No one should miss the chance to soak in a summer music festival under the midnight sun — and Yellowknife's Folk on the Rocks offers exactly that, with a summer celebration running July 18 to 20 in Yellowknife, NT.
As our review of the festival noted in 2023, the extremely long days help in "maintaining festivalgoers' alertness and decreasing fatigue in the absence of your body's usual signals to begin shutting down at night." That will mean you're primed for the solo emergence of a veteran Canadian vocalist, a girl group for the 2020s, and some Southern rock up north.
See Exclaim!'s picks for the festival's must-see performances below, and find ticket info over at the festival's website.
Jeremie Albino
Toronto songwriter Jeremie Albino worked with producer Dan Auerbach (of the Black Keys) on last year's Our Time in the Sun, channeling road-worn blues rock and Southern warmth into a raw, inviting take on classic sounds.
Peter Dreams
It's a big year for July Talk, who made his acting debut in Ryan Coogler's acclaimed Sinners and went solo as Peter Dreams for an album alongside MOONRIIVR. His victory lap continues at Folk on the Rocks.
NADUH
Vancouver five-piece NADUH are a girl group for the 2020s, bringing the sugar and spice of classic girl groups with a feminist perspective and self-produced tracks that span R&B, hip-hop and pop.
Arielle Soucy
The meditative Montreal folk songwriter's 2023 album Il n'y a rien que je ne suis pas was one of Exclaim!'s favourite Canadian albums you might have missed that year; make sure her set isn't one of the favourites that you miss at Folk on the Rocks.
Tinge
Anishinaabe artist/singer-songwriter Veronica Blackhawk's Winnipeg indie rock project Tinge released their debut EP Big Deep Sigh back in 2023, ranking among Exclaims's 15 best for that year. They've been hinting at a follow-up in the time since, and it's entirely possible that Folk on the Rocks attendees may be among the first privy to their latest batch of deconstructive, soul-embalming new tunes.