While Sled Island and Virgin Fest are carving out their places in the city’s musical landscape the Calgary Folk Music Festival continues to set the standard by which all other local festivals are judged. Its recently released lineup features something for all tastes.
Indie rock fans have several reasons to celebrate — singer-songwriter violinist and world-calibre whistler Andrew Bird plays the mainstage on Friday night. Two days later this same space will be occupied by the Mystic Valley Band fronted by Conor Oberst (better known as Bright Eyes). Montreal trio Torngat will bring their euphoric French horn and keyboard-driven post rock to the festival and Ontario’s Great Lake Swimmers will provide their own blissfully upbeat pop-rock. The inclusion of Bill Callahan is a particular treat — the singer-songwriter has been quietly releasing his brilliantly understated albums for nearly two decades first as (Smog) and currently under his own name.
World music is well represented too. Hailing from Trinidad by way of Ontario Kobotown plays an inventive mix of calypso and reggae that is sure to get crowds on their feet. The Master Musicians of Jajouka are part of a Moroccan tradition that has supposedly been unbroken for over 4000 years — they were highly inspirational for a number of prominent beat poets and the Rolling Stones’ Brian Jones recorded and released one of their performances in the late ’60s. A Hawk and a Hacksaw don’t have quite as much history with the genre but drummer Jeremy Barnes’s background with cult favourites Neutral Milk Hotel should still turn some heads.
Of course it wouldn’t be a folk festival without well folk. To that end there’s longtime favourites like the Be Good Tanyas and Blue Rodeo along with England’s politicized The Men They Couldn’t Hang urban bluegrass group the Carolina Chocolate Drops and morbid myth-makers The Handsome Family.
The full lineup — which also includes Aimee Mann Sam Roberts the Weakerthans Ani DiFranco and much much more — is available at www.calgaryfolkfest.com and early-bird tickets go on sale Thursday May 15.
