The lineup for this year’s Northern Lights Festival Boréal has been announced, with an eclectic range of performers slated to hit the stages at Bell Park this summer.
This year’s headliners include July Talk (alternative rock band), Jully Black (singer-songwriter), The Rural Alberta Advantage (indie rock band) and Tim Baker (singer-songwriter).
These four headliners are part of a diverse lineup of 40 acts slated to perform in more than 75 shows over four days this summer, from July 4-7.
Included among these ranks is local singer-songwriter Dayv Poulin, who performed a few songs during a media conference at the Sudbury Theatre Centre on Wednesday to announce the lineup.
Following the afternoon announcements, he told Sudbury.com that Northern Lights Festival Boréal is something special.
“I love the vibe and the fact it’s outdoors and the fact people are there to hear original music,” he said.
“It’s the perfect festival for people who love music and like discovering stuff,” he added. “As an artist, it’s great because I know the audience is open-minded.”
This year’s roster of musicians extends far beyond the festival’s original roots in folk music, including such acts as DJ Shub, who specializes in electronic music called PowWowStep, and the psych-rock band Empty House, based in North Bay.
These musical acts selected are a reflection of the ever-changing demographics of Greater Sudbury and Canada in general, festival executive director Tessa Balaz told local media.
“What does Canada sound like?” she asked. “That is so diverse in so many ways, so as much as we started as a folk festival it has really evolved to just really highlight the diversity of Canada.”
The idea of having “something for everybody” between the festival grounds’ seven stages is important for organizers, she said, “and to represent all the communities that live here.”
Festival passes are currently on sale at nlfb.ca/tickets, and will be discounted until April 11 ($100 for adults instead of $135, and $65 for youths instead of $100).
This year’s festival will also include a teaser stage outside of the festival grounds, where performers will host short performances so passersby can see a bit of what’s going on inside of the festival grounds, free of charge.
Although Balaz said more acts will be announced in the coming weeks, the latest slate of artists scheduled to perform as part of Northern Lights Festival Boréal is available by clicking here.
Many of the artists will also take part in workshop-style performances wherein they’ll share a 45-minute set performing songs, share stories and collaboratively jam on each others’ material.
The festival site will also include artisan vendors selling one-of-a-kind handmade items, food, craft beer and other alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.
Organizers are also seeking volunteers to help run this year’s festival, with more information on volunteering available by clicking here.
Tyler Clarke is a reporter with Sudbury.com.
