC & BreakOut West
12:00 – 12:30 Brunch / Doors Open
12:30 – 13:00 Pyramid Tropic ON https://www.facebook.com/Pyramid-Tropic
13:15 – 13:45 Frigs ON https://www.facebook.com/FRIGSBAND
14:00 – 14:30 Coleman Hell ON https://www.facebook.com/colemanhell
14:45 – 15:15 The Zolas BC https://www.facebook.com/thezolas
Friday 20th May Music Nova Scotia, POP Montreal, MusicOntario & OMDC
11:30 – 12:30 Brunch / Doors Open
12:30 – 13:00 Nap Eyes NS https://www.facebook.com/Nap-Eyes
13:15 – 13:45 Ben Caplan NS https://www.facebook.com/bencaplanmusic
14:00 – 14:30 Wake Island POP https://www.facebook.com/wakeislandmusic
14:45 – 15:15 LA Foster POP https://www.facebook.com/iamLAFOSTER
15:30 – 16:00 Sway Clarke ON https://www.facebook.com/SwayClarke
Saturday 21th May BoW Showcase + BBQ
11:00 BBQ / Doors Open
11:30 – 12:00 Joe Nolan AB https://www.facebook.com/joenolanmusic
12:15 – 12:45 The Velveteins AB https://www.facebook.com/TheVelveteins
13:00 – 13:30 QCSK SK https://www.facebook.com/queencitystoopkids
13:45 – 14:15 Surf Dads SK https://www.facebook.com/SurfDads69
14:30 – 15:00 Living Hour MB https://www.facebook.com/Livinghourband
15:15 – 15:45 Yes We Mystic MB https://www.facebook.com/YesWeMystic
16:00 – 16:30 We Are The City BC https://www.facebook.com/wearethecity
CIMA gratefully acknowledges the generous support of 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), Harvard Broadcasting, Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC), the Radio Starmaker Fund and Stingray Music.
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CIMA: recently celebrated its 40th year and is the not-for-profit national trade association representing the English-language, Canadian-owned sector of the music industry, and is the first organization of its kind in the world. CIMA represents a diverse membership consisting of Canadian-owned companies and their ambassadors, all of whom are involved in every aspect of the music, sound recording and music-related industries. They are exclusively small businesses which include: record producers, record labels, recording studios, managers, agents, licensors, music video producers and directors, creative content owners, artists and others professionally involved in the sound recording industry. CIMA’s mandate is to develop and advocate policies and services that serve to support a strong and economically stable Canadian independent music and sound recording industry, ensuring the long-term development of the sector and to raise the profile of Canadian independent music both in Canada and around the world.
Canadian Blast: For 11 years, the Canadian Blast showcase and B2B initiative has travelled the globe to bring the best and brightest emerging talent and industry from Canada to vibrant international export markets through festivals, conferences, trade shows and independent missions in the US, Europe, Asia and Australia.
Music Export Canada: Music Export Canada is the newly established alliance, spearheaded by the Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA), between some of Canada’s most active national and provincial talent exporters, importers and stakeholders. With a common goal of showcasing bright up-and-coming talent and developing emerging industry professionals, Music Export Canada will service many of the nation’s export needs and will grow to be an internationally trusted resource for the all things related to the independent Canadian music community.