The music of Aboriginal artists will shine at this year's Northern Lights Festival Boréal, which runs July 6-9 at Bell Park.
None other than Buffy Sainte-Marie, the Academy Award-winning veteran of the music business, has been booked.
The festival's artistic director, Max Merrifield, said he's thrilled to bring Sainte-Marie to Northern Lights — she also played the festival about three decades ago.
“She's a legend,” he said, speaking at the April 25 press conference where the festival's full lineup was revealed. “As a musician she totally pushed beyond the label of her as a folk singer, and even in 2015, she was nominated for a Juno and Polaris for her album Power in the Blood, just showing how at 70-plus years old, you can remain relevant.”
Sainte-Marie headlines on Thursday, July 6 — yes, you read that correctly. For the first time in years, the festival features a Thursday show.
“The festival has the odd time added a Thursday event,” Merrifield said. “Back in the day, it was more a party for the volunteers with a lot of great dance bands. We're doing something a little different. The Thursday will be an all-Indigenous lineup with this multimedia show.”
Opening for Sainte-Marie will be Nunavut alt-folk stars The Jerry Cans and Northern Ontario band No Reservations, who are reuniting for the occasion.
The Saturday headliner is A Tribe Called Red, a Canadian electronic music group blending hip-hop and other musical styles with elements of First Nations music, particularly chanting and drumming.
“I think A Tribe Called Red's newest album is the most important album of the year, possibly,” Merrifield said. “It's a really fresh take on the experience of being Indigenous in Canada and on Turtle Island.”
So why the focus on Aboriginal music? Merrifield said interest in the genre has increased as of late. In choosing artists, Merrifield consulted with a committee of Indigenous artists and arts administrators.
As announced earlier this year, the festival's Friday night headliner is the Juno-nominated BC indie rockers Yukon Blonde. Sunday is co-headlined by the folk rock duo Whitehorse and indie rock singer-songwriter Andy Schauf.
Although he's been Northern Lights' executive director for a few years now — a role he continues to hold — this is Merrifield's first year putting together the lineup.
He succeeded longtime artistic director Paul Loewenberg last year. Merrifield thanked Loewenberg for his advice, as well as his dad, Scott Merrifield, also a former artistic director with the festival.
“It's been a real pleasure,” Merrifield said. “I consider programming a festival an artistic endeavour. Every act booked is like a brush stroke on a painting. I'm really excited to unveil this painting — this masterpiece — to people.”
For Northern Lights Festival Boréal's full lineup, or to buy passes, visit the festival's website. Organizers urge people to consider buying passes now, because they go up in price by $15 on May 1.
