Music festivals and fashion go hand-in-hand — from the flowing fabrics of folk festivals to the outrageous colours of Shambhala to the hippie-gone-H&M chic of Coachella.
Whatever your summer festival vibe, there's an outfit to complement it perfectly. With festival season in high gear, we reached out to some Canadian artists for their festival fashion tips and to see what they'll be wearing this summer, both on stage and in the audience. They told us about pleather-induced heat stroke, "shawl-core" fashion and more.
See the photos below. Past instalments in Exclaim!'s Show & Tell series can be found here.
Julia Wittmann of Absolute Treat
Formerly known as Dilettante, Absolute Treat aren't booked for any festivals in support of their newly released EP, Shattered Love. But when they hit up festivals, they tend to "dress somewhat counterintuitively." The band's Julia Wittmann can be seen here in a breezy, silver look. "Julia is an active lady who likes to feel in control, and a subtle black bra does the job. She tops the look off with a silver chain to help the queer agenda speak just a tiny bit louder," the duo tell Exclaim!
Photo: Jules Collarile
Altered by Mom love festivals so much that they even threw their own: Alteredfest, which took place in June, and they'll be hitting a few more festivals throughout the rest of the summer (including Canmore Folk, Edmonton Folk and Convergence). "Our festival dreams include creating chaos with the party buds, bringing back icing, and releasing more songs which you can hear us play live across Canada this summer," the group say.
Alexis Young of Blonde Diamond
Photo courtesy of the artist
"One of the best feelings in the world is riding my bike to show at Malkin Bowl on a warm summer evening with a gang of pals, then cruising home riding high on good vibes and sharing notes," says Alexis Young of Vancouver indie rockers Blonde Diamond, as she points to Viagra Boys as a highlight of the Stanley Park venue's upcoming calendar, "Not sure I'll be able to ride in these boots but I'm pretty sure I can make it work."
Photo courtesy of the artist
Dreamy Montreal indie pop songwriter Alicia Clara will be performing for her biggest-ever crowd at this year's Festival d'été de Québec — and she's been planning her outfit carefully. "I don't own a ton of clothes that would fit the summer festival category, and I like to subvert expectations through my style, so I want something simple, but striking," she says, pointing to Charli XCX, Sophie Thatcher, PJ Harvey, Clairo and Courtney Love as style inspirations. She's photographed here wearing the same yellow scarf from her single artwork for "Nothing Dazzled," the title track from her upcoming debut album. "It's purely accidental that it leans BRAT green," she says.
Photo courtesy of the artist
Toronto pop rockers Goodnight Sunrise are touring Canadian festivals this summer in support of the newly released album GET A LIFE — but they've already been enjoying summer vibes for months, since they skipped the brunt of the Canadian winter by heading to Bali. They tell Exclaim! that they're "pictured here after bargaining for accessories at the local market. In addition to being transformed physically, emotionally, and spiritually, we brought some of the endless tropical summer fashion vibes home with us."
They plan to "prioritize simplicity and comfort" in their festival clothes. On the other hand: "Who knows though, Vanessa might randomly choose to wear pleather pants on stage, like that time she got heat stroke playing a festival in Sarnia, ON."
Photo courtesy of the artist
Glitter grunge songwriter Camille Léon is spending part of this summer, catching Reading/Leeds Festival and seeing fellow Torontians Good Kid in London. During her time at home, meanwhile, she tells Exclaim!, "I'll also be keeping my eyes peeled for the 'Agave' series at the Burdock Brewery — a weekly music showcase every Monday highlighting emerging Toronto musicians."
Photo courtesy of the artist
Of all the shows chameleonic pop artist Magi Merlin will be playing this summer in support of her new EP Weird Little Dog, she's particularly excited for Montreal Jazz Festival. "[A] home base show will be so exciting," she tells Exclaim! "We've also been planning and thinking about the show since we found out we'd be playing an 11 p.m. slot July 2!" She adds that she's particularly excited to check out recent tourmate Nubya Garcia, also at Montreal Jazz.
Photo courtesy of the artist
Doom metal duo Mares of Thrace are based in Calgary — but, during festival season, Thérèse Lanz is jealous of those who get to enjoy the European festival circuit. Lanz says, Having now toured Europe, some things are just objectively better about playing music there, and 'a summer of nonstop festivals celebrating all my favourite subgenre niches, and they're usually at a castle or some shit' is one of them." That being said, Sled Island and Nelson, BC's MASSiF Music have emerged as homegrown favourites for Mares of Thrace, who are celebrating the release of their album The Loss.
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Toronto electronic pop synthesist Victoria Cheong recently released her New Chance album A Rock Unsteady, but she'll be spending this festival season focusing on her gig as a member of Jennifer Castle's live band. "We often fantasize that we will be yanked from our tents in the middle of the night to perform (like Leonard Cohen, Isle of Wight 1970, IYKYK) and thus, we will be donning a style we call 'shawl-core,'" she says. "'Cher if you believe' that this outfit will go over at the Calgary Folk Fest, where I will be singing with Jennifer Castle's band in July."
Photo: Gordon Hyland
When Vivienne Wilder isn't playing bass in the electro-jazz group Disaster Pony, she's making solo punk music, as heard on this spring's album Terrible Human. "I'm a big fan of all the different neighbourhood street festivals that happen in Toronto all summer long," she tells Exclaim! "You'll find me wandering around Do West Fest and the Roncesvalles Polish Festival this year for sure." She also vows to bring "the loveliest bubblegrunge vibes" to Voodoo Rockfest X in Odessa, ON.