Headlining this year’s River & Sky is an irreverent mix of Canadian indie stars– the earthy and ethereal Jennifer Castle (Thursday), Montreal’s The Dears, known for their orchestral, dark pop sound and dramatic live shows (Saturday), raucous Toronto punks Bad Waitress (Friday), and folk singer-songwriter Bry Webb (Sunday),the former Constantines frontman. 

“This year’s theme of ‘Checking in-Checking out’ is about taking a moment away from the fast-pace of everyday life, to lean into community, while checking in with yourself, spending time in nature, and exploring new and beloved bands,” said Annie Rutherford, Festival Coordinator. 

Discover and Dig into Emerging Music 

Plains Cree singer-songwriter Wyatt C. Louis walks a mix of genres with stunning vocals. Then there’s the post-prog-rock of Atsuko Chiba, the doom metal of Witchrot, the folk dream-pop blend of Steph Green. 

Catch knitting’s guitar-driven indie rock, the bedroom-pop of Housewife, neo-proto punk of Kingston’s Strange Happenings, the folk alt-rock of Burs, and the storytelling songs of Fraser Wayne and the Desert Eagles. Montreal-based Hélène Barbier brings bilingual avant-pop melodies, while Niña Volcán, a rising force in Canada’s emerging cumbia scene, is irresistible to dancing feet. 

Rock out to The Try Umphs, channel the post-punk of Ancient Greece, get into the vibe of pinksnail, bounce to the garage power-pop-punk of BBQ Pope, get your head bang on for the techno-punk of OLGA, and sink your teeth into the Indigenous goth pop of OLEXA. Check out the unforgettable sunnsetter, Five and Tens’ instrumental jazz/funk, the lyrics of A Horse Named Friday and the Palestinian post-classical music of Bilal Nasser. 

North East Bands

Sudbury bands featured at the festival include psych-punk band Will Powers on the Main Stage, This Love is Drone with its driving drone at the late night Campfire Stage,  and the sad-girl songs of Jessy Brunette on the Coffeehouse Stage, as well as Wednesday Warm-up bands – Lazy Chains, DJ Davey Lahteenmaa, and TRIN on the Beach Stage. From North Bay there’s Indigenous singer-songwriter David Laronde and the indie-rock songwriting of Lennie Rayen. RIVER RATS, made up of a mix of North Bay and Sudbury musicians, bring a punk-karaoke experience for youth 6-16. 

Experimental Sounds

Experimental bands and sounds will also seep through the festival with electronic art pop project Aniqa Dear,  Texan turned Torontonian BLUE LIGHT’s instrumental ambient/noise project, and Feelscape’s  healing sound baths. Artist-run Toronto record label Stereo Ferment will again present a mix of eclectic and electric DJs at the Dance Party. 

A few more bands will be announced in the coming weeks. 

Don’t forget to pick up your pass to your favourite week of the year!