Exclaim! Presents the Class of 2020 Concert Series with Basement Revolver, Hanorah, I M U R, Luna Li

Our ongoing concert series will feature performances in Toronto, Hamilton, Montreal, Vancouver and Edmonton

BY Allie GregoryPublished Dec 3, 2019

Your favourite Canadian concert series is back and better than ever. Exclaim!'s Class of 2020 concert series, co-presented with Toronto promoter Dan Burke, Eventbrite and Hamilton brewery Collective Arts, returns for a new year with performances from rising local talent all over the country. As always, we're curating top-tier performers that we're predicting you'll start hearing more of in the new year.

This year's edition sees five showcases in Toronto throughout the month of January. Meanwhile, we're continuing our journey to Hamilton for our opening ceremonies, along with trips out west to Vancouver and Edmonton, and east to Montreal. 

Kicking off in Hamilton on Friday, January 3, Class of 2020 begins with dream pop darlings Basement Revolver, hometown heroes Capitol, Montreal's LISA (with Dwayne Gretzky's Tyler Kyte) and quirky indie-rockers Dizzy Spells.

The next night (January 4), Toronto will get its dose of punk and heavy rock at the Monarch Tavern courtesy of locals BurnerWLMRTLuge and Piper Maru, alongside Montreal trio Dish Pit.

Montreal is in for a night of top-tier mixed genre performances on January 10 at Bar le Ritz PDB from soul queen Hanorah and dreamy electro-pop outfit Sorry Girls along with singer-songwriter Sasha Cay, who is set to cool down the showcase with some Nick Drake-flavoured folk rock. Dish Pit will head back home to join the madness alongside art punk Petra Glynt

On January 11, Toronto's Horseshoe Tavern will bear witness to hard-rock outfit Prancer, indie-alt rockers Glass Cactus, monochromatic post-punk troupe BLANKS, '90s-infused dream pop band For Keeps and mellow ballad machine Acapulco Gold.

Out west in Vancouver, the Exclaim! crew will take over Fortune Sound club the night of January 16 with "genre-bending make-out music" from I M U R, avant-garde Abbotsfordian Evan Konrad and local freak-punks Necking.

Meanwhile, back in Toronto on Friday, January 17, Monarch Tavern will light up again — just in time to play host to the serene singer-songwriter and saxophonist Emily Steinwall, R&B master Myles Castello, jazzy crooners nutrients and electro-pop entity Ferrari Garden. The fun continues at the Monarch the following night (January 18) with the return of Basement Revolver, the dreamy rock stylings of Luna Li, along with emo four-piece Roach, folk emo project Spirit Josh and '80s-inspired Toronto locals Ducks Unlimited.

Heading up the final weekend of the Class of 2020 is the second annual Edmonton showcase at the Buckingham. The January 23 showcase features Tame Impala-loving country quintet the Denim Daddies, good ol' rock'n'rollers the Nico Tobias Band and alt-country standouts the Bobby Tenderloin Universe.

Toronto closes out the party at Lee's Palace on January 24, with a celebration of local talent including power pop trio the Mooks, disco collective Human Magic, indie rockers Grizzly Coast and Portland TV.

For more information, take a look at the listings below, and follow the links for the official Facebook events which include showtimes and ticket links.

Class of 2020:

01/03 Hamilton, ON – Basement Revolver / Capitol / LISA / Dizzy Spells – The Casbah
01/04 Toronto, ON – Burner / WLMRT / Luge / Dish Pit / Piper Maru – Monarch Tavern
01/10 Montreal, QC – Hanorah / Sorry Girls / Sasha Cay / Dish Pit / Petra Glynt – Bar le Ritz PDB
01/11 Toronto, ON – Prancer / Glass Cactus / BLANKS / For Keeps / Acapulco Gold – Horseshoe Tavern
01/16 Vancouver, BC – I M U R / Evan Konrad / Necking – Fortune Sound Club
01/17 Toronto, ON – Emily Steinwall / Myles Castello / nutrients / Ferrari Garden – Monarch Tavern
01/18 Toronto, ON – Luna Li / Roach / Basement Revolver / Spirit Josh / Ducks Unlimited – Monarch Tavern
01/23 Edmonton, AB – The Denim Daddies / The Nico Tobias Band / The Bobby Tenderloin Universe – The Buckingham
01/24 Toronto, ON – The Mooks / Human Magic / Grizzly Coast / Portland TV – Lee's Palace

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