As a wise man once sang: You can’t get what you want till you know what you want.
Well, now you know and now you can.
Organizers of the Calgary Folk Music Festival unveiled the lineup for this year’s event with a party at Festival Hall on Saturday night, and it is an impressively eclectic, incredibly stacked, cannily curated collection of artists that will be taking to the Prince’s Island stages come July 26-29.
Headliners for the fest include: the previously referenced wise man and brilliant musician Joe Jackson; beloved Canadian pop acts Stars and Alvvays; Indigenous electro dub wonders A Tribe Called Red; American crossover country artist Lee Ann Womack; former Calgary moody rootsman Reuben and the Dark; Afie Jurvanen’s indie folk experience known as Bahamas; and alt country mainstay Neko Case, who will be making her first appearance in Calgary since her last-minute Sled Island no-show in 2014.
It is one of the most well-rounded lineups in years, something longtime artistic director Kerry Clarke acknowledged during an interview at the Ship and Anchor days before the announcement.
“Last year we had the big Canadian headliners,” said Clarke, referencing acts such as Barenaked Ladies, City and Colour and Blue Rodeo, “and we had some others as well, some really cool people like Michael Kiwanuka, but this year it’s not all eggs in three baskets. Each night has three different kinds of headliners …
“I think it’s a little more interesting (than last year) because, aside from those three we mentioned, there were other headliners last year, but it felt like those were three big artists with pretty big dollars attached and this year I think we’ve spread it out more.”
Clarke called the booking of Jackson a particularly satisfying “coup,” noting that booking the “class act” responsible for such enduring works as Look Sharp!, I’m the Man, Night and Day and Body and Soul, was 12 to 15 years in the making.
“Everyone respects him,” she said. “You can’t not respect Joe Jackson.
“He’s not one of those guys that’s about facade or appearance or sex appeal — that’s not him. He’s a great musician and a great songwriter.”
And because of that respect, Clarke cut one Mainstage act on the Friday night the British artist will be performing in order to give him an almost two-hour set to close the evening.
But, as with every year, she’s also excited about some of the other names that fill out the lineup that people will get to discover such as Sudan Archives, Beyries, Shovels and Rope, and The War and Treaty.
They’ll be joining some returning faves and familiar names including The Milk Carton Kids (with a full band), The Barr Brothers, Shakura S’Aida, The Deep Dark Woods, Land of Talk, Destroyer, African Head Charge, Passenger, Leeroy Stagger, NQ Arbuckle, Scenic Route to Alaska, Damien Jurado, Kevin Breit and his new project “presents Johnny Goldtooth and the Chevy Casanovas,” hip-hop legends Blackalicious, and local genius Chad VanGaalen.
The Calgary contingent this year is particularly strong, with it also featuring artists such as Mariel Buckley, Clinton St. John, Tom Phillips and The DTs, Copperhead, and Carolina Slim.
Organizers are also bringing the Talk Tent back to the Island after a brief absence, with it hosting such performers as comic Martha Chaves, local actress Michelle Thrush, Vancouver interactive beatbox artist RupLoops, and Canadian industry vet Richard Flohil, who will be leading panel discussions.
Top to bottom, it is one of the most exciting and eclectic folk fests in recent memory.
“We wanted the festival to be deep and wide,” Clarke said, before laughing, “like the fat opera singer.”
Early bird weekend passes and single-day tickets are on sale now from calgaryfolkfest.com or by calling the box office at 403-233-0904.
For the full Mainstage and Twilight Stage schedule, as well as the complete list of acts performing at this year’s folk fest, please see below:
(Photo of Joe Jackson courtesy Jacob Blickenstaff.)
THURSDAY MAINSTAGE
The War and Treaty
The Milk Carton Kids
Passenger
Alvvays
THURSDAY TWILIGHT
Doctor Nativo
Land of Talk
Chad VanGaalen
FRIDAY MAINSTAGE
Archie Roach
Rhye
Stars
Joe Jackson
FRIDAY TWILIGHT
Sudan Archive
Saul Williams
Blackalicious
SATURDAY MAINSTAGE
Kobo Town
African Head Charge
Lee Ann Womack
Reuben and the Dark
A Tribe Called Red
SATURDAY TWILIGHT
Damien Jurado
Destroyer
The Barr Brothers
SUNDAY MAINSTAGE
Shovels & Rope
Neko Case
Bahamas
FULL CALGARY FOLK MUSIC FESTIVAL 2018 LINEUP
African Head Charge
AHI
Alvvays
Altameda
Amy Helm
Archie Roach
A Tribe Called Red
Bahamas
The Barr Brothers
Ben Caplan and the Casual Smokers
BEYRIES
Blackalicious
Carmelo Torres y su Cumbia Sabanera
Carolina Slim Cassie and Maggie
Chad VanGaalen
Clinton St. John
Copperhead
Damien Jurado
The Deep Dark Woods
Destroyer
Doctor Nativo
Front Country
Hannah Epperson
Harrison Kennedy
Harrow Fair
Hubby Jenkins
Jeremy Dutcher
Joe Jackson
Jolie Holland and Samantha Parton
Kevin Breit
presents Johnny Goldtooth and the Chevy Casanovas
Kobo Town
Land of Talk
Lankum
Lee Ann Womack
Leeroy Stagger
Mappe Of
Mariel Buckley
Martha Chaves
Melingo
Michelle Thrush
Mick Flannery
The Milk Carton Kids
Mipson
The Mission Song Project
Neko Case
NQ Arbuckle
Passenger
Quantum Tangle
Ramy Essam
Reuben and the Dark
Rev. Sekou
Rhye
Roberto López
RupLoops
Ryland Moranz
Sarah Shook & the Disarmers
Saul Williams
Scenic Route to Alaska
Scott Cook
Shakura S’Aida
Shovels & Rope
The Small Glories
Spencer Burton
Stars
Sudan Archives
Tom Phillips and the DTs
Wallis Bird
The War and Treaty
Wise Atangana
