MUSIC PREVIEW: Rockfest scores SAGA
For music fans still in the outdoor festival spirit – and really, who isn’t – the action this weekend shifts upriver to Hawrelak Park for the annual Edmonton Rock Music Festival.
This is classic rock at its biggest and brightest, and the organizers have done a commendable job putting together some impressive names throughout the lineup.
The year’s biggest score might just be the Canadian progressive rock band Saga, who are using their appearance Friday evening (also featuring Don Felder from the Eagles) as part of their final pre-retirement tour. This year marks the 40th anniversary since the release of their seminal first album. Since that time, they’ve appeared in the charts a number of times, with singles like Wind Him Up and Scratching the Surface. The band arguably enjoys significantly more success outside of North America than within, with tour after tour criss-crossing Europe, and an astonishing 12 appearances in Puerto Rico, which is where their final tour concludes on October 12, after which the guys hang up their instruments – at least as far as official appearances for Saga go.
The band Toronto, who are on stage on Saturday, will likely forever be known for their hit Your Daddy Don’t Know, though their catalog is of course much richer, including seven albums, and a number of other appearances on the singles charts. The evening entertainment on the main stage gets even more stellar after that, with appearances from Honeymoon Suite, Los Lobos, and Glass Tiger, the latter shooting to almost instant stardom in 1986 with the consecutive hits Don’t Forget Me (When I’m Gone) and You’re What I Look For. More info and ticket information is on the festival’s website.
Thursday 16
Headstones – Speaking of classic rock, this alt-rock band sprang to life about the time that the genre was burgeoning across the continent. With nine albums to their credit, including last year’s Little Army, and a bevy of singles that saw extraordinary radio play, such as Cubically Contained and Smile and Wave, the band plays a pair of dates this week at Century Casino – Wednesday and Thursday nights. 8 pm, $82.20. BUY
Temple of Ascension – Not to be outdone on the festival front, this black-death metal three-day extravaganza is set to embark on its inaugural journey at the Starlite Room. Among its notable acts are Italy’s Funeral Of God, Nuclearhammer, Goathammer, and Oregon’s Nekro Drunkz, who just released a live album titled Double Live Tokyo Toilet Torment on Headsplit Records. More information is available on the event’s facebook page.
Friday 17
Northern Pikes – This Saskatchewan band struck a chord with its single and video Teenland back in June 1987, and then came back in 1990 with a pair of catchy but poignant singles, She Ain’t Pretty and Girl With a Problem. They haven’t released a new studio album since 2003, but they continue to tour, and hey, why not. Those songs were all incredible. Station on Jasper, 7 pm, $29. BUY
Saturday 18
Insane Clown Posse – This monster Michigan hip hop horrorcore duo drops down from the stratosphere to play a set of their renowned classics, as well as tracks off their newest album Fearless Fred Fury, which drops later this year. Their live shows are renowned for their craziness, definitely a can’t-miss show if you’re at all into the genre. Maybe even if you aren’t. Union Hall, 9 pm, $20 and up. BUY
READ: Review of Insane Clown Posse’s last show in Edmonton
