Salmo may have Shambhala, but Merritt has Bass Coast.
Tucked alongside the Coquihala Highway in the Nicola Valley, Merritt may be known as the country music capital of Canada, but it is also home to the burgeoning electronic music and arts festival, Bass Coast.
Local entertainment company 13th Floor is presenting the sole Okanagan stop on the Mutiny Tour, which celebrates some of the best artists from Bass Coast, at 2929 Nite Club Friday, March 4.
“I think Bass Coast choosing Vernon as their only Okanagan stop on their Mutiny Tour says a lot about what kind of scene has developed here,” said 13th Floor’s Josh Brazier. “People are starting to realize just how much fun this city can be and love the intimate and interactive setting provided at 2929 Nite Club.
“We’re seeing more and more people making the trip from out of town to attend these shows and see these world renowned artists up close and personal.”
Bass Coast has been running for the past eight years.
The festival, which runs July 8 to 11 this year, is operated mostly by women without corporate sponsorship and regularly sees performances by more than 100 international and B.C. artists annually. It is held in three immersive audio-visual environments with world class sound design by PK Sound (which does the sound for many of 13th Floor’s events).
It also features workshops and more than 50 original art installations.
Bass Coast’s Mutiny Tour makes stops in Vernon, Nelson, Banff, Revelstoke, Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, Portland, Seattle, Victoria and Whistler.
The event will feature performances by Bass Coast co-founder and musical director The Librarian (Squamish producer Andrea Graham) and Vancouver’s Sabota (Max Ulis and Robbie Slade).
Warming things up at the start of the night is Kelowna artist Weston, formally known as Subclaim.
The Librarian produces a unique blend of bass music that defies categorization. Her sound is rooted in low end frequencies and soulful melody.
Graham’s productions have been shared at the Pemberton Music Festival, CBC Television, Yale School of Theatre (soundtrack production), the World Ski & Snowboard 72 Hr. Film Festival, Whistler Television, and the Heavy Hitting Horror Festival.
Named after Sabota Road in Nelson, a notorious area where kids sneak out to congregate, smoke weed, and watch the sun come up, Sabota’s sound is geared towards what happens in the dark of night.
Longtime fixtures on the B.C. music scene, Ulis and Slade both have (if somewhat indirect) roots in the Kootenays, making it a fitting name for their collaboration.
Both have full time careers as DJ/producers: Ulis is an accomplished DJ and played an integral part in developing Canada’s West Coast post-techno dance scene as a charter member of the Lighta! crew; Slade, a Nelson native, is also the frontman of popular Vancouver band HUMANS.
Doors to Bass Coast’s Mutiny Tour at 2929 open at 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 at the door or $15 in advance at the Downtown Internet Lounge in Vernon, Hemp City in Kelowna or online at www.13thfloorent.com
Bass Coast will be selling festival tickets at the event along with brand, new merchandise. Visit http://basscoast.ca/mutinytour/ for more information.
Those in attendance will also have a chance to win tickets to the festival.
For guests traveling from out of town or those looking for a close place to stay following the show, 13th Floor has a deal with Vernon’s Fairfield Inn and Suites for a $99 hotel package that includes two tickets to the show and breakfast the following morning.