Wavelength Music warms up winter with the 18th annual Wavelength Winter Festival running from February 16-18, 2018 in Toronto, Canada. #WL18 is a three-night live curated mixtape of the best NEW independent music from the North American underground. Adventurous music fans are invited to come get cozy at The Garrison for the Family Day weekend and discover their favourite new bands and artists of 2018. This year’s line-up includes Buke & Gase, Odonis Odonis, Brendan Canning (Broken Social Scene), MI Blue, Freak Heat Waves, Fusilier, You’ll Never Get to Heaven, Tough Age, Obuxum, Joseph Shabason (DIANA) and many more. (full line-up below).
#WL18 marks the 18th anniversary of the Wavelength Music Series, which started as a grassroots, artist-run concert series and community hub, throwing its first of over 700 shows at Ted’s Wrecking Yard (who remembers that spot?) on Feb. 13, 2000. Jump to 2018, and Wavelength Music is now one of the city’s leading independent arts organizations. The Winter Festival is one of TWO music festivals that Wavelength produces annually in Toronto, in addition to the summer’s outdoor Camp Wavelength extravaganza in August.
This year, the February festival, previously known as the Wavelength Music Festival, is embracing the spirit of the season and getting a rebrand as the Wavelength Winter Festival. All three nights of the festival will take place at one of Wavelength’s home-base venues, The Garrison, 1197 Dundas West. Wavelength will create a warm, cozy, and convivial atmosphere, encouraging independent music lovers to break free of their winter hibernation for the Family Day long weekend.
As with every year, Wavelength’s winter festival programming is future-forward, a “live curated mixtape” line-up of the newest, freshest and most exciting sounds in the Canadian independent music scene. Highlights include local female electronic-music artists Plazas, Obuxum, Bossie, and MI Blue all anchoring the festival’s opening night; buzzy Canadian underground music heroes Odonis Odonis, Freak Heat Waves (Victoria, B.C.), You’ll Never Get to Heaven (London, Ont.), and Tough Age (Vancouver/Toronto), and special guests from New York via The National’s label Brassland Records, Radiolab-approved art-rock duo Buke & Gase and African-American electro-pop artist Fusilier.
Single tickets are affordably priced, ranging from $9.99-$14.99 in advance, and an all access festival pass is on sale for $33.33. Tickets and passes will be available online at TicketFly.com and in stores in Toronto at Rotate This (801 Queen Street West, Toronto) and Soundscapes (572 College Street, Toronto). A Pay What You Can (PWYC) option is also available at the door for attendees on the Friday night only (Feb. 16).
Regular Wavelength concert-goers may also purchase a Wavelength Passport, which permits entry to all three nights of Wavelength Winter Festival 18, as well as admission to Camp Wavelength 2018 and every event of the Wavelength Monthly Music Series for the whole year – for two low prices: $99.99 for an Access All Shows Passport or $49.99 for a flexible Five Show Passport.
#WL18 Festival Schedule:
All shows @ The Garrison (1197 Dundas St. W.)
Doors 7:30pm • 19+
Friday February 16
BRENDAN CANNING (DJ set) (Toronto – Broken Social Scene co-founder brings the good vibes)
MI BLUE (Toronto – Lush alternative R&B)
BOSSIE (Toronto – Anthemic electro-pop)
OBUXUM ( Toronto – Experimental electronic soundscapes)
PLAZAS (Toronto/Vancouver – Cozy upbeat synth-pop)
Tickets: $9.99 advance / PWYC at the door
Ticket link: ticketfly.com/purchase/event/1624005
Saturday February 17
ODONIS ODONIS (Toronto – Dark industrial-rock trio / Telephone Explosion Records)
FREAK HEAT WAVES (Victoria BC – Psychedelic post-punk / Telephone Explosion Records)
TOUGH AGE (Toronto/Vancouver – DIY bubblegum punk / Mint Records)
KURT MARBLE (Toronto – Glammy indie psych-rock)
LUGE (Toronto – Danceable prog-punk)
Tickets: $11.99 advance / $15 at the door
Ticket link: ticketfly.com/purchase/event/1624022
Sunday February 18
BUKE & GASE (Hudson NY – Radiolab-approved art-rock duo / Brassland Records)
OMHOUSE (Toronto – Prog-folk indie-pop)
FUSILIER (Brooklyn NY – Soulful electro-rock / Brassland Records)
YOU’LL NEVER GET TO HEAVEN (London ON – Gorgeous ambient pop)
JOSEPH SHABASON (Toronto – DIANA saxman’s world/jazz atmospheres)
Tickets: $14.99 advance / $20 at the door
Ticket link: ticketfly.com/purchase/event/1624037
Festival Passes
• ALL-ACCESS FESTIVAL PASS: $33.33
Ticket link: ticketfly.com/purchase/event/1624067
• WAVELENGTH PASSPORT: $99.99 / $49.99 (includes access to Wavelength Winter Festival, Camp Wavelength 2018 & Wavelength Monthly Series through 2018)
Purchase link: wavelengthmusic.ca/passport/ (online only)
Advance ticket outlets:
Rotate This (801 Queen St. W.)
Soundscapes (572 College St.)
Ticketfly.com (exclusive online ticket provider)
For more information on Wavelength Music, visit wavelengthmusic.ca.
